Life was really sweet after I finished university and moved from the desolate winter tundra of Eau Claire, Wisconsin to Atlanta for my gig at Cycle News East.
At one time rather isolated from the MX scene, I was now part of the pulse in the southeast...with local pros like Marvin McDaniel (273) and Billy Liles (1). Marvin's entire family adopted me and I was the recipient of many wonderful southern cooked meals at his mamma's table.
Billy became Team Green Kawasaki's first-ever contracted rider...and went on to national and world MX fame. I talked to Billy not long ago. He remembered with some fondness that I had a photo on my office wall at Cycle News - of Billy getting his clocked cleaned in crash at a local race.
I had never been this close to the big times and it was surreal. To feel the vibe and know these boys were solid regional pros who could run top 10 at a national...shock and awe.
Thanks to you all - Billy, Marvin, Keith Turpin, Brad Wallace, Joe Rogers and other Georgia hotshoes - for opening a portal to the big, wild world of professional motocross. I'll never forget it.
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