Scot Breithaupt
From Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia
| Personal information | |
|---|---|
| Full name | Scot Alexander Breithaupt |
| Nickname | "Old Man", "OM" |
| Date of birth | July 14, 1957 |
| Country |  United States |
| Team information | |
| Current team | Retired |
| Discipline | Bicycle Motocross (BMX) |
| Role | Racer/Promoter/Manufacturer/Sponsor |
| Rider type | Off Road |
| Amateur team(s) | |
| 1973-1974 1975 1976 1977 1977 |
Matthews Motocross Matthews Motocross/Yamaha Dan Gurney FMF SE Racing |
| Professional team(s) | |
| 1977-Present | SE Racing |
| Infobox last updated on: | |
| August 29, 2007 | |
Scot Alexander Breithaupt (b. July 14,[1] 1957 in Long Beach, California) is an "Old School" former professional Bicycle Motocross (BMX) racer and a founding father of BMX in the early 1970s whose prime competitive years were from 1970 to 1977. Indeed, in some ways, he is the founder of "Old School BMX" the era roughly regarded to be from 1969 to 1987 or 1988; from its very beginnings to just after its first major slump in popularity of BMX racing from 1985-1988. Racing started to rise in participation again around 1988-89 and is regarded as the start of "Mid School BMX", roughly 1988-2000.
Contents |
[edit] The Pioneer
Scot Breithaupt was one of the pioneers of BMX; perhaps its inventor in terms of giving it its modern infrastructure, after he first organized what was called pedi-cross at the time on November 14, 1970 and his establishment of a track in a vacant lot in Long Beach, California. He also founded what could be called BMX's first sanctioning body of any kind, the Bicycle United Motocross Society (B.U.M.S). However, the first BMX race was recorded and could be credited back to July 10, 1969 in Santa Monica, California to a motorcycle motocross (MX) racer Ronald Mackler, a teen-aged park attendant who was asked to help organize a race by local kids. Scot Breithaupt, who was also a teenage MX racer, did set up an organizational features around his races very much like how the following sanctioning bodies would base theirs including rulebooks, a point system, a skill level structure, a racing season, trophies and promotions of special races that were the prototype for nationals. Scot did not actually invent these structures but adapted them from motorcycle motocross as would other pioneers like Ernie Alexander, the founder of the National Bicycle Association (NBA) and George Esser the founder of the National Bicycle League (NBL) both of whom like Breithaupt had roots in motorcycle motocross as racers or promoters. Scot was only the first to do it in BMX and at the ripe old age of 13 at that.
His nickname was and is "OM" for "Old Man" which was in part derived from him being older than most of the kids at a time when BMX was seen as a pre-teen and early teen activity by the late 1970s; he was doing things usually beyond his young age, like promoting races and starting and consulting with companies while he was still a teenager. Later, it became a running gag as to just how old he was. In the January 1975 issue of Cycle Illustrated in its report on the Yamaha Bicycle Gold Cup Finals (a.k.a the Bicycle Motocross Championship of California State) has him listed as 17 years old.[2] At 17, his age hadn't become a running gag yet, although he could not participate in the Yamaha Bicycle Gold Cup series finals-ironically since he was the race promoter-because he was disqualified after a win in the Expert Class in the first qualifying race at Birmingham High School in Van Nuys, California with Brian Ramocinski declared the winner. This was the first of three preceding qualifying races prior to the final to be held in September 1974. Only those 16 years and younger could participate and he had turned 17 between the time he signed up for the race and the day the qualifying race was actually held, July 20, 1974.[3] He turned 17 on July 14, 1974, six days before the race. This would give him a birth year of 1957 and the age of 13 at the time he started organizing races in Long Beach in November of 1970. Further confirmation came int the November 1975 issue of Bicycle Motocross News on page 11 which described Breithaupt as an "18 year old dynamo".
This running joke is done with his complicity. He used to put a "?" mark in the space reserved for the rider's age on the ABA sign up form for when he raced Cruiser class.[4] Also, in part two of a four part series of interviews done by BMXUltra.com profiling Mr. Breithaupt and SE Racing in response to a question "When did you start SE?" he quips "I started SE Racing in Mid 1977 when I was 14."[5] Of course, if true he helped invent BMX in 1970 when he was seven years old.
