JOHN BASHER’S INTERVIEW OF THE WEEK: DAVE OSTERMAN

By John Basher

Dave Osterman is the type of person unrecognized by the casual fan, yet is so instrumental within the inner sanctum of professional racing. A championship mechanic, way back with Mike Bell in the 125 class at Yamaha, Osterman has seen and done many things in the sport. Dave has been part of winning years at Pro Circuit, brought Yamaha of Troy back from the brink of obscurity, worked at Buell, and most recently was the team manager on Chad Reed’s TwoTwo Motorsports team. That’s where Osterman’s life story really becomes more interesting. Why? On June 23rd, it was announced that Reed was closing the doors of his TwoTwo Motorsports program. It signified the end of an era.

Dave Osterman, along with the rest of the all-star cast of supporting characters on TwoTwo Motorsports, was left scrambling for a job while the AMA Nationals were still in full swing. It’s not hard to understand that finding a racing position during the middle of the season isn’t easy to come by. As a result, Osterman is still without a home. For this week’s featured interview, I chat with the amiable–if not talkative–former mechanic-turned-team manager.

Dave Osterman’s boss, Chad Reed, had a great program going, but funding and a time crunch made it hard for TwoTwo Motorsports to continue on. Rumor has it that Reedy will be on a factory Yamaha in 2016.

For all that you’ve accomplished, I’m betting that not many fans would be able to pick you out of a lineup. Please provide a list of achievements since you first started spinning wrenches all those years ago. Of course I was working for TwoTwo Motorsports as of late, but in the past I have worked with Pro Circuit and several other teams. When I was at Yamaha of Troy I pulled the team out of the gutter, or at least that’s how Yamaha management explained it to me. It’s interesting, because I have all these milestones and accomplishments, but I’ve sort of been a chameleon. It all depends who I am working for. Sometimes I’m in the background; it all depends on how much power I’m given. I think the thing that makes me a little unique, and it’s nothing against the modern guy, but I have a ton of experience. There are only so many guys at my level still working in racing. I’ve seen things develop and fail before a lot of the kids out there could understand what was going on. I’ve been a top mechanic, and I’ve tasted the fruits of my labor. I’m certainly not afraid to get my hands dirty. Working in racing has been very rewarding, and hopefully I can keep things going. I feel like I still have a lot of years left.

“I FEEL LIKE WE MADE HISTORY AT TWOTWO MOTORSPORTS. SO MANY PEOPLE COUNTED REED OUT SO MANY TIMES, YET HE WOULD PULL A RABBIT OUT OF HIS HAT. WE CONTENDED DESPITE ALL THE DIFFICULTIES OF RUNNING OUR OWN EFFORT.”

What has been your crowning achievement? Most recently, it was being a part of something that was really successful with the TwoTwo Motorsports team. We did something that hadn’t really been done to much success in racing. To have an owner also be a racer isn’t an easy thing to do. From my side, it was unique in that I would give him praise when did well racing, and then I would get on him if he didn’t have a good race. Chad was the one signing my paycheck at the end of the day. Looking back, Jeremy McGrath and Jeff Emig both had their own teams. For various reasons things didn’t work out for them, but I don’t look at them as failures. I mean, failure is a big word. I feel like we made history at TwoTwo Motorsports. So many people counted Reed out so many times, yet he would pull a rabbit out of his hat. We contended despite all the difficulties of running our own effort.

Chad Reed and the TwoTwo Motorsports joined the winner’s circle early on in the 2012 Supercross series. Reed broke through to win the now defunct Los Angeles round.

You were part of a dream team at TwoTwo Motorsports. There were so many accomplished guys under one awning–Oscar Wirdeman, Lars Lindstrom and Mike Gosselaar just to name a few. Back when Chad first started, Lars and I were working on the bike. Then Goose [Mike Gosselaar] came on board and that took a lot of pressure off me to know every nut and bolt of the bike, so to speak. Chad put a huge amount of trust in his team. We had a good group of guys. It’s flattering to hear that people thing we were an all-star cast of employees. The team guys, we loved and hated one another. That’s kind of how family is. The Reed’s gave us freedom, and we did the best that we could. Since the team folded, Oscar Wirdeman has been able to land a job at RCH Suzuki. I hear that he will be Ken Roczen’s mechanic next year. It might be a bit more challenging for me to get a job, being that most recently I was a team manager.

Do you have any regrets about how things worked out with the TwoTwo Motorsports team? I really don’t have any regrets. I’m not bitter. Sure, I wish that we would have been able to keep the team going. We were building a brand, and the plan of Chad retiring sooner or later and keeping the team going was a nice thought. However, at some point you have to understand the difficulties of being able to do everything and still go racing.

