Rob Dingman

A Historic Day

Charting the future of the AMA and Pro Racing

I am very pleased to report to AMA members that the first step in the enhancement of the Association has resulted in a historic agreement to sell the sanctioning, promotional and management rights of our Pro Racing properties to the Daytona Motorsports Group (DMG). For our members who are not racers or do not follow racing, allow me to explain why this is such a positive step forward for the AMA.

As an AMA member for many years, I have never wavered in my support and enthusiasm for the Association. However, like many of you, I have felt for quite some time that the organization had lost its way. When I became CEO, I finally had the opportunity to chart the course for this organization that our members want and deserve, namely to promote and protect the future of motorcycling.

One of my first objectives was to get the Association on a better financial footing. Over time, the AMA had become preoccupied with the business of motorcycle racing, to the detriment of promoting and protecting the motorcycle lifestyle. The AMA did few things as well as it should, least of all managing a professional racing business.

Professional motorcycle racing has become a sophisticated multimedia and event marketing platform. This growth dictated that pro racing must be managed by experts in order to deliver value to all of racing’s stakeholders.

The agreement with DMG, announced at a press conference in Daytona Beach during Bike Week (see photo, right) places AMA Pro Racing in the hands of a market-leading organization. Simply put, there isn’t a better-resourced or more qualified entity in which to entrust the future of motorcycle racing. DMG is led by Roger Edmondson, currently the president of the Grand American Road Race Series, and Jim France, vice chairman/executive vice president of NASCAR. NASCAR is the most successful motorsports entertainment company in the world, yet few people know that the France family had a significant role in the early success of motorcycle racing, including flat track, the Daytona 200 and Supercross. Roger Edmondson started and successfully ran the Championship Cup Series in the 1980s, which was the foundation for today’s AMA’s professional road-racing series. Today, he is widely regarded as one of the most successful motorsports promoters in America.

Our agreement calls for DMG to assume responsibility for the AMA Superbike Series, the AMA Motocross Series, the AMA Flat Track Series, the AMA Supermoto Series, the AMA Hillclimb Series and ATV Pro Racing. (Not included are the AMA Supercross and Arenacross Series, the rights to which are held by Live Nation.) The AMA Pro Racing name will continue to be used, competitors will continue to be AMA members, and the AMA will continue to crown its Pro Champions and award No. 1 plates annually.

For our members who compete on an amateur level, I want to stress that the AMA will continue to sanction amateur motorcycle racing. In fact, we will be devoting more resources to this area.

The very good news is that the AMA is evolving to the next level, and we are now focusing the Association’s resources on becoming a premier member-advocacy organization. In the near future, you will see significant improvements in this magazine and our websites, more and better member benefits, and improved government relations functions.

On a somber note, during our examination of how we spend the Association’s money, we discovered irregularities in our financial management system, including an issue with the way in which the former chairman of the AMA Board of Directors had been reimbursed for unsubstantiated expenses. We recently reported our findings to the appropriate authorities. We will continue to exercise integrity as the AMA manages its business and our members’ money, and I will be reporting on improvements in this area.

Although the change has been difficult for the AMA, I’m excited when members tell me that they feel the AMA has “found its way again.” The AMA is, at its core, a proud and honorable organization comprised of nearly 300,000 motorcyclists who work hard every day for an honest dollar. I pledge to each of you that we will continue to do everything we can to make it even better.

Rob Dingman is president and CEO of the American Motorcyclist Association.

© 2008, American Motorcyclist Association