Pocono International Raceway
Pocono, PA
A one and done event that probably should have had more, given the now iconic legacy of Pocono International Raceway (now Pocono Raceway). On August 18, 1973, Pocono held a mid-season round of the 1973 250/500cc Pro Motocross championship on a makeshift course that left a lot to be desired.
Built on the infield of the road racing tri-oval, “The course, for which no one had a kind word, was one of those artificial, a pile of dirt here, a hole dug there things: lots of tight turns, man-made jumps, Armco guard rails and haybales,” Cycle News wrote.
One oddity of this race: neither of the overall winners (Mike Runyard & Rich Thorwaldson) finished 1st OR 2nd in any of the 6 motos run. The Saturday Pro Motocross event was followed up by a national road race, won by Gary Nixon. Kenny Roberts was 2nd.
Of the six motos run at the one and only Pro Motcrocross held at Pocono International Raceway, none of them were won by the two overall winners. In 250MX, Rich Thorwaldson (pictured) went into the final moto tied with Jimmy Weinert in points.
Thorwaldson (3-3-4 for 1st) zapped Weinert (2-4-5 for 2nd) in the final corner of the moto to win the overall. Jimmy Ellis won motos 1 and 3. Gary Jones won moto 2.
In the 500MX class, Mike Runyard won the overall with baffling scores of 4-3-5! Robert Harris finished second and Pierre Karsmakers (1-1-14) was third. John DeSoto, who won the 3rd moto, was 7th overall.
Karsmakers won the first two motos with ease. After a bad start in the 3rd moto, the Dutchman crashed and bent his shift lever and crashed again while trying not to get lapped.
Venue
Originally known as Pocono International Raceway, this iconic 2-5-mile tri-oval two hours north of both New York City and Philadelphia has held NASCAR, IndyCar, ARCA and IMSA races.
With multiple infield road configurations, it was a popular stop for the AMA Superbike series (and its precursor) from 1971-1986).
In 1973 it held its one and only AMA Pro Motocross race in the front stretch infield. Track reviews were poor: “The course, for which no one had a kind word, was one of those artificial, a pile of dirt here, a hole dug there things: lots of tight turns, man-made jumps, Armco guard rails and haybales,” Ray Ninness wrote in Cycle News.
Officials were still changing and building on the course even after practice had started.