THE MXA INTERVIEW: The Life & Times of Mike Bell – Local Hero, Factory Star, National Champ & All-Around Motocross Enthusiast

On Jul 10, 2009

MIKE BELL: A SUCCESSION OF FIRSTS

THE 1980 SUPERCROSS CHAMP & LIFETIME MX FAN LOOKS BACK

By: Zap

ÿÿ Mike Bell has been aÿpart ofÿthe motocross world since theÿearly 70’s. The son of famed four-stroke tuner Bill Bell, who worked out of the highly regarded Long Beach Honda shop (Bill built the Baja ’68 winning Honda before becoming the Offroad team manager at Honda and Yamaha). Mike and his family were a fixture in the heated SoCal motocross wars where the fastest riders would go at it up to four times a week at tracks as diverse as (night tracks) Ascot, Irwindale, Lions andÿOCIR, and (day tracks) Saddleback, Carlsbad, Indian Dunes and Escape Country. ÿ

Today Mike is still active twisting throttles and racing bicycles.

ÿÿ My first bike: “We were pretty much a motorcycle family growing up. When I was 10 I rode my grandma’s step-thru Honda 50. Then my parents got me a Honda 110. The first bike I rode in a race was a Sachs 125 we borrowed from a friend. For my tenth grade graduation they bought me a square barrel Maico 250 and from that point on I was a real motorcycle racer.”

ÿÿ My first Super bowl of MX: “It was in 1974 at the High School MX exhibition race. Back then a lot of high schools had MX teams and we had to race a qualifier to get in. Marty Smith was a senior and already a factory rider so he was all everyone thought about. I got the holeshot and all I could think about was “when will Marty pass me?” He finally did with two laps to go. That was probably my greatest second place finish ever!”

ÿÿ First factory ride: “While I was racing CMC I always had good bikes. My dad built me some fast Honda Elsinores. They were just like the hot rods he used to build, real sleepers. They would look plain, but they were fast and built to last. In 1976 I got a ride with DG to race a Suzuki in the Trans-AMA support class. Even though I didn’t do that well, it did start to get me noticed. Halfway through the ’77 season Yamaha hired me. I won the USGP Support class that year and then got a full factory ride for 1978. I remember the first time I got to fly to a race. It was like an out of body experience to be packing for three days and then driving to the airport. It was the first time I felt like I was in the business of being a motorcycle racer.”

ÿÿ My first Supercross win: “I came back to the Los Angeles Coliseum in 1978 as a factory Yamaha rider. That was an amazing night for me because I ended up beating my teammate Bob Hannah and he really wanted the win bad. In fact, Bob was so aggressive that I don’t think I had any numbers left on my bike after that race! The next morning I woke up and I honestly thought it was all a dream. I thought I’d dreamt about winning until I looked over on my dresser and saw the trophy sitting there.”

ÿÿ My first National: “In 1975 my friend Jim Doman and I headed out to attack the AMA Nationals. We drove to Michigan and I ended up breaking my arm in the first turn of the qualifier. I was so mad; I could have saved 2600 miles and broken my arm at Saddleback! Jim qualified to race, but he broke his collarbone in the second moto ? our ten-week trip turned into a ten-day trip to Michigan and back.”

ÿÿ My first National title: “I won the AMA Supercross title in 1980. I really had a lot of momentum going that year because I ended up winning seven main events. I actually wrapped up the title in Philadelphia. It was a double header and I won the first night. All I had to do was finish tenth or better the next night and I got second behind Broc. I think the thing I remember most was getting all the congratulations from the other riders. Kent Howerton was a real fierce competitor and he came and shook my hand. Gaylon Mosier had some kind words and the thing was that these were the guys I really respected when I was growing up. The icing on the cake was to go the last round in San Diego and win that one too. The promoter gave me 75 tickets for my friends and family so that was a really great night to celebrate.”

ÿÿ My first hero: “When I was 14 my hero was Roger DeCoster. Everything I knew about the sport was what I read in the MXA and he was “The Man” back then! Roger epitomized everything that was cool, he was so stylish. My first chance to see him came when some friends and I rode our Schwinn Stingrays from Lakewood to Saddleback which was about 60 miles away. We left at 4:00 in the morning and didn’t even have money for tickets. We rode around the back to sneak in and actually got to see some races before we got caught and kicked out. It was probably a good thing that that happened since we did need to get a head start since it ended up being like a 14 hour day. Like so many other kids back then, I’d have to say Malcolm Smith was another big hero of mine and it was cool because years later I raced in his gear.”

MXA: Mike, as one of the O.G. racers who has never left the sport, how would you compare the sport now to back then?

