Roy Holt: Givin’ it Back

High Energy:  Pro-level racer Roy Holt devotes his time and talent to helping up-and-coming Pittsburgh area riders.

Imagine a young athlete getting to throw a football with an NFL quarterback, or a young hockey player getting some one-on-time on the ice with an NHL star.  That’s kind of what it’s like for young and upcoming motocross athletes in the Pittsburgh area when they get to spend some quality time with local dirt track phenom Roy Holt. 

Just because he isn't currently racing doesn't mean Roy Holt has lost his edge.

Holt, who a few years ago was qualifying for and competing in pro races, and who is still most definitely one of the most accomplished riders in the region, has taken a step back from the competitive side of the sport.  When motocross started to become more of a chore and source of frustration, he realized it was far more important to him to keep it fun; so, he took a time out.  He still plans to race at the vet level, and knows he has many years on the track ahead of him, so he’s not worried.

Holt most assuredly still has rock star status on the local scene, though.  When Holt shows up at a local track (which is hard to miss since he arrives driving a towering shiny black Ford F250), word spreads quickly in hushed but excited tones among the younger riders:  “Hey, Roy Holt is here!”  Celebrity status aside, it doesn’t take long to see Holt isn’t about basking in his glory.  He’s all about giving back to the community that holds him in high esteem. 

Holt and his bike move as one out on the track.

On this very hot and humid July afternoon at Creekside Raceway, a no-frills track south of Pittsburgh that offers a great place to work on fundamentals, a small band of riders is working out.  Holt sets up his space—pop-up tent, chairs, bikes, all the while chatting amiably with the folks who wander over to say hi and get caught up.

After a few practice laps, which clearly show Holt hasn’t lost a bit of his edge as he and his bike maneuver swiftly and gracefully as one, he is quickly working one-on-one with riders of all ability levels.  He keeps in touch with many young riders through Facebook and text, letting them know where and when he will be out training.  

Holt follows rising talent Louie Moore through the turns at Creekside.

He watches them ride, riding with them—behind them to evaluate their techniques, alongside them to help them get comfortable with being in tight confines with other riders in turns and on jumps, and ahead of them to inspire them to keep up.  He waits trackside to watch his young protégés in action, then has them watch him demonstrate specific skills.  Through it all, he imparts very practical, specific feedback and guidance on how to improve—he tells his young followers what they’re doing right, and lets them know what they need to work on to step up their game.  

Holt goes over some fine points of riding with Zack Babich

Holt does all this with a welcoming smile and a confident demeanor that leaves each of his students feeling like they’ve just been handed the keys to the kingdom—the ability to unlock the crazy good rider that lies in wait within each of them. 

There is a strong sense of community and mutual support in motocross, where fierce competitors are also friends who share ideas, techniques, tools, water, bike parts and whatever it takes to keep the sport moving forward.  Roy Holt’s humble graciousness in giving of his precious time and considerable talent to the next generation of riders embodies the very best of the sport.  

Rescuing the WMX Pro Series

As were most riders and fans of the women’s motocross community, I was disappointed to learn the 2013 WMX pro series was being scaled back to just three events, down from eight races in 2012.  While I am not privy to the details of the situation that only an insider would know, I believe I have a good fundamental understanding of what is wrong and what has to happen for WMX to recover and grow.  It has everything to do with money.  That’s not cynical; it’s simply a fact. 

I don’t blame the folks at MX Sports Pro Racing, who produce and manage the AMA-sanctioned Lucas Oil Pro Motocross Championship.  At some point in 2012, the leaders at MX Pro Sports had to make the hard decision to cut their losses.  Obviously, the WMX pro series was having a negative impact on the enterprise’s profitability.  Any enterprise must make money in order to stay in business, and pro motocross is no exception.  This has to be the case.  No one in his or her right mind would say, “Hey, this gig is really making us some money; let’s scale it back.”

From a purely business standpoint, probably the right thing for MX Pro Sports to do was get out of the WMX series altogether.  Who knows, maybe they found a way to really run the series profitably if it is just three events instead of eight.  I doubt it.  More likely, they felt a sense of obligation not to completely abandon the WMX series.  But, I suspect, under their current business model, the men’s pro series is subsidizing the WMX series.

MX Pro Sports has got to make money to stay in business.  They seem to know how to do that with the men’s pro series.  The money flow associated with major television deals and sponsors is critical to the success of the men’s series.  With a limited staff to manage the major undertaking of planning and executing a very elaborate series of sporting events all across the country within a fairly short time span, the team has to focus on the cash-generating aspects of their business, which means the men’s series.  They simply don’t have the resources to run a successful women’s series alongside the men’s series.  The women’s pro series is probably like an anchor around their collective necks.    

I believe the fundamental problem, and what MX Pro Sports has figured out, is that the business model that makes the men’s pro series so successful doesn’t work nearly as well for the women’s series. The target audience is different, the sponsor base is different, the marketing is different.  These differences make it virtually impossible to run the men’s and women’s series as combined events.  What works so well for MX Pro Sports in running the men’s events is causing them to lose money on the women’s events.  

   

So, it is time for a divorce.  The only way for the WMX pro series to recover and grow again is to be run as a completely separate enterprise, with a new business model, by a team committed to its financial success.  I have to believe MX Pro Sports would welcome an opportunity to find a good home for the WMX pro series; such a deal would be win-win.  MX Pro Sports could focus on doing what they do best and WMX could gain new life.

I am in no position to intelligently prescribe the appropriate business model for WMX going forward.  I believe the essential ingredients for success include strong, savvy, committed, well-connected female leadership, and a core coalition of deep-pocketed sponsors who will prime the pump with investment in the new WMX enterprise.

Serious thought will have to go into determining the answers to such basic questions as:  Who is the target audience for WMX?  What is the marketable value of WMX and from where and why is the money going to come to WMX?  Is there a real opportunity to make money by televising the races—maybe on a women-targeted cable network?  Will an entirely new universe of sponsors—sure, some traditional MX racing sponsors, but also perhaps more female-oriented sponsors—be interested in investing in WMX?  It’s hard to imagine Playtex, Covergirl, DSW, Victoria’s Secret, Women’s Fitness, Healthy Choice, etc., having vans parked at a men’s national event.  Will WMX events be run completely separately from men’s MX events?  

Maybe WMX events should be more like the Lilith Fair and less like NASCAR events (not that there is anything wrong with NASCAR—I’m a fan—but perhaps the target demographic should be different).  I don’t think women’s pro events need to have scantily clad female promotional models at the start or on the podium.  Maybe there are new opportunities to combine women’s pro MX with something else—a women’s extreme sports series, Susan G. Komen races, or another nation-wide series of complementary, female-focused events.   

Maybe a new WMX pro series could be partially funded by giving all women riders a stake in the series.  A dues-paying national women’s MX association, which could include both individual riders as well as corporate sponsors, could surely add some financial oomph to a national pro-series.  Specific, focused effort will also have to go into making sure the best women riders in the country can get to and compete in the races without paying for it out-of-pocket.  This can be done, perhaps, through a vigorous sponsorship coordination effort for the top 20 to 40 riders.  Top talent will attract money and audience.

Women’s pro motocross is worth saving.  In the current situation, WMX is like a fish out of water.  We need to position WMX to thrive, to grow, to run profitably.  This can only happen when it is completely free from its entanglement with the men’s pro series.  WMX must be the raison d'être for a dedicated organization, not an unprofitable, inconvenient, ill-fitting appendage—the mere charity case of an enterprise whose real focus is necessarily elsewhere.  It will take talented, energetic, creative, committed leadership.  It will take investment.  It will take some time.  But the time is now—right now.