AMA Flat Track: Mikey Martin Daytona Bike Week Race Report

Mikey Martin on the #91Y Weirbach Racing/General Engineering/Barnett Clutches/Spectro-sponsored Honda CRF450R tries to get an inside run for the 4th-place spot in his battle with Andrew Smith on the #84P TNT Harley-Davidson/Parts Unlimited-backed Honda during round 14 of the 2011 AMA Pro Flat Track Harley-Davidson Insurance Grand National Championship presented by Motorcycle-Superstore.com season at the Peoria TT on August 21, 2011. 

Smith got the nod over Martin, but Martin won the war at the end of the season and clinched the championship for the 2011 AMA Pro Motorcycle-Superstore.com Pro Singles Series for himself and the Iowa-based Weirbach Racing team.  Smith finished 25th in the season-ending standings running a partial schedule and qualified for five of the 20 rounds, with Martin qualifying for all 20 and winning three-in-a-row (Hagerstown, Lake Odessa, Sacramento) for his and the team's stellar season.

Of note, on-track the duo actually finished 5-6, however after apparent-winner Briar Bauman was disqualified for a fuel-test failure issue after the podium ceremonies, the win was awarded to season-ending runner-up Mikey Avila, and the rest of the field moved up.

Martin got off to a rough start in the 2012 AMA Pro Flat Track Harley-Davidson Insurance Grand National Championship presented by Motorcycle-Superstore.com season at the Daytona Short Track rounds 1 & 2 three weeks ago, and failed to qualify for either round in what would have been his full-time debut as a rookie in the Expert class.  Not for want of trying, Martin qualifed in the top-48 both nights to make the heat race cut-off, but had a tough time of trying to race out of his heats or semis to make the National mains.

Round 3 of the season reconvenes on May 26 at the Springfield TT on May 26.
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In the pit area at the Lake Odessa, MI. I-96 Speedway round on July 23, 2011, the Bonneville Performance Triumph team gets busy on rider Shawn Baer's #32 Bonneville Performance/Wiseco Pistons/GBR/Penske Racing Shocks-sponsored Triumph 865-based twin machines.   

For the 2012 AMA Pro Flat Track Harley-Davidson Insurance Grand National Championship presented by Motorcycle-Superstore.com season, Martin will be riding the British mounts in the 11 Twins Series events, with backing from the Triumph factory to help out the hard-working Bonneville Performance guys.  The first Twins Series round is just over 50 days off at the Springfield Mile I, round 4 of the series on May 27.

This is great news for not only the BPT team, but for the sport as a whole as Triumph has been absent from any form of participation or sponsorship in the decades-old series for over three-and-a-half decades.  Former 2000 AMA Grand National Champion Joe Kopp has been lending the team support and should be a big factor in helping the team, and Mikey, to make more mains in the new season.
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Press release from Mikey Martin, AMA Pro Flat Track Grand National Championship #91/ 2011 AMA Pro Motorcycle-Superstore.com Champion

Mikey Martin’s Daytona Beach - Race Report

What a long, strange trip it’s been…. 6540 miles over the course of 18 days.

We had been in preparation for this Daytona trip since the end of the last season.  I knew going into my rookie season as an expert that we had to prepare two Grand National quality bikes for the Singles program. I was previously on a team where they supplied race ready bikes and all I had to do was show up and meet the team at the track.   I had found myself having to completely build two bikes from the ground up all at in a short amount of time.

We worked on the bikes and my van until the minute I had to leave.  Once on the road I headed straight to Savannah, Georgia to Oglethorpe Speedway.  It was a long 44-hour drive.  The Bonneville Performance, Factory Triumph Race team met me two days prior the actual race event to test and tune on the Triumphs and to continue making the adjustments to help me feel comfortable on the bikes.  This was only my second time on the bikes.

Joe Kopp had been asked by Triumph if he would assist me with the bike set-up and coach me. It was an honor the have Joe in my corner.  I learned a lot. I want to take this opportunity to publicly thank Joe and can’t wait until the next time we have an opportunity to work together, which most likely will be at the Springfield Mile.

Joe and I also shot a promotional video for Triumph.  This was the first time I had ever done anything like that and I was nervous.  I was told that both of us had done a great job, I can’t wait to see it.  We had a film crew in our pits the whole time we were there, it added a whole new element to the experience.

The race got rained out and we had to stay an additional night in Savannah.  The next morning they tried to run a dual event where the originally scheduled event ran as scheduled and the Pro and Expert venue would run as soon as the amateur event was over.  That left us with a condensed program since the Oglethorpe Speedway has a strictly enforced curfew.

