Jeff Brinkman reached out to me in the fall of 2022. He was a fellow transplant to the desert who was originally from Hutchinson, Minnesota. He raced from 1973 through 75. He made it to 250 Expert but quit racing the next year. I was from Burnsville and didn't start racing until 1978, so our paths didn't cross back then, but we had a lot of common experiences. We both started racing in our late teens. We were both quick enough to make it to Expert class, but despite our best efforts, not quite fast enough to do much once we got there.

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He really enjoyed reading my book Pioneers of Minnesota Motocross which goes from 1971 through 1995. It must have brought back a lot of fond memories. He had a lot of good ideas about preserving Minnesota Motorcycle Racing history. For example, having a Minnesota Motorcycle Hall of Fame Museum, not the virtual one on MXBob.com but a real building with old bikes, trophies etc.

Jeff also dabbled in moto-journalism. Here he is writing about a very famous Jeff.

We got together a few times in 2023. He came over to watch the Washougal national. We got to know each other better that day. His love for the outdoors and motorcycles continued long after his racing days were over. Jeff moved out west and worked for the city of Fort Collins, Colorado until he retired. He camped and rode dirt bikes in the mountains. After moving to Arizona, Jeff was and his wife Remy would go on long camping trips in northern Colorado during the summer.

Early in October 2023, I was now freshly retired and finally able to hang out with Jeff on a more regular basis. I was checking to see when he was going to be back from his Colorado camping trip when I found out that he had a heart attack a few weeks earlier and had passed away. It's not the first time a friend of mine has died suddenly, but it still hit me hard. Jeff and I had talked about many ideas and possible projects. I was looking forward to seeing where they may lead, watching the national races on TV, playing a little music, and maybe a road trip or two to some Vintage motorcycle destination. I'll miss what might have been but am happy for the time we had together. Godspeed Jeff