Nicky Hayden & Ducati Corse Wish You a Happy Holidays!

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One of the Lloyd Brothers Motorsports Ducati Hypermotard 1098s sits outside the team's pit area adorned with the competition number of former '99 AMA Flat Track Rookie of the Year and '02 AMA Superbike Champion Nicky Hayden. Number Sixty Nine himself rode this particular 1098 on a few 'demonstration' laps at the Lucas Oil Indy Mile some eight days earlier, letting the great crowd on hand know that he was glad to be there and thrilled to be spinning it up again on the dirt mile oval. And when he was done, he let everyone in the house know that he'd 'be back someday' to the great series that is AMA Pro Flat Track Grand National Championship Series Racing.
Born, bred and brought up on the dirt tracks of the midwest, the Middle Hayden Brother, who also just happens to be the '06 MotoGP World Champion, was a regular competitor on The Rolling Thunder Show before the big bucks and the call of European and World Competition came knocking on his Owensboro, KY. door. But Nicky made it known on a Hot August Night in Indy where he REALLY wanted to be. And if you didn't believe him, the quasi-permanent smile on his face after turning those laps all but told the true story in itself. Hayden was home, and it sure felt good.
The evening's entertainment was also used to announce Mr. Hayden's resigning with the Ducati Corse MotoGP team for the next two years as well, with his new (and former with Honda) team mate Valentino Rossi coming into the team for the 2011 season and beyond.
But the evening couldn't have happened in this way, shape or form if not for the wonderful efforts of the Lloyd Brothers Motorsports team in pulling out one of Joe Kopp's back-up bikes and setting it up for Nicky to ride. The ENI/American
Agip/MotoConcepts-sponsored 1098 is a stable mate to the bike that Joe had taken to the win at the Arizona Mile in Prescott Valley in May, breaking an almost 12 year stronghold the Harley-Davidson XR750 had held in winning AMA Flat Track Grand National Championship Twins Series events. After the event, team co-owners Dave & Mike Lloyd had a special framed wall hanging made of the event that was made up of the original number plate that adorned that great 'demo' ride at Indy (signed by Nicky himself) and a shot of him spinning it up on the Indiana State Fairgrounds legendary mile oval.
That mounting can just be seen in this shot sticking out from the right side of the front wheel, as the bike was displayed at the Springfield Mile on September 5. You can see a better shot of that hanging by looking back at my September archives, because at that time just after the Springfield event, Dave and Mike took the wall hanging and put it up for auction on eBay.com and then donated the proceeds to the riders safety AirFence fund. Class act, and talk about giving back to the sport. And you won't find cleaner or more sano machinery anywhere. These guys know how to put a competitive race team together and make it work!
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'06 MotoGP World Champion Nicky Hayden and the Ducati Corse MotoGP team put together a really sweet holiday video for all of the fans. Being the jokester that he can be, Nicky is seen 'sneaking' through the Ducati factory and 'test riding' some of the Italian company's wares that are left unattended. Man, now wouldn't THAT be too cool?!

So check this out and have a good holiday chuckle out of this one from Nicky Hayden and the Ducati Corse MotoGP team!

Thanks to YouTube, Nicky Hayden and Ducati Corse for this short holiday video:

http://www.youtube.com/user/DucatiMotorHolding#p/u/0/ma3jTYk7RqE
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And here is the link to Dave and Mike Lloyd's Lloyd Brothers Motorsports team, who put together the Indy ride for Nicky back in August, as well as Joe Kopp's mounts for the season:

http://www.lloydbrothersmotorsports.com/
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Pass the word on and get the word out that LBM is still looking for sponsors to get back to the track for the AMA Pro Flat Track Twins Series Racing season in 2011.

You can contact Dave Lloyd @ 614-402-3446 or @ dave@lloydbrothersmotorsports.net.

Drop them a line and help out a great team in need that really gives back and has for years in the great sport of AMA Flat Track Racing! And tell 'em Stu's Shots sent you.
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AMA Flat Track: Prime Sponsorship Opportunity Available With Lloyd Brothers & Ducati, and Now Is the Time to Get On Board!

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'00 AMA Flat Track Grand National Champion Joe Kopp discusses the numbers from practice and qualifying with team co-owner Dave Lloyd during the break in the on-track action at the Springfield Mile round of the AMA Pro Flat Track K&N Filters presented by Motorcycle Superstore.com Grand National Championship Series on September 5. Kopp and the Lloyd Brothers Motorsports team managed this year to do what no other manufacturer other then Harley-Davidson had done in the AMA Pro Flat Track Series since August of '98. By winning the May round at the Yavapai Downs Mile in Arizona, the team managed to put the Ducati Hypermotard on the top of the box and broke a string of H-D wins in the series that had stood since Rich King won the Joliet Half Mile in August of '98 on a Team Corbin Honda RS750.
With riders Aaron King, Larry Pegram, Henry Wiles and Joe Kopp, the Lloyd Brothers team has fielded top-notch and competitive equipment in the series with the Aprilia, and of late the Big Ducati, for several years now and looked to have their first win a season or two ago before being denied that triumph with Henry Wiles at the Lima Half Mile. Putting the package together with Kopp for 2010 proved to be a mixed blessing. Kopp wins in Arizona in May, leads or is in contention for the championship right up until the end of the season (finishing second behind eventual champion Jake Johnson) and then makes it official what most everyone knew was most likely to happen at season's end, and retires from full-time competition.
With the 2011 AMA Pro Flat Track Grand National Championship Series season only a few months off with the opening Daytona Singles rounds on March 10 & 11, and the first Twins Series round scheduled for a return trip to the Yavapai Downs Mile on May 1, the Lloyd Brothers Motorsports team is currently looking for sponsorship for their team so they can put Henry Wiles back in the rider's seat to replace the now-retired Joe Kopp. According to team co-owner Dave Lloyd, they have agreements in place with Hammerin Hank to make this possible should the needed sponsorship come to fruition. And coming from a long-time fan and follower of this sport, that could be a lethal and winning combination to put on the grid, especially considering the development curve that was seen with the Big Ducati this year.
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With the release of the 2011 AMA Pro Flat Track Grand National Championship Series schedule the other day and Christmas just a few short hours away at the end of the week, news comes to Stu's Shots today that one of the long-time competitors in the sport of AMA Flat Track is in need of a sponsor in order to move forward in the upcoming season. And this is no ordinary team either, but the Lloyd Brothers Motorsports team that fielded Joe Kopp, the '00 AMA Flat Track Grand National Champion on the LBM Ducati Hypermotard this year.

You might have heard of them. A little over seven months ago, Kopp took the Lloyd Brothers Ducati to the win at the Arizona Mile on the Yavapai Downs Mile, for the first win in the Twins Series since Rich King and Honda won at Joliet in August of 1998. The win that rocked the world in AMA Flat Track Racing!

Speaking with team co-owner Dave Lloyd this evening, he told us here at Stu's Shots that the team has provisions in place to bring Henry 'Hammerin Hank' Wiles back to the team to run all of the 2011 Twins Series events 'should the needed sponsorship become available.' Henry has ridden for the Lloyd Brothers squad in the past, having taken the team's Aprilia to an 'almost win' second place finish at Lima in June of '09. And with their background together and knowledge of how each operates, it would be a great fit for all to get the 2-Time AMA Pro Flat Track Singles Champion in the Ducati seat full-time for the upcoming season. With less then two months time to get plans together, Dave is 'cautiously optimistic' to be able to do so and feels there is a 'better then 50/50 chance' at this time that things will come together for Henry and the LBM squad. He did mention that should things NOT work out, Henry still has his 'options open' so that he can still put together something otherwise.

