John George (BMX racer)

Cyclist infobox
ridername = John George


image_size =
image_caption =
fullname = John George
nickname =
dateofbirth = birth date and age |1958|5|20
height =
weight =
country = USA
currentteam = Retired
discipline = Bicycle Motocross (BMX)
role = Racer
ridertype = Off Road
protourrank =
europetourrank =
amateuryears = 1974-1975
1975
1975-1977
amateurteams = Canoga Cycle Center
Canoga Schwinn
Shimano
proyears = 1977-1978
1978-1983
proteams = Shimano
Mongoose
majorwins =
updated = July 13, 2008

John George (b. May 20, 1958 in Canoga Park, California USA) was a professional American "Old School" Bicycle Motocross (BMX) racer whose prime competitive years were from (1972-1978).

Racing career

Note: In the early days of professional racing, 1977 and prior, many tracks offered small purse prize money to the older racers of an event, even before the official sanctioning bodies offered prize money in formal divisions themselves. Hence early professionals like Stu Thomsen turning "pro" in 1975 at 16 years old racing for small amounts of money at track events ["Bicycle Motocross News" January/February 1978 Vol.4 No.1 pg.22] when offered even before the NBA, regarded as the first true national BMX sanctioning body, had a professional division. For the sake of consistency and standardization noted professional first are for the first pro races for prize money offered by official BMX sanctioning bodies and not independent track events. Professional first are also on the national level unless otherwise indicated.

----Started Racing: September 1972 ["Bicycle Motocross News" December 1974 Vol.1 No.7 pg.17]

Sanctioning Body: None. This was the era before official sanctioning bodies and individual tracks had their ownrace series and championships.

First race result: Unknown, but over the first two years of his career he won 40 trophies of which 36 were for first place ["Bicycle Motocross News" December 1974 Vol.1 No.7 pg.17]

First win (local): See above.

First sponsor:

First national win: He won the very first official National in BMX history in both his class and overall, the National Bicycle Association (NBA) Winternationals held in Phoenix, Arizona on March 29, 1975. He won both 14 & Over Expert and the Trophy Dash, which made him the overall event Champion. ["Bicycle Motocros News" May 1975 Vol.2 No.4 pg.16]

Turned Professional: 1977

First Professional race result:

First Professional Win:

Retired: In 1979 from active competition. From 1980 on he raced once a year being employed by and representing Mongoose.

Height & weight at height of his career (): Ht:" Wt:lbs.

Career factory and major bike shop sponsors

Note: This listing only denotes the racer's primary sponsors. At any given time a racer could have numerous ever changing co-sponsors. Primary sponsorships can be verified by BMX press coverage and sponsor's advertisements at the time in question. When possible exact dates are used.

----

Amateur

*Canoga Cycle Center: 1974-Early 1975
*Canoga Schwinn: Early 1975-Mid 1975
*Shimano Sales Corporation: Mid 1975-Early February 1978. He would turn pro with this company. Apparently John George briefly "retired" in early 1976 but came out of it to race the NBA Western States Championship; winning with Bobby Encinas in Sidehack and taking second in 16 & Over Expert. BMX News test rider and racer 12 year old R. L. Osborn who wrote the article (and is the son of contributor "BMX News" Bob Osborn and future owner/publisher/editor of "BMX Action") in "BMX News" about the event was skeptical about Georges retirement:

Professional

*Shimano Sales Corporation: Mid 1975-Early February 1978.
*Mongoose (BMX Products): Early February 1978-1983. His first race with Mongoose was the NBA Winternationals in Las Vegas, Nevada on February 19, 1978. He won both 16 Expert and Open Pro/Am taking the overall event title. ["Bicycle Motocross News" March 1978 Vol. No. pg.12] This was the sponsor he would stay with for the rest of his career. He would eventually go to work with them after he retired from serious competition, eventually becoming a plant manager.

Career bicycle motocross titles

Note: Listed are District, State/Provincial/Department, Regional, National, and International titles in "italics". "Defunct" refers to the fact of that sanctioning body in question no longer existing at the start of the racer's career or at that stage of his/her career. Depending on point totals of individual racers, winners of Grand Nationals do not necessarily win National titles. Series and one off Championships are also listed in block.

----

Amateur

Non Sanction titles*:
*1973 Solidad Sands Overall California State Champion ["Bicycle Motocross News" December 1974 Vol.1 No.7 pg.17]

*In the days before the creation of official sanctioning bodies for BMX individual tracks had their own Championship titles.
National Bicycle Association (NBA)
*1974, 1975 Overall Western States Champion.
*1975 14 & Over Expert and Overall Winternational Champion.
*1975 14 & Over Expert and Overall First California Skateboard and BMX Championships* Champion.
*"1975 District X (Los Angeles) Champion"
*1975 Open Class and Sidehack Class (with Bobby Encinas) Grandnational Champion. This was the first ever BMX Grandnational.
*"1975 National No.1"
*"1976 Western States Sidehack Champion with partner Bobby Encinas.

*This was a combined event of the two sports Held at the Orange County Fairgrounds in Costa Mesa, California between August 2nd and 5th 1975. The BMX event was held on the 2nd and 3rd. Paticipants in either discipline were not and did not compete in both events.

