Henry Wiles is interviewed on the podium by AMA Pro Flat Track announcer Mylas Copeland at the Springfield Mile I round of the 2012 AMA Pro Flat Track Grand National Championship season after winning his semi race to earn his spot in what would be a 19-rider National main on May 27. Wiles suffered engine problems on the #17 Lloyd Brothers Motorsports/Foremost Insurance/Ramspur Winery-sponsored Ducati 'L' twin and carded an uncharacteristic 14th-place finish in the final. Looking on in the shot is former LBM crew chief Dave Gamble and the lovely ladies of AMA Pro Flat Track.
In what came as a bit of a surprise to me, the Lloyd Brothers Motorsports team announced today they will be campaigning a Harley-Davidson XR750 for the upcoming Stockton Half-Mile, round 3 of the 2013 AMA Pro Flat Track presented by J&P Cycles Grand National Championship season on May 11, and adding it to their vast stable of mounts to run in the rest of the half-mile events for the season.
The team that has continued to hone and develop the Italian 'L' twin mounts for several seasons now (carding a 2nd-place finish at the Lima Half-Mile with rider Henry Wiles on the team's Aprilia in 2008, a 2nd-place finish at Lima last year with Wiles and the Ducati, and winning the Arizona Mile I round in May '10 with now-retired Joe Kopp on the team's Ducati) has put together another sano piece of flat track rocketry in their new-for-them stable of mounts. Not that that should surprise anyone, least of all me.
But the big surprise is the team going out of what has been normal route with the addition of some Milwaukee iron (or alloy should it be) to their weapons of choice for returning rider and 2-Time AMA Pro Flat Track Singles Champion, Henry Wiles. And with newly-acquired crew chief Brent Armbruster in the mix, they have a guy in charge of the wrench-spinning mix that has some deep history in wrenching on XRs, a big handful of Grand National Championship wins, and an AMA Grand National Championship under his belt. For those not in the mix, Michigan resident Armbruster is fresh off of winning the 2012 GNC with the Rogers Racing team and rider Jared Mees. Rogers and Mees parted company with Armbruster at the end of the 2012 season, about the time that the Lloyd Brothers long-time crew chief, Gamble, left the team.
What this means is trouble for the rest of the competition in the now-scheduled 11 rounds of the 2013 AMA Pro Flat Track presented by J&P Cycles Grand National Championship Twins Series season, with five of those being half-mile events (Stockton, Lima, Hagerstown, Grays Harbor, Pomona) and six of those being mile races (Springfield I, Sacramento, Indy, Colonial Downs, Springfield II and Santa Rosa.)
With Armbruster's history of wrenching on XRs, the team is sure to have a big advantage in their back pocket right out of the gate. And with Harley-Davidson putting up $150K in contingencies for those 11 events, "we just had to go where the money is," according to team co-owner Dave Lloyd. And at least two of Hammerin' Hank's Grand National wins coming on half-miles (Lima 2010 and Pomona 2009 while riding Eddie Adkins-prepped XR750s), this should help even the score all around for the Ohio-based team and Michigan rider.
Check out more below from the great guys on the Lloyd Brothers Motorsports team, including the team's press release and some special photos of the team's Twins Series rockets for the 2013 season. Good luck and have at it boys, this just got a whole lot more interesting and exciting for the season ahead!
Right-side shot of the Lloyd Brothers Motorsports Ducati. Photo courtesy of LBM by Todd Boone.
2009-2010 AMA Pro Flat Track Grand National Singles Series Champion Henry Wiles with the Lloyd Brothers Motorsports Italian 'L' twin. Photo courtesy of LBM by Todd Boone.
Rider Henry Wiles poses with the Lloyd Brothers Motorsports/Foremost Insurance/Ramspur Winery/eni USA-sponsored and Brent Armbruster-prepped LBM Harley-Davidson XR750. Photo courtesy of LBM by Todd Boone.
Wiles poses with the new Lloyd Brothers Motorsports XR750, ready for action at round 3 of the 2013 AMA Pro Flat Track presented by J&P Cycles Grand National Championship season at the Stockton Half-Mile on May 11. Photo courtesy of LBM by Todd Boone.
The Lloyd Brothers Motorsports Ducati with rider Henry Wiles #17. The team sees returning sponsors Foremost Insurance Group, Rampur Winery, and eni USA, among others, for the 2013 Twins Series season. Photo courtesy of LBM by Todd Boone.
Press release courtesy of the Lloyd Brothers Motorsports AMA Pro Flat Track presented by J&P Cycles Grand National Championship Twins Series team.
Columbus, OH -- May 2, 2013
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