Motorcycle racing legend Dick Mann has died at 87

Dick Mann seen here in a 2015 file photo. Mann died on April 26.

Dick Mann, a member of the American Motorcycle Hall of Fame and resident of Gardnerville, died on April 26 at the age of 87.

In a 2015 interview with RC Sports editor-in-chief Dave Price, Mann described his feelings about his fame.

“I don’t know,” he said. “I have never looked for peaks and valleys. As long as it’s stable, I’m happy. If I had a different attitude, I would never have turned out to be a professional runner.

Mann won two dozen national events from 1958 to 1972.

“I wasn’t that talented,” he said, with his characteristic modesty. “It is the dedication and insight that has been the key to the success I have had.”

Mann told Price he doesn’t race for glamor or fun.

“I never thought it was fun,” he said. “I wanted to be a professional athlete and I could do my best on a motorcycle.”

Mann has won two major national championships, Mann has been billed as one of the greatest to ever compete in various motorcycle racing disciplines, the association said. Mann is best known for being the first person to win all five types of circuits included in the AMA Grand National Championship: short track, TT, half mile, mile and road race.

Mann continued to contribute to the motorcycle racing legacy by influencing some of the biggest names in the flat track including Gene Romero, Gary Nixon, Mert Lawwill, Kenny Roberts and Dave Aldana.

Mann was inducted into the Motorsport Hall of Fame in 1993 and the AMA Motorcycle Hall of Fame in 1998.