National Bicycle League (NBL)
*NoneNational Pedal Sport Association (NPSA)

American Bicycle Association (ABA)
*NoneFédération Internationale Amateur de Cyclisme (FIAC)*
*NoneInternational Bicycle Motocross Federation (IBMXF)*
*NoneUnion Cycliste Internationale (UCI)*
*None

*See note in professional section

Professional

National Bicycle Association (NBA)
*1977 16 Expert, Open Pro, Trophy Dash and Overall RC Cola/Two Wheelers Races of Champions Champion. (Triple)

:The RC Cola/Two Wheelers Race of Champions was a seven race NBA series sponsored by RC Cola and Two Wheelers. Racers raced six regional qualifying races in California and Arizona. Only racers who made at least the semi finals or mains (if the class was too small for a semi final) were invited to race the Championship even held on May 15, 1977 in Gardena, California at Ascot Park. ["Bicycle Motocross News" June 1977 Vol.3 No.6 pg.10]

*1977 15 & Over Open South Pacific BMX Championships Champion
*1978 Open Pro Grandnational ChampionNational Bicycle League (NBL)
*NoneNational Pedal Sport Association (NPSA)
*NoneAmerican Bicycle Association (ABA)
*NoneUnited States Bicycle Motocross Association (USBA)
*NoneInternational Bicycle Motocross Federation (IBMXF)*
*NoneFédération Internationale Amateur de Cyclisme (FIAC)*
*None (FIAC did not have a strictly professional division during its existence) (defunct).Union Cycliste Internationale (UCI)*
*None

*Note: Beginning in 1991 the IBMXF and FIAC had been holding joint World Championship events as a transitional phase in merging which began in earnest in 1993. Beginning with the 1996 season the IBMXF and FIAC completed the merger and both ceased to exist as independent entities being integrated into the UCI. Beginning with the 1997 World Championships held in Brighton, England the UCI would officially hold and sanction BMX World Championships and with it inherited all precedents, records, streaks, etc. from both the IBMXF and FIAC.

Pro Series Championships

Notable accolades

*He won the very first official National in BMX history, the National Bicycle Association (NBA) Winternationals held in Phoenix, Arizona on March 29, 1975. This was the very first event in which National points, as opposed to just district/regional points, were rewarded. He won both 14 & Over Expert and Trophy Dash which made him the overall event Champion ["Bicycle Motocros News" May 1975 Vol.2 No.4 pg.16]
*He was one of the founding members of the Professional Racing Organization (PRO) racers guild in 1977. ["Bicycle Motocross Action" August 1977 Vol.2 No.3 pg.25]
* [http://www.ababmx.com/index.php?page=default/halloffame&year=1985 He is a 1985 inductee to the ABA BMX Hall of Fame.]

BMX Product Lines

ignificant injuries

Racing Traits and Habits

*In the last few years of his career he would race infrequently, taking months off come back and win a few important races and then disappear for months again. ["BMX Action" December 1986 Vol.11 No.12 pg.30 (photo caption)] ["BMX Action" December 1986 Vol.11 No.12 pg.30 (photo caption)] As Bob Osborn, owner, publisher and editor of "Bicycle Motocross Action" put it in the July/August 1978 issue:

Post BMX career

*Soon after retiring from active competition he took a job with his last sponsor, Mongoose in 1977. ["BMX Action" August 1982 Vol.7 No.8 pg.14] At first it was a 10 hour job mounting tires on Bicycle wheels. Later it was placing parts in boxes. Within the year he was the Warehouse Manager. A few years later he was Plant Manager. ["Bicycle Motocross Action" March 1982 Vol.7 No.3 pg.40] For a number of years he would race once a year at the Mongoose sponsored NBA Grandnationals. ["Bicycle Motocross Action" March 1982 Vol.7 No.3 pg.40]

BMX magazine covers

Note: (defunct) denotes that the magazine was out of business before the career of the racer started.

----"Bicycle Motocross News:"
*January 1975 Vol.2 No.1 with Bobby Encinas, David Clinton and Jack Shannon.
*May 1975 Vol.2 No.4
*September 1977 Vol.3 No.8 behind an unidentified racer. In insert Rory Ingano.
*March 1978 Vol.4 No.3 (166) ahead of Bobby Encinas (3). This was the last issue of "Bicycle Motocross News" ever published."Minicycle/BMX Action" & "Super BMX:"

"Bicycle Motocross Action" & "Go:"
*None"BMX Plus!:"
*None"Total BMX"
*None"Bicycles and Dirt:"
*None"Ride BMX Magazine:"
*None"Snap BMX Magazine" & "Transworld BMX:"
*None"BMX World"

"NBA World" & "NBmxA World" (the official NBA/NBmxA membership publication under two names):

"Bicycles Today" & "BMX Today" (The official NBL membership publication under two names

"ABA Action, American BMXer, BMXer" (the official ABA membership publication under three different names):

BMX press magazine interviews and articles

*"John George-Quite Terror" "Bicycle Motocross News" December 1974 Vol.1 No.7 pg.17
*"Expert John George Talks About Being Race-Ready" "Bicycle Motocross News" April 1976 Vol.3 No.4 pg.9
*"Old BMX'ers Never Die...." "Bicycle Motocross Action" March 1982 Vol.7 No.3 pg.40
*"John George!" "BMX Plus!" March 1982 Vol.5 No.3 pg.27

Miscellaneous and Trivia

*John George shares the exact birthdate of May 20, 1958 with another legendary superstar, Stu Thomsen.
*In 1975 he was one of the first racers to covert from coaster brakes to freewheels and caliper brakes. By comparison Stu Thomsen would not covert until 1978. He also was one of the first to use light weight components ["BMX Plus!" March 1982 Vol.5 No.3 pg.27] in an era of 30 to 40 pound race bikes.

End Notes

External links

* [http://www.ababmx.com/ The American Bicycle Association (ABA) Website.]
* [http://www.nbl.org/ The National Bicycle League (NBL) Website.]