I grew up watching Irish road racing, where I could walk around the paddock (read “field”) and ask superstars like Michael Dunlop for autographs, and I saw the best riders of my generation racing at COTA on the most modern two-wheelers in the form of MotoGP bikes.
These racing series have their place. But my weekend at MotoAmerica was a more intense experience for me than I would have thought possible for someone who is not a motorcycle racer. And the event aroused emotions in me that I would never have expected from a race weekend.
At first I was ashamed that I had grown up looking down on MotoAmerica. I had always been a fan of MotoGP and had a vague eye on World Superbike (WorldSBK) but did not follow MotoAmerica. Then I was overcome with excitement because an environment like this Despite it exists. Finally, I felt a twinge of envy for all the US citizens who can just go out and enjoy a complete MotoAmerica weekend by booking a day off and a few flights. But I have one more question.
Do you know, Americans, what you have here?
Open paddock
Imagine you were at a music festival and all the artists had their open canopy tents spread out everywhere the music-goers were.
You could watch them warm up, tune their instruments, and talk to the sound engineers who were literally feet away from you. That’s what happens at MotoAmerica, but with racers, bikes, mechanics, and every anodized part that appears in a car nut’s wet dreams.
You can stand a few feet from Josh Herrin’s Ducati V4 R and watch it transform from a skeleton frame into a race-winning machine, and follow it as the mechanics roll it to the starting grid. You’ll have to stop following the mechanics just before the starting grid, but you’ll still get an intense motorcycle racing experience that’s only better than the race itself.
And that’s just the beginning.
Brian J. Nelson
Brian J. Nelson
Brian J. Nelson
While trying to grasp the concept of this open paddock environment, I was lured into watching the King of the Baggers Challenge race on one of the TVs in a tent. Before I knew it, Wayne Rainey, MotoAmerica’s President and three-time 500cc World Champion, was sitting next to me watching the same race. Two minutes later, a random couple joined us. We oohed and ahhed during the 3-lap sprint race as panniers cracked, broke and flew open before the race leader went too wide on the final corner and lost the race.
All four of us silently participated in one of the most exciting races I’d seen in years before Rainey broke the silence by saying, “That was a terrible mistake.” And then a thought occurred to me: “What the hell is going on here?” which I uttered silently after realizing Rainey was talking to me about a race we had just watched together.
There is nothing like it in any other major motorcycle championship in the world. To say that you get a glimpse behind the scenes of professional racing is an understatement. You are behind the scenes, just one step away from being in the thick of it.
I ask again: Do you know what you have here?
I could have spent my time at MotoAmerica wandering around the paddock and hoping to meet more of my motorcycle heroes, but what was on offer at the track was just too interesting.
A weekend full of highlights
Even if everything else about a MotoAmerica weekend had been similar to a MotoGP or WorldSBK event, I would still have left in awe thanks to the open paddock. But the folks behind MotoAmerica have designed the on-track activities to be just as exciting and unconventional. The races are so varied that it’s difficult to identify which is the main event.
That’s part of the beauty.
You are not told what the highlight of your weekend should be – that is up to you. And that is generally not the case.
Motorcycle racing weekends usually reach their peak. You are always led to the main race, whether it is the premier class in MotoGP or the Superbike race at the Isle of Man TT. But at MotoAmerica I felt like I was experiencing a series of peaks, as each class of racing had its own uniqueness that revived my interest every time the starting lights went out.
It felt like I was in a Michelin starred restaurant where there are 12 courses. Each course is special and exists in its own world, yet it is part of a larger experience. After the meal, there is no right or wrong answer as to what you enjoyed best. In comparison, a weekend at any other top racing series is like a normal 3-course meal – there is undoubtedly a highlight, the main course, and if that is not good, the whole meal is a disappointment.
When MotoAmerica introduced the SuperHooligan and King of the Baggers (KOTB) series, it didn’t just add more races to the calendar – it changed the way you experience the weekend for the better.
I won’t go into the specifics of each class, but I will share a few things I wish I had known. First off, I’d like to say that anyone who has spoken negatively to me about the KOTB series has never seen a race in person.
If they had done that, they would have nothing bad to say.
