Between the Races: Bill MacDonald

Remember the subscription contest we held, in which the winner earned a trip for two to the Miller Motorsports Park World Superbike round? That winner was Bill MacDonald, who brought his brother Eric along to the race, where they met Yamaha riders Ben Spies and Tom Sykes and just had a good time in general. We checked in with him yesterday to see how it went.

RRX: How did you enjoy your trip to Miller Motorsports Park?
Bill MacDonald: Oh, it was awesome, great. The hotel we stayed at downtown was awesome—first-class, all the way. We just had a great time. Even the staff at the park was great—showed us exactly where to go, and put us in the suites. We were over the pits, looking right down. We really felt like more connected to the race. We’ve been to a lot of races, but we’ve never been in that kind of position. We’ve been like off in the boonies somewhere, where you’re pressed up against a fence somewhere [laughs].

You went to that race last year too, right?
Yeah, we’ve been there for a couple years, but we were always in the back section—either in a tent or an RV. This was great; it spoiled me—I think I’m going to have to figure out a way to do that again!

Did you think you had a chance to win when you subscribed?
Not at all—didn’t even give it a thought.

What did you think when you got the call from Julie?
I thought it was a prank; I thought someone was playing a joke on me or something. I was like, “Okay, who is this?” and she said, “No, no, it’s for real!”

You brought your brother, right?
Yes, he’s Eric. He was pretty excited. I thought it was a long shot, because it was right at the deadline there, but I called him up and said, “You wouldn’t happen to be doing anything on the weekend, would you?” He said, “Well no, why?” I told him what it was, and he was like, “You’re kidding me!”

I have to say a little bit about that situation, because Eric’s been fighting brain cancer for the last two years. He’s been hanging in there, and it was just great to have something like that. The last time we’d come to the track, we had an RV, and we weren’t really sure how much time we had left. We just wanted to do some things together, because we were always kind of hanging out as brothers. He was on chemo and was really weak at the time, so it was just good to have another shot at it. He’d called me up [this year] and wanted to know if I was going to be going again, and I wasn’t sure. My schedule is pretty busy, but it was good—he was the first one that came in my mind that I wanted to make sure he could go. He was a lot stronger this time, which is why I signed us up for the track day on the following Monday. We’ve ridden bikes for most of our lives, but he’d never been on a track before. I’ve been on tracks for about five years or so, and it was just a whole new experience for me. I told him, “You’ve just got to get on a track, man. It’s like crack—it’s unbelievable. You’ve got to do this.” I know he was really scared to do it, but I wanted him to have something outside the envelope. It was awesome; it was a gift from me that I could bring him in on that.

That makes my day to hear that. How’s he doing now?
Well, he was on chemo for well over a year and a half, and he was on a trial medicine. He had the operation—had what could be removed taken out—and he’s kind of stabilized. What was left there, he goes in for MRIs every month or so. He goes in again in another week. He holds his breath for what they’re going to tell him, and he’s been holding the line for the last six, eight months or so. He’s hanging in there. With brain cancer, it’s just a total crapshoot.

How did the trip go?
It was great. We sat with Ben Spies’ dad, and he was sharing stories. He was polite enough to kind of put up with us, because we were talking all the time, wanting to know what was going on. He’s a great guy. We were right there by the podium, so the guys always came up through that area. Ben would always give his dad a hug, so we were right there—very much a part of the event.

What was the highlight?
I can’t say there was really just one single thing. Maybe it was going in the garages—that was pretty cool…. It was good just to see the bikes and see the layout inside. It’s just a whole different world that we never, ever get to see. That was probably the highlight.

Thanks for reading the mag. I hope you continue to subscribe, but I can’t promise the same experience every time.
[Laughs] Come on, man! No, like I said, by hook or crook, I’m going to figure out a way to get in there!