BEST OF JODY’ S BOX: “I’M NOT A DIRTY RIDER, IT JUST LOOKS THAT WAY!

I’m not a dirty rider.  So why am I so defensive? That’s easy. Everybody I race against says I’m a “dirty rider.” I’m not embarrassed by the fact that I’m the hardest person in the world to pass. After all, if I was easy to pass me that would be more embarrassing. I work hard at my trade. I know all the tricks. I learned them from some of the greatest riders of all-time and some that were just great at riding dirty. I truly believe that strategy is at least as important as speed. On occasion, I do things that would make a competitor angry, yet, in my defense, I think that the nomenclature that defines me as dirty” has more than a few shades of gray in it. How do I know I’m not dirty… that’s equally easy…

If I was truly dirty… I’d  pull a “Lechien.” What’s an Lechien? That’s when a rider jumps diagonally across the face of a jump to impede the progress of the rider next to him.  In 1986, Ron Lechien tried to kill Rick Johnson at the Los Angeles Coliseum over Insanity Ridge with the world’s vilest “Lechien.” There is no doubt that Jeff Emig was at least as good as Ron Lechien, but there is no honor in throwing a 227-pound motorcycle in the path of another rider. It is dangerous, deadly and dirty. I don’t do that.

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If I was truly dirty…I’d “Submarine” you. At the St. Louis Supercross, Damon Bradshaw “Submarined” Jeff Emig (probably because Jeff cross-jumped him  a few feet earlier). To pull the “Submarine”  all you have to do is cut across the inside of a turn (directly into the path of the rider in front of you) and use his front wheel as a berm. Done right (or is that wrong?) the “Submariner” knifes under the front wheel of his opponent and chops him down. Some people think that submarining is the same as block passing…it’s not. A block pass impedes the progress of your opponent, but leaves him room to stay up (although he may have to shut off). A “Submarine” is a torpedo attack with no survivors.

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If I was truly dirty…I’d “Rocket” you. The “Rocket” is almost as bad as the “Lechien.” You can “Rocket” other riders whenever there is a corner right after a jump. All you do is; (1) ignore the corner: (2) move off-line to the inside; (3) launch off the jump twice as far as normal; and (4) land directly in the path of the rider who is trying to turn (or as done by Mike LaRocco — land on him). The “Rocket” is the stupidest dirty move in motocross, because it almost always leads to you be “Emiged.”

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If I was truly dirty…I’d give you the another trademarked move. It called an “Emig.” What’s an Emig? That is a swift kick with a motocross boot. It got it’s name when Mike LaRocco pulled a “Rocket” on Jeffro at the San Diego in 1995 and got an “Emig” to the back.

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If I was truly dirty…I’d make a “Pick-up” pass on you. What’s a “Pick-up” pass. That’s where I am willing to knock myself down in order to take you out. Then we race to see who can “pick up” his bike the fastest.

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If I was truly dirty…. I’d do the “Damon.” You’ve may not be old enough to have ever seen Damon Bradshaw pull this move, but to “Damon” someone you pull up next to him after the race is over and starting screaming at him before taking a few flailing swings and then roost him.

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If I was truly dirty…I’d “Ghost Ride” you. The two most famous “Ghost Ride” take-outs were by Mike Kiedrowski (on Mike LaRocco) and David Bailey (on Ricky Ryan). How do you “Ghost Ride?” After the race is over, you hold the throttle wide open, aim your bike at your opponent, pop the clutch and jump off the back.

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If I was truly dirty…I’d “Chicken” you. A “Chicken” is when you are engaged in a fierce duel with another competitor (in the case of Jeff Matiasevich it was normally Damon Bradshaw). During the race you try to “Lechien” him, “Submarine” him, “Rocket” him, “Pick-up Pass” him and “Emig” him before crossing the finish line (where you “Damon” him just moments before “Ghosting” him). That was the way Chicken used to do it.

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I’m not a dirty rider. Yes, I block. Yes, I change my lines from lap to lap. Yes, I hog the inside. Yes, I go slower when the track is one-line. Yes, I choose angles that put the guy behind me at a disadvantage. Yes, I stick my leg out in tight corners. Yes, I  will come in hot up the inside and then slow at the apex to keep a rider from cutting behind me. Yes, I will bump in hairpins. Yes, I will do everything in my power to stop you from passing me. What’s sad is that these tactics would make me the cleanest rider on the National circuit.