From Cagiva USA
WILLOW GROVE, PA – Proudly partnering with the Legend of the Motorcycle Concours D’Elegance, MV Agusta is pleased to be the honoured marque of this year’s event.
To celebrate, MV Agusta is planning a series of events capturing the unrivaled spirit of their commitment to motorcycle excellence. Visitors of the breathtaking event can expect an inside look at the company’s colourful past with immaculately restored MV bikes from every era as well as a look into the future of MV with an advanced peek at upcoming models such as the brand new 2008 F4 RR 312 1078 and Brutale 1078 RR.
To compliment the new bike highlights, MV Agusta will also organize a very special MV 75 watch display from renowned watchmaker JeanRichard. This exclusive look at MV Agusta will all be helmed by one of its greatest legends, Giacomo Agostini, on hand to receive a very special Legend of the Motorcycle concours honour.
“We could not be more excited at the prospect of celebrating MV Agusta’s place in motorcycle history at this magnificent event. As one of the featured motorcycle marques to be honored this year at the Legend of the Motorcycle Concours D’Elegance, MV Agusta is pleased Ago will be receiving the Lifetime Achievement Award,” said MV Agusta brand manager Matthew Stutzman. “MV Agusta is proud of Ago’s contributions to the world of racing as well as our own, which account for more than six decades of truly wonderful motorcycles."
Widely adored by Grand Prix fans for his tremendous talent, AMA Motorcycle Hall of Fame Rider Giacomo Agostini, or “Ago,” as he is famously nicknamed, will be honoured this year by the Legend of the Motorcycle with a very special Lifetime Achievement Award. This accolade will be bestowed to him in recognition for his vast success in racing and his myriad of contributions to the motorcycle industry.
Arguably the most successful motorcycle racer of all-time, Ago is responsible for an unprecedented 15 motorcycle Grand Prix Championships, most riding for MV Agusta founder Count Domenico Agusta.
The 3rd annual Legend of the Motorcycle Concours event will be held at the Ritz-Carlton in Half Moon Bay, CA Saturday, May 3. The event will be held from 10:00 a.m. to 4:00 p.m. For more information about the Legend of Motorcycle Concours D’Elegance, please visit www.legendofthemotorcycle.com or email info@legendofthemotorcycle.com. Tickets for the event may be purchased online.
Wednesday, April 30, 2008
Hurst survives Fontana crash
From Slednecks Kawasaki
FONTANA, CA -- Slednecks teammates Misti Hurst and Josh Galster, both coaches with the California Superbike School, raced their Kawasaki ZX-6's to 23rd and 18th, respectively, in AMA Supersport action at Fontana.
Hurst overcame several challenges over the weekend in order to qualify in 29th position. On Friday morning she crashed going into the tight turn 3 after losing the front, and on Friday afternoon her team, headed this weekend by EDR Performance's Eric Dorn, replaced a blown shock with a completely new Ohlins.
The short 20-minute Saturday morning practice was spent trying to relearn and re-set up the bike on the unfamiliar track. Having only ridden at Fontana once before the race weekend, Hurst faced a high learning curve to figure out the difficult circuit, get her suspension sorted and get her times down enough to qualify.
"I started the weekend running high 36's which I knew wasn't going to cut it. We worked pretty hard to get down to a 1:33.5 in qualifying," she said. "Eric was awesome help and made excellent choices in regards to the Dunlop tires we chose to run. My Kawasaki ran great and was very fast."
Hurst got a good start after a red flag forced a re-start of the race. She worked her way up from 29th place to a solid 21st and was reeling in the rider in front of her when she tucked the front into turn 5 with only two laps remaining. Hurst finished 23rd and is currently 35th overall in the Supersport Championship with nine points.
One weekend earlier, Hurst raced AMA Supersport at Barber Motorsports and moved up an impressive 11 spots from her 41st place qualifying position to finish 30th, despite the fact that it was also the first time she had ever raced at that track.
Teammate Galster, a candidate for the Rookie of the Year this season, finished 18th at California Speedway. Working his times down from low 1:33's to a 1:31.15 he qualified 22nd and was able to move up four positions in the race.
The weekend earlier at Barber Motorsports Park, Galster moved up nine places from his qualifying position of 30th to finish 21st. He had his work cut out for him during the race, his first ever at the Barber circuit, after running of the track in turn 1 right off the start.
FONTANA, CA -- Slednecks teammates Misti Hurst and Josh Galster, both coaches with the California Superbike School, raced their Kawasaki ZX-6's to 23rd and 18th, respectively, in AMA Supersport action at Fontana.
Hurst overcame several challenges over the weekend in order to qualify in 29th position. On Friday morning she crashed going into the tight turn 3 after losing the front, and on Friday afternoon her team, headed this weekend by EDR Performance's Eric Dorn, replaced a blown shock with a completely new Ohlins.
The short 20-minute Saturday morning practice was spent trying to relearn and re-set up the bike on the unfamiliar track. Having only ridden at Fontana once before the race weekend, Hurst faced a high learning curve to figure out the difficult circuit, get her suspension sorted and get her times down enough to qualify.
"I started the weekend running high 36's which I knew wasn't going to cut it. We worked pretty hard to get down to a 1:33.5 in qualifying," she said. "Eric was awesome help and made excellent choices in regards to the Dunlop tires we chose to run. My Kawasaki ran great and was very fast."
Hurst got a good start after a red flag forced a re-start of the race. She worked her way up from 29th place to a solid 21st and was reeling in the rider in front of her when she tucked the front into turn 5 with only two laps remaining. Hurst finished 23rd and is currently 35th overall in the Supersport Championship with nine points.
One weekend earlier, Hurst raced AMA Supersport at Barber Motorsports and moved up an impressive 11 spots from her 41st place qualifying position to finish 30th, despite the fact that it was also the first time she had ever raced at that track.
Teammate Galster, a candidate for the Rookie of the Year this season, finished 18th at California Speedway. Working his times down from low 1:33's to a 1:31.15 he qualified 22nd and was able to move up four positions in the race.
The weekend earlier at Barber Motorsports Park, Galster moved up nine places from his qualifying position of 30th to finish 21st. He had his work cut out for him during the race, his first ever at the Barber circuit, after running of the track in turn 1 right off the start.
Unique Layout of Las Vegas Track Heats Up Season Finale
From Live Nation
Las Vegas, NV – The season-ending race of Monster Energy® AMA Supercross, an FIM World Championship, will drop the checkered flag this Saturday at Las Vegas’ Sam Boyd Stadium and the AMA Supercross class title as well as the Dave Coombs Sr. East/West Shootout will be decided on the series’ longest and most physically-demanding track.
The top riders in the world, including Chad Reed, Kevin Windham, Ryan Dungey, Jason Lawrence, Ryan Villopoto and Trey Canard, will encounter a track that features some unique and challenging obstacles, including a record 825 ft. start straight that begins in the stadium’s back lot near the pits. The start is out of view of the fans, which adds to the excitement of each race.
In addition to the start layout, track building crew have implemented several unique obstacles and course layouts to challenge the riders, including the “flat track” style section that sends the riders out of the stadium, around the north end of the stadium while racing back in at speeds of up to 60 mph. Lap times are also expected to be the longest of the season, nearing 1:15 per lap.
“We used this start-line configuration last season and it really added suspense and excitement to the start of each race,” said Todd Jendro, senior director of supercross, Live Nation Motor Sports, Inc. “I think fans have come to enjoy the different sections that the Las Vegas tracks have provided in year’s past. We’ll have the flat track section out of the stadium as well as some new jumps and rhythm sections that will be very challenging to the riders and make for good racing.” Yamaha’s Chad Reed will be looking to secure his second AMA Supercross class championship but must overcome the late-season charge of Honda’s Kevin Windham, who trails by 10 points with one race remaining on the season.
Last weekend in Seattle, Windham pulled off a big win to narrow the tight points race. And to add to the suspense, Reed will be riding with a cracked shoulder blade suffered at the Detroit round, which has slowed his results down the stretch.
Las Vegas, NV – The season-ending race of Monster Energy® AMA Supercross, an FIM World Championship, will drop the checkered flag this Saturday at Las Vegas’ Sam Boyd Stadium and the AMA Supercross class title as well as the Dave Coombs Sr. East/West Shootout will be decided on the series’ longest and most physically-demanding track.
The top riders in the world, including Chad Reed, Kevin Windham, Ryan Dungey, Jason Lawrence, Ryan Villopoto and Trey Canard, will encounter a track that features some unique and challenging obstacles, including a record 825 ft. start straight that begins in the stadium’s back lot near the pits. The start is out of view of the fans, which adds to the excitement of each race.
In addition to the start layout, track building crew have implemented several unique obstacles and course layouts to challenge the riders, including the “flat track” style section that sends the riders out of the stadium, around the north end of the stadium while racing back in at speeds of up to 60 mph. Lap times are also expected to be the longest of the season, nearing 1:15 per lap.
“We used this start-line configuration last season and it really added suspense and excitement to the start of each race,” said Todd Jendro, senior director of supercross, Live Nation Motor Sports, Inc. “I think fans have come to enjoy the different sections that the Las Vegas tracks have provided in year’s past. We’ll have the flat track section out of the stadium as well as some new jumps and rhythm sections that will be very challenging to the riders and make for good racing.” Yamaha’s Chad Reed will be looking to secure his second AMA Supercross class championship but must overcome the late-season charge of Honda’s Kevin Windham, who trails by 10 points with one race remaining on the season.
Last weekend in Seattle, Windham pulled off a big win to narrow the tight points race. And to add to the suspense, Reed will be riding with a cracked shoulder blade suffered at the Detroit round, which has slowed his results down the stretch.
Pulsar Mania- Awesome Advertisement video of Bajaj Pulsar motorcycle
Really cool advertisement you gotta see this motorcycle stunt mania.
These guys have some serious skills, and the choreography is incredible.
click on the link below to watch the video.
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=caOInhi5e8c
Tuesday, April 29, 2008
Brake lever may have triggered crash
From Team M4 EMGO Suzuki
An out-of-position aftermarket folding front brake lever may have played a role in Martin Cardenas' crash on the first lap of the AMA Supersport race at Auto Club Speedway in Fontana, CA on Sunday.
Cardenas collided with Steve Rapp on the approach to the corner where he crashed, ultimately sliding into Tommy Hayden and causing him to crash as well.
"We went through the big left from second gear to fourth gear at full throttle next to each other and we hit," said Cardenas late Monday night, shortly after he awoke following hours of successful surgery to insert a titanium rod in his broken left femur. "When I reached the braking zone and went for the front brakes there was no lever, I am sure there was no lever. I didn't have front brakes. There was no lever.
"I tried to do the best I could. I didn't have anywhere to go because I was on the inside and there were a lot of people on the outside. I tried to hit the rear brake very hard and turn to avoid as many people as possible and I slid the bike but as soon as I touched the grass I crashed and then I don't know what happened. I am very sorry."
When the bike came in off the crash truck and was examined by AMA tech officials the front brake lever was in position and the front brake system functioned normally.
But closer examination by team mechanics on Monday revealed that the lever's forward-travel stop was broken near the pivot point, raising the possibility that the lever either folded up or was knocked forward during the contact with Rapp's machine, and was out of position when Cardenas reached for it with two fingers on his right hand.
The lever may have been knocked back into position as the bike tumbled through the dirt or as it was picked up and loaded onto the crash truck.Folding levers are hinged in the middle and are supposed to fold instead of break in the event of a crash, increasing the chance that a crashed rider can rejoin a race after picking up his machine.
Cardenas should be released from Arrowhead Regional Medical Center in Colton, CA later this week and plans to return home to Medellin, Colombia to recuperate. Well wishes can be sent to him through his website, http://www.martincardenas.com/ .
Cardenas will return to AMA Formula Xtreme and Supersport competition with M4 EMGO Suzuki when he has recovered from his injuries. In the meantime, Cardenas' Formula Xtreme racebikes will be ridden by his teammate, Cory West, who up to this point has been racing in the Supersport class only.
Negotiations are now underway to have Cardenas' Supersport bikes ridden by Michael Barnes until Cardenas returns to action, and the team expects to reach a final agreement with Barnes this week.
An out-of-position aftermarket folding front brake lever may have played a role in Martin Cardenas' crash on the first lap of the AMA Supersport race at Auto Club Speedway in Fontana, CA on Sunday.
Cardenas collided with Steve Rapp on the approach to the corner where he crashed, ultimately sliding into Tommy Hayden and causing him to crash as well.
"We went through the big left from second gear to fourth gear at full throttle next to each other and we hit," said Cardenas late Monday night, shortly after he awoke following hours of successful surgery to insert a titanium rod in his broken left femur. "When I reached the braking zone and went for the front brakes there was no lever, I am sure there was no lever. I didn't have front brakes. There was no lever.
"I tried to do the best I could. I didn't have anywhere to go because I was on the inside and there were a lot of people on the outside. I tried to hit the rear brake very hard and turn to avoid as many people as possible and I slid the bike but as soon as I touched the grass I crashed and then I don't know what happened. I am very sorry."
When the bike came in off the crash truck and was examined by AMA tech officials the front brake lever was in position and the front brake system functioned normally.
But closer examination by team mechanics on Monday revealed that the lever's forward-travel stop was broken near the pivot point, raising the possibility that the lever either folded up or was knocked forward during the contact with Rapp's machine, and was out of position when Cardenas reached for it with two fingers on his right hand.
