Other Motorsports

Any man or woman who wants to get into motorsports first must find what they enjoy about it. Do they prefer the quarter-mile dash of drag racing, the twists and turns of Formula 1, or the high speeds of NASCAR?

Maybe what he or she is looking for is a sport where they can sling some dirt. Some drivers prefer swinging a late model or a sprint car on a small dirt track rather than the burn of the asphalt.

There are even those that prefer to hold onto the handle bars of a motorcycle or dirt bike rather than a steering wheel.

It is all about finding your niche.

Then, there are some drivers that take all these elements and put them into one sport. Combine the speed of drag racing, the turns of Formula 1, the dirt of the short track and the jumping ability of motocross and you have the sport of monster truck racing.

The sport has included many big-name drivers, but most of them are male. Drivers such as Jim Kramer, Dennis Anderson, and Fred Shafer are among the most recognized names in monster trucks. But, where are the famous female drivers?

Yes, Debra "Madusa" Miceli has won championships; however, she made her name in the wrestling ring long before taking the wheel of a monster truck.

But, one current monster truck driver can say she got into the sport for the simple reason that she just wanted to do it.

That woman is Amber Walker, the driver of the Ms. Bigfoot truck for the team that started the monster truck industry.

After being out of the seat for over five years, she was tabbed the driver for Ms. Bigfoot as part of Bigfoot's 35th anniversary tour.

Recently, Walker took some time out of her busy schedule to sit down for an interview with me.

With her final weekend of driving on the horizon, she was glad to discuss how she got into the sport, her life outside the truck, driving for Team Bigfoot, and her views on the industry.

DUSTIN PARKS: Amber, thanks for taking some time out of your schedule for an interview.

AMBER WALKER: No problem; glad to do it.

DP: When did you first get into racing?

AW: I started getting into it about 11 years ago when I was in college. I actually went to the 4-Wheel Jamboree in Lima, Ohio, and then to another monster truck show in the winter at the RCA Dome. I thought, "These are all guys here," and I thought that's something I could do.

I was actually driving down the road in Seamore, Ind., on one of my student internships in college and I saw [the] Wild Thing [truck] sitting beside the road. I pulled over and started looking at the truck and [driver] Tony Farrell came out and said, "Can I help you?" I said, "No, I was just looking at your truck."

He asked if I liked monster trucks, and I said that I was a driver, I just hadn't driven yet. And he thought that was hilarious.

DP: How did you get your first driving job?

AW: It was a coincidence as Tony had just sold his truck to Paul Shafer and he was looking for a female driver, and he was in Louisville, Ky., that weekend.

I went down and met Paul, and at first Paul was all "gung ho" to let me do it. Then he asked my age, and I said "19." He said, "I already have a child. I didn't want another one."

He let me crew for a bit just to get a feel for it. Then, when I was 20, I did my first race in Dayton, Ohio.

DP: You drove for Paul Shafer for many of your early years. What were some things you learned from him?

AW: One of the biggest things I learned from Paul was No. 1, you always tip people very well. Another thing I learned was to respect the sport, respect the fact that you can get hurt in all aspects in life, and to actually respect all the equipment. It's a reflection on him, and yourself.

If you're going to do something, do it to the best of your ability.

DP: You drove many trucks for Paul, most notably Frankenstein, the Boogey Van, and the No. 29 Kid Rock truck. Which one did you enjoy driving the most? 

AW: The Kid Rock one was my favorite. It was my buddy.

It was a truck that also fell apart a lot. When it ran good, it ran GOOD. When it didn't run good, it didn't run good at all.

It was a fun truck to freestyle; you barely had to touch the gas, and the truck would come right out from underneath you. It would almost want to roll over backwards.

I knew a lot of other people who had drove the truck, and it scared them. Paul hated that truck.

I absolutely loved it.

DP: Who or what was your inspiration growing up?

AW: That's a really hard question.

I think one of my biggest inspirations was from a movie I watched called "Wild Hearts Can't Be Broken," about a girl that dove horses off these big platforms and went blind doing it. But, it was something she loved and she kept doing. When I watched it, I definitely thought there was something out there for me in life that I would have a passion for like that.

I ended up finding racing, but my family had nothing to do with racing. They weren't into it at all. They were more sports, and I was a springboard diver and gymnast. But, nothing pulled me in the direction where that's what I should be doing.

But racing did, even though it came later in life. 

