Chase Stallo
It is with heavy hearts that we announce the passing of legendary motocross promoter Ron Henricksen. He passed away on December 28, 2023 just one day before his 89th birthday.
For those that don’t know Ron’s history in the sport, there is an easy way to sum it up: big-time amateur motocross racing wouldn’t be what it is today without him.
Hailing from Southern California, Ron teamed up with his friend Ted Moorewood to form what was originally called the National Minicycle Association (NMA) and together they founded the first major moto events for kids, which included the World Mini Grand Prix and the NMA Grand National Championships in Ponca City, Oklahoma.
It was Ron’s events that were the blueprint of what was to come in the future with likes of Loretta Lynn’s, Mini O’s and much more.
Last year, we received the blessing of Ron and his family to bring back the World Mini Grand Prix to Mesquite, Nevada. It was truly an honor that ourselves and Grassroots MX never took lightly and our main mission was to honor what Ron had created.
“Ron, and his wife Carol, were one of the first big promoters to embrace and encourage the infancy of our vurbmoto dream,” said vurbmoto co-founder Wes Williams. “They welcomed us with open arms and allowed us to chase a vision that was very far-fetched at the time. A feeling and memory I’ve always held with the utmost of gratitude. And, almost 20 years later, they graced us with the ability to carry on the namesake to their marquee event, the World Mini Grand Prix, which is an honor that I can’t even put into words.
“We’re humbled to say we carried on Ron’s long-standing tradition for him one final time during his stay here on earth, and hopefully we made him proud. For 2024 and beyond, we will forever honor Ron and his legacy. We all have him to thank for helping create the sport that we all love the most. RIP Mr. Ron, and from the bottom of my heart, thank you for everything.”
World Mini returns again this April and the race will be in honor of Ron.
RIP, Ron.
Main image: Racer X