How did you leave things with Chad Reed? We still talk to this day. I have nothing against the guy. He gave me an opportunity to get his team started. I think Chad helped my career, and he actually wrote me a really nice exit letter. I’m still a fan of Chad Reed. I want to see him do well. There’s no spite. Of course every guy on the team wishes what happened didn’t happen. It would have been great to make it to the end of the Nationals. We’ll see what comes of things. I’ve been riding my bicycle a lot lately. The one thing that motivates me when I’m riding up the hills is the hope that I get a phone call about a job. I don’t feel bad about the way things worked out, because Chad didn’t fold the team became of something I did.

“THERE SHOULDN’T BE A RULE OF ANY CONSEQUENCE THAT PREVENTS TEAMS FROM MAKING MONEY TO GO RACING. THERE ARE FEES FOR TEAMS TO RACE, AND SPONSORS PAY FOR EXPOSURE AND REPRESENTATION AT THE RACES. AT SOME POINT CHANGES NEED TO BE MANDATED.”

You’re not afraid to speak your mind. You were vocal after Reed was black-flagged for his incident with Trey Canard this year at the Anaheim Supercross. Does talking get you into trouble? Well, it either helps me or hurts me. I’m not afraid to throw a chair if that’s what it takes. People have to remember that the unique thing about Chad Reed is that he could say or do whatever he wanted when he had his team. As for the black flag incident, it’s still crazy to me. Yes, Chad shouldn’t have done what he did, but at some point the AMA and FIM need to look into changing some of their rulings. That reminds me of the 360fly video camera helmet deal. Chad was kicking tires on how far he could push things. There shouldn’t be a rule of any consequence that prevents teams from making money to go racing. There are fees for teams to race, and sponsors pay for exposure and representation at the races. At some point changes need to be mandated. The promoters should work to help teams keep going in order to get outside money for utilizing to go racing. Had Reedy been able to secure 360fly then I believe the team wouldn’t have had to close down. Maybe a lot of other teams are in the same boat.

Have you been following the racing, despite currently being out of the scene? Of course. I laugh, because people are saying some mean things about Ryan Dungey right now about how he won the title because Eli Tomac got hurt. You have to be there at the end of the series in order to win the title. It has been an interesting series. Eli will probably come back stronger than ever when he returns next year. It was cool to see Justin Barcia and his crew starting to click. Barcia seemed to gain confidence. In the 250 class it’s a bit funny to see the team tactics going down, but there’s a lot of money on the line. It’s always team first. Even if Cooper Webb and Jeremy Martin aren’t the best buddies, they still wear the same color. Webb will have to do what’s best for his team. You have to remember that I’m in that old “Let Brock Bye” picture, so I applaud those guys for helping each other out.

That’s a young Dave Osterman holding a JT pit board just behind Keith McCarty.

Of course you’re referencing the infamous 1977 AMA 125 National finale in which Bob Hannah allowed Yamaha teammate Broc Glover to pass so that Glover could clinch the title. Did you know back then that such a day would forever live on? If I realized a lot of things back then that I do now then things would be totally different [laughter]. I was Mike Bell’s mechanic, and I knew full well that he was really fast on a 125. The team had a little powwow ahead of time, but it was run pretty loosely. Bob Hannah took things the wrong way, because he didn’t care for Broc Glover very much. There was a lot of pride involved. Yet Bob had to do what was best for the team, and Yamaha was signing his checks. [Click here to read Jody’s masterful reflection on the day’s events all those years ago].

“WHAT I SAW OUT OF ELI TOMAC AT THOSE FIRST FEW 450 NATIONALS WAS SUPER HUMAN. HE REMINDED ME OF BOB HANNAH, AND I WAS IN COMPLETE AWE OF WHAT TOMAC WAS DOING. I’M NOT SURE IF WE’LL SEE THAT TYPE OF RIDING AGAIN.”

Have any riders surprised you this outdoor season? For me, I think the racing is better in the 250 class. They’re kids, and so they go for it. That’s exciting to watch. It’s great that now the youth is starting to move into the 450 class. Jason Anderson has that go-for-broke style, and in some ways Trey Canard still has it. However, the guy that really impressed me the most was Eli Tomac. I’ve seen a lot of generations of riders and was there for many memorable days that people still talk about to this day. What I saw out of Eli Tomac at those first few 450 Nationals was super human. He reminded me of Bob Hannah, and I was in complete awe of what Tomac was doing. I’m not sure if we’ll see that type of riding again. From practice all the way through the motos Tomac was bringing it. The talk in the pits was how long Eli could keep it going. Early in the series Dungey was having bike setup issues, so it would have been interesting to see how they would have matched up once Dungey got the KTM figured out. Again, you have to be there at the end in order to win the title. Dungey did that. It’s all about staying healthy. Just look at the Grand Prix series. So many guys have been knocked out with injuries, but you can’t knock the next guy that made it through safe and sound. That’s racing.

Speaking of racing, I hope to see you back at the races before too long. Would you care to provide a contact email for interested parties to get ahold of you if they’re looking for an over-experienced, accomplished and winning team manager? [Laughter] I’d be happy to chat. My email is [email protected]. Thanks for your time, John.