Copyright 2002, Roadracing World Publishing, Inc.

Elected Northwest Region Director (Trustee) Dal Smilie has proposed that the AMA restrict member-elected Board candidate eligibility in a move clearly aimed at the succcessful Take Back The AMA slate of Kevin Schwantz, Jeff Nash and John Ulrich.

The proposal would deny rank-and-file members the right to vote in future elections for anybody with actual business experience in the motorcycle industry, and would hand more control of the AMA Board to the 36 corporate members.

Smilie, who works for the state of Montana and races in Vintage motocross events, was the author of a campaign flyer supporting defeated incumbents Carl Reynolds (a race promoter with a key role in the Edmondson debacle that cost AMA members $3 million plus legal fees), Ron Widman (a Suzuki/Harley-Davidson dealer) and Ellis Robertson (a trophy company owner) and signed by Directors (Trustees) Smilie, Jeff Smith and Rick Gray. In the flyer, Smilie accused Schwantz, Nash and Ulrich of running for purposes of personal economic gain and portrayed them as being involved-in-and-only-interested-in-racing as opposed to “regular-guy” candidates Reynolds, Widman and Robertson.

Schwantz, Nash and Ulrich overwhelmed the incumbents they ran against in an election that concluded January 15, winning by a 3.5:1. 2.7:1 and 4.5:1 margin, respectively.

Smilie proposed during the December 5-7, 2001 Board meeting that the definition of eligibility be revised to eliminate anyone who works for or owns a company “eligible” for AMA Corporate membership or with “any business relationship pursuant to which the employee receives substantial support or income from a voting Corporate member but does not include motorcycle dealers, regional promoters or the members or officers of Affiliates or non-voting members.”

The term “substantial” is not defined in the proposal and is subject to interpretation.

The exemption of motorcycle dealers and promoters from the proposed new rule seems to have been made because Widman is a motorcycle dealer and Reynolds is a race promoter.

The proposal, in the form of a recommendation endorsed by the Board, was seconded by North Central Director Jeff Smith, passed and will be voted on by representatives of the 36 Corporate members at a meeting scheduled for Saturday, February 16, 2002.

Those 36 Corporate members already control half the AMA Board, with six seats, and do substantial business–in the millions of dollars–between themselves.

For example, Dunlop has a corporate seat, as do major Dunlop customers Suzuki, Kawasaki, Honda and Harley-Davidson. In turn, Dunlop has supported racing teams fielded by Suzuki, Kawasaki, Honda and Harley-Davidson with hundreds of thousands of dollars worth of free tires.

The Board seat currently occupied by Smilie, who was a member of the Board at the start of (and throughout) the Roger Edmondson debacle, is up for election again in 2004, as are the seats currently held by Smith and Gray.

Corporate seats currently held by John Hoover of Kawasaki and Mike Buckley of Dunlop are up for corporate member voting on February 16, 2002.