Movie Review/Opinion
By Don Amador
Date: November 23, 2014
*Permission to reprint is hereby granted
ON ANY SUNDAY: THE
NEXT CHAPTER - Passes Torch and
Reaffirms our Destiny
As somebody who started out riding motorcycles in the
1960s on a push-rod Honda Trail 90, I may not be the best person to offer an
unbiased review of On Any Sunday:The Next Chapter but I will try.
Don Amador (L), Kenny Roberts (C), and Jerry Fouts (R)
Last week, I attended the one time showing of the movie
at The State Theatre, a 500-seat venue, in Modesto, California on behalf of the
BlueRibbon Coalition (BRC), a national trail-based non-profit recreation group.
I want to give some major props to Jerry
Fouts, the current president of AMA District 36, for organizing this event as a
fundraiser for the BRC Legal Program to help support our collective effort to
keep trails and riding areas open for OHV use.
Racing legend Kenny Roberts, theatre management, Jerry
Fouts, local sponsors, and I welcomed motorcycle and powersports enthusiasts to
the SOLD OUT event. Little did we know just how well the broad demographics of
those attending Dana Brown’s sequel to his dad’s classic masterpiece would be
mirrored in the movie.
The film focused on youth riders, family fun, and a new generation
of professional competitors from various disciplines. It also weaved in some inspirational stories
of riders such as Doug Henry, Jake McCullough, and Ashley Fiolek.
Robbie Maddison and Travis Pastrana wowed the audience
with their passion for the sport and their unbelievable motorcycle stunts which
often left folks speechless and/or hanging on to their seat.
On an international basis, the show featured the current
stars of MotoGP, medical staff using motorcycles to serve backcountry areas in
Zambia, and busy commuters in Vietnam.
The Modesto event was partically rich because one of the On
Any Sunday-era stars, Kenny Roberts, was at the theatre signing posters and
visiting with the attendees. That movie
was shot 43 years ago by Dana’s father, Bruce Brown.
I felt the short interviews with motorcycle icons, Kenny
Roberts, Mert Lawwill, and Roger DeCoster appropriately “passed the torch” to
this newer generation of riders and professional athletes.
Star of Original On Any Sunday, Malcolm Smith (C) with
Ray Kidd (L) and Don Amador (R) at Sound Day at
Malcolm's Shop in Riverside
In my opinion, the most notable “update” in the film came
when several riders talked about the loss of trails and riding areas over the
last 40 years. This segment only lasted
for about a minute, but it is historic as this is the first acknowledgment (that
I know of) by a major production company that “land-use” is now an important aspect
of the sport. Maybe it wasn’t an
accident that this showing in Modesto was to benefit the legal fight to
preserve riding opportunities for current and future generations.
As people streamed out of the theatre after the movie
ended, I noticed a lot of smiles on young and old riders alike. For those of us who are passionate about, and
hard-wired for, motorcycles, the show was a personal reaffirmation that our
sport is not a choice but our destiny.
# # #
Don Amador is a contractor to the BlueRibbon Coalition
and serves as their Western Representative.
Don is also president of Quiet Warrior Racing, a motorized recreation consulting
company. He writes on recreation and
land-use issues from his office in Oakley, CA.
He may be reached at: damador@cwo.com
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