Shawn Texas

Shawn Texas
Personal information
Full name Shawn Patrick Texas
Nickname "Big"
Born September 8, 1963 (1963-09-08) (age 48)
Los Angeles, California, United States
Height 1.9m (6' 2" Imperial)
Weight 90.65kg (195lbs. Imperial)
Team information
Current team Retired
Discipline Bicycle Motocross (BMX)
Role Racer
Rider type Off Road
Amateur team(s)
1979
1979-1980
1980-1982		 Bicycles N Stuff
Hidden Valley Schwinn
Cal Bike
Professional team(s)
1982-1983
1983
1983-1984
1985
1985-1986
1986
1987-1988
1988-1989
1989
1989-1990
1990-1994
1994
1998		 O'Neal
Gruenert Design Racing
Pro Neck
Basset Racing
CW Racing
MBK
Eagle Snacks
White Bear
Boss Racing Products
AXO/Ralph's Bicycles
Race Tech Products
Roost America
Power Source
Infobox last updated on
September 15, 2008

Shawn Patrick Texas (b. September 8, 1963 in Los Angeles, California USA) was an American professional "Old School" Bicycle Motocross (BMX) racer whose prime competitive years were from (1983–1987)

Contents

Racing career milestones

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

Started Racing: Early August 1977 at 13 years of age. His friend took him to a local track in Lakeside, California. He didn't have his own race bike, so he raced his friends. He got his own bike for his 14th birthday on September 8, 1977.[1]

Sanctioning Body: ()

First race result: Third place.[1]

First win (local):

First race bicycle:

Home sanctioning body district(s):

First sponsor: Bicycles N' Stuff 1979.[2]

First national win:

Turned Professional: Mid 1982 at 18 years of age.

First Professional race result: Third in Pro class at the World Wide BMX Association (WWBMXA) Supernationals on June 6, 1982 in Rancho San Diego, California.[3] The WWBMXA didn't have a two tier Senior/Junior pro class like the NBL or the ABA. As a result he raced at least two Senior pros; Harry Leary, who won the event, and Clint Miller who came in second. However, Texas was still considered a junior pro in the ABA and the NBL and raced that class at those events.

First Professional win: In "A" Pro at the American Bicycle Association (ABA) Supernationals in Lake Elsinore, California on January 23, 1983. He won US$450,[4] the equivalent to US$929.37 in 2007 (Cost of Living Calculator)

First Junior Men Pro* race result: Second Place in "A" Pro at the ABA Fall Nationals in Lancaster, California on October 17, 1982. He won US$250 (US$532.90 in 2007)[5] Technically speaking it could be said his first junior pro race result was at the WWBMXA Supernationals in June 1982 but the WWBMXA did not have a two tier pro system unlike the NBL and the ABA. At least two top level senior pro racers raced in Texas's class but the majority of the racers in that class were junior pros.

First Junior Men Pro win: See "First Professional win"

First Senior Men Pro** race result: Did not make main at the 1983 Mile High Nationals in Longmont, Colorado on July 4, 1983[6]

First Senior Men Pro win: In "AA" pro at the ABA Fall Nationals in Bargaintown, New Jersey on August 28, 1983. He won US$320,[7] the equivalent to US$660.88 in 2007.

Retired:

Height & weight at height of her career (1986): Ht:6'2" Wt:195 lbs.

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 ever changing 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 used.

Amateur

Professional

He continued:

"I was NEVER dissatisfied with their products. I told Rog that I'd like a frame with a little bit steeper head tube, and he said, 'fine.' Everything was cool. I wanted them to make my own frame with my signature on it because they could sell a bunch of 'em and I'd get my name on something. But Rog says he doesn't want to put anybody's name on products after what happened with Pete (Loncarevich). I said, 'fine.' Next thing I know... I got this letter in the mail telling me I was off the team!"---BMX Action February 1987[11]

After CW, with an exception of a brief sponsorship with MBK in France, Texas did not have a sponsor for an extended period of time before he was picked up by Eagle Snacks. In the meantime he had listed "Team Jesus" as his "sponsor".[12] Like fellow pro racers Eric Rupe and Mike Miranda, Shawn Texas is a born again Christian.[1] Side Note: "CW" never stood for "Coast Wheels" as it is widely thought. Coast Wheels was a bike shop that Roger Worsham owned. Custom Works was a completely different and independent company.[13] This is in contrast with JMC (Jim Melton Cyclery) which did start out as a bicycle shop and then began manufacturing its own BMX components including entire bicycles.

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.

