Monday, June 28, 2010

The End of The 2-Smokes Is Near in MotoGP.....


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The Red Bull KTM Moto Sport 125cc machines of #16 Cameron Beaubier and #93 Marc Marquez sit in the pitlane at IMS during the Red Bull MotoGP Indy round in August of 2009. With the 250cc class going the way of the Titanic after last year, being turned into the Moto2 class with 600 Honda-based motors and varying chassis manufacturers, the 125cc class in MotoGP racing is the only two stroke-based class left on the world scale. That too, will change now after the 2011 season and the wail of chain saws on acid will forever be gone from the planet..........
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With the demise of the 250cc ring-ding class in MotoGP World Championship racing after the 2009 season, it was announced over the weekend after the rules commitee meeting of the MotoGP technical minds in Assen that after 2011, the 125cc class will also go the way of the Edsel. As has been suspected since the original talks to do away with the 250's, it was only a matter of time before their younger brethren were also cast aside like an old, oily rag. Or wag....

You can read about it here thanks to the excellent MotoMatters.com website and the most excellent helmer of that site, one David Emmett. Mr. Emmett runs a super operation and has a world-class photographer in Scott Jones, as well, to help with all the eye candy that is MotoGP racing. Check them and the news out here:

http://www.motomatters.com/news/2010/06/26/125s_to_be_replaced_by_four_strokes_from.html
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Henry Wiles Wows 'Em at AMA Flat Track Lima Half Mile



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Lima winner Henry Wiles is interviewed for the crowd as second place Sammy Halbert (L) and newby-to-the-podium third place Matt Weidman (R) look on and enjoy the moment. Wiles has now won three events on the season and is tied for the overall points lead with Joe Kopp at 129 points each. Jake Johnson sits in 3rd place eight points back and Sammy Halbert moves to 4th with 116 points. Jared Mees rounds out the top five with 115 points.
With this being his second win on a half mile in the last eight events (Wiles won Pomona in October for the series final event of '09), Henry is quickly turning into an 'all track' specialist after being known the last six seasons as a short track and TT specialist. Once he gets that mile program down with the Adkins' team, the rest of the Grand National competitors better watch out. The AMA Flat Track Grand National Championship K&N Filters presented by Motorcycle Superstore.com circus heads to Lake Odessa, MI. for round eight on July 1oth.

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Third place finisher Matt Weidman is shown in his pit area at Lima signing autographs for the fans. His #20 White's Harley Davidson/SNIP/Silkolene-sponsored XR's sit just behind. Matt put on a fine performance throughout the main dicing with veterans Jake Johnson, Bryan Smith and Jared Mees to card the first Grand National podium of his young career. The 2008 Rookie of the Year looked like an old pro on the fast half mile and made his family and sponsors proud. After blowing up his A-bike at the end of qualifying, Matt jumped on his B-bike to make the podium for the main event.
He had a smile on his face after the main that you could see through his helmet! A great showing and a great young up-and-comer here to keep an eye on for the future in this fine young man. He should make another great spokesman for the sport as he has a lot of enthusiasm and is great with the fans.

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Henry 'Hammerin' Hank' Wiles wipes off the night's hard work after dismounting his Mike & Eddie Adkins/KK Motorcycle Supply H-D XR750 at Lima on Saturday June 26th. Wiles dominated the evening winning his heat, the dash for cash and the event final by just over 6.5 seconds on 2nd place finisher Sammy Halbert and another 10+ seconds back to 3rd place Matt Weidman. Just as he did in his heat race win, Henry lapped a big portion of the field, up to ninth place finisher Joe Kopp.

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Henry Wiles on the #17 is already trying to break away from the field in his heat race early in the evening's program. Joe Kopp on the #3 Lloyd Brothers Ducati is immediately behind, followed by Ken Coolbeth on the #2 Harley factory entry, #80 Steve Bonsey and #61 Dustin Crow. Coolbeth would have to transfer out of the semi to make the main, eventually finishing 14th. Bonsey finished 10th and Crow 7th in the main event. Kopp would finish the main in 9th place.
The track was rougher then seen in years past according to those in the know, and the AMA Flat Track team of Mike Kidd and Steve Morehead did a great job of improving on it after each heat and semi to have it in much better shape for the evening's final events.

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Second place finisher Slammin' Sammy Halbert can be seen in his pits signing an autograph earlier in the evening for a young fan. Sammy's #7 King Kustoms/KK Motorcycle Supply XR's are sitting in the forefront next to his brother Jethro's #69 machines. Sammy looked strong all night as well in spite of not being able to keep Hammerin' Hank close in the final. Lima was Sammy's third podium of the year after winning round one at Daytona on the short track and carding a second to Joe Kopp on the mile at Prescott Valley in May. Look for this young man to step up his game plan for the rest of the season starting with Lake Odessa in July! His consistency in the series this year-as well as last-should start paying major dividends real soon.

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The AMA Pro Flat Track K&N presented by MotorcycleSuperstore.com Grand National circus made it's annual stop in Lima, OH. on Saturday June 26, and the competition was just as hot and dusty as the weather was for the evening's events.
Henry Wiles showed 'em that he isn't just a short track and TT specialist by winning the main event by over 6.5 seconds on second place Sammy Halbert. Wiles also won the '09 season-ending half mile at Pomona back in October and is quickly putting to rest the notion his big bike program needs work. At the end of the evening, the only thing his big bike program needed was a good bath after lapping up through ninth place in his rout of the field at the dusty Lima track.
With his second win in a row after taking the main at the Gas City short track last weekend, Henry takes a share of the overall points lead with Joe Kopp at 129 points each.
A big tip of the hat and helmet goes out to third place finisher Matt Weidman out of the State of New York. The '08 Rookie of the Year put on the box in third place after battling it out with veterans Jake Johnson (5th place), Jared Mees (6th place) and Bryan Smith on the Werner Springsteen #42 Kawasaki (4th place). It was young Matt's first GNC podium and it was well fought and deserved. He put on a fine show in working his way up to the last rung on the box and had a smile as big as the State of New York when the main was over. Look for this young man in the future to move it up even further. He left Lima in 12th place in the points after this fine showing.
The AMA Flat Track team of Mike Kidd and Steve Morehead did a great job of getting the program off without many delays, and at the end of the evening the track was in the best shape of the day after working the watering and dragging crews throughout the night. Hats off to all for doing such a fine job of keeping on top of what started as a real rough track.
The Rolling Thunder show hits Lake Odessa's I-96 Speedway in Michigan for another half mile event after the national holiday on Saturday July 10. Stay tuned for more WFO fun!

