OzVMX Forum
Clubroom => General Discussion => Topic started by: JohnnyO on May 05, 2010, 02:42:22 pm
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More terrible news.. Motocross Legend Danny 'Magoo' Chandler has passed away at his home in California.
Magoo was one of my heroes in the 70's and 80's.
What a shocking week. RIP Magoo.
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This hits a raw nerve for a lot of us.
RIP a true MX legend.
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So what gives here, passed away from what??
Certainly more bad news for all mxers just when we don't need it.
RIP their Magoo
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What a bloody shame. Danny "Magoo" Chandler is without any question the most spectacular rider I ever saw. In an era when racers were getting smoother and more generic in style, Magoo stood out as a true one off wild man. He may not have finished every race up front (or at all) but you can bet that he entertained the crowd more than a grid full of LaPortes or Glovers. At least he'll now be over the pain he must have been suffering. Apparently his recent years hadn't been too good both healthwise and financially.
I think we should now officially retire the Magoo nickname for good. RIP little fella.
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He was "one of a kind"
They don't make them like that anymore.
(http://i15.photobucket.com/albums/a393/gmcloa/Magoo-Chandler-2.jpg)
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I love how these people with motorycyle injuries or any other soul destroying health problem still go strong to get a dedicated point across to the hierarchy of the world.God Bless Them
Leaving many strong race/ride memories for all to see.
RIP Legend
An Open Letter From Danny Magoo:
Recently, I have received more phone calls and emails from people alerting me to new spinal chord injuries in our sport than ever before. Riders like up and coming 18 year old national pro Chase Borders have had their dreams shattered due to career ending spinal cord injury. This recent phenomenon coupled with Ernesto Fonseca’s recent paralyzing injury, and the current situation with my friend and fellow wheel chair bound motocross legend David Bailey have finally made this issue so huge and apparent, that I felt something must be publicly said. It is time the industry and especially the bike manufacturers step up and lend a helping hand to the fallen racers who have done so much for this sport.
With the rate of paralysis causing injuries on the rise, the AMA and the factory teams must begin to take some responsibility. This includes a mandatory chest protector and neck roll rule for all professional AMA racing. Safety and good racing must be our number one concern. Being a quadriplegic for over twenty years, I can tell first hand how huge and terrible this issue is. We, as a racing community, must push for sweeping changes from the factories and people running this sport concerning the safety of current riders, and the well-being of riders who have already been hurt.
The other day, I received a call from Goat Brecker inviting me to come down to the Lake Elsinore Grand Prix to help raise money for David Bailey. It seems as a result of David’s busy schedule working for TV and doing motocross schools, that he has developed a very serious pressure sore that will require him to be bed ridden for a minimum of one year. The sore is a result of his chair rubbing against his skin for hours on end everyday. Since David, like myself, has no feeling in the lower half of his body, this problem can go undetected until the sore is out of control. Having spent, at one time, a year and a half bed-ridden with a similar pressure sore, I can attest to the severity of this injury. When I called David to see how he was doing, I was disgusted to find that the man, a multi-time US MX champion, was receiving no help at all from Honda, the company he won all those championships for and continues to represent today. Any sort of help or compensation for riders in David’s situation would be nothing to a huge entity like Honda. Sadly however, they aren’t going to do anything but lead David on. For four years, they have told him he could head up the American Honda amateur support program, a position that David was built for. Four years later, they still offer him no job, no salary, no support. To say I have been treated any differently after my days as a professional racer for them would be a lie. In fact, I feel that Honda regards me as more of a publicity nightmare than an asset with a lot to pass on to the youth of our sport today. They see me, a man in a wheel chair, put there in part because of motorcycles and think all I will do is scare parents away from the sport, when the opposite couldn’t be more true. Through safety awareness, we can create healthy, long-term riders, which means fewer injuries and long-term patrons of the sport.
Some years ago, I wrote up a complete budget proposal and presented it to Honda. My plan was to purchase a wheelchair-ready van and travel to the major races to promote the use of chest protectors, neck rolls and safety in general. On my own, I have convinced many, many parents and kids to start wearing this extra safety gear, which should be mandatory for all riders. The impact people like David and myself could have if we looked professional, and were given a modest budget to get from race to race would be huge. Before my meeting with Honda, I had been representing them at the 24 Hours of Glen Helen race, pitting with Jeff Willow. Due to this, my chair was obviously dirty. When I sat down with the Honda rep and told them my plan, they really didn’t take me seriously at all and really had no intention of helping. The rep asked me if I really thought I could help the kids, and I replied, “Yes, of course. If I look professional like the factory boys do, and I can get around, tell my story, and speak of the importance of safety and responsibility, yes.” He mockingly replied, “Does that mean you are going to wash your wheelchair?” I don’t think I have ever been so insulted. It is quite out of my hands how dirty my chair gets, since I don’t really have the capability to wash it myself, let alone the fact I had spent the last 24 hours at a motorcycle race. Years later, I approached them again to ask for funding for one of my latest projects, a documentary on my life entitled “Magoo: The Story of Danny Chandler,” and again wasn’t taken seriously nor really heard at all. Honda has no intention of giving anything back to the sport that doesn’t directly result in higher profits.