The lever may have been knocked back into position as the bike tumbled through the dirt or as it was picked up and loaded onto the crash truck.Folding levers are hinged in the middle and are supposed to fold instead of break in the event of a crash, increasing the chance that a crashed rider can rejoin a race after picking up his machine.
Cardenas should be released from Arrowhead Regional Medical Center in Colton, CA later this week and plans to return home to Medellin, Colombia to recuperate. Well wishes can be sent to him through his website, http://www.martincardenas.com/ .
Cardenas will return to AMA Formula Xtreme and Supersport competition with M4 EMGO Suzuki when he has recovered from his injuries. In the meantime, Cardenas' Formula Xtreme racebikes will be ridden by his teammate, Cory West, who up to this point has been racing in the Supersport class only.
Negotiations are now underway to have Cardenas' Supersport bikes ridden by Michael Barnes until Cardenas returns to action, and the team expects to reach a final agreement with Barnes this week.
Spies and Mladin take battle to Sonoma
From Infineon Raceway
SONOMA, CA — Suzuki riders Ben Spies and Mat Mladin have set the stage for what should be an epic battle on the twisting road course at Infineon Raceway at the Kawasaki AMA Superbike Showdown, presented by Supercuts, May 16-18.
Spies, who missed testing time after Daytona following knee surgery, swept this past weekend’s Superbike doubleheader at Auto Club Speedway in Fontana, narrowing his deficit in the Superbike points standings to 20 (178-158) entering Sonoma.
Spies’ victory in the 28-lap feature on Sunday was thrilling, as he took the checkers over his Suzuki teammate by just 0.011 seconds. Mladin, a six-time AMA Superbike national champion who holds the career mark with eight Superbike wins in Sonoma, led the entire race before being overtaken by Spies on the final lap in what amounted to a photo finish.
The victory came in stark difference from the first Superbike feature of the weekend on Saturday as Spies won by more than 20 seconds. Mladin had opened the season with a win at Daytona, as well as a doubleheader sweep in Alabama.
San Francisco native Jake Zemke (Erion Honda) will also enter Sonoma flying high after winning the Formula Xtreme main event in Fontana. Teammate Josh Hayes, who swept Formula Xtreme and Supersport in Sonoma in 2007, was second.
Zemke nearly won the Pro Honda Oils Supersport feature but came up just short to another Bay Area product, Ben Bostrom. Bostrom took the win over Zemke by just 0.079 seconds aboard his Graves Motorsports Yamaha. Steve Rapp was fourth in Formula Xtreme and ninth in Supersport riding a Kawasaki.
SONOMA, CA — Suzuki riders Ben Spies and Mat Mladin have set the stage for what should be an epic battle on the twisting road course at Infineon Raceway at the Kawasaki AMA Superbike Showdown, presented by Supercuts, May 16-18.
Spies, who missed testing time after Daytona following knee surgery, swept this past weekend’s Superbike doubleheader at Auto Club Speedway in Fontana, narrowing his deficit in the Superbike points standings to 20 (178-158) entering Sonoma.
Spies’ victory in the 28-lap feature on Sunday was thrilling, as he took the checkers over his Suzuki teammate by just 0.011 seconds. Mladin, a six-time AMA Superbike national champion who holds the career mark with eight Superbike wins in Sonoma, led the entire race before being overtaken by Spies on the final lap in what amounted to a photo finish.
The victory came in stark difference from the first Superbike feature of the weekend on Saturday as Spies won by more than 20 seconds. Mladin had opened the season with a win at Daytona, as well as a doubleheader sweep in Alabama.
San Francisco native Jake Zemke (Erion Honda) will also enter Sonoma flying high after winning the Formula Xtreme main event in Fontana. Teammate Josh Hayes, who swept Formula Xtreme and Supersport in Sonoma in 2007, was second.
Zemke nearly won the Pro Honda Oils Supersport feature but came up just short to another Bay Area product, Ben Bostrom. Bostrom took the win over Zemke by just 0.079 seconds aboard his Graves Motorsports Yamaha. Steve Rapp was fourth in Formula Xtreme and ninth in Supersport riding a Kawasaki.
Cardenas undergoes surgery
From Team M4 EMGO Suzuki
Motorcycle racer Martin Cardenas of Team M4 EMGO Suzuki underwent surgery Monday to place a rod in his broken left femur.
Cardenas was injured in a crash on the opening lap of the Supersport race at Auto Club Speedway in Fontana, CA on Sunday. The Colombian lost control of his GSX-R600 and fell off, and his body hit Tommy Hayden and his Rockstar Makita Yoshimura Suzuki GSX-R600.
The cause of the racing incident is not yet clear and Martin has been under sedation much of the time since the crash. Cardenas did say that he didn't have any brakes and that he had made contact with another rider immediately before reaching the corner where he crashed.
AMA officials examined the bike after it came in on the crash truck and found that the front brake system was functional, with the lever intact and all brake pads in place; the brakes operated as they should when the lever was pulled.
One possible explanation is that a tankslapper kicked the brake pads back into the calipers and thus the former 250cc Grand Prix World Championship racer got no braking response from pulling the lever as he approached the corner; he may have been unable to pump the lever quickly enough to avoid a crash.
"The AMA tech guys inspected the bike and its systems. Our brakes worked afterward," said crew chief Keith Perry. "Some onboard footage indicates that Martin was hit, but we don't know if that's what caused the crash or if some headshake might have made the pads go back into the calipers or something else.
"It's clear Martin grabbed the brake, but we don't know if the brakes didn't work or if he was just in the grass without traction. We're still trying to piece it all together."
Hayden was also injured in the crash. Team M4 EMGO Suzuki offers Tommy and the entire Hayden family sincere apologies as well as wishing him a full and swift recovery.
Motorcycle racer Martin Cardenas of Team M4 EMGO Suzuki underwent surgery Monday to place a rod in his broken left femur.
Cardenas was injured in a crash on the opening lap of the Supersport race at Auto Club Speedway in Fontana, CA on Sunday. The Colombian lost control of his GSX-R600 and fell off, and his body hit Tommy Hayden and his Rockstar Makita Yoshimura Suzuki GSX-R600.
The cause of the racing incident is not yet clear and Martin has been under sedation much of the time since the crash. Cardenas did say that he didn't have any brakes and that he had made contact with another rider immediately before reaching the corner where he crashed.
AMA officials examined the bike after it came in on the crash truck and found that the front brake system was functional, with the lever intact and all brake pads in place; the brakes operated as they should when the lever was pulled.
One possible explanation is that a tankslapper kicked the brake pads back into the calipers and thus the former 250cc Grand Prix World Championship racer got no braking response from pulling the lever as he approached the corner; he may have been unable to pump the lever quickly enough to avoid a crash.
"The AMA tech guys inspected the bike and its systems. Our brakes worked afterward," said crew chief Keith Perry. "Some onboard footage indicates that Martin was hit, but we don't know if that's what caused the crash or if some headshake might have made the pads go back into the calipers or something else.
"It's clear Martin grabbed the brake, but we don't know if the brakes didn't work or if he was just in the grass without traction. We're still trying to piece it all together."
Hayden was also injured in the crash. Team M4 EMGO Suzuki offers Tommy and the entire Hayden family sincere apologies as well as wishing him a full and swift recovery.
Fiat Yamaha pair go for gold
From Yamaha Racing
With just three months remaining before the city of Beijing plays host to the XXIX edition of the Olympic Games, China opens its doors to an equally talented array of athletes and a similarly historic championship this weekend as the MotoGP World Championship lands in Shanghai for the fourth round of an already intriguing season.
The Fiat Yamaha Team heads for the Orient in fine spirits after a sensational start to the season, which has yielded five podiums and leadership of both the teams' and riders' standings.
Pivotal to that success is the early season form of rookie revelation Jorge Lorenzo, who has made the most successful ever start to a modern-day MotoGP career after three races. An unbroken pole to podium record so far have taken the youngster to the top of the standings on 61 points - a tally he aims to add to in China on his 21st birthday.
A debut premier-class success in Portugal two weeks ago made Lorenzo the fifth youngest rider to achieve the feat - outshining legendary names such as Mike Hailwood and his own teammate Valentino Rossi - and the youngest to finish on the podium at three successive races.
Having conquered Estoril on his first visit with the YZR-M1, a circuit at which he had never previously won in any class, Lorenzo can fully expect to be competitive at Shanghai, where he dominated with pole position, victory and a new lap record in the 250cc class last year, especially after undergoing successful surgery to cure a troublesome 'arm-pump' condition.
"Each day I am feeling better after my operation; I feel great and I think the recovery is going very well, without problems," Lorenzo said. "I am going to China in perfect shape. The victory in Portugal was like a big present that I had never expected, but in a way it wasn't a perfect victory because I couldn't enjoy it so much! The pain in my arms changed the celebration but I believe the most important thing is to make sure I am fit for the future."
In 2005 Valentino Rossi himself made history by taking victory in the first ever MotoGP race to be held in China, which was affected by heavy rain. The Italian was forced to retire in 2006 but he bounced back with second place last year. Rossi is confident that his blossoming relationship with Bridgestone tyres is ready to bear fruit and see him join Lorenzo, Casey Stoner and Dani Pedrosa on the winners' list for the season.
"We should fight for victory," Rossi said. "After Estoril we had a test and the primary focus was tire testing with Bridgestone, working on material for Shanghai. We found some good things and I hope that we'll be starting in good shape. We've had three races together now and I think the last two podiums, especially in Estoril which isn't such a good track for Bridgestone, have shown that we're making good progress in our relationship."
Combining fast straights and hard braking zones with a series of slow and difficult corners, Shanghai is not dissimilar to Estoril in terms of bike set-up, with the engineers required to find a compromised balance between nimbleness and straight-line speed. As at any Herman Tiilke-designed circuit, horsepower is a crucial factor and Shanghai is no exception, boasting the longest straight on the calendar at an incredible 1202 metres.
With just three months remaining before the city of Beijing plays host to the XXIX edition of the Olympic Games, China opens its doors to an equally talented array of athletes and a similarly historic championship this weekend as the MotoGP World Championship lands in Shanghai for the fourth round of an already intriguing season.
The Fiat Yamaha Team heads for the Orient in fine spirits after a sensational start to the season, which has yielded five podiums and leadership of both the teams' and riders' standings.
Pivotal to that success is the early season form of rookie revelation Jorge Lorenzo, who has made the most successful ever start to a modern-day MotoGP career after three races. An unbroken pole to podium record so far have taken the youngster to the top of the standings on 61 points - a tally he aims to add to in China on his 21st birthday.
A debut premier-class success in Portugal two weeks ago made Lorenzo the fifth youngest rider to achieve the feat - outshining legendary names such as Mike Hailwood and his own teammate Valentino Rossi - and the youngest to finish on the podium at three successive races.
Having conquered Estoril on his first visit with the YZR-M1, a circuit at which he had never previously won in any class, Lorenzo can fully expect to be competitive at Shanghai, where he dominated with pole position, victory and a new lap record in the 250cc class last year, especially after undergoing successful surgery to cure a troublesome 'arm-pump' condition.
"Each day I am feeling better after my operation; I feel great and I think the recovery is going very well, without problems," Lorenzo said. "I am going to China in perfect shape. The victory in Portugal was like a big present that I had never expected, but in a way it wasn't a perfect victory because I couldn't enjoy it so much! The pain in my arms changed the celebration but I believe the most important thing is to make sure I am fit for the future."
In 2005 Valentino Rossi himself made history by taking victory in the first ever MotoGP race to be held in China, which was affected by heavy rain. The Italian was forced to retire in 2006 but he bounced back with second place last year. Rossi is confident that his blossoming relationship with Bridgestone tyres is ready to bear fruit and see him join Lorenzo, Casey Stoner and Dani Pedrosa on the winners' list for the season.
"We should fight for victory," Rossi said. "After Estoril we had a test and the primary focus was tire testing with Bridgestone, working on material for Shanghai. We found some good things and I hope that we'll be starting in good shape. We've had three races together now and I think the last two podiums, especially in Estoril which isn't such a good track for Bridgestone, have shown that we're making good progress in our relationship."
Combining fast straights and hard braking zones with a series of slow and difficult corners, Shanghai is not dissimilar to Estoril in terms of bike set-up, with the engineers required to find a compromised balance between nimbleness and straight-line speed. As at any Herman Tiilke-designed circuit, horsepower is a crucial factor and Shanghai is no exception, boasting the longest straight on the calendar at an incredible 1202 metres.
MotoGP returns to China
From Marlboro Ducati
After a brief two-week pause in the calendar the MotoGP World Championship fires up again this weekend in Shanghai.
The Grand Prix of China represents the start of the most intense section of the season, with the transcontinental trip to the Orient immediately followed by an extensive European road trip that leads through to the summer.
Casey Stoner has taken the opportunity to spend a week at home in Australia with his wife Adriana, resuming his training programme as he aims to tackle the fourth round of the season in top form.
With three different winners from the opening three rounds of 2008 it promises to be an evenly contested championship. Victor of the opening round in Qatar, Stoner is keen to get back to winning ways at Shanghai, where he already celebrated on the top step of the podium with Ducati last season and in the 250cc class in 2005.
Marco Melandri made it onto an historic podium on MotoGP's first visit to China in 2005 and he scored a solid fifth place there last year. Marco, who was a guest of Enel at the ATP Master Series tournament in Monte Carlo on April 25, is hoping for a return to that kind of form this weekend.
