Motocross

Incomplete listing. In March 2006, there will be a new set, called Christmas Town, and a Tournament Kit released. The sport is governed world wide by the FIM, with federations in many nations. Released were starter decks and a base set. There are also classes for kids such as the 85cc class. Sometime during 2005, a card game, titled The Nightmare Before Christmas TCG, was released. Supermoto races may take place at modified go-kart tracks, road racing tracks, or even street racing tracks. Kingdom Hearts II follows the movie plot, where Jack tries to take over Santa Claus' place on Christmas.

For special events, the Supermoto track may incorporate metal ramps for jumps that can be disassembled and taken to other locations. Jack can also join Sora's party whenever they are in Halloween Town. Some tracks for these race events have jumps, berms, and whoop-dee-doos just like true motocross tracks. Jack then teams up with Sora and the others to stop Oogie Boogie's plans. Supermoto is a recent invention involving racing Motocross bikes on a part concrete, part off road track, with "road" tires instead of off road tires. In this game, Jack tries to create an artificial heart so he can control the Heartless for use in his "Heartless Halloween," but the plan goes awry when Oogie Boogie (who was one of the Disney villains allied with Maleficent) steals the heart, ingests it, and tries to use it to control the Heartless for his own purposes. ^{[citation needed]}. Halloween Town also appears as one of the worlds in the Square Enix/Disney Kingdom Hearts video game series (in fact, it was the movie's first official video game appearance).

Since 1998 this type of sport has spread all over the world. Finklestein, and others--to both stop Oogie and save Halloween. This type of minibiking is now called freestyle minibike riding. With these creepy wheels set in motion, it will be up to Jack and his friends--including characters such as Zero, Sally, Dr. In 1998 Australian minibike riders Jonathan Byrne and Nicholas Stephenson revolutionised the sport by launching them from a up ramp to a down ramp while copying the mid air monuvers done on a large bike in freestyle motocross. Jack soon discovers that these nasty insects are under the control of Oogie Boogie, who's looking to take over Halloween himself. These inexpensive minibikes designed for small children are often transformed for adult use by adding taller handle bars and by improving the suspension. The game's plot will kick off with the invasion of some unusual bugs in Halloween Town.

The latest craze is adult racing on miniature (50cc) motorcycles called a minibike. The side-scrolling adventure game centers around the first time Jack faced off against his nemesis, Oogie Boogie, to eventually become the Pumpkin King. Prior to this, the backflip 360, or off-axis backflip, was widely considered the most challenging stunt. The Pumpkin King is a side-scrolling action platformer in which you'll control Jack Skellington and use a number of different weapons to fight enemies and traverse obstacles. This stunt, also called the Carolla, was first performed by Chuck Carothers at the 2004 X Games. The opposite of the Playstation and Xbox versions, the GBA game works as a prequel to the movie. Some consider the body varial 360 as the most difficult stunt being performed at this time.
A GBA game, "The Nightmare Before Christmas: The Pumpkin King" came out in fall 2005.

One stunt performed is the backflip, which was first performed successfully on a large bike by Caleb Wyatt. In the game you get other costumes such as "Pumpkin King," and "Santa Jack". The riders are scored on style, level of trick difficulty, best use of the course, and frequently crowd reactions as well. The game features a weapon known as a 'Soul Robber'. The winner is chosen by a group of judges. The game features controls similar to Devil May Cry. Freestyle motocross (FMX), a relatively new sport, is not racing and instead concentrates on performing acrobatic stunts while jumping motocross bikes. Now Jack has to stop Oogie Boogie's evil plans as he attempts to take over the other holiday worlds, and the 'real' world.

Fourstrokes are getting more common, usually KTM(Austria). In the story, Jack leaves Halloween Town to satisfy his curiosity, but during his absence, Oogie Boogie is reconstructed and by the time Jack returns he has taken over Halloween Town and tricked its people into thinking Jack has abandoned them. Ordinary engines can be used, but size matters and two engines purpose built for sidecars exist, Zabel (Germany) and MTH (Austria) are most common. Intended to be a sequel to the movie, the game features the return of all the well-known characters in a new and arguably darker story with upgraded versions of the movie's songs. The major frame builders today (2004) are VMC, BSU, AYR, EML and Woodenleg. The Nightmare Before Christmas: Oogie's Revenge is an action/adventure game developed by Capcom from Japan for the PlayStation 2 and Xbox systems. This name comes from the early sidecars where the platform looked like a real road-sidecar and not today's platform. A video game based on the original movie was released in 2005.

