Motocross classes rev up in Dubai

Learn how to be a knight in neon armour and joust dunes, whoops and tabletops. Five-time motocross world champion is in the city


There are many ways to fall off a motorcycle and few of them are fun. Motocross riders, however, seem hell-bent on trying them all. They fling themselves at "tabletops" the size of houses, leaping miles into the air; they rattle their skeletons skew over speed humps the moon would hit the brakes for. They put these obstacles on tracks so they can go round and do it again.

If your salsa classes are getting stale why not trade the pumps for knee-high boots, the silk shirt for a chest protector, and the dance partner for a motorcycle? If this doesn't sound demented to you, Georges Jobé is the man to call. This five-time motocross world champion is in Dubai to conduct classes for experienced and beginner riders. He's also here to develop an annual international motocross event and, he hopes, set up a permanent school in collaboration with Honda.

Dubai, he says, has big potential. With the great outdoors on the doorstep, off-road quad and motorcycle riding has become huge in the last few years. Over 120 riders from as young as five regularly kick up dirt at the Jebel Ali track where Jobé conducts his classes.

To begin, you'll need a motocross bike. These machines have more empty space than parts, pogo sticks for a suspension and, I'm sure, a little switch on the handlebars that bypasses the law of gravity.

"Start with a 125cc two-stroke or a 250cc four-stroke," says Jobé, who will happily school you from scratch. "I'll teach you how to start the bike, how to position yourself, how to brake and accelerate, and later how to jump, ride the whoops (the giant speed humps) and ride in sand," he says. "In two days, you'll be riding around the track alone."

All the gear is available here, and Honda stocks off-road motorcycles from 50 to 650cc. Don't skip the lessons though. "What is dangerous on a motorcycle is when you don't know your limit. So you need lessons to learn what you can do, where you can do it, how you can do it. This is the advice I would give," says Jobé. Warning over, he adds, "Then go out and have fun. This sport is a lot of fun."

Street riders are encouraged to sign up too. Studies — specifically The Hurt Report conducted in the US in 1981 and oft-quoted even today — have shown street motorcyclists with off-road experience have fewer accidents. "Learning off-road is like insurance for the street," says Jobé.

One reason is off-road riders are often more aware of their limits. The other is that a skid for a motocross rider is all in a day's work. A skid for the street rider usually ends with a long vacation. Learning the hard way is slow going...

Jobé's goal is to provide motorcycles and gear on hire at the school so, eventually, buying insurance needn't involve buying neon body armour.

It is experienced off-road riders who perhaps have the most to gain from this man. When 19, Georges Jobé became the youngest world champion, a record he says he holds to this day. He was named Sportsman of the Year twice in home country Belgium. He has 33 years of experience in a jouncing saddle.

I asked Jobé, "Isn't it too much of the same thing after — oh I don't know — 20 years or so?"

Jobé conceded one of the two smiles of our interview. (The second was a big one when I told him I used to ride a Ducati 748 — Jobé seems to love motorcycles more than anything in the world.) "It's like a virus, I cannot stop. I'm still riding almost everyday and I cannot stop. The sport gives you a lot of sensation. I did some car racing but it's nothing compared..."

Riding everyday even after thirty three years?

"I'm still learning," he said. "The bikes are improving all the time — they're faster, suspensions are getting better and you can do more. You can jump longer, higher and faster. It's quite impressive."

That they don't fall off those mad grasshopper bikes more often — that's quite impressive. Those classes must really work.


TO LEARN

• Where: Emirates Karting Centre
• When: April 8 class, April 9 race
• Timings: Class 2.30 to 6pm; Race 10am to 2pm
• Want lessons? Email georges@jobe-racing.com
Spectators encouraged, especially for the race. Open to all at no cost.