DP: After the 2005 season, you decided to take some time off from monster trucks. What did you do during the time away from monster trucks and racing?

AW: I got a lot of tattoos, colored my hair a lot of crazy colors. I was a manager at a rehab department, but then stepped back and did my physical therapy stuff.

Also raised my kids, rode four-wheelers, dirt bikes, went mudding, tore up my Jeep...just a little bit of everything.

DP: Bigfoot decided to bring back Ms. Bigfoot as part of their 35th anniversary tour. What was your initial reaction when you got called to possibly drive the truck?

AW: It was funny. I actually said I would never race monster trucks again. When they talked to be about doing it, I thought, "Oh no, I'm gonna have to do this," because I said if I ever were to race a monster truck again, the only way I would do it would be for Bigfoot.

So, I was kind of in shock after five years that somebody bothered looking me up because I walked away, and that was that. I still thought about it, and it was funny because I used to dream about it all the time for some reason. I don't know why, but I would always dream about it.

DP: What were you thinking after they offered you the ride?

AW: At first, I was a little bit unsure about it, if it was something I was ready to jump back into. I'm really happy I did. I was excited.

It felt like a big honor that Bigfoot wanted me because they are the best of the best. They could have picked any other girl in the world, even would have trained somebody new. But, they wanted me.

DP: I remember you credited lead Bigfoot driver, Dan Runte, for getting you that ride.

AW: Yeah. He was the one that told them to look me up.

DP: What can you say about the Bigfoot fans and how they've accepted you as the newest driver of the Bigfoot truck?

AW: The fans have all been great. Everybody seems really excited to have a girl on board, and they have a little edgier look going on. Bigfoot has always been clean-cut, and then they got Larry [Swim] and started the "Bad Boy" Bigfoot.

When they met me, they said, "You're perfect. You are exactly what we wanted." They wanted someone edgier and fun, but still anti-drug and things like that. But, just had a fun, new look for them. And also the fact that I can drive.

Bringing that combination together was something that they liked.

DP: Your debut was at the Springfield Jamboree in Springfield, Mo., not that far from the home of Bigfoot. Any butterflies whenever you realized this was your first opportunity to step inside Bigfoot? 

AW: Oh yeah! But, then again, I had a lot of pressure on myself because I was afraid of disappointing the Bigfoot fans so much. I didn't want to make Bigfoot look bad.

In my head, I thought I had a qualifying pass. I pulled to the [starting] line, and I looked over and there's Avenger. I thought, "What in the world? This isn't a qualifying pass." So, my first time driving Bigfoot was in a racing pass against Avenger.

DP: That weekend didn't exactly go the way you wanted. First day, you rolled the truck over after hitting the bus stack after a patented Bigfoot wheelie.

AW: No, but I look back on it and the fact of the matter is that I had a Bigfoot truck, and I had a slap wheelie, so I had to do it. I felt like I had to do it. So, when I committed to it, I knew I was going a bit crooked, but I'm going to try and back out of it.

That stuff happens.

DP: A little word association for you. Just say the first thing that comes to your mind.

AW: Alright, I'm ready.

DP: Horsepower.

AW: I don't want to say (huge laughs). I'll just say big motor.

DP: Your family.

AW: My kids.

DP: Paul Shafer.

AW: His glasses (laughs).

DP: Larry Swim.

AW: I can't answer that honestly. I plead the Fifth.

DP: Bob Chandler.

AW: Really the coolest person ever. So super nice.

DP: Dan Runte.

AW: Super professional, and a bad ass driver. Hands-down, best there is.

DP: The Bigfoot wheelie.

AW: Total adrenaline rush.

DP: The fans.

AW: Awe, I think of my two little associates in crime, my mustache bandits. This little girl and little boy that come to all my shows. The little girl dyes her hair like mine, and we draw fake mustaches on our fingers and take pictures of in the autograph line. 

DP: Everett Jasmer, owner of the USA-1 monster trucks, has for many years described the industry today as "professional wrestling on wheels." Do you agree or disagree with that statement?

AW: I wasn't around in the old days, so I don't know what it was like. I don't know if it's "professional wrestling on wheels," but I think it's become too commercialized and the racing aspect has been pushed aside, which is really sad.

It's all about the freestyle and how many T-shirts you sell. There's some companies out there that said there's a lot of money to be had in these shirts and stuff.

