Danny LaPorte was one of the top American motocross

Motocross

Motocross is a form of motorcycle sport or all-terrain vehicle racing held on enclosed off road circuits. It evolved from trials, and was called scrambles, and later motocross, combining the French moto with cross-country...

 racers in the 1970s and 1980s. He was the first American to win a 250cc motocross world championship.

Born in Los Angeles, California

Los Angeles, California

Los Angeles , with a population at the 2010 United States Census of 3,792,621, is the most populous city in California, USA and the second most populous in the United States, after New York City. It has an area of , and is located in Southern California...

, LaPorte began riding in the early 1960s when the sport of motocross enjoyed a period of explosive growth. He began racing professionally when he turned 16 and by 1976 he was offered a job with the Suzuki

Suzuki

is a Japanese multinational corporation headquartered in Hamamatsu, Japan that specializes in manufacturing compact automobiles and 4x4 vehicles, a full range of motorcycles, all-terrain vehicles , outboard marine engines, wheelchairs and a variety of other small internal combustion engines...

 factory

Factory-backed

Factory-backed is a term commonly used in motorsports to describe a sponsored racing team, car, motorcycle or driver that competes with official sanction and financial support, or "backing" from a manufacturer. As motorsports competition is an expensive endeavor, some degree of factory support is...

 racing team. In 1979, LaPorte won the AMA

American Motorcyclist Association

The American Motorcyclist Association is an American not-for-profit organization of more than 300,000 motorcyclists that organizes numerous motorcycling activities and campaigns for motorcyclists' legal rights...

 500cc national championship for Suzuki. He was part of the victorious American Motocross des Nations

Motocross des Nations

The Motocross des Nations is an annual team motocross race, where riders representing their country meet at what is billed as the "Olympics of Motocross"...

 team in 1981, marking the first time an American team had won the prestigious event.

Seeking new challenges, LaPorte decided to compete at the world championship level in 1982 riding for the Yamaha

Yamaha Motor Company

, is a Japanese motorized vehicle-producing company. Yamaha Motor is part of Yamaha Corporation and its headquarter is located in Iwata, Shizuoka. Along with expanding Yamaha Corporation into the world's biggest piano maker, then Yamaha CEO Genichi Kawakami took Yamaha into the field of motorized...

 factory racing team. In his first attempt, he claimed the FIM

Fédération Internationale de Motocyclisme

The Fédération Internationale de Motocyclisme is the governing body of motorcycle racing. It represents 103 national motorcycle federations that are divided into six regional continental unions....

 250cc motocross world championship against the heavily-favored Georges Jobé

Georges Jobé

Georges Jobé is a former five-time FIM motocross world champion from Belgium. In addition, Jobé also won several Belgian national motocross championships in a professional motocross career that spanned from 1979 to 1992....

.

Returning to America, LaPorte began to compete in desert racing

Off-road racing

Off-road racing is a format of racing where various classes of specially modified vehicles compete in races through off-road environments.-North America:...

 and won the famous Baja 1000

Baja 1000

SCORE Baja 1000 is an off-road race that takes place on Mexico's Baja California Peninsula in November. The Baja 1000 is part of the SCORE Championship Desert Racing Series that include the Baja 500, San Felipe 250 and the new San Felipe Challenge of Champions in place of the Primm 300 which had...

 three times as a member of the Kawasaki

Kawasaki Heavy Industries

is an international corporation based in Japan. It has headquarters in both Chūō-ku, Kobe and Minato, Tokyo.The company is named after its founder Shōzō Kawasaki and has no connection with the city of Kawasaki, Kanagawa....

 racing team. In the 1990s, he competed in international rally

Rally raid

Rally raid, also known as cross country rallying is a form of long distance off-road racing that takes place over several days. Each day may require traveling up to . The length of the event can be 3–15 days...

 events, winning a stage and finishing second overall in the 1992 Paris-Dakar Rally

Dakar Rally

The Dakar Rally is an annual rally raid type of off-road automobile race, organised by the Amaury Sport Organisation...

. He also is the winner of 1991 Pharaohs rally

Rallye des Pharaons

The Rallye des Pharaons is an FIM-sanctioned rally raid event that takes place in Egypt, with Cairo being both the start and finishing point at the foot of the pyramids of Giza, and covers roughly around 3,100 km. It is similar in format to the Dakar Rally in that it takes place in desert...

 in Egypt.

LaPorte currently resides in Southern California

Southern California

Southern California is a megaregion, or megapolitan area, in the southern area of the U.S. state of California. Large urban areas include Greater Los Angeles and Greater San Diego. The urban area stretches along the coast from Ventura through the Southland and Inland Empire to San Diego...

 and still competes occasionally. In 2000, he was inducted into the AMA Motorcycle Hall of Fame

Motorcycle Hall of Fame

The Motorcycle Hall of Fame Museum is an offshoot of the American Motorcyclist Association that recognizes individuals who have contributed to motorcycle sport, motorcycle construction and motorcycling in general. It displays motorcycles and riding gear and memoribilia. The museum is located in...

. He was inducted again in 2003, this time as a member of the victorious 1981 Motocross des Nations team.

External links

• Danny LaPorte at the AMA Motorcycle Hall of fame