With the economy in the world, let alone just in the United States still in a flux, sponsorship in any sport or on any level is hard to come by. But this golden opportunity to hook up with one of the most professionally run teams (let alone professional looking teams!) in the sport of AMA Flat Track Racing, would be a great way for a company-or companies-to get on board with an established team, in an established sport that is growing and bringing fans back to the races again, as well as getting their name out to the motorcycle masses and racing fans. And with the team putting the Big Duc on the top of the box in Arizona, and then helping Kopp to finish second in the final championship standings, there is no doubt that there is no limit to what the possibilites could or would be for them in 2011, building and growing from their great season in 2010.

In spite of the 'supposed' lesser costs of racing in AMA Flat Track (compared to Nascar, AMA Road Racing, etc.), it still isn't cheap any way you look at it. Campaigning all Twins rounds this year except for Calistoga (where Kopp rode the Latus H-D XR) and Knoxville (which was rained out), the team spent $12K this year in diesel fuel alone for their transporter. And with sales of oils and lubricants down considerably in the 2010 year for their business, they just can't justify the spending to go racing without more sponsorship backing in the upcoming season. And for what this team has accomplished in such a short time (compared to the decades-long domination of the H-D XR750 in the series) it would be a damned shame to NOT see them back out on the track giving the XR750 a run for it's money in 2011. The level of professional the team displays and exudes on and off the track is unparalleled in any form of wheeled racing and can be seen in this or any shot I have displayed on Stu's Shots this year of the team. It is a well-oiled and fun atmosphere around this team, with winning in their sights and minds at all times in The Rolling Thunder Show.

So should you, or someone you know, be in the market to sponsor a winning and high-level and high-profile team in the great sport of AMA Flat Track Racing, then this shot to get on board with Dave and Mike Lloyd of Lloyd Brothers Motorsports, with 2-Time and defending AMA Pro Flat Track Singles Champion Henry Wiles twisting the throttle, is the golden opportunity to do so. And you'd be having one heckuva lot of fun while doing it, too!

You can contact Dave Lloyd via phone @ 614-402-3446 or via e-mail @ dave@lloydbrothersmotorsports.net. Or you can e-mail me @ stuman714@yahoo.com and I will not only be glad, but thrilled to death to be able to put you in contact with them.

This is the time to move and get on board the LBM train. It's moving fast and furious, and will be good for a fast and thrilling ride in 2011!
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Dave and Mike Lloyd put out this video a few days ago on the team and how the Ducati came together and how the win at Yavapai Downs changed the course of history in AMA Flat Track Racing:

http://vimeo.com/17893126
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Here's the link to the team's website. This is another fine example of the professional look of the team and their ability to do it right:

http://www.lloydbrothersmotorsports.com/
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This is another great example of the first class effort that LBM puts forward. This is their marketing package that gives you an idea of what they can and will do for a sponsor in the great sport of AMA Pro Flat Track Racing:

http://www.lloydbrothersmotorsports.net/LBM-web.htm.pdf
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Tim White Photography had this great shot of Henry Wiles on the team's Aprilia from Hagerstown in 2009. Pretty good looking combination that looks great on, and off the track:

http://tswphoto.blogspot.com/2010/12/wednesday-wallpaper-henry-wiles-aprilia.html
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And finally, here is a great shot by Larry Lawrence at his great site The Rider Files.com. This is also one of Henry on the Lloyd Brothers Aprilia, but from Lima in 2009:

http://www.theriderfiles.com/wp-content/uploads/2009/06/Lima-Wiles.jpg
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AMA Flat Track: Kenny Coolbeth Returns With Screamin Eagle H-D for 2011 AMA Flat Track Season

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Kenny Coolbeth, Jr. can be seen looking over at his Screamin Eagle H-D Factory XR750 as the rest of his team gets the #2 Harley-Davidson Motor Corp/Screamin Eagle/Motion Pro/Wiseco-sponsored mount ready for the Labor Day Weekend running of the Springfield Mile back in September. The '06-'08 AMA Flat Track Grand National Championship Twins Series Champion and '07 AMA Flat Track Grand National Championship Singles Series Champion return to the factory H-D team was made official this weekend for the upcoming 2011 AMA Flat Track Series season. Harley-Davidson made all of their 2011 season racing announcements yesterday in Long Beach as part of the International Motorcycle Show.
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As previously expected, Kenny Coolbeth, Jr. will be returning to the Screamin Eagle Harley-Davidson Motor Corp. for the 2011 AMA Pro Flat Track Grand National Championship Series. The King of Cool, who has been with the Harley Factory Team since the '06 season according to AMA Pro Flat Track's rider bio on him, won the Canterbury Park Mile this year, one of the just announced returning venues for the upcoming 2011 season, and finished 5th in the final 2010 GN Championship point standings. He also garnered five additional podiums in the '10 season.

Coolbeth, who is currently 11th on the all-time wins list in AMA Flat Track Grand National Championship Series Racing with 25 wins, had announced late last week he would be taking his Singles Series program over to Chaplin Kawasaki after being with Bettencourt's Honda for at least the better part of the last decade. He has finished in the top 10 in AMA Flat Track Series Racing season-ending point standings every year since 2000.

Paul Carruthers has the story at Cycle News.com and you can read the great news below.

Congrats to Kenny and it will be great to see you back on the Factory H-D XR750 again in 2011!

http://www.cyclenews.com/articles/road-racing/2010/12/18/harley-s-racing-programs-for-2011
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Cobra Engineering Builds Retro AMA Flat Track Bubba Shobert Honda RS750

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One of the winningest racers in the history of AMA Flat Track Grand National Championship Series Racing sits on display at the Barber Museum in beautiful downtown Leeds, AL. in April of 2007. Bubba Shobert, the '85-'87 AMA Flat Track Grand National Champion & the '88 AMA Superbike Champion, piloted one of these Honda RS750 production/prototype flat track racers to numerous wins (and titles) in what was considered the greatest assault on AMA Flat Track Series Racing that has ever been undertaken.

The RS750 also won championships with Ricky Graham in '84 (Honda's first championship in GNC competition) and again in '93 with Ricky G doing the riding and Johnny Goad doing the tuning on a privateer effort that not only caught the Harley-Davidson Factory Team off guard, but the rest of the flat track community as well.

With Harley-Davidson and their legendary XR750 having all but totally
dominated the big tracks in The Rolling Thunder Show since the mid 70s, Honda was loved and reviled at the same time for their usual method of assault on racing-come in big, spend tons of dough, win it all, and pack up and go home. Nonetheless, the largest motorcycle manufacturer in the world still made what was considered a most preeminent statement against what was-and has been since-the most dominant and commonly preferred machine of use in AMA Flat Track Grand National Championship Series Racing.

And to this day, no other has dared to set foot in the arena of American flat track racing to take on the long-standing Milwaukee breed. With Kawasaki taking and making a great step in winning at Indy and Springfield this year, and with the horizon of the '750'-only platform for 2012 and beyond just ahead, could we possibly be seeing history being re-written some 30 years later? Only time will tell, but one thing is known. Anyone that knows or has known AMA Flat Track over the years will tell you this........what Honda did was change the course of history in flat track racing (and they did it with a big WOW!), albeit only for a short chapter in the long story of American flat track racing.

As an update to this post, I was informed that this bike was raced by Dave Lloyd, of Lloyd Brothers Racing fame. So this bike has quite a pedigree to go along with it. VERY cool, and thanks Dave!
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While checking out the usual suspects today, I came acrossed this great retro racer put together by Cobra Engineering, a motorcycle parts and accessories manufacturer out of California. Their Special Projects Division built a Bubba Shobert Honda RS750 replica that is a very neat spin on the great Honda flat track racers that Shobert and Ricky Graham won numerous races and championships with in the '80s and again with Graham in '93.

The company, which specializes in aftermarket exhausts for the cruiser industry decided to build a replica out of Honda's new Shadow RS750 that just recently became available in the U.S. for the cruiser market. In the process, they put together what this writer thinks is one of the neatest builds honoring AMA Flat Track Grand National Championship Series Racing ever seen.