Brian J. Nelson
Brian J. Nelson
Brian J. Nelson
I wasn’t against KOTB, but I never tried to understand it, and I didn’t really want to. What a surprise then when I left Laguna Seca calling it my favorite class of the entire weekend. The racing was more exciting than anything else I’d seen, the bikes flexed more than in the other classes, and every time they turned a corner there was a rawer, more intense, more emotional bang. From the moment I saw the first KOTB race, it became like a drug, and I wanted more all weekend long.
The KOTB series was the adrenaline rush I needed, but the SuperHooligan series touched me on an emotional level.
I found out the backstory of the SuperHooligans and learned that they are basically open to anyone who can qualify. If you do well enough in regional races, you can get your MotoAmerica credentials and try to qualify for a MotoAmerica SuperHooligan race. If you stay within the qualifying time, you’ll race against the best racers in the USA on their factory machines. For a mere mortal, this could be a lifelong dream come true.
I found myself more and more often looking out in the midfield for the guys who were clearly privateers working on their bikes and imagining the story behind it. Hell, I even saw an SV650 on the grid that unfortunately retired before the race started and I felt it.
Brian J. Nelson
Brian J. Nelson
Brian J. Nelson
It was an emotional, almost physical journey. It may sound strange to talk about physical exertion, but each of the four classes at Laguna Seca (SuperHooligan, KOTB, SuperSport and SuperBike) has its own unique sections of track where these machines shine best, and I sped around the track to catch 600-pound excavators squirting out of the spiral turn, then back to turn four to watch the Hooligans lift the front with a quick change of direction.
Under the California sun, my heart pounded with excitement and physical exertion, and every time I found the perfect corner that highlighted the best features of a class, I felt rewarded for the sweat that rolled down my brow.
Just when it was time to relax and reflect on the new racing styles I had experienced, it was time for the Superbikes to take off. But it’s not just about Superbikes, it’s about Superbikes at Laguna Seca, you know, the track that racing fans have wanted to bring MotoGP back to for about 15 years? Well, the MotoAmerica Superbikes are about a second slower than the MotoGP bikes before Laguna Seca was dropped from the calendar, and WorldSBK hasn’t raced there for five years.
American racing fans, there are motorcycle races at Laguna Seca. And that’s not all: No other two-wheel racing series in the world races faster on this track than the MotoAmerica SuperBike class.
Brian J. Nelson
Brian J. Nelson
Brian J. Nelson
I’m not ashamed to say this, I’m jealous of what you have. I was one of the people who lamented the lack of MotoGP at Laguna Seca and wished it would come back, but there’s no need. MotoAmerica has solved the problem. And it costs $30 a day – so there you go.
I ask again: Do you know what you have?
Captivate your friends
If you go to a MotoAmerica round and feel like nothing has happened for you in at least one of the four or five classes running that weekend, maybe racing isn’t for you?
But if you’ve read this far, I’m guessing it probably is. And like most motorcycle racing fans, you want to share your passion with your friends, which isn’t always easy. But that’s MotoAmerica’s ace up its sleeve.
If I wanted to get one of my friends into motorcycle racing, I would treat them to a weekend at MotoAmerica. If they don’t find anything that piques their interest that weekend, they’ll probably never be interested in motorcycle racing. And if that happens, send them off to check out the custom builds, watch a stunt show, or go go-karting. Basically, point them in the direction of the fan zone.
I went to see it, and that’s almost a story in itself, because you see riders from all walks of life coming together in this motorcycle microcosm. But while I was there, my gut instinct was pulling me back to the track – like I had race-induced FOMO.
Brian J. Nelson
What MotoAmerica has accomplished in just 10 years is just incredible. I mean, the only downside for me was that the racing was so good that I couldn’t bear to miss even a minute of the race track, and it seems pretty ridiculous to call that a downside.
But it’s an experience that has to be had in person. The open paddock, the crazy racing classes and the gathering of two-wheeled brothers from all walks of life are not something you can experience through a screen.
I would even go so far as to say that anyone who claims to like motorcycle racing and doesn’t make the effort to go to a MotoAmerica race after reading this article is absolutely insane or a liar. It lasts three days, costs $90, and will surely change your perspective on “exciting racing.” Oh, and you can go to Laguna Seca if you want.
For the last time: Do you know what you have here?
