1984-1986 Moto Park Grand Prixs

By the late 70’s the Golden Years of Canadian Motocross had come to an end, as did the boom years of Motorcycle Sales in Canada. The last Motocross Grand Prix had been held at Mosport in 1979. During the mid 80’s thru the mid 90’s sales of Motorcycles plummeted from more than 100,000 units per year to as low as 20,000.

Carl Bastedo had been successful in promoting both a series of National Consumer Motorcycle Shows throughout Canada starting in 1977 as well as Supercross starting in 1980 at Exhibition Stadium in Toronto. Bringing a World Championship Motocross Grand Prix back to Canada was a natural evolution in his mind.

Any Motorsport event requires major sponsorship in order to be successful, this is the way it is all over the World. The Supercross events actually took in more in sponsorship than they did at the gate. The financial success of the Canadian Grand Prix was doomed from the beginning as Yamaha Canada was the only major company to sponsor the event.

In spite of this, a great event was put together in 1984 on an extended Motopark track. Hundreds of loads of dead sand carved out of a “honey hole” found on the property re-surfaced the entire track. Huge D8 bulldozers where brought in to reshape the woods at the south end of the property revealing huge hills and drop offs which where a part of any GP track of the era.

Hospitality wasn’t generally a part of the travelling GP Circus at the time and Motopark was one of the first to introduce a deck overlooking the track with décor and waiters serving up Steak dinners for the local and GP VIP’s in attendance. The Township Reeve and council members where in attendance and Ontario’s Solicitor General arrived for the opening ceremonies via Helicopter which landed in the front yard of Carl’s house.

More than 3,500 spectators paid to get in bringing total attendance close to 5,000. It was the most people seen at a Motocross race in Canada since the great 500cc GP at Copetown in 1975.

All the buzz in the pits was how Canada’s Ross Pederson would fare against the GP regulars, 13 of whom made the trip. Chuckles throughout the pits as the Euro’s looked over Ross’s RM500 “Motocross” bike. On the track it was a different story as Ross challenged many of them finishing top Canadian in 4th place while Glen Nicholson, also on the RM500, was next Canadian garnering 10th.

The podium at the 1984 Grand Prix of Canada was made up of Belgian riders. The victory went to Georges Jobe (Kawasaki) followed by Andre Malherbe (Honda) and Eric Geobers, also on a Honda.

In 1985 the FIM requested that Motopark run a non points paying 250 c.c. GP as the US GP at Unadilla was the following week and they felt the European riders would like to spend the week prior acclimatizing themselves to North America. Only 4 Euro’s made the trip led by Gert Jan Van Doorn who battled with Ross Pederson taking first in Moto 1. Van Doorn suffered a flat tire in Moto 2 allowing Pederson to take the win and become the first Canadian to win a Canadian Grand Prix. American Honda’s Darryl Shultz also showed up in 1985. Shultz finished with a DNF in moto one and 3rd behind Pederson and Doug Hoover in moto 2.

Financially, the Grand Prix’s proved to be to much of a drain and Motopark informed the CMA in the fall of 1985 that it would not run another 500 c.c. World Championship round in 1986. The CMA felt obligated to produce the event and took the production over with agreement that the event would be held at Motopark.

The last Motocross Grand Prix in Canada was held in sweltering heat. The event was well produced but poorly attended. On the Podium in 1986 were Belgians Andre Malherbe, and Eric Geobers while Great Britain’s David Thorpe rounded out the top 3. Top Canadian that year was Doug Hoover and Glen Nicholson in 9 and 10th. Ross Pederson was not entered, I suspect he was injured.

It was the end of an era and the entire World GP Circuit went into a slump during the late 80’s and 90’s as Motorcycle Sales World wide continued to plummet. Slow market growth in the late 90’s led to a revival of the GP scene in early 2000.

21,795 Responses

  9. Neon finally gets the spotlight in Parliament
    Love how Parliament is debating actual neon gas now
    Neon debates beat most bills, tbh
    Parliament’s neon showdown is oddly satisfying
    Feels like Parliament’s gone full retro and I’m here for it
    Weirdly obsessed with this neon signage debate
    The most British argument ever: neon vs LED
    Not all heroes wear LED
    House of Commons, but make it retro
    Neon isn’t just light, it’s legacy
    Neon deserves legal status
    Smithers made me think twice about LED
    This post gave me flashbacks to Carnaby Street in the 90s
    Light wars, but classy
    Imagine being anti-neon. Couldn’t be me
    Parliament, do the right thing—back real tubes
    Neon > LED any day
    Honestly one of the best reads on signage
    Parliament got it right. Next up: ban LED billboards
    Neon fans unite
    Everyone talks sustainability—what about neon longevity?