I haven't done many of those shows to know, but I'm sure there's certain people in certain places that maybe they prefer a win out of that person because they sell more T-shirts. I don't know that for sure, but I can see that happening with the industry a little bit.

The new thing is to find the new and most exciting way to get money coming in. There's also not enough sponsors in the sport that will allow it to be full-on racing.

With the economy changing and things going downhill, for these companies to stay afloat, they really have no choice but to go all out "this is a show, this is entertainment, and this is what people want to see."

If we just go to racing, and people get bored, then the sport will die out completely.

I think it was just actually something that just had to happen to keep the sport afloat. I think in the future you may see some more racing come out of it, but I think it will be a while before the market comes around and lets that happen. 

DP: Do you think that has hurt the industry?

AW: I think in a way it has, but in a way it's the same as freestyle motocross and things like that. It's the nature of human beings. They want to see crashes, they want to see the next new big thing. I guess the decision had to be made as to whether they stick to just racing, or they just "go crazy."

People are probably going to start getting hurt more, but much like many other sports, the more technology that comes out there, the more bigger stunts people are going to do because of the new safety equipment.

DP: Do you feel bad that there isn't as much of a focus on racing?

AW: I'm disappointed there isn't a racing series like there was before, like the ProMT and being full on just racing. Now, it just seems like the show is almost based on freestyle. You can go on and win the race, but if you do a terrible freestyle, people will really remember the driver that did the good freestyle and went out there and really kicked butt.

Some of them remember the racing, but more often than not if you do a good freestyle, they think you're the greatest thing in the world. Even if you did horrible racing.

DP: Recently, Joe Sylvester in the Bad Habit monster truck broke the long-distance monster truck jump record, now at 208 feet. Any desire to break the record yourself?

AW: If Bigfoot would let me, I would be all for it. I have a HANS device now, an ISP seat. It is something I totally would want to do.

There's two things I would do monster truck-wise. No. 1, be MTRA (Monster Truck Racing Association) Driver of the Year at some point.

No. 2, hold a world record at some point. Even if it's just for a month, I wanted to break one record of some kind.

DP: Do you think it can be broken once more?

AW: Oh yeah, I certainly do.

DP: Finally, do you have any words for any young man or woman that wants to get into motorsports?

AW: I think you have to go in there and find your niche. Like, what you feel drawn to, and go with that, and not being afraid to say "This is something I want to do."

I love dirt bikes and four-wheelers, but I just always felt it wasn't my thing, like it wasn't something I was going to be good at. Something in me was drawn to the monster trucks and I thought that this was something I could possibly do, and it's a blast. It's an adrenaline rush.

I'll never get world famous for driving a monster truck, or make any fabulously, good money. But, it's what I love to do. Every time I'm in my truck, I feel like it's where I'm supposed to be, and that's a great feeling.

I think it's sad that sometimes people don't go with their gut instincts. You just go do it.

Walker has shown that even though she is a little small in size, her dreams are as big as ever. She hopes that she can continue to be a part of the Bigfoot team in some fashion.

In fact, the Bigfoot team is currently holding a contest to redesign their "Bad Boy" Bigfoot truck for the new season. Walker suggested that they create a "Bad Girl" Bigfoot for possibly just a one-time-only performance.

If that happens has been yet to be seen. But, no matter what, Walker proved that big dreams really can come true.

After the season finale of the Red Bull Air Race in Barcelona in October 2009, I left sports writing to start medical school.

However, the last interview I had performed was with the local hero Alejandro, or Alex, Maclean. Maclean was pretty dejected about the 2009 season but was optimistic for a strong return in 2010.

With my last article done and best wishes received from Team Maclean as I pursued this field, I went from a writer who accidentally stumbled into this sport and found his niche to merely a spectator in what I thought was the coolest sport I had ever come across. I had hoped to return one day in another capacity, but I first had to concentrate on my studies.

Today, tragic news came from Spain that Maclean died in a fatal accident while training for an air show. He was only 41.

It comes with a heavy heart to return to writing—albeit briefly—to pay tribute to one of the most interesting pilots that was in the Red Bull Air Race. I had only interviewed Maclean three times, but being the last pilot to interview with before I pursued another career left me speechless as I read the shocking news this afternoon.

Alex Maclean was one of the most-experienced pilots on the air racing circuit and kept himself out of serious trouble when it came to racing—even under tough conditions—which makes this news even more heart-wrenching.

When I first started in the 2008 season, the Red Bull Air Race wasn't as big as it is today. It mainly had aviation enthusiasts following the sport. My first one-on-one with the pilots came in Detroit that year.

