Name                                        Hometown                      Score             

1. Mike Schultz                              Pillager, Minn.                     5:56.564
2. Todd Thompson                        Cottonwood, Calif.                5:58.119
3. Beau Meier                             Susanville, Calif.                    6:05.787
4. Jason Woods                           Highlands, N.C.                      6:06.097
5. Jim Wazny                                Merrill, Mich.                         6:30.019
6. Samuel Erasmus                       Stilfontein, South Africa           6:58.554
7. Jesse Gildea                             Osceola, Iowa                        7:04.431
8. Shane Shipley                           Indiana, Pa.                          8:40.184
9. Ricky James                             Murrieta, Calif.                       8:54.293
10. Nick Pappas                             Livermore, Calif.                     8:55.502
11. Dave Turner                              Salem, Ore.                          9:55.004
12. Ranel Cox                                 Tuscon, Ariz.                         11:10.209

2011 Honda CRF450R

I'll admit it: new bike introductions have lost a little bit of their magic these past couple of years. Because of economic concerns at the factories--paired with the fact that very few riders spring for a new bike every single year--the excitement that used to surround the unveiling of the new models has diminished just a little. This trend was underlined during Honda's 2010 model launch, in which their flagship race bike, the CRF450, turned out to have no significant changes. Worse yet, Honda also revealed that the bikes would only arrive at dealers in very limited numbers...in the spring.

It wasn't Honda's fault, though--they still had lots of '09s sitting around, and that bike was a complete redesign from the '08. Still, I can't help but yearn for the days when nearly every year brought dramatic changes--the '80s and early '90s was the heyday for this--and nearly every year most serious riders would pop for a new ride (or two.) With the MSRP on the big bikes eclipsing $7,000, nowadays only riders who routinely sport top-hats and monocles can afford to buy bikes in the volume that regular guys did a few years ago.

All that said, the new rides from Honda and Suzuki still look plenty awesome. I don't think 2011 is a new-bike year for me (my '08 is still going strong,) but these new machines still do fire up the imagination...if not quite as much as they used to.

2011 Honda CRF250R

2011 Suzuki RMZ450

2011 Suzuki RMZ250

For the past few weeks, it's been one thing or another--a family vacation, a mountain bike trip, a niece's birthday party--that has kept me off my motocross bike. Every time I pass my bike in the garage, I think to myself, Gotta get out to ride soon. Yet it hasn't happened.

But a few minutes ago I resolved to change that. I cleared my schedule and made the plans. I called my dad to invite him along and mentally prepared myself to have my front brake on the right side (again, I've been riding my mountain bike a lot.) And it feels good to have done these things.

Sometimes it's tough to put all the pieces together to just go out and moto. It's far too easy to get distracted when you've got kids and bills and a semi-bustling web site to pay attention to. Yet the truth is that until you make the time, riding is just another thing on your to-do list. And I'm trying not to add many more things to that list these days--there are enough car repairs, dentist appointments and e-mail chores to fill that list just fine as it is.

So this weekend I'll be lightening my burden a little by throwing some roost off it. See you Sunday.

P.S. Please excuse the lack of posts this week--it really was family vacation time, and the laptop didn't come along. We went to the ocean and the combination of electronics, salt water and young children seemed like a dangerous mix.

****

Former Factory Kawasaki, Yamaha and Suzuki rider Timmy Ferry announced today that he's retiring from professional motocross effective immediately. Ferry has been trying to recover from a broken heel suffered at the 2009 Daytona Supercross and although he came back to race last summer, the injury lingered and prevented "Red Dog" from riding to the best of his ability.

"Going into 2010, I had a couple of offers to race but I thought it was best to just heal up and try to get back to being able to train and ride the way I need to in order to be competitive. Unfortunately, my foot has not allowed me to do that." says Ferry "I can't race to the level I was use to so it is time to hang up my boots"

With a professional career that started in 1991 as a multi-time amateur champion, Ferry has certainly left a mark on professional supercross/motocross with the 1997 125 East Coast Supercross championship, a 3-time member of Team USA at the Motocross des nations, two 125 supercross wins, four AMA motocross national wins, an AMA rookie of the year award in 1992 and the top privateer award in supercross in 1999.

