I attended a social event where a number of racing legends were part of the festivities. The master of ceremonies did a commendable job of introducing most of these dignitaries. But he fumbled badly when it came to introducing the real legend.
“A man who needs no introduction,” said the emcee. “Roger De Coster.”
What? The most influential individual in the history of motocross needs no introduction? I couldn’t believe my ears. Now, if I had a stronger backbone or was a little less polite, I would have yelled at the stage that this man may not need an introduction, but he absolutely deserves an introduction. To this day I feel ashamed I just sat there instead of jumping on the stage, grabbing the mic and giving this introduction.
MY ROGER DE COSTER INTRODUCTION
Before winning five 500cc Motocross World Championships, this rider had already established himself as a disrupter. European brands like CZ, Maico and Husqvarna dominated the motocross landscape. In a shocking move, this rider left the security of the CZ factory team to join Suzuki, a Japanese company. He was hired to develop and race a motorcycle to compete against the “establishment.” Pundits called his decision foolish. A Money grab. The end of a promising career. That was before he rode to 5 World Championships and opened the flood gates of highly-competitive, Japanese-made motocross bikes.
Now most mere mortals would take the money from those World Championships and retire to a beach in the Bahamas. But not this rider. He was just beginning his career. And more disruption was on the way.
This Belgium rider fell in love with America and moved here. He saw the massive motocross potential that his adopted country possessed. So he didn’t leave motocross racing, he just changed his position from rider to team manager. Or better, team mentor. Under his guidance, American riders gradually lost their wild riding antics for a more refined, deliberate riding style. They were already fast, now they could be fast for the entire moto.
When Supercross was born in the United States, it was shunned by the European motocross community. This legend again saw potential in what others called a novelty. He helped American motocrossers develop a whole new set of skills and saw that the machinery kept pace. On the business side, he realized the potential Supercross offered by attracting big crowds to comfortable stadiums in major city centers. Again, he bet on a dark horse and again, it won.
Back to the disrupting. He took a rag-tag squad of four young American riders to the 1981 Motocross des Nations where they broke the European stronghold by winning the event. Think about this for a second. It would be like Joe DiMaggio moving to Brazil, training a young baseball team and then have them travel to Brooklyn to win the World Series! Our now “American Legend”would never be as beloved in his home country of Belguim especially after his teams dominated the Motocross des Nations for the next 13 years. More than one Belgium fan called him a traitor.
Now somebody this dominant, disruptive and, some might say, disrespectful to the establishment, must be a hard person to be around. But nothing could be further from the truth. This man is polite, friendly and approachable. You know that old saying, “Never meet your heroes.”? Well, this man proves the exception to that saying. Please give a warm welcome to Mr. Roger De Coster.
And by the way, happy birthday, Roger.
