Thursday, August 15, 2013

Brad Lackey World Champ MX 500cc / AMA Hall of Famer

I had the very good fortune to meet one of my all time heroes, Brad Lackey.
Brad's accomplishments are legendary and his story heroic. Bad Brad as he became known, won the U.S. 500cc Championship in 1972 and after battling furiously for 10 years won the F.I.M. 500cc World Championship in 1982, the only American to ever win it. He retired immediately, going out on top.
Brad has been a Factory Rider for CZ, Kawasaki, Husky, Honda and Suzuki. He also won an American Vintage MX Championship not too long ago and is still racing and delighting his legions of fans by being himself, a fun, down to earth, genuine good guy. 
 Brad standing in his Museum with the Suzuki he won the F.I.M. 500cc World Championship with.
I always loved Brad's helmet design. I thought it was a flash of American brashness that he needed  fighting the Europeans at their own game. And it was a battle that he came close to winning many times and when he did win it, American MX fans reveled in his victory and were and still are, as proud as punch of their hero.