Well I got lit up pretty good on my de Reuver comments from the other morning, and you folks are probably right. The guy was really fun and cool, and man was he fast when he was on the gas in the first moto. He was totally on target with what he thought, speed wise. He may or may not have been able to beat Short but otherwise, he had every American in the class besides Stewart covered.
However, I still feel like he set a high standard for himself. If he said "I don't know where I was going to finish" and did what he did, it would have been amazing. Instead, he set a target that he fell short of. He didn't fall short because he sucks or anything like that, he fell short because there were all kinds of different conditions he couldn't have been ready for--different bumps, different strategy, different weather. Those types of changes are hard to predict and plan for, so when he dropped his podium goal last week, I thought "uh oh."
But the most interesting part of this whole process is that I didn't see the fans light up against the guy. This sport has come a long way in accepting riders from other countries, to the point where I don't think people even consider riders like Langston, Reed, Metty or whoever a rider from another country. They're just riders, just like everyone else. I saw nothing but respect for De Reuver from the fans. It wasn't that way for poor JMB back in the day. Even the dynamic around the Motocross des Nations has changed. When I was a kid at Unadilla back in the day, it was a total USA versus the World battle, you would have thought Communism was headed to the White House if the Yanks lost that race. In the end, the US was battling Belgium and Holland--not exactly enemies there. Plus, most importantly, it was just a motocross race.
Anyway, we've come a long way. I'm sure fans are still going to be pumped on the des Nations this fall, just like when Everts passed Stewart in '06 and the world nearly exploded, or when RC passed Everts in '02 and the world nearly exploded. But, it's cool to see how far we've come to accepting riders for simply being good riders, regardless of where they're from. If I had this blog 20 years ago, I would have gotten nothing but giant thumbs ups from everyone who read it.
Tuesday, August 26
Southwick 2
Posted by Jason Weigandt at 12:18 PM
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31 Comments:
I agree with all the "De Reuver is a cool dude and deserves respect for coming over"-that's not in question.
I'm just wondering why a dude who says what he did can come over and
A-NOT beat everyone but Stewart
and
B-Pull out of the second moto 'cause he got tired! He quit people! He couldn't handle the heat and roughness of the track and quit!!! He admitted it!!!
Then he gets praised for trying his best???? Last time I checked the AMA did not just switch to a two moto format before Southwick, De Reuver knew this going in and Honda got him a bike, paid a mechanic, expenses for everyone and he went out and quit.
I would bet a lot of money that NONE of our top guys (Americans, Aussies, Kiwis) would ever QUIT the second moto of a GP.
I'm just saying.
Maybe you should say a little less, Matthes. You think what he said publicly isn't said in every trailer on Sunday morning by every racer? It's opinions like yours that make this sport so damned boring.
Even the MotoTalk people are saying you guys are crucifying him for speaking his mind, which says A LOT. Why hold De Reuver accountable and give Reed a free-pass on his persistent whiny sh*t-talking?
- MotoStan
Ok MotoStan, take away his comments. Pretend he never said anything...
Do you still think a 3-quit because he's tired is a success? I don't care where he's from, what he races etc etc, I think that from a race standpoint his visit was a failure.
Reed doesn't get a free pass, he's hated by the dudes on MT (and we all know they are truly the voice of the sport)
You just come off as too anxious to hammer down one of the Europeans, comment or no comment. I enjoy some cynicism as much as the next guy, but it just comes off as too selective.
And I wasn't validating the opinions of the Mototalkers, rather the opposite.
- MotoStan
Matthes are still mad Shorty turned you down at Hill de Ville... or is this a chance to get a poke at a YS/FIM rider... it's ok to tell the truth here... cuz FYI: Weege is still "The Man" of the microphone world!
YOU LADIES NEED TO CHILL THE F-WORD OUT AND RELAX A LITTLE...JERSEY-STYLE, LIKE THE STONE-MAN HERE.
AFTER THE RACE, JOIN THE MOST STYLIN' MOTOCROSS PHOTOGRAPHER IN THE BUSINESS, AND ALL THIS ANIMOSITY ABOUT THAT NAZI DE REUVER WILL DRIFT AWAY IN A PUFF OF SMOKE.
