Why you should check out this MotoAmerica series even if you're not a hard-core race fan

You've probably heard the fuss about the Netflix series "Formula 1: Drive to Survive," which has done wonders for the popularity of Formula One racing by showing viewers what goes on behind the scenes and introducing some of the personalities involved. Maybe you've heard that MotoGP is copying that successful strategy with a show of its own coming out on Amazon Prime Video this year. But in this case, MotoAmerica was basically a year ahead of MotoGP, revamping "Inside MotoAmerica," its highlights show, for the 2021 season to make racing more accessible and interesting, even to non-hard-core fans, by putting the personalities in the spotlight.

The best part is that all nine of the 2021 episodes of "Inside MotoAmerica: Pressure to Rise" can be watched for free on YouTube, which makes it a perfect off-season binge watch. Here's the full playlist.

Even if you're not a serious racing fan, or even if you're one of the ones who think that MotoGP is the only series worth following, I'd encourage you to give one of these episodes a try. Industry veteran Larry Meyer, the producer of the program, wanted to create a show that would appeal to and be accessible to people who maybe just had a mild interest or curiosity in racing, as well as the already-committed fans.

"I wanted something that somebody's wife or someone's parents or someone not a part of our series could sit down and enjoy," said Meyer. "The way to do that is to draw them in with a story."

That's why we don't just see on-track action, but also debriefs with the riders, crew chiefs and others in the paddock. You don't just find out about who won the race, but also about their joys and pains and struggles. Westby Racing rider Mathew Scholtz, who is from South Africa, talks about the sacrifice of being separated from his wife and the rest of his family for seven months. In episode eight, Josh Herrin talks about the emotions of becoming a father, Cameron Peterson gets married and we visit series champion Jake Gagne at his home in the Rocky Mountains outside Durango, Colorado, one of a few significant changes he made before the 2021 season that paid off big.

In previous years, "Inside MotoAmerica" was a straightforward highlights show, featuring racing action from all of the MotoAmerica classes. The "Pressure to Rise" update puts the focus fully on the Superbikes, though it also tells some interesting side stories, such as Kyle Wyman's pursuit of the King of the Baggers title despite injury and Royal Enfield's all-women Build, Train Race program.

So if I've captured your interest, where do you start? Well, you can always cue up the first episode (the top video in this article) and go from there. In episode six (above), the teams go to Brainerd International Raceway, a new track for all the riders, and it results in the second-craziest race of the season, in which Gagne crashed and still won. Episode eight (below) shows more of the personal side, including a visit to Gagne's Rocky Mountain retreat. And if Brainerd was the second-craziest race, the most incredible was without a doubt the final round at Barber Motorsports Park, in which all three of the podium finishers crashed in one very wet race.

Every time I write about the success or struggles of motorcycle racing, particularly at the national level, our readers chime in with a bunch of suggestions, all of which have been tried before over the years. One of those reader suggestions is to personalize the racers by telling their stories, so we care who wins or loses. With "Inside MotoAmerica: Pressure to Rise," MotoAmerica has, in my opinion, done a pretty good job of just that. Give it a look.

And then if you're still like most Common Tread readers and not that into racing, well, we'll have something else for you tomorrow.