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Here's the official story of the race from Larry Lawrence over at Cycle News.com:


http://www.cyclenews.com/articles/flat-track/2010/06/26/wiles-whips-em-at-lima
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Official results from AMA Pro Flat Track:

http://amaproracing.com/ft/events/results.cfm?eid=2010021030

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Thanks for coming by to check out our mini race review.
Sorry I was a little late in getting this up but it was a long weekend here in Indy. Stay tuned for later in the week as I do a 'photo parade' of other notable entries and riders from Lima to highlight this great season of AMA Flat Track!
Thanks again!

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Thursday, June 24, 2010

Follow AMA Flat Track Action This Saturday at Lima by Clicking Here........


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This shot of practice at Lima in June of 2006 demonstrates the various lines that are available on the limestone/pea gravel track. Always a popular venue, the people line the fence all the way around the track sometimes 2-3 deep. AMA Flat Track puts on a great show in general, but if you are itching for great half-mile action, Lima is the place to be this Saturday.
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The AMA Flat Track Circus makes it's annual stop in Lima, OH. this Saturday for one of the funnest and fastest half-mile tracks ever to be on the AMA's schedule. In an event that is only surpassed (in terms of attendance, only!) by Springfield's two holiday double-headers, the show is non-stop and top notch at this great Allen County Fairgrounds facility. And being the first half-mile on the calendar seven rounds into the season the mix could be shuffled as to who lands (or not) on the podium.
With riders switching back to the big bikes after another great short track event at Gas City last weekend, it should be interesting to see who can put the power to the ground the most efficiently after great runs on the first two miles (and first two big bike events of the year) at Arizona and Springfield. Joe Kopp is entered on the Lloyd Brothers Ducati, Bill Werner and Jay Springsteen will have the Kawasaki ready to roll for Bryan Smith, Shawn Baer will roll out the Bonneville Performance Triumph, and the rest of the usual suspects including the Halbert Brothers, Chris Carr, Kenny Coolbeth and Jake Johnson-to name only a few-will be looking to keep the H-D XR's in winning contention against the widespread level of competition we have seen so far this year in Class C racing.
With Mike Kidd and Company in charge of running the show, it should be a great day and evening of WFO side-by-side dirt track. The AMA FT team has done a spectacular job of not only bringing in more sponsors (new title sponsor K&N Filters/Motorcyclesuperstore.com),but also adding a level of fun and professionalism to the events themselves. And being a past champion and big-time race promoter, MK knows exactly what flat track fans want. And he delivers. Like the Oldsmobile commerical used to say years (probably decades now) ago, 'this isn't your father's AMA Flat Track anymore.....'
So if you are in the area of I-75N and Highway 309E in Lima this Saturday, do yourself a favor and head about one mile east to the Allen County Fairgrounds, and take in the best sport on wheels on dirt. And if you can't make it, just follow along here at Stu's Shots with all the on-track action thanks to the AMA. All the links you need to keep up on what is happening on-track are just a click away for your viewing pleasure! And we hope to have updates sometime before the weekend is over on who did what, so stay tuned now, you hear?!
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AMA Pro Racing Lima event press release thanks to Double L over at TheRiderFiles.com:
http://www.theriderfiles.com/?p=4903
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Lima event info including entry lists and schedule compliments of AMA Pro Racing:
http://amaproracing.com/ft/events/event.cfm?year=2010&eid=2010021030
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AMA Flat Track Live Timing and Scoring Link:
http://laptraxtg.racersites-cluster.com/LapTraxTG/AMA/livescoring.html?LAPTRAXID=2010021030
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Twitter updates thanks to Nicalee from the FlatTrack.com community forum (you might check before I don't know if he'll be on hand. He did miss GC last weekend):
https://twitter.com/GNC_Flattrack
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Lima weather courtesy of The Weather Underground:
http://www.wunderground.com/cgi-bin/findweather/getForecast?query=45801
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Tuesday, June 22, 2010

Bultaco Cup at AMA Flat Track Gas City Round Was a Gas, Gas, Gas


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Bultaco Cup Main Event Winner Bill Snyder's #4 Bultacos sit in his pit area at Gas City in between practice sessions and the main event. Bill is out of Manhathan, KS., and was sponsored for the event by Great Plains Racing Assoc. and Custom Engine Svc. You can almost smell the castor oil in the air just looking at these immaculately prepared machines. Former racer Wayne Hosaka, who runs the bitchin' FlatTrack.com website, put up the $1200 winner's purse for the event in a grand jesture to help out with expenses.
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Art Randall on the #95K keeps it revvin' while waiting with some of the Bultaco Cup entrants to roll out for the main event. To his left on the #90N is Jim Henry and on the #66 T.J. Souza. In the left background Wild Will Kelley can be seen on the #6 machine. All are members of the FlatTrack.com community as well as long-time flat track racers, enthusiasts and fans. Art made it possible for everyone in this picture to compete in the race with his stable of fine looking steeds.
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This is one of Art Randall's immaculate Bultaco Astros. This particular machine was at one time raced by the late Roger Crump in his early career in AMA Flat Track, and now sits on display at Kilroy's Sports Bar in St. Louis, owned by Mr. Randall, who can be seen sitting in the background in the red/yellow Bultaco jersey. Some other members of the FlatTrack.com community can be seen in the shot as well, including Art's wife Brenda, Mia Moore and TJ Souza. All were on hand to support the Kilroy's Sports Bar Race Team who put in a lot of effort to get this race run. After the rain out from June 5, everyone had to re-group with less then two weeks notice to get back to Gas City for the inaugaral Bultaco Cup race. A fine effort was put in by all believe me!
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The #66 machine of TJ Souza sits in the left background as several members of the Kilroy's Race Team make final preps on the #6 machine of Willard Kelley. Art Randall's #95K sits on the right. The #1 Astro in background right is the bike that Art displays at his bar in St. Louis. In the photo from left are 'Jimbo', Wild Will and Ken Saillant, who finished third in the main event aboard the #54 machine.
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Grinning like a cheshire cat ready to pounce, Will Kelley gets ready to roll out on his #6 machine for the Inaugaral Bultaco Cup at Gas City on June 19. Main event winner Bill Snyder sits on the #4 machine and third-place finisher Ken Saillant on the #54 machine is in the rear of this shot.
Will set fast time in the combined practice sessions and is a multi-time champion in the Vintage Dirt Track Racing Association. Will made the trip again from his home-base in Texas after the rain out to compete in this event.
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Nostalgia was in the air last Saturday night as the inaugaral Bultaco Cup ran in conjunction with the AMA Flat Track event at Gas City/I-69 Speedway. After a two week rain delay, everyone made it back for what was a major blast from the past for all to see and do in a meeting of the old classic two-stroke racers.
AMA Flat Track Manager and 1981 AMA Grand National Champion Mike Kidd came up with the original idea to run a support class at Gas City featuring some of the two-stroke Bultaco racers of yesteryear. Running as the support class to the AMA Grand National Singles and the Pro Singles race event, the Bultaco Cup served as a great reminder of the popularity of the Bultaco brand from days gone by. Ridden by a variety of racers in the '70s including Kidd, John Gennai, Jay Springsteen and Garth Brow just to name a few. The castor oil was in the air again as 10 riders entered to run the event. Won by Bill Snyder on the #4 Bultaco Astro, the event served as a great exhibition event and helped bring back some super memories of flat track history to all who were there to see it.

