Hiatus
by Robert Beaupre

It is time for me to take a break. Not because I’m tired of racing, but because I will soon have more on my hands than cleaning air filters and writing iconoclastic commentaries. My wife’s doctor tells us that the birth of our first daughter is not far away, so it seems that the race next week in Fallon, in spite of the weighty purse and presumed increase in competitors it promises, will have to go on without me. Beyond that, I’m not sure when I’ll be able to return to the races, but rest assured it won’t be long before I return to my spot on the line, as well as my spot behind the keyboard.

I’m often asked whether I’ll encourage my as-yet-unborn daughter to ride motorcycles. After all, my own dedication to riding has been fairly steady in the 19 years since my first bike, and it's hard for me to imagine what my life would resemble today if I didn’t race. Nonetheless, I am unsure to what degree I’ll encourage my daughter to ride. I generally figure that if she shows an interest in it on her own, then I’ll support her as far as she cares to go. There’s a part of me, however, that hopes she develops interests other than MX and pursues those no matter what. As I’ve said a time or two before in this space, motocross is a great thing for many people, but it should not serve as a substitute for all the rest of life’s richness.

If my daughter decides to ride, the most I could hope for is that she develops her own zest for learning from it. While others have admittedly taught me a lot over the years, the sweetest experiences have come when I taught myself something new. My dad, although he does suffer an occasional mini-parent relapse, learned long ago that I will always approach a problem my own way before I ask for help, and that to intervene in this process is to court disaster. Am I stubborn? Yes. But knowing what satisfaction comes from learning to solve problems on my own, I wouldn’t have it any other way.

In the end, if my daughter develops a love for any pursuit that imparts affection for critical thinking and self-improvement, I’ll consider both of us genuinely lucky. Motocross is a great tool to teach these things, but so are music, art, science and nearly every other sport out there. If she finds something she loves in the way I love motocross, then I’ll be that activity’s new biggest fan.

Of course, I might have to revise that statement slightly if she were to take up, say, roller derby. But even then, if she’s an upstanding and intelligent person in every other area of life, and staging made-for-TV roller-skate brawls makes her happy and keeps her in shape, then I guess I’ll be on board for that too.

Knock one over the rail for daddy, sweetheart. Knock one over the rail for daddy.


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