The only
difference between a
man and a boy,
is the price of their toys!
Rock on!
LaRocco's Last Stand?South Bend, IN – The moment will be talked about in great
detail when the number five bike gets profiled before the first
race of the 2006 AMA Supercross season. Video replay will show
how the number five bike came up just short on a triple. The
tape will show the Honda CR250R tossing its rider from the
saddle. Fans of the racing legend will also see an experienced
rider getting his head slammed into the face of another jump,
then laying
motionless for more than a minute-and-a-half, before
wobbling off the track inside Houston’s Reliant Stadium. At 34, a “Level 3” concussion and a shoulder that
would require surgery (again) would be enough to force
a normal man to back off the throttle and ease into
retirement. But after 17 years of racing against the
world’s best, Mike LaRocco is coming back. “The Rock”
recently resigned with the AMSOIL/Chaparral/Honda
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LaRocco did
have a strong year, finishing with four podiums, including
a grind-it-out effort at the muddy opening race in
Anaheim. “I like the challenge,” said LaRocco. “Every year,
somebody comes up and raises the bar, and for me,
that’s what keeps me going. I ask myself if I can match
that, if I can get that fast. Or I try to figure out what they
do to get that fast. That gives me something to go
home and analyze and work toward. That’s how I
approach each year and that’s what has helped me go
so long. I think if I had figured it out a long time ago,
I would have stopped a long time ago. It’s all about
studying your competition, whether it’s bike setup
or intensity or technique in turns – it’s a little bit of
everything.” As each race goes by, LaRocco seems to pick up new
fans. At a recent amateur race in New Hampshire, he made the
trip from his South Bend, Ind. home. He spent time signing
autographs and meeting many of the young riders. Fathers, who
once cheered for The Rock themselves, have now passed their
alliance on to their sons and daughters. For LaRocco, his
connection with race fans started when he was roaming the pits,
searching for the stars of his childhood. “Well, I try to put myself in that position. I remember when I was young, my dad took me to the races and I wanted the racers to be warm and welcoming when I saw them. Now that I’m a racer, I find the fans are just curious, so I try to bridge that gap. It’s exciting for a kid and for the parent to have a positive experience meeting a team rider, so I try to make it all work out for everybody.” While LaRocco enjoys spending time with fans, he still finds time to keep his family the top priority.
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