AMA Pro Flat Track Profiles Jake Johnson, JD Beach & Mikey Martin

Zanotti Racing crew chief Ted McDermitt gets some help on one of the team's XR750s while the rest of the team talks shop at the rear of the team's transporter just after qualifying had wrapped up for round 16 of the 2011 AMA Pro Flat Track Harley-Davidson Insurance Grand National Championship presented by Motorcycle-Superstore.com at the Springfield Mile II.  Rider Jake Johnson had just qualified his #1 Zanotti Racing/Schaeffer's H-D/Boughner Racing/Motion Pro-sponsored mount in a respectable 11th place spot, just shy of .5 seconds behind fast man Kenny Coolbeth, Jr. on the factory H-D machine.

There was still plenty of racing to go, as Jersey Jake brought the #1 machine home in the 3rd spot at the Illinois State Fairgrounds mile oval, for what was one of over 15 top-5 finishes on the season in route to winning his second consectutive AMA Grand National Championship, being the first rider since 7-Time AMA Grand National Champ Chris Carr to win successive overall championships in the decades old series (Coolbeth won the Twins Championship from '06-'08.)

With wins at the Salinas and Springfield TTs and at the Calistoga and Pomona half-miles on the season, The Champ showed early in the season that his '10 championship year was not a fluke, and his ability to bring it home with solid runs throughout the season was a testament to his ability as a rider, and Dave Zanotti's ability to supply great machines and a solid crew in McDermitt and former AMA Grand National competitor Mike Hacker.


Johnson will be looking to make it three-in-a-row for the 2012 AMA Pro Flat Track Grand National Championship season and the Pennsylvania resident and Zanotti Racing crew will be ready to get back at it in Daytona next month.  AMA Pro Racing has been running some rider profiles over the long winter break and you can check out what they have on Jake here while you wait for the racing season to get started:

http://amaproracing.com/ft/news/index.cfm?cid=51790
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The 2012 racing season is just over three weeks away, with the Steve Nace Racing AMA All Star National Flat Track Series set to roll into Oglethorpe Speedway in Pooler, GA. on March 9 and the AMA Pro Flat Track doubleheader at Daytona set to kick off the big season on Thursday, March 15 and Friday, March 16. 
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JD Beach relaxes in the back of the USC Racing pit area at round 14 of the 2011 AMA Pro Flat Track Harley-Davidson Insurance Grand National Championship presented by Motorcycle-Superstore.com at the Peoria TT while the crew goes about getting his #95 Universal City Kawasaki Motorsports/Morlandt Electric/Alpinestars/
Arai-sponsored KX450F ready for some heat race action.  Beach turned a 3rd place finish in his heat into a direct transfer to the National main at the oldest track on the circuit's calendar, and went on to finish 13th in the final event.

The transplanted Washington State youngster, who now calls Philpot, KY. home, has spent the last several years campaigning both the AMA Pro Flat Track and AMA Pro Road Racing Series.  After clinching the 2010 AMA Pro SuperSport East Championship, Beach headed to the Peoria TT and the Lucas Oil Indy Mile, winning both events as an AMA Pro Motorcycle-Superstore.com Pro Singles rider. 

The next weekend he made his Expert debut at the Springfield Short Track, and promptly brought home a hard-earned 3rd place finish behind winner Henry Wiles and runner-up Jake Johnson.  JD rounded out his weekend with a 12th place finish at the Springfield Mile II on his very first ride in the Expert Twins class.

During the 2011 season, Beach still managed to qualify for 7 events on the AMA Pro Flat Track calendar while spending the better part of the season competing in the AMA Superbike Championship while riding an Attack Kawasaki ZX-10R, which he brought home in the 12th overall spot in his rookie season in the big bike class.

For the 2012 season, Beach will again be contesting some rounds of the AMA Pro Flat Track Series, while also competing in the AMA Pro Road Racing Daytona SportBike Series on a RoadRace Factory/RedBull-sponsored Yamaha YZF-R6.  He is one of the early entries already posted for the Daytona 200 scheduled to run on Saturday, March 17. 


