Stars get on track with Pirelli

From Pirelli North America

ROME, GA – You never know who you might be dragging a knee with at The Track Club. True enthusiasts all, band mates Atom Willard and David Kennedy of Angels & Airwaves (AVA), Chris Hesse of Hoobastank, and John Hensley of the TV show Nip/Tuck all took part in a day of hard riding at a recent The Track Club event at Buttonwillow Raceway Park, CA, each enjoying the best in Pirelli Diablo rubber.

Thanks go to Motorcycle Industry Council’s (MIC) Jessica Prokup who arranged bikes and logistics and who joined these riders on track in support of the MIC’s Discover Today’s Motorcycling (DTM) program, and to Kawasaki’s Joey Lombardo for taking care of the details.

Other riders at the event were stunned with the speed of these enthusiasts, who held nothing back on the Race #13 configuration that was run clockwise. Each of these riders showed that, regardless of their “day” jobs, when they’re on track all else in life is meaningless. Hensley spent the day in the saddle of his Suzuki GSX-R600 track bike, while Willard, Kennedy and Hesse tried out a number of machines provided by DTM and various Pirelli Diablo track-day and race tires.

Willard and Kennedy are now on The Warped Tour with Angels & Airwaves, visiting over 50 arenas across America in support of their I-Empire CD. The Buells of Willard and Kennedy are also shod with Pirelli’s and they often trailer them along on tours for riding when time permits.

Hesse and his band Hoobastank, who played at last year’s Laguna Seca MotoGP event, are in the studios creating a new CD, planned to be released late this year. Hesse has been a committed Pirelli rider for over a year now, using the tires to compete in road races on the west coast, on his street bike, and for track events.

Hensley is best known as Matt McNamara on the show Nip/Tuck, which has been breaking viewer records for the FX Network. Hensley can also be seen in the independent feature films Teeth, and Fifty Pills, each available on DVD.