Check out the links below to see and hear what and how Cobra put this project together, and take a step back into memory lane!
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Cobra Engineering, out of Yorba Linda, CA., is an aftermarket accessories manufacturer that got into the 'metrics' cruiser business back in the early '90s. Their Special Projects Division details the build of this very unique race winning retro mod here:

http://www.cobrausa.com/cobra_special_projects_divison_bike.php?bike_id=93&product_name=RS750%20Tracker

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The great guys at Sideburn Magazine across the pond had these cool shots and some background on the origins of this very cool retro racer:

http://sideburnmag.blogspot.com/2010/12/cobra-rs750-homage.html
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Ken Boyko, VP of Cobra USA's Special Projects Division, talks here about the evolution of building the 'Bubba' replica, as well as another cool replica that was built out of the new Honda Shadow RS750. That model is a retro look at the mid-60s Honda CL77 305 SuperHawk, one of the best selling bikes in Honda's lineup in those days. Having owned a '67 CL77 (thanks to my dearly departed Dad) this one holds even more special meaning to this old head!

Read and view on here:

http://www.cobrausa.com/cobra_special_projects_divison.php
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Chris 'CJ' Jonnum, the editor for Road Racer X print and online mag, attended the Long Beach International Motorcycle Show and posted these shots yesterday of the offerings this year. One of the display bikes was the 'Bubba' replica from Cobra USA, CJ has a shot of it below.

NOTE: According to Cobra's website, this bike is also slated to appear at the other IMS shows including Chicago, Cleveland and New York. If you want to see it in person, make your plans now!

http://www.roadracerx.com/features/road-racerhead/road-racerhead-51/
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Here's another one of the original bikes that is enshrined at the AMA Hall of Fame Museum in Pickerington, OH.:

http://www.motorcyclemuseum.org/classics/bike.asp?id=25
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Ed Youngblood's great MotoHistory.net has this great article penned by the one and only Dave Despain that tells the REAL story about how Honda came into the great sport of AMA Flat Track and flat out stole the show-for awhile:

http://www.motohistory.net/featuredstory/honda_feature_despain.html
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AMA Pro Flat Track Releases 2011 AMA Flat Track Grand National Championship Series Schedule

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The racing is hot and heavy in heat race action back in September of '75 in the Camel Pro Series AMA Flat Track Grand National Championship Series annual stop at the Syracuse Mile, located at the New York State Fairgrounds. One of the regular stops for The Rolling Thunder Show up until just a few years ago, the race seemed to be plagued with rain-outs in the last few years of it's running in the early '00s and hasn't been seen on the schedule for some time now.
Leading this pack of riders on the #82 is Ricky Campbell, followed by the #76X of Ken Springsteen on his Vista Sheen-sponsored machine, '81 AMA Flat Track Grand National Champion and current Flat Track Manager Mike Kidd on his Kruger Racing #72, the late Jay Ridgeway on the #9C, the late Randy Cleek on the Bel Ray/K&N-sponsored #29 (and the '76 AMA Road Racing Champion), Keith Ulicki on the #8K, Mike Caves on the #28, and bringing up the rear the #92 of HJ Products-sponsored Steve Droste. All riders are Harley-Davidson XR750 mounted in this shot.
Back in '75, the AMA Grand National Championship consisted of 20 total events broken into 17 flat track events and 3 road racing events. In '76, the Camel Pro Series AMA Grand National Championship Series ballooned into 28 total events, 24 flat track and 4 road racing events. After the AMA split the series in the mid-80s, each respective championship stood on it's own and to this day continues that way. Furthermore, the AMA Pro Flat Track Grand National Championship Series in itself has run anywhere from 15-22 events each year on it's calendar.
Good news hit the airwaves today as the current regime of AMA Pro Flat Track, headed up by previously mentioned Mike Kidd, his brother Gary, former GNC contender Steve Morehead and a team of great people too lengthy to name here, released the 2011 AMA Pro Flat Track Grand National Championship Series schedule. The upcoming season has 22 current events on the calendar, including (among others) the regular mix of great returning venues (Indy, Springfield, Yavapai Downs, Lake Odessa and Lima), a nice mix of new venues (Hartford, MI. and Billings, MT.) and some great venues not seen for awhile on the regular schedule (Sacramento and Castle Rock.)
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From a press release from AMA Pro Flat Track:

DAYTONA BEACH, Fla. (December 17, 2010) – AMA Pro Racing announced today the 2011 AMA Pro Flat Track Grand National Championship schedule that features an increased number of races, plus new and former events back on the schedule.
The 2011 schedule features 22 dates in 17 markets across the country with a mixture of Short Track, TT, Half-Mile and Mile dirt tracks.
Once again the AMA Pro Flat Track Grand National Championship will consist of three series; Expert Singles, Expert Twins and the highly successful Pro Singles.
The season will open during Daytona Bike Week at the DAYTONA® Flat Track moved from the traditional mid-week double national, with a Short Track on Thursday, March 10th and Friday, March 11th.
Next on the schedule will be the only indoor National of the Series in Du Quoin, Ill. at the Southern Illinois Complex April 16th. The series will then move west to the Salinas Sports Complex for the first Tourist Trophy “TT” National of the season, then returns to Yavapai Downs in Prescott, Ariz. for the Mile May 1st.
Inaugural events will be held at the Southern Illinois Complex in Du Quoin, Ill.; The Salinas Sports Complex in Salinas, Calif.; Hartford Motor Speedway in Hartford, MI.; and after a long hiatus, the return of the Sacramento Mile in Sacramento, Calif.; Castle Rock TT in Castle Rock, Wash.; Metra Park Raceway Half-mile in Billings, Mont.
Annual events will continue at Yavapai Downs in Prescott Valley, Ariz.; Illinois State Fairgrounds in Springfield, Ill.; Allen County Fairgrounds in Lima, Ohio; Hagerstown Speedway in Hagerstown, Md.; I-96 Speedway in Lake Odessa, Minn.; Peoria Race Park in Peoria, Ill.; Indiana State Fairgrounds in Indianapolis, Ind.; Canterbury Park in Minneapolis, Minn.; Calistoga Speedway in Calistoga, Calif.; and the highly anticipated rained-out event in 2010 at the Knoxville Raceway in Knoxville, Iowa.
“The expansion of the series is exciting news for our fans, riders and sponsors,” said Gary Kidd, Flat Track Manager of AMA Pro Racing. “We continue to work hard to showcase America’s traditional form of motorcycle racing in various parts of the country. Our goal is to continue to work with our existing promoters while going out to find aggressive promoters near key markets that will further benefit the series.”
2011 Confirmed Events
March 10 DAYTONA® Flat Track (Daytona Beach, Florida) Short Track
March 11 DAYTONA® Flat Track (Daytona Beach, Florida) Short Track
April 16 Southern Illinois Center (Du Quoin, Illinois) Short Track (Note Updated 1/19/11)April 23 Salinas Sports Complex (Salinas, California) TT
May 1 Yavapai Downs (Prescott Valley, Arizona) Mile
May 28 Illinois State Fairgrounds (Springfield, Illinois) TT
May 29 Illinois State Fairgrounds (Springfield, Illinois) Mile
June 11 Hartford Motor Speedway (Hartford, Michigan) Half-mile
June 25 Allen County Fairgrounds (Lima, Ohio) Half-mile
July 9 Hagerstown Speedway (Hagerstown, Maryland) Half-mile
July 16 I-96 Speedway (Lake Odessa, Michigan) Half-mile
July 23 Metra Park Raceway (Billings, Montana) Half-mile
July 30 Cal Expo Fair (Sacramento, California) Mile
August 6 Castle Rock Race Park (Castle Rock, Washington) TT
August 21 Peoria Race Park (Peoria, Illinois) TT
August 27 Indiana State Fairgrounds (Indianapolis, Indiana) Mile
September 3 Illinois State Fairgrounds (Springfield, Illinois) Short Track
September 4 Illinois State Fairgrounds (Springfield, Illinois) Mile
September 10 Knoxville Raceway (Knoxville, Iowa) Half-mile
September 24 Canterbury Park (Minneapolis, Minnesota) Mile
October 1 Calistoga Speedway (Calistoga, California) Half-mile
October 9 Yavapai Downs (Prescott Valley, Arizona) Mile
*Additional Dates TBD/TBA
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Great news from AMA Pro Flat Track today in the announcing of the 2011 AMA Pro Flat Track Grand National Championship Series schedule. With numerous returning as well as long-standing events, and a great mix of west and east coast and midwest events, new venues and a return to venues not seen in some time, AMA Pro Flat Track has outdone itself again in providing the very best in entertainment, racing and the big wow that is always present in The Rolling Thunder Show. Hats off to AMA Flat Track Manager Mike Kidd and Team AMA Flat Track for putting this great calendar together for the upcoming season.
WOW! Stu's Shots thought this season was super, but 2011 is shaping up to be a barn burner of a year! Is it March yet?!
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Updated Wed. 1/19/11 1800 EST:
The original date for the DuQuoin Short Track has been updated from April 9 to reflect the new date of April 16.
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Ben Bostrom & Michael Jordan Motorsports Test at Jennings