I first met and interviewed Maclean after the cancelled qualifying, since he was quite busy during the media days with others who were more experienced interviewing him, while I was a just a newbie to the whole "interviewing the sports star" process.

This had me wondering: How does a Spanish pilot get more interviews than the three Americans?

It turned out, according to the more experienced journalists and aviation writers, that Maclean was one of the most interviewable pilots!

While I sounded nervous and not completely comfortable with this whole new atmosphere, Maclean took my questions in consideration and answered to the best of his abilities. There was a lot of disappointment since he had very little stick time in his brand new MXS, but he was still very professional and cool, albeit frustrated about the complete cancellation.

Afterwards, when it was time for the media to wrap things up, I quietly asked for a quick fan photo. He smiled!

That was an interesting way to part.

The start of the 2009 season in Abu Dhabi was quite interesting since I was more used to the whole hubbub that is caused whenever the Red Bull Air Race rolls into town, and again, I spoke with Maclean. Nothing special here, except for the fact that his team coordinator (TC), Carola, had a close stumble just as the interview began and we all had to keep ourselves from full-out laughing!

That was the last time I was able to speak one-on-one with Alex Maclean.

I was never able to speak with Maclean in Windsor, Canada, because of the Spanish-language media overrunning his hangar, and it looked like he was taking it in stride too! That was the last race I attended because of the career change.

Overall, Maclean was also one of the nicest guys to the fans and media. When it came to interviews, he came off more as a friend than just a person you were interviewing.

I will remember his on-track attitude in which his happiness for completing the track in a good time or frustration for getting a penalty was visible on his face—often attributed to the "hot Latin blood that goes through him" as the commentators would say!

Maclean's death was a tragedy and the world lost a great talent today.

As a former writer who had some connection with Maclean and his team, the news was shocking and saddening for me.

He will be remembered by this writer not just for his racing, but for the type of sportsman he was when off the track: A nice guy who wouldn't mind a quick chat.

Alejandro Maclean: 1969-2010.

In Part III of air racing’s 2008 pilot review and what to expect for 2009, I look at the top four pilots of last year’s Red Bull Air Race series.

Part I of the series talked about the bottom third while Part II talked about the mid-field.

So without further ado, I will take a look at Mike Mangold, Kirby Chambliss, Paul Bonhomme and Hannes Arch.

Mike Mangold (USA)

• 2008 Position: Fourth (44 points)
• 2008 Race Number: 1 (No. 11 for 2009)
• 2008 Aircraft: Edge 540
• 2009 Aircraft: Edge 540
• 2008 Status: Fifth year in the Red Bull Air Race

Mike Mangold was a double Red Bull Air Race World Champion, the first pilot to be in that position since the air race became a world series by winning the championship in 2005 and 2007.

In 2008, Mangold just could not defend his title. While Paul Bonhomme, Kirby Chambliss and Hannes Arch were fighting for wins, Mangold was caught in the dust and just could not keep up—a big change from 2007 when he was in the fray fighting with Bonhomme.

Even with his inability to keep up, Mangold still had high spirits when talking with reporters and others. He only really lost his temper after a mistake by his mechanic Dennis Sawyer barely got him qualified inside of the top eight in the fifth round in London. Apart from that, he’s been a top bloke!

With Dennis Sawyer gone to work with Australian rookie Matt Hall, Mike Mangold could have a harder time to compete for the top spot. Then again, maybe 2009 is for him to rebuild and become a stronger pilot with a stronger team than before.

Kirby Chambliss (USA)

• 2008 Position: Third (46 Points)
• 2008 Race Number: 4 (Same for 2009)
• 2008 Aircraft: Edge 540
• 2009 Aircraft: Edge 540
• 2008 Status: Sixth year in the Red Bull Air Race

Kirby Chambliss came off a winless 2007 and from the start of the 2008 season in Abu Dhabi appeared uncomfortable. However, those jitters were gone by the second round in San Diego when Chambliss took an impressive third place and was the first pilot of the year to beat what was the unbeatable Bonhomme in Detroit.

After that, things started looking up for the pilot from Arizona as he was able to win the fifth round in London as well as take a solid podium in the seventh round in Porto – but it wasn’t meant to be for the American as he was outperformed by Hannes Arch and Paul Bonhomme.