Young Scot did not just tend to his own track. He designed the Saddleback Park B.M.X. Track in Orange County, California and also collaborated with the municipal government of La Palma, California to design the La Palma Youth Village BMX track. Significant accomplishments for a 16 year old by any standard.[6]
During his early years Scot promoted a bevey of races both independent and in conjunction with the necient NBA. Scot also claims to have put on and promoted the very first race in which a BMX racer, Thom Lund, won prize money, making him the very first pro. From a BMXUltra.com interview:
BMXUltra.com: At what stage did the pro class kick in?
Scot: I promoted the first ever Pro BMX race at saddleback Park in 1975... $200.00 purse... big $ back then.. the entry was $5.00 Thom Lund won that day... riding for Rick's Bike Shop.[7] --Scot Breithaupt August 2003
As Scot claimed, Thom Lund supposedly won first place of US$200 purse prize money at a Saddleback Park race in Irvine, California (located in Orange County) in 1975.* However, Thom Lund claims to have no memory of the incident:
"Scott [sic] keeps telling me I won the 1st Pro race at Saddelback, he promoted it but I don't remember."[8] ---Thom Lund, February 24, 2003 FatBMX.com
In any case, Scot Breithaupt had a hand in virtually every aspect of BMX: racing, promoting, announcing, designing tracks, manufacturing, sponsoring and managing teams. He even had a hand in founding and/or guiding the existence of the founding four BMX publications; Bicycle Motocross News where he wrote some of the first articles and was the first racer interviewed by a nation spanning BMX publication. He was a contributing writer and staff product tester on Minicylce/BMX Action,** later to be known as Super BMX, when it began transitioning from combined minicycle and BMX racing coverage to BMX only reporting. He was an on of the first staff writers with Bicycle Motocross Action having a monthly editorial article; and he was a co-founder of BMX Plus! with Jim Stevens.[9] He may not have been the first to put on a BMX race but it would be very difficult to come up with any other single person who has left a bigger mark on the sport.
*The BMX Plus! 1988 Calendar has it allegedly happening on October 23, 1974
**This publication is not to be confused with BMX Action that was founded in late 1976
[edit] Racing career
Started Racing: November 14, 1970 when he was 13 years old at an old field that would become his first track called BUMS which would retroactively be called Bicycle United Motocross Society (B.U.M.S) in Long Beach, California on the corner of 7th and Bellflower strees.[10]
Sanctioning Body: None. Started the B.U.M.S proto sanctioning body.
First race result:
First win (local):
First sponsor: Matthews Motocross
First national win: Yamaha Bicycle Gold Cup series proto national on July 20, 1974 at Birmingham High School in Van Nuys, California, but was disqualified for being over aged at 17 years old. This helped established the "Old Man" moniker.
Turned professional: 1977
First Professional win:
Retired: From 20" racing on May 15, 1977 at the Two Wheeler's/RC Cola Race of Champions national to devote more time to his business and promotional career and his associate editorship at Bicycle Motocross Magazine among other commitments, all of which was infringing on his racing career.[11] He then started racing a 26" Beach Cruiser beginning in 1979. Due largely to the lack of training time incurred because of his responsibilities of running a company and his promotions, he retired altogether from pro racing in May of 1983. He himself reclassified an amateur in the ABA's 22-30 and NBL's 25-35 Cruiser Classes. It was joked in the August 1983 issue of BMX Action that they could start figuring out his age by the cruiser class he raced.[12] He raced intermittedly in these older amateur cruiser classes in between commitments with his business. He raced in Vet and Hall of Fame races in his spare time. In May 2005 it was announced that Mr. Briepthaupt at then 49 years of age (approximately) would race for SE Bikes (see below in "Factory sponsors, professional, SE Bikes).
Approximate Height and Weight at the height of his career (1974-1978) Ht:5'9 Wt:155lbs.[13]
[edit] Career factory and major bike 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 and sponsor's advertisements at the time in question. When possible exact dates are given.
[edit] Amateur
- Matthews Motocross Products (a division of Leisure Recreation Vehicles (LRV)):* 1973-Early 1974
- Matthews Motocross/Yamaha International:* Early 1974-December 1974 He consulted with Yamaha to create and refine their famous Moto-bike, a BMX bicycle that was designed to mimic the look and feel of a motocross motorcycle, including having shock absorbers built into its frame and fork. It is a famous milestone in BMX with early BMX stars like David Clinton winning the first BMX titles on it but it with its energy robbing shock absorbers was not the future that the BMX bicycle would take.