Special thanks go to Art 'The Dart' Randall/Kilroy's Sports Bar in St. Louis for bringing in his stable of fine looking machines for some of the guys to ride and Wayne Hosaka of FlatTrack.com who put up the winner's purse money for the race. Take a bow gentlemen, you deserve it for making this neat little race a possibility for everyone to enjoy

We hope that sometime again in the future that we'll get another chance to see these great vintage machines as part of the AMA program fill-in. The evening made for a great time and waxed nostalgia for those of us who remember the shrieks of the old chain saws! And we thank all of those involved for making this event possible!!

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Thanks to Mike Kidd and his great group of people for putting on this great event (Bravo!) and for supplying us with the PDF results as well! Mike has proved time and again what a great program he can put together for AMA Flat Track and this was another shining example. You rock dude!

Combined practice results:
http://results.amaproracing.com/pdfresults/ft/2010/06-gascity/blpc.pdf

Bultaco Cup Main Event results:
http://results.amaproracing.com/pdfresults/ft/2010/06-gascity/blm1.pdf
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A great lighter-side story thanks to Kevin 'Chew' Larcom and Mia Moore over at FlatTrack.com on the running of this super event:
http://www.flattrack.com/index.php?option=com_content&task=view&id=841&Itemid=1

And here's a great little video put together by Chew and Mia of the Bultaco Cup event:
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=w7forKnRCs8
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Sunday, June 20, 2010

Henry Wiles Hammers Em at AMA Flat Track Gas City Short Track



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The top three finishers at the Gas City round of the AMA Pro K&N Filters Grand National Championship presented by Motorcyclesuperstore.com are shown on the podium after the main event last night. While #21 Jared Mees gets interviewed for his second place finish, #3 Smokin' Joe Kopp can be seen breaking open a bottle of water after his third place finish. Main event winner #1 Hammerin' Hank Wiles is all smiles after dominating the evenings program.
This was the first event with the new K&N sponsorship for AMA Flat Track and the new logo for the series and Mike Kidd and the AMA Flat Track team did a great job ushering in the new title sponsor with a clean and tight program for the evening.
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Hammerin Hank Wiles and his #1 Don's/Monster Energy Kawasaki team relax and talk stategy after practice and qualifying at the Gas City/I-69 Speedway short track event. Wiles, who now has 10 main event wins on the 450 singles bikes, led the way after both starts last night to win the main event program over Jared Mees and Smokin' Joe Kopp. Obviously the stategy talk worked, as Wiles won his heat and took the dash win to make it a trifecta for the evening. Chad Cose on the #49 Digger Helm/Lightshoe Honda led qualifying by .050 seconds over Wiles.
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The #21 Rogers Lake/Rockysonline.com Honda of Jared Mees sits in the pits after practice and qualifying at the Gas City/I-69 Speedway round of the AMA Flat Track series on Saturday June 19th. Mees can be seen overlooking the team's operation, and girl friend Nicole Cheza (National #15) can be seen in the left corner checking things out. Mees capitalized on the red flag near the mid-point of the main to grab second place over Joe Kopp. Jared had just earlier in the afternoon qualified 9th for the evening's program.
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The Halbert Brothers talk in their pit area during the break in track action at Gas City. Jethro on the #69 Woody Kyle/Fredericktown Yamaha took fifth in the main while brother Slammin' Sammy on the #7 like-sponsored Yamaha carded a 6th place result for the day.
The brothers finished 1-2 in the American All Stars National Flat Track Half Mile event at Decatur, IL. nine days earlier and look to be strong on the pea gravel at Lima this coming Saturday.
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Second heat action gets underway with front row starters Luke Gough on the #62, Slammin' Sammy Halbert on the #7, #26 Brandan Bergen, #56 Michael Radley, #10 Johnny Lewis and eventual heat, dash and main event winner Henry Hammerin' Hank Wiles on his #1 Kawasaki getting a little out of shape just coming off the line. Henry was so dominant all night that in his heat he dropped towards the rear of the field after suffering a bobble in one of the turns, and then made a mad dash on the outside to sweep around the field to take the win. Rob Pearson on the #27 Yamaha and Matt Weidman on the #20 Honda were the other heat winners on the day.
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AMA Flat Track action at Gas City, Indiana was hot and heavy last night as the series came back after a two week rain delay to put on a heck of a show for the meager crowd that did show up to see the best stars on dirt battle it out at the Gas City/I-69 Speedway short track event.
With K&N Filters coming on board as the title sponsor for AMA Flat Track, it was a great event to show off the new logo and title sponsors for the racers and fans. Flat Track manager Mike Kidd unveiled the new logo on FlatTrack.com earlier in the week and the new look is great. We discussed briefly during the evening's program the great look and how nice it is to have a logo to represent and identify flat track with after so many years. Hats and helmets off to Mike and the AMA Flat Track team for getting last night's program off in grand style with a tidy and tightly-run event for all to see.
The story of the night, however, belonged to Henry Wiles on the #1 Don's/Monster Energy Kawasaki who dominated the program in winning his heat and the dash for cash to go along with his main event win. Missing out on top qualifier by .050 seconds, Wiles earned his 10th main event win in the singles class by motoring out front for the entire evening. Even after a near mid-race red flag for fallen rider #53 Don Taylor out of Canada, Henry jumped back out and lead from flag to flag. What seemed to be his only bobble on the day came in his heat race win where he slipped back towards the rear of the field, only to fight his way around the outside to swoop around the field for the win. Superman would have been proud of that ride as he was obviously a man possessed in getting back to the front.
Jared Mees on the #21 and Smokin' Joe Kopp (2000 AMA Grand National Champion) on the #3 swapped positions after the re-start with Mees getting the nod. Heat one winner Rob Pearson on the #27 Yamaha and Jethro Halbert on the #69 Yamaha rounded out the top five.

