The Lake Elsinore Storm hosted the city's annual Grand Prix motorcycle races this weekend, and while everyone seemed to be all smiles about the results, the question now lingers: Will the minor league baseball team see fit to host it again?

About 800 motorcyclists showed up for the two-day event, which historically dates back at least four decades in Lake Elsinore. They were treated to dozens of races, culminating with the 100-mile Harvey Mushman feature race Sunday afternoon, so named for the late Hollywood star Steve McQueen, who used the fake I.D. when he stormed the Lake Elsinore track in his heyday.

To keep those riders, their families and fans interested, the Storm also hosted a rock concert Saturday night at The Diamond stadium, which served as home base for the entire Grand Prix.

Baseball officials, who admitted they have never been in the motorcycle-racing business, were understandably reserved about the Grand Prix's future.

"We're going to have to sit down and evaluate everything, but for the most part it's been pretty positive," said Dave Oster, the Storm's general manager on Sunday afternoon. Because of other commitments at the stadium, the Storm's staff got a late start in promoting the event. Most of the planning time went to laying out the 7.2-mile track, which began and ended at The Diamond's doorstep.

"If we didn't have the Storm's support there was a good chance that we would not have had a Grand Prix at all this year," said Lake Elsinore Mayor Bob Magee, himself a rider on Saturday. "But I think the Storm has done a great job in resurrecting this, and their sponsorship gives it legitimacy."

Faced with a lack of sponsors and falling interest, the city approached the Storm late last year about sponsoring the two-day event. The baseball team is bearing all the costs and now must weigh the profits against the expense.

The riders certainly weren't complaining. Many gave very high marks to a course that combined a little of the old Grand Prix track and plenty of new. It included steep hills, canyons, jumps, residential streets, a water hazard and plenty of dust. Top riders can get their bikes up to about 80 miles per hour on the straight-aways.

"I think it's a fun course," said Nick Burson, who races professionally out of Riverside. "It's fast and has lots of variety."

His thoughts were seconded by Robert Fernandez, who rode for the fourth time in the Lake Elsinore Grand Prix.

"I thought the course was very challenging," said Fernandez, from Moreno Valley. "It had a little bit of everything and is a nice cross between dirt-bike tracks and motocross. It's just an all-around good course."

Not everyone was happy about the weekend. Al Tomlin, who runs a barbecue stand on the weekend motorcycle circuit, said he took a beating at the cash register, and by the end of Sunday was giving away sandwiches.

"It sucked," said Tomlin, who was among more than a dozen vendors at the east end of The Diamond's main parking lot. "If I had been about 200 yards (to the west) I probably would have been happy."

The course wound part of the way through residential neighborhoods, which has often angered residents in the past. But it certainly wasn't the case for them all on Sunday.

"I love these races," said Homer Head, whose home was a little more than a block from the track and the roar of the bikes. He was watching the races from a lawn chair near Railroad Canyon Elementary School. "They're fun to watch and it's free. I wish they'd run down my street."

The best vantage point for action was again behind Lake Chevrolet on Auto Center Drive. A steep hill there flung riders as much as 15 to 20 feet in the air. While it thrilled spectators, watching the rest of the race presented other challenges.

"It used to be that we could stand up here and see three-quarters of the track," said Bob Hicks of Riverside, a former Lake Elsinore Grand Prix rider. "Now it seems spread out, and we can only see this little stretch (about 200 yards)."

Race officials reported that other than one rider breaking some ribs as the result of a spill, there were no significant injuries during the two days.