This is reflected in most in the Swedish term for passenger- "burkslav", roughly translated as trunk/body/barrel-slave. There has been a great deal of speculation recently that 2006 will be last year for the event, allegedly at Tim Burton's request. It is very physically demanding, especially for the passenger. Starting in 2001, the ride has included a score that was written specifically for the ride by film composer Danny Elfman. It’s driven on ordinary crosstracks. The attraction generally has a one night opening event each year that includes special guests, a dinner, special merchandise, and a ride through the attraction, although the Happiest Celebration on Earth halted that in Disneyland in 2005. The passenger balances the bike by being a counterweight, especially in corners and on jumps. The attractions are closed in October each year for themes to be completely overhauled, and open until January of the next year.

The side of the "chair" (slang for the platform) usually follows the side of the road the nation in question drives upon, but not always. For the past five years, the Disneyland and Tokyo Disneyland in California and Japan have received a Nightmare Before Christmas themed overlay, called Haunted Mansion Holiday, for their Haunted Mansion attractions. Motocross sidecars are purpose built frames that resemble an ordinary motocross-cycle with a flat platform to stand on attached to either side and a handlebar at waist height to hold on to. A second poem, also read by Stewart, is included before the "End Credits" music; in this passage, Santa Claus describes a visit he made to Halloween Town many years after the events of the film. This variant is common in Europe, with a few followers in USA, New Zealand and Australia. On the soundtrack album, Patrick Stewart voices the opening narrative poem. Sidecar racing, known as Sidecarcross has been around since the 50’s but has declined in popularity since the 90’s. Starfield Creations.

Many feel that 2006 will be the biggest yet as the nationals continue to grow and many local AMA districts are offering "quad-only" race weekends. In the past few years many retail stores like Hot Topic have obtained the rights to sell products and have flooded the market with what some believe to be cheap and uninspired merchandise. In 2005, local tracks mirrored the national tracks as more and more racers were bringing ATVs to race thanks to raceable models. Much of the original merchandise has become highly collectible and rare. The swingarm was made of steel, too. Currently, 'Nightmare Before Christmas' has become one of the most sucessful franchises in terms of selling merchandise, and the film has developed a group of very dedicated collectors. The rear tires with 18-inch tires just like motocrossers sport. In 2005, Tim Burton returned to the media of stop motion with his new film, Corpse Bride.

The front end had high-end shocks with 10 inches of travel and a width approaching 50 inches. The same studio that produced Nightmare later created another stop motion movie based on the Roald Dahl book, James and the Giant Peach (1996), though it did not receive the same amount of success. It featured electronic fuel injection, a high-performance four-stroke engine and a chassis that could be competitive in stock form. However, when it was released on video a new audience began to discover it and slowly it began to grow a cult following. This sport ATV was the most motocross-ready ATV ever produced. When the movie originally was released it failed to live up to expectations and was considered a flop. In the summer of 2005, Suzuki announced it was going to produce the 2006 LT-R450. Finally, Sally reveals her true feelings to Jack and in the end of the movie the two begin a relationship.

With that support on the track also meant support in the dealerships in the way of new, updated machines. Once Santa has delivered all the presents he brings the Christmas spirit to Halloween Town, including snow, and the citizens are amazed by the new sensations. The 2005 season proved that the factories were willing to support ATV racing as they never had before. After Jack destroys Oogie, revealing him to be nothing more that a burlap monster full of bugs, Santa Claus hurries to deliver the correct presents and save Christmas. That year it was Honda winning the championship with support rider John Natalie taking the motocross championship. In order to salvage Christmas Jack hurries back to Halloween Town and confronts Oogie Boogie. The 2005 season saw more factory support and Suzuki fielding two racers, Gust and Jeremiah Jones, out of the Yoshimura/Suzuki semi. When Jack finds himself and his sleigh crashed in a graveyard and his vision of Christmas wrecked, he realizes that he is the Pumpkin King and that he should stick to what he knows best, namely Halloween.

The moved proved to be a successful one for Suzuki as Doug Gust walked away with the national motocross championship, and in the process winning six overalls in a row. At the same time, Sally goes to try and rescue Santa Claus but is captured by Oogie Boogie and the two are in risk of their lives. This represented the first time since around 1986 that any manufacturer was offering factory support for ATV racing. Soon, Jack is targeted by the military and shot down. Suzuki announced it was going to hire Doug Gust as its motocross pilot, Honda was hiring Tim Farr as its factory racer and Yamaha was going to offer support Kory Ellis in limited fashion for the season. Jack's scary and sometimes dangerous presents put the people in the real world in a panic and they begin to call the police with reports of attacking Christmas toys and an imposter Santa Claus. The 2004 national motocross season was one of the most anticipated in 15 years. On Christmas Eve, Jack embarks on his makeshift sleigh flanked by skeleton reindeers and his ghost dog, Zero.

