|
 This
week’s story is an extension of last week’s story, which covered a
brief introduction of the fallout at the AMA Motorcycle Hall of
Fame. POTW - Dave Despain It was the story found on former AMA
President, Ed Youngblood’s Motohistory.net website that covered the
shocking story of Dave Despain resigning from the Motorcycle Hall of
Fame (HoF’s). This was a result of the HoF’s, or should I say the
dictators of the HoF’s, decision to strip legendary motorcycle crew
chief, Nobby Clark of his nomination into this year’s HoF. Most of
you may have never heard of Nobby Clark if you weren’t into
roadracing but it’s the fallout of his deselecting that showed the
world the real colors of the leaders of the AMA. The favoritism or
pressure of media or politics have now cost the sport some of our
heroes like Kenny Roberts, Dick Mann, Jeff Smith, and Ed Youngblood,
to name just a few, from being forever remembered through the
museum.
This ugly ordeal has little, if anything, to do with the Hall of
Fame staff or volunteers, so don’t blame them or hate the HoF. Since
the overthrow of the AMA five years ago by the current dictatorship,
the HoF staff and committees are just a façade for the kingpin’s
wanted list of new friends who can shore up or influence their
lifestyles.
As most who read this column know, I co-founded and eventually owned
AMA/Prostar starting back in 1989. I had a long and great standing
relationship with the AMA administration and frequented their
offices regularly. In 2004 I was invited to attend the FIM annual
summit in Geneva Switzerland and pitch a proposal to form a world
championship for drag racing. Then president of the AMA, Rob Rasor
accompanied my wife and I on the trip, as did AMA legal council Tim
Owens. This was at a time when retired Kawasaki executive John
Hoover was working with the AMA. After the trip to Geneva began a
more frequent dialog between AMA staff and myself regarding their
interest in me working for them. In July of 2006 my wife Debbie and
I were on our way home from a conference in Maryland, when I
received a call from the CEO of AMA, Patti DiPetro offering me a job
as a Pro Racing Director. After only a day I accepted the offer
because it was my life goal of working at this level for the AMA. I
had been a member since the age of eleven from back in my flat track
days in Texas. I asked Patti if I could have until November so I
could finish out the Prostar season and give me time to figure out
who was going to take over my position for drag racing. To make a
long story short, four days later I was at my first road race and
press conference at AMA’s next event in Mid-Ohio and introduced as
the Director of AMA Pro Racing.
It was apparent to everyone that I was not hired for my extensive
knowledge of road racing, but rather my seventeen year success of
running Prostar. Certain divisions of AMA Pro Racing were in need of
a fresh approach and reorganization. Without going into details on
this site as to what happened with Prostar (Dragbike.com readers
already know that story), I have to say that my move to Columbus and
my start with AMA was a dream come true. I was having the time of my
life and positive change was making the AMA a more media, racer, and
staff friendlier place. After I hired Morgan Broadhead away from
Suzuki in October of 2006 things really began to take off. Morgan
and I made a great team along with great staff members of AMA Pro
Racing such as Doug Neubauer, Ken Rogers, Jim Wardell, Kerry Graeber,
Kevin Crowther, along with the rest of the Columbus team and event
staff.
That winter it was announced that the AMA was hiring a new president
to replace Rob Rasor, who was moving up and on to more FIM
involvement since his election as Vice-President of the FIM the year
prior. That did not register as a problem because past presidents’
involvement with the AMA dealt largely with the government and road
riding issues of the AMA and not directly with racing. A former AMA
government staffer Rob Dingman was hired as the new President of
AMA. Dingman answered, or so we thought, to Patti DiPetro so all was
fine. As a new staff in the road racing division we took off to
Daytona in March of 2007 for our big debut. Following the previous
year’s debacle with a pace car, all eyes were on the new AMA Pro
Racing staff to see how we would perform. It was a huge success with
a standing ovation from the VIP box with AMA CEO and board members.
We were off to a great start.
What happened prior to or during the trip back to Pickerington, Ohio
is still a mystery, but Patti never returned. She turned in her
resignation after a quarter century with the AMA and Rob Dingman was
solely in charge. As the next couple of months unfolded the new
position of Senior VP of AMA Pro Racing arose and it came down to my
boss, Doug Neubauer, and myself. In the eleventh hour Doug withdrew
his application saying I was more experienced and he would rather
work for me. During this time, Rob Dingman asked that I set up a
meeting with Jim France, of Daytona and NASCAR. I did and the two of
us set off to Daytona to meet Mr. France. Dingman said he wanted to
meet Mr. France, for reasons unknown to me at the time. I also
looked at this trip as a final interview with Dingman for the Senior
VP spot.