In the heat race I came off the line in about sixth and felt like at about lap three that the bike was really starting to hook up good as I was getting some heat in the tires, but with the laps being cut down to six laps due to the condensed program, I did not have enough time to make the final pass for the direct transfer spot to the main and was now going to the semi.  Lesson learned.  I will be using tire warmers in the future.

When the flag dropped for the semi I did not realize that I had started the bike in third gear, instead of taking off in second and up-shifting twice and running fourth gear, I started in third and up-shifted twice and ended up running fifth gear.  I had a great start and was in second place.   Once I realized that the mistake had been made, I had to slow the bike down to down shift.  When I down shifted I had lost three positions and found myself in fifth place.   I was on the move and ended up making a few passes but with the condensed program I was unable to make the final pass by two feet and missed the main event by the final transfer spot. This is a great track to learn on and the competition was that of a national.  I feel very confidant going into my next twins’ race that I can have some great results.

On the first day at the Daytona Short Track I had the honor of being introduced to the audience and on Speed TV in the opening ceremonies by the CEO, Greg Heichelbech of Triumph North America.  I also did a one-on-one interview with Speed TV.

Mikey Martin in action on the #91 AC Racing/Acerbis/Alpinestars/Andrews Bros-sponsored Honda CRF450R at the Daytona Short Track rounds in March 2012.  Photo by Dave Hoenig/Flat Trak. Fotos.com, courtesy of Mikey Martin.
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Due to the luck of the draw I had in my opinion the worst possible qualifying positions in terms of the sessions that I was girded in.   On the first day of timed qualifying I was in the sixth session which was the last session, at Daytona that is usually a good thing since the track takes on rubber and the track keeps getting faster, but the AMA decided to reverse the order in the second qualifying session, which meant last in first out.  The first group came in and was able to relax and watch the track, put on tire warmers and change gearing but being in the last group we only had time to change our gearing and it was time to go back out.  After the second qualifying session I was almost 7/10ths of a second faster than my first session.  At that point I was fifth fastest overall, but there was five groups left and by the time the second session was over I was sitting in thirty-fourth position.  A second row start is not where you want to be at Daytona but I was in the program.

I had a second row start in the heat race.  Only the top four advance directly to the main.  I was doing great but at this level of competition you don’t move to the front very easily.  I ended up seventh.  This put me in the semi. Only three riders advance from the semi to the main.  I made a gearing change and got ready for the semi. I was on the second row and got a great start.  I was in about fifth coming out of turn two and found myself really fighting the bike and could not hold it down in the corners.  The bike felt like it wanted to go straight to the wall and I started loosing positions.  By the time the checkered flag was thrown I was in tenth place. I went to the pits and tried to figure out what made the bike handle so bad.

Once we got back to the pits and reflected on everything we decided to change out the rear shock and get ready for day two.

On the second day, I was hopeful that I would have better luck with my qualifying grid position but this time I was in the fifth group, so that meant that in the second qualifying session I would be the second group out with four groups behind me.  I knew I was just going to have to make the best of it.

I was once again on the second row for my heat race I ended up getting a seventh in the heat, which meant that I was again going to a semi.  At this point I was still confident that I would make the main event, so we went back to the pit and made some final adjustments and got ready from the semi. At the start of the race I came from the second row on the outside, coming out of turn one I was in about thirteenth and had ten laps to make ten passes to make the main.  I was making a pass about every lap. Coming down to the white flag lap I was in fourth and I needed the last pass to get the final transfer spot but it didn’t happen I tried to make the pass on the outside going into turn three, it was a drag race to the checkers but Mikey Rush got the drive and the final transfer spot to the main.

Mikey Martin in action on the #91 Honda at the Daytona Short Track rounds in March 2012.  Photo by Dave Hoenig/Flat Trak Fotos.com, courtesy of Mikey Martin.
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My next National will be at Springfield, IL with a TT on May 26^th and the Mile on May 27^th.  Please drop by the pits and get an autograph sheet and say hi.

I can’t thank my sponsors enough. I have a lot of existing sponsors and some new ones.  I want to give a special thanks to Bill Gately, Mike Cougle and Steve Gately of Bonneville Performance.  I also want to thank Joe Kopp, and everyone at Triumph Motorcycles.