"On paper the Shanghai circuit is one that should suit our package quite well so I'm sure that we'll be strong," said Livio Suppo, MotoGP project director. "Vittoriano (Guareschi) has spent three days testing some new things at Mugello, in particular with the electronics, and we're satisfied with how the GP8 is continuing to evolve.
"Casey had a really good test himself after the race at Estoril and I think we'll also see some encouraging signs from Marco soon."
The Shanghai Circuit is one of the most recent additions to the MotoGP calendar, having only held its first race back in 2005. The entire circuit complex, with its imposing modernist design, is probably the most spectacular on the calendar.
The layout of the track itself was inspired by the shape of the Chinese symbol 'shang', which stands for 'high' or 'above'. It features two long straights, which put huge emphasis on horsepower, but also hosts a mixture of slow corners and hard braking zones which make for a compromised set-up - particularly regarding suspension.
After a brief two-week pause in the calendar the MotoGP World Championship fires up again this weekend in Shanghai.
The Grand Prix of China represents the start of the most intense section of the season, with the transcontinental trip to the Orient immediately followed by an extensive European road trip that leads through to the summer.
Casey Stoner has taken the opportunity to spend a week at home in Australia with his wife Adriana, resuming his training programme as he aims to tackle the fourth round of the season in top form.
With three different winners from the opening three rounds of 2008 it promises to be an evenly contested championship. Victor of the opening round in Qatar, Stoner is keen to get back to winning ways at Shanghai, where he already celebrated on the top step of the podium with Ducati last season and in the 250cc class in 2005.
Marco Melandri made it onto an historic podium on MotoGP's first visit to China in 2005 and he scored a solid fifth place there last year. Marco, who was a guest of Enel at the ATP Master Series tournament in Monte Carlo on April 25, is hoping for a return to that kind of form this weekend.
"On paper the Shanghai circuit is one that should suit our package quite well so I'm sure that we'll be strong," said Livio Suppo, MotoGP project director. "Vittoriano (Guareschi) has spent three days testing some new things at Mugello, in particular with the electronics, and we're satisfied with how the GP8 is continuing to evolve.
"Casey had a really good test himself after the race at Estoril and I think we'll also see some encouraging signs from Marco soon."
The Shanghai Circuit is one of the most recent additions to the MotoGP calendar, having only held its first race back in 2005. The entire circuit complex, with its imposing modernist design, is probably the most spectacular on the calendar.
The layout of the track itself was inspired by the shape of the Chinese symbol 'shang', which stands for 'high' or 'above'. It features two long straights, which put huge emphasis on horsepower, but also hosts a mixture of slow corners and hard braking zones which make for a compromised set-up - particularly regarding suspension.
More pictures of theTriumph Daytona 675 powered by bioethanol reaching 158.7 mph
More fantatsic pictures of the Triumph Daytona 675 powered by bioethanol fuel (made from apples) reaching an astonishing track speed of 158.7 mph at Bruntingthorpe Proving Ground!
Ride safe!
Jon Booth
Email: webmaster@inter-bike.co.uk
http://www.inter-bike.co.uk/tblnewspop.asp?news=2356
So well better get growing apples fast!
Joking part this is an amazing technological achievement and many point to a future whereby motorcycles run totally or partially on biofuels.
Ride safe!
Jon Booth
Email: webmaster@inter-bike.co.uk
Blog: http://inter-bike.blogspot.com/
Swicki: http://motorcycling-swicki.eurekster.com/
Spies leads another Suzuki sweep
From Team Suzuki
Rockstar Makita Suzuki Factory Racing dominated the Suzuki-sponsored doubleheader AMA Superbike weekend at Auto Club Speedway in Fontana, CA by sweeping the AMA Superbike podium on Saturday's and Sunday's races.
Just like in Saturday's race, defending AMA Superbike Champion Ben Spies took the win on Sunday and was followed home by Rockstar Makita Suzuki teammates Mat Mladin in second and Tommy Hayden in third.
Six-time AMA Superbike Champion Mladin actually led most of the laps in Sunday's race but Spies passed him on the last lap as the two crossed the start-finish line to get the win.
"This is one of the toughest races I've ever been in," Spies said. "I just couldn't make any headway. It's a little easier when you have someone in front of you because you can chase. But certainly the race didn't go the way I would have planned.
"I was about to be content with second place when I saw Mat run wide. So I put my head down and kept pushing and pushing. I almost gave up with about 15 laps to go but I knew I needed to get as many points as possible. I think for the last 10 laps or so, I was just out of control."
Hayden got a better start in Sunday's race and worked his way into third position to take the final spot on the podium.
This is the third-consecutive AMA Superbike podium sweep for the Rockstar Makita Suzuki squad.
"We had a completely different Rockstar Makita Suzuki GSX-R1000 today than we did yesterday and it was a good race for us," Mladin said. "We pretty much led all of it but at the end, we just didn't have it. I made a few small mistakes and gave back a little time that proved costly at the end. I did what I could but just couldn't hang on."
AMA Superbike Top 10 Finishers
1. Ben Spies (Rockstar Makita Suzuki)
2. Mat Mladin (Rockstar Makita Suzuki)
3. Tommy Hayden (Rockstar Makita Suzuki)
4. Neil Hodgson (Honda)
5. Jason DiSalvo (Yamaha)
6. Eric Bostrom (Yamaha)
7. Jamie Hacking (Kawasaki)
8. Scott Jensen (Suzuki)
9. Matt Lynn (Honda)
10. Dean Mizdal (Suzuki)
Rockstar Makita Suzuki Factory Racing dominated the Suzuki-sponsored doubleheader AMA Superbike weekend at Auto Club Speedway in Fontana, CA by sweeping the AMA Superbike podium on Saturday's and Sunday's races.
Just like in Saturday's race, defending AMA Superbike Champion Ben Spies took the win on Sunday and was followed home by Rockstar Makita Suzuki teammates Mat Mladin in second and Tommy Hayden in third.
Six-time AMA Superbike Champion Mladin actually led most of the laps in Sunday's race but Spies passed him on the last lap as the two crossed the start-finish line to get the win.
"This is one of the toughest races I've ever been in," Spies said. "I just couldn't make any headway. It's a little easier when you have someone in front of you because you can chase. But certainly the race didn't go the way I would have planned.
"I was about to be content with second place when I saw Mat run wide. So I put my head down and kept pushing and pushing. I almost gave up with about 15 laps to go but I knew I needed to get as many points as possible. I think for the last 10 laps or so, I was just out of control."
Hayden got a better start in Sunday's race and worked his way into third position to take the final spot on the podium.
This is the third-consecutive AMA Superbike podium sweep for the Rockstar Makita Suzuki squad.
"We had a completely different Rockstar Makita Suzuki GSX-R1000 today than we did yesterday and it was a good race for us," Mladin said. "We pretty much led all of it but at the end, we just didn't have it. I made a few small mistakes and gave back a little time that proved costly at the end. I did what I could but just couldn't hang on."
AMA Superbike Top 10 Finishers
1. Ben Spies (Rockstar Makita Suzuki)
2. Mat Mladin (Rockstar Makita Suzuki)
3. Tommy Hayden (Rockstar Makita Suzuki)
4. Neil Hodgson (Honda)
5. Jason DiSalvo (Yamaha)
6. Eric Bostrom (Yamaha)
7. Jamie Hacking (Kawasaki)
8. Scott Jensen (Suzuki)
9. Matt Lynn (Honda)
10. Dean Mizdal (Suzuki)
Aprilia USA comes from behind at VIR
From the SunTrust MOTO-ST Series
DANVILLE, VA – The No. 1 Aprilia USA/Lloyd Brothers Motorsports Aprilia Tuono 1000R of Ty Howard and Mike Himmelsbach came from a lap down to win the VIR 500k, the second round of the SunTrust MOTO-ST Series at Virginia International Raceway on Sunday.
After crashing one hour into the two and a half hour race, Howard, from Weatherford, TX came back to take the lead from the No. 75 Touring Sport Ducati 848 of Doug Polen just six laps from the end of the SunTrust MOTO-ST Series VIR 500k.
Howard and Himmelsbach completed 70 laps of the 3.27-mile VIR circuit in two hours, 30 minutes, 38.207 seconds for an average speed of 91.173 miles per hour.
Polen, from Camarillo, CA and teammate James Chance III of Savannah, GA settled for second 11.381 seconds behind at the finish.
The podium was completed by the No. 2 Team RightsForBikers.com Suzuki SV1000S ridden by Modesto, CA’s Justin Filice and Rodolfo Ramirez of Sunrise, FL.
The win was the second straight this year for the No. 1 Aprilia, which also claimed last year’s title in the Buell Motorcycle Company SuperSport Twins (SST) class. Howard put the bike on pole on Saturday in the first qualifying session in SunTrust MOTO-ST Series history.
“I don’t know what happened, the front end just folded under me,” said Howard of the crash. “I rode for six laps with no shifter then I brought in into the pits.”
The team replaced the shifter but elected not to repair a bent clutch lever. Howard and Himmelsbach then steadily worked their way back to the front. They were running fifth overall and third in the SST class when a full course caution, the only one in the race, bunched the field with just over half an hour left and erased a 40-second lead for Polen.
On the restart Howard quickly moved up to second and then slashed an eight-second gap to Polen, setting the race’s fastest lap of one minute, 58.379 seconds in the process.
“I took some time getting used to the bike after the crash,” said Himmelsbach, from Quakertown, PA, who rode the middle stint of the race. “We had no real hiccups after that and I went faster and faster every lap.”
Polen had qualified second for the race and was among the pacesetters right from the start. He looked set to take the win after assuming the lead on lap 50 when the Team RightsForBikers.com Suzuki lost time changing a rear tire on a pit stop.
“We had a win easy,” said Polen, who also finished second to the No. 1 Aprilia at Daytona’s season opener. “But as soon as the safety car came out and closed the gap that was it, I could pretty much see the writing on the wall.”
The No. 1 Aprilia leads the SST Teams standings by six points over the No. 75 Ducati, 70-64.
Fourth overall and first in the Sport Twins (ST) class was the No. 86 SpeedWerks.com Suzuki SV650 of local ace Brian Kcraget of Danville, VA and Chesterfield, VA’s Ben Walters. The pair finished almost 30 seconds ahead of the No. 67 M4 Avteq Racing Suzuki SV650 of Kyle Martin of Dallas and Newalla, OK’s Dominic Dominguez.
Walters was a late call-up to the SpeedWerks.com team after two of its scheduled riders were injured in accidents.
Third in ST and sixth overall was the No. 9 Pair-A-Nines Kawasaki EX650 of defending class champions Jay Springsteen from Lapeer, MI and Jimmy Filice of Daytona Beach, FL, which lost second to the No. 67 Suzuki near the finish when Filice ran off the track.
Victory in the BMW GrandSport Twins (GST) class went to the No. 7 Richie Morris Racing Buell XB12R of Mike Smith of Canton, GA and Clint Brotz from Elkhart Lake, WI, which finished seventh overall. Smith was also a late call up to partner Brotz.
Second in class was the No. 69 Team RightsForBikers.com Ducati PS1000LE of Fort Lauderdale’s Jason Edmunds and John Linder of Tampa.
Third in GST went to the James Gang Racing/Hoban Brothers Buell XB12R ridden by Jeff Johnson of Minneapolis and Paul James from Waukesha, WI.
The SunTrust MOTO-ST Series continues at Road America in Elkhart Lake, WI June 7.
DANVILLE, VA – The No. 1 Aprilia USA/Lloyd Brothers Motorsports Aprilia Tuono 1000R of Ty Howard and Mike Himmelsbach came from a lap down to win the VIR 500k, the second round of the SunTrust MOTO-ST Series at Virginia International Raceway on Sunday.
After crashing one hour into the two and a half hour race, Howard, from Weatherford, TX came back to take the lead from the No. 75 Touring Sport Ducati 848 of Doug Polen just six laps from the end of the SunTrust MOTO-ST Series VIR 500k.
Howard and Himmelsbach completed 70 laps of the 3.27-mile VIR circuit in two hours, 30 minutes, 38.207 seconds for an average speed of 91.173 miles per hour.
Polen, from Camarillo, CA and teammate James Chance III of Savannah, GA settled for second 11.381 seconds behind at the finish.
The podium was completed by the No. 2 Team RightsForBikers.com Suzuki SV1000S ridden by Modesto, CA’s Justin Filice and Rodolfo Ramirez of Sunrise, FL.
The win was the second straight this year for the No. 1 Aprilia, which also claimed last year’s title in the Buell Motorcycle Company SuperSport Twins (SST) class. Howard put the bike on pole on Saturday in the first qualifying session in SunTrust MOTO-ST Series history.
“I don’t know what happened, the front end just folded under me,” said Howard of the crash. “I rode for six laps with no shifter then I brought in into the pits.”
The team replaced the shifter but elected not to repair a bent clutch lever. Howard and Himmelsbach then steadily worked their way back to the front. They were running fifth overall and third in the SST class when a full course caution, the only one in the race, bunched the field with just over half an hour left and erased a 40-second lead for Polen.
On the restart Howard quickly moved up to second and then slashed an eight-second gap to Polen, setting the race’s fastest lap of one minute, 58.379 seconds in the process.