It was on the Daytona trip that my dream of a productive career with
the AMA took a turn for the worse. After meeting with Mr. France as
a group, Dingman and France had a private meeting. Then Dingman and
I had dinner at a beach tavern. It was there he asked a question
that was the turning point in my career at AMA. As we were
discussing the future and direction of the AMA he said, “Are you
going to be loyal to the AMA or to me?” I was an AMA loyalist and
always had been. It was like Fidel Castro asking his general before
the overthrow of Cuba if he was going to be faithful to the country
or to the soon to be malevolent dictator’s march to communism. The
pause in my reply sealed my fate. I said, “I will be loyal to you as
long as you are loyal to the AMA.” That was not the answer he was
looking for.
This is where my original story takes a big turn. For legal reasons
I had to carve out three pages of my five page story. Without
exposing the entire ugly truth of what happened in the months
leading up to AMA selling off Pro Racing I can at least express some
of the public details and my opinion.
Not long after our return to Pickerington, Dingman announced he was
hiring an outsider as the new VP of Pro Racing. It was that day that
marked the change. No longer did Dingman make visits to staff
offices, basically cutting off daily communication with staff. His
open door policy was now closed and never again did any of the staff
have access to him. He was in hiding and it stayed that way.
Although we had proven with the new team that AMA Pro Racing was
stronger than ever, we were being belittled and discredited bit by
bit from the new boss. He said he was restructuring the department
because of management credibility issues. But within a month of his
hire, he in a weak moment admitted that there where bigger plans for
the AMA that did not include this campus. They wanted to sell off
racing, outsource the magazine, sell off the museum and merge the
AMA with AAA, with multiple branches across the country with the
main office being in Washington, D.C.
Soon they started getting rid of senior staff starting with the ones
who had been with the AMA for 25 years or more. All remaining AMA
staff were given a gag order forbidding us to talk to the media or
AMA Board of Directors.
Micromanagement became the rule. No decision was made without a full
report. All communication with teams was to be in writing, no phone
calls.
We were told to start gathering data on each discipline so we could
put out a Request For Proposal to sell commercial rights to each
branch of Pro Racing. A “commercial partner” was the soft pedal
words used to try and convince us. There was no question that this
was a farce only to gather information for a potential new buyer.
This is when my stomach started turning knowing the end was near.
Obviously I was concerned for all my staff knowing if Pro Racing was
sold off it would bring an end to eighty some odd of years of racing
heritage. My immediate terror was the fact that I was about to lose
everything Debbie and I had worked twenty-five years for. The AMA
came after me, not the other way around. I cheerfully sold my
business and relocating my family to Ohio. Every decision made was
based on the belief we would retire in Ohio. Even though Patti
DiPietro could not give me a contract, I was reassured that I would
always have a job at the AMA. With her departure so went my security
blanket.
When I started working for AMA I used my own personal computer
because I needed all my Prostar data since we were originally
running Prostar out of the AMA until the Prostar sale went through.
Prior to leaving for Daytona, I knew the end was near and suspected
they would fire all of us while we were in Daytona. So I
requisitioned a used laptop from the IT department, transferred my
AMA files to it and took my computer home. While at Daytona they
made the big announcement that Roger Edmondson and the Daytona
Motorsports Group had purchased all of AMA Pro Racing. Upon
returning from Daytona dozens of us were escorted out of the
building like criminals.
Before I could complete this story an announcement was released that
the HoF is considering reinstating Nobby Clark anyway. That’s great
for Nobby, and he should absolutely be put in after all the AMA has
put him through in the last month, but it’s too late to assume that
they have done the right thing. The damage is done. What happens
then to the list of legendary motorcyclists who returned their
medals? What happens to the damage done to the entire HoF? I don’t
see the overlords of the AMA giving anything back. Each brave
honoree who has tossed back their medals into the face of the AMA
President and Board Chairman have shunned them, called them out, and
have been honest and critical in the media towards their inability
to run the AMA and asked for their resignations. I’ve been on that
side of the defense line and once you have been blacklisted there is
no coming back.
The above opinion is just that: my opinion based on my limited
access to the facts. Only the top players in the AMA really know the
truth as to how AMA Pro Racing was wrestled away from those who
cared the most and were 100% loyal to the AMA. I am a life member of
the AMA and have not cancelled my membership only in hope of the
truth being exposed and the AMA being handed back over to true
motorcyclist, not posers. I am a true supporter of the Motorcycle
Hall of Fame and in no way hold any officer or committee member
responsible for the mismanagement regardless of how much they are
taking the blame.
There is only one solution to restore the heritage of motorcycling
to its once honored status and protect the future of its purpose.
The AMA members need to rise up and demand the resignation of the
AMA’s president and board chairman. End the underhanded, closed-door
mismanagement that has stolen the true AMA and return it to its
rightful owners, the members of the AMA. Then and only then will the
great ex-recipients of the HoF medals have them returned. |