Many thanks to my good friend Larry Lawrence (TheRiderFiles.com) for letting me tag along to the event that he covered for Cycle News. You can read his race report and check out the full results below.

Next stop on the tour is Lima, OH., on Saturday June 26th for the half-mile on the legendary pea gravel track. Riders will put their singles bikes back in their transporters and bring out the big twins for the hugely popular Lima race.
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Thanks to Double L and CycleNews.com for the official story on last night's action:
http://www.cyclenews.com/articles/flat-track/2010/06/19/wiles-on-the-gas-in-gas-city
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Thanks as well to AMA Pro Racing and AMA Flat Track for the official results for the evening's events:

http://amaproracing.com/ft/news/index.cfm?cid=38175

http://results.amaproracing.com/pdfresults/ft/2010/06-gascity/
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Thursday, June 17, 2010

Happy Birthday to Steve Crevier From Stu's Shots!


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Steve Crevier bends the #14 Smokin' Joe's Team Honda RC45 through the carousel at Mid Ohio during a practice session for the AMA Superbike Series annual trek to the Lexington, OH. track in the summer of '97. Crevier was probably better known in his home country of Canada then here in the States, though he was undoubtedly one of the more popular riders in the paddock during his years of competition in lower North America. Back home he garnered six Canadian Superbike Championships ('89 on a Yamaha, '91-'93 on Kawasakis, '00-'01 on Honda RC51's), not to mention his four Canadian National Sport Bike (600) Championships and his three Canadian Open/750 Production Championships. He also won the '98 AMA 600 Supersport Championship here in the U.S. while campaigning GSX-R600's for Team Yoshimura Suzuki.
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Steve Crevier on the #14 Yoshimura Suzuki TL1000 twin is seen going into the turn 11 area while qualifying for the AMA Superbike event at Mid Ohio in July of 1999. Crevier was teamed with Ohio's own Larry Pegram during the '98-'99 seasons on the big twins, while team mates Mat Mladin and Aaron Yates were teamed on the GSX-R750s. Crevier won the '98 AMA 600 Supersport Championship for the team while riding GSX-R600s and won the Mid Ohio event in '98 three events before the end of the season to help seal up the championship over Team Muzzi Kawasaki's Doug Chandler.
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Mat Mladin on the #66 Team Yoshimura Suzuki GSX-R750 leads the Yosh TL squad of Larry Pegram on the #72 and Steve Crevier on the #14 through the carousel at Mid Ohio during AMA Superbike final action in July of '98. Rich Oliver on the Team Yamaha YZF-750 #97 machine is seen bringing up the rear of this pack. Suzuki team mate Aaron Yates is long gone on the #20 GSX-R750 and captured the event final.
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You can see the almost-ever present smile on his face through his helmet opening as Steve Crevier chats with his mechanic just before the start of the Mid Ohio AMA Superbike final in August of '92. Crevier rode for Two Brothers Racing (Craig and Kevin Erion) and campaigned Honda RC30s for the team alongside team mate Fast Freddie Spencer during the '92 season.
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The Team Muzzy Kawasaki ZX7-based #14 machine of Steve Crevier cranks a big wheelie after winning the pole for the one-time AMA Superbike event at Gateway International Raceway (just over the river from St. Louis) in the hottest event of the year--and maybe the decade--in August of '95. Crevier campaigned the Rob Muzzy machine while also competing in the AMA 600 Supersport Championship during the '95 season.
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Steve Crevier is one of the easiest going, and most animated individuals to ever hit the AMA Road Racing scene, and he is celebrating his birthday on Friday June 18, and Stu's Shots justs wants to tip the helmet to this great racer and all around fun guy.

Crevier, who currently resides in Maple Ridge, BC, CA., was born in 1965, and competed in the AMA Road Racing series for over a decade starting in '92 (at least that's when I started seeing him around the U.S. races) for teams including Two Brothers Racing, Team Muzzy and the Smokin' Joe's Honda team. While campaigning Team Yoshimura Suzukis in '98 and '99, he won the '98 AMA 600 Supersport Championship (while also winning the '98 Mid Ohio round of the series). He added that championship to go along with his six Canadian Superbike Championships, four 600 Canadian Championships and three 750/Open Production Canadian Championships. Can you say winner?!
One of the more animated people on/off the track, very rarely have I ever seen the man at a race without a big smile on his face and laughing and carrying on about something jovial. And Crevier never fails to perform on the track, especially with his race-ending stoppies and smokies and wheelies. Never a dull moment when he is near or on the track, it is a pleasure to watch him get it on while racing and while on the cool off lap! The man is a 3-ring circus in and about himself with his antics, and he's always shown the crowd a great time.

Stu's Shots wishes Steve a very Happy Birthday and wants to thank him for all of his years of on-the-edge competition and for showing the fans a great time.
And thanks for taking the time to sign a bunch of my pictures over the years, as well. It's always been and always will be a pleasure!
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Tuesday, June 15, 2010