AND TO THE WOMEN FOLK OUT THERE, YOU WANT TO SEE THE REAL STEEL CITY, COME TO MY HOTEL ROOM AND THE BLACK SOCKS WILL COME OFF.
CARL MOTHER-F-WORDIN' STONE
MotoStan, at different points this year in my column, I've bagged on Billy Laninovich, Josh Hansen, Josh Grant, Ivan Tedesco and of course, J-Law.
All Americans btw. I really don't care who it is, I'm going to give my opinion on what I see. That's all. It doesn't matter if his name is Marc De Reuver or Mark Derringer.
I'm Canadian and they wanted to hang me up there last year for talking bad about Klatt.
I don't care where you're from, when you quit cause you're tired-I'm going to say something.
he's Dutch dude... not German.
I think the internet and media coverage has made everyone a lot more aware of whats going on all over the world.
You can feed the habit a lot easier.
When you see these guys interviewed on film you can relate to them a lot more. They are no longer some guy from o'seas that you read an interview on once.
That and when you see great riders in the states helping all these o'seas riders out (carmichaels etc) it makes them a part of the scene and more accepted.
Ricky has a lot to do with bridging the gap.
All these guys go to the states cos its their dream.
Stone-You are the man!
Matthes- Not so much!
What is very surprising is that you guys are going on and on about this, even you Stevo and Weeg which is really surprising, based on something that he didn't say, or didn't say like that. De Reuver never said that he could beat every American riders except Bubba. He said he "believed he could" which is completely different. I hope he believes that he can beat a guy like Shorty or Ferry. That would be weird to see a top rider like him not believing in his abilities to race. Somehow, somebody really jumped on it and made it a "I can beat all US riders" thing. He already said he never said the comments published in the interview by Meyer. And it's true that, listening to you guys during the race and watching the post-show, there was a lot of fuel added to the fire.
I think it was too obvious, hence the opposite comments it generated and the stronger support De Reuver is getting.
Let me say it again Shenzi, only I'll replace your MotoStan with your name-
Ok Shenzi, take away his comments. Pretend he never said anything...
Do you still think a 3-quit because he's tired is a success? I don't care where he's from, what he races etc etc, I think that from a race standpoint his visit was a failure.
I think he deserves to get props for coming over, he seems like a cool guy and I think I like him but no matter how you slice it, his race was almost a disaster
I don't wanna hear that he was misquoted either. That's a favorite athlete thing to say.
one race, dude. one single race.
Weege,
Everts "passed" Stewart because JS allowed him to go by. It was an allowance for the team. Come on, you know that!
Wow What is happening here? First Weege gets roasted about his comments and now Mathes too. I happen to agree with both of them.
I was actually rooting for De Reuver during the first moto on the web cast. I thought it was cool that he was backing up his bold prediction, but he laid an egg in the second moto.
Matthes: it seems you are being overly harsh on the 3-quit score due to the rider in question being a foreigner.
If one of the Loretta Lynn's rookies pulled the same score, you'd probably be talking about their "breakout performance". If a rider in the top 10-20 got 3rd in a moto, it would be celebrated as a career high. Instead, a foreigner fades and his race and trip to the US is called a failure. Good job.
Stewart is faster than anyone else- given. So where do we find another rider who can smoke him?
Steve, 2, 3 different things here.
A - where is the actual quote/interview line where he says "I can beat all US riders, except Bubba"?
B - Did he have a great Moto 1, yeah. Could he beat all US riders except Stewart? He showed that he could.
C - A 3-DNF is a failure, I agree. When a rider of his level doesn't win and doesn't make the podium, yes, it's a failure.
Does this makes his visit a failure? It depends what was the aim of his trip? He showed his speed and confirmed where he stands in the sand, he won more supporters in the US, he enjoyed his small break from the MXGP, he found out that he didn't have the condition to stand 2 motos at the US rhythm right now. Overall it is a rather positive experience, even if on a pure racing level, I agree, he didn't make it 2 motos.
It is a favorite media thing to say that it's a favorite athlete thing to say it was misquoted... :-)
On an unrelated note....watching the video of Millville's 2nd moto when Ferry crashed.
