On
Any Sunday, a 1971
documentary about motorcycle racing, introduces the major speedways and
different types of racing: desert, ice, trials, sidecar, as well as races that
anyone can compete in like the Widowmaker Hill Climb. All of this was new to me because typically I am outside riding and not reading about motorcycling. But at the moment I am in-between owning a
motorcycle, so instead I’m planning my next road trip.
Speedways
I plan to visit Utah sometime between
August and October to see one of the fastest speed setting events at
the Bonneville
Speedway. Then I want to attend a race at the Daytona Speedway in Florida.
Perhaps I’ll check out Bike Week in March or Biketoberfest in October. Bike Week is a 10 day event that 500,000 motorcyclists attend. I
tend to go the opposite way when there's a crowd, but I am intrigued because
this is considered "The World's Largest Motorcycle Event."
On Any Sunday brought to my attention that there's a raceway right
around the corner from where I live. The Sacramento Raceway offers regular events, including
motocross races, which I plan on going to soon. Also nearby is the Prairie City State Vehicular Recreation
Area, in Rancho Cordova, CA,
where a $5 entry fee equals a full day of whooping and hollering as you ride
your off-road vehicles around the dirt track.
Hill Climbs
Sadly some of the events shown in the
documentary are no longer around, like the Widowmaker Hill Climb in
Croydon, Utah, since how the new owner of the land doesn't want bikers tearing
up his hill. But there are other hill climbs that are still going on!
Desert Races
I’m most intrigued by the Baja 1000, which
is held the third week of November. For this type of race the bikers’ line up
in one long line, and then zoom across the natural desert terrain, trying to
get ahead of dust cloud that's created by the 1000s of other riders. Best in the Desert Racing Association also has a list of desert races that
all sound fun to go to!
Ice Racing
Ice racing is popular in Russia, Canada, Europe and in America up
by the Great Lakes. Competitors race motorcycles on ice at 80 mph. There are
two classes, full-rubber tires and studded tires. The riding
technique is different from handling a bike on dirt or pavement because
the studs prevent the tires from sliding around corners, so you see the bikes
leaned almost all the way over. I have to see this in person! It looks
incredible.
Trials Riding
I have lots of respect for Trials Riders
for their balance, throttle control and ability to read the terrain. Motorcycle
Trials is about controlling the bike and never touching the ground with
your feet. Of course there are lots of obstacles like a giant felled tree
or steep rock banks. The FIM Trial World Championship and FIM X-Trial World Championship are the most prestigious motorcycle
trials tournaments of the world. The top ranking trials riders are often from
the UK and Spain.
You can watch On Any Sunday for free if you have an Amazon Prime
account. The film
was nominated for the 1972 Academy Award for Documentary Feature.
The director Bruce Brown was one of the first people to strap a camera to
a motorcyclist's helmet, recreating the now common place GoPro.