Mike: The sport is so different now that it’s really hard to compare at almost any level. For instance, when I won my Supercross title I would’ve traded it for a 500cc outdoor title in a minute. Back then, the outdoor series was hit and the 500 class was the premier class. I know I sound like an idiot to say that, especially knowing the value that I stillÿ have for wining the indoor title, but I think it illustrates what I’m talking about. Back then the National series actually interrupted the Supercross seriesÿ- can you imagine that happening now? Another element is the power of the drink sponsors. Do you remember a time when the factory teams would be so willing to hire replacement riders? But now the drink companies are spending so much money on sponsoring the teams that they expect to have rider out there on the track.

MXA: How would you differentiate outdoor and indoor racing?

Mike: I know a lot of riders now don’t see any value in racing the outdoor circuit. And that’s another point of real differentiation between the old days and now. The sponsors only care about Supercross. Whether the riders on some teams make the show or not, the teams can bring in sponsors and have these great hospitality areas set-up. The races are easy to find, there are always hotels nearby and you can’t say that about all the Nationals. I know RC always saw the value in racing outdoors, but he’s unlike all the other guys. RC is a throwback from another school. Ricky is a fan of Hannaha’s work ethic and he respects what Jeff Stanton did by winning races like Daytona and Southwick. A different fire burns inside Ricky than all the other guys.

MXA: Do you think all those nights of racing at places like Ascot and Lions Dragstrip helped for your future career as a Supercross rider?

Mike: Absolutely. But we weren’t racing all those night tracks as training for Supercross because that sport really hadn’t even been established yet. We’d race on Thursday and Friday nights, sometimes three classes, just to make money! And none of us knew how good we were – we were just a bunch of locals riding around in the dark and bumping under the lights. You probably remember, the course at Ascot would change every week. Stu would just move the trash cans around and we’d race around them soÿwe ended up cuttingÿour teeth riding fast on tight tracks with lots of cornersÿwithout any berms.ÿ

MXA: You had a third win at the L.A. Coliseum, but it was on a mountain bike.

Mike: I definitely had some great moments inside the Los Angeles Coliseum. There was the second place finish in the high school race, both wins (’78 & ’82) and then I came back in 1987 and raced mountain bikes in an exhibition race. The two people I figured would win would’ve have either been John (Eli’s dad) Tomac or Olympian Nelson Vails. It was a two-lap race and once I got into the lead it was just like 1974, only this time I kept waiting for Tomac to pass me. It was cool because on the last lap when I was leading a bunch of guys like Ricky Johnson and David Bailey were on top of the peristyle cheering me on.

MXA: What do recall as the biggest difference with a factory bike to ride?

Mike: I remember how light it felt and how good the suspension was as compared to a stock YZ. Plus, it was just so awesome to ride a works bike. Everything was hand-built, we had tons of spares so you could make just the way you wanted it. Emotion made a huge difference too. I was so proud to be a factory Yamaha rider. Think about it, my teammates were Bob Hannah, Broc Glover, Pierre Karsmakers and Ricky Burgett. I was a kid living his dream!

MXA: Which was your favorite factory bike to ride & why?

Mike: I think my favorite works bike was the OW39. The first time I rode it was at Saddleback Park. Dave Osterman called me to say that we’d been invited to test the 1978 500cc race bike with Heikki Mikkola. Just to go riding with Heikki was in and of itself a career highlight. The track was its usual dry, hard pack, slick weekday self, but the bike was amazing. I loved it and couldn’t wait to race it. I won my first National on that OW39 a few months later in St. Louis, Missouri. I went 1-1 to beat my long-time hero Marty Smith. Another dream had come true!

MXA: You were a player at the San Antonio National in the famous “Let Broc Bye” race, but can you talk about that day and what happened with you – Yamaha made you ride a 125?

Mike: Yes, I rode that day in San Antonio. I was brought in like other teammates to help Yamaha win the championship. There were no tactics ever discussed by management or riders. This was my first chance to ride in the National class as a factory rider. To that point I had only competed in support class races at previous Nationals. I actually had what most would consider a respectable finish, as I went 5-4 for 4th overall, Mark Barnett finished 5th. But to put into perspective, Broc, Danny and Bob lapped us both motos. They were in a whole different league, but I was quietly proud of my accomplishment for the day.

Mike has kept two wheels present with sons Trevor and Sean (c).

MXA: What is it about motocross, and as an extension cycling, that attracts you?

Mike: Motocross is a hard (as in brutal/punishing/unforgiving) sport. It also a sport (with passion/addiction/lifestyle) that’s hard to walk away from! Cycling (mountain and road) for me are great cures for the motocross addiction/affliction. Cycling requires technical and strategic skills plus dishes out plenty of pain and suffering. The best thing really is that both of them give me something really fun to do that I can share with my family.