Don Castro Headed to AMA Hall of Fame


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Don Castro, on the #11 Team Yamaha XS650-based flat tracker at Terre Haute, is smiling and ready to roll for practice in August of '74. The Yamaha Flat Track Team was comprised of Kenny Roberts #1, Gene Romero #3 and Donnie Castro #11 during the '73-'74 AMA Flat Track campaigns. The triple-threat team was downsized to just Roberts after the end of the '74 season, in what was one of the first and original 'super' teams in flat track of the day. Castro went on to run Erv Kanemoto's Kawasaki H2 750 during the '75 season where he made appearances at Terre Haute, Indy and Syracuse, along with a couple of west coast stops. Earlier in his career, and before I found flat track, Castro was also a member of the Triumph Factory squad, alongside '70 AMA Grand National Champ Romero. One of the nice guys in the sport, seeing Donnie get the nod for the AMA Hall of Fame in November is a great nod to a super guy and one of the great competitors in the sport.
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In what comes as great news to fans of flat track, and especially Stu's Shots, it was announced yesterday by the AMA Hall of Fame that former National #11, Don Castro, would be inducted into the Hall this November as one of it's 2010 members.
Castro, who is best known for competing on the Triumph and Yamaha factory squads, as well as riding for Erv Kanemoto in the '75 season aboard the Kawasaki H2 750-based Champion-framed flat tracker, now runs a motorcycle and ATV-based service center in Tres Pinos, CA., just east of Salinas, CA. and south of San Jose.
Back in the summer of '74, my old buddy Dick Jones dragged me to my first flat track race over in Terre Haute, IN. Donnie was competing that day as a member of the Team Yamaha Triple-Threat AMA Flat Track team alongside Kenny Roberts and Gene Romero. While also feeling like the kid that had found sex for the first time in his life (where has THIS been all my life!?), I was also able to get up close and 'somewhat' personal while perusing the pits with many of the stars of the day. Although I never had the pleasure of meeting him personally, the man always had a smile on his face and truly looked excited and happy to just be there and on the track. When Billy Schaefer, former National #96, won his semi race for the day to make the main, the whole Yamaha squad came over into Billy's pits where we were hanging out, to look over his privateer Yamaha that he had just won on. It was pure heaven for a kid of 17 who had also just found pure heaven in the form of AMA Flat Track racing.
And as I remember, Castro had one of the biggest smiles on his face as he checked out the competition. That smile will be stuck with me for the rest of my life.

Congrats to Donnie Castro for this big and super announcement, and we will be looking forward to November for the induction ceremony in Las Vegas to see #11 get his due after all these years. Very cool!

Here's the official release from the AMA Hall of Fame on this super exciting news:

http://www.motorcyclemuseum.org/news/story.asp?id=2028
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Sunday, June 13, 2010

DMG Has a Long Road Ahead of Them to Fix AMA Superbike


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Flyin' Fred Merkel on the #27 Yoshimura Suzuki GSX-R750 gets on the brakes coming into a turn at Gateway International across the river from The Arch in St. Louis during qualifying for the AMA Superbike round in August of '95. Merkel came out of the 250GP class in the AMA series to become one, if not the most flamboyant of AMA Superbike Champions the sport has ever seen. After winning the AMA Superbike Crown in '84-'86 riding Mike Velasco-prepped VF750 Honda Interceptors, Merkel headed across the pond to contest the new World Superbike Championship in '88 for Team Rumi on a Honda RC30. He won the first two seasons' championships in the process on unfamiliar tracks under unfamiliar surroundings. After returning to the AMA series in the early '90s, he campaigned bikes for Team Muzzy Kawasaki and Yoshimura Suzuki in the old 750 Supersport class as well as the Superbike class before having to retire early due to an ugly crash at Firebird Raceway in Chandler, AZ. in late '95.
The United States has also seen several other riders who parlayed pretty good AMA careers into World Superbike Championships---Doug Polen '91-'92, Scott Russell '93, John Kocinski '97, Colin Edwards '00 and '02, and Ben Spies in '09--winning nine championships in the series first 22 years.
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While perusing the internet of the usual suspect websites while trying to dig up some half-way interesting news to comment about this weekend, I came acrossed the following article penned by the super Chris Martin over at SpeedTV.com.
Chris makes some damn fine points about how the U.S. or AMA American Superbike (it's AMA Superbike--let's just leave it alone at that!) series has been looked down upon from across the pond as of late for a feeding ground for rider talent to nourish and move up into World Superbike or eventually the MotoGP series. While attending the Miller Motorsports Park round of World Superbike over the Memorial Day weekend, Chris got the opportunity to talk with some of the higher ups in WSBK, and got an earful on how or what they thought about the AMA series as of late since all of the problems that were stirred up in and around the series when the DMG people took over. And it's not real positive.
In spite of the 'let's make happy'-stance that has helped the AMA series to look more positive since the first of this year, the damage created by the series under the helm of Roger E sent some pretty negative vibes and smoke signals to the European crowd in how they viewed AMA Superbike as a feeding ground for talent. And how they still feel that way in spite of those positive changes this year. Once considered one of the major proving grounds for racing in Europe, the AMA series is suffering badly due to mis-management problems from the recent past, let alone the economic fall out we have all seen. And rebuilding what once was may prove to be even harder now that the negative ripple has had it's effects.
This is well worth the time to check out to see what Chris heard about how the AMA series is looked upon now from afar. They may have to rebuild Rome if this is any indication of the damage that the Daytona Motorcycle Group has inflicted in their dumming down of the series in the last two years. They've been on a positive path this year, but this could be a long journey.

Read on and thanks to Chris Martin for penning this article over at SpeedTV.com:

http://moto-racing.speedtv.com/article/martin-land-of-inopportunity/P1
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Thanks for coming by to check us out and have a good and safe week!
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Wednesday, June 9, 2010

