SIDECAR RACING in the USA

[chris m. johnson]

Beyond the grand effort put forth by Al Wenzel for Sidecar racing during the past several years in the AMA Western Sidecar MX Championship, there other events and different styles of sidecar racing available here in the USA.
Some of my MX only constituents continually degrade these other forms of racing (for reasons only speculated). All riders/passengers (past, present & future) are welcome and encouraged to either contact Al Wenzel for the AMA Western Sidecar MX National Championships on this website and this message board or you can email myself (Chris Johnson in California) for further connections at aircmj@aol.com


Here is a list of all of the types and styles of sidecar motorcycle racing in the USA (and some other lands) that are available to this date. foreinstance:

1). Offroad Grand Prixs (California)
(1-hour long event, six to ten mile long course, over a combination of MX, offroad trails, and sometimes access and asphalt roads).
2). Desert Scrambles (California)
(30-50 mile long, one loop for sidecars starting with the quads over desert terrain, marked with ribbon & small signs, road crossings and major obstacles are flagged and supervised, two to five check points with sweep riders over the course after all of the starts)
3). Dual European Scrambles (in California)
(Five to eight mile courses (two different courses usually over two days) run over a 1-1/4 hour duration over desert terrain, sidecars run the same time as the quads)
4). Enduro (California)
(Can run in mountains, desert or highlands and sometimes over a MX section, all for time, distance can vary from 20 miles to 100 miles depending on terrain, I don’t believe there are any sidecar teams that do this in the US)
5). Hare & Hound (non-multiple team) (California)
(One to three separate loops or point to point spanning distance from 40 to 250 miles on offroad, mountain & desert terrain)
6). Long distance offroad (multiple team) (California, Baja, Arizona & Nevada)
(These events are of the Baja and Vegas to Reno style, mostly point to point with pit stops and rider/passenger changeout with chase trucks and sweeps over the entire distance, can span a distance of 250 to 1,000 miles).
7). Rallies and the Dakar Rally (throughout the USA and the world)
(Mostly dirt roads and trails over very long distances with special sections, pit stops over several days to several weeks duration, utilizing same driver/passenger combinations. Very extreme and not for the faint hearted, or weak mind, body and souls)
8). Road Racing (throughout the USA and the world)
(AHRMA supports a sidecar class in road racing and has quite a few teams that do this on a regular basis in the USA, over established road racing courses using AMA road racing rules)
9). Trials (Europe & Australia)
(There is a sidecar class for trials in Europe and Australia, but I don’t believe here in the USA unless I am wrong)
10). AMA/AHRMA - Western AMA Sidecar MX (throughout the USA)
(With several laps of practice over a closed course, then two 10-15 minute motos with the combined score of the two motos for the overall)
11). California local sidecar MX
(after a several lap practice on MX track, two separate 10-15 minute motos for the combined score for the overall)
12). Pikes Peak International Hill Climb (PPIHC)
(a timed 14 mile up the mountain, rally style run on dirt and asphalt roads)

Further thread in this section will list possible race dates:

Good luck in what ever form of racing you may prefer and participate in, whether it be one form or many and hope to hear any responses (from anyone).

Chris M. Johnson - SOLTRON SIDECAR RACING TEAM
Chris Johnson & Paul Stimson
(USA sidecar - GP & DESERT #4, MX #5)
SOLTRON fuel additive, Nationwide Cycle, Palmdale Honda, AV KTM, Rally Chevrolet, Marks Performance Products, American Environmental Inspectors & Consultants