Brian Patterson

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Brian Patterson
Personal information
Full name Brian Patterson
Date of birth January 4, 1965 (age 42)
Country Flag of United States United States
Team information
Current team Retired
Discipline Bicycle Motocross (BMX)
Role Racer
Rider type Off Road
Amateur team(s)
1976-1977
1977-1982
 Speedo Racing Products
Patterson Racing Products
Professional team(s)
1982-1986
 Patterson Racing Products
Infobox last updated on:
March 14, 2007

Brian Patterson (b. January 4, 1965 in Hayward, California USA) is a former American "Old School" bicycle motocross (BMX) racer.

Brian Patterson is the younger of the most potent sibling combinations BMX has ever seen. With Brent the Brothers Patterson are the only brothers to both hold the National No.1 Pro title in any major BMX sanctioning body. Brent in 1980 and Brian in 1982 and 1983 in the American Bicycle Association (ABA). They are also the only sibling combination to hold both the no.1 and no.2 national pro plate simultaneously with a major sanctioning body with Brian being ABA number one pro and Brent number two pro in 1982.

Contents

[edit] Racing career

Note: Professional first are on the national level unless otherwise indicated.

Started Racing: 1977 at 11 years old. Took a hiatus from racing beginning in 1979 at 13 due to burn out but resumed racing late 1980 at 15 years old.

First race result:

First local win:

Sanctioning body:

First National win:

First sponsor: A local Schwinn Bicycle shop in Hayward, California.

Turned Pro: Early 1982 at Age 17.

First Professional race result: Third place at 1982 American Bicycle Association (ABA) Winter Nationals in Chandler, Arizona. It was his only "A" pro race before being moved up to "AA" pro by ABA Vice President Gene Roden at Brian's request.[1]

First Professional win: April 10, 1982 at the ABA Rondo North American Championship Classic in St. Paul, Minnesota in "AA" Pro and Pro Open.[2]

First Junior Pro* result: See "First Professional race result".

First Junior Pro win: None.

First Senior Pro** result: See "First Professional win".

First Senior Pro Win: See above.

Height & weight at his height of his career: (1982-1984): Ht: 6' 3" Wt:~195lbs.[3]

Retired from the senior pro circuit: Mid 1986 at age 21. As is usual, many former top pro BMXers do not retire completely but race for fun or if there is a particularly large pro purse, such as the 1987 NBL World Cup.[4] Brian occasionally raced in several large races for both reasons in 1987, although both Brian and Brent raced Motorcycle Motocross professionally. Both would race BMX again when they attended the ABA Spring Nationals in 1991. Neither made the main. Both Brent's and Brian's days seriously contending for Senior Pro No.1 racer were over. However, not his career. After a six year hiatus Brian did come back to race in the mid 1990's in the ABA's Veteran Pro Class (along with fellow "Old Schoolers" Harry Leary and Eric Rupe) and did well. He was even reunited with his old Patterson Racing teammate Richie Anderson on the U.S. Boss Racing Products racing team. As for Patterson Racing Products, it went out of business in the summer of 1986 due to production problems.[5]

*In the NBL it is "B" Pro/Superclass/"A" pro (depending on the era); in the ABA "A" Pro.
**In the NBL it is "A" Pro/All Pro/"AA" pro/Elite Men (depending on the era); in the ABA "AA" Pro.

[edit] Career factory and major bicycle shop sponsors

Note: This listing only denotes the racer's primary sponsors. At any given time a racer could have numerous co-sponsors. Primary sponsorships can be verified by BMX press coverage at the time in question.

[edit] Amateur

  • Speedo Racing Products: October 1976-October 1977.
  • Patterson Racing Products: November 1977-1986. Brain and Brent would turn pro with Patterson Racing. Detailed below.

[edit] Professional

  • Patterson Racing Products: Late 1977-1986. This was the family owned BMX bicycle firm started by their father Vance Patterson in late 1977 after Speedo, who Vance Patterson had invested in, showed no signs of progress toward developing a BMX racing frame, the original reason why Vance Patterson invested in the first place.[6]. It was his and his brothers only factory sponsor in their Senior pro careers (Brian would ride for Boss Racing Products in the mid 1990's in the Masters/Veterans Pro classes). That Speedo team, despite getting offers from other firms to join their factory teams, they opted to stay together and thus the original Patterson team of Brian, Brent, Kevin Riding, John Crews, and Mike Koron was formed. Vance Patterson started Patterson racing also in part to fulfill his original intent with Speedo to come out with a BMX bicycle frame and signed up the ex Speedo Team and added Richie Anderson to it.[7] Richie would virtually become part of the Patterson family and stay with Patterson for many years, much longer than the average top amateur would stay with one team.
  • U.S. Boss Racing Products: January 1993- . Being bitten by the "BMX Bug" again, he restarted his BMX career in 1994 by racing in the ABA's Veteran Pro class. On Boss, he was reunited with John Crews and Richie Anderson, his old Speedo and Patterson Racing Products teammates.