“I took some time getting used to the bike after the crash,” said Himmelsbach, from Quakertown, PA, who rode the middle stint of the race. “We had no real hiccups after that and I went faster and faster every lap.”
Polen had qualified second for the race and was among the pacesetters right from the start. He looked set to take the win after assuming the lead on lap 50 when the Team RightsForBikers.com Suzuki lost time changing a rear tire on a pit stop.
“We had a win easy,” said Polen, who also finished second to the No. 1 Aprilia at Daytona’s season opener. “But as soon as the safety car came out and closed the gap that was it, I could pretty much see the writing on the wall.”
The No. 1 Aprilia leads the SST Teams standings by six points over the No. 75 Ducati, 70-64.
Fourth overall and first in the Sport Twins (ST) class was the No. 86 SpeedWerks.com Suzuki SV650 of local ace Brian Kcraget of Danville, VA and Chesterfield, VA’s Ben Walters. The pair finished almost 30 seconds ahead of the No. 67 M4 Avteq Racing Suzuki SV650 of Kyle Martin of Dallas and Newalla, OK’s Dominic Dominguez.
Walters was a late call-up to the SpeedWerks.com team after two of its scheduled riders were injured in accidents.
Third in ST and sixth overall was the No. 9 Pair-A-Nines Kawasaki EX650 of defending class champions Jay Springsteen from Lapeer, MI and Jimmy Filice of Daytona Beach, FL, which lost second to the No. 67 Suzuki near the finish when Filice ran off the track.
Victory in the BMW GrandSport Twins (GST) class went to the No. 7 Richie Morris Racing Buell XB12R of Mike Smith of Canton, GA and Clint Brotz from Elkhart Lake, WI, which finished seventh overall. Smith was also a late call up to partner Brotz.
Second in class was the No. 69 Team RightsForBikers.com Ducati PS1000LE of Fort Lauderdale’s Jason Edmunds and John Linder of Tampa.
Third in GST went to the James Gang Racing/Hoban Brothers Buell XB12R ridden by Jeff Johnson of Minneapolis and Paul James from Waukesha, WI.
The SunTrust MOTO-ST Series continues at Road America in Elkhart Lake, WI June 7.
Foret and Parkes come close
From Yamaha Racing
Fabien Foret and Broc Parkes, both from the Yamaha World Supersport Team, were tantalisingly close to a podium finish apiece at Assen on Sunday after a classic high-speed multi-rider battle for the win, which finally went to Andrew Pitt.
Foret was only 0.201 seconds from victory itself, in fourth place after 21 laps. He had fought through from a bad start, completing the first lap down in 13th place.
"I had another bad start and my fault, I don't know why," Foret said. "I had to push very hard and that made the tires wear more. I don't think I found the perfect machine settings, and I am not sure if I made the right choice of front tire. It may have been better with the other one I considered today, but it is always easy to speak about what could have been after the race."
Parkes finished only 0.283 seconds from the win and his fifth place means that both riders scored good points in the championship chase, after starting from the front row of the race.
Parkes had to ride with a fractured left hand, after a Friday practice crash, and battled manfully in the first few places for almost the entire race, even after losing power from his left hand as the race progressed.
"It was chaos out there today and everyone just wanted to go at each other," Parkes said. "At one stage, lap 10 maybe, I felt not too bad then after that my hand just started to get more and painful and once the tires started to go I couldn't move around like I wanted to, I just had to sit on and ride it. Even with a painkiller you just can't use your hand properly when it's injured. The worst parts were during braking. I just couldn't do what I wanted to."
In the championship Parkes is third on 49 points, Foret is fourth on 46 points, with leader Joan Lascorz on 70, after taking third place Sunday.
Results
1. Andrew Pitt (Honda) AUS 36:10.751
2. Jonathan Rea (Honda) GBR +0.014
3. Joan Lascorz (Honda) ESP +0.150
4. Fabien Foret (Yamaha) FRA +0.201
5. Broc Parkes (Yamaha) AUS +0.283
6. Joshua Brookes (Honda) AUS +0.447
7. Barry Veneman (Suzuki) NED +2.050
8. Gianluca Vizziello (Honda) ITA +2.346
9. Craig Jones (Honda) GBR +2.714
10. Matthieu Lagrive (Honda) +3.073
11. Mark Aitchinson (Triumph) AUS +4.070
12. Chris Walker (Kawasaki) GBR +4.863
13. Robbin Harms (Honda) DNK +5.088
14. Ivan Clementi (Triumph) ITA +16.644
15. Ilario Dionisi (Triumph) ITA +21.630
Best Lap
Gianluca Vizziello 1:42.130
Rider Standings
1. Joan Lascorz (Honda) 70
2. Andrew Pitt (Honda) 50
3. Broc Parkes (Yamaha) 49
4. Fabien Foret (Yamaha) 46
5. Joshua Brookes (Honda) 43
6. Jonathan Rea (Honda) 41
7. Craig Jones (Honda) 39
8. Robbin Harms (Honda) 28
9. Gianluca Vizziello (Honda) 26
10. Matthieu Lagrive (Honda) 20
11. Chris Walker (Kawasaki) 20
12. Barry Veneman (Suzuki) 19
13. Gianluca Nannelli (Honda) 17
14. Massimo Roccoli (Yamaha) 16
15. Mark Aitchinson (Triumph) 15
Fabien Foret and Broc Parkes, both from the Yamaha World Supersport Team, were tantalisingly close to a podium finish apiece at Assen on Sunday after a classic high-speed multi-rider battle for the win, which finally went to Andrew Pitt.
Foret was only 0.201 seconds from victory itself, in fourth place after 21 laps. He had fought through from a bad start, completing the first lap down in 13th place.
"I had another bad start and my fault, I don't know why," Foret said. "I had to push very hard and that made the tires wear more. I don't think I found the perfect machine settings, and I am not sure if I made the right choice of front tire. It may have been better with the other one I considered today, but it is always easy to speak about what could have been after the race."
Parkes finished only 0.283 seconds from the win and his fifth place means that both riders scored good points in the championship chase, after starting from the front row of the race.
Parkes had to ride with a fractured left hand, after a Friday practice crash, and battled manfully in the first few places for almost the entire race, even after losing power from his left hand as the race progressed.
"It was chaos out there today and everyone just wanted to go at each other," Parkes said. "At one stage, lap 10 maybe, I felt not too bad then after that my hand just started to get more and painful and once the tires started to go I couldn't move around like I wanted to, I just had to sit on and ride it. Even with a painkiller you just can't use your hand properly when it's injured. The worst parts were during braking. I just couldn't do what I wanted to."
In the championship Parkes is third on 49 points, Foret is fourth on 46 points, with leader Joan Lascorz on 70, after taking third place Sunday.
Results
1. Andrew Pitt (Honda) AUS 36:10.751
2. Jonathan Rea (Honda) GBR +0.014
3. Joan Lascorz (Honda) ESP +0.150
4. Fabien Foret (Yamaha) FRA +0.201
5. Broc Parkes (Yamaha) AUS +0.283
6. Joshua Brookes (Honda) AUS +0.447
7. Barry Veneman (Suzuki) NED +2.050
8. Gianluca Vizziello (Honda) ITA +2.346
9. Craig Jones (Honda) GBR +2.714
10. Matthieu Lagrive (Honda) +3.073
11. Mark Aitchinson (Triumph) AUS +4.070
12. Chris Walker (Kawasaki) GBR +4.863
13. Robbin Harms (Honda) DNK +5.088
14. Ivan Clementi (Triumph) ITA +16.644
15. Ilario Dionisi (Triumph) ITA +21.630
Best Lap
Gianluca Vizziello 1:42.130
Rider Standings
1. Joan Lascorz (Honda) 70
2. Andrew Pitt (Honda) 50
3. Broc Parkes (Yamaha) 49
4. Fabien Foret (Yamaha) 46
5. Joshua Brookes (Honda) 43
6. Jonathan Rea (Honda) 41
7. Craig Jones (Honda) 39
8. Robbin Harms (Honda) 28
9. Gianluca Vizziello (Honda) 26
10. Matthieu Lagrive (Honda) 20
11. Chris Walker (Kawasaki) 20
12. Barry Veneman (Suzuki) 19
13. Gianluca Nannelli (Honda) 17
14. Massimo Roccoli (Yamaha) 16
15. Mark Aitchinson (Triumph) 15
Haga second at Assen
From Yamaha Racing
Noriyuki Haga secured a second place for his Yamaha Motor Italia WSB Team at the Assen World Superbike Championship round after another unsettled race day for the Japanese star, with a crash in race one preventing him from a potential double points score at one his favourite tracks.
In the first race Haga fell on lap 2 after colliding with Ruben Xaus at the slow De Strubben left hand corner, while Troy Corser went on to fight in the leading group for most of the race, only dropping back to fifth in the later stages and finishing 11 seconds from the win after 22 laps.
The second race of the day was run in warmer conditions than the first, with a track temperature of 31 degrees, and it offered Haga a real chance to make up for his first race disappointments. He ran eventual race winner Troy Bayliss close, taking second place by a margin of 0.082 seconds.
"When I overtook Ruben I touched with him and then we fell," Haga said of his opening race crash. "In race two I pushed hard all through the race and when I was following Bayliss he tried to get away near the end. But I could stay with him and even caught back up with him. I was following, waiting to see where I could pass but in the last few laps he rode the corners on a tight line and had good acceleration."
Corser experienced a drop in front tire performance and slipped back from a possible podium finish to 10th.
"Towards the end of race one the rear tire, maybe after two-thirds distance, lost grip on the right hand side," Corser said. "On the long rights, onto the back straight, it was spinning but not pushing. In race two I struggled with the front tire a bit and used it up. I had no front left at the end. It was a bit rough with a couple of riders at one point, but that's normal, just racing."
Bayliss won both races to extend his championship lead. Corser remains third in the championship standings, thanks to his Assen scores, on a total of 89 points. Haga holds on to sixth position, with 67 points, as thoughts now turn to the team's home race in Monza.
Team YZF Yamaha rider Shinichi Nakatomi was 15th in each Assen race, scoring points both times as he battled hard in the midfield, finding a better race two set-up than he had in the opener.
David Checa (Yamaha GMT94) dislocated his hip after a heavy fall in race one. It is very likely he will need to sit out Monza race weekend and perhaps even the American round.
His teammate Sebastien Gimbert was close to two points scores, but missed out by placing 17th in each event.
Race 1 Results
1. Troy Bayliss (Ducati) AUS 36:50.907
2. Carlos Checa (Honda) ESP +2.132
3. Max Neukirchner (Suzuki) GER +2.179
4. Yukio Kagayama (Suzuki) JPN +10.919
5. Troy Corser (Yamaha) AUS +11.051
6. Jakub Smrz (Ducati) CZE +11.979
7. Ryuichi Kiyonari (Honda) JPN +15.184
8. Makoto Tamada (Kawasaki) JPN +1.395
9. Gregorio Lavilla (Honda) ESP +18.634
10. Max Biaggi (Ducati) ITA +20.699
11. Regis Laconi (Kawasaki) FRA +25.759
12. Kenan Sofuoglu (Honda) TUR +26.064
13. Ayrton Badovini (Kawasaki) ITA +35.582
14. Karl Muggeridge (Honda) AUS +36.266
15. Shinichi Nakatomi (Yamaha) JPN +37.215
Race 2 Results
1. Troy Bayliss (Ducati) AUS 36:46.238
2. Noriyuki Haga (Yamaha) JPN +0.082
3. Carlos Checa (Honda) ESP +6.336
4. Ruben Xaus (Ducati) ESP +7.575
5. Max Neukirchner (Suzuki) GER +8.011
6. Yukio Kagayama (Suzuki) JPN +13.999
7. Gregorio Lavilla (Honda) ESP +15.215
8. Jakub Smrz (Ducati) CZE +16.376
9. Makoto Tamada (Kawasaki) JPN +17.269
10. Troy Corser (Yamaha) AUS +18.380
11. Fonsi Nieto (Suzuki) ESP +18.926
12. Max Biaggi (Ducati) ITA +21.452
13. Karl Muggeridge (Honda) AUS +23.794
14. Roberto Rolfo (Honda) ITA +29.847
15. Shinichi Nakatomi (Yamaha) JPN +30.252
Best Lap
Max Neukirchner 1:39.395
Rider Standings
1. Troy Bayliss (Ducati) 178
2. Carlos Checa (Honda) 108
3. Troy Corser (Yamaha) 89
4. Fonsi Nieto (Suzuki) 85
5. Ruben Xaus (Ducati) 81
6. Noriyuki Haga (Yamaha) 67
7. Max Neukirchner (Suzuki) 66
8. Max Biaggi (Ducati) 54
9. Gregorio Lavilla (Honda) 48
10. Lorenzo Lanzi (Ducati) 42
11. Yukio Kagayama (Suzuki) 41
12. Ryuichi Kiyonari (Honda) 39
13. Michel Fabrizio (Ducati) 37
14. Jakub Smrz (Ducati) 35
15. Makoto Tamada (Kawasaki) 28
Noriyuki Haga secured a second place for his Yamaha Motor Italia WSB Team at the Assen World Superbike Championship round after another unsettled race day for the Japanese star, with a crash in race one preventing him from a potential double points score at one his favourite tracks.