The tide was turning for the high-performance race ATV market. The children take him to a villainous monster named Oogie Boogie. After the Yamaha announcement, Honda announced it was going to bring the TRX450R to market in 2004. In order to successfully take over Christmas, Jack enlists the help of a trio of misfits named Lock, Shock, and Barrel to kidnap Santa Claus. The ATV also came stock with fully adjustable front suspension, the first time this was available on a stock ATV. Sally, a close friend and admirer of Jack, tries to warn him that she thinks it is a bad idea to take over something he knows nothing about, but Jack is too wrapped in his fantasies to listen. While it wasn't as wide as many wanted for motocross and didn't have long-travel suspension, it featured a four-stroke engine very similar to the motocross dirt bikes Yamaha was putting out. All of the townspeople pitch in to create their own twisted version of the holiday.

This ATV represented the first time a major manufacturer built a high-performance sport ATV suited for racing. Soon Jack calls a meeting in Town Hall and reveals his plans to take over Christmas. Late in the 2003, Yamaha announced the YFZ450 for the 2004 model year. When Jack returns to Halloween Town he locks himself in his home and performs countless experiments to try and better understand Christmas Town. Jones' championship would be the last Pro-class championship on a two-stroke. Jack is mesmerized by the color and cheerfulness of the holiday, and realizes that this is exactly what he has been searching for. Doug Gust won the Pro Production class while Jeremiah Jones won the Pro class. When Jack opens the Christmas door he is sucked into the wonderful world of Christmas Town.

Tim Farr, in a move that raised eyebrows, raced only the Pro Production class. Each tree has a door on it representing a different holiday. Many Pro racers raced both classes, but the premier class was still the Pro class. One day while wandering in the woods with his dog zero, Jack discovers a circle of trees unlike anything that he has seen before. The traditional Pro class still allowed two-strokes and hybrids. Although Jack is loved and respected by the townspeople, he feels that there is something unknown to him that is missing from his life. That same year, the ATVA instituted a Pro Production class at the motocross nationals in order to showcase "stock" ATVs. The film centers around Jack Skellington, the much adored leader of Halloween Town.

In 2003 Suzuki released the LT-Z400 that featured a liquid-cooled four-stroke powerplant. . The Cannondale story was a short one as the company declared bankruptcy shortly after 2002. The film was released by Touchstone Pictures, a film studio owned by the Walt Disney Company, after the main Walt Disney Pictures division balked at some of the darker content. In 2001, Cannondale entered the ATV market and even fielded an ATV racing team in partnership with Nac's Racing the following year. He did not direct the film as is sometimes believed, but he was still heavily involved. While it wasn't as powerful as the hybrids racing on the tracks, it was a positive step. The film is loosely based on drawings and a poem by Tim Burton, and he served as co-producer.

The manufacturers started paying closer attention to the sport ATV market, and in 1999 Honda released the four-stroke TRX400EX. Tim Burton's The Nightmare Before Christmas (1993) is a stop motion animated musical film about the inhabitants of Halloween Town who take over Christmas one year, directed by stop-motion animator Henry Selick. Soon hybrid machines were all over the tracks. Ken Page: Oogie Boogie. The era of the four-stroke hybrid race ATV was born when Harold Goodman piloted a custom-built YZ400F to a national Four-Stroke Pro-Am championship. Paul Reubens: Lock. In the late 90s, rules were changed to allow racers to use dirt bike engines in ATV frames. Glenn Shadix: Mayor.

However, in order to be competitive on the motocross track, it was necessary to spend upwards of $20,000 on the race ATV. Finklestein. Suspension companies like PEP and Custom Axis, combined with long-travel A-arms and rear suspension links smoothed out rough tracks and harsh landings. William Hickey: Dr. Suspension upgrades made it possible for ATVs to hit jumps never thought possible. Catherine O'Hara: Sally, Shock. Companies like Curtis Sparks Racing Engines, Baldwin Motorsports and Hinson Racing made it so the only stock component of the 250R engine were the left and right engine cases. Danny Elfman: Jack Skellington (singing), Barrel, The Clown with the tearawayface.

