David Aldana (born November 26, 1949) is an

American American(s) may refer to: * American, something of, from, or related to the United States of America, commonly known as the "United States" or "America" ** Americans, citizens and nationals of the United States of America ** American ancestry, pe ...

former professional

motorcycle A motorcycle (motorbike, bike, or trike (if three-wheeled)) is a two or three-wheeled motor vehicle steered by a handlebar. Motorcycle design varies greatly to suit a range of different purposes: long-distance travel, commuting, cruising ...

racer who specialized in dirt track oval racing and

road racing Road racing is a form of motorsport racing held on a paved road surface. The races can be held either on a closed circuit or on a street circuit utilizing temporarily closed public roads. Originally, road races were held almost entirely on publ ...

. In the 1970s, he was one of the more colorful racers in the

A.M.A. Grand National Championship American Flat Track is an American motorcycle racing series. The racing series, founded and sanctioned by the American Motorcyclist Association (AMA) in 1954, originally encompassed five distinct forms of competitions including mile dirt track ra ...

with his wild riding style and extravagant designs on his riding attire. Aldana competed in nearly every form of motorcycle racing, including competing in the

1970 Trans-AMA motocross series The 1970 Trans-AMA motocross series was an international series established by the American Motorcyclist Association as a pilot event to help establish motocross in the United States. The motocross series was an invitational based on a combined 250 ...

and

speedway Speedway may refer to: Racing Race tracks *Edmonton International Speedway, also known as Speedway Park, a former motor raceway in Edmonton, Alberta *Indianapolis Motor Speedway, a motor raceway in Speedway, Indiana Types of races and race cours ...

racing. Born in

Santa Ana, California Santa Ana () is the second most populous city and the county seat of Orange County, California. Located in the Greater Los Angeles region of Southern California, the city's population was 310,227 at the 2020 census, making Santa Ana the List of ...

, Aldana became a rookie expert on the AMA Grand National circuit in 1970 riding for BSA. Aldana made a serious challenge for the championship. A crash at the Sacramento Mile with just three races to go dashed his hopes for the title, but along the way he won three nationals and finished third in the series. He won over many fans with his all-or-nothing style. He also gained notoriety from wearing a set of racing leathers he designed that featured an almost entirely black leather suit with a contrasting human skeleton on the front. AMA race officials threatened to ban him at one point if he persisted in wearing the suit. By the late 1970s, Aldana began concentrating on road racing. In 1975, he was the top individual scorer at the

Transatlantic Trophy The Transatlantic Trophy (initially called Anglo-American Match Races) was an annual series of motorcycle races between the United Kingdom and America held from 1971 to 1988 and again in 1991. They were mostly held over the Easter weekend at Br ...

match races, and led the American team to their first victory in the series over the British team. He became a factory rider for

Suzuki is a Japan, Japanese multinational corporation headquartered in Minami-ku, Hamamatsu, Japan. Suzuki manufactures automobiles, motorcycles, All-terrain vehicle, all-terrain vehicles (ATVs), outboard motor, outboard marine engines, wheelchairs ...

, and later joined Kawasaki's

AMA Superbike AMA Superbike Championship is an American motorcycle racing series that has been run every year beginning in 1976. For most of its existence it has been considered the premier motorcycle road racing series in the United States. It is sanctioned ...

team in 1980 with a young

Eddie Lawson Eddie Lawson (born March 11, 1958) is an American former four-time Grand Prix motorcycle racing World Champion. His record of not crashing and consistently finishing in the points earned him the nickname "Steady Eddie".Honda is a Japanese public multinational conglomerate manufacturer of automobiles, motorcycles, and power equipment, headquartered in Minato, Tokyo, Japan. Honda has been the world's largest motorcycle manufacturer since 1959, reaching a product ...

factory rider in the

FIM FIM may refer to: Organizations and companies * Fédération Internationale de Motocyclisme, the International Motorcycling Federation * Flint Institute of Music, in Michigan, United States * Fox Interactive Media, now News Corp. Digital Media * ...

Endurance World Championship The Endurance World Championship (FIM EWC) is the premier worldwide endurance championship in motorcycle road racing. The championship season consists of a series of endurance races (with a duration of six, eight, twelve or twenty-four hours) he ...

where he raced in prestigious races such as the

Bol d'Or The Bol d’Or is a 24-hour endurance race for motorcycles, held annually in France. The riding of each bike is now shared by a team of three riders. History The Bol d’Or, first organized by Eugene Mauve, in 1922, was a race for motorcycles ...

. Aldana teamed with Mike Baldwin to win the prestigious

Suzuka 8 Hours The is a motorcycle endurance race held at the Suzuka Circuit in Japan each year. The race runs for eight hours consecutively and entrants are composed of two or more riders who alternate during pitstops. History The race began in 1978 as a ...

endurance race in 1981. Aldana won 4 AMA Nationals during his career, as well as several important international races. In 1999, he was inducted into the AMA

Motorcycle Hall of Fame The AMA Motorcycle Hall of Fame Museum is an offshoot of the American Motorcyclist Association, recognizing individuals who have contributed to motorcycle sport, motorcycle construction, or motorcycling in general. It also displays motorcycles ...

. He is of Mexican American descent.http://www.mcnews.com/mcn/features/2012JulyLgnds.pdf

References

External links

* {{DEFAULTSORT:Aldana, David 1949 births Living people Sportspeople from Santa Ana, California American motorcycle racers AMA Grand National Championship riders American sportspeople of Mexican descent AMA Superbike Championship riders