You can check out JD's rider spotlight/profile here from AMA Pro Racing:

http://www.amaproracing.com//ft/news/index.cfm?cid=51889
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Round 11 of the 2011 AMA Pro Flat Track Harley-Davidson Insurance Grand National Championship presented by Motorcycle-Superstore.com at the I-96 Speedway in Lake Odessa, MI. saw Mikey Martin atop the box after taking the win in the AMA Pro Motorcycle-Superstore.com Pro Singles Series. 

Martin took his #91Y Weirbach Racing/General Engineering/Barnett Clutches/Spectro-backed Honda CRF450R to the win on the half-mile by over 4.3 seconds ahead of runner-up Conner Anderson, in what would be his second of three-in-a-row wins on the season (Hagerstown, Sacramento) that would catapult him into the championship points lead, a position he would never relinquish for the rest of the season.

With his 2011 AMA Pro Singles Championship in his back pocket, the popular California resident will be moving up the the Expert class for the 2012 season after two years of competition in the Pro Singles Series.  Not too long after the season wrapped at the Pomona Half-Mile in mid October, Martin and the Bonneville Performance Triumph flat track team announced they would be joining together to contest the 2012 AMA Pro Flat Track Grand National Championship Twins Series season. 

Martin and the team contested a southeast Georgia race in late October for their first time working together at the track, and have also been testing in the Carolinas during the off-season getting ready for the first Twins Series event in late May at the Springfield Mile I round.  Double M is slated to wear National #91 for his season run at the Saddlemen Rookie of the Year Award, an award that is shared by former Pro Singles Champ Brad Baker, PJ Jacobsen and Matt Weidman, just to name a few.


You can check out AMA Pro Flat Track's rider spotlight/profile on Mikey Martin here:

http://amaproracing.com/ft/news/index.cfm?cid=51824
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AMA Flat Track: Henry Wiles Takes His #17 Monster Energy Kawasaki to The #1 Spot at the Peoria TT for 7th Win in a Row

Henry Wiles showed his hand early in the day at round 14 of the 2011 AMA Pro Flat Track Harley-Davidson Insurance Grand National Championship Series at the Peoria TT in running 3rd in practice behind Jared Mees and Brad Baker.  After that, it was almost all Hammerin Hank on his #17 Monster Energy/Jones Bros/Don's Kawasaki/Arai-sponsored KX450F as he set fast time in qualifying and had the fastest heat race of the day, which put him on the pole for the National main event.

After finishing 2nd to Mees in the Dash for Cash event, Henry went into overdrive mode for the final and lead The Jammer home by 1.560 seconds in the final.  What would have surely been a larger winning margin was slimmed down during the final when Wiles missed one of his marks coming off the jump on the backstretch at the Peoria Motorcycle Club's annual event.  By the end of the day, he left little doubt in anyone's mind that he was back, and as strong as ever after winning his 7th National main event in a row at the legendary Peoria TT event. 
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Jared Mees on his #9 Lucas Oil/National Cycle/Rogers Lake/Montgomeryville Cycle-sponsored Honda CRF450 R leads Sammy Halbert on his #7 Woody Kyle Racing/Fredericktown Yamaha/AGV/Kings Kustoms-sponsored YZ450F, with Jake Johnson on his #1 Zanotti Racing/Schaeffer's H-D/Boughner Racing/MotionPro-sponsored Honda keeping it close early in the 25-lap main event at Peoria on August 21.  The trio finished in this order behind winner Wiles, with Slammin' Sammy coming home 5.767 seconds behind Henry and Jersey Jake another 3.574 seconds in arrears of the #7. 

Mees gained the most points on the day after leading Wiles home in the Dash event, with Johnson 3rd, Morton, IL. resident Rob Pearson #27 4th and Sammy finishing 5th, to gain the final point in the extra-dough and extra-points paying 4 lap event.  Sammy leaves Peoria with a slim 3 point lead in the overall championship standings behind Mees, with Johnson only gaining an extra point in the overall championship standings to make it Sammy 268 to Mees' 265 points, with Johnson now at 249 points.