- Dan Gurney All American BMX Bicycles/Bell Helmets:* January 1975-
- FMF (Flying Machine Factory):* Early 1976-December 1976
*He was employed with these companies as consultant, team manager official tester as well as a racer.
- SE (formerly Scot Enterprises, now called Sports Engineering, Inc.) Racing: January 1977-198-. Scot would turn professional with this company he founded. More below.
[edit] Professional
- SE (formerly Scot Enterprises, now called Sports Engineering, Inc.) Racing: January 1977-198-. Scot Enterprises, Originally founded and owned by Scot Breithaupt, started as an advertising and promotional company that expanded into Scot Enterprises Racing Division, which made and sold stickers, T-shirts and hats. In 1978 it produced its first BMX component the JU-6 frame (JU stood for Jeff Utterback, a top racer at the time, the six referred to his status as the number six rider in the country in the National Bicycle Association (NBA) after the 1977 season. Scot's friend Mike Devit, took over SE Racing in the late 1980s. In the late 1990s a Tiwaneesse company acquired the company, but it lay dormant for several years with no bikes sold or manufactured. Sports Engineering is now owned by Advanced Sports Inc. through Fuji Bicycles, which bought SE in August 2002.
- SE Bikes (Sports Engineering Bikes, formerly Scot Enterprises Racing Division): 2005- Showing that BMXers never really retire, on May 15, 2005 Scot announced he had signed a contract to race for SE racing in the BMX cruiser class.[14] At an approximate age of 50 in 2006 this would mean he would race in the 46-51 Cruiser class in the American Bicycle Association (ABA) and 50-54 Cruiser class in the National Bicycle League (NBL).
[edit] Career bicycle motocross titles
Note: Listed are District, State/Provincial/Department, Regional, National, and International titles in italics. "Defunct" refers to the fact of that sanctioning body in question no longer existing at the start of the racer's career or at that stage of his/her career. Depending on point totals of individual racers, winners of Grand Nationals do not necessarily win National titles. Series and one off Championships are also listed in block.
[edit] Amateur
Bicycle United Motocross Society (B.U.M.S)
- 1972 California State Championship.
National Bicycle Association (NBA)
- 1976 Open Grandnational Champion.
- 1976 National No.1
National Bicycle League (NBL)
- 1980 16 Expert Grandnational Champion
American Bicycle Association (ABA)
- None
United States Bicycle Motocross Association (USBA)
- None
International Bicycle Motocross Federation (IBMXF)
- None
Pro Series Championships
[edit] Professional
National Bicycle Association (NBA)
- None (Came in National No.3 in Pro Cruiser in 1980. Jeff Kosmala was Pro Cruiser No.1 in 1980.)
National Bicycle League (NBL)
- None
American Bicycle Association (ABA)
- None (Came in National No.3 in Cruiser class in 1980. The ABA did not have a pro cruiser class during the 1980 season. Jeff Kosmala was Cruiser Class No.1 in 1980.)
United States Bicycle Motocross Association (USBA)
- None
International Bicycle Motocross Federation (IBMXF)
- None
Pro Series Championships
[edit] Notable accolades
- Co-founded BMX Plus! magazine and was contributing editor to both Bicycle Motocross Action and Minicycle/BMX Action (not to be confused with Bicycle Motocross Action which would later condense its name to BMX Action) which would subsequently become Super BMX. He therefore had a large hand in all three of the major founding BMX magazine periodicals.
- The first to put on what could be called a pro class race anywhere in 1975 at Saddleback Park in Orange, California (US$200 purse).