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Ben Bostrom pulls the #1 Vance & Hines/Parts Unlimited/Castrol/Dunlop-sponsored Ducati 996 off the track and into the pits during the July '99 running of the Honda Super Cycle Weekend presented by Dunlop Tire AMA Superbike final at Mid Ohio. Bostrom, who had clinched the '98 AMA Superbike Championship as a member of Team Honda, had done so without scoring a victory in the premier class, winning the title based on his extremely consistent season alongside team mate and '95 AMA Superbike Champion Miguel Duhamel. Signing with the powerhouse Vance & Hines Ducati team for the '99 season, BBoz was leading the Mid Ohio event on the way to what surely would have been his first career victory, when a leaking oil seal took him out of contention. He did, however, go on to win his first premier class event later in the summer at Branierd with the team.
After riding for the Graves Yamaha team for several years in the AMA Superstock Series and Supersport Series, and winning the '09 Daytona 200 to go along with his '08 AMA Supersport Championship, Bostrom rode for the factory supported Pat Clark Yamaha team in the 2010 AMA Superbike Championship, and won his first premier series event at Laguna Seca since the 2004 season. The elder of the Bostrom Brothers then signed in the off season to ride Suzuki GSX-R1000s (for the first time in his career) with the Michael Jordan Motorsports team for the upcoming 2011 AMA Superbike Championship.
The team has been testing at the Jennings GP track in Northern Florida the last several days, and BBoz and newly signed team mate Roger Lee Hayden have been able to shakedown the 2009 version of the one liter Suzukis before taking delivery of the 2011 models sometime close to the upcoming holidays. Testing concludes today at Jennings, and the team was said a couple of weeks ago to be tire testing at Daytona with Dunlop in the next few days in preparation for the upcoming Daytona season opener in March 2011.
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The 'new look' Michael Jordan Motorsports team of '98 AMA Superbike Champion Ben Bostrom and '07 AMA 600 Supersport Champion Roger Lee Hayden has been in North Florida the last couple of days testing the '09 model Suzuki GSX-R1000s in preparation for the upcoming 2011 AMA Superbike Championship Season. Expectations are that the team will be able to take delivery on the '11 model Suzukis sometime before the end of the year, and have the new models ready to go for the second round of Dunlop Tire testing at Daytona in mid-January. The team was thought to be among the few teams invited to participate in tire testing this month at Daytona, which was originally slated to start on December 19.

With both team members getting acclimated to their new surroundings (RLH was off in World Superbike in '10 riding for the under funded Team Pedercini Kawasaki, while BBoz rode for the factory supported Pat Clark Yamaha team here in the States) the shake down tests in Jennings, FL. were meant more for the new signees to 'come to grips' so to speak with the big Suzukis. Using the '09 models (Suzuki didn't import 2010 models to the U.S. due to the torrid shape of the U.S. economy, let alone motorcycle industry) the new teamsters put in as much time on the track as was allowed, due to the colder then normal weather inundating Northern Florida (and the rest of the U.S. as well!)
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Henny Ray Abrams was on hand during the testing and he filed this report late last night on Cycle News.com. Read on:

http://www.cyclenews.com/articles/road-racing/2010/12/15/jordan-suzuki-team-hits-the-track
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This is the link to the official Jordan team site, but right now the only real updates they have are some Twitter updates. Check it out:

http://www.23race.com/
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AMA Flat Track: Chris Carr Talks About 2011 Retirement Tour and Taking Chris Carr Racing Into the Future

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One of the most powerful duos in AMA Pro Flat Track Racing are shown at the Springfield Mile on September 5 as legendary tuner Kenny Tolbert gets ready to hand the #4 Lancaster H-D/DFW Honda/Wiseco Pistons/Cometic Gaskets-sponsored XR750 to 7-Time AMA Flat Track Grand National Champion Chris Carr for the final qualifying session of the day. After setting the fastest time in combined practice and the 8th fastest time in combined qualifying, Chris went on to finish 2nd on the day, just .048 seconds behind event winner Bryan Smith on the #42 Werner Springsteen Monster Energy Kawasaki and .048 seconds ahead of 3rd place finisher on the day Jared Mees on the #1 Rogers Lake Racing XR750. The duo finished the year ranked in the 7th position in the overall AMA Pro Flat Track Grand National Championship point standings.
With the announcement last Friday of Chris' retirement after the 2011 season, a pro racing career that started in the 1985 season with winning the AMA Flat Track Rookie of the Year, the future looks very bright for Chris Carr Racing for the '11 season and beyond. Together these two men have won multiple races and championships, and plans to continue into the future with that winning combination are in place, according to the multi-time champ.
Also some of the most personable people you will ever come acrossed at the track, the duo look to add an up-and-coming rider to help carry the winning ways forward for the team. And with the background and abilities of these two gentlemen heading up the effort, the future looks great for the team, as well as for the great sport of AMA Flat Track and The Rolling Thunder Show. With KT's wrenching abilities, and Chris' noted ability to be one of the greatest ambassadors that the sport has ever seen, the groundwork is already in place to make a major assault on the AMA Grand National Championship for 2011 and beyond. And this is great news for ALL fans of the series, especially long-time fans such as this writer. The best sport on wheels just got a major infusion of adrenaline for the future!
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Although last Friday's announcement that 7-Time AMA Flat Track Grand National Champion Chris Carr would be retiring after the 2011 season was met with some sadness, the best part of this news is that Chris Carr Racing is poised for the future in the great sport of AMA Flat Track. CCR plans to continue into the future, and with Master Tuner Kenny Tolbert, Carr's long-time tuner, to head up the program. In making the announcement, the great news that came out of this for the future is that the long-time duo plans to continue into the future with The Rolling Thunder Show, helping to bring young riders up into the series to showcase their talent, as well as that of Chris Carr Racing.

