Five Minutes with … Scott Lockhart
APRIL 23, 2008

Scott Lockhart circa 1981

Anyone that knows Ryan Lockhart, knows what a great storyteller he is. After spending a weekend at the Lockhart home in Springhill, Nova Scotia, I quickly learned where he gets his story-telling ability from: his father, Scott Lockhart. A former Yamaha Canada rider, Scott has been around the sport for years and remains in the industry working for Motovan as the East Coast sales rep. I sat down for a brief chat with Scott as his youngest son, Brad, was preparing for the Youth final in Sackville….


RXC: Let’s start from the beginning, Scott. How did you get into motocross?
Scott Lockhart: I started in 1974. It was a big sport in our little town, and I was hanging around the bike shop; all the guys had bikes, I just started riding, and it went from there.

Did you grow up in Springhill?
Yep.

What are some of your accomplishments in racing?
I won the Maritime championship, the pro one, six times. I won Plus 30 and vet titles in motocross and ice racing, too. I didn’t race much outside the Maritimes because I didn’t have the opportunities to travel. I did go out west, but it was a little different back then.

Who were some of the guys you used to battle with locally?
Bear Davis, another guy named Pat Dunn, and at the end of my career, it was Glen Hoar. Glen and I battled hard, and we used to battle in ice racing.

I’m guessing from your Yamaha Canada poster that you spent some time on their bikes.
Well, yes. I was on the team in ``80, 81, `82, and `83.

Did you have a shop that you worked through?
When I was on the Yamaha team, we dealt directly with Yamaha Canada.

Scott's a classic moto-dad; he helps work on his sons' bikes, offers them advice, and always has a story to share.

Any Ross “Rollerball” Pederson stories to share?
Oh, lots! He came to my house one time, and I thought I could jog pretty good—Mike Harnden and I used to run together—but this guy was a marathon runner. He would run six-minute miles! He was unbelievable; the guy was an animal. One day, Ross wanted to go for a run so I said, okay let’s go. When we took off from the home, I thought he was joking—he was in a full sprint! I had a two and half mile loop and I was yelling directions at him from two stop signs back.

There’s a great debate over who is the best Canadian motocrosser of all time. Would say it was Ross?
He’s the man. I think back then Ross was more dominant. He didn’t always have the best bikes or best equipment, but that’s why they called him the Rollerball, because he just rolled you down.

Describe Ryan and Brad’s riding styles.
Ryan has been around a long time riding; he’s been racing the nationals forever. Same with Mitchell [Cooke], there wasn’t much competition and they were pros by the time they were 14. Brad, he’s been riding since he was three; his first race was at River Glade. Brad is surprising me, actually. The competition is much greater now than when Ryan came through the ranks. Brad’s very smooth; he’s more like me. When Ryan used to ride and fall off, it was usually a trip to the hospital. Brad, I hate to say it, but he’s pretty amazing, he’s crashed a few times pretty hard but he’s pretty flexible.

What are your expectations of Ryan this summer?
Well, I think if he gets his act together, and trains hard, he can win.

And what about Brad?
Brad’s in intermediate now and I know he can do well locally and I’d like to see him finish top-10 at Walton. He will only be 14 when he rolls in there. Another surprising thing about Brad, and I got a lot of controversy from this last year, even from the dealer that helps us out, G. Bourque. I put him on a 450 and everyone thought that was a big mistake, but I wanted him to ride a 450 before he moved up to intermediate. He actually surprised everyone by how smooth he was and I think it helped his riding. He’s a good jumper too; he’s not afraid to jump anything.

What are some of your proudest memories from watching the boys’ race?
There are a few. When Ryan finished third at the supercross in Toronto that was awesome. But I think the best race I ever seen Ryan race was when he rode for Two Wheel and we were up at the little Listowel supercross. Him and Chuck Mesley were racing, and Chuck was the "guy" then. It was in the 250 class. I think they even let the race go longer, and my buddy asked if they raced until they ran out of gas! They must have passed each other 15 times and Ryan won it. Anytime the boys do well is a proud moment for me.

Another one is when Ryan raced for KTM, and we were having a few issues with bikes and stuff. We went up to Deschambault; my wife and I drove up on street bikes with some friends. Ryan and I had one of our father/son arguments and I said, ‘I quit!’ I threw off my pass and stomped it into the mud where they were washing the bikes. I jumped on my bike and said. ‘I’m going home,' but my buddy calmed me down and said let’s go have a beer. Then we found out that if I had my pass on, it was only a dollar a beer. So I went back and dug my pass out [laughs]. And the next day Ryan won the race! It was a good thing I stuck around.