- He was a founding member and President of the Professional Racing Organization (PRO) the first attempt to form a BMX professional racers guild.[15][16]
- He both invented the modern BMX racing Cruiser and the Cruiser class to race them with. In September 1978 Scot showed up at the famous Corona Raceway on a converted Emory beach cruiser. It had 26 inch diameter wheels and low rise handlebars from a motorcycle. That same year he convinced the National Bicycle Association (NBA) to start the Cruiser class.[17]
- He also invented the inverted BMX racing bicycle stem (also known as a "gooseneck"). Unlike the standard "quill gooseneck" stem, BMX bicycles in need of a stem with a much tighter clamping force on the bars to eliminate movement forward or back. That could be caused by the more violent physical abuse racers put upon it like pulling with maximum force during racing and jumping their bicycles, these stems were four point block clamps secured with Allen bolts, unlike the single point quill gooseneck that had a single "pinchbolt" configuration to clamp the bars. Most other stems of this type, like the standard gooseneck, raised the bottom level of the handlebars up, the inverted stem dropped them down. Breithaupt was heading to an NBA National in Las Vegas, Nevada in 1979 to race cruiser class a new division in BMX that at the time was made up of BMX bicycles (during this time most were converted Beach Cruisers with 26" diameter wheels, built for the larger rider as opposed the the standard 20" vehicle. As he was fitting his handle bars onto the stem of the bicycle he noticed that it was to high for his liking and presumably it couldn't be lowered far enough down to get the feel and leverage he desired. he then removed the clamp the part that actually held fast to the handlebars, from the stem, that was inserted into the head tube and into the fork's neck. He flipped it over and reattached it. He was able then to drop the bottom of the bars another few millimeters to his liking. He later won his Cruiser class at this national using that configuration. He would then persuade "Tuff Neck", a leading manufacturer of BMX bicycle parts at the time, to mass produce the new component.[18]
- Held the long distance jump record for bicycles in 1979 at an average 76 feet.* He accomplished it on a SE OM Flyer 26" Cruiser. The record held for 10 years.[19]
- He won the very first Pro Cruiser Main of the first Pro Cruiser class in BMX history at the ABA Northwest National in Seattle, Washington in January 1981 defeating Tim Lillethorupt and Jess Goymon who came in second and third respectively.[20]
- Scot is a 1990 Inductee of the ABA BMX Hall of Fame.
*The third and last jump for the average was only 58 feet, so the average was brought down and therefore the previous two jumps were significantly longer than 76 feet.
[edit] Significant injuries
- Broke ankle in November 1974 during photograph session for a book. Was thought never to be able to race again.[21] He was laid up until March 1975.[22]
[edit] Peccadilloes
- A huge mark is that he seems to have had a drug problem going back some 20 years, before he sold SE Racing in the late 1980s according to his girlfriend at the time (now wife) Jamie:
Vintage BMX post by Jamie. She posted under Scot's account, his screen name "Scot OM Breithaupt".
- In November 2004 Scot was arrested on drug related charges and for leading the police on a chase. Stu Thomsen, who is a California Sheriff's deputy provided a police report on the incident. As reported on the Fat BMX website:
"The Old Man in jail. Yes Scott Breithaupt (sic) is in jail for drug related and evading arrest. Stu Thompsen (sic) provided a Sheriff's report on the incident. Scott lead the authorities/police on a two hour low speed pursuit I.E. he ran form the police for two hours in his vehicle. He is scheduled for release at the end of 2004. FREE SCOTT BREITHAUPT!" (sic)[23]
On April 16, 2006 he was again arrested for drug possession. evading a police officer and wanton disregard for safety in Long Beach, California.
The charges against Breithaupt as posted by poster "MADmanRAN" at Vintagebmx.com.
His then girlfriend (now wife) Jamie informed his friends on the Vintagebmx.com discussion website:
He did time in Folsom State Prison on a previous drug conviction. He has a prior conviction to that. If he is convicted on this latest charge he could be subjected to California's three strikes law in regard to thrice convicted drug felons. However, being given madatory drug treatment by a judge is still an option.
Scot used to promote special anti-drug BMX races like the Palm Springs Race Against Drugs event in early 1988. The BMX press, sanctioning bodies and sponsors took an active anti-drug stance in light of Ronnie Anderson's admission of drug use in the December 8, 1986 issue of Sports Illustrated and Pete Loncarevich's alleged anabolic steroid use (never substantiated).[24] Other racers where caught using illicit drugs or in possession of drug paraphernalia. For instance Terry Tenette was caught in possession of marijuana which resulted in his dismissal as a factory racer with GT Racing.[25] This was perhaps the time when Scot was into drug use himself.