Was the flagger in the pits hanging with his bros???? He sure was late getting to his post and doing his responsibilities!!
holey moley...
steve, i agree that De Reuver's trip may have been a racing failure, but 'racing' is the key word. he seems to be a guy that you want to do well. rather than people feeling indifferent towards him, i think he gained quite a few fans during his stay. he didn't have any millsaps-like excuses for us. he admitted that he was spent. i'll cheer for a guy who is honest any day of the week.
...i think the up-coming election might have something to do with all of this literary pushing and shoving. ping came out in support of the republicans in his last 'ask ping'. bubbles gave a nod to W on the preshow... racer x's home state is the most conservative state ever...
maybe your readers want a change, weege.
this is awesome.
How cool would it be if there was a USGP like the old days. Once a year they all play in the same sandpit - not just the few MXDN riders. Make it part of both championships so no one back's out.
The hype would be insane.
At this point I've probably been misquoted on my own blog. I can't believe this has blown up this big. We now have the first ever Euro v. USA battle about NOT having a Euro v. USA battle!
What I expected, when Marc had troubles in the second moto, was for US fans to unload on him. Instead, we have fans unloading on people for unloading on him. When Bubba quit the second moto at Hangtown in '05, people weren't nearly this nice. Does this mean we've all come a long way, or does it mean we've come to far?
And if Marc really didn't say the quote from MX Large, then this is all moot. But I'm glad people are Anyway, carry on, gents.
"Hopefully I can make the podium in Southwick. Or is that aiming too high, I’m not really sure? At least I get the impression that apart from “Superman” James Stewart I can beat any American in the sand." Marc used words such as "hopefully" and "I get the impression": does it qualify as aggressive/ bold statement? He said he "can", but the track proved otherwise. We Europeans think everybody is free to say whatever he wants, the results will prove the author of the statement either right or wrong.
I may come across as a broken record, but let me point out again that Southwick was just another De Reuver day: I don't think it is a coincidence that Marc ended 10th oa, which it's his oa position in the World Championship.
P.S. Matthes, I feel bad that RXC has ceased operations. Make sure to give us your new email address in the next "Observations".
Weege - you totally are right on with your original point - by properly managing people's expectations, he totally avoids this "hero to zero" PR fiasco, and instead just becomes a instant stud for putting up a 3 in moto 1.
***Please somebody clarify: was it a 3-quit, or 3-crash-quit? I have heard it both ways. To me, there's a big difference.
Disappointment over Stewart's Hangtown race was due to the high hopes many had for him at the time to be an American racing hero. They didn't want the next great thing to be a one moto show.
There were no aspirations for De Reuver's 338 event relatively speaking.
http://motocross.com/articles/article/news/20080826/southwick__marc_de_reuver-16457.html
That's my blog on mx.com and all the mx.com people agree with me so all you Blogandt people can suck it.
Just kidding, if you didnt know that already.
t0o meNi lo0nz @ t3h inT3rw3bzz!@!!!1!
good blog weege. can't say i agree entirely about everything, but it's an interesting topic. has moto changed so drastically that we can't even bag on the metro-sexual sand rider from the east? seems that way. oh well, de Hoover is a cool dude and deserves some huge respect.
I used to post here all the time weege, until you pulled a De Reuver a month or two ago and gave up on your blog. I just checked in to see if things were any better, AND THEY ARE! Glad to see ol' Garbage disposal gut posting some more stuff to! I suppose I will start reading your blog again! Keep up the bloging
weege + matthes:
in trying to be "mean" youre both being too nice. its really very simple...most of the people who post here also post on the website mototalk that was mentioned above. de reuver posts on mt and as usual they kiss the ass of any rider who will take time out to acknowledge their pathetic, ass-kissing, godforsaken existences.
if he wasnt then you guys would be gettin props right now. its a sad day when somebody who films post-race youtube videos in his garage by himself and calls himself five hundred guy has any influence in this business.
as someone who has raced at southwick for 22 years all i can say is that track will kick your ass more some days than others.dont think it will be the same week to week.
Yo guys, do we see any top american riders like bubba come to the gp's for a weekend????
No they don't! Why you ask? I don't know, but I do know it was a great weekend in southwick! It gives the races more to talk about, but that's something you(o so cool)americans don't understand.
nelis from holland.
Be a fan of a rider and the sport.
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