The irresponsibility at the highest levels of professional racing concerning safety has to change. How many more young people must end up like me before some real legislation comes into effect? There is no better way to promote safety than to have the professional ranks start the trend. Just imagine how many kids would be begging their parents for neck protection if Carmichael started wearing it.
Years ago, when I was inducted into the Motocross Hall of Fame, I brought attention to the fact that the carting industry has recently made neck rolls mandatory for all racers. Soon after the legislation went through, the amount of spinal cord related injuries plummeted, as did the cost of insurance for the promoter, thus making the sport less expensive as well as safer. Why has motocross, a much larger sport, not addressed the situation as well?
Those who profit most from the sport must take responsibility to take care, in some capacity, of those already injured, and to do everything possible to prevent future injuries. Motorcycles and the lifestyle that comes with them are a vehicle we use to live life to its absolute fullest, however, the incredible freedom we all get from riding comes with a heavy responsibility to ourselves and especially to the youth of this sport. It is time the voices of injured riders, who have given so much, are heard and supported, and it is time for change.
Go Ride.
Danny “Magoo” Chandler
As transcribed and written by Noah Samson
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gutted.
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I always remember watching him at Brisbane one night dicing with Liesk he would take a slower line just so he could triple part of the infield and do huge jumps for the crowd Liesk would get 3 bikes lengths back but he did it every lap.
RIP Magoo
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very sad, RIP Magoo
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Dagnab it !! He stood for an outpost of irreverence when the whole world of mx wanted to go "pro". When our purported heroes were stars with long, flowing blonde locks or chiselled features, Magoo had a face like a smacked bum, yet he would out-jump, out-brake, or just out-enthuse 'em all on the way up. When he got there, he was both smooth and quick, but never lost his common touch with the people who'd loved him all the way to the top, and never became a "show-biz a***hole". I don't know what's caused his demise, but I fear the ongoing pain and frustration has played its' part. Either way, it's too soon, and I'm sure the mx community is tonight bemoaning the fact that most of us never got a chance to say thanks to the lad for giving all of us a window of possibility that, rough-headed or not, if we went like mad bast***s, we were a chance to rock the cool dudes of the establishment.
Good on ya, Magoo. ;)
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Very sad news indeed.
It's hard to fathom that someone with so much enthusiasm for everything could end life in this way.
Danny was a legend alright and an absolute blast to watch. ;D
It's also a sad reminder of how much his type of injury affects your health in so many other ways. As David Bailey knows........ :(
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More sad news,
A rare pic of Magoo with two wheels on the ground,
nailing the worlds best
RIP Danny Chandler
(http://i40.tinypic.com/4qgzcz.jpg)
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My overwhelming thought out of Magoos demise is...... BUY A NECK BRACE!
I wont ride without mine and I reckon you're a mug if you dont have one.
Sermon over...
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Godspeed Danny.
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Tribute by Jody Weisel
http://www.motocrossactionmag.com/Main/News/GODSPEED-DANNY-MAGOO-CHANDLER-19592010-6920.aspx (http://www.motocrossactionmag.com/Main/News/GODSPEED-DANNY-MAGOO-CHANDLER-19592010-6920.aspx)
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I guess the main problem is we think these guys will last forever because they are so large in our minds, most probably because we were brought up on a steady diet of them in Motocross Action each month in our formative years.
Jodies story of him is pretty amazing especially for a chicken hearted guy like me that wouldn't hold a throttle to the stops for anymore then the blink of my eye :D
See you when we get there.
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To me he always seemed a bit of a lair but no doubt he was a natural talent. When he put his head down he was nearly unbeatable.
God Speed Magoo.
GP ROUND WIN (http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=cyb7AFpb2nM)
MAGOO V'S STEVE WISE (http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=iUEyWgyQOKg&feature=related)
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Very, very sad. From what I've read over the years it seems he'd found a way, or ways of keeping himself going. Personally I can't say I'd be strong enough.
This photo from the link Brad put up says it all about the guy and his attitude.
(http://www.motocrossactionmag.com/Uploads/Public/Images/rem/magooaftercrash.jpg)
It's a pity Honda couldn't find the same commitment that Magoo obviously had.
