Pembroke’s Keith Johnson manages to keep racing MX once in a while to keep in shape. He rode in the recent SuperX event held at the Marshfield Fairgrounds and finished a respectable runner-up in the Pro Class. (Credit: Keith Johnson photo)
Former top MX and SuperX rider Keith Johnson of Pembroke has transitioned from MX and SuperX ride to GM of MX338 in Southwick and will host the Lucas MX National at that venue on Saturday, July 8, 2017.
By Lou Modestino
There’s lots of activity on the SuperX and MotoX front both locally and state wide. The schedule for next year’s Monster Energy SuperX looks as if the hot and cold relationship that they had with the Gillette Stadium in Foxborough has turned hot again. The SuperX schedule shows an April 21, 2018 date. That circuit skipped the Foxborough venue this year after the event returned to the area in 2016 following a long absence.
The reason for skipping 2016 was due to the excessive costs of moving dirt in and out of the stadium along with not drawing enough fans. But it appears that both the stadium and Monster Energy Drink are going to give it another try next April. Although we think that the April date is prone to rain, studies on weather in southern New England at that time of year yields a 50 percent chance of rain every day during that month.
The motoX crowd that frequents the local Capeway Rovers track on the Middleborough-Carver line are looking forward to the upcoming Capeway Classic set for July 21, 22 and 23. There will be many entries at that event. Promoter and GM David Payne told us that he expects to have 450 entries plus among a dozen classes in the pit area that weekend.
Pembroke native and former top motoX rider Keith Johnson is now the promoter of the Lucas Oil Pro MotoX National set for next Saturday, July 8, rain or shine at MotoX 338 in Southwick. Johnson took charge of that venue in 2015. That track has experienced many changes over the past few years due to needed upgrades. A local American Legion veterans post owns the property. The post had troubles with the previous previous promoters that leased the track from them. They walked out following the completion of the big national MotoX event a few years back when the veterans club raised the rent.
“The track needed a lot of work and we’ve been upgrading it for the last three years,” said Johnson. “The Lucas Oil Motox national had been gone for two years and we were able to bring the event back here in 2016. That was a difficult effort because you can’t get a national very easily. There’s only 12 of them. We were able to pull that off due to a lot of hard work and negotiating. The best riders in the world run these circuits. The top 20 riders have a lot of fans and they really turn out to watch them race. We usually draw anywhere from 10,000 to 12,000 fans for that event. People come from all over the northeast, especially from New England.”
There’s also going to be some motoX action at the Marshfield Fairgrounds during the month of August. Those events are part of motor sports action every year since the fairgrounds stopped the horse racing meets. The motorcycle races share the downsized track with demo derbies, monster truck and tractor pulls during the fair’s meet. The events are promoted by Dana Johnson, a cousin to Keith Johnson.
Middleboro’s Bill Dill has traveled coast-to-coast with aspiring motoX riders since 1979. His 3D Racing team over the years gave rookie motoX riders the opportunity to race in the Monster Energy SuperX and the Lucas MotoX Series. Former riders like Keith Johnson and Scott Carter of Connecticut built their reputations on those pro circuits. 3D Racing has a multitude of sponsors including Yamaha Motor Co. and a host of motorcycle parts manufacturers and VP Racing Fuels. Currently his team includes Grady Featherstone of the UK and Nico Izzi of Georgia. Dill will replace those two contenders with two more new riders at the end of the current season.
Today, Saturday, July 1, New Hampshire Motor Speedway in Loudon, NH offers a Short Track Showdown comprised of the Valenti Modified Tour, Granite State Pro Stock Series, Street Stock Tour and the Mini Stock Tour. Qualifying was held yesterday, Friday, June 30 with the features set for today, July 1 at 1 p.m. Tonight, Saturday, July 1 the Monadnock Speedway in Winchester, NH offers the Exit Reality Modified Tour Series at 6 p.m. with a NASCAR program on the under card.
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