Fritz Kling Remembered by Stu's Shots


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Fritz Kling on the #31 Gold Hill Yamaha 1000 comes through the last turn before coming back onto the front straight at the old Indianapolis Raceway Park (IRP-now ORP due to O'Reilly Auto Parts monetary involvement) on his way to winning both WERA Pro Series/FUSA events back in July '92. Fritz completely spanked the field in both events that summer at one of the tracks that he had some of his biggest success at-the other being Grattan Raceway outside Grand Rapids, MI. Grattan was really considered his home track since he was from the Lansing area, but he placed on the podium many times in WERA competition at IRP as well.
IRP/ORP hasn't hosted any motorcycle road racing events in some time now-probably a couple of years after this event. Around that time Putnam Park opened outside Putnamville, IN., and the races were slated over there. This was about the time that the NHRA took over control of IRP. It's a shame as from the time I saw my first road race at IRP in the mid '70s I was hooked on it big time. Back then I was within 15-20 minutes from the track. Now I'm less then five and no more road racing.
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With the camera shooting as he spoke, Fritz Kling is interviewed by Larry Lawrence (of The Rider Files.com and author of the 'Archive' column in Cycle News & CN AMA Flat Track contributor) after winning the weekend's premier WERA/FUSA Pro Series events at IRP in July of '92. One of the sponsors of the event was Dreyer (not Dryer as mis-spelled on the banner) Motorsports Yamaha/Suzuki from Indy. Dreyer Honda is the oldest Honda dealership in the United States and opened the Yamaha/Suzuki dealership just down the road from the original Honda shop, on the west side of Indy, in the mid-late '80s (if my memory serves me correctly). Fritz was used to talking to Larry, as back in those days Double L was a regular contributor to American Roadracing, and along with Dan Schmitt out of the Chicago area covered the majority of the North Central WERA races at that time. Between Fritz' smile and LL's it was beaming in the winner's circle celebration that day!
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Jeff Heino on the #25 Fastline/MCM Racing Suzuki 1100 leads Fritz Kling on the #19 Gold Hill Yamaha 1000 at Mid Ohio in the summer of '92 during the AMA/U.S. Endurance Team Championship sprint race. Fritz rode for Gold Hill, Dutchman Racing and several other big teams in those days and was always a presence on AND off the track. His towering frame (he must have been 6 ft. 3-4 in. +/-) seemed to not only dwarf the competition but the motorcycle itself as well. It never appeared to be a hinderance, though, as he regularly beat guys he was giving up at least 30-50 pounds on. He was always a joy to watch on the track, and a great personality off the track as well.
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Fritz Kling is interviewed by the track announcer at Mid Ohio in the summer of '92 after placing second to Scott Russell in the AMA 750 Supersport race. Fritz was riding his College Bike Shop/Class Racing Kawasaki 750 that day against Russell's Muzzy Kaw. He almost always had that smile on his face, one that you could tell that he was just loving having fun and racing at the same time. Laid back off, but a monster on the race track, you knew if Fritz showed up at an event you'd not only see that smile but would also see him up at the front with the competition.
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Fritz Kling was drafted onto the Harley Davidson VR1000 AMA Road Racing team as a team mate to Miguel Duhamel in the 'early' hours of the VR's run in AMA competition just after Daytona in '94. Riding the #77 machine at Mid Ohio, above, during practice or qualifying for the '94 event, Fritz didn't have the success that Miguel did that weekend (Miguel put it on the front row of the national and led the first few laps), but neither did Doug Chandler, Chris Carr (okay, CC did put it on the pole at Pomona in '95), Scott Russell, Pascal Picotte, or Mike Smith. And those were just the list of guys that rode the VR on the factory team. Jamie James, Tripp Nobles and several other riders competed on the VR for Don Tilley, among others, with far less success. This didn't seem to matter to Fritz as it still seemed like whenever he got off the bike he still had the big kid-like smile on his face. He always projected the feeling that he was just glad to be there, in spite of the bike's major short-comings.
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Fritz Kling was a motorcycle road racer out of the Lansing, MI. area, that was born on June 10, 1967. He was a regular WERA and AMA competitor for teams such as Gold Hill, Dutchman Racing, Harley Davidson as well as his personal sponsors College Bike Shop out of the Lansing area (just to name a few). He always seemed to have a smile on his face, and almost always seemed to be up towards the front of a motorcycle road race event. Among his many accomplishments were his '89 Michigan Grand Prix Championship at Grattan Raceway, just outside of Grand Rapids, MI., in the WERA series, and winning several events that I attended at IRP back in the '80s and early '90s.
Other then when I did an announcing gig at IRP for the WERA folks in the fall of '87 and got to hand out the trophies at the end of the weekend's events-I handed a few over to Fritz that day as I remember-I only had the pleasure of meeting and/or talking to him one or two times over the years. In October of '90 I went down to Road Atlanta for the WERA GNF's with an old time friend (Jim Knipp, another long-time WERA Champ and racer) to hang out, help out where I could, and take a few pictures along the way. We were fortunate enough to run into Fritz at a local eatery and my friend Jim introduced us formally that evening and he had that big smile that evening just as I had seen it on him many times before at the race track. And always a positive and friendly attitude to boot. He had one of those endearing personalities that would stay with you and just make you feel good you got a chance to speak to and with him.
Unfortunately, Fritz lost his battle with brain cancer on November 7, 2008, and won't be around tomorrow to celebrate his 43rd birthday with his family, his friends or his race competitors. Not unlike the way he battled on the track, his race against the cancer that took him away from us was just as fierce. But unlike his battles on the track, we are the ones who lost out when this battle was won by The Man who called Fritz home before his time should have been due.
Tomorrow I'm going to take a moment of silence to remember Fritz Kling, as the good guy and fierce competitor that he was.
And I'm going to remember that killer smile of his as well and remember how blessed we all were to have been in his presence to see the fun loving guy he was and the positive vibe he projected on AND off the track. And I'm going to remember the giant he was among people, let alone racers, literally and figuratively.

God Bless, Fritz, and Happy Birthday. You are truly missed, but never forgotten........
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Tuesday, June 8, 2010

Jason DiSalvo Parts Company With ParkinGo BE1 WSS Triumph Team


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Jason DiSalvo pours it on the #40 Graves Motorsports Yamaha YZF-R1 during AMA Superstock practice at Road America in June of '06. This is out of turn 8 before the run under the bridge into the caraousel at the flowing four mile plus track that sits about 60 miles north of Milwaukee in beer and cheese country. This is also one of the best places left to take pictures unless you have deep enough pockets to pay for the super photo ticket offered. I don't.
DiSalvo last raced in the AMA series last year, and after trying to broker some deals to race in the States again for 2010 that apparently fell through, ended up in the World Supersport Series that runs in conjunction with the World Superbikes. Unlike his team mates, Jason never seemed to 'come to grips' with the Triumph triple-based Daytona 675 models, and had a best of 8th earlier in the year down under. Hopefully he can put something solid together that will see him racing in front of his U.S. fans in the near future.
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For you Jason DiSalvo fans, unfortunately it was announced yesterday that he has parted company with the ParkinGO Triumph BE-1 World Supersport team that he had raced for since the beginning of the season. With Chaz Davies as his team mate, Jason never seemed to get the feeling of the machine that Davies has found (Chaz currently sits 4th in the championship) and always seemed to struggle with not only learning new tracks, but getting acclimated to the nuances of the three cylinder machine. Or so it seemed.
Whether that is really the case or not, or it was communication-related (or not) it sounds like it was an ammicable split. And things aren't always what they seem on the outside of any situation. Obviously Jason hasn't forgotten how to race motorcycles--see his vast and numerous past accomplishments for Graves alone to confirm what kind of record he has in AMA racing.
So you really can't say 'it was the team's fault' or 'it was Jason's fault.' S..t happens in racing just as in life. And you deal with it, better yourself as a result of it, and move on.
Personally, I can't wait to see J.S. back on U.S. soil again and racing his heart out as he always did here over the years. We know some lucky team or owner is going to come along and put the talent with the machinery. And we'll be there to cheer them on!