The main reason for the 2006 champion’s inability to reap the benefits more had to do with his ‘all or nothing’ attitude that he harbored. He had to win it because “number one is everything… number two’s nothing.” Unfortunately, pushing too hard in the sixth round in Budapest and incurring a penalty in the final round in Perth did not help his cause out.

However, 2009 is a new season, a chance to redeem oneself from the failures of the previous year. Chambliss has a good team that can get his plane to top specs and he himself is a world-class pilot that can race a good race. All he has to do is not push too hard or else he runs the risk of hurting his chances for a championship.

Paul Bonhomme (GBR)

• 2008 Position: Second (54 points)
• 2008 Race Number: 2 (#55 for 2009)
• 2008 Aircraft: Edge 540
• 2009 Aircraft: Edge 540
• 2008 Status: Sixth year in the Red Bull Air Race

The story of Paul Bonhomme has to be the biggest up and down experienced this year. Bonhomme came off a 2007 season coming second to Mike Mangold but only after countback showed that he had qualified lower than the American. Apart from lower qualifying, he was completely equal to Mike Mangold in terms of wins, podiums and fifth places in 2007.

2008 was meant to be revenge and to take a title he was supposed to get the year before.

In the first two rounds, Bonhomme appeared to be invincible. He was consistently fastest and his flying was consistent. The Englishman looked like he had it all and this was the year when he would finally get to taste the victory champagne.

However, it all went wrong for him in London. It appeared that the weekend was cursed after he hit a flock of birds in training and killed three, then hit a pylon after “flying like a bloody idiot” in the race.

It just went from bad to worse in Porto. After pulling over-g’s in qualifying, Bonhomme was disqualified from the super eights and had to compete in the Point One round the next day.

As well, his aircraft had to be taken apart for inspection due to legal reasons. The next day was no consolation after he received a three-second penalty for incorrect leveling through a blue gate – he had turned too quickly while he was still in-between the gates.

He had effectively handed over the championship to Arch. In the final round in Perth, Bonhomme was able to reclaim some of his glory by winning the final race of the season, but coming second for the second time when it all went right at the beginning and came crashing towards the end has to be the biggest pain in the backside.

Maybe the third time’s a charm!

Hannes Arch (AUT)

• 2008 Position: First (61 points)
• 2008 Race Number: 28 (Same for 2009)
• 2008 Aircraft: Edge 540
• 2009 Aircraft: Edge 540
• 2008 Status: Second year in the Red Bull Air Race

Whoever put money on Hannes Arch winning the world championship certainly won big.

Nobody expected Arch, in his second year, to become champion. It was believed that his second place against Bonhomme at the opening race in Abu Dhabi was a fluke.

But, consistency was the biggest reward for the 41 year old Austrian. In eight rounds, Arch was on the podium seven times – twice on the top step. Along with Paul Bonhomme losing his cool, Arch was able to capitalize on that, even though along the way, it appeared that Kirby Chambliss would have had a better chance of beating Bonhomme and continued the American domination of the premier series of aeroplane racing.

Surely since he’s champion, Arch doesn’t need to improve on anything, right?

Wrong! Arch’s biggest problem in the Red Bull Air Race was his inability to beat Paul Bonhomme in a head-to-head flyoff. He has faced off against Bonhomme several times throughout 2008 but was never able to beat the Englishman. Every time that the finals or semi-finals were Arch vs. Bonhomme, he would always either be slower or he would make a costly mistake like hitting a pylon.

That was best demonstrated in the first place flyoff in Rotterdam when after attempting a new maneuver in the wrong conditions, Arch went smack into a pylon and couldn't continue because he still had a lot of pylon on his wings and was being pulled down. This resulted in his disqualification and automatically put him in second place for that round.

With the new format, Arch might have it easier in 2009, but like many teachers say about their students: it is the participant who determines his destiny.

The 2009 Red Bull Air Race season starts on April 13-14 in Abu Dhabi. Smoke On!

For Part II of my 2008 pilot analyses for the Red Bull Air Race, I will be looking at the mid-field. This group was one where they had a combination of both good and bad luck in equal doses.

Alejandro Maclean (ESP)

• 2008 Position: 8th (21 points)
• 2008 Race Number: 36 (Same for 2009)
• 2008 Aircraft: Edge 540 & MXS
• 2009 Aircraft: MXS
• 2008 Status: Sixth year in the Red Bull Air Race

Alejandro “Alex” Maclean had a tough 2008 in the Red Bull Air Race. After switching to an MXS in the third round in Detroit, things started to look up, but he still kept getting the short end of the stick, mainly because he was not used to the MXS and all the wonderful things it could do.