In the first race Haga fell on lap 2 after colliding with Ruben Xaus at the slow De Strubben left hand corner, while Troy Corser went on to fight in the leading group for most of the race, only dropping back to fifth in the later stages and finishing 11 seconds from the win after 22 laps.
The second race of the day was run in warmer conditions than the first, with a track temperature of 31 degrees, and it offered Haga a real chance to make up for his first race disappointments. He ran eventual race winner Troy Bayliss close, taking second place by a margin of 0.082 seconds.
"When I overtook Ruben I touched with him and then we fell," Haga said of his opening race crash. "In race two I pushed hard all through the race and when I was following Bayliss he tried to get away near the end. But I could stay with him and even caught back up with him. I was following, waiting to see where I could pass but in the last few laps he rode the corners on a tight line and had good acceleration."
Corser experienced a drop in front tire performance and slipped back from a possible podium finish to 10th.
"Towards the end of race one the rear tire, maybe after two-thirds distance, lost grip on the right hand side," Corser said. "On the long rights, onto the back straight, it was spinning but not pushing. In race two I struggled with the front tire a bit and used it up. I had no front left at the end. It was a bit rough with a couple of riders at one point, but that's normal, just racing."
Bayliss won both races to extend his championship lead. Corser remains third in the championship standings, thanks to his Assen scores, on a total of 89 points. Haga holds on to sixth position, with 67 points, as thoughts now turn to the team's home race in Monza.
Team YZF Yamaha rider Shinichi Nakatomi was 15th in each Assen race, scoring points both times as he battled hard in the midfield, finding a better race two set-up than he had in the opener.
David Checa (Yamaha GMT94) dislocated his hip after a heavy fall in race one. It is very likely he will need to sit out Monza race weekend and perhaps even the American round.
His teammate Sebastien Gimbert was close to two points scores, but missed out by placing 17th in each event.
Race 1 Results
1. Troy Bayliss (Ducati) AUS 36:50.907
2. Carlos Checa (Honda) ESP +2.132
3. Max Neukirchner (Suzuki) GER +2.179
4. Yukio Kagayama (Suzuki) JPN +10.919
5. Troy Corser (Yamaha) AUS +11.051
6. Jakub Smrz (Ducati) CZE +11.979
7. Ryuichi Kiyonari (Honda) JPN +15.184
8. Makoto Tamada (Kawasaki) JPN +1.395
9. Gregorio Lavilla (Honda) ESP +18.634
10. Max Biaggi (Ducati) ITA +20.699
11. Regis Laconi (Kawasaki) FRA +25.759
12. Kenan Sofuoglu (Honda) TUR +26.064
13. Ayrton Badovini (Kawasaki) ITA +35.582
14. Karl Muggeridge (Honda) AUS +36.266
15. Shinichi Nakatomi (Yamaha) JPN +37.215
Race 2 Results
1. Troy Bayliss (Ducati) AUS 36:46.238
2. Noriyuki Haga (Yamaha) JPN +0.082
3. Carlos Checa (Honda) ESP +6.336
4. Ruben Xaus (Ducati) ESP +7.575
5. Max Neukirchner (Suzuki) GER +8.011
6. Yukio Kagayama (Suzuki) JPN +13.999
7. Gregorio Lavilla (Honda) ESP +15.215
8. Jakub Smrz (Ducati) CZE +16.376
9. Makoto Tamada (Kawasaki) JPN +17.269
10. Troy Corser (Yamaha) AUS +18.380
11. Fonsi Nieto (Suzuki) ESP +18.926
12. Max Biaggi (Ducati) ITA +21.452
13. Karl Muggeridge (Honda) AUS +23.794
14. Roberto Rolfo (Honda) ITA +29.847
15. Shinichi Nakatomi (Yamaha) JPN +30.252
Best Lap
Max Neukirchner 1:39.395
Rider Standings
1. Troy Bayliss (Ducati) 178
2. Carlos Checa (Honda) 108
3. Troy Corser (Yamaha) 89
4. Fonsi Nieto (Suzuki) 85
5. Ruben Xaus (Ducati) 81
6. Noriyuki Haga (Yamaha) 67
7. Max Neukirchner (Suzuki) 66
8. Max Biaggi (Ducati) 54
9. Gregorio Lavilla (Honda) 48
10. Lorenzo Lanzi (Ducati) 42
11. Yukio Kagayama (Suzuki) 41
12. Ryuichi Kiyonari (Honda) 39
13. Michel Fabrizio (Ducati) 37
14. Jakub Smrz (Ducati) 35
15. Makoto Tamada (Kawasaki) 28
KTM dominates CER
From KTM
Budapest, HU - Before the start of the Central Europe Rally, many people were convinced this new rally would offer the best opportunity to finally break the dominance of the KTM Rally bikes. Short distances, tracks more suitable to enduro bikes and easy navigation. Despite these ingredients KTM choose to race the 690 Rally Bike, and the results proved them right.
"We're more than satisfied with the results, as 8 from 9 in the top 10 placed KTM riders were using the Rally 690. 17's KTM's in the top 20 of which 12 are 690 Rally's say it all. The third place overall for amateur Alain Duclos also showed how close the 690 Rallye Replica is to the Factory bike. Pellicier, Faria and Rodriguez, who had all chosen a 690 for Dakar 2008 will have regretted their change to Yamaha respectively Honda."
"The fastest times set by Coma and Despres have confirmed the concept is good. The next rally in Brazil which is ridden from 18th to 28th of June all riders in our Factory Team will start on the Rally Light. We only need to do a few minor modifications before the conversion kit will be available for owners of a 690 Rally Replica late this autumn."
"The organization did everything possible to organize a top event in a very short time. The CER has nothing to do with the Dakar rally; you just can't bring dunes and camels to Hungary. The start in Budapest at the ‘Heroes Square' with all the fans and great atmosphere was good. It was good to show that although the traditional Dakar rally won't be back for a while, the organization behind it and behind the Dakar series is still there. In general it was a good event, for sure the wish for more rally and less enduro will be taken into account. In the end conditions were the same for everybody, and we made the best off it: to get the complete podium!"
"From Monday we're completely focused on the next rally in Brazil, where we still have a score to settle with the Dos Sertoes Rally. We will go there with 5 factory riders all starting on the Rally Light. Conditions will be tough here as well, but the success in the CER gives us hope we can also win the Rally Dos Sertoes".
Budapest, HU - Before the start of the Central Europe Rally, many people were convinced this new rally would offer the best opportunity to finally break the dominance of the KTM Rally bikes. Short distances, tracks more suitable to enduro bikes and easy navigation. Despite these ingredients KTM choose to race the 690 Rally Bike, and the results proved them right.
"We're more than satisfied with the results, as 8 from 9 in the top 10 placed KTM riders were using the Rally 690. 17's KTM's in the top 20 of which 12 are 690 Rally's say it all. The third place overall for amateur Alain Duclos also showed how close the 690 Rallye Replica is to the Factory bike. Pellicier, Faria and Rodriguez, who had all chosen a 690 for Dakar 2008 will have regretted their change to Yamaha respectively Honda."
"The fastest times set by Coma and Despres have confirmed the concept is good. The next rally in Brazil which is ridden from 18th to 28th of June all riders in our Factory Team will start on the Rally Light. We only need to do a few minor modifications before the conversion kit will be available for owners of a 690 Rally Replica late this autumn."
"The organization did everything possible to organize a top event in a very short time. The CER has nothing to do with the Dakar rally; you just can't bring dunes and camels to Hungary. The start in Budapest at the ‘Heroes Square' with all the fans and great atmosphere was good. It was good to show that although the traditional Dakar rally won't be back for a while, the organization behind it and behind the Dakar series is still there. In general it was a good event, for sure the wish for more rally and less enduro will be taken into account. In the end conditions were the same for everybody, and we made the best off it: to get the complete podium!"
"From Monday we're completely focused on the next rally in Brazil, where we still have a score to settle with the Dos Sertoes Rally. We will go there with 5 factory riders all starting on the Rally Light. Conditions will be tough here as well, but the success in the CER gives us hope we can also win the Rally Dos Sertoes".
Podium for Neukirchner
From Team Suzuki Alstare
Team Alstare Suzuki rider Max Neukirchner took a superb third place in the first race of the World Superbike Championship round in Assen on Sunday.
The young German was a contender throughout the 22-lapper and finished strongly behind series leader Troy Bayliss (Ducati) and Carlos Checa (Honda).
Neukirchner was also a podium contender in the second race until a small brake problem forced him to slow. But he kept charging hard and finished fifth to record his best weekend of the season.
"Race one was a fantastic race and a fantastic result for me," Neukirchner said. "I was always with the front runners and felt very comfortable with them. I had some small problems with two right turns and maybe it was because I was using the rear brake too much that the front was moving round a bit.
"In race two, I think I overdid the front braking and after 10 laps had a lot of problems with grip in the fast corners. So instead of pushing too hard, I decided to ride safely and get as many points as possible."
Team Suzuki Alstare rider Yukio Kagayama took fourth place in race one and then suffered a tire problem in race two which forced him down the order to sixth. His teammate Fonsi Nieto had a weekend to forget, with a crash and a DNF in race one and an 11th in race two.
Team Alstare Suzuki rider Max Neukirchner took a superb third place in the first race of the World Superbike Championship round in Assen on Sunday.
The young German was a contender throughout the 22-lapper and finished strongly behind series leader Troy Bayliss (Ducati) and Carlos Checa (Honda).
Neukirchner was also a podium contender in the second race until a small brake problem forced him to slow. But he kept charging hard and finished fifth to record his best weekend of the season.
"Race one was a fantastic race and a fantastic result for me," Neukirchner said. "I was always with the front runners and felt very comfortable with them. I had some small problems with two right turns and maybe it was because I was using the rear brake too much that the front was moving round a bit.
"In race two, I think I overdid the front braking and after 10 laps had a lot of problems with grip in the fast corners. So instead of pushing too hard, I decided to ride safely and get as many points as possible."
Team Suzuki Alstare rider Yukio Kagayama took fourth place in race one and then suffered a tire problem in race two which forced him down the order to sixth. His teammate Fonsi Nieto had a weekend to forget, with a crash and a DNF in race one and an 11th in race two.
MOTO-ST at Road America June 7
From the SunTrust MOTO-ST Series
DAYTONA BEACH, FL - Round 3 of the 2008 SunTrust MOTO-ST Series at Road America in Elkhart Lake, WI will take place on Saturday, June 7. Competitors will move in on Thursday and qualifying will take place on Friday.
Hosted by the American Motorcycle Association (AMA), this spectacular weekend will mark the first time that the SunTrust MOTO-ST Series has run with the AMA Pro Superbike Series. Not only will running with this popular series be a first for the SunTrust MOTO-ST Series teams, but it will also provide the additional prestige of being part of a major spectator motorsports event.
Running a total of 500K on Road America’s popular 4.048-mile/14-turn course, SunTrust MOTO-ST Series competitors will battle it out for victory and those all important points.
The home track for Buell and a number of teams, Road America has been hosting motorsports events since 1955 and is a favourite with both riders and drivers alike.
DAYTONA BEACH, FL - Round 3 of the 2008 SunTrust MOTO-ST Series at Road America in Elkhart Lake, WI will take place on Saturday, June 7. Competitors will move in on Thursday and qualifying will take place on Friday.
Hosted by the American Motorcycle Association (AMA), this spectacular weekend will mark the first time that the SunTrust MOTO-ST Series has run with the AMA Pro Superbike Series. Not only will running with this popular series be a first for the SunTrust MOTO-ST Series teams, but it will also provide the additional prestige of being part of a major spectator motorsports event.
Running a total of 500K on Road America’s popular 4.048-mile/14-turn course, SunTrust MOTO-ST Series competitors will battle it out for victory and those all important points.
The home track for Buell and a number of teams, Road America has been hosting motorsports events since 1955 and is a favourite with both riders and drivers alike.
Ducati Demo Tour underway
From Ducati North America
CUPERTINO, CA – Ducati North America is delighted to announce details of the 2008 Ducati Canada National Demo Tour. This annual event begins today (April 29) in Nanaimo, BC and has stops at authorized Ducati dealers across Canada, concluding June 14 in Dieppe, NB.
This year Ducati North America is working in conjunction with the Canadian Cystic Fibrosis Foundation; and is asking for a voluntary $10 donation to be collected from participating riders.
All riders wishing to participate in these demo rides must possess a valid motorcycle license and be at least 21 years of age. They will also be required to present a valid proof of insurance (either auto or motorcycle) and complete a safety waiver at the time they sign up for the rides. Any person riding will need to wear proper safety gear including an approved helmet, over the ankle boots, long pants, jacket and gloves.
Bikes confirmed on the tour to include: Monster S2R 1000, Monster S4RS (experienced / qualified prospects please), Multistrada 1100S, Sport 1000S, Sport 1000, GT 1000, 848, 1098 (experienced / qualified prospects please), Hypermotard S, Hypermotard.