After spending several weeks in jail Scot was able to reply to his many friends and well wishers with a June 14, 2006 post to VintageBMX.com under is own account:
[edit] Post BMX career
- After a failed bid to buy out foreign investors Scot Breithaupt and Mike Devitt lost control of SE Racing trademarks and the control of the company past to the foreign investors on October 15, 1999[26]
- Scot was in the Promotional and Real Estate business, but he still was involved with the sport he helped create on a casual basis including racing. As of 2005 Scot is once again racing for SE Racing, now called SE Bikes, in the amateur cruiser classes, showing that for most BMXer's there is no real "post BMX career".
[edit] Miscellaneous and Trivia
- His pants motto* was: "C-YA"[27]
*Riders often put slogans on the seat of their pants instead of their surname or nickname as a small psychological ploy against their competitors behind them to read.
[edit] BMX magazine covers
Bicycle Motocross News:
- July 1974 Vol.1 No.2 with Brian Ramocinski
Minicycle/BMX Action & Super BMX:
Bicycle Motocross Action & Go:
- June 1981 Vol.6 No.6 with Perry Kramer and R.L. Osborn.
BMX Plus!:
- May 1980 Vol.3 No.5
Total BMX:
Bicycles and Dirt (ABA Publication):
- None
NBA World & NBmxA World (The official NBA/NBmxA publication under two names):
Bicycles Today & BMX Today (The official NBL membership publication under two names):
ABA Action, American BMXer, BMXer (The official ABA membership publication under three names):
USBA Racer (The official USBA membership publication):
[edit] BMX press magazine interviews and articles
- "Interview with Scot Breithaupt" Bicycle Motocross News June 1974 Vol.1 No.1 pg.7
- "Scott Breithaupt" Bicycle Motocross News August 1974 Vol.1 No.3 pg.18 article in which Scot gives racing pointers.
- "Talkin' Twenty-Fours" BMX Action May 1982 Vol.7 No.5 pg.53 side bar
- "The Origins of BMX" Super BMX March 1984 Vol.11 No.3 pg.60
- "The Origins of BMX" (part II) Super BMX April 1984 Vol.11 No.4 pg.27
[edit] End Notes
- ^ From an old Roostbmx.com post by Scot. Word search for "7/14/???" The post author is under "Scot "The Old Man" Breithaupt".
- ^ Cycle Illustrated January 1975 Vol.8 No.4 pg.53
- ^ Bicycle Motocross News August 1974 Vol.1 No.3 pg.14
- ^ Bicycles and Dirt December 1982 Vol.1 No.4 pg.55
- ^ History of SE Racing section of BMXUltra.com interview with Mr. Breithaupt.
- ^ Bicycle Motocross News August 1974 Vol.1 No.3 pg.18
- ^ BMXultra interview
- ^ February 24, 2003 Fatbmx.com interview with Thom Lund
- ^ www.23mag.com publication section: BMX Plus!
- ^ Super BMX November 1981 Vol.8 No.11 pg.13
- ^ Bicycle Motocross Action Vol.2 No.3 pg.35
- ^ BMX Action August 1983 Vol.8 No.8 pg.18
- ^ Bicycle Motocross News July 1974 Vol.1 No.2 pg.10
- ^ Press release announcing that Scot will race for SE Bikes.
- ^ Bicycle Motocross Action August 1977 Vol.2 No.3 pg.22
- ^ BMX Action December 1986 Vol.11 No.12 pg.30
- ^ BMX Plus! August 1993 Vol.16 No.8 pg.63
- ^ BMX Plus! August 1993 Vol.16 No.8 pg.64
- ^ BMX Ultra Interview. Word search for "Distance jumping record"
- ^ Bicycle Motocross Action May 1981 Vol.6 No.5 pg.32 (photo caption)
- ^ Multipart interview by BMXUtra.com.
- ^ Super BMX April 1984 Vol.11 No.4 pg.27
- ^ FatBMX.com article Word search for "Breithaupt"
- ^ BMX Action December 1987 Vol.12 No.12 pg.18 "The Steroid Controversy"
- ^ Super BMX & Freestyle November 1987 Vol.14 No.11 pg.8
- ^ bmxetreme article. Word search for "Change Hands" (without the quotation marks)
- ^ BMX Action May 1983 Vol.8 No.5 pg. 66 & 98
