The legendary motorcycle racer was down in Goa for the India Bike Week. The down-to-earth and affable former world champion in a free-wheeling interview with The Goan revealed how he came a long way to be the legend he is widely acclaimed to be. Excerpts:
PANAJI
Q: What does the legacy of Fast Freddie mean to you?
Spencer: There is obviously the racing. The opportunities that racing has given me, a young boy from Shreveport, Louisiana that grew up in an environment that was not about motorcycling. American sport is all about American football, basketball, baseball. I was kind of a different kid in school because I loved motorcycling and I wanted to be a professional racer. But most people said what would you do with motorcycling and it is not possible. And it was motorcycling and my experiences that gave me an opportunity to grow up and one day actually meet Mr Honda and I won a World Championship for him. Since I was a young kid, I never imagined that I would get a chance to do that. Racing part is what I have been able do and inspire others. But it is what I have learnt through racing in life and the opportunities that has given me to share that.
Q: How did you get initiated into racing?
Spencer: It happened because my family is a racing family. I was born in December 1961. My dad, my brother and sister all raced go-karts locally. There were many events like this (IBW) motorcycling clubs organised and families would come together. And that is what motorcycling life was to me growing up as a kid. My brother and sister were older to me by 14 and 11 years respectively.
So I obviously came along after they were grown up and racing. So that is what inspired me, watching them and being involved and riding in my yard as a kid.
Q: At what age did you start racing professionally?
Spencer: I started racing professionally at the youngest age you could in the United States at 16. I was paying attention to professional races and I believed in my kind of purpose to race motorcycles from a very early age.
Q: How does a professional motorcycle rider prepare oneself to a race?
Spencer: It is years of preparations to get to the point of getting professional. But it is really about learning your craft. Great motorcycle racers, car racers, any athlete, they are very elite guys. They understand what exactly to do in every situation and it is something that I actually write about. And this what motorcycling gave me; this incredible ability to look ahead, to prepare, to anticipate, to hone my senses really - what I see, I feel and it is all of those things and the intelligence, the awareness to prepare that came together and that is the best thing and the best advice I can give someone who wants to do anything well; prepare, work hard and take it seriously and you do not feel entitled or expected to just happen. Lot of people say in my case, I had a lot of natural ability. What they do not see is the hours and days, weeks, months and years really of riding every chance I got in my yard three hours a day.
Q: What are the most defining moments from your career?
Spencer: There are some on the track and some off the track. For me it is when I decided to ride for Honda. When they called me, I had other opportunities. I felt that was where (at Honda) I was supposed to be. It was in 1979 when they (Honda) called me out of the blue and they were starting a team. But I could not sign the Kawasaki contract. It was the most powerful moment for me because what I believed so strongly that certain things are our purpose, we pay attention to those aspects. Also, I burnt my hands when I was a two-year-old kid. When I talk about my connection with bikes it is a powerful thing for me because as a kid it gave me confidence, it made my hands start hurting... Signing for Honda and then winning the first 500cc world championship for Mr Honda was really special.
Q: How do you give back to the sport that gave you name and acclaim the world over?
Spencer: When I retired from racing in 1995, I was not sure what I wanted to do. And I got a call from out of the blue almost the way like I got from Honda. It was a man from Las Vegas who said ‘Freddie, I have built a track in Las Vegas and I want you to come out and start a motorcycle riding school'. It all clicked. For 11 years, I helped people who wanted to ride a motorcycle safe and enjoy like I did. And then I started travelling the world, doing classic events and doing things that I am doing now, and I began my writing. I began to share my experiences in motorcycling and that is what brought me to India and at IBW.
Q: Advice to those wanting to take up motorcycle racing professionally...
Spencer: Anyone wanting to be a racer or ride a motorcycle, one gets to training. It is an incredible sport that gives opportunities to grow, share and meet other people.