Scheduled stops on the 2008 tour:
Tuesday April 29, Harbour City Motorsport, Nanaimo, BC
Saturday May 3, Richmond Motorsport, Richmond, BC
Sunday May 4, John Valk Motorsports, Vancouver, BC
Tuesday May 6, SouthWest Ducati, Kelowna, BC
Friday May 9, Revoluzione Cycle Imports, Calgary, AB
Saturday May 10, Sport Cycle, Ltd., Calgary, AB
Tuesday May 13, Argyll Motor Sports, Edmonton, AB
Thursday May 15, Thunder City Power & Leisure, Regina, SK
Saturday May 17, Wildwood Sports, Inc. Winnipeg, MB
Tuesday May 27, Ducati of Toronto, Toronto, ON
Friday May 30, Inglis Cycle Center, Ltd., London, ON
Saturday May 31, Peninsula Import Ducati, Oakville, ON
Tuesday June 3, GP Bikes, Ajax, ON
Thursday June 5, Ottawa Goodtime Centre, Ltd, Ottawa, ON
Tuesday June 10, Monette Sports, Laval, QC
Thursday June 12, Le Centre de la Moto Vanier, Inc., Quebec City, QC
Saturday June 14, Atlantic Motoplex, Dieppe, NB
CUPERTINO, CA – Ducati North America is delighted to announce details of the 2008 Ducati Canada National Demo Tour. This annual event begins today (April 29) in Nanaimo, BC and has stops at authorized Ducati dealers across Canada, concluding June 14 in Dieppe, NB.
This year Ducati North America is working in conjunction with the Canadian Cystic Fibrosis Foundation; and is asking for a voluntary $10 donation to be collected from participating riders.
All riders wishing to participate in these demo rides must possess a valid motorcycle license and be at least 21 years of age. They will also be required to present a valid proof of insurance (either auto or motorcycle) and complete a safety waiver at the time they sign up for the rides. Any person riding will need to wear proper safety gear including an approved helmet, over the ankle boots, long pants, jacket and gloves.
Bikes confirmed on the tour to include: Monster S2R 1000, Monster S4RS (experienced / qualified prospects please), Multistrada 1100S, Sport 1000S, Sport 1000, GT 1000, 848, 1098 (experienced / qualified prospects please), Hypermotard S, Hypermotard.
Scheduled stops on the 2008 tour:
Tuesday April 29, Harbour City Motorsport, Nanaimo, BC
Saturday May 3, Richmond Motorsport, Richmond, BC
Sunday May 4, John Valk Motorsports, Vancouver, BC
Tuesday May 6, SouthWest Ducati, Kelowna, BC
Friday May 9, Revoluzione Cycle Imports, Calgary, AB
Saturday May 10, Sport Cycle, Ltd., Calgary, AB
Tuesday May 13, Argyll Motor Sports, Edmonton, AB
Thursday May 15, Thunder City Power & Leisure, Regina, SK
Saturday May 17, Wildwood Sports, Inc. Winnipeg, MB
Tuesday May 27, Ducati of Toronto, Toronto, ON
Friday May 30, Inglis Cycle Center, Ltd., London, ON
Saturday May 31, Peninsula Import Ducati, Oakville, ON
Tuesday June 3, GP Bikes, Ajax, ON
Thursday June 5, Ottawa Goodtime Centre, Ltd, Ottawa, ON
Tuesday June 10, Monette Sports, Laval, QC
Thursday June 12, Le Centre de la Moto Vanier, Inc., Quebec City, QC
Saturday June 14, Atlantic Motoplex, Dieppe, NB
Motorcycle Puzzle has whole family puzzled.
When My family and I went to Glacier National Park for a family vacation, I was really bummed out that I did not have my motorcycle with me, as it would have been a beautifull ride. That is another post all together.
We did get a souvineer called scramble squares. It consists of 9 square cardboard puzzle pieces that make a perfect square when assembled together. All 9 pieces are the exact same square shape, just the picture is different. The object is to line up all nine pieces so the pictures all match up. It comes with no photo of it completed, so it is truly mind boggling.
I know it can be done, because we saw it put together at the gift shop. That was the only time it has been together. We've all tried but to no avail.
Of course the puzzle I bought was of motorcycles.
I took a picture below.
It is not together properly in my photo of course.
Everytime we think we got it together, we realize we are off a piece or two.
Gaaah!
P.S.
Anyone interested, should click on the picture to expand it to full size, copy and paste it, and print it out, and cut out the pieces to make your own puzzle. Then try to solve the puzzle. Be prepared to waste some serious time trying, as the hardest most frustrating part is you have no idea where the correct starting pieces are, etc.
If any one does solve the puzzle, PLEASE take a picture, and e-mail it to me. I want proof, and I'll post it on my site. Also I want it for myself so I can cheat and put my own puzzle together.
Good luck!
Mr. Motorcycle
We did get a souvineer called scramble squares. It consists of 9 square cardboard puzzle pieces that make a perfect square when assembled together. All 9 pieces are the exact same square shape, just the picture is different. The object is to line up all nine pieces so the pictures all match up. It comes with no photo of it completed, so it is truly mind boggling.
I know it can be done, because we saw it put together at the gift shop. That was the only time it has been together. We've all tried but to no avail.
Of course the puzzle I bought was of motorcycles.
I took a picture below.
It is not together properly in my photo of course.
Everytime we think we got it together, we realize we are off a piece or two.
Gaaah!
P.S.
Anyone interested, should click on the picture to expand it to full size, copy and paste it, and print it out, and cut out the pieces to make your own puzzle. Then try to solve the puzzle. Be prepared to waste some serious time trying, as the hardest most frustrating part is you have no idea where the correct starting pieces are, etc.
If any one does solve the puzzle, PLEASE take a picture, and e-mail it to me. I want proof, and I'll post it on my site. Also I want it for myself so I can cheat and put my own puzzle together.
Good luck!
Mr. Motorcycle
Triumph Dayona 675 reachs 158.7 mph on apples!
A Triumph Daytona 675 powered by bioethanol fuel made from apples today reached an astonishing track speed of 158.7 mph at Bruntingthorpe Proving Ground. You can read the full story on www.inter-bike.co.uk. at http://www.inter-bike.co.uk/tblnewspop.asp?news=2356
So well better get growing apples fast!
Joking part this is an amazing technological achievement and many point to a future whereby motorcycles run totally or partially on biofuels.
Ride safe!
Jon Booth
Email: webmaster@inter-bike.co.uk
Blog: http://inter-bike.blogspot.com/
Swicki: http://motorcycling-swicki.eurekster.com/
Monday, April 28, 2008
A special experience for Youth Class riders
From the CMA
Hamilton, ON - The Junior Motocross World Championship will be held in Heerde, Netherlands, on August 9th & 10th.
The Canadian Motorcycle Association will be sending one lucky rider in each of the 85cc and 125cc classes, expenses paid.
Note: The family / sponsor of the selected rider is responsible for the expenses of the support crew.
Additional riders may be selected to participate at their own expense. - The 85cc class is for riders aged minimum 12 and maximum 15 - The 125cc class is for riders aged minimum 15 and maximum 18
Machines 85cc Class
over 50 up to 85 cc 2 strokes /
over 85 up to 150 cc 4 strokes
Machines 125cc Class
over 100 up to 125 cc 2 strokes /
over 175 up to 250 cc 4 strokes
A limited number of motorcycles are available for rental in the Netherlands. If you would like to be considered, here's what you have to do: Ask your parents to send us a letter indicating they would like you to be chosen to go to Heerde. Tell us what brand of motorcycle you race.
The riders will be selected on the basis of performance, maturity and sportsmanship. Please send your letters to CMA, Box 448, Hamilton, ON, L8L 8C4, to reach us no later than May 16th.
Hamilton, ON - The Junior Motocross World Championship will be held in Heerde, Netherlands, on August 9th & 10th.
The Canadian Motorcycle Association will be sending one lucky rider in each of the 85cc and 125cc classes, expenses paid.
Note: The family / sponsor of the selected rider is responsible for the expenses of the support crew.
Additional riders may be selected to participate at their own expense. - The 85cc class is for riders aged minimum 12 and maximum 15 - The 125cc class is for riders aged minimum 15 and maximum 18
Machines 85cc Class
over 50 up to 85 cc 2 strokes /
over 85 up to 150 cc 4 strokes
Machines 125cc Class
over 100 up to 125 cc 2 strokes /
over 175 up to 250 cc 4 strokes
A limited number of motorcycles are available for rental in the Netherlands. If you would like to be considered, here's what you have to do: Ask your parents to send us a letter indicating they would like you to be chosen to go to Heerde. Tell us what brand of motorcycle you race.
The riders will be selected on the basis of performance, maturity and sportsmanship. Please send your letters to CMA, Box 448, Hamilton, ON, L8L 8C4, to reach us no later than May 16th.
PIAA’s New Cross Country H.I.D. Lamp Delivers Big Performance in a Small Package
From PIAA
Portland, OR – Powersport enthusiasts – motorcyclists and ATV riders – have long waited for a compact, easy-to-install HID lamp. Well, thanks to PIAA, the wait is over. PIAA has introduced its new Cross Country HID, which delivers big lighting performance through a small HID package, featuring an internal ballast and igniter.
The PIAA Cross Country HID draws on PIAA’s race-winning HID heritage (Daytona 24 Hours and Baja 1000), now featuring the industry’s smallest and most reliable ballast. The PIAA Cross Country HID is amazingly compact – a 2-inch lens in a small 2-9/16 inch diameter, 4-inch deep housing. Installation is simply “plug-and-go,” without any external ballast wiring.
Lighting performance of the Cross Country HID belies its small size. Its multi-surface reflector and 30-watt HID bulb deliver a bright 12-degree driving lamp pattern. How bright? Two-to-three times brighter than a halogen bulb of the same wattage – such is the advantage of PIAA HID technology. The low-voltage draw makes the PIAA Cross Country HID ideal for ATV and UTVs.
Durability has been built into the Cross Country HID, too, with its hardened glass lens and machined anodized aluminum housing. The housing is also sealed, thus suitable for mounting above or below a mounting surface or bracket.
The PIAA Cross Country HID can be mounted onto most bikes and ATVs with the PIAA ATV Sport Brackets or the new PIAA L-Shape Bracket. PIAA Cross Country HIDs are available as a complete two-lamp kit (P/N 73082), which includes lamps, pre-terminated relay, switch, and wiring harness.
PIAA has been the acknowledged leader in innovative automotive products since its founding in 1963. PIAA products, created in PIAA's Technical Design Center in Japan, are known for their visionary design, inspired engineering and quality components.
For more information, contact PIAA at 503-489-6666 or visit the PIAA website at www.piaa.com.
Portland, OR – Powersport enthusiasts – motorcyclists and ATV riders – have long waited for a compact, easy-to-install HID lamp. Well, thanks to PIAA, the wait is over. PIAA has introduced its new Cross Country HID, which delivers big lighting performance through a small HID package, featuring an internal ballast and igniter.
The PIAA Cross Country HID draws on PIAA’s race-winning HID heritage (Daytona 24 Hours and Baja 1000), now featuring the industry’s smallest and most reliable ballast. The PIAA Cross Country HID is amazingly compact – a 2-inch lens in a small 2-9/16 inch diameter, 4-inch deep housing. Installation is simply “plug-and-go,” without any external ballast wiring.
Lighting performance of the Cross Country HID belies its small size. Its multi-surface reflector and 30-watt HID bulb deliver a bright 12-degree driving lamp pattern. How bright? Two-to-three times brighter than a halogen bulb of the same wattage – such is the advantage of PIAA HID technology. The low-voltage draw makes the PIAA Cross Country HID ideal for ATV and UTVs.
Durability has been built into the Cross Country HID, too, with its hardened glass lens and machined anodized aluminum housing. The housing is also sealed, thus suitable for mounting above or below a mounting surface or bracket.
The PIAA Cross Country HID can be mounted onto most bikes and ATVs with the PIAA ATV Sport Brackets or the new PIAA L-Shape Bracket. PIAA Cross Country HIDs are available as a complete two-lamp kit (P/N 73082), which includes lamps, pre-terminated relay, switch, and wiring harness.
PIAA has been the acknowledged leader in innovative automotive products since its founding in 1963. PIAA products, created in PIAA's Technical Design Center in Japan, are known for their visionary design, inspired engineering and quality components.
For more information, contact PIAA at 503-489-6666 or visit the PIAA website at www.piaa.com.
Countdown to the 30th Anniversary of Ride for Sight – 55 days!
From The Ride for Sight
Ride for Sight returns to
The buzz surrounding the Ride for Sight celebration weekend is growing rapidly with each passing day. Excitement is mounting as we head into the final planning stages of our festival weekend! Ride for Sight promises to make our 30th anniversary celebration the biggest and best party of the summer! Here’s just a few of the highlights we have confirmed for the big weekend;
· Encore performances by the Suzuki
· Tethered Balloon Rides on site
· Bike Games & Show n’ Shine
· Bustling Marketplace offering fabulous food choices and a wide variety of clothing and accessories
· Steak Dinner on Saturday night
· Yamaha Watersports
· Demo Rides from all of your favourite motorcycle manufacturers
· Beer Garden, and even a real Ride for Sight Wedding!
Honeymoon Suite on Friday night
April Wine & Rik Emmett on Saturday night!
Online fundraising is well underway…
We are just under the $50,000 mark online, however we still have a long way to go if we are to reach our online goal of $200,000 – We know we can get there with your help! If you have yet to do so, please log onto www.rideforsight.com and follow the simple steps that will guide you in setting up your own online fundraising page. Remember, you can post a photo of yourself along with a few words explaining why you are participating in Ride for Sight. It’s a fun and easy way to reach out to your friends, family & collegues.