The series now has the next weekend off due to the cancelation of the Lucas Oil Indy Mile, and next heads to the Labor Day Weekend doubleheader round at the Illinois State Fairgrounds on September 3-4.


Stay tuned throughout the rest of the week as we bring you more shots from the great day of racing at what was another stellar event at the Peoria TT.
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Monster Energy Kawasaki's Wiles Claims Seventh Consecutive Victory at Peoria TT!



PEORIA, IL (August 22, 2011) - Monster Energy Kawasaki's Henry Wiles came off the injured list to continue his winning ways at the historic Peoria Motorcycle Club Grounds, dominating the Peoria TT -- Round 14 of the AMA Pro Harley-Davidson Insurance Flat Track Championship -- to claim the seventh consecutive victory of his career at the popular TT track. The win didn't come as easily as some of his past versions, however, as Jared Mees (Lucas Oils/National Cycle/Rogers Lake Racing) forced Wiles to earn every inch of his advantage.

"That was the hardest race I've ever had here," said Wiles. "It was like a twenty-five-lap wrestling match. When I was rehabbing from my knee surgery, the hope was just to be able to ride here. I just rode as hard as I could, and it was good enough for the win."

Wiles spent those twenty-five-laps working to hold off Mees' unrelenting charge, but by the finish Wiles had eked out a 1.560-second margin of victory. Series points-leader Sammy Halbert (Woody Kyle Racing/Fredericktown Yamaha) was a lonely third more than five seconds back, but Halbert at least managed to build a safe cushion of four seconds between himself and defending AMA Pro Grand National Champion Jake Johnson (Zanotti Racing).

"Henry just has this place wired," said Mees. "He rode great. Last year we were second to Henry by 11.5 seconds and this year it's 1.5 seconds, so we're getting closer."

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Henry Wiles sails off the jump on the backstretch of the Peoria TT in route to his 7th win in a row on his #17 Monster Energy Kawasaki.  AMA Pro Flat Track photo by Dave Hoenig.
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While Henry kicked off the race with a holeshot, there was plenty of action farther back in the running order, as Halbert and Mees exchanged second on Lap 4 and the battle for fifth was fierce. Rob Pearson (Matt Reecy Racing), Bryan Smith (fasthog.com), Johnny Lewis (Scott's Powersports), Matt Weidman (Snip/Shoei), Chris Carr (AMA/DFW Honda), and Kenny Coolbeth (Chaplin Kawasaki) all fought tooth-and-nail for the position, Pearson regaining it late in the race. Making the best of his final race at the challenging TT venue, the "Prince of Peoria," Chris Carr, slipped around Pearson briefly, but the local rider quickly charged back to hold Carr to a sixth-place finish. Weidman, Smith, Coolbeth, and Lewis filled out the top ten.

In the overall points standings, Mees coupled his second-place finish with a victory in the Dash for Cash to close to within just three points of Halbert. Their tallies currently stand at 268 to 265.

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Henry Wiles celebrates on the podium after winning the Peoria TT on August 21, 2011.  AMA Pro Flat Track photo by Dave Hoenig.
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The Motorcycle-Superstore.com Pro Singles class had its twist and turns -- and heartbreak -- as young Briar Bauman triumphed over a mechanical, a back-row start in the Last Chance race, and a last-row start in the main to claim his first win in the Pro Singles class, only to have to relinquish it moments later when his fuel was found to be out of compliance.

"It's the kind of news AMA Pro tech officials really hate to deliver," said AMA Pro Flat Track Director Dan Johnsen, "especially when we know it was inadvertent on the part of the rider and team in question. We're obviously duty-bound to follow our own rules, though, so all we can do is wish Briar and his supporters much future success -- he certainly showed he's capable of it tonight."

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AMA Pro Flat Track Pro Singles Series riders head into turn one during the Pro Singles main event at the Peoria TT.  AMA Pro Flat Track photo by Dave Hoenig.
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Following Bauman's disqualification, runner-up Mike Avila and the rest of the field advanced one position in the results. While Avila took the points for a win, second went to Gerit Callies (Twenty Six Suspension/G2 Ergonomics), with Mack Daddy Racing's Stephen Vanderkuur, TNT Harley-Davidson's Andrew Smith, and points-leader Mikey Martin (Weirbach Racing) filling out the top five.