The following text I lifted from a MXA mag, July 1979,
"Throughout the years we have watched the development of Danny "Magoo" Chandler - from the little kid who had to climb up on a box to get on his 125 KTM at Hangtown in 1975, to the first American to get a contract with Maico in 1979.
The most memorable moments of Magoo's career aren't those wild cross-ups or ricochet rides at the 1976 Superbowl; instead it's his thoughtfulness. Whenever Magoo is involved in an accident, he always stops to check on the condition of the other rider. At Hangtown this year Magoo gave up any chance of being in the hunt in the first moto by stopping to be sure that a downed rider was all right.
It's nice to see a rider who isn't propelled by a win-at-any-costs-attitude"
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If you haven't seen it, get his video. The best I've seen. Great race footage of him on all brands.......even Maico's, racing in a 500 national on a RC 500 with the front brake locking on every time the forks collapsed, he man handled that thing for about half a moto until it eventually spat him off over the bars. Great interviews, and the crash that ended it all. A must watch.
R.I.P.
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http://www.racerxonline.com/article/brad-lackey-statement-about-danny-chandlers-passing.aspx
FULLERTON, CA - It is with mixed emotions that I write to Danny's friends and the world. While we are all extremely saddened by the sudden passing of our friend and my little motocross brother, we are also happy that Danny is at peace now. He is probably already looking at how to turn one cloud's double into a triple and see if he can do it with one foot off and one hand off his bent handlebar!
Danny and I grew up racing in Northern California together and taking on our rival "SoCal" racers knowing that we would have something to prove. Danny was always up for the challenge. The red-headed dynamo from the Sierra Nevada foothills always amazed me and other much more experienced and accomplished riders with his fully-pinned approach to straights, turns and of course, jumps.
I was very proud of him yet hardly surprised when I learned that he had decimated the competition at the 1982 Trophee and Motocross des Nations winning all four motos. It's what I would have expected out of Danny. It brought a smile to my face later when I heard a story about an official from one of the des Nations events.
Apparently he complained to Danny's team manager and my friend Roger DeCoster that Danny was riding too crazy, clipping trees on his jumps, etc. He said he was going to hurt himself. Roger simply just showed the official Danny's lap times and walked away.
In the past 12 months a lot of great people and I have worked toward getting Danny a new van to improve his way of life, which had deteriorated since his 1985 accident in Paris. I know Danny was excited about it and extremely appreciative to all those who contributed. He was genuinely surprised and humbled at the outpouring of support by all of his fans. Although he never got the chance to ride in his new van, he did see pictures of it and approved the new graphics that were being applied at the time of his passing. He really thought they were cool.
I just wish I had started the van project sooner.
As they say about hindsight, even a year or two earlier would've given Danny the opportunity to enjoy his life and do more of things he wished he could have done before Tuesday, May 4th. Now, as this is all swirling about for Lori and I, we are conscious of what should happen with the unfinished van project and all the fine individuals and companies that contributed. There will be decisions made in due time; all with Danny's and his family's best intentions in mind. The van was going to improve Danny's life by giving him the ability to get out and continue his passion for teaching kids motorcycle and motocross safety and I'm confident and hopeful that we can continue to fulfill at least part of Danny's mission. As soon as Danny's affairs have been settled, we'll have a better idea of what to do and we'll let the public know. Please bear with us and understand that whatever decisions are made, they will be done with concern, forethought and guidance by others close to Danny and the van project.
I will miss Danny with all my heart and I want to thank everyone around the world who felt the same about the incredible Mr. Magoo.
Brad Lackey
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A brilliant rider and incredibly fearless when it came to big jumps. i was a fan of his style.
without coming across as insensitive, does anyone know how Danny "Magoo" Chandler passed ?
was it a heart attack, accident or the other.
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or the other.
Hit by falling piano?
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A brilliant rider and incredibly fearless when it came to big jumps. i was a fan of his style.
without coming across as insensitive, does anyone know how Danny "Magoo" Chandler passed ?
was it a heart attack, accident or the other.
I believe it was an illness related to his paralysis.
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hoony i think you will find that the complication that go with paraplegic or quadrapledga would have had some thing to do with it ,i have a friend whos a paraplegic and he explained that your organs start to fail
after a period off time
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Thanks Guys, i didn't know that organ failure was a problem as well.
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Hooney that's why I ride VMX- to stop organ failure, mostly just to keep my gonads active when I remember how fast I was. :D
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Just found this great photo.
(http://www.leguidevert.com/forum/2010/a228909_1.jpg)
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Thats one cool photo, sure would like to get a blow up of that for the Magoo bar.
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The number plate had some connotations for his future maybe?
That's a beauty though. Maybe good for a caption comp.
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Gone now, but never forgotten.
Look at that photo - a winner from the start.
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http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=cu-n27jWL1E&feature=related
Thanks Danny Magoo 8)