Steve Wise Named Grand Marshal of 2023 Permco AMA Vintage Motorcycle Days
31st Annual AMA VMD event to highlight Wise’s AMA Superbike, AMA Supercross, AMA Motocross and Superbikers victories, along with featured marque Honda
PICKERINGTON, Ohio — AMA Motorcycle Hall of Famer and multi-talented road, motocross, AMA Supercross and Superbikers racer Steve Wise will be the Grand Marshal for the 2023 Permco AMA Vintage Motorcycle Days event July 21-23 at Mid-Ohio Sports Car Course in Lexington, Ohio.
With National wins in a wide variety of professional racing disciplines, Wise is one of the most multi-talented racers in history, and still the only National-class motocross winner to ever win an AMA Superbike National (Mid-Ohio, in ’83).
To put an exclamation point on that dual-threat distinction, Wise is also a two-time winner of the prestigious ABC Wide World of Sports Superbikers event at Carlsbad Raceway, beating an impressive field of world-class racers in ’80 and ’81. Wise was named AMA Pro Athlete of the Year in 1982 and was inducted into the AMA Motorcycle Hall of Fame in 2001.
To help celebrate Wise’s many achievements, a couple of Honda 50th and 40th Anniversary motorcycles will be featured at this year’s Permco AMA Vintage Motorcycle Days celebration, including two that figured prominently in Wise’s stellar career — Honda’s CR250 Elsinore (introduced in 1973) and VF750F Interceptor (introduced in 1983).
To augment the production-spec Hondas that will be highlighted at the weekend event, AMA Superbike collector Brian O’Shea will bring a few of his race- and championship-winning Honda Interceptors to Mid-Ohio, including AMA Motorcycle Hall of Famer Freddie Spencer’s Daytona-winner from 1985 and one of Hall of Famer Fred Merkel’s factory AMA Superbikes. And to cap off the display, American Honda is planning to have Wise’s actual Superbikers-winning factory RC400 on display.
“I’m honored to be Grand Marshal at this year’s AMA Vintage Motorcycle Days event,” Wise said, “especially at the track on which I won my first AMA Superbike event. I remember that weekend in 1983 like it was yesterday, and being able to go back there and enjoy such a wide range of racing, historical and just-plain-fun motorcycle stuff that happens at VMD will be memorable, I’m sure. I’m excited about the opportunity!”
While there, Wise will sign autographs, speak to enthusiasts from the AMA Soundstage, participate in a Lap For History each day (and lead event attendees around the legendary Mid-Ohio circuit), drop the starting gate for a motocross event, and much more.
Permco AMA Vintage Motorcycle Days is the preeminent — and longest-running — vintage motorcycle event in the country, with over 40,000 attendees each year enjoying off-road and road racing, bike shows, AMA Hall of Fame exhibits, camping, Laps For History on the legendary Mid-Ohio circuit and, of course, the country’s largest motorcycle swap meet.
“We are over-the-moon to have Steve Wise as this year’s Grand Marshal at VMD,” said AMA Editorial and Communications Director Mitch Boehm. “A large percentage of motorcycle enthusiasts ride on-road and off, which makes Wise’s incredible racing accomplishments on asphalt and dirt especially compelling. And to have a handful of historically important Anniversary Hondas on display? Well, it’s going to be really special.”
For more information visit https://www.vintagemotorcycledays.com, sign up for the AMA VMD newsletter or follow #AMAVMD on social media channels. To purchase tickets, visit midohio.com/tickets or AMA members can purchase discounted tickets at vintagemotorcycledays.com/tickets/.
About the American Motorcyclist Association
Founded in 1924, the AMA is a not-for-profit member-based association whose mission is to promote the motorcycle lifestyle and protect the future of motorcycling. As the world’s largest motorcycling rights and event sanctioning organization, the AMA advocates for riders’ interests at all levels of government and sanctions thousands of competition and recreational events every year. Besides offering members money-saving discounts on products and services, the AMA also publishes American Motorcyclist, a recently revitalized and monthly full-color magazine (and digital version of same) that covers current events and motorcycle history with brilliant photography and compelling writing. American Motorcyclist is also North America’s largest-circulation magazine. Through the AMA Motorcycle Hall of Fame in Pickerington, Ohio, the AMA honors the heroes and heritage of motorcycling. For more information, visit AmericanMotorcyclist.com.
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