Most everyone by now has heard the news, but I took the time to put some links/stories together about the announcement and the future for AMA Flat Track and Chris Carr Racing. In spite of the fact that we will be losing one of the greats of the sport on the track, the man's presence will be known, seen and heard in the future of the series. And that in itself is GREAT news for all fans of flat track racing. Chris Carr's abilities to bring outside sponsorship into the sport as well as his teaching abilities in the areas of motorcycle control are legendary, and his role as a spokesperson for the sport should all play major roles in taking Chris Carr Racing and the sport of AMA Flat Track down the road ahead.
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Here's the original retirement press release from Chris as it appeared on Larry Lawrence's site, The Rider Files.com. LL also has the audio portion of his interview with Chris, which is WELL worth the almost 14 minutes to listen in on and hear what the 7-Time Champ has to say about the past, present, and future for Chris Carr and Chris Carr Racing. Great stuff for sure:

http://www.theriderfiles.com/?p=7774

And here's Larry's interview with Chris Carr as it appeared on Cycle News.com late last Friday:

http://www.cyclenews.com/articles/flat-track/2010/12/11/carr-to-retire-after-2011
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Here is the link to the original story I posted when Chris officially announced his retirement tour last Friday:

http://stusshots.blogspot.com/2010/12/ama-flat-track-chris-carr-announces.html

This was the original story/link as posted over at the Flat Track.com forum. You can tell from the different responses just how popular this man is:

http://www.flattrack.com/index.php?option=com_fireboard&Itemid=46&func=view&id=123415&catid=3#123415

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Here's Chris' AMA Hall of Fame page:

http://www.motorcyclemuseum.org/halloffame/detail.aspx?RacerID=331&lpos=0px&letter=C&txtFname=&rblFname=S&txtLname=&rblLname=S&discipline=0

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Here's a nice video that showcases Chris when Ford Quality was his main sponsor, as well as the sponsor for AMA Flat Track from a few years back:

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=ZkgQ5KYekhM&feature=related

And here is a short video of Chris setting the land speed record a few years ago on Dennis Manning's Streamliner at Bonneville:

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=tZpJlnQBXgs
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AMA Flat Track: Kenny Coolbeth Moves to Mean Green for 2011 AMA Flat Track Singles Series

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The #2 Bettencourt's Honda/Jason Perry/Arai/fox-sponsored Honda CRF450Fs of Kenny Coolbeth, Jr. sit in his pit while being attended to by K.C., Sr. as the former 3-Time AMA Flat Track Grand National Twins Champion and '07 AMA Flat Track Singles Champion looks over his Dad's shoulder. The 25-time AMA Flat Track Grand National Championship event winner has long been sponsored by the East Coast's Bettencourt's Honda, but announced yesterday that he would be moving his AMA Flat Track Grand National Singles Class program over to Chaplin's Kawasaki-backed sponsorship, and running one of the 'hot as coals' KX450's that have all but dominated the Singles Series as of late (see Henry Wiles for how well the Kaws are working today in the series.)
Coolbeth is expected to remain with the Screamin Eagle Harley-Davidson Factory team for his Twins Series program of which he has been a member of now for several years. The move to Mean Green in the Singles Series should help to amp up what is already an extremely competitive series, and the aforementioned Henry Wiles won four of the six Singles Series events in 2010 on one of them. Although Honda seems to have had the overall advantage in terms of number of machines entered in the Singles events in the last two years overall, this move by The King of Cool to the ranks will make three, good current riders who are currently ranked in the top ten in the overall points representing the KHI brand (Bryan Smith being the third.)
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3-Time AMA Pro Flat Track Grand National Twins Champion Kenny Coolbeth, Jr. announced yesterday he would be dropping his long-time Bettencourt's Honda sponsorship in the AMA Flat Track Singles Series to the Chaplin Kawasaki team out of his home state of Connecticut. Chaplin Kawasaki is a New England-based Kawasaki dealership that has been in business for over 60 years, and will be supplying the '07 AMA Flat Track Singles Champion with KHI's superb KX450s for his assault on the Singles events in the upcoming 2011 season.

With Kawasaki Heavy Industries now making one of the more dominant 450s on the market today, this should prove to be an interesting move in putting The King of Cool on equal equipment to that of 2-Time AMA Flat Track Singles Champion Henry Wiles, who won four of the six Singles Series events during the 2010 season. Coolbeth has reportedly been practicing
on the Green Machines for the last couple of months and is expected to make his opening assault on the AMA Flat Track Grand National Singles Series in March at the opening rounds in Daytona.

Stu's Shots is looking forward to the change-up for Kenny for the 2011 season and wishes him the very best of luck in the upcoming year. The new season is four months off and it is already looking super!
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Jennifer Sierzega from She Loves Racing and Flat Track Today.com has this version of the official press release, which has a nice shot of The King of Cool practicing on one of the new #2 Green Machines:

http://flattracktoday.com/coolbeth.html

The always on the scene Larry Lawrence of The Rider Files.com has also gotten back together with Cycle News.com's rise from the molten fall-out late this summer, and he posted this great interview with Kenny Coolbeth late yesterday afternoon:

http://www.cyclenews.com/articles/flat-track/2010/12/10/kenny-coolbeth-goes-green

AMA Pro Flat Track posted this official press release of Coolbeth's signing with Chaplin Kawasaki as well, and it has another shot of K.C., Jr. practicing on one of his new KX450s:

http://amaproracing.com/ft/news/index.cfm?cid=40703

Here is the link to Kenny's new sponsor, Chaplin Kawasaki. Check them out:

http://www.chaplinkawasaki.com/default.asp

And here is Kenny's official website:

http://www.kennycoolbeth.com/home.html
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AMA Flat Track: Chris Carr Announces 2011 Season Last in Full Time Competition

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The annual stop at the Springfield Mile over the Labor Day Weekend always means close and exciting action for the AMA Pro Flat Track Grand National Championship Series, and the 2007 round was no exception. With less then five laps to go, the battle had come down to three main riders in the series going for it at nearly 140 MPH on the straight aways. Diving into turn one are Chris Carr #4, the 7-Time AMA Grand National Champion, on his Ford Quality Care Harley-Davidson XR750, Bryan Smith #42 on his Screamin Eagle H-D XR750, and future 3-Time AMA Flat Track Grand National Twins Champion Kenny Coolbeth on his #1 Harley-Davidson Factory XR.
Carr, the winner of 29 total mile victories in the AMA Flat Track Series (and second to only Scott Parker in total mile wins 55-29) would pull out the win by inches over Coolbeth, with Smith just a bike length or two behind the duo. Carr, whose last of 78 total wins in the series came at the Lucas Oil Indy Mile in September of 2008, announced today that after the 2011 season he will be stepping down from full time competition after competing on the pro level since the '85 season.
The man from Pennsylvania via California, who earned the nickname 'The Prince of Peoria' for his total domination of the infamous Illinois TT track in the '80s and '90s, would most probably also have an AMA Grand Slam on his record list if not for the lack of a road race National victory. Although he managed to put the H-D Factory VR1000 on the pole while running the AMA Superbike Championship Series in the mid '90s, he was nonetheless kept off of the top step of the podium in the series, but not due to his inability on the track by any means.
One of the nicest guys and most laid-back people in the paddock, Chris Carr will leave a legacy behind in the AMA Flat Track Grand National Championship Series that serves as an example to professionalism in any and all racing series around the world, let alone in how to bring sponsors into the sport, and how to keep the fans coming back for more. Also known for being the fastest man on two wheels for his Bonneville runs in Dennis Manning's Streamliner, Carr will still be seen around the track after hanging up the steel shoe, as he will continue to run Chris Carr Racing while supplying some of the young, up and coming riders with top-notch and bullet-proof equipment. His long-time tuner, Kenny Tolbert, has headed up CC's team for years and the two have visited victory lane numerous times together. And really, when was the last time you saw a Chris Carr/Kenny Tolbert machine sitting off to the side of the track smoking? I sure can't remember when!
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One of the nice guys of the AMA Flat Track Grand National Championship Series announced today that the 2011 season will be his last in full time competition. 7-Time AMA Flat Track Grand National Champion Chris Carr (and the fastest man on two wheels) will be hanging up the ole steel shoe after racing in the pro/expert ranks since the 1985 season. The winner of 78 AMA Grand National Championship Series events over the years, Carr will continue to head up Chris Carr Racing after '11 and will have his program set-up to help bring and establish new talent to The Rolling Thunder Show. Second only to 9-Time GNC Scott Parker in terms of championships and wins, he stands head-to-toe with all of the best of the best over the years and decades for his never-say-die approach.