Thanks to our great sponsors:

AC Racing, Acerbis, All Balls, Alpinestars, Andrews Brothers Racing, Applied Coatings, Arai Helmets, Bonneville Performance, Barnett, Crank Works Inc., CV4, Durelle Racing Suspension, D&D Exhaust, Eddie Adkins, EBC Brakes, K&N Filters, Kibblewhite Precision Machining, Lightshoe, Mayberry Construction, Millennium Technologies, Motion Pro, MTFX Graphics, PMP Sprockets, Pro Plates, R-3 Powersports, RK Chain, R&S Erection, Saddlemen, Safety Kleen, San Joaquin Chrome, San Joaquin Steel, Spectro Oils, Spider Grips, SPY Optics, SHY, Triumph Motorcycles, Vortex, VC Graphix, Web Cams, Wiseco Pistons, Woody Kyle Racing, Works Connection

Follow Mikey:

Facebook:

https://www.facebook.com/MikeyMartin91

Twitter:

http://twitter.com/#!/Mikey91Martin

AMA Pro Flat Track rider bio:

http://www.amaproracing.com/ft/riders/rider.cfm?did=4095
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Remembering Randy Renfrow, Former 3-Time AMA Road Racing Champion

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1983 AMA 250 GP Champion Randy Renfrow comes into turn 6 at Mid Ohio during a practice session in July of 1998 for the AMA 250 GP event. Riding for Erion Racing on the Honda RS250, Renfrow was sponsored by Erion/American Honda/Dunlop while contesting the class that year. He scored his first points in AMA 250 GP competition in 1981.
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Randy Renfrow talks with team manager Rueben McMurter (and the '88 Canadian Superbike Champion) of the Honda Canada effort that put together a ride for Renfrow at Mid Ohio in the summer of '92. Sponsored by Honda Canada/Dunlop/Shoei/Castrol/RK Chain, the RC30 sits just to the outside of the garage (r-side of shot) that Randy contested the AMA Superbike class in, and the Two Brothers Racing Honda CB600F that sits in the garage that he used to contest the AMA 600 Supersport race in for that weekend, where he finished on the podium behind eventual winner Larry Swarzbach.
McMurter, besides being a former Candian Superbike Champion, also contested the AMA Superbike Series as well as the World Superbike Championship in it's early years of the late '80s/early '90s.
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AMA 600 Supersport final race action at Mid Ohio on August 2, 1992 shows eventual (and first time) winner Larry Swarzbach on the #7 Vance and Hines/Dunlop/Ohlins/Bates/Bell-sponsored Yamaha 600 leading Randy Renfrow on the Two Brothers Racing/Dunlop/Shoei #76 Honda 600 midway through the 600 final.
This was one of Renfrow's first races back (if not THE first) after suffering the right hand crash damage at Willow in late 1990. He finished on the podium that day.
Schwarzbach went on to win his first, and unfortunately his only AMA 600 Supersport race that day. A little over an hour after this shot was taken, Larry was involved in a multi-bike crash just past this point on the front stretch in the AMA Superbike final. He was air lifted out and died of his injuries just two days later. Schwarzbach was a fine rider and great young man who, had he survived, would most likely have had a hand in re-writing the record books as we know them in AMA Road Racing action in the '90s.
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Randy Renfrow on the #5 Commonwealth Racing/Shoei/Dunlop/Keihin-sponsored Honda RC30 leads eventual event AND championship winner Doug Chandler on his famous #10 Team Muzzy Kawasaki/Wiseco/NGK/California Superbike School-sponsored ZX7 in early AMA Superbike final action at Road America in June of 1990. Chandler went on to win the day's final over Renfrow, and also beat him for his first of three AMA Superbike Championships later in the year. Renfrow would win his first and only AMA Superbike final at Willow Springs later in the year while riding the wicked RC30.

Renfrow was also later that year injured while testing the Louisville-based Commonwealth Honda (which later morphed into Camel /Smokin Joe's Honda and then American Honda) at Willow. The crash saw Renfrow lose his right thumb and a portion of his right index finger when his hand was lodged under the bars in the crash. Miguel Duhamel was picked up right before the '91 Daytona 200 as a fill-in rider for Randy and went on to win the race, his first of five wins at the famous tri-oval in Florida. After several surgeries, one of which involved grafting his big toe onto his right hand to use as a thumb, Renfrow returned to racing.

On top of his '83 AMA 250 GP Championship, Renfrow also won the final AMA Formula One Championship in '86 (beating none other then Wayne Rainey in the process), as well as the '89 AMA Pro Twins Championship (riding a Honda RS750 flat tracker-based one-off) for Martin Adams and his Commonwealth Honda team, beating Dale Quarterley who was riding a Ferracci Ducati in the class that year.