Despite Avila's five wins, he remains third in points behind Martin and Callies. The championship race between these three has narrowed to a fifteen-point spread.

The AMA Pro Harley-Davidson Insurance Flat Track Championship next heads to Springfield's Illinois State Fairgrounds for the Springfield TT on September 3, followed by the Springfield Mile II on September 4. Rounds 15 and 16 on the schedule add up to the best way for any flat track fan to spend the Labor Day weekend; for Springfield tickets and information, visit www.illinoismda.com or call (217) 753-8866 or (888) 468-1622.

To be a part of the AMA Pro Harley-Davidson Insurance Flat Track Championship, please visit www.amaproracing.com and join us on facebook.com/AMAProFlatTrackSeries and twitter.com/AMAProFlatTrack.

AMA Pro Racing is the premier professional motorcycle racing organization in North America, operating a full schedule of events and championships for a variety of motorcycle disciplines. Learn more about AMA Pro Racing at www.amaproracing.com.   For additional information contact:   AMA Pro Racing Communications, (386) 492-1014, communications@amaproracing.com

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AMA Pro Flat Track Harley-Davidson Insurance Grand National Championship Series round 14 at the Peoria TT results can be found here:

http://amaproracing.com/ft/events/results.cfm?year=2011&eid=2011021165&discipline=FT&class=FL&type=F&rnum=1&class_sort=FL

Full results (PDF versions):

http://results.amaproracing.com/live/results/pdfresults/ft/2011/F1165/default.aspx

Here's Larry Lawrence's story of the race at Cycle News.com.  A big thanks goes out to LL for letting Stu's Shots tag along to this great event:

http://www.cyclenews.com/articles/flat-track/2011/08/21/wiles-wins-seventh-straight-peoria-tt/

And a big thanks to LL at his The Rider Files.com site for showing that Stu's Shots does occassionally get down and close to the action:

http://www.theriderfiles.com/?p=12366

AMA Pro Flat Track has this album of shots from the Peoria TT thanks to official photographer Dave Hoenig:

http://amaproracing.com/ft/multimedia/gallery.cfm?gid=6712

And here's the link to Dave's official site, Flat Trak Fotos.com, where he has results and (soon to be posted) his full catalog of photos from the Peoria TT:

http://www.flattrakfotos.com/2011%20Results/RESULTS%2008-21-11.html
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Hot Diggitty Dog! Folks, We Now Have an AMA Flat Track Schedule for the 2010 Season...

Thanks to a posting from the great folks at http://www.flattrack.com/ we have learned in the last

couple of days that the AMA has released a schedule for the '10 season for the flat track

series. Below is a cut and paste from that schedule as was obtained from that post.

Tracks returning are Peoria, Lima, Indy, Springfield-spring and end of summer events-and

of course kicking off the season at Daytona. This of course comes as great news for fans

and competitors alike, as the flat track series is some of, if not THE BEST racing going bar

none, and showcases some of the most exciting racing, let alone personalities in the sport.

For a sport that has been around in more or less it's current form for over 55 years is a

testament to the level of competition, thrills, and down right adrenaline that will encompass

you when you take it all in. And not too mention what the riders go through.....

While you are planning your calendar for the coming season, and doing some bench racing

to get you through the long winter--especially here in the midwest--you can also check out the

shots I have thrown in for this post tonight to celebrate the upcoming year of competition for

the greatest racing on two wheels--or any, for that matter. And for the record, I'll see you at

Peoria, Springfield, Lima, Indy--that's a no brainer since it's less then 10 miles--and Gas City.

It's gonna be a fun year! Can't wait to go racin' again!

Starting off at the top is a shot of one of Ricky Graham's old RS750 Honda mounts that he ran

for Johnny Goad and USC Racing in the mid '90s. I didn't find out who, but someone had this on

display in the vendor's area of the Inaugaral Springfield Hall of Fame Race back in '98 over the Labor Day weekend. Sweet piece, and I have been a BIG Ricky Graham fan since I saw him win

his first national at Indy back in the summer of '80. RIP RG! You are missed....