Again, the aftermarket helped racers get all they could out of the dated engine. Chris Sarandon: Jack Skellington (speaking). The engine that kept racing alive was the Honda TRX250R engine that was manufactured from 1986 to 1989. MPAA rating: PG. Racers would build expensive, custom ATVs with parts from major aftermarket manufacturers like Laeger's, Walsh Race Craft and Lonestar Racing. Runtime: 76 minutes. Throughout the late 1980s and all during the 1990s, aftermarket companies kept the sport alive, but barely. Genre: animation, fantasy, satire, musical.

ATV motocross floundered after Honda, Kawasaki, Suzuki and Yamaha dropped ATV-racing support in the mid 1980s due to the bad publicity of the vehicles. Specifications: Technicolor, 35 mm 1.66:1 (colours, Dolby digital sound). Before we can talk about the current state of ATV motocross, we must understand the past. American picture. This was a direct result of the major ATV manufacturers getting involved in the sport. Released on: October 13, 1993. Starting in the year 2002, ATV motocross started to see a dramatic increase in participation across the United States. Music by: Danny Elfman.

Interview with Brad Lackey, World Motocross Champion and one of the test's participants appeared in Racer X Illustrated in 2004 and is recounted here). Written by: Caroline Thompson and Michael McDowell. (original article appeared in DirtBike magazine in 1980. Directed by: Henry Selick. The cardiac stress and strength test results compiled there revealed that the motocross subjects had as high of a fitness level as than any other discipline tested. Title: The Nightmare Before Christmas. Athletes from track, American football and soccer were tested, among others.

The National Sport Health Institute in Englewood, California tested several professional motocross racers in the early 1980s as part of a comparative study of the cardio-vascular fitness of athletes from various disciplines. ^{[citation needed]}. At least not if a rider expects to win. And there are no pauses, breaks or pit stops.

That represents half of an hour in which the faster the rider goes, the more violently and frequently he or she is punished. Finally, a typical professional moto (heat race) lasts at least thirty minutes. The G forces produced test the absolute limits of a rider's strength and endurance. A rider's arms and legs are in constant motion during a race, fighting for control of the motorcycle and absorbing the energy produced by high-speed landings from heights that often exceed twenty feet or from two-foot high stutter bumps (called whoops) that jackhammer the motorcycle and the rider.

The rider is astride a machine weighing at least two hundred pounds and, at the most elite professional level, has an engine that produces at least fifty horsepower. He or she must maintain ultra-precise control of a machine traversing terrain that most people would have difficulty walking across while maintaining as high of a rate of speed as possible. Observing in detail a rider's actions while at speed on the track reveals why. In truth, motocross racing has been found to be one of the most physically demanding sports in existence.

Those unfamiliar with the sport often assume that the rider is doing nothing more strenuous than steering a motorized vehicle around a field, no more demanding than driving the family car around the block. One of the least understood aspects of motocross racing by non-participants is the extreme level of physical fitness required of competitors. Classes for children as young as 4 years old exist for competition on 50cc machines. Motocross can be an entry sport for motorsports in general.

Recently the sport has evolved with sub disciplines like Supercross and Arenacross (both are indoor motocross), Freestyle (or FMX) (a display of jumping skill rather than racing) and Supermoto (Motocross machines racing on both tarmac and off road). Motocross racing is one of the most visually appealing forms of motorsport, with riders performing seemingly death-defying leaps, turns visibly at the edge of traction (as indicated by a sliding, spinning rear tire throwing dirt at all behind it), and the effort of riders clearly visible as they move their bodies around their motorcycles to balance the bikes for maximum speed. Usually a race consists of two or three motos with the scores combined to determine the overall result. This competition is called a moto.

The object of the contest is to complete either a defined number of laps (usually three to seven for amateurs, more for professionals) or fixed time period (anything up to 40 minutes) first.
See also the List of motorcycle manufacturers. Previous. The above five are the major five manufactures in most markets, the manufactures below command little market share (currently - 2005).

Current. Incomplete list. See also Motorcycle - especially the "Construction", "Dirt bike/Trail bike" and "Farm bike" sections. Thus, the former 125cc Supercross series is now referred to as AMA Supercross Pro Lites; the 250cc Motocross series is now AMA Motocross Pro; etc.

Due to the increase in popularity and to non-matching displacements of four-stroke and two-stroke motorcycles in the same classes, in the year 2005 the AMA changed the class names from 250cc to Pro, and from 125cc to Pro Lite. However, the popularity of four-stroke motocross bikes has been steadily increasing. They are very competitive in these classes but need twice the displacement to rival a two-stroke. Currently, 250cc four strokes compete in the 125cc class and 450cc four strokes are used in the 250cc class.