This is one of my all-time favorite race pics I have taken over the years, and feel absolutely blessed to have a framed 20x30 copy hanging on my living room wall that was autographed by Randy, as well as Doug. The inscription from Randy: "To Mike: Great times, Thanks, Randy Renfrow #1 83/86/89." Priceless.

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Randy Renfrow was a racer's racer and a fan's dream. The man won three AMA Road Racing Championships throughout his career, bounced back from some pretty devastating crashes and injuries to return to prominence in the sport, and was one of the easiest guys to talk to in and about the paddock over the years. With his wealth of racing knowledge and skill, coupled with his outgoing personality, he was a joy to talk to and with, let alone to watch on the track in action.

Unfortunately for us mere mortals, we DO lose some of our heroes in life along the line, especially when some of those heroes ride 180 MPH+ two-wheeled rockets. And we find out that those heroes are also, mere mortals.

Thus was the case just over eight years ago, when Randy died of injuries sustained in a fall at his parents' home while trying to heal from a crash at Daytona earlier in the year. I remember the day so clearly (like when you remember where you were when Kennedy was shot, the planes hit the towers, etc.) that I still feel the sadness and emptiness that overcame me of hearing of the news of this great man's passing. I'm sure all of you can remember a time when one of your racing heroes, or life's heroes, passed away or left this world for a better place (for lack of a better description) so you know the feeling like I do and have. But life does go on. And thanks to our recollections, memories, pictures and stories we share with our friends and family, we can remember those people that left a mark on us throughout our life.

Randy Renfrow left me with a lot of memories, most of which I can smile and laugh with and at, as I think of the diminutive guy from Virginia who could wield a racing motorcycle like a stealth rocket. And who had that smile that would always make you feel like you belong--whether you did or didn't.

Here's to Randy Renfrow, for the smiles, the miles of speed, action, savvy and bravado that he brought to the track and to the seat when he flung his leg over a bike. And to making the racers, sponsors and fans feel like more then just another number. You will forever be remembered.......

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Randy Renfrow remembered thanks to SuperBikePlanet.com and the pen of Evan Williams:

http://www.superbikeplanet.com/2002-Aug/vir02renfrowremember.htm

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These are some fan perspectives on the late Randy Renfrow from SuperBikePlanet.com:

http://www.superbikeplanet.com/2002-Aug/020813a.htm

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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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Cool Bikes At Cool Bike Races...and a Big Thanks to Florida Steve at 2 Stroke Biker Blog!!

More often then not when going to all these different races over the years, we've also come
acrossed some pretty cool street bikes along with the usual array of high performance--and
high dollar--racing machinery. The bikes that pique your interest may be different then the
ones that pique your buddy's. But that doesn't make them any more or less significant, just
unique to what YOU or THEY consider unique, rad or sick. And they don't have to be some high dollar Euro machine, or some over-chromed virtual boat anchor, nor some high performance
rice burner that sings like a chain saw on acid. They can be your normal run-of-the mill breed,
a low dollar home-build, or even a rare-or getting rare as you get older-model you coveted as
a child or a teenager in lust.
One of those for me was the early to mid '70s Yamaha R5 and RD series bikes built on the 250/
350/400 2-stroke platform in the day. They were relatively inexpensive, easy to maintain,
and gas AND oil were cheap in those days. Think cheap--good gasoline, before ethanol blends,
could be had for less then 50 cents a gallon. And even based on a bike that would get 30-35
miles per gallon, at that price you didn't even THINK about fuel mileage in those days.
I came acrossed this hybrid-built bike at Elkhart Lake back in '06. The attached story from
Florida Steve's http://2strokebiker.blogspot.com/ site will tell the full story behind it, but
wanted to show you another shot of this beauty I took as it sat next to an early '70s Honda
CL175 that was immaculate as well. A stark contrast in the bare bones but very well built
Honda high-pipe Scrambler, which appeared to be bone-stock, right down to the tires even.
And the RD-inspired street tracker with the hand machined rear sets and radical look
stingers on the expansion chambers in a flat track-themed rolling chassis. BOTH very sweet
and both quite the bike for their day. And even today!

So take a read at what Steve has to say as he is the 2 stroke king knowing these bikes, and then
what I had to throw in from when I took the shots. Maybe someone out there will recognize
this sweet piece and contact us and fill us in on it. And being the old 2 stroke head that I have
been, that would just be SMOKIN'!!

Thanks for coming by, and thanks again and as always to Florida Steve for helping to diplay
some more of my stuff. Check his stuff out as he runs an ultra sano site with some ultra
sano pics and info. I just can't stop drooling...or smokin'.......

