AMA Hall of Fame 2012 Induction Class

The AMA Hall of Fame added seven new members to its ranks at a Nov. 16 ceremony at the Red Rock Casino, Resort and Spa during the AMA Legends Weekend.

The 2012 class included the late KTM America president Rod Bush; race tuner Nobby Clark; off-road racer Ty Davis; 1975 AMA Supercross Champion Jimmy Ellis; female motocrosser Sue Fish; motorcycle restorer Brian Slark and the late “Airborne Al” Wilcox, the iconic race starter.

“We’re a community that embraces the past, honors the men and women who have brought us to the present, and races ahead to an exciting future – largely unknown to us now – and we do it all with a zest for life that is second to none,” says Perry King who hosted the induction ceremony. “Tonight we recognize a group of men and women who have been an important part of that evolution, the Hall of Fame Class of 2012.”

Also honored were previously inducted Hall-of-Famers Mert Lawwill and Malcolm Smith, who were featured in the film “On Any Sunday”, along with the film’s director Bruce Brown.

Over the weekend, the boards of directors for the AMA and the American Motorcycle Heritage Foundation also met to discuss the Hall of Fame’s selection process. The meeting was called in the wake of the controversy surround the selection of Clark which was initially rescinded due to an error in the balloting process and later restored after protests by Clark’s supporters such as Dave Despain, Dick Mann and Kenny Roberts.

A task force made up of Motorcycle Industry Council Chair Larry Little, AMA and AMHF boardmember Ken Ford, and Ray Mungenast of the Dave Mungenast Classic Motorcycle Museum and Mungenast Automotive Group presented its report on the balloting process and recommendations for changes to the process.

[Source: AMA]

By Dennis Chung