Cycle News Staff | October 4, 2023
Dirt track racing legend Sammy Tanner passed away on September 21 at the age of 84.
Dirt track legend and long-time Arai Helmet distributor Sammy Tanner passed away at the age of 84. Photo: Courtesy AMA Motorcycle Hall of Fame
Tanner was one of the top AMA professional racers from the late 1950s through all the 1960s. Tanner won a total of seven AMA nationals, including the prestigious Springfield Mile. He rode for the Triumph and BSA factory teams and was one of the heroes of the famous weekly Friday night Ascot Park races in Gardena, California.
When Tanner first began racing as a young teenager, he was just five feet tall and weighed barely 100 pounds, earning him the nickname the “Flying Flea.” He was also known for being one of the first riders on the Grand National circuit to wear white racing leathers.
Tanner retired from racing in 1972 and went on to operate an Arai helmet distributorship in Southern California.
Tanner was inducted into the AMA Motorcycle Hall of Fame in 1999. CN
UPDATE OCTOBER 4, 2023
The AMA Offers Condolences on the Passing of AMA Motorcycle Hall of Famer Sammy Tanner
Photo Courtesy of the AMA
Pickerington, OH (October 4, 2023) – The American Motorcyclist Association offers its condolences to the family, friends and team of seven-time AMA Grand National Championship event winner and 1999 AMA Motorcycle Hall of Fame Inductee Sammy Tanner, who passed away on September 21.
Born May 23, 1939, in Houston, Tanner purchased his first motorcycle — a James Villiers — at 14 years old and fell in love with the sport right away. Shortly after purchasing his bike, Tanner started racing in local field meets throughout his home state of Texas, and soon after earned a support ride on a 500cc Triumph. Due to his 5-foot, 100-pound stature, Tanner was lovingly dubbed “The Flying Flea” by fans and fellow racers alike.
In 1958, Tanner made the leap to the professional ranks, finishing sixth in the AMA Grand National Championship during his rookie season and emerging as the top points earner in Half-Mile races, and duplicated that same feat in his sophomore campaign. In that same season, Tanner captured the first of his four AMA Grand National Championship wins at the legendary Ascot Half-Mile facility in Gardena, Calif.
After his first win at Ascot, Tanner ripped off three-straight victories at the famed Half-Mile track from 1964-66 while competing aboard both Triumphs and BSAs.
While Tanner’s dominance at Ascot is well-documented, his finest ride came at the 1964 Springfield Mile, in which he outlasted fellow AMA Motorcycle Hall of Famers Dick Mann and Ronnie Rall for the victory. His victory aboard the BSA broke a 10-year Harley-Davidson winning streak at the track.
In 1966, Tanner added Half-Mile victories in Elkhorn, Wis. and Heidelberg, Penn., and finished third in the Grand National Championship point standings behind fellow AMA Motorcycle Hall of Famers Bart Markel and Gary Nixon.
The Flying Flea retired in 1972, and operated an Arai helmet distributorship in Southern California following his racing career.
