Grant Langston
2004
Ricky Carmichael hobbled onto the field at Anaheim Stadium after surgery to repair a knee injury. He had been riding with the injury, but chose to miss supercross and get it fixed. The rumor was that RC had lost confidence in the Honda CR250R but did not want to race SX on the CRF450R. Whatever the reason for his timing, the fact that he showed up when he wasn't even racing finally endeared him to the fans forever. With no RC, Chad Reed romped to his first 250cc SX championship, then bags second in the outdoor series. Kawasaki lands both the East and West Lites titles with Ivan Tedesco (Pro Circuit) and James Stewart. You could call this the "Year of the 250cc Four-stroke." Honda, Kawasaki and Suzuki all joined the class. The Honda has a frame a generation beyond any of the other CR models. Honda chose a slightly different tack on the engine, but the Kawasaki and Suzuki (both are the same bike with different colored plastic) had basically the same engine design as the Yamaha engine. Kawasaki and Suzuki had a temporary alliance to share products, but it faded away in a few years, leaving the RM-Z250 something of an orphan until Suzuki built its own bike in '07. Overnight the 125cc class barely has any 125s in it. But Kawasaki has Stewart, and he wins against all odds on a KX125. RC is back for the nationals, and he easily wins on his first season on a four-stroke. Later in the year Honda introduces the CRF250X, a fully-legal off-road bike that can be ridden just the way it comes. Off-road Rodney Smith wins his final GNCC pro class championship at the age of 40. So far he is the last American citizen to win a GNCC championship. For 2004, the DR 24-Hour test moves to Hungry Valley SVRA. EnduroCross came to the U.S., and American off-road riders finally get to experience racing in front of a frenzied crowd. Attendance is modest this first year, but subsequent events are sold out. It is a year of change for DR. Corey Neuer steps into Hoffman's shoes. In August, Faught leaves DR, and Lewis takes over. We also spin off Mini Rider magazine.
2005
The ever-popular CRF450R undergoes the first major makeover. It gained the latest-generation chassis and all-new bodywork. The bike is very good, but it has new competition from the Suzuki RM-Z450. Carmichael leaves Honda looking for a better two-stroke SX bike. He signs with Suzuki and regains the title. He then debuts the all-new RM-Z450 outdoors, and spanks the troops again. Ivan Tedesco wins his second West Lites SX championship, then follows that up with his first National outdoor title after a tight race with KTM's Mike Alessi. KTM came oh-so-close to a winning debut for its 250cc four-stroke. This is not only the first outdoor small-bore title for a four-stroke, but all of the principal players are also four-stroke-mounted. When Grant Langston wins the East Lites championship, he announces his intention to compete in the West for 2006. The same is true of the 250cc/motocross class. Few riders even attempted to ride two-strokes in the outdoor National series. Off-road Finnish export Juha Salminen begins his two-year romp of the GNCC series. At the opener in Florida, Doug Henry wins on his supermoto practice bike, but he is too exhausted to stand at the finish. Nathan Woods wins his second straight WORCS title racing for the Zip-Ty/Montclair Yamaha team, then signs with Kawasaki for 2006. Red Bull's Last Man Standing extreme enduro is held in North Texas, and Brit David Knight wins. LMS becomes another event in a worldwide system of extreme races that includes the Erzberg Rodeo and the Romaniacs multiday insanity in Romania. Corey Neuer leaves to start a floor business, and Jesse Ziegler comes on board. Bryan Nylander takes the helm of ATV Rider, and Derek Steahly and Chris Denison start.