AttheCitadel,
Namur...asadly
missedtrack.1978 wasa
comeback
yearfor
Carla...
injuredin
1977 ,his
performance
in 1978
ensureda
teamplace
for 1979 and
hewasworld
250 champ.Thechampionship
wastocome...first
meetatSittendorf.Beenthere,donethat,gotthe
T-shirt...Sorry,couldn'tresist!circuitsof the world –successhere stamps
arider’sauthorityon the MX world... Hakan
Carlqvisthad alreadywon thefirs toftwo
motosand had a50secondlead –toput
that into perspectiveimaginehow far you
can go on foot in 50 seconds;in the second
moto,the crowdwere sensingsomething
special,whenthe Swede pulledto the side
of the track...right next to the Chaletdu
Monumentcafé at the bottomof the circuit...
abottle of beer wasacquired,Carla swigged
it down,calmlykicked his bikeinto life and
spedoff to win thefinal moto!The crowd’s
reaction–theywent wild!
This stunningdisplayofcalm masteryhas
gonedownin the annalsof MX alongsidethe
‘JobeDouble’whenGeorgesJobe cleareda
doublejumpat HawkstonePark in 1984.
Neithermotorcycling nor injurywas
finishedwith HakanCarlqvist after his race
careerended,asanotheraccident whilst
testingaHusabergfor SwedishTV in 1997
sidelined him with abroken pelvis.Another
accidentwhilstworking on aroof sawhim
slip off and fall into an emptyswimming
pool.Thereis alimit to what abody can
takethough andthis wasall too muchfor
even agiantofaman suchas Carlqvist.
Whenaddedto the multiple injuries he
sufferedduring his MX careerhe needed
medication and strongpainkillerstohelp.
In his latteryears, Carla shunnedthe
publiceyeand becameavirtual recluse,
optingto stayathis secludedhomein the
Southof France.
Iconsidermyself extremelyfortunateto
have met the man and coveredthe world
motocrossGPs duringthat periodwhenhe
wasatthe top. Thereare someimagesof
him whichwill remainwith thosethat saw
themforever,for instanceseeinghim hangingupsidedownby his anklesin his awning
between raceswaseye-opening,aswas
his partying after aGP. The storiesof him
diggingahole to buryhis newYamahaat a
test and steppingoff his bikeatspeedand
sendingit crashingit into his awning were all
indicationsof the man’sfier ytemperament
and his ultimatedesireto be the best.Yet
with his helmetoff he wasrelaxedand fun to
be around.
His workethic wasinspirationaland
secondto noneas Kenth Ohlinof Ohlins
Racingis quotedas saying of Carlqvist:“withouthim possiblyOhlinswouldnot
be as well knowntodayastheyare”. He
further addedthat in Hakantheyhad atop
racerwho waskeen to help developnew
technologyand wasdedicatedto testing
the resultsno matterwhat the conditions.
Carlqvisthimselfdismissedhis injuriesand
alwaysgave100%.His attitudebeing:
“If it’snot goingwell, tryharder,never
give up.”
Our sympathygoes out to longtermpartner
Anneli.Goodnight and God blesschamp and
thanksfor the memories.People
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