I saw this thread over at Vital...suprised I haven't heard anything here yet? That is definitely a 449 with John's number and traditional sponsor logo's on it! http://www.vitalmx.com/forums/Moto-Related,20/Dowdy-to-Husqvarna,1229268
Looks cool to me, but boy are those some ignorant and hateful comments in that thread! The seat haters clearly have not experienced the convenience of the quick release seat, and it seems like the benefits of a seat closer to the front of the bike would be obvious to any MXer!
woah, thanks for the link would be sweet to see him rippin' up Southwick on a Husky for this years Stimilon event!
The Motocross crowd is tough. I figure it will get worse over there....but there will always be some positive comments. I'm a Husky fan...but I'm a MX'er too, and in my opinion this bike is too bizarre. As good as some people who play ride or do off road say it is...and as much passion as people here have for Husky....I still think Husqvarna was closer to a competitive 450 MX bike with what they had in 09/10. If they would of worked on losing a little weight and some minor details of that package they would be closer than this BMW bike will ever be. I could see this concept bike staying in the lineup in some form...but I believe it will be scrapped and a more traditional form is needed for a serious Motocross 450. I would also enjoy it tremendously if I'm completely wrong and Dowd loves it and puts the thing in the top 10 at Southwick next year! Don't think that front fender and number plate will ever grow on me though!
"I will eat the frozen used moto sock that is hanging in my van if he shows up to Southwick for the NESC opener on that thing next spring" That is the quote of the week from vital
...and it never ceases to amaze me that "all" those so called qualified "racers" can say it doesn't handle,no power,blah blah blah without ever actually riding one ...
wow ... Great news if true ... I was not thinking a 450 Husky on the MX starting line in the states anytime in the near future ... If nothing else, it means the bike has sold enough to be allowed to race ... These bikes or one very close just won the supermoto championship in EU this year ... Same engine anyway, tweeted some but this shows the engine has potential unless slow REVing engines can win world championships in SM ... Which we all know is not true .... CTS may not help but it may not hurt either ... The mx crowd is mostly a young, teenager crowd .... There is a reason we have age laws for this crowd ... If true, why would Dowd be a Husky? Would he ride one if he knew he would get his butt handed to him? Is he getting a big $ raise and doesn't care if he finishes last? Maybe, but I don't really know the guy ... He probably thinks he will be competitive or he will not ride ... This will be big and push the Husky name out front ...
Dowdy has been riding and supporting Chaplin Kawasaki for years. Owner is a stand up guy who is passionate about MX and also has numerous "Team Green" riders and accomplishments to his credit over the years. The shop is in eastern CT and fills a nice void of any area that was devoid of Husky dealer support. Dowdy is good friend of owner as stated and with them just picking up the Husky line, Dowdy decided to try the TC 449. Simple enough. John has literally been on every bike team for all brands except Husky. Well he has completed the "Clean sweep" then. the guy went pro at age 28 so he is "different"....and so is the 449....nuff said. Joe
Joe put nuff said in his post If you wander down in the comments on the linked article find a guy named hellion who lives in a town real close to that southwick track. Some of the off road stuff is scored with a little transponder and riders can have all sorts of markings on thier bikes that must be for fan recognition.
lol ... I'll rephrase the question your honor ... 1) Odds JD will race a 449 Husky in a sanctioned ama MX race, anyone? 2) Odds MP will gloriously tune the bike, anyone? Talk about 'what ifs' ...
You gotta admit ... this 449 bike has taking a beating from many angles and it is still ticking ... And out of all the good news it has had since release, state side and in EU ... this just might be the best ....
I could be wrong but I don't think the bike is homologated for AMA Motocross. I haven't seen any official word besides Dowd's stickers on a Husky. A year or two ago a video was going around of him riding a TM 2 stroke too....so I think he just plays and does what he wants. I don't see it as a "race effort" but he will probably ride the bike some for fun and to help his buddies at the shop get some exposure for their new Husqvarna line. Anyway....it's a cool deal and will draw more attention to Husky.
Minor note- According to his website, he turned pro at 21, still grandfatherly by mx standards. Especially interesting that he only entered his very first race at 20. He impressed the heck out of me this past season when he finished something like 8th overall at the AMA Southwick Round- at age 46!! Twice as old as most of his competitors!.
Yep ...your probably right ...everyone sit back down ... Too bad as I think these bikes can be competitive with right rider and support ...
The eye opening thing about this thread is what the outside world thinks about Husqvarna. Part of it is based on racing performance the last 10-20 years, but they are obviously ignorant to what has been going on in WEC and GNCC recently. Hopefully Husqvarna will have the resources to make a push in a few years in MX-SX. Must remember 10 years ago KTM was considered "odd" in the mainstream mx world. GP
its all about the backing the japs sell 10bazilion bikes a year that cost 10 bucks to make because thay make so many. like the old saying gose you get what you pay 4 and youpay 4 wot you get. how much backing will he get from bmw/husqvarna factory 0 how much will he get from chaplin?????? . I think husky droped the ball in 2000/2001 whith cheodie he was kikin ass and taken names he hoped of a race wining bike n on to a yamaha game over. I hop dowd gose out ther on a 449 smokes some young punks ends up in the top 5 and it would be a good year for all us die hard husky rides becaucse i think the factory could give a flying f#*k about sx/mx in the usa the buget is not that BIG
The budget to race mx is big. Dowd is riding 449 for the shop that has supported him for a long time. Plain and simple nothing to read into here.