Merry Christmas and Happy New Year to all! And to all a good night.....

http://2strokebiker.blogspot.com/2009/12/sme-excellent-shots-of-well-known-rd.html

Former WSBK Champ Neil Hodgson Appears to be Heading Home....

Well, it seems that the fall-out is really beginning to happen now that Honda has

officially withdrawn from the 2010 AMA Road Racing Series. Former '03 World

Superbike Champion and '00 British Superbike Champ Neil Hodgson, who has

been riding for Honda here in the States since the beginning of the '07 AMA season

and who has blessed us in America by first coming to the States and riding for Ducati

originally in '05, appears to be headed home. And by home, I mean as in across the pond,

back to the Isle of Man, and what at least now appears to be looking very strongly to be

another run in the British Superbike Series for 2010. With Honda having officially pulled

the plug for racing in the AMA/DMG series here in the States as of last Friday, Neil spoke

with the folks at SpeedTV.com and stated that things just looked much better back home

for the future. But even more so, stated how bad things really are here with the Damaged

Motorcycle Guys running the AMA series into the ground.

Check out the link from SpeedTV.com and form your own opinion, but it sure doesn't bode

well for racing in the States and how (un) professionally the AMA is and has been running

the show:

http://moto-racing.speedtv.com/article/ama-sbk-hodgson-headed-home/

The way I read it is what it has been looking like all year. It sure is hard to polish a turd...

And to lose a great personality, let alone a great champion and competitor like Neil Hodgson, well, it pretty much shows you whose head is where and it sure isn't Neil's that mis-placed

and looks even more dark for what has been a very dark year in AMA Road Racing.

That's my opinion, but it seems to be shared by more then a few. Here is another look at the mess from the pen of Dean Adams from SuperBikePlanet.com as to how dark it really is:

http://www.superbikeplanet.com/2009/Sep/090922tensein10.htm

And just added on Sat. 9/26/09 @ 0900 EDT, this week's version of Honda Road Racerhead from the great folks at http://www.roadracerx.com/, this is a look at the Honda pull-out as well as a

look at the overall picture in the AMA/DMG scenario for the past, present, and future as

we have seen it and know it and how it could be for the future and beyond. Interesting read so

please take the time to read it as well:

http://www.roadracerx.com/features/road-racerhead/honda-road-racerhead-39/

The pics above were taken when things were much grander in the scheme of things as far

as racing in the States is concerned. They are all of Mr. Hodgson and were taken in race 1

of the AMA weekend at Road America in June '08. This was on the official Team Honda

entry #100 as opposed to the Team Corona Honda that Neil rode in the series this year.

Very sorry to hear all this and all I can say is we are losing a great talent and a great guy!

Having had the chance to speak with Neil a couple of times in the AMA paddock over the

course of the last 4-5 years, the man was not only very congenial, approachable, and

wonderful to talk to. Let alone his talent on the track! Here's to hoping for great things

for Neil in the future and to blessing us with his talents while he was here riding in the States.

It was great havin ya mate! Take care and God Bless in whatever you do and where ever you

land on 2 wheels......

A BIG Domino Takes a Fall at the Hands of DMG/AMA Road Racing...

The following articles were posted yesterday by Dean Adams and his fine people from the SuperBikePlanet.com site as well as from the fine folks at CycleNews.com. It appears that after

putting up with the Damaged Motorcycle Guys running the AMA Road Racing series (into the ground) that Honda will no longer be supporting any of the classes beginning with the 2010 series--which now is still way off in the distance as no race schedules, tv schedules, and only a

small handful of rider contracts having been signed for the future.

The future for our beloved AMA Road Racing series is now officially looking even more bleak then what it did during this year. Read on, and you can make your own evaluations and form your own opinions based on what you see and/or read here and elsewhere over the course of

the last year or so:

http://www.superbikeplanet.com/2009/Sep/090918hondaout.htm

http://www.superbikeplanet.com/2009/Sep/090918hondaout2.htm

http://www.cyclenews.com/articles/road-racing/2009/09/18/honda-won-t-renew-corona-deal

http://www.superbikeplanet.com/2009/Sep/090919a.htm

And also from John Ulrich and his hard working people at RoadRacingWorld.com:

http://www.roadracingworld.com/news/article/?article=38148

http://www.roadracingworld.com/news/article/?article=38149

The attached shots were taken during the AMA round at Road America in Elkhart

Lake, WI., during the w/e events of June '06. They were taken in the paddock area

during the w/e events and feature the AMA Superbikes and FX bikes of Miguel

Duhamel's #17 and Jake Zemke's #98. Both bikes and riders claimed multiple

championships in the former AMA Road Racing series before the DMG-run take over

of late '07 and all of '08.