Amateur

National Bicycle Association (NBA)

National Bicycle League (NBL)

American Bicycle Association (ABA)

United States Bicycle Motocross Association (USBA)

Fédération Internationale Amateur de Cyclisme (FIAC)*

International Bicycle Motocross Federation (IBMXF)*

Union Cycliste Internationale (UCI)*

*See note in professional section

Professional

National Bicycle Association (NBA)

National Bicycle League (NBL)

American Bicycle Association (ABA)

United States Bicycle Motocross Association (USBA)

International Bicycle Motocross Federation (IBMXF)*

Fédération Internationale Amateur de Cyclisme (FIAC)*

Union Cycliste Internationale (UCI)*

*Note: Beginning in 1991 the IBMXF and FIAC had been holding joint World Championship events as a transitional phase in merging which began in earnest in 1993. Beginning with the 1996 season the IBMXF and FIAC completed the merger and both ceased to exist as independent entities being integrated into the UCI. Beginning with the 1997 World Championships held in Brighton, England the UCI would officially hold and sanction BMX World Championships and with it inherited all precedents, records, streaks, etc. from both the IBMXF and FIAC.
Pro Invitationals and Series Championships

†The Tijuana BMX Cup was a special promotional race that was held in Tijuana, Mexico. The race was heavily promoted by both individual promoters and the State Secretary of Tourism of Baja California. It featured a track designed by pro racer Eddy King. The raced was sanctioned by the International Cycling Organization (ICO) and the BMX Association (BMXA). The BMXA was an old but small and local BMX sanctioning body headquartered in San Diego, California. Both the ABA and the NBL had declined to sanction the event. Despite heavy promotion the event was poorly attended including by most top name pros. Shawn Texas, Eddy King, Donny Atherton, Rod Beckering, Toby Henderson and Denny Davidow were the only recognizable names to race in the pro classes.[19]

The YMCA BMX Pro Series Championship was a private four race pro series held at the Orange YMCA BMX race track in Orange, California on four consecutive Wednesdays in February and March 1986. It was sponsored by MRC, Mike Redman Concepts. It was highly successful and well attended by many top ranked pros despite the relatively low prize purse of US$150 ($281.52 in 2007 Cost of Living Calculator) plus 100 percent payback with a US$200 (US$375.36 2007) bonus for the top three series finishers. It did however, have an unusually low entrance fee of $10 ($18.77 2007) for the pros per race.[20]

Notable accolades

BMX product lines

Product evaluation:

Significant injuries

Racing habits and traits

Miscellaneous

Post BMX career

BMX press magazine interviews and articles

BMX magazine covers

Note: (defunct) denotes that the magazine was out of business before the career of the racer started.

Bicycle Motocross News:

Minicycle/BMX Action & Super BMX:

Bicycle Motocross Action & Go:

BMX Plus!:

Total BMX:

Bicycles and Dirt:

Snap BMX Magazine & Transworld BMX:

BMX World:

Moto Mag:

NBA World & NBmxA (The official NBA/NBmxA publication):

Bicycles Today & BMX Today (The official publication of the NBL under two different names):

ABA Action, American BMXer, BMXer (The official publication of the ABA under three different names):

USBA Racer (The official USBA publication):

End notes

  1. ^ a b c BMX Plus! October 1986 Vol.9 No.10 pg.46
  2. ^ BMX Plus! October 1986 Vol.9 No.10 pg.48
  3. ^ BMX Plus! September 1982 Vol.5 No.9 pg.24
  4. ^ BMX Plus! April 1983 Vol.6 No.4 pg.30
  5. ^ BMX Plus! January 1983 Vol.6 No.1 pg.31 (results)
  6. ^ Bicycles and Dirt October 1983 Vol.2 No.1 pg.13
  7. ^ BMX Plus! January 1984 Vol.7 No.1 pg.12
  8. ^ BMX Action January 1984 Vol.9 No.1 pg.10
  9. ^ BMX Action May 1985 Vol.10 No.5 pg.40
  10. ^ BMX Plus! January 1987 Vol.10 No.1 pg.68
  11. ^ BMX Action February 1987 Vol.12 No.2 pg.18
  12. ^ BMX Plus! April 1987 Vol.10 No.4 pg.59 (Example in AA pro results)
  13. ^ History of CW page
  14. ^ BMX Action April 1987 Vol.12 No.4 pg.13
  15. ^ Super BMX & Freestyle June 1987 Vol.14 No.6 pg.14
  16. ^ BMX Action June 1987 Vol.12 N.6 pg.48
  17. ^ a b BMX Action April 1988 Vol.13 No.4 pg.15
  18. ^ BMX Plus! April 1990 Vol.13 No.4 pg.12
  19. ^ BMX Plus! September 1984 Vol.7 No.9 pg.58
  20. ^ BMX Plus! June 1986 Vol.9 No.6 pg.11
  21. ^ BMX Plus! March 1989 Vol.12 No.3 pg.62 (advertisement)
  22. ^ ABA Action March 1983 Vol.7 No.2 pg.29
  23. ^ BMX Action September 1984 Vol. 9 No. 9 pg. 53 & 55
  24. ^ BMX Plus! September 1984 Vol. 7 No. 9 pg. 55
  25. ^ a b American BMXer April 1987 Vol. 9 No. 3 pg. 33

External links