Supercross latest extreme in Las Vegas

Friday, May 1, 1998 | 8:45 a.m.

When the AMA Supercross Series invades Sam Boyd Stadium Saturday night for its season finale, a crowd of 36,000 will mark the series' first sellout of the season.

But don't let those numbers fool you.

Sam Boyd Stadium is the smallest venue the series visits on its 15-stop tour, which runs January through May.

All across the country, the AMA Supercross Series has shattered its own attendance records this season, regularly packing crowds in excess of 50,000 into stadiums in Los Angeles, Atlanta, Pontiac, Mich., Seattle and Indianapolis. The series regularly outdraws NFL teams in their own home stadiums.

It is, series officials proclaim, the most popular and fastest-growing form of motor sports in the United States, outside of NASCAR. Its top riders can earn as much a $3 million per year and it attracts high-profile sponsors.

While it may be akin to comparing apples and oranges, the Supercross Series finds itself in a situation similar to Winston Cup earlier this decade.

"Supercross is where NASCAR was about six years ago," Pat Schutte, public relations manager for Supercross, said.

"We've got a title sponsor in Toyota Trucks and we've got all kinds of opportunities here to bring this series into a mainstream sport. It's not a fledgling sport because it's been around since the mid-70s but we're riding this extreme sports wave."

And Supercross, like its desert cousin motocross, is the most extreme of the so-called extreme sports -- made popular by an avalanche of coverage from cable networks ESPN and ESPN2 -- according to former series champion Doug Henry.

"I think all the extreme sports like snowboarding and rollerblading are getting more popular and I think motocross, Supercross, is the most extreme sport there is," Henry said. "I think as those sports take off, so does Supercross.

"People in general, I think, are trying to live on the edge just a little bit more and this is a great way for them to do it."

Even if they do so vicariously.

With one race left on the 1998 schedule, the AMA Supercross Series is assured of breaking the attendance mark it set last year when nearly 700,000 fans attended 17 events. Through 14 races this season, 665,677 fans have turned out to watch the world's best off-road motorcycle racers -- an average of 47,548 fans per date.

The series packed 61,855 fans into the L.A. Coliseum in January, 61,305 into the Georgia Dome in February and 60,189 into the Pontiac Silverdome on April 4.

Those numbers have been duplicated in the series' television ratings. Last Sunday, a tape-delayed broadcast of an AMA Supercross event drew a 2.7 share (2,619,000 homes tuning in) on ABC despite going head-to-head with Michael Jordan and the Chicago Bulls in an NBA playoff game and the NHL playoffs.

Therein lies the key to the increasing popularity of the sport, said Bruce Stjernstrom, team manager for Team Kawasaki.

"While Supercross in the early years was pretty popular in the sun belt where there was a lot of riding, like Southern California ... what has really brought it to the forefront has been television," Stjernstrom said.

"The good coverage we've gotten on ESPN and ESPN2, especially in the last three or four years, has exposed the sport to a lot of new fans. We've brought a lot of new people in the last couple of years and that has accounted for the increase in attendance."

Whether or not Supercross can attain the same mega-success as NASCAR is open for debate. Supercross faces one obvious drawback, Henry said.

"There is no doubt that this sport is going to continue to grow," Henry said. "I think it can get close to NASCAR -- I don't think it'll ever be as big as NASCAR but I think it'll be pretty darn close.

"It's going to be a little tougher only because everybody drives a car and that's why NASCAR is so big -- everybody kind of does what NASCAR does, just not at that level. Not everyone races dirt bikes or rides a dirt bike so I don't think you have as many people who can relate to the sport."

Because of its large appeal to younger audiences who tune into ESPN and ESPN2, Supercross will continue to gain in popularity, according to Stjernstrom.

"It's a relatively new sport, especially the Supercross part of it which started in the early '70s," Stjernstrom said. "At the time, it was more of an enthusiast's phenomenon where people who were interested in the sport came and watched it.

"We think it can get bigger from the standpoint that there are some new stadiums in big markets that are available and will become available in the next couple of years. I see that there is a lot of potential left for markets and, even though we're getting 50,000, 60,000 people at some of the events, there are still seats available.

"There still is some growth potential there and we see that interest continuing to grow."

It will continue to grow Saturday night in Las Vegas -- only on a smaller scale. Last year's AMA Supercross Series event drew a sellout crowd of 34,025 and this year, the series has added bleachers to bring the capacity to 36,000.

While that may pale in comparison to the nearly 62,000 fans that jammed into the Coliseum for the season opener, Schutte said Saturday night's crowd will be a milestone for the series on at least one front.

"We put one of the largest crowds into the L.A. Coliseum since the 1984 Olympic Games and we have set attendance records in eight of the 15 venues that we have gone to," Schutte said. "But Sam Boyd is really our only sellout we have, which is kind of neat."