Looks like the only thing red now is the bleeding from the added fallout of people leaving

the series.......such a shame.

This is also starting to catch on to the followers--like myself--of the AMA Flat Track series--also run by the Damaged Motorcycle Guys--on the great site FlatTrack.com forum. Take a look see for yourself and add to your opinions and thoughts of the fallout beginning to ensue:

http://www.flattrack.com/index.php?option=com_fireboard&Itemid=46&func=view&id=63372&catid=3

And just to show that I DO believe in showing both sides of a story, this was the 'official' release

from the AMA/DMG folks on their outlook and vision for the 2010 season:

http://www.amaproracing.com/rr/news/index.cfm?cid=23688

I gotta say at least they are taking away the pace bike/car/moving obstacle and also

doing away with the rolling starts. They do seem to have a wee bit of sense when it comes

to safety.....at least THAT is a partial relief!

Mat's 1st Year On The Team Yosh Suzuki

For you nostalgic types--such as myself--here is a shot I took of Mat Mladin,
who yesterday announced his retirement at the end of the '09 AMA Superbike
season after having withdrawn from the Topeka Tornado Superbike Races after
concerns of lack of proper safety areas on parts of the track.
Take a look back at the first year of what was to become an over decade run of race wins,
race poles, and the other little thing in that he won 6 titles in the supreme class of motorcycle
road racing on the North American continent. Now, keep in mind Mat had already had 2 years
of racing, and also winning, here in America, but was riding a Ferraci Ducati for those years.
The story of the day was Mat wasn't satisfied with the level of--or lack of for better words--testing with the team. And as a result that was what led to him being signed by the winningest
team in AMA Superbike history, Yoshimura Suzuki. And to say what was to come in the next
12-13 years was going to change the course of modern racing as we know it, well let's just
say that would be a gross understatement.
Mat Mladin--and of course Team Yosh--not only re-wrote the record books, they took over
the publishing--at least in the sense of totally dominating in every and all aspects of the sport for
6 of 7 years in winning titles and races, but continuing to decimate the competition even as
Ben Spies came along as his team mate and ALSO managing to bag 3 more championships.
But Mat needs to be given credit for MUCH more then all the wins, the poles, the podiums,
and that other little thing again of 6--and it very well could end up being 7 as he does have a
126 point lead going into this w/e's event/clusterf... at Topeka--he needs to be given credit for
the safety aspect of the series. He has been the most active, vocal and outspoken lead man to
help lead to widespread and house-cleaning changes in areas of track run-off, safety and SOLID
barriers, track surfaces that seep, bleed, or GUSH rivers of water, all of the areas of concern when you are a racer--not to mention a hard core fan and afficianado of the sport--that come into question when you are racing an over 200hp, 350 +/- lb. crotch rocket at speeds at over 180 mph. And if you've ever seen in person--or even on tv--a motorcycle, or worse yet a motorcycle racer, come into contact with something that should never have been there in the first place and the ensuing damage and chaos it causes, then you can begin to appreciate safety
and the measures you MUST take when competing at this level to ensure it DOESN'T happen!
And for THAT, more then all the big and other little things Mat has done for us, this wonderful sport, and the rider who may avoid those problems thanks to him being so vocal, so sure, and so
correct in standing up for those beliefs, we should ALL take a knee to the master!

Bravo Mat!!! It HAS been a great run, and the sport is already lonelier and at a loss without you.....

The shot above I snapped of Mat at Road America in June of '98. This was just out of turn 8
during qualifying for that w/e's event. I was able to get him to sign it for me a little over 2 months later at another event that raised MANY major safety concerns after the teams, riders,
and we fans, had showed up to see a race and it had been CANCELED due to safety concerns.
That event was the August '98 scheduled event in Joliet, IL., at the then-new Route 66 Raceway. They DID run the flat track races that w/e on the 1/2 mile dirt track--Rich King won
on a Corbin-sponsored RS750 Honda--and under the bleachers during a break Mat took the time to not only sign this shot but look at some of my others--and comment on safety issues at
race tracks.

Ducati Wins It's 1st U.S. Superbike Race in 4 Years at Road America...

...and winning it for Ducati was none other then Mr. Larry Pegram, who had last

won a U.S. Superbike round back in '99 at Willow Springs Raceway in the sunny

state of California.