Having achieved a career that spanned so long and produced so many wins and podium finishes certainly makes it easier to accept retiring for the 35-year old Ferry.

"I can't believe that I've been able to do as much as I have in the sport and I'm grateful for all the fans that cheered me on over the years as well as the relationships that I've made. Everything I have in my life has been because of motocross and even though I feel like I'm ending my career a little prematurely, I have no regrets with how everything has turned out" said Ferry.

"I had a ton of fun in my career, especially the last few years when I rode for Monster Energy Kawasaki and I'd like to thank those guys for everything they've done for me. I'd like to thank everyone at O'Neal, Scott, Etnies, Gaerne, OMS Sports and most of all my coach and trainer Dean Golich and the CTS crew for always keeping me in great shape. Also my doctors Warren Kramer, Thomas Bienz, Sten Kramer, Greg Solis, Gardner Tarlow and Stanley Moles for being there for me." 

"I'd also like to thank Yamaha Motor Corp, Factory Suzuki, Mike Rossini and Alan Brown for all that they've done. As well, I'd like to thank the media who have always been great to me and Steve Matthes, Mark Russell, Shawn Irwin, Jason Hasseig and the Nicolini family for their support and most of all my family for supporting me in every way possible. Thanks to everyone for a great career!"

Date Venue City

January 8 Angel Stadium Anaheim, Calif.

January 15 Chase Field Phoenix

January 22 Dodger Stadium Los Angeles

January 29 Oak-Alameda City Stadium Oakland

February 5 Angel Stadium Anaheim, Calif.

February 12 Reliant Stadium Houston

February 19 Qualcomm Stadium San Diego

February 26 Georgia Dome Atlanta

March 5 Daytona Int’l Speedway Daytona, Fla.

March 12 Lucas Oil Stadium Indianapolis

March 19 Jacksonville Municipal Stadium Jacksonville, Fla.

March 26 Rogers Centre Toronto, ON

April 2 Cowboys Stadium Arlington, Texas

April 9 Edward Jones Dome St. Louis

April 16 Qwest Field Seattle

April 30 Rice-Eccles Stadium Salt Lake City

May 7 Sam Boyd Stadium Las Vegas

Enjoy it, boys, because shopping carts can find their ways to strange and distant places, and you don't want any part of that operation.

And although this photo wasn't taken by Jim, I included it here because it gives you a taste of the next big thing in motorsports: freestyle supermoto.

It's said that freestyle supermoto pilots will be taking over ramps and skateparks alike in the coming months, so tell everyone you saw it on mx775.com first.

And give yourself some mental bonus points if you know this freestyle supermoto pioneer...

Oh, and check out more of Jim's photos on our message board or on his Flickr page.

You've got to love untouched racetracks...especially those constructed in the parking lot of a high-rise hotel and casino. 

Check out more of Jim's photos on our message board or on his Flickr page.

The 2010 Mammoth Mountain MX kicks off this Thursday. and the entry list is stacked with lots of northern Nevada locals. Check it out here, and be sure to check out the Mammoth web site after the race to see how everyone did.

I just watched episode four of season one, which focuses largely on Mike Alessi's ill-fated attempt to return from a knee injury last summer, and it was completely fascinating. If you love The Great Outdoors movie series (as I do,) then you'll also love this show (both franchises are produced by filmmaker Troy Adamitis.)

As for the Alessis, if any of your moto moms or dads are looking for someone to show you how to be an awful mini parent, Tony Alessi is more than willing to oblige during the course of this episode. The guy cares about his son, without a doubt, but it seems like he's probably doing more harm than good for him at this point. 

But check out the episode and see if you agree or disagree--it's a good one either way.