If a donor book is the way you prefer to fundraise, you can pick up a book at most area dealers or by calling us at
Let’s make 2008 the year that
Please join us for these local fundraising events…
Jack & Jill's Motorsports
104 Fourth Street,
705-527-4386
12noon -
BBQ, drinks, 50/50 draw and more!
Fundraising Dance
Royal Canadian Legion Branch
20 Quinte Street
Click here for more info.
Bandathon
The Pump on Rathburn
1891 Rathburn East ( 2 blocks east of Dixie)
Mississauga, ON
Saturday, June 7th, 2008
Thank you to our many partners and sponsors who are so committed to our cause – We really couldn’t do it without your continued support!
Tough racing weekend in Assen for Rene Maehr and the RC8
From KTM
Valencia, ES – Following a first impressive appearance in Valencia, Spain, which unfortunately ended in a crash, Rene Maehr suffered a difficult Superstock racing weekend in at the Dutch racing circuit in Assen and was only able to finish in sixteenth place. Even in training Rene was not 100 percent satisfied. The motorcycle had lived completely up to expectations and he felt very confident but in the deciding moments of qualifying he faced heavy and at times chaotic traffic on the circuit. He did not manage a good clean lap, finishing in only nineteenth start slot.
Rene got a good start in the race at the tradition rich Dutch circuit and completed the first 4.555 km lap in sixteenth place. But in the following 12 laps the young Austrian, who was suffering from an extreme dose of the flu had to fight tooth and nail to cross the finishing line with this same result. In the second race he did not have a 100% good feeling about the bike's front wheel. The result was that the RC8 was unable to pick up its first points in the FIM Superstock 1000 World Cup by a narrow margin of less than a second to the fifteenth place.
Rene Maehr "The first 16th place naturally doesn't make me happy. In addition the motorcycle felt extremely good, especially during training. It's a real shame that I was not able to get a better start place during qualifying. But I am still happy that here in Holland we successfully rode out the race and again we learnt a lot from the experience. In any case I am optimistic for the next race in two weeks on my favourite racing circuit of Monza."
Valencia, ES – Following a first impressive appearance in Valencia, Spain, which unfortunately ended in a crash, Rene Maehr suffered a difficult Superstock racing weekend in at the Dutch racing circuit in Assen and was only able to finish in sixteenth place. Even in training Rene was not 100 percent satisfied. The motorcycle had lived completely up to expectations and he felt very confident but in the deciding moments of qualifying he faced heavy and at times chaotic traffic on the circuit. He did not manage a good clean lap, finishing in only nineteenth start slot.
Rene got a good start in the race at the tradition rich Dutch circuit and completed the first 4.555 km lap in sixteenth place. But in the following 12 laps the young Austrian, who was suffering from an extreme dose of the flu had to fight tooth and nail to cross the finishing line with this same result. In the second race he did not have a 100% good feeling about the bike's front wheel. The result was that the RC8 was unable to pick up its first points in the FIM Superstock 1000 World Cup by a narrow margin of less than a second to the fifteenth place.
Rene Maehr "The first 16th place naturally doesn't make me happy. In addition the motorcycle felt extremely good, especially during training. It's a real shame that I was not able to get a better start place during qualifying. But I am still happy that here in Holland we successfully rode out the race and again we learnt a lot from the experience. In any case I am optimistic for the next race in two weeks on my favourite racing circuit of Monza."
Mixed weekend for KTM's Sven Breugelmans of JM Racing
From KTM
San Severino Marche, IT – Belgian MX3 rider Sven Breugelmans onboard his KTM machine had a mixed weekend in the third round of the world championship series to finish overall seventh in Round Three at San Severino Marche in Italy.
Breugelmans, racing in the JM Racing team colours, got away well in the first moto to settle in behind Beggi, a position that he held onto until the finish line. But on a day that was very hot, exhausting racing on a rough and stony track Breulgelmans came unstuck in the first lap of the second moto. He managed to work his way back from absolute last to sixteenth place for overall seventh on the day, picking up another 27 championship points. "It was a very hard day's racing," said team boss Jacky Martens. "Sven did well to work his way back after the crash and fortunately he was not hurt."
Teammate Alvaro Lozano of Spain on the second KTM for JM Racing made a mistake in the first race but also advanced in the pack from twelfth to fifth place at the finish. He then made amends by racing to third in the second moto for an excellent third place podium finish. After Sunday's round three Breugelmans is in third in the standings, trailing championship leader Beggi by 12 points. Lozano is in fifth place with 83 points.
Meanwhile, Jacky Martens of JM Racing reported that his junior MX2 rider Valentin Teillet, competing on his KTM in the European Championship race topped the podium for the first time in his young career. The French rider raced to a second and first place in the two heats and now leads the standings by 17 points.
Results MX3 World Championship Round Three
1. Cristian Beggi, Italy, Honda
2. Jan Zaremba, Czech Republic, KTM
3. Alvaro Lozano, Spain, KTM
4. Stefano Dami, Italy, Honda
5. Christophe Martin, France, Husqvarna
San Severino Marche, IT – Belgian MX3 rider Sven Breugelmans onboard his KTM machine had a mixed weekend in the third round of the world championship series to finish overall seventh in Round Three at San Severino Marche in Italy.
Breugelmans, racing in the JM Racing team colours, got away well in the first moto to settle in behind Beggi, a position that he held onto until the finish line. But on a day that was very hot, exhausting racing on a rough and stony track Breulgelmans came unstuck in the first lap of the second moto. He managed to work his way back from absolute last to sixteenth place for overall seventh on the day, picking up another 27 championship points. "It was a very hard day's racing," said team boss Jacky Martens. "Sven did well to work his way back after the crash and fortunately he was not hurt."
Teammate Alvaro Lozano of Spain on the second KTM for JM Racing made a mistake in the first race but also advanced in the pack from twelfth to fifth place at the finish. He then made amends by racing to third in the second moto for an excellent third place podium finish. After Sunday's round three Breugelmans is in third in the standings, trailing championship leader Beggi by 12 points. Lozano is in fifth place with 83 points.
Meanwhile, Jacky Martens of JM Racing reported that his junior MX2 rider Valentin Teillet, competing on his KTM in the European Championship race topped the podium for the first time in his young career. The French rider raced to a second and first place in the two heats and now leads the standings by 17 points.
Results MX3 World Championship Round Three
1. Cristian Beggi, Italy, Honda
2. Jan Zaremba, Czech Republic, KTM
3. Alvaro Lozano, Spain, KTM
4. Stefano Dami, Italy, Honda
5. Christophe Martin, France, Husqvarna
Barragan the leading KTM in Portuguese MX1 GP
From KTM
Agueda, PT – Jonathan Barragan of Spain was the leading KTM factory rider in Agueda Portugal on Sunday riding in the MX1 Grand Prix for Team Siver Action just narrowly missing third podium place.
“I am very happy with the results today. Things are going in the right direction for me and we were able to pick up quite a few points. Now I am seventh in the championships and there is a long way to go so we can still fight for the title,” Jonathan said. “I am now feeling very good about Bulgaria. I like the track there and I am going to fight for a podium.” Barragan is also now completely fit and no longer had problems with soreness in the tendons in his arms that gave him some concern in the pre-season races."
Team boss Stefan Everts said it was possible that Nagl had a tough weekend because it was here at Agueda that he broke his collarbone last year and he had to get over that. “Max was definitely not feeling the best this weekend and I think the accident from last year might have been on his mind. Overall he did well this weekend. He finished the races and had no crashes and no big mistakes. This is all part of the learning process and we know that this year is an important year for him to gain experience and learn a lot.”
MX1 Results
1. Sebastien Pourcel, France, Kawasaki
2. David Philippaerts, Italy, Yamaha
3. Josh Coppins, New Zealand, Yamaha
4. Jonathan Barragan, Spain, KTM
5. Steve Ramon Belgium, Suzuki
Agueda, PT – Jonathan Barragan of Spain was the leading KTM factory rider in Agueda Portugal on Sunday riding in the MX1 Grand Prix for Team Siver Action just narrowly missing third podium place.
“I am very happy with the results today. Things are going in the right direction for me and we were able to pick up quite a few points. Now I am seventh in the championships and there is a long way to go so we can still fight for the title,” Jonathan said. “I am now feeling very good about Bulgaria. I like the track there and I am going to fight for a podium.” Barragan is also now completely fit and no longer had problems with soreness in the tendons in his arms that gave him some concern in the pre-season races."
Team boss Stefan Everts said it was possible that Nagl had a tough weekend because it was here at Agueda that he broke his collarbone last year and he had to get over that. “Max was definitely not feeling the best this weekend and I think the accident from last year might have been on his mind. Overall he did well this weekend. He finished the races and had no crashes and no big mistakes. This is all part of the learning process and we know that this year is an important year for him to gain experience and learn a lot.”
MX1 Results
1. Sebastien Pourcel, France, Kawasaki
2. David Philippaerts, Italy, Yamaha
3. Josh Coppins, New Zealand, Yamaha
4. Jonathan Barragan, Spain, KTM
5. Steve Ramon Belgium, Suzuki
Second and third MX2 places in Portugal for Rattray and Searle
From KTM
Agueda, PT - Red Bull KTM riders Tyla Rattray and Tommy Searle took the minor podium places on Sunday in the MX2 Grand Prix of Portugal, conceding defeat only to title holder Antonio Cairoli of Italy.
Searle and Rattray came in second and third in race one and then reversed the order for race two, a sure fire indication that both are in good form after the mud bath race last weekend in Bellpuig, Spain. Rui Goncalves the team's third factory rider came in sixth in front of his home crowd in Agueda, Portugal to wind up a solid weekend's racing for the team.
Rattray was very disappointed to relinquish the coveted red number plate for the first time this season but promised that he and Searle planned to mount a real challenge for the championship title this year. "Still I was happy with my starts and with my riding style. I lost some time in the first heat and it took me some time to catch up with Searle and Cairoli, but I finished in third and I did not crash. In the second heat I was squeezed a bit by Searle and Cairoli in the first part of the race but I came back from eighth to third then Searle had a small crash and I finished second."
Searle, who will race in the USA from 2009, is clearly back in form after two difficult races in the first two GPs of the season in the heavy wet sand of Valkenswaard, Holland and in the severe mud of Bellpuig. "Today was good but it could be even better," Searle said. "I got the holeshot in the first heat and I was out in front for quite a long time so I was able to show Cairoli that I have the speed. Then I had a small crash in the second heat but if that had not happened I would have been able to catch him. I am very happy because this was a proper race for me. It was tough but I had no problems like I had here last year and that's a sign that I am much fitter."
Rui Goncalves rose to the occasion in front of his home crowd and said the level of support he got from the fans was a real energy booster. "I was very satisfied with my riding. I rode well, I got some good lap times, I pushed hard and got some good points," he said.
Tyla now has to relinquish the lead in the championship by five points after Cairoli's double victory on the hard and bumpy surface of the Portuguese track. Tommy Searle is in third place and Rui Goncalves is in fifth.
MX2 Results
1. Antonio Cairoli, Italy, Yamaha
2. Tyla Rattray, South Africa KTM
3. Tommy Searle, Britain, KTM
4. Stephen Sword. Britain, Kawasaki
5. Nicolas Aubin, France, Yamaha
6. Rui Goncalves, Portugal
8. Jeremy van Horebeek, Belgium KTM
Agueda, PT - Red Bull KTM riders Tyla Rattray and Tommy Searle took the minor podium places on Sunday in the MX2 Grand Prix of Portugal, conceding defeat only to title holder Antonio Cairoli of Italy.
Searle and Rattray came in second and third in race one and then reversed the order for race two, a sure fire indication that both are in good form after the mud bath race last weekend in Bellpuig, Spain. Rui Goncalves the team's third factory rider came in sixth in front of his home crowd in Agueda, Portugal to wind up a solid weekend's racing for the team.
Rattray was very disappointed to relinquish the coveted red number plate for the first time this season but promised that he and Searle planned to mount a real challenge for the championship title this year. "Still I was happy with my starts and with my riding style. I lost some time in the first heat and it took me some time to catch up with Searle and Cairoli, but I finished in third and I did not crash. In the second heat I was squeezed a bit by Searle and Cairoli in the first part of the race but I came back from eighth to third then Searle had a small crash and I finished second."
Searle, who will race in the USA from 2009, is clearly back in form after two difficult races in the first two GPs of the season in the heavy wet sand of Valkenswaard, Holland and in the severe mud of Bellpuig. "Today was good but it could be even better," Searle said. "I got the holeshot in the first heat and I was out in front for quite a long time so I was able to show Cairoli that I have the speed. Then I had a small crash in the second heat but if that had not happened I would have been able to catch him. I am very happy because this was a proper race for me. It was tough but I had no problems like I had here last year and that's a sign that I am much fitter."
Rui Goncalves rose to the occasion in front of his home crowd and said the level of support he got from the fans was a real energy booster. "I was very satisfied with my riding. I rode well, I got some good lap times, I pushed hard and got some good points," he said.
Tyla now has to relinquish the lead in the championship by five points after Cairoli's double victory on the hard and bumpy surface of the Portuguese track. Tommy Searle is in third place and Rui Goncalves is in fifth.
MX2 Results
1. Antonio Cairoli, Italy, Yamaha
2. Tyla Rattray, South Africa KTM
3. Tommy Searle, Britain, KTM
4. Stephen Sword. Britain, Kawasaki
5. Nicolas Aubin, France, Yamaha
6. Rui Goncalves, Portugal
8. Jeremy van Horebeek, Belgium KTM
David Casteu first winner of the Central Europe Rally
From KTM
And that's just what he did. It's David's first win in rally-raid, who's in his fourth season riding for KTM. He was drenched with champagne thanks to Alain Duclos and Francisco Lopez, when he came off the podium.