And you'll never meet a nicer guy!
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You can read the press release from AMA Pro Flat Track here, thanks to the great folks at Road RacerX.com:

http://www.roadracerx.com/breaking-news/chris-carr-announces-“farewell-to-flat-track”-tour/
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Chris Carr's biography over at his official site can be read here. This resume would impress anybody:

http://www.chriscarr.com/bio.php
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AMA Road Racing: Jason DiSalvo Returns in '11 on Latus Ducati for Daytona SportBike Series

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Aaron Yates on the #20 Yoshimura American Suzuki GSX-R1000 leads Jason DiSalvo on the #40 Graves Yamaha YZF-R1 during the running of the Repsol Lubricants AMA Superstock Series final at Mid Ohio in July of 2005. Yates went on to win the event over DiSalvo, as well as winning the 2005 AMA Superstock Championship that year by nine points, 323-314 over the Graves Yamaha team member. DiSalvo took one win on the season at Fontana in the 'superbike-lite' class and scored seven other podiums on the year. Yates took four other wins on the year and added three other podiums.
Double A-Ron's return to AMA Road Racing for the 2011 season still hinges on his healing and recovery period after his devastating crash in practice at Fontana back in March. Presumably the Jordan team is 'holding' him a spot, should he be able to return to action in the AMA Superbike Championship Series.
DiSalvo spent the first part of the 2010 season riding for the Triumph BE-1 ParkInGo team in the World Supersport Series, as a team mate to Chaz Davies, but never found the 'feel' of the bike to his liking, and falling out with the team after the Miller round at the end of May. The popular New Yorker was able to pick up a 'wild card' ride at the Red Bull Indianapolis MotoGP round in August riding in the Moto2 class, scoring an impressive top ten finish along the way. His return to AMA Road Racing with Latus Motors in the AMA Pro Daytona Sportbike Class for the 2011 season should be a good thing for the team (who ran Steve Rapp on their Ducati 848 in '10) as well as for his fans here in the States.
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Latus Motors announced today that they have signed Jason DiSalvo, the former Graves Yamaha teamster who ran the first part of the 2010 season in the World Supersport Series, to a ride on the team's Ducati 848 for the upcoming AMA Pro Racing Daytona Sportbike Series. DiSalvo, who put in quite the impressive ride at the Red Bull Indianapolis MotoGP round of the Moto2 Championship series, spent the better part of 2010 without a ride after splitting from the ParkInGo Triumph team in late May. For those of you familiar with the 'Latus' name, George Latus is a long-time sponsor of 2000 AMA Flat Track Grand National Champion Joe Kopp in the AMA Flat Track Series.

The addition (and/or return) of the diminutive New Yorker to the AMA Road Racing grid and paddock add some extra talent to the already 'talent-heavy' Daytona Sportbike Series. With numerous races last year in the underling series to the premier AMA Superbike Championship being decided by thousandths of a second-and one by the finish line camera-action in the DSB class is not lacking in it's second year in the series. Built on the premise of the 600 inline four cylinders, the Ducati 848 has proven to be a good weapon of choice in the class as well. Latus' rider Rapp scored numerous podiums, without a win in 2010, and Bobby Fong won one of the rounds on the popular twin. The class has proven to be a great 'mish-mash' of a combination of the old AMA 600 Supersport and Formula Xtreme Series, with multiple races being what this rider terms 'blanket' races. In other words, multiple riders running so closely together you could nearly toss a blanket over them.

Stu's Shots gives a nod of the helmet and a hearty 'welcome back' to Jason and is looking forward to seeing him mix it up again here in on U.S. terra firma. Welcome back man!
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Thanks to Road Racing World.com and Latus Motors for this press release on Jason DiSalvo's return to AMA Pro Road Racing for the 2011 season:

http://roadracingworld.com/news/article/?article=42853
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AMA Road Racing: Off-Season Ramblings & 'Partial' 2011 Schedule Released

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Jake Zemke on the #98 Erion Racing/Parts Unlimited/PJ1-sponsored Honda CBR600RR leads Miguel Duhamel on the #17 American Honda/Shoei/Joe Rocket-sponsored Honda CBR600RR during the Lockhart Phillips USA Formula Xtreme final event, as part of the Honda Super Cycle Weekend presented by Dunlop Tire at Mid Ohio in July of 2004. Duhamel went on to win and lead the most laps in the process, while Zemke finished just inside the points on the day.
The future team mates would end up ruling the Formula Xtreme Series due to Honda going all out in the class to showcase it's 'mini superbike' in the 600 inline-based class. Duhamel also went on to win the Formula Xtreme Championship over Zemke enroute to winning eight events to Zemke's one win in the eleven race series in '04. Between the two of them they scored 18 podiums that season.
Duhamel has seen limited action in the AMA Road Racing series since the bottom fell out after the end of the '08 season, making an appearance at Daytona in 2009 on a Pascal Picotte-led run in the Daytona 200, and then appearing at Laguna Seca this year on a Ducati. The 5-Time Daytona 200 winner, '95 AMA Superbike Champion and multi-time AMA 600 Supersport and Formula Xtreme Champion was always one of the highlights at any AMA Road Racing event, and was always considered a threat on the track. Off the track, at least to this writer, he was one of the most congenial and approachable, let alone down right comical riders in the paddock.
Zemke, who went on to win the '08 AMA Formula Xtreme Championship, rode an Erion Racing Honda during the '09 season in the Daytona Sportbike Class, and then moved back to the premier AMA Superbike Championship Series in 2010 riding for the Michael Jordan Motorsports/National Guard Suzuki team. That seemed to work out pretty well for Jake in winning both opening rounds at Daytona in March, and despite not being able to duplicate his spot atop the box through the rest of the season, he still finished 3rd in the championship behind eventual champ Josh Hayes and Tommy Hayden.
With the Jordan team signing Ben Bostrom and Roger Lee Hayden for the 2011 season (and possibly still running a third bike for Aaron Yates as of this writing), Zemke was left out in the cold and is still looking for work. Of course, he isn't the only rider 'in waiting' or unsigned as of yet for the 2011 AMA Road Racing season. With the release yesterday of what is being termed a 'partial' schedule, and Dunlop testing tires at Daytona next week and in January, there should be a bunch of dominoes ready to drop in terms of who goes where. Stay tuned!
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With AMA Pro Road Racing releasing what is being termed a 'partial' schedule for the 2011 AMA Road Racing Series yesterday, there are still plenty of questions to go around as to who is going where for the upcoming season. And with Dunlop doing some tire testing at Daytona next week (and then another follow-up test scheduled in January) the ball should start to drop pretty soon as to what the rest of the unsigned riders will be doing next season.

At this point in the AMA Superbike Championship for '11 we know Michael Jordan has signed Ben Bostrom and Roger Lee Hayden. There is still a possibility being mentioned that once Aaron Yates heals completely from his March Fontana crash that they may run a third bike for Double A-Ron. 2010 AMA Superbike Champion Josh Hayes re-signed with Graves Yamaha for a couple more years, Eric Bostrom is 'supposedly' coming back for the full season with the Cycle World/Attack Performance team (and seems to be returning with a Kawasaki from chatter being heard.) Larry Pegram parted ways with Ducati, and less then 10 days later said he would be competing on the BMW for the 2011 championship.

But from there, it gets real murky. 2010 runner-up Tommy Hayden is still unsigned, as is Blake Young. John Hopkins is healed from his wrist surgery, but no mention of him returning-or not-with the Monster Energy/Road Racing World.com team. Chris Ulrich was giving 'two-up' charity rides on the west coast a few weeks ago, and in all probability should be returning with the ME/RRW.com team.

The next few weeks should get interesting, and we'll all just have to hang tight and wait and see what happens next. I've posted a couple of links written by Paul Carruthers, who is back at the helm of the newly-risen Cycle News.com (which is great news in itself, as well!)