Four stroke motocrossers do not compete on a truly level playing field. Engine sizes ranges from 50cc right up to 550cc, although bikes with sidecars can have up 1000cc engines. Some predict that two-strokes will not be available to buy after 2008, perhaps earlier in states such as California. These engines have been developed due to manufacturer's pressure and environmental concerns regarding the increased emissions of two-strokes.

Although the four-strokes weigh more, they have much more power to back up the weight. The highly tuned machines of the professionals are called "factory bikes." The latest trend in motocross motorcycles is towards four-stroke engines. Professional riders, however, modify their machines further, both for outright performance and to have the bike's behaviour more in tune with their own preferences. Unusual for racing machines, motocross bikes can be purchased in a ready-to-race condition at moderate prices from major motorcycle manufacturers.

This forces the front of the bike lower (and likewise, accelerating the rear wheel causes the front of the bike to rise), allowing the rider to force the bike to a specific position or attitude relative to the ground. When the rear wheel is decelerated while the bike is in mid-air, angular momentum is transferred from the wheel to the entire bike. A common technique to change the attitude of the bike in air involves the use of the rear brake. The gyroscopic effect of the engine along with the wheels makes jumping the "motocross" bike over long distances possible - this effect keeps the bike from rotating through any axis other than the axis of the wheels while in the air.

Sitting further back and accelerating hard over a series of bumps or ("whoops") keeps the front tire from dropping into any large gaps between them and causing you to lose control of the bike. Lowering the rider's center of gravity (sitting) greatly increases the ability to go through a turn at higher speeds. This will affect rotation pitch while jumping and greater traction to the front wheel when necessary on the ground. This offers the rider greater protection when he or she hits bumps or lands hard and allows the rider to move and distribute his or her weight over the front or rear of the bike.

The saddle (seat) is curiously shaped, in a long banana, to extend from rear of the fuel tank to the rear fender. Also the exhaust may be routed carefully so that a fall will not damage the exhaust, nor bend it so that it would obstruct the rear swing arm's travel - something that does happen to road bikes. They feature hinged footpegs and levers so that they simply fold rather than bend or snap when the machine is inevitably dropped. They have knobby tires for traction on loose surfaces, a highly absorbent suspension designed to cope with the shock of heavy landings, and short gearing designed for swift acceleration rather than high top speed.

Motocross motorcycles are lightweight and powered by highly tuned two-stroke or four-stroke engines (but usually geared for quick acceleration rather than very high speeds). . There are two motos in a race and the riders place in those heats are averaged together to get their overall finish. Races are ran in sessions called motos.

The first three riders that finish first are declared the podium riders because of the first though third positions in the race. In each race there is a set number of laps and the first rider to complete the set number of laps is the victor. Other formats may be determined by laps. This format is known as 30 minutes plus 2 laps.

A one-lap-to-go signal is given at the start of the final lap, and the race is completed at the end of that lap. A typical Pro race will run for 30 minutes, then once the leader crosses the finish line that lap, he is given a signal indicating there are two laps remaining. Professional races measaured by time. Due to the size of the track, motocross races often include more than 40 racers whereas Supercross races are generally limited to about 25.

It is not unheard of for a Motocross track to be made up entirely of hills and turns with no jumps at all. Motocross tracks are often quite large and incorporate natural terrain features with very few man made jumps, unlike Supercross, a sport that was originally derived from Motocross and is executed on a smaller track with more extreme man made obstacles. Motocross is often abbreviated as MX. The name "motocross" is a contraction derived from the words "Motorcycle" and "Cross Country".

Motocross is derived from the French, and was originally called Scrambling when the sport was invented in the UK. Motocross is a form of motorcycle or ATV racing held on enclosed off-road circuits and is the widely considered the world's most popular form of motorcycle racing. Sweden - SVEMO. South Africa - MSA.

Canada - CMRC / CMA. France - FFM. Ireland - MCUI (covering the whole island). UK - ACU, with other separate (unconnected) bodies like the AMCA, ORPA, BSMA, and YSMA.

USA - AMA. CCM (UK). Maico (West Germany). Cannondale (USA).

Husqvarna (Italy, ex Sweden). Vertemati (Italy). VOR (Italy). TM (Italy).

Aprilia (Italy). Husaberg (Sweden). KTM (Austria). Yamaha (Japan).

Suzuki (Japan). Kawasaki (Japan). Honda (Japan).