You can read the official press releases from both sides below.

Best of luck to Jason on getting something put together, and to whom ever it may be for. I'm sure it will be a great mix.
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Jason DiSalvo release courtesy of SuperBikePlanet.com:
http://www.superbikeplanet.com/2010/Jun/100607a40.htm

ParkinGO Triumph's team release courtesy of SuperBikePlanet.com:
http://www.superbikeplanet.com/2010/Jun/100608a.htm
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Monday, June 7, 2010

Tommy Hayden Parlays 2-1 Finishes at Road America to Take AMA Superbike Points Lead Into Summer Break


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Nicky Hayden on the #69 Team Honda RC-51 is the meat in the sandwich during AMA Superbike race one action at Mid Ohio in July of 2000. On his outside is older brother Tommy on the #22 Team Yamaha YZF-750 and on his inside is Aaron Yates on the #20 Team Yoshimura GSX-R750. Yates went on to the double win for the weekend and third place in the final standings, Nicky placed runner-up to eventual champ Mat Mladin, and Tommy finished sixth in the championship for the 2000 year. The 2000 season saw double race rounds at Road America and Mid Ohio for the first time, and they are the norm now for the full schedule.
Tommy Hayden has been mounting what is looking to be his best year in the AMA Superbike Championship by posting strong overall results to go with his two series wins in the premier class, including four second-place finishes and a third-place finish. Having gotten over the hump in getting those first two premier-class wins this year, the first being at Fontana earlier in the season, Tommy Gun leads the series by a one point margin over Graves Yamaha's Josh Hayes going into the five week break before the Mid Ohio round in mid July.
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Tommy Gun Hayden found out what it takes to get on the top rung of the ladder at Fontana earlier this year in AMA Superbike action, and showed again yesterday at Road America he hadn't forgotten where that was in taking the second of two race wins at the sprawling Elkhart Lake track. Josh Hayes on the Team Graves Yamaha won race one action and going into the summer break trails Tommy by one point in the standings with five rounds and ten races left on the schedule. Both riders swapped finishing positions, and near-like close finishes as well in the premier class events.

You can read the race write ups below thanks to the worthy pen of Henny Ray Abrams over at CycleNews.com and the full results as posted over at RoadRacingWorld.com. AMA Pro Road Racing's points standings link is below as well.

Congrats to Tommy for getting on top of the podium again at Road America and for his fine weekend results. And congrats as well to Josh Hayes on his 1-2 finishes this weekend as well. The second part of the season should be a barn burner, and with Jake Zemke on the Team Jordan bike only 15 points adrift of the top we should see some fierce and fast action when the series returns to Mid Ohio in five-and-a-half weeks. I can't wait!
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AMA Superbike race one at Road America:
http://www.cyclenews.com/articles/road-racing/2010/06/05/hayes-over-hayden-by-a-wheel

Race one results:
http://roadracingworld.com/news/article/?article=40736


AMA Superbike race two at Road America:
http://www.cyclenews.com/articles/road-racing/2010/06/06/hayden-over-hayes-in-thriller

Race two results:
http://roadracingworld.com/news/article/?article=40753

AMA Superbike point standings at the mid season break:
http://amaproracing.com/rr/events/standings.cfm?class=sb
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The AMA Superbike Series returns to action in Lexington, OH. at the Mid Ohio Sports Car Course on July 16-18th for round 6 of the ten race 2010 schedule.
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Wednesday, June 2, 2010

AMA Superbike Hits Road America and Stu's Shots Has All The Pre-Race Info You Need


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Miguel Duhamel on the Team Honda #17 CBR1000RR leads Aaron Yates on the #20 Michael Jordan Motorsports GSX-R1000 coming out of the carousel turn at Road America during AMA Superbike race one action in June of 2008. Following are Jason DiSalvo on the #40 Graves Motorsports Yamaha YZF-R1, Geoff May on the #99 Jordan GSX-R and Chris Peris on the #8 Team ESP/Attack Suzuki GSX-R1000. The lead four of Ben Spies, Mat Mladin, Jamie Hacking and Neil Hodgson haved just passed through on the first lap right before this shot was taken. Elkhart Lake's beautiful Road America race course has numerous areas to watch the racing action from, but with a four mile course you do a lot of moving around in between race and practice sessions to get to some of those areas. This area of the track is much easier to get to since they built the bridge crossing a few years back, and for a guy like me there are some great camera angles to get some pretty decent shots from.
Road America has been hosting the AMA races since 1980 and I made my first trip there in May of '82 with a rag-tag bunch that consisted of two support vehicles (mine being one) and what ended up at the track by the time everyone got there of about 16 bikes that came out of Indy. It was one of the most miserable (weather-wise, a cold on/off hard rain almost all weekend) trips I have ever taken (and I wasn't on a bike!) and one of the most memorable (the racing was top notch and the only time I ever got to see Eddie Lawson race before he headed to Europe in '83 to conquer all) racing trips I have ever taken. Since then I have only missed 5 0r 6 years, but I'll miss this year again, however I'll be there in spirit I can guarantee for sure!One of the guys's in that rag-tag bunch was Larry Lawrence from The Rider Files.com as well as the man that covers the better part of the AMA Flat Track season for Cycle News. Larry rode up with a couple of other guys that had to leave late on Friday and that was the first time we actually met. Larry's missle of choice that year was an ultra-cherry, red & white '78 Suzuki GS-750 sport bike with Dunlop R's (THE hot street tire then) and superbike bars.
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Here's the racing press releases as posted over at RoadRacerX.com for this weekend's upcoming event:

http://www.roadracerx.com/breaking-news/team-speak-ama-pro-elkhart-lake-preview/
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This is the sign that greets you as you arrive at Road America, which is actually just outside the town of Elkhart Lake, WI. off of Highway 67. The area is ripe with golf courses, lakes and tourists and is the typical resort community. Elkhart Lake's claimed population is only around 1000-1100 +/- but sees quite a rise over the course of the summer months with all of the major racing activities going on there. The track has been around now for over 50 years and was actually in contention in the mid '90s to host a round of the World Championship, which is now MotoGP. After making a boat load of track changes and accomodations, however, the track never got the clearance it needed to hold a GP race. But the changes were overdue, and they have kept making changes over the years to make it even more safe then it was, especially for the bikes.
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Here's the official link to the track, Google Maps link, and the official site for Elkhart Lake as well:

Road America track link:

https://www.roadamerica.com/

Road America on Google Maps:

http://maps.google.com/maps?f=q&source=s_q&hl=en&geocode=&q=N7390+Highway+67,+elkhart+lake,+wi&sll=39.823104,-86.331297&sspn=0.008075,0.013754&ie=UTF8&hq=N7390+Highway+67,&hnear=Elkhart+Lake,+WI&ll=43.801704,-87.989502&spn=0.014403,0.027509&t=h&z=15


Town of Elkhart Lake:

http://www.elkhartlake.com/

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I shot this in turn 14 in June of 2005 as the superbikes come by on their parade lap. It just shows the general beauty of the track and it's surroundings. On the right hand side you can see the camera perch for the SpeedTV camera as the riders come by and wave to the fans.
For a state that is as cold and snowy as it is in the wintertime, the late spring in early June has, for the most part, been warm and beautiful. Just as with all upper midwest states, every once in awhile it can turn chilly and throw in some rain surprises to go along with the action. Since the mid-late '80s when they moved the race date from the middle-to-end of May to the first or second weekend of June has made all the difference in terms of climate. And with all-things racing, you tend to overlook the bad since you are around beautiful scenery, and most important, high speed motorcycle racing.
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Here's the link to the weather in Elkhart Lake thanks to the Weather Underground. Right now there is a 20-50% chance of precipitation for the 3-day event:

http://www.wunderground.com/cgi-bin/findweather/getForecast?query=53020
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You go to the races to see the racing, but after the day's events are over, where do you go?Well, when you make the trip to Road America, there IS only one place in town to hang. Siebkin's Resort. Two easy words to remember when you are there, and MOST everyone you encounter over the weekend will know it, local or not. And if they don't, then it's time for them to get clued in to the scene that is Siebkin's on a motorcycle race weekend.
This shot is looking south down the alley of the Siebkin's property that borders Lake and East Streets in the Village of Elkhart Lake. The property has been updated and redone over the last several years, and as of June of '08 was about 3/4's done for the main complex for the newer condos going in. Some of the ambiance is missing from the now-gone 1880's buildings, but the atmosphere around the place is anything BUT gone. There are a couple of bars at this great place, and they set up temporary one's in the courtyard between the buildings. Bikes roll in and out all night, and park in the alley as shown, so it's as much of an event in itself as the races themselves are. And some of the bikes......WOW. Being an old-time nut I still get a kick out of the early-mid '70s silver and blue Ducati and green Rickman Kawasaki that are and have been parked there every year I have been there in the last 20 or so years. You know 'em if you've been there and you may even know who owns them when you read this. And besides the regular race fan crowd, even the racers tend to wander in and out as the night goes on. It used to be Jim Allen's (just-retired Dunlop Tire guy) favorite place to hang, and when I was there last in '08 Miguel Duhamel and Al Ludington were seen wandering the crowd and checking out the wide variety of street exotica that had come in that evening.
And then there are the stories, the parties and the carrying on. Not like I had anything to do with any of that, mind you, I was there for the atmosphere of the weekend...........
Dean Adams has some better spins and much more of the lore of that part of the happenings at Siebkin's at his bitchin' SuperBikePlanet.com website. Of course a lot of that has changed over the years but the stories still live on. You can check out some of his offerings below.
Just like with all events and places, there are some who haven't seen the light of day after an evening at Siebkin's, as the local police don't put up with some of the antics of some of the people that go overboard...whether it be from drinking or from carrying on. You've been warned!
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Dean's Siebkin's pics:

http://www.superbikeplanet.com/image/2008/usasuperbike/elkhart/sieb1/


Dean's spin on the historic Siebkin's here--and this is only one of several stories over the years from Dean on this great place:

http://www.superbikeplanet.com/featureoldworldcharm.htm


Siebkin's official spot on the internet:

http://www.siebkens.com/

Siebkin's on Google Maps:

http://maps.google.com/maps?f=q&source=s_q&hl=en&geocode=&q=284+South+Lake+Street,+Elkhart+Lake,+WI&sll=39.823104,-86.331297&sspn=0.008075,0.013754&ie=UTF8&hq=&hnear=284+S+Lake+St,+Elkhart+Lake,+Sheboygan,+Wisconsin+53020&t=h&z=16

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Coming into turn 14 during AMA Superbike race two action in June of 2000 are Doug Chandler on the #10 Team Kawasaki ZX-7, followed by Scott 'The Screamin' Chief' Russell on the #4 H-D VR1000, Tommy Gun Hayden on the #22 Team Yamaha yZF-750 and Steve Rapp on the #82 Vance and Hines Ducati.
The AMA started experimenting with running double race rounds at Road Atlanta in '98 and '99, it worked, so they added Road America and Mid Ohio as double rounds in 2000 as well. It definitely worked. Double the fun it was and has been, and this year will be the 12th year of double race rounds in the superbike class at the historic Road America round of the AMA Superbike Series. When DMG took over the running of the series completely in '09 they also doubled up in the Daytona SportBike and SuperSport classes. It makes for a great weekend of two-wheeled, high speed excitement. At just over four miles long now, RA is a track where the bikes get a chance to breath, especially on the 3700+ foot front straight.
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Last but not least, here are the event links and schedule from the AMA side. As of this writing their were 22 entries for the Superbike class and 29 for the Daytona SportBike class. And this being the first race of the year for the new Vance and Hines XR1200 class, there are ten entries listed. Hopefully that one will get some late entries at the track!

Live Timing and Scoring has been updated as of Friday 6/4/10 @ 1125 EDT on the left-side column!


And since I won't be around for part of the weekend, you can also get news updates below from Dean Adams' news feeds to keep you up to par.

AMA Pro Racing Road America event info:

http://www.amaproracing.com/rr/events/event.cfm?eid=2010011025

Road America event schedule:

http://www.amaproracing.com/assets/RdAmerica2010officialschedule.pdf

Dean's SuperBikePlanet news feed link:

http://superbikeplanet.com/newind.htm/

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Updated Thurs. 6/3/10 7:15 P.M. EDT:

Here's the link to the TV times for the weekend over at SpeedTV. Thanks to RoadRacingWorld.com for the post:

http://roadracingworld.com/news/article/?article=40692

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