For this edition of Classic Ink, we are going to take a look back at N-Style’s very successful 1999 team lineup.
One of the big changes to the motocross industry in the 1990s was the explosion of aftermarket graphics. Prior to the 1990s, most riders wanting to customize the look of their machines were limited to plastering their fenders with a cobbled-up assortment of stickers or bolting on an ill-fitting set of Maier plastics that they had to drill out the mounting holes for. If you got it right, you had a cool looking Tuff Racing replica; if you got it wrong, you had a bike that looked like a New York subway train from the 1970s.
In the early 90s, all that changed with the arrival of ready-made inexpensive graphic kits from companies like N-Style, Factory Effex, Ceet Racing, and Tecnosel. The factory race teams could no longer race one-off exotica, but they could trick out their bikes with custom looks that set them apart from the garden-variety CRs, KXs, YZs, and RMs found on the showroom floor. Best of all, if you had around $75, you too could make your lowly stocker look like the works racer of Showtime, Albe, or Fro.
During this 1990s graphics boom, one of the true powerhouses was former pro racer Rob Healy’s N-Style. Launched in 1990, Rob’s unique oversized numbers quickly became a mainstay on the works machines of factory Honda, Kawasaki, and Suzuki. Nearly overnight, those numbers were everywhere – from magazine covers to starting lines across the nation.
By 1999, N-Style was one of the most established brands in the moto graphics industry. That season they provided the graphics for four of the highest-profile teams in the paddock: Factory Suzuki, Yamaha of Troy, FMF Honda, and Splitfire Pro Circuit Kawasaki. All four teams looked sharp and three of them took home championships. 1999 was a great year for motocross – and a great year for N-Style.
N-Style’s Factory Suzuki Kit: Factory Suzuki was an early adopter of N-Style’s oversized numbers and in 1996 they switched from Tecnosel to N-Style for their factory team graphics. This 1999 design did its best to hide those ridiculous “barn door” shrouds, but even the best graphic designers could not do much to mitigate this styling disaster. Photo: N-Style
Multi-time World Motocross champion Greg Albertyn finally captured his first AMA Motocross title for N-Style and Suzuki in 1999 after several injury-plagued seasons. Long known as one of the nicest and most well-liked riders in the pits, Albe’s 250 championship win was a popular one on both sides of the pond. Photo: Ken Faught.
Launched in 1993 with Erik Kehoe at the controls, Phil Alderton’s Troy Racing team was one of the true privateer powerhouses of the 1990s and early 2000s. Often referred to as the “Fifth Dragon” (a nod to the Big Four factory teams of the time), Troy’s race bikes became iconic for the unique dragon logo built into all of their N-Style team graphics. Photo: N-Style
In 1999, Phil moved the Troy Racing team from Hondas to Yamahas and started a run that included four AMA championships in five years. At the time, Honda’s new alloy-framed CRs were no longer the bikes to beat, and the superior performance of the blue machines helped Yamaha of Troy riders like Ernesto Fonseca put the Fifth Dragon at the top of the 125 East Coast Supercross standings. Photo Credit: N-Style
In 1998, Donnie Emler’s FMF joined longtime competitor Pro Circuit in the AMA 125 motocross trenches. Sponsored by Honda, Emler’s new FMF Racing team was tasked with turning the underwhelming stock CR125R into a competitive national-caliber racer. While their results on this front were reportedly rather mixed, there was no doubt that the FMF bikes and their N-Style graphics were drop-dead gorgeous. Photo: N-Style
In 1999, longtime GP competitor Tallon Vohland retuned to the AMA circuit and gave the FMF Honda squad a legitimate shot at the 125 National Motocross title. While they couldn’t wrest it away from Pro Circuit’s Ricky Carmichael, teammates Brock Sellards and Tallon Vohland still finished second and third in the final standings. Photo: Thor
The granddaddy of motocross satellite teams, Mitch Payton’s SplitFire Pro Circuit team introduced my all-time favorite of their graphic designs in 1999. These colorful graphics hark back to a bygone era – a long way from today’s green and black Monster claws. Goddamn the 1990s were cool. Photo: N-Style
Ricky Carmichael came back to Mitch’s team to defend his 125 title one last time in 1999. The two-time reigning champ destroyed the 125 field, coasting to a mind-blowing 153-point margin of victory on his way to a third and final 125 National Motocross title. Photo: Donn Maeda