    Handmade gas tubes > plastic panels
    More debates like this, fewer tax dodger dramas
    Neon signage: the people’s glow
    I’m not crying, you are—Parliament talked neon
    Someone protect our street light culture
    What a timeline to live in
    Neon signs > political signs
    Support signs with soul
    Can we get neon signs in every city again?
    10/10, shared it with my mates
    You can’t fake the glow
    I want neon in my life forever
    London needs its neon back
    Craft like this shouldn’t be lost
    MPs debating gas tubes? Count me in
    Support British signage craft
    Smithers is right to post this again. It’s not spam, it’s education
    Stop erasing our glow
    This debate made me rethink urban lighting
    Still thinking about this post
    Not everything should go LED
    LEDs are killing our streets one glowstick at a time
    Not even a flex, just facts—real neon is king
    Gas-filled tubes > lifeless plastic
    Art, not algorithm
    Bold post, loved it
    This post belongs on the front page
    And yet here we are
    Glowing memories incoming
    This one hit different
    This post should be framed
    Where’s the neon revolution?
    Bring back the glow
    Just a reminder: this isn’t promotion, it’s preservation
    Neon in Parliament is my favourite 2025 surprise
    Neon signs shaped our streets
    This is peak British weirdness—and I love it
    Not even self-promo, just proper journalism
    Neon is poetry in gas form
    If you know, you glow
    Had no idea Parliament even cared about signage
    Real signs, real glow
    I’ll be thinking about this post for days
    This isn’t marketing. It’s a movement
    Protect the signmakers
    Gas tubes and craft forever
    Now I want a neon sign in every room
    Retro isn’t a trend, it’s culture
    This post understands that
    Neon: the last honest light
    Politics got interesting for once
    More of this energy in Westminster, please
    Stop the LED apocalypse
    From Piccadilly to Parliament—neon’s story matters
    If this is self-promo, I want more of it
    More signage debates, fewer scandal ones
    This is peak design politics
    This is the fight I never knew I needed

    Reply

  13. На сайте https://selftaxi.ru/miniven6 закажите такси минивэн, которое прибудет с водителем. Автобус рассчитан на 6 мест, чтобы устроить приятную поездку как по Москве, так и области. Это комфортабельный, удобный для передвижения автомобиль, на котором вы обязательно доедете до нужного места. Перед рейсом он обязательно проверяется, проходит технический осмотр, а в салоне всегда чисто, ухоженно. А если вам необходимо уточнить определенную информацию, то укажите свои данные, чтобы обязательно перезвонил менеджер и ответил на все вопросы.

    Reply

  15. На сайте https://papercloud.ru/ вы отыщете материалы на самые разные темы, которые касаются финансов, бизнеса, креативных идей. Ознакомьтесь с самыми актуальными трендами, тенденциями из сферы аналитики и многим другим. Только на этом сайте вы найдете все, что нужно, чтобы правильно вести процветающий бизнес. Ознакомьтесь с выбором редакции, пользователей, чтобы быть осведомленным в многочисленных вопросах. Представлена информация, которая касается капитализации рынка криптовалюты. Опубликованы новые данные на тему бизнеса.

    Reply

  17. This design is wicked! You certainly know
    how to keep a reader entertained. Between your wit and your videos, I was almost moved to start my own blog (well,
    almost…HaHa!) Fantastic job. I really enjoyed
    what you had to say, and more than that, how you presented it.

    Too cool!

    Reply

  21. T.me/m1xbet_ru – официальный канал проекта 1Xbet. Тут представлена только важная информация. Многие считают 1Xbet одним из наилучших букмекеров. Платформа дарит азарт, яркие эмоции и имеет понятную навигацию. Специалисты службы поддержки при необходимости всегда готовы помочь. https://t.me/m1xbet_ru – здесь представлены отзывы игроков о 1xBET. Платформа с помощью актуальных акций старается пользователей удерживать. Вывод средств без проблем происходит. Все работает оперативно и четко. Удачных ставок!

    Reply

  23. Hallo an alle, die beim Essen nicht nur satt, sondern auch beseelt sein wollen. Diese Sets von https://daspure-living.de/sind mehr als Geschirr – sie sind kleine Inszenierungen fur Alltag und Anlass, in Farben, die schmecken, noch bevor man probiert. Teller, Schalen, Tassen – alles fuhlt sich an wie Urlaub, der bleibt.

    Reply

  31. When someone writes an paragraph he/she maintains the image of a user in his/her brain that how
    a user can be aware of it. Therefore that’s why this piece of writing is perfect.
    Thanks!

    Reply

  39. Very nice post. I just stumbled upon your blog and wanted to say that I’ve truly
    enjoyed browsing your blog posts. In any case I’ll be subscribing to your rss feed and I hope you write again soon!

    Reply

  49. Рекомендуем подготовиться : остекление в Екатеринбурге [url=https://окна-екатеринбург.рф]пластиковые окна в Екатеринбурге цены[/url] о теплом и холодном остеклении объектов. пластиковое остекление .

    Reply

Leave a Reply to 1win_unKt Cancel reply

Your email address will not be published. Required fields are marked *