Cycle News Staff | June 21, 2023
Scot Harden, Mary McGee and Lee Sieck named as inductees in the Off-Road Motorsports Hall Of Fame class of 2023.
The following is an excerpt from a press release by ORMHOF…
The Off-Road Motorsports Hall of Fame (ORMHOF) received fifty-four nomination packets for individuals to be considered for the Class of 2023. A committee of off-road industry professionals was convened to evaluate and review the submissions.
At the end of a day-long discussion and review, a vote was taken by secret ballot, and the nine nominees who received votes from a minimum of two-thirds of the committee members were submitted to the Off-Road Motorsports Hall of Fame board of directors for ratification.
Motorcyclists inductees in the Off-Road Motorsports Hall of Fame Class of 2023 include Scot Harden, Mary McGee and Lee Sieck.
Scot Harden – Industry Pioneer
As a desert racer, OEM executive, event promoter, land use advocate, desert racing historian, brand ambassador, published author, and now member of four motorsports Halls of Fame, Scot Harden impacts off-road.
With 14 overall wins and 38 class championships at the Baja 1000, Baja 500, Las Vegas 400, Parker 400, SCORE, BITD, SNORE, HDRA and other major Baja/off-road events to pioneering Rally competitions in North Africa, to leading the first serious U.S. motorcycle team effort at the grueling Dakar Rally to building companies, and brands, Harden has impacted an entire generation of off-road enthusiasts. His contributions to iconic off-road companies like KTM, Husqvarna, Best In The Desert and a whole host of aftermarket companies as race team manager, factory rider, sales and marketing executive, spokesperson and brand ambassador, Scot has left a huge mark on the industry and sport. Already a member of several other prestigious Halls of Fame including the American Motorcyclist Association, Trailblazers, and Hot Shoe Hall of Fames, Harden has been named by SCORE Journal as one of the “All Time Baja Moto Greats” and one of the “Top 10 Riders” in the history of U.S. off-road motorcycle competition by Dirt Rider Magazine.
Scot’s passion for the sport of off-road continues with the recent development of the “Handstands at 100 MPH” event with legendary SCORE Baja Champion and ORMHOF inductee Johnny Campbell. “Handstands” is designed to recognize the accomplishments of desert and Baja motorcycle racing legends from the past and present. “Scot’s efforts to continue the promotion and legacies of the sport’s great off-road racers will serve as inspiration to present and future generations to know whose shoulders they are standing on,” says Jim Ryan, SCORE VP Marketing.
Class of 2023 inductee Scot Harden will host a skills class at our sister event, Adventure Rally & Camp, later this year.
Mary McGee – Competition
While a tall 5’11”, Mary always described herself as “fast on my feet, fast with my brain, self-conscious and lacking confidence”, however she had “no trouble with confidence on the racetrack.” A pioneer in the sport of desert off-road racing and motocross, Mary broke down many barriers for female racers. She has achieved many firsts and has been a great role model for our sport.
Mary learned to ride on a 200cc Triumph Tiger Cub she bought from a friend. She later took up motorcycle road racing to try to improve her car racing skills. A female road racer in the United States was a new phenomenon, so the American Federation of Motorcyclists made Mary take a test before allowing her to race. She passed the test – on a 125 Honda CB92 wearing a pink polka-dot helmet — and became the first woman to hold an FIM license in the United States.
Mary started her off-road career by riding a 250cc Honda Scrambler in an AMA District 37 enduro. She raced a Datsun 510 in the very first Mexican 1000 in 1967. Mary became the first woman to finish the Mexican 1000 in 1968, and in 1975, she rode a 250 Husqvarna solo in the Baja 500, passing 17, two-man teams.
Mary was given the distinguished honor of being named the FIM Legend of 2012 at the FIM Gala in Monte Carlo, Monaco. She was inducted into the Trailblazers Hall of Fame in 2014 and the American Motorcyclist Hall of Fame in 2018. She was honored as Grand Marshal of the 2022 NORRA Mexican 500 and has a trophy awarded in her name to the most deserving female racer.
Mary has always said that the hardest thing she ever did was racing in Baja. “It was very barren, no electricity, no doctors, no phone.” When she got a call from three-time motocross world champion Rolf Tibblin, who asked if she would ride the Baja 500 solo in ’75, she replied, “I can’t do that Rolf.” Rolf responded in his Swedish accent “You will do it Mary,” So she accepted the challenge. “We all get one life,” says Mary. “But you are not living if you aren’t having fun.”
Lee Sieck – Pioneer Industry
Lee ‘Fud’ Sieck is a Hall of Fame Legacy inductee. He passed away in 2003. Fud was the dynamic and driving force behind some of the most enjoyable grassroots events the sport of desert racing has ever known. He began to ride the San Diego based District 38 events in the late 1970s, eventually trading his handlebars for a gavel when elected president of the organization in 1979.
In 1979, Fud started racing in the desert east of San Diego County in the AMA District 38 desert races. Later that year he was elected president of the San Diego Sports Committee Inc. His reputation for organization grew from that seed, and by 1984 he had been asked by a group of four-wheel off-road racers to put together a race for them. This became the start of Fud’s Superstition Championship Series, which soon added motorcycles and ATVs to the mix by using the same racecourse but staggering the field’s starting times – bikes raced at 7 am and cars at noon. “Fud always had a big smile and was there to help anyone that needed help,” said AMA Hall of Fame member Marty Tripes. “Fud organized and took District 38 to the next level of high standards. He was at home in the desert and promoting District 38.”
Fud found great satisfaction over the next 24 years promoting and organizing car and motorcycle races both in the desert and at places like the Mid-Winter Fairgrounds in Imperial Valley and the Golden Acorn Casino off Hwy. 8. He loved racing so much he gave up his career in aerospace to devote himself to the sport he cared about so much. His love of Baja and the races he promoted in the Tecate area earned him the ‘Amigos de Baja’ award from the governor of Baja California Norte in 1999.
“Fud’s events allowed hundreds of families to compete in small local events to grow as competitors, including my own sons, Dan and Luke,” said ORMHOF inductee Mark McMillin. “Fud’s legacy continues today with local motorcycle and ATV racing in Plaster City known as District 38, which still grooms young racers and embodies the family-first environment in the desert.”
The ORMHOF Class of 2023 will be celebrated at the Off-Road Motorsports Hall of Fame Induction and Awards Gala presented by 4 Wheel Parts, on Saturday, September 9 at the South Point Hotel Casino & Spa in Las Vegas, Nevada.
“The ORMHOF Gala is off-road’s biggest night of the year. It’s the off-road reunion and celebration everyone looks forward to attending,” said ORMHOF chairman and inductee Mark McMillin. “We’re excited to welcome the Class of 2023 to the Hall of Fame on September 9 at Michael Gaughan’s South Point in Las Vegas.”
For tickets and more information, be sure to check out the Off-Road Motorsports Hall of Fame website.