Larry, who also won his last--and his first--Superbike race on a Ducati, did so

while riding a Fast By Ferraci-prepped Duc at the time. According to reports today

from the beautiful Road America circuit, Larry mananged to best not only a VERY solid

field of competitors in Aaron Yates, Ben Bostrom and Neil Hodgson--just to name a few--

but also BESTED the King of U.S./AMA Superbikes, yes, ladies and gentleman, Mr. Mat

Mladin, the 6-Time Superbike Champ. And per those reports, did so in a heads up race that

went to the wire with Larry pulling out the win over Mad Mat by just over .3 seconds!

Now, to win a Superbike race in itself is quite the accomplishment, but to do so in a heads

up assault against one Mat Mladin, well, is pretty darn rare! (For more proof of that you will have to read my previous posts and brush up on your history via some of the other websites

that have more time and can do a much better job of documenting that then I can. But to say

this was a major accomplishment by itself is understating the feat dramatically!)

Congrats to Larry Pegram on his Foremost Insurance/Leo Vince Exhausts Duc for putting it

on the top of the box again, and for giving Ducati that elusive win they haven't seen on U.S.

soil in quite some time! And bravo to you, as well, Mr. Pegram for being able to best the best

that U.S. soil has seen and probably will never see again in one Mr. Mladin! I'm sure your respect level in the paddock, let alone with fans such as myself, has gone up exponentially.

While we celebrate Mr. Pegram's feat--who by the way has raced a variety of road race AND

dirt track races since the early '90s--you can check out the following links from the wonderful

folks at http://www.roadracingworld.com/ and http://www.superbikeplanet.com/ who have supplied us with the results links, and also to the great people at http://www.speedtv.com/ for the nice read on

the race itself:

http://roadracingworld.com/news/article/?article=36851

http://superbikeplanet.com/2009/Jun/e/n090607g.htm

http://moto-racing.speedtv.com/article/ama-sbk-pegram/

The shots you view as you are relishing the great win by Larry and Ducati are of Mr.

Pegram at the sprawling Road America track last year during the June AMA round. These

were taken back in the turn 10 area of RA while practice was being run for the then-FX class.

Larry had run that class during the '07 and '08 campaigns on his own team with Foremost and

Leo Vince as his main sponsors while riding a Ducati 848 against the onslaught of the mainly

600, 4 cylinder, inline-based Japanese bikes. This practice session, as you look closely, was

being run as the track was drying after a fairly heavy rain mid-morning on Saturday of the

event. Hence the grooved tires, as they ran race slicks during the dry events and race rain tires

during the wet events. This was NOT a DOT tire class. This was a MINI-Superbike class, ala the name 'FX'--for Formula Extreme, as it were, as the class was named at one time. Larry ran

against the best of the best and was always in the hunt and if my fading memory recalls ended

up ranked 4th overall in class at the end of the '08 campaign. Please correct me if I am wrong.

Again, a major tip o' the hat to Larry and Ducati. And of course, to Mad Mat, as he does retain

the points lead after winning SuperPole and race 1 of the w/e yesterday. Even though he isn't

worried about points. But that is another post for another time.....

God Bless all and have a great week!

A Hush Just Fell Over The AMA Superbike Paddock....

....and a roar could probably be heard from the folks at DMG as news comes

to us that Josh Hayes, on the Graves Motorsports Team Yamaha R1 has beat

Mat Mladin in race 1 of the AMA American Superbike Series Final at Infineon Raceway

in Sonoma, CA.

Having not heard the details at the time of posting, I can only post the final results as

Mr. Hayes beat Tommy Hayden, Larry Pegram, Aaron Yates as well as Mat Mladin to

win his very first AMA American Superbike race under the existing, as well as former,

series rules and engine criteria. Not taking anything away from Smilin' Josh, as he has worked

extremely hard this year with a new team, a new motorcycle and virtually a new slate in

running the Superbike series for the first time in several years. Congrats to Mr. Hayes in

his very well deserved win and for getting the proverbial monkey off his back in the Superbike

series. Having been a multiple winner of races in the 'old' Supersport series, as well as a 2-Time

FX Series Champ and race winner under the 'old' series formulas, the guy is for sure no slouch,

and to be congratulated for his accomplishments today. Bravo to you sir!

The unofficial results as of this posting can be found here at http://www.superbikeplanet.com/:

http://superbikeplanet.com/2009/May/090516raceone.htm (thank you to Dean Adams & Co.!)

