Rock FM
By TMX Archives on 8th Apr 04
I'M NOT sure how it works in the UK but over here on the television news they always save the feel-good stories for the end of the broadcast. I'M NOT sure how it works in the UK but over here on the television news they always save the feel-good stories for the end of the broadcast. Of course, by then most of us have already switched off having reached (or, more recently, far exceeded) our daily quota of despair and misery. By the time the talking heads have switched to the lighter fare, we're watching some mindless Seinfeld rerun we've already seen 11 times. So today, we bring the happy up front.The Indianapolis Supercross has been synonymous with Mike LaRocco since time began, or thereabouts. It's the hometown race for the South Bend, Indiana, native who's had nicknames ranging from 'LaRocket' to 'the Invisible Man' throughout his career. Now 33 years old, he's known simply as 'The Rock', the veteran who's always in the mix but never seems to get the breaks he needs.There's a running joke during the holiday season each year in which someone always wants to buy LaRocco a start. His fans have long been accustomed to hearing that their hero has exited the first turn in, say, 12th place. Of course, they know that he'll only get stronger throughout the Main Event and that he will charge ahead with unsurpassed determination until he sees the chequers. Because of this, even money puts him on the podium on any given night, no matter where he finds himself in the early going. Which is generally in 12th.So imagine the surprise and delight the 47,000 Indy fans experienced at this year's race when their beloved #5 pulled a textbook holeshot. Nobody could believe their eyes. In their dreams they'd always seen him pulling off a win here but it would surely result from one of his patented late-race charges. A holeshot was out of the question, yet there it was. In 17 years as a pro racer it was only the third time he was first out of the gate.So began a 20-minute screamfest for the RCA Dome faithful. Each time LaRocco passed by the fans would leap to their feet and crank up the decibels to a point where Mike himself almost "had to pull over and wave my arms to quiet everyone down because it was hard to think". But of course he never did pull over and he never did lose the lead. And the fans never did stop cheering.When LaRocco finally did secure the Indy victory his wife Beth and son Ryder were on the floor to greet him. Mike lifted Ryder onto his bike and took him for a victory lap around the perimeter of the stadium and it was impossible to tell who was having more fun, the race-winner, his awestruck son and wife, or the hometown crowd who were standing and applauding their local hero. Even the normally stuffy, staid pressbox was celebrating. Grown men wiped away tears of joy brought on by a win that transcended bike colour or company affiliation. It was something to behold. But while the city switched into full-on celebration mode those other team managers and factory bigwigs had to sober up quickly because it's that time of year again.Yes, the Silly Season is upon us. A favourite time of year for fans of any sport, this is when new rumours spring up almost hourly about who's going where for the next season. This year's version is especially intriguing as the top three racers in America - Ricky Carmichael, Chad Reed and James Stewart - are all in the last year of their respective contracts. On the ever-entertaining moto-message boards, everyone's got a scoop or a little piece of insider forbidden knowledge. Of course, it's generally rubbish but that's the fun of it.There is one common thought dominating this year's rumour mill - Suzuki is the wild card. With Stewart on a Kawasaki, Reed on a Yamaha and Carmichael on a Honda, Suzuki's best and brightest have spent most of their time on rehab equipment. Sebastien Tortelli, practically forgotten on these shores thanks to an endless string of injuries, has been forced to miss yet another season while Travis Pastrana has split his time between rally cars and knee injuries. So Roger DeCoster's squad is in the market and we hear they're ready to splash the cash. The question is who will they go for? The three candidates all have much to offer but each has his drawbacks as well.Carmichael, of course, is a known winner. When he's healthy he's always a safe bet to end up on top of the podium. He's won a championship every year since he turned pro and nobody believes his recent knee injury will put a stop to that. But RC has never been a true fan favourite in the McGrath or LaRocco mold - he places more importance on winning races than he does winning people over. He's likeable but not loveable but you have to like his winning percentage.Reed has shown that he can run with anyone in the 250 class and he has dominated this year's supercross series. And let's not forget he also beat Carmichael six straight times to end the 2003 season. Reed can race with and defeat anyone on the supercross track at any time but he remains an unproven talent outdoors. We hear he's going to start emphasising that part of his game but nobody's sure if he can really put it together on the National tracks.And then there's Bubba. James Stewart has made it clear that this is his last year on a 125 and you can bet that every team would love to have him in the premier 250 class. James consistently puts in lap times on his 125 that are faster than most - or all - of the 250 riders, he clinched the 2004 East Region SX title with two weeks to spare and he looks to be the sport's next true superstar - or its first megastar. But without any pro-level experience on a 250 he's still a gamble - an unknown commodity. Still, he's in serious demand. People say he could be the motocross equivalent of Tiger Woods. But Woods helped make golf cool - imagine what Bubba could do with a sport that was already cool when he got here.By Jeff Kocan, courtesy RacerX