This type of wheel to wheel racing in the Pro Singles class is too close for comfort according to some riders. (Larry Lawrence photo)

You’ve no doubt heard about NASCAR’s restrictor plate racing controversy. Racing on the Super Speedways with motors restricted, which results in super close drafting, but also can, and usually does result in massive high-speed pileup crashes called “The Big One“. Motorcycle racing has it’s own version of restrictor plate racing – it’s called Pro Singles racing on Miles.

Pro Singles is a support class of the AMA Grand National Championships. Riders race 450cc motocross bikes, modified for flat track racing.

The main problem on the Miles with these machines is that they are so evenly matched that safe passing, even using the draft is nearly impossible. Now keep in mind Pro Singles riders are the youngest, most inexperienced riders in pro flat track. Racing on a Mile has always been considered best left to veteran racers. Now throw in the fact that 18 riders are racing bar to bar and can hardly pass one another by normal drafting methods, the only way to get to the front is to hold on the gas longer than the rider next to you going into the turns.

With these 450s there’s not a lot of rolling off the gas on a Mile in the first place, so you practically have young, inexperienced riders diving into the turns at full throttle with less than inches separating them. Literally. It scares the crap out of the riders, yet they go out and race. They really don’t have a choice.

We’ve had several major crashes on the Miles, sometimes resulting in serious injury and worse. Last year Jesse Phibbs died from injuries he sustained in such a crash at the Indy Mile. Today Corey Crawford lies in a Springfield hospital with a serious brain injury after a turn three, last-lap pileup at Springfield.

Some say its rider inexperience that leads to these accidents. That may be true, but see how close these riders are racing and you’ll understand that even one slip, a rear tire stepping out under acceleration for instance, can lead to an ugly chain reaction.

Pro Singles series leader Mikey Martin said after Springfield that he’s glad he’ll never race a Pro Singles at Springfield again. It’s not hard to read between the lines – Martin feels he’s dodged a bullet by escaping unscathed from these races. To me that speaks volumes. And Martin isn’t the only rider sending up warning flares.

It’s time for AMA Pro Racing to take a serious look at Pro Singles racing on Mile tracks. I’m not certain what the answer is, but it needs to be studied and proposals need to be forthcoming. Perhaps riders need to have so many Pro Singles Half-Miles under their belt before they can race a Mile. Maybe you have experienced pros like Chris Carr or Joe Kopp hold classes for these young riders before they can race a Mile. Spotters should be positioned throughout the track and video cameras in place to figure out the reason these crashes are happening. If a pattern emerges where a rider is being too aggressive, or not making good decisions, they should be sat down to go through training again. Perhaps all of these suggestions and more need to be implemented.

I would go so far as to say that perhaps 450 Pro Singles racing may not be appropriate for Mile tracks. Discontinuing Pro Singles races on Miles would be a drastic measure, but it’s high time we all take responsibility for protecting our up-and-coming young racers.