Larry Lawrence | November 23, 2018
Steve Crevier Inducted into Canadian Motorcycle Hall of Fame
The Burnaby Conference Centre in British Columbia hosted the 13th annual Canadian Motorcycle Hall of Fame event on Saturday, November 17, with a large crowd of almost 300 on hand to meet this year’s group of new arrivals. Backing for the event came from Federated Insurance, BMW Motorrad Canada and Joe Rocket, with additional support provide by Yamaha, Husqvarna, Motorcyclelawyer.ca and Beta.
Steve Crevier Inducted into Canadian Motorcycle Hall of Fame
1998 AMA Supersport Champion Steve Crevier was inducted into the Canadian Motorcycle Hall of Fame. (Photo courtesy Colin Fraser)
Star of the show was the always-entertaining Steve Crevier, the six-time Canadian Superbike Champion and hero of the long-lost local venue Westwood venue. Crevier began racing in the early 1980s at the Vancouver city area track, and rose to fame with a host of other famous locals in “mountain high racing.” Crevier went on to become one of the leading road racers in the AMA Superbike Championship in the 1990s. He won the 1998 AMA 600cc Supersport Championship riding for Yoshimura Suzuki.
Another inductee with deep roots in American racing was also in the Class of 2018. Rick Hobbs, who is best known today for his work as crew chief for MotoAmerica Superbike Champion Cameron Beaubier, was also honored in the ceremony.
“Well, it was a lot of fun,” deadpanned Crevier after getting an award from 1978 F-750 road race World Champ Steve Baker. “I was raised in Port Coquitlam, and as a kid I use to go and see people like Steve Baker and Jimmy Dunn race at Westwood.”
“My Dad would ask me what I wanted to do when I grew up, and I would say a motorcycle racer. He would suggest an engineer, and I would say I don’t want to drive a train! When I was 17 I bought an RZ350 and headed out to Westwood, because that is what I wanted to do anyway.”
In typical Steve Crevier fashion, burning rubber at Daytona in 1998. (Photo courtesy Colin Fraser)
“My first race, they put the Amateurs in the back row, behind the Pros, and it was raining and I did pretty good, fourth overall. Any they gave me a cheque for maybe $ 180 dollars, and in Motocross I never earned a penny. But they tell me if I ride Pro, I won’t get an Amateur title. And I said I just wanted to ride with the fast guys, give me my friggin’ cheque! I thought they wanted to take away my cheque!
“I feel like I haven’t really accomplished that much in life, except for four great children, and winning on a motorcycle – I couldn’t ask for any more from my life. This is truly an honor.”
Rick Hobbs Also Enshrined
Rick Hobbs (left) with presenter Bob Work, Yamaha Canada tuner who worked with American Steve Baker in 1970s. (Photo courtesy Colin Fraser)
Rick Hobbs is from the city of Whitehorse in the Yukon, a territory in northwest Canada, and Crevier is from Maple Ridge, near Vancouver in Canada’s westernmost province of British Columbia.
Together, Hobbs and Crevier won three Canadian national road racing championships, and they did so, remarkably, all in one year: 1989. Leave it to a couple of Canadians to score motorcycle road racing’s version of a hockey-inspired hat trick. The pair won the Canadian Pro Superbike Championship on a Yamaha Motor Canada-backed FZR750RR OW01, the Canadian Pro 600 Production Championship aboard a Yamaha FZR600, and the Canadian Pro 250cc Grand Prix Championship with Crevier in the saddle of an Aprilia AF1.
“What an unexpected honor for me to be inducted,” Hobbs said humbly. “Especially with Steve Crevier being inducted at the same time. We’re just missing the third key guy in our 1989 championship year, Steve Wyatt, who passed away a few years ago. He is missed by a lot of people.”
Canadian Motorcycle Hall of Fame Class of 2018
Dan Amor, Competitor, Deceased
Steve Crevier, Competitor
Allan Dyck, Competitor
Joe & Vera Godsall, Contributor
Rick Hobbs, Team Member
Wally Klammer, Contributor/Competitor, Deceased
Al Perrett, Contributor/Competitor
Dave Rhodes, Contributor
Congratulations to 2018 Historical Inductee
The Shanks Family, Competitor/Contributor, Deceased
2018 Class of the Canadian Motorcycle Hall of Fame, (Photo courtesy Colin Fraser)
