Stark Future presents the Stark VARG electric motorcycle

WADA also surprised, as Brandy Richards, the first rider in the more than 100-year history of the International Six Days Enduro to win all tests in his class, was named the 2021 rider of the year at the ‘American Motorcyclist Association. . In six days, she won all 28 tests in Italy. She anchored Team USA’s victory for the Women’s World Trophy, which won the 2021 ISDE by more than 15 minutes over runner-up Great Britain.

“I never thought that I would be considered for [Motorcyclist of the Year] even after winning the ISDE, ”said Richards upon hearing the news. “It is amazing that WADA recognized me… and I am shocked and grateful to receive this honor.”

WADA also announced that the 2022 schedule is out for the 41st Annual Monster Energy AMA Amateur Motocross Championship – Zones, Regions and the Final itself at Loretta Lynn’s (August 1-6). Read more here.

In addition, there are some rule changes on the table that are subject to public comment until December 24, next Friday, including limiting former pros who score points to just two age groups (Junior + 25 and Masters +50) and compulsory for longer motorcycles in the Regionals. You can view them here and weigh in with your comments.

So no real supercross-related surprises just yet, thankfully, but there are still a few weeks to go until it hits January. And once the series begins, there is the possibility of another type of surprise….

Towards the end of the 2021 Lucas Oil AMA Pro Motocross Championship, a COVID-19 outbreak derailed several riders and racing teams, including Marvin Musquin of Red Bull KTM and Max Anstie of Twisted Tea / HEP Motorsports Suzuki. Fortunately, this did not affect the championship in either class. The pandemic and associated travel restrictions / concerns have also had the unfortunate consequence of fundamentally preventing Team USA from attending the Monster Energy FIM Motocross of Nations in Italy. The hope was that the coronavirus would have run its course by the start of the 2022 Monster Energy AMA Supercross Championship, which begins January 8 at Angel Stadium in Anaheim (a round which, of course, did not happen in 21 due to the same health problems).

Sadly, a glance at this week’s sports headlines doesn’t paint a positive picture of where we are in this ongoing epidemic. “The NFL has now had 75 players positive for COVID in the past two days, by source,” tweeted Adam Schefter, an ESPN football insider. “Brooklyn’s COVID-19 protocol list grows to seven, including James Harden,” an ESPN.com headline said regarding the NBA. “Odell Beckham Jr. among nine players placed on Los Angeles Rams’ COVID-19 list,” was another headline. And finally, “NFL point spreads dramatically as sportsbook deals with COVID-19 fallout.”

The odd thing is that when you watch the NFL, NBA, or NHL, there is usually no empty seat in the stands because the stadiums and arenas are packed with fans. If the same percentage of fans suffered from COVID-19 as team players, a Brooklyn Nets basketball game would only have half the fans in the stands because half of the actual team tested positive. Of course, the inconsistencies between the number of players released and the number of fans in the stands are due to the fact that players are tested practically every day, according to league protocols, while fans are not.

With the start of the season just around the corner, we’re sure the folks at Feld Entertainment have worked tirelessly to put in place as many security protocols and policies as possible to get the 2022 series up and running. feels as normal as possible. possible, just like in early 2020. But they’ll test runners often, and there’s a good chance that at some point in the championship, COVID will show up in someone’s test and knock them out a race or two. . And just as we see in other sports, the show will almost certainly continue, and fans will be there (although some may have to adjust their fantastic PulpMX and MotoXDream360 teams). It’s just the world we still live in right now.

We’ve been shooting the annual Monster Energy / Racer X Supercross Season previews for about ten seasons. We’ll be shooting 2022 shows next week, so the episodes will run over the holidays and take you through January 8 and Anaheim 1. We’ve got some cool ideas planned with guests joining us for the analysis, by my side, Steve Matthes and Jason Thomas. I can’t believe we’ve been doing these things for ten years. In fact, we used to film them at our old friend Jason Hooper’s house in North Carolina, and then we spent a few years filming them in the Pro Circuit store in California, but COVID-19 makes it hard to know who will be. open when, so we’re using Steve Matthes’ PulpMX Studio in Las Vegas at the moment. It would be cool to go back to California for the concerts next year. Either way, get ready for some epic bench races as well as a way to keep up with any stories you might have missed during the offseason.

I’m a little disappointed, though, as I went to ClubMX this week to watch some guys roll, but the tall Justin Brayton wasn’t there. It turns out that JB had a big fall earlier this week and is going to need some time off. He’ll be back and ready for Anaheim, however. Test track accidents are always a frightening prospect, and our man Phil Nicoletti provided his thoughts on that this week in his UnPhiltered Q&A column. Additionally, Phil complained about having to spend money on Christmas presents. He thinks Christmas shouldn’t be about spending and feeling the spirit. How convenient!

The news arrives hot and heavy. We’ve had all of these team photoshoots and the like over the last week and then Stark Future has shocked the industry with their new electric bike, the VARG. I’ve now learned that Stark means ‘strong’ in Swedish, so consider the company name to be Strong Future. Will he have a solid future? I hear a lot of positive things about the company and the people who support it. Electric bikes aren’t just about making an electric bike. You have to raise the startup money to start a business from scratch. But the electric is very, very attractive as a startup, especially in motocross, which runs relatively short races. If the rider gets tired before the battery, and it doesn’t take too long to charge, the problem is solved. This makes the electric very attractive for this sport. I’ve shared some thoughts on this on my own YouTube channel.