The first story is the release of the schedule yesterday by AMA Road Racing. Road Atlanta and Fontana are no where to be found, and as of this release, Barber is TBD (to be determined) and the VIR round is shown, but also TBD. Not since the '91 season in AMA Superbike have I seen a slimmer schedule for the U.S. series in what was once one of, if not, the premier superbike championship in the world. In the second story PC talks with Jake Zemke, who was left off the roster at Michael Jordan Motorsports in spite of his 3rd place in the championship this year to go along with his double win at Daytona in March, the first-ever for MJ in the premier series after seven seasons of competition.

Stay tuned, and keep your fingers crossed!
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Here's the new schedule as laid out yesterday thanks to Paul Carruthers and Cycle News.com:

http://www.cyclenews.com/articles/road-racing/2010/12/08/ama-road-racing-2011
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And last week, Paul also posted this interview with Jake Zemke over at Cycle News.com:

http://www.cyclenews.com/articles/road-racing/2010/12/02/josh-zemke-looking-for-work
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Take a Peek Inside the Rizla Suzuki MotoGP Garage

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The #19 Rizla Suzuki GSV-R MotoGP machine of '06 125CC World Champion Alvaro Bautista sits outside the team's shed at the Indianapolis Motor Speedway during the Red Bull Indianapolis MotoGP round in August of 2010. Former team mate Loris Capirossi has left the team and the Rizla team will be scaling back operations for the 2011 MotoGP season, leaving Bautista as the lone rider on the team. Dorna, the rights owners for the MotoGP brand, is said to be helping the squad out in terms of financials, in order for them to be able to continue racing in the high dollar, high spec MotoGP World Championship Series.
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One motorcycle website that I have been finding to be very up-to-date and refreshing is the Ultimate Motorcycling.com site. I just came acrossed some of their stuff initially back in early spring, and have since found it a daily stop in the 'what to do, and what to check' list of regular and daily visits In my quests to gather any and all information related to the areas of motorcycle racing that I am familiar and confortable with, I've made it one of my 'must see' stops of late, even during the dreaded 'off time' in racing which occurs around this time of year where you search and surf for anything and everything to get you that fix to get you through until-in my case-the Dakar Rally kicks off on January 1.

The great guys at UM.com had this nice little video posted today that takes a quick look inside the Rizla Suzuki MotoGP garages during a typical race weekend. You can see from the amount of traffic and people involved (if for no other reason) why MotoGP is as high dollar as it is. Check it out here:

http://www.ultimatemotorcycling.com/2010/packing-up-a-motogp-garage-suzuki-video

And while you are at it, take a peek at the official Rizla Suzuki MotoGP team website:

http://www.rizla-suzuki-motogp.co.uk/
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AMA Flat Track: Sammy Halbert Talks 2010 Season End, The Off Season & What's To Come in '11 for Halbert Brothers Racing

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Sammy Halbert #7 and Jethro Halbert #69 discuss team strategy with their Kings Kustoms/KK MC Supply/Nelson Racing/Halbert Bros Racing-sponsored
team members during the break between practice and qualifying for the Springfield Mile on September 5. Sammy, the 'mythical' '09 AMA Flat Track Grand National Champion, has been staying busy in the 'off season' break from the AMA Pro Flat Track K&N Filters presented by Motorcycle Superstore.com Grand National Championship Series, as has brother Jethro, running (and winning-in Sammy's case) the Stockton Mile, as well as the season ending Eddie Mulder series on the West Coast.
Slammin' Sammy is getting geared up for the upcoming 2011 AMA Pro Flat Track season, and per his column on Cycle News.com that was posted yesterday, he is putting together a 'special' mile racer for next season. He wouldn't say what he has going on, but he did say he is 'working on a 'non-Harley twin' to give the Werner Springsteen Monster Energy Kawasaki of Bryan Smith a run for his money on the big mile tracks. This should make for another great mix-up of brand diversity in the series as seen throughout the course of the 2010 season.
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When Cycle News was still in print, up to and including issue #35 that arrived in my mailbox some four months ago, one of their guest columnists over the course of the last year or two was Sammy Halbert, National #7 and the 'winner' of the 'mythical' 2009 AMA Flat Track Grand National Championship Series. In his columns, Slammin' Sammy would talk about how the season was going, his training regimen, and anything else that would have been an interest to readers having to do with his race program. These columns were a great insight into the current season and what Sammy had planned going forward, whether it would be running the AMA series, or showing up at a Steve Nace Racing regional event to run on an off-weekend from The Rolling Thunder Show.

With the 'new' Cycle News.com online site having been resurrected in the last couple of weeks, one of the great features to return is the 'Riders Write' column, of which Sammy Halbert had been doing before the bible of motorcyle racing tanked this last summer. Not only is the 'Riders Write' column back, but so is Sammy in talking about his racing program.

Yesterday's column as written by Sammy and posted yesterday at CN.com was an interesting read in that the younger of the Halbert Brothers squad is STILL tearing them up on the track, winning the Stockton Mile again, and also racing in the Eddie Mulder series on the West Coast. He has also been running some track days in Florida on a road racer, and it looks as if he may possibly be running some WERA events next year.

But what I found to be the most interesting part of the column, especially coming from someone who has been running the Harley-Davidson XR750 for so long in the Expert Twins Class, was he mentioned he is in the process of putting together a 'non-Harley twin' for the big mile tracks. Stopping short to confirm exactly what brand of motorcycle he is building, he did say that he was putting something together to give him a leg-up on the Werner Springsteen Monster Energy Kawasaki of Bryan Smith, which won both the Lucas Oil Indy Mile and the Springfield Mile over consecutive weekends at the end of the summer.

This really should add even more excitement to the AMA Pro Flat Track Series for the upcoming season, especially considering the level of expertise that Halbert has and his ability to adapt to just about any type of conditions on-track. You can read what he has to say here:

http://www.cyclenews.com/articles/flat-track/2010/12/06/riders-write-slammin-sammy
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Eric Bostrom Talks About His Return to AMA Superbike in 2010

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Eric Bostrom wrestles the #32 Ducati Austin/Parts Unlimited/Michelin-sponsored 999R out of turn nine at Mid Ohio during the Honda Super Cycle Doubleheader Weekend round of the AMA Superbike Series in July of 2004. Bostrom spent two years with the team in '04-'05, scoring three wins in the premier class series and finishing 7th and 3rd respectively in the year-end standings.
Eboz' first foray into the AMA Superbike Championship Series came in '99 as a replacement for then-injured rider Miguel Duhamel on a Team Honda RC45. He went on to ride for Team Kawasaki in 2000-2003, and then moved to Graves Yamaha Motorsports for the '06-'08 seasons.
Returning mid-season this year on a CycleWorld/AttackPerformance/
Yoshimura Suzuki GSX-R1000, Eboz was a welcome sight in the paddock and on the track, and showed he still has what it takes to run in the premier class, albeit a bit rusty. That should change with more seat time for this fine rider. As with many riders at this critical time of year, Bostrom remains 'unsigned' for the 2011 season, though regular rumors and speculation has him returning with Cycle World and Attack, but on one of the new Kawasaki XZ-10Rs.
Silly season this off-season is much worse and more sparse, with the economy dictating who can and will be able to do what in the series for the upcoming season. And with the motorcycle industry in a state of quandary over the downturn in the economy, a lot of teams are being forced to wait or not race at all in the upcoming season. Many riders are without a team and not even knowing what the future may hold. Daytona still has tire tests scheduled with Dunlop and several teams this month and next to work out settings for the annual season opening round in March. And no 'full' schedule has been released as of yet, although 2011 season rules have been posted.
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Eric Bostrom returned to the track in 2010 in the AMA Superbike Championship Series after sitting out the 2009 season while tending to his and his brother Ben's real estate interests in South America. Cycle World Magazine, Attack Performance and Yoshimura Suzuki put together a very sweet and potent GSX-R1000 for Eboz, and mid-season he was back at it again for some select races in the 'new and improved over 2009' AMA Superbike Series. After a break from racing, it was great to see the younger Boz Bro back on track and in the thick of things again.