Alejandro could have had an opportunity to score quality points throughout the 2008 campaign after Detroit, but it appeared that he could only fly a good race if the weather was perfect—anything else just wouldn’t work for him.

Maclean’s best moment in 2008 came at Perth when he was within arm’s length of reaching a podium place, only to be bested by Austrian Hannes Arch in the third place flyoff. The final round appeared like Maclean was starting to become one with his plane, and perhaps we could see more breakouts for the calm Spaniard.

Nigel Lamb (GBR)

• 2008 Position: 7th (30 points)
• 2008 Race Number: 9 (Same for 2009)
• 2008 Aircraft: MX2 & MXS
• 2009 Aircraft: MXS
• 2008 Status: Fourth year in the Red Bull Air Race

Nigel Lamb is one of the more well-known pilots in the Red Bull Air Race—due in part to the fact that his aircraft is quite an eye-catcher: a bright yellow MXS with Breitling sponsorship all over it. He has also done some stunt flying in film productions like the 2006 independent movie Flyboys.

However, Lamb has had his share of bad luck but he always took it with a grin and a chuckle. He was the first pilot in 2008 to take delivery of the new MXS and while it was boasted to be a really fast aircraft with a lot of capabilities, all that boasting went out the window with his mediocre results, including a disqualification in the third round in Detroit after flying too low in the chicane. It should be said here though that the times he was pulling in Detroit though could have stood against those of Chambliss, Bonhomme, Arch and Mangold—the top four finishers in that round.

The reasons for his inability to produce results probably had something to do with the kinks that the aircraft might have had. After all, he had been using an MX2 aircraft for a while. It is entirely possible that the new MXS had a few bugs because it was so new coming out of the box.

Lamb was finally able to come within a hair of winning the final round of the Red Bull Air Race in Perth, partly because of his ability to masterfully navigate the duo gates. He came second against countryman Paul Bonhomme, but this was still his highest ever placing and put more motivation on him to up his game for 2009.

Steve Jones (GBR)

• 2008 Position: 6th (33 Points)
• 2008 Race Number: 19
• 2008 Aircraft: Edge 540
• 2009 Aircraft: Unknown
• 2008 Status: Sixth year in the Red Bull Air Race

Steve Jones was another of those really experienced pilots in the Red Bull Air Race since its inception in 2003. 2008 started off on the wrong foot for Jones but he improved by the time the Air Race reached the European leg of the tour by netting a third place in Rotterdam and a second place in Budapest.

Apart from that, 2008 was a pretty quiet season for Jones, but not as quiet as 2007 where he was able to win once and that was it. Steve Jones was able to take two podiums in 2008 and could have gotten a third one in Porto but lost in the third place flyoff to Mike Mangold by 0.03 seconds! To give you perspective of what 0.03 seconds looks like in the Red Bull Air Race, that is the tip of the propeller of the aircraft to just in front of the canopy.

Jones’ season was still good compared to his previous seasons by never once being out of the points, which is a credit to him.

In 2009, Steve Jones appears to be absent from the roster possibly because of retirement, but no word out on what is up with him.

Peter Besenyei (HUN)

• 2008 Position: 5th (34 points)
• 2008 Race Number: 4 (#5 for 2009)
• 2008 Aircraft: Extra 300SR and Edge 540
• 2009 Aircraft: Edge 540
• 2008 Status: Sixth year in the Red Bull Air Race

Peter Besenyei is one of the most well known pilots of the Red Bull Air Race. In fact, he helped out in the creation of the series.

However, 2008 was a real downer for Besenyei. Never out of the top three in the final rankings, Besenyei could not even once break out onto the podium as he had done in the previous years.

In the fifth round in London, he switched over to an Edge 540 after his Extra 300SR just couldn’t perform the necessary maneuvers cleanly. His best flying was done in the second round in San Diego but had it not been for a pylon hit, he could have easily broken out on to the podium.

Could his fall from grace be a signal to retire or was it a funk that tends to happen with all great sportsmen? I guess 2009 will answer that question.

Stay tuned next week for the top four 2008 pilots—Hannes Arch, Paul Bonhomme, Kirby Chambliss and Mike Mangold—and what they should be doing to defend or even improve on their positions. Click here for Part I.