David Casteu
"This is a ‘moment supreme' for me. Finally! It's my first, but hopefully not last win. When I go to the next rally, I will not be the same person anymore because this victory gives my moral a big boost. The Central Europe Rally is a new kind of race, which we had to adapt to. Now we will have to see in which direction this race will develop."
Francisco Lopez
"It's my first podium for KTM and I'm very happy. Two years ago I couldn't dream this would happen to me. The bike was just perfect this week, and the team did a great job. It's still a long way to go before we will race in Chili with Dakar 2009, but I'm going for it."
Teammanager Hans Trunkenploz: With 17 KTM's within the first 20 in the overall classification, we score a maximum result. We all expected the 450's more upfront, but the 690 proved to be very competitive, also when the conditions were less favorable. It shows we're in the good direction. In Brasil (Dos Sertoes Rally, which starts June 17th) the whole team will start on the Rally Light. The option to choose from two set-up's will surely help us."
Results Day 7
| Rank | Rider | Nation | Bike | Time |
| 1 | Jaroslav Katrinak | FRA | KTM | 1.46.02 |
| 2 | Francisco Lopez | | KTM | 1.48.07 |
| 3 | David Casteu | FRA | KTM | 1.49.37 |
| 4 | Jordi Viladoms | | KTM | 1.51.39 |
| 5 | Ruben Faria | | HONDA | 1.52.41 |
| 18 | Cyril Despres | FRA | KTM | 2.00.16 |
| | | | | |
Overall Standings
| Rank | Rider | Nation | Bike | Time |
| 1 | David Casteu | FRA | KTM | 12.21.14 |
| 2 | Francisco Lopez | | KTM | 12.24.12 |
| 3 | Alain Duclos | FRA | KTM | 12.40.53 |
| 5 | Jose Manuel Pellicer | | YAMAHA | 12.42.34 |
| 4 | Cyril Despres | FRA | KTM | 12.44.04 |
| 6 | Jordi Viladoms | | KTM | 12.49.11 |
Windham closes the gap a little more
From Live Nation news
Seattle, WA – Torco Fuels Honda’s Kevin Windham, won his second consecutive Monster Energy® AMA Supercross, an FIM World Championship race in front of 48,328 fans at Qwest Field. Yamaha of Troy’s Jason Lawrence won the Western Regional AMA Supercross Lites class championship. Rockstar Makita Suzuki’s Ryan Dungey, won the main event and finished second overall in the Western Regional AMA Supercross Lites class.
Honda Red Bull Racing’s Andrew Short, won the $1,500 Progressive Holeshot Award to start the AMA Supercross class main event, but Windham quickly passed him and moved into the lead. Team San Manuel Yamaha’s Chad Reed, who came into tonight’s race 13 points ahead of Windham, crashed in turn one and started the race in last place.
On lap 2, while leading, Windham suffered a mechanical malfunction when a banner got tied up in his back wheel. He stopped his bike and removed the banner from the rear wheel, dropping back to sixth place. Windham charged back through the field and re-captured the lead on lap 17. Reed charged his way to second place with a last-lap pass on Short.
“In the first turn, I crashed into the back wheel of Davi Millsaps’ bike and fell down,” said Reed. “When I was coming through the pack, I saw a bunch of Honda bikes and knew I was outnumbered, but I made the pass.”
“I rode great tonight,” said Windham. “I wish I came away with more points, but that’s how it goes. I am excited to go to Las Vegas next week. It’s going to be a great race.”
In the Western Regional AMA Supercross Lites class race, Team Solitaire’s Bobby Kiniry, won the $1,000 Progressive Holeshot Award. Dungey followed closely in second while Lawrence, who came into tonight’s race with a six-point lead over Dungey, started in fourth place.
While Dungey pulled away from the field, Lawrence moved into second place and rode to the first AMA Supercross Lites championship of his career. Yamaha’s Broc Hepler finished in third place. The win for Dungey was his third of the season.
“Once I settled into second place, I was really nervous,” said Lawrence. “I just wanted to keep it on two wheels and ride a smart race. I was really comfortable when my Yamaha teammate Broc Hepler was behind me.”
“I was really happy with the way I rode tonight,” said Dungey. “I know where I made some mistakes this year, and I am going to fix them. I learned a lot this year.
Seattle, WA – Torco Fuels Honda’s Kevin Windham, won his second consecutive Monster Energy® AMA Supercross, an FIM World Championship race in front of 48,328 fans at Qwest Field. Yamaha of Troy’s Jason Lawrence won the Western Regional AMA Supercross Lites class championship. Rockstar Makita Suzuki’s Ryan Dungey, won the main event and finished second overall in the Western Regional AMA Supercross Lites class.
Honda Red Bull Racing’s Andrew Short, won the $1,500 Progressive Holeshot Award to start the AMA Supercross class main event, but Windham quickly passed him and moved into the lead. Team San Manuel Yamaha’s Chad Reed, who came into tonight’s race 13 points ahead of Windham, crashed in turn one and started the race in last place.
On lap 2, while leading, Windham suffered a mechanical malfunction when a banner got tied up in his back wheel. He stopped his bike and removed the banner from the rear wheel, dropping back to sixth place. Windham charged back through the field and re-captured the lead on lap 17. Reed charged his way to second place with a last-lap pass on Short.
“In the first turn, I crashed into the back wheel of Davi Millsaps’ bike and fell down,” said Reed. “When I was coming through the pack, I saw a bunch of Honda bikes and knew I was outnumbered, but I made the pass.”
“I rode great tonight,” said Windham. “I wish I came away with more points, but that’s how it goes. I am excited to go to Las Vegas next week. It’s going to be a great race.”
In the Western Regional AMA Supercross Lites class race, Team Solitaire’s Bobby Kiniry, won the $1,000 Progressive Holeshot Award. Dungey followed closely in second while Lawrence, who came into tonight’s race with a six-point lead over Dungey, started in fourth place.
While Dungey pulled away from the field, Lawrence moved into second place and rode to the first AMA Supercross Lites championship of his career. Yamaha’s Broc Hepler finished in third place. The win for Dungey was his third of the season.
“Once I settled into second place, I was really nervous,” said Lawrence. “I just wanted to keep it on two wheels and ride a smart race. I was really comfortable when my Yamaha teammate Broc Hepler was behind me.”
“I was really happy with the way I rode tonight,” said Dungey. “I know where I made some mistakes this year, and I am going to fix them. I learned a lot this year.
Free Smells ... Ooh Yeah
As much as I like motorcycles, and the motorcycle lifestyle, I like motorcycle shops.
Why you ask?
Because there is only one kind of person you will ever likely run into at a motorcycle shop of any kind.......another biker, or person with similar interests, or obsessions if you will.
It's like hanging out at a bar. My wife actually refers to a local bike shop I hang out at as "The Bar".
I think She is O.K. with me going there 'Cause it keeps me out of the real bars "for the most part".
I labeled this post free smells, because it reminds me of a hoagie restaraunt nearby called Jimmy John's . This is where they advertise that they deliver subs so fast you'll freak.
Anyway, they have a sign on the front door that says "Free smells".
I chuckle inside a bit when I see the sign, because I'm always tempted to walk in some day through the front door and take a REALLY big sniff. When they ask me if they can help me, I want to say, no thanks, I just came in for a free smell.
(LOL). I crack myself up sometimes. Just ask my wife an kids. They find it funny that I make myself laugh.
This brings me back to the bike shop. I many times have no reason to go there except for my free smells. In other words, not to purchase anything, but just to talk smart, and hang around with the guys in the shop, drink a beer or two and shoot the sh*t if you know what I mean.
Where do you get your free smells?
Mr. Motorcycle
Why you ask?
Because there is only one kind of person you will ever likely run into at a motorcycle shop of any kind.......another biker, or person with similar interests, or obsessions if you will.
It's like hanging out at a bar. My wife actually refers to a local bike shop I hang out at as "The Bar".
I think She is O.K. with me going there 'Cause it keeps me out of the real bars "for the most part".
I labeled this post free smells, because it reminds me of a hoagie restaraunt nearby called Jimmy John's . This is where they advertise that they deliver subs so fast you'll freak.
Anyway, they have a sign on the front door that says "Free smells".
I chuckle inside a bit when I see the sign, because I'm always tempted to walk in some day through the front door and take a REALLY big sniff. When they ask me if they can help me, I want to say, no thanks, I just came in for a free smell.
(LOL). I crack myself up sometimes. Just ask my wife an kids. They find it funny that I make myself laugh.
This brings me back to the bike shop. I many times have no reason to go there except for my free smells. In other words, not to purchase anything, but just to talk smart, and hang around with the guys in the shop, drink a beer or two and shoot the sh*t if you know what I mean.
Where do you get your free smells?
Mr. Motorcycle
New Battistinis Custom Bagger Wallpaper
Just though I'd let you all know that I've just added a great new motorcycle wallpaper to our motorcycle wallpapers selection here at http://www.inter-bike.co.uk/. It's of Battistinis fantastic Custom Bagger, a real looker. You can download this wallpaper and many more great motorcycle wallpapers by visiting http://www.inter-bike.co.uk/wallpapers.asp
Hope you enjoy this one!
Ride safe!
Jon Booth
Email: webmaster@inter-bike.co.uk
Sunday, April 27, 2008
Suzuki 1-2-3 at Fontana
From Team Suzuki
Rockstar Makita Suzuki's Ben Spies picked up his first AMA Superbike victory of the 2008 season in the weekend's first of two Superbike races at Auto Club Speedway in Fontana, CA on Saturday afternoon.
Starting from pole position, defending AMA Superbike Champion Spies got a great start on his Rockstar Makita Suzuki GSX-R1000 but was passed by his teammate Mat Mladin midway through the race. Within a few laps, however, Spies regained the lead and six-time AMA Superbike Champion Mladin followed his teammate home in second place.
Third member of the Rockstar Makita Suzuki squad Tommy Hayden rounded out the all-Suzuki podium with an impressive ride and third-place finish.
This Rockstar Makita Suzuki AMA Superbike sweep is the second in a row for the threesome, who also swept last weekend's AMA Superbike podium at Barber Motorsports Park in Birmingham, AL.
"I got a good start on the Rockstar Makita Suzuki GSX-R1000 and put my head down for the first few laps," Spies said. "I tried to get a little bit of a gap on Mat, but then I knew he was closing in on me. I started making a few mistakes and he got around me. Then I just rode as hard as I could. The Suzuki felt good but we're going to have to make it faster for tomorrow because we need to win again.
"Even though we're only a few rounds in, I was getting a little frustrated because I was used to winning and coming off of winning the championship last year. It feels good to get my first win of the season and it's great to have the Rockstar Makita Suzuki team up on the box one-two-three."
AMA Superbike Top 10 Finishers
1. Ben Spies (Rockstar Makita Suzuki)
2. Mat Mladin (Rockstar Makita Suzuki)
3. Tommy Hayden (Rockstar Makita Suzuki)
4. Neil Hodgson (Honda)
5. Eric Bostrom (Yamaha)
6. Jamie Hacking (Kawasaki)
7. Jason DiSalvo (Yamaha)
8. Miguel Duhamel (Honda)
9. Matt Lynn (Honda)
10. Jake Holden (Honda)
Rockstar Makita Suzuki's Ben Spies picked up his first AMA Superbike victory of the 2008 season in the weekend's first of two Superbike races at Auto Club Speedway in Fontana, CA on Saturday afternoon.
Starting from pole position, defending AMA Superbike Champion Spies got a great start on his Rockstar Makita Suzuki GSX-R1000 but was passed by his teammate Mat Mladin midway through the race. Within a few laps, however, Spies regained the lead and six-time AMA Superbike Champion Mladin followed his teammate home in second place.
Third member of the Rockstar Makita Suzuki squad Tommy Hayden rounded out the all-Suzuki podium with an impressive ride and third-place finish.
This Rockstar Makita Suzuki AMA Superbike sweep is the second in a row for the threesome, who also swept last weekend's AMA Superbike podium at Barber Motorsports Park in Birmingham, AL.
"I got a good start on the Rockstar Makita Suzuki GSX-R1000 and put my head down for the first few laps," Spies said. "I tried to get a little bit of a gap on Mat, but then I knew he was closing in on me. I started making a few mistakes and he got around me. Then I just rode as hard as I could. The Suzuki felt good but we're going to have to make it faster for tomorrow because we need to win again.
"Even though we're only a few rounds in, I was getting a little frustrated because I was used to winning and coming off of winning the championship last year. It feels good to get my first win of the season and it's great to have the Rockstar Makita Suzuki team up on the box one-two-three."
AMA Superbike Top 10 Finishers
1. Ben Spies (Rockstar Makita Suzuki)
2. Mat Mladin (Rockstar Makita Suzuki)
3. Tommy Hayden (Rockstar Makita Suzuki)
4. Neil Hodgson (Honda)
5. Eric Bostrom (Yamaha)
6. Jamie Hacking (Kawasaki)
7. Jason DiSalvo (Yamaha)
8. Miguel Duhamel (Honda)
9. Matt Lynn (Honda)
10. Jake Holden (Honda)
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