UPDATE--7:45 P.M. Sat. 5/16/09

Here is the story of the race from race 1 at Infineon thanks to the fine folks at www.SpeedTV.com. Apparently Mat was having some front end problems with his

Team Yoshimura Suzuki that kept him from mounting any type of charge to keep his, and

Suzuki's long-time win streak intact. Again, nothing against Mr. Hayes and his efforts today:

http://moto-racing.speedtv.com/article/ama-sbk-superbike-shocker-hayes-scores-first-win/

The shots accompanying the bombshell mentioned in this post are of one Mr. Joshua Hayes at

Road America in June of '06 on the Erion Racing CBR1000RR Super Stock bike. These shots

were taken of Smilin' Josh as he was in various modes of practice and qualifying for the weekend.

Again, congrats to Josh Hayes for a breakthrough win at Infineon. And they can call it whatever

they want it will always be Sears Point......guess you gotta pay the bills....

Ben Spies Crash at Assen WSBK Race 2

As we check out Ben Spies leading Mat Mladin and Miguel
Duhamel at Road America in race 1 of the 2006 w/e, I found a
link from the fine folks at www.superbikeplanet.com that they posted
from YouTube.com on Ben's race 2 crash at Assen this last w/e. Pretty
nasty tumble for sure and he AND we are all lucky he wasn't hurt worse
than what it appears on the video. Check it out....and pucker up:

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=OEh92QVQTDo

Mat Mladin Doubles at Road Atlanta AMA American Superbike W/E and wins his 77th Superbike race!

As we view some shots of Mat Mladin in various forms of racing

and smiling for our camera at Road America in 2004, we celebrate

and congratulate the 6-time Champion for his 77th win in AMA

Pro Road Racing's Superbike class. Having won yesterday by over

15 seconds, he still managed to pull today's event win off by over

5 seconds. And the 51st win in a row for the Yoshimura Suzuki

Rockstar Makita Team. That in itself is a way to celebrate greatness,

but without Sir 'Mad' Mat, almost 60% of those wins would not have

been possible. The man is not only ON a mission, he IS the mission!

Go get 'em Mat and even the championships up with the new #7 plate

you are wearing this year. I hope everyone else is listening as closely as

I am.

The shots above were all taken at Road America in Elkhart Lake, WI., in

June of '04. In no particular order we have Mat running his familiar lines of

using the berms as a strengthening tool coming out of turn 14 as he gives chase

to Jake Zemke on the #98 Erion Racing Honda CBR-1000RR, who in turn is giving

chase to ultimate Sunday race winner Miguel Duhamel, himself a former series champ,

on his Team Honda #17 CBR-1000RR.

In another shot we also see Sir 'Mat' coming out of the carousel at R.A. during

Friday practice. And finally, after all of the work he put in and was about to put in

for the w/e, he was gracious enough to sign a couple of my pics and give us a nod and

smile for the camera. A very gracious, but very intense man. This wasn't the first time

he took to sign some shots for me over the years--and I hope not the last!--and has always

been as approachable as ever and always having the time to shake my hand and sign and

comment on the shot(s) at hand.

And, just in case you are interested, YOU can buy the very bike that Mat Mladin has won

the first 5 races in the first 3 events this year. And if you can still make it to Road Atlanta, in

beautiful Gainesville, you can still pick it up...for $59K no less:

http://roadracingworld.com/news/article/?article=36005

Now, the bike MAY look just a BIT different after what happened to it, let alone Mat, after

this happened this morning:

http://superbikeplanet.com/image/2009/us-superbike/ATLANTA/66crash/

http://superbikeplanet.com/image/2009/us-superbike/atlanta/matcrash/

But, then again, he DID win after this happened, and did I mention by over 4 seconds?!

For 59 thou, not a bad deal at that, even taking into effect it is based on a 2008 model that

was pulled off of a dealer floor 3 weeks before Daytona. And also considering that this new

American Superbike class isn't the old Superbike class of old, now more like Stock-class

bikes. But, over 5 or 6 years ago Erion Honda won the old Extreme class on a liter-based

bike that they at the time valued at $85K. So considering......a pretty killer deal by anyone's

current economy. But don't think you can or will beat or even run with Mat. He'll be on

the '09 model at the next round at Barber in good ole Sweet Alabama the first w/e in May.

So good luck with that part of that thought.

Thanks again, Mat, and thanks for all the great memories and for those about to be formed!!

And thanks to John Ulrich and his crew for the link from http://www.roadracingworld.com/ and to

Dean Adams and his bunch from http://www.superbikeplanet.com/ for their links of the crash incident.

Josh Hayes, Multiple AMA Road Racing Champion

These are some shots I took of former AMA FX Champ

Josh Hayes at Road America in June 2008. Riding the

Erion Racing Honda 600, he captured two championships

in a row in '06 and '07.