[edit] Career Bicycle Motocross titles

[edit] Amature

National Bicycle Association (NBA)

  • 1976 11 Expert Grand National Champion

National Bicycle League (NBL)

  • None
International Bicycle Motocross Federation (IBMXF)
  • 1981 16 & Over Expert International Champion.

American Bicycle Association (ABA)

  • None

[edit] Professional

National Bicycle Association (NBA)

  • None

National Bicycle League (NBL)

  • None

American Bicycle Association (ABA)

  • 1982, 1983 National No.1 Pro

Brent came in ABA No.2 pro in 1982 when Brian became No.1 pro for that year, the only sibling combination to do so.

[edit] Notable Accolades

  • Super BMX magaine's Racer of the Year for 1984. No voter totals, breakdowns or percentage of the vote given.[8]
  • Brian Patterson is a 1988 ABA BMX Hall of Fame Inductee.

[edit] Significant injuries

  • Broke wrist in first moto of the final race of the 1983 ESPN Pro Spectacular in Burbank, California on December 27, 1983. He raced five more times (the last two motos, a quarter final, and a twice ran semi final. He did not transfer to the main after that semi. He then went to the hospital before confirming his belief he had a broken wrist. Two months before his Brother Brent broke his wrist in a practice session.[9]
  • Broke arm at Howell, New Jersey NBL race on July 15, 1984. Had to undergo surgery to have plates and screws implanted and was laid up for two months. It was supposed to be for three, but Brian had to race in order to get the requisite number of ABA races he had to race-10-in order to keep the Pontiac Trans Am he won for becoming No.1 pro in 1983. Brother Brent injured his knee at the same race.[10]

[edit] Peccadilloes

[edit] Events and interest outside of BMX

[edit] Other significant sibling combinations in BMX

[edit] Post Racing Career

Like a lot of BMXers, Both Brian and his brother Brent returned to the Motorcycle Motocross roots. Both of them doing rather well with Brent racing Pro. They also raced occasionally BMX in large races.

[edit] BMX magazine covers

Bicycle Motocross News:

  • none

Minicycle/BMX Action & Super BMX:

  • March 1983 Vol.10 No.3 main immage. In insert celebrities Michael Dudikoff & Kathy Maisaik
  • March 1984 Vol.11 No.3 main image & in insert with fellow racers Doug Davis, Brett Allen & Cheri Elliott.

Bicycle Motocross Action & Go:

BMX Plus!:

  • December 1983 Vol.6 No.11* In inset Stu Thomsen, Greg Hill, Nelson Chanady, Tim Judge and others at beginning of national banner presentation at the start of a race.
  • January 1984 Vol.7 No.1 in insert. Mike Dominquez main image; Eric Garcez in second insert.
  • March 1984 Vol.7 No.3 with Clint Miller.
  • September 1984 Vol.7 No.9 with Tim Judge in insert.
  • July 1984 Vol.7 No.7 in third place behind Stu Thomsen & Pete Loncarevich. In insets Mercury Morgan (top "rip"), freestyler Mike Dominguez (circle).

*Due to change of ownership, BMX Plus! did not publish a May issue in 1983.
Total BMX:

Bicycles and Dirt:

Snap:

[edit] BMX & general press magazine interviews & articles

  • "The Other Patterson" Super BMX March 1983 Vol.10 No.3 pg.53
  • "The Best Pro: Brian Patterson" Bicycles and Dirt May-June 1983 Vol.1 No.9 pg.48
  • "Brent & Brian Patterson" BMX Action July 1983 Vol.8 No.7 pg.48 Joint interview with his brother Brent.
  • "Brian Patterson" BMX Plus! December 1983 Vol.6 No.11* pg.76
  • "The Unquestioned Best!" Super BMX March 1984 Vol.11 No.3 pg.73. One of the four ABA No.1 title holders of 1983 profiled.

*Due to a change in printing companies while being acquired by Daisy/Hi-Torque Publishing Co., Inc., BMX Plus! technically did not publishing a May 1983 issue. The very next issue on the newsstands was called the June 1983 issue.

[edit] End Notes

  1. ^ Super BMX March 1983 Vol.10 No.3 pg.55
  2. ^ BMX Plus! August 1982 Vol.5 No.8 pg.84
  3. ^ BMX Plus! December 1983 Vol.6 No.11 pg.75
  4. ^ BMX Action November 1987 Vol.12 No.11 pg.24
  5. ^ BMX Plus! April 1988 Vol. No.4 pg.16
  6. ^ BMX Plus! February 1981 Vol.4 No.2 pg.18
  7. ^ Bicycle Motocross Action April 1982 Vol.7 No.4 pg.33
  8. ^ Super BMX May 1984 Vol.11 No.5 pg.41
  9. ^ BMX Plus! April 1984 Vol.7 No.4 pg.36
  10. ^ BMX Plus! January 1985 Vol.8 No.1 pg.66

[edit] External links

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