Although a season-ending crash that tore his leg up pretty badly took him out of the season prematurely, the former series two-time runner-up sounds stoked to be back and has his sights set on the 2011 season, and at last report was healed up and riding his bicycle again and in training. However, just like what a lot of the riders are going through, Eboz is currently still 'unsigned' for the upcoming season, and at last word was on-track at Las Vegas at the beginning of November running a Kawasaki ZX-10R through it's paces during a WERA event.

Eboz got a chance to catch up with Matthew Miles at Cycle World and talk about his return and how the 2010 season went, and you can check it out here:

http://www.cycleworld.com/motorcycle_news/racing_articles/10q4/update_team_cycle_world_attack_performance_yoshimura_suzuki_-_racing2
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AMA Flat Track: Cycle World Test Rides Some of the Diversity in AMA Flat Track Machines

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Sitting in the 'inpound' area after the Labor Day Weekend running of the Springfield Mile are several machines that help to show the current level of diversity in AMA Flat Track, that have helped to guide the series in it's new directions from the past, to the present, and into the future.
Bryan Smith's #42 Werner Springsteen Monster Energy Kawasaki sits front and center, fresh off it's win earlier in the afternoon, to go along with the previous event and weekend's Expert Twins Class win at the Lucas Oil Indy Mile. Smith's win at Indy was the first-ever for Kawasaki in AMA Pro Flat Track Expert Twins Class competition.
Joe Kopp's #3 Lloyd Brothers Ducati 1098 sits alongside after winning the second semi earlier in the day, and coming home in the 7th spot in the main National event. Kopp took the Big Duc to the win on the Yavapai Downs Mile back on May 1, and in the process re-writing the history books and helping to usher in the 'new and improved' version of AMA Pro Flat Track, as molded by AMA FT Manager Mike Kidd and team.
Surrounding these two new and winning stand-outs on the year are three of the top H-D XR750s that ran the circuit this year. To the left is '09 AMA Flat Track Twins Champion Jared Mees' #1 Rogers Lake Racing XR, which Jared brought home in 3rd on the day. In the back, center is the #95C Craig Rogers Racing XR of J.D. Beach, who had just finished his first Expert Twins event in 12th place. Beach had just 'moved up' to the Expert series during the weekend at Springfield after winning the Peoria TT and the Indy Mile while riding in the Pro Singles Class. To the far right in the shot (to the right of Kopp's #3) is the #80 Johnny Goad XR of Calistoga winner Steve Bonsey, who finished the day in the 10th spot at the Illinois State Fairgrounds mile oval.
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With diversity being the name of the game in AMA Pro Flat Track for the present and the future, I thought this would be a great way to actually show some of the differences in the series as it has been, is now, and will be in the future. For the 2o1o AMA Pro Flat Track K&N Filters presented by Motorcycle Superstore.com Grand National Championship season, we saw two
new winners in the series in the form of the Lloyd Brothers Ducati 1098 winning the mile in Arizona with Joe Kopp, and the Indy and Springfield event winner of Werner Springsteen Kawasaki's Bryan Smith. Along the way we also saw several wins on the schedule of the 'long may we run' Harley-Davidson XR750 by various teams.
For the first time in twelve years we saw two new winners in the Expert Twins Class, and also
the first time since August of 1998 that anything BUT a H-D XR750 won in the series. With the
homologation of new blood into the series, we are also now seeing teams campaigning KTMs,
Suzukis and Triumphs (again) in the best show on wheels in racing. And with the the 2012 season not that much further down the road, the whole Twins Series will be brought back under the '750' platform that long ago was the basis for the formula for the series. Which of course,
will open up many more models, and a few more brands to be able to compete in The Rolling Thunder Show.
Of course, this will affect a couple of teams that have been running the '1000s' this year and next, but the same brands they run now have several other, diverse models in the '750'
platform that will open up many other new doors for '12 and beyond. The great thing about all
of this is these are production machines being brought in to race under the AMA Flat Track rule book, machines which can be bought through your local dealer, while also allowing the long-running purpose-built XR to campaign the series as it has done for over 39 years (and helped to keep the series going along the way.)
Cycle World Magazine tested several of these machines after the season-ending round in Prescott Valley, and the video link below helps to show the then, the now, and the later in terms of the trail that AMA Pro Flat Track is blazing in the great turnaround in the sport. Things are bright and looking brighter with the series, and for anyone of us that thought you couldn't steer the Titanic away from the iceberg, if you are like me, you're finding out that anything is possible with good direction and a good ship's captain. And coming from a long-time fan of the series, I can tell you that AMA Pro Flat Track has it all.
Read and view on, and if you are so inclined, leave a comment on what YOU think of the new AMA Flat Track and it's current and future direction. Inquiring minds want to know!
Thanks again for coming by to share your time with us here at Stu's Shots. Door's always open and we're always glad to see new and returning faces and friends!
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Cycle World Magazine's Mark Cernicky tested a few of the diverse machines that are now homologated to compete in AMA Pro Flat Track after the season ending round at Yavapai Downs. Mark managed to put a Honda CRF450F into the Pro Singles main event in Prescott Valley in October, so he does know a thing or two about how to slide a flat tracker. You can read about those exploits here:

http://blog.cycleworld.com/?p=1901

Here's where you can check out Mark's 'spin' on riding Joe Kopp's Lloyd Brothers Ducati, Bryan Smith's Werner Springsteen Monster Energy Kawasaki, and Kenny Coolbeth, Jr.'s Screamin Eagle Harley Factory XR750, among others, which is a great 5+ minute video on taking a few of these milers out for a dash around the park:

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=1tXEaCRWfUA
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Although this write-up is a little behind in terms of timeliness, the exposure it gives AMA Flat Track is excellent. Allan Girdler pens a great article for Cycle World about the spring event in Prescott Valley, when Joe Kopp re-wrote the AMA Flat Track history books and took the Lloyd Brothers Ducati to the win on the mile, the first win in the Expert Twins Class by a manufacturer other then H-D since August of 1998 when Rich King took the Corbin Honda RS750 to the win at the Joliet Half Mile:

http://www.cycleworld.com/motorcycle_news/racing_articles/10q4/a_battle_of_the_brands_-_racing
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Another One Bites the Dust As Antonio Banderas Racing Withdraws from Moto2 World Championship for 2011

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The Jack & Jones By Antonio Banderas Racing Moto2 entries of #5 Joan Olive and #9 Kenny Noyes sit outside their garage stall during the Red Bull Indianapolis MotoGP Weekend in August of 2010. The team struggled all year trying to develop the Promo Harris chassis, and was slated to race the more suitable Suter set-up for the 2011 season with Noyes and new signee Gabor Talmacsi on board, but now Jack & Jones is pulling the plug on their sponsorship leaving the team empty handed some four months before racing reconvenes again for the new season.

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A shot rang out in the universe of Moto2 World Championship racing today as the Antonio Banderas owned and run team will be losing their Jack & Jones sponsorship for the 2011 season. With returning rider Kenny Noyes and new hire Gabor Talmacsi set to run the Suter chassis for the second season in the class that replaced the ring-ding 250s, the team was looking forward to running a chassis for the new year that proved to be one of the more competitive ones to campaign in the initial year of the new class. The team of Noyes and Joan Olive had used the Promo Harris chassis and their results were marginal, at best.

David Emmett has the story and talks about the impact of having as many as 40 entrants in a class where points are only awarded to the top 15 in each event, and what it can mean to sponsorship to the Moto2 contenders at his Moto Matters.com site. The Antonio Banderas team pulled the plug early to hopefully give Noyes and Talmacsi time to still put something together for next season.

You can read it here:

http://motomatters.com/news/2010/12/02/another_sponsor_pulls_out_kenny_noyes_ja.html

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