Just Another Trend?

Whether it is going organic, posting a retro picture on Instagram, riding a fixed gear bike or even playing a little “draw something”, social media has made it easier for people to find out what is cool and trendy and making it easier to secretly become a little more “hipster.”

So where does motocross fit in to this? Is there such a thing has being a hipster motocross rider, and is social media and the growth of the Internet presence from the industry making it easier to follow the newest moto trends?

Trends have been a force in motocross since the beginning and it is hard not to recognize some of them in the current state of the sport. Retro gear, goon-riding, and Barcia-styled rev outs have been just some of the recent trends of the past few years with the general moto public; and if you say you have not tried any of these, you are lying.

Recently there has been a growth in popularity of an old sound/smell. One that most riders grew up with but forgot after a growth in motorcycle technology. That subject I am talking about is the two-stroke.

Yes, the two-stroke is seemingly making a comeback. Many pros are buying them again (at least as play bikes), promoters are creating classes just for two-strokes, and they are popping up at more practice tracks, not just as woods weapons. But why is this? Why are people leaving their powerful/easy-to-ride four-strokes for a bike with inferior technology that is harder to ride?

Before you start to think that this is just another article about how two stokes are cheaper, lighter, and more fun (even though they are); it is not about that at all. For now I am only going to ask the simple question, could it be that motocross riders are just like the general public and buy into what is cool and trendy online?

When MXPTV began to put out two-stroke videos in the later half of the decade, it was rare and down right awesome to see the bikes racing again. And when Jimmy Decotis and Moto Limelight put out their edit of the Geico Honda rider (then privateer) shredding on his cr125, the two-stroke went viral.

Seemingly every motocross fan has heard of or seen the video by now, skyrocketing the video to almost one million views. Darryn Durham increased moto fan’s interest in the bikes when he dropped his video of Durham shredding his Eleven10 Mods cr125, leaving fans saying, “I want to shred a 125 like that!”

So where does this trend go? Will we continue to see select professionals trying to qualify aboard the two-stroke much like Ricky Renner? Will the public go back to the hard to ride two-stroke and realize they do not have the skill or patience to ride the bike? Or will we continue to see huge smiles on the faces of the new owners of the two cycle machines.

One thing is for sure trends are going to be apart of motocross forever. We participate in one of the coolest sports out there (journalists are not suppose to show opinion so that has to be a fact), and people are constantly trying to make it cooler. If the two-stroke is just another “trend” so be it, I know I am stoked with my recently purchased cr125 and I can’t get enough of that black and yellow JT Racing retro gear!

….Incase you live under a rock