I then tossed in a shot of various riders during practice for the June 2006 Lima, Ohio half mile.

This shot says it all for the different and varying lines available at the great pee gravel-based

track. And the folks that run this race do it right. As I have mentioned before, if you can get to

Lima the last w/e in June, you won't be dissapointed. Super racing and great little facility.

Next we have Chris 'Air' Carr flying off the jump at Peoria on his #1 Wood Rotax in August of 2000 during one of his many marathon run-from-the-field romps he put in at the home of the

natural amphi-theater track. Another great place to see some action, and the IMDA is the best

at putting on great events.

We then have a shot of Carr, again, but this time on the #4 Kenny Tolbert-tuned H-D XR750

leading a pack of riders into turn 1 at Springfield during the Labor Day running of this great

race in '01. Keeping in touch are #23 Kevin 'Cupcake' Atherton, #26 Steve Beattie, the great

Jay Springsteen, former 3-Time Grand National Champion on the Bartels #9, and #67 Mike

Hacker. I'm a big fan of mile racing, at it doesn't get any better then Springfield. You can

almost always get a seat, but you won't get to use it much as the 140mph action will keep you

on your toes all afternoon.

Last but not least we have a shot that has been a favorite of mine for quite a few years now.

I took this one at Louisville--back in the good ole days when you didn't have to put up with

the b.s. antics of the too-rowdy crowds. This was in June of '75 during the practice sessions

for that night's half mile national. This is coming off the back stretch and into turn 3 with

Corky Keener #62, Randy Scott #50, and '75 Grand National Champ Gary Scott on the

Bill Werner-tuned XR-750 #64. This shot pretty much says it all for style and grace for

running a half mile, and these guys had it nailed on this one. I just felt lucky to be there to

get it and see it. Stuff like this drew me in on flat track and I have been craving it ever

since. Great stuff!

Thanks again for coming by and checking us out, thanks to Wayne Hosaka and his folks

over at http://www.flattrack.com/ for the post and their tireless efforts to seek and keep the truth

and faith in flat track, and thanks to the Good Lord above for allowing us to be able to take in

this great sport of flat track racing. Take care and please come back and see us again!

2010 AMA Pro Flat Track Grand National Championship Schedule

-- Confirmed Events --

1)March 3 DAYTONA® Flat Track (Daytona Beach, Florida) TT

2)March 4 DAYTONA® Flat Track (Daytona Beach, Florida) Short Track

3)May 1 Yavapai Downs (Prescott, Arizona) Mile

4)May 29 Illinois State Fairgrounds (Springfield, Illinois) TT

5)May 30 Illinois State Fairgrounds (Springfield, Illinois) Mile

6)June 5 Gas City I-69 Speedway (Gas City, Indiana) Short Track

7)June 19 The Red Mile (Lexington, Kentucky) Mile

8)June 26 Allen County Fairgrounds (Lima, Ohio) Half-Mile

9)July 10 I-96 Speedway (Lake Odessa, Michigan) Half-Mile

10)July 31 Calistoga Fairgrounds (Calistoga, California) Half-Mile

11)August 7 Hagerstown Speedway (Hagerstown, Maryland) Half-Mile

12)August 14 Beulah Park (Grove City, Ohio) Mile

13)August 22 Peoria Race Park (Peoria, Illinois) TT

14)August 28 Indiana State Fairgrounds (Indianapolis, Indiana) Mile

15)September 4 Illinois State Fairgrounds (Springfield, Illinois) Short Track

16)September 5 Illinois State Fairgrounds (Springfield, Illinois) Mile

17)September 11 Canterbury Park (Minneapolis, Minnesota) Mile

18)October 9 Yavapai Downs (Prescott, Arizona) Short Track

19)October 10 Yavapai Downs (Prescott, Arizona) Mile

Additional dates are expected to be added.

3-TT's4-Short Track's

4-Half-Mile's

8-Mile's