My Off Road Racing

Yoshimura Suzuki & Blake Young Taste Daytona 200 Success

admin — Sun, 20 May 2012 04:00:13 +0000

Irish Real Road Racing Motorcycle Blog by Barbiegirl Northern Ireland

Yoshimura-backed teams were strong throughout the past week of racing at the opening round of the 2012 AMA Pro Superbike Championship at Daytona International Speedway in Daytona Beach, FL. The Yoshimura Suzuki Road Race team showed the performance advantage of their Yoshimura products with solid results in a week of extremely competitive racing.

The Yoshimura Suzuki Road Race team was a force to be reckoned with at the season-opening round of AMA Pro Superbike this past double-header weekend in Daytona. Yoshimura Suzuki?s Blake Young captured the win in one Superbike race and a second-place result in the other, while new teammate Chris Clark made his Yoshimura Suzuki debut with two top-10 finishes.

The weekend?s first race saw Young get a good start on his Yoshimura Suzuki GSX-R1000, slot into second place and hold on until the checkers. As impressive as Friday?s podium finish was, it was Saturday?s race where Young really strutted his stuff. The Wisconsin native got another great start on the Yoshimura Suzuki GSX-R1000 and again settled quickly into second position. But this time, he stayed with the leader until the last few laps, at which point, he made his move and brought home the win.

?Today?s race was a lot better than yesterday?s race,? said Young. ?My Yoshimura Suzuki team worked hard for me on Friday, and after the race, we looked at the data and I knew the problem was me. I just didn?t have a very good race, for whatever reason, and I needed to work hard to let my crew know not to give up on me yet. We need to go strong all year long. We just needed to come in here, get some points and race hard the rest of the year. Today?s race was good, and now I?m just looking forward to Atlanta and the rest of the season.?

Yoshimura Suzuki?s newest addition, Chris Clark, admittedly struggled in Friday?s race. He got a decent start on the Yoshimura Suzuki GSX-R1000 and held his own to bring home a ninth-place finish. On Saturday, Clark lifted his game, getting another decent start but turning faster, more consistent laps to finish a respectable seventh.

?This was my first race with the Yoshimura Suzuki team, so I definitely was over-riding the bike a little bit,? said Clark. ?I was nervous and wanting to do well and putting a little too much pressure on myself. So I came out today and worked on what we were having problems with. I was able to turn it around in the second race. We?re not too far off from where I want to be, fifth in the championship, so I?m just looking forward to Atlanta. The Yoshimura Suzuki GSX-R1000 is working great; it?s a really fantastic bike. So we?ll head to Atlanta with our heads up and hopefully do well there.?

The Yoshimura Suzuki Road Race team?s next event of the 2012 AMA Pro Superbike Championship series is at Road Atlanta in Braselton, GA, the weekend of April 20 ? 22, 2012.

Save Our Sport From Evil

Source: http://www.realroadracingblog.com/2012/03/yoshimura-suzuki-blake-young-taste.html

Paul Belmondo Tom Belso JeanPierre Beltoise Olivier Beretta

Elena Myers Wins Daytona 200 AMA Pro SuperSport

admin — Sun, 20 May 2012 03:00:14 +0000

Real Road Racing Motorcycle Blog by Barbiegirl Northern Ireland

Daytona 200 AMA Pro Road Racing SuperSport Race Two Result
Daytona International Speedway

1. Elena Myers (Suz GSX-R600), 10 laps
2. Corey Alexander (Suz GSX-R600), -0.239 second
3. Hayden Gillim (Yam YZF-R600), -0.248
4. James Rispoli (Suz GSX-R600), -6.756 seconds
5. Miles Thornton (Yam YZF-R6), -10.807
6. Tomas Puerta (Yam YZF-R6), -10.892
7. Stefano Mesa (Yam YZF-R6), -11.020
8. Ryan Kerr (Kaw ZX-6R), -11.132
9. Sebastiao Ferreira (Yam YZF-R6), -11.132
10. Gavin Herrin (Yam YZF-R6), -15.653
11. Travis Ohge (Yam YZF-R6), -15.766
12. Jake Morman (Yam YZF-R6), -16.436

Save Our Sport From Evil

Source: http://www.realroadracingblog.com/2012/03/elean-myers-takes-daytona-200-ama-pro.html

Mike Beuttler Birabongse Bhanubandh Lucien Bianchi Gino Bianco

The Price Of Lives In Real Road Racing – Who Decides?

admin — Sun, 20 May 2012 02:00:13 +0000

Real Road Racing Motorcycle Blog by Barbiegirl Northern Ireland

If you’ve never had to call upon a household as the bearer of the news every parent/spouse/partner dreads – you haven’t witnessed the pain of those traumatized by the tragic avoidable death of a loved one.

If you’ve never experienced a middle of the night visit from a police officer bearing the news every parent/spouse/partner dreads – you have yet to experience the pain of those traumatized by the tragic avoidable death of a loved one.

Think of the paramedics at the scene of a fatal road traffic incident, how traumatic the experience is, perhaps a child has been killed, a life snuffed out by the thoughtless irresponsible action of another person. Imagine being one of those paramedics – the parent of a child yourself – having to deal with the broken lifeless body of that young child – or any broken lifeless body of a loved one. Imagine being one of the police officers, a member of an attending fire and rescue crew, the hospital staff – imagine being the person responsible for that fatality – any avoidable fatality.

Imagine now if you will – being the mother, or the father of that child – imagine if it was your husband who’d been killed, your wife, your partner, your soulmate, your ——.

Would you want justice for your child, wife, husband, partner – or would you simply be willing to forget and forgive the drunken driver, the car thief, the ‘joyrider’?

What if the fatality was the result of an incident at a motorcycle real road race event? Would you expect all concerned to tell the truth, would you want justice, or for the good of the sport – would you be willing to forget and forgive?

During the recent inquest into the tragic death of the much loved and missed Martin Finnegan, it was revealed that experts had come to an agreed conclusion that if Martin did not suffer a severe ‘tank slap’ in all probability the cause of the failure was a loose banjo bolt. Whilst allegedly possibly not 100% in agreement, Senior Coroner Mr John Leckey nonetheless also concluded that “in all probability a loose banjo bolt was the cause of the failure of the front brake”.

The problem with those foregoing conclusions is that not only do they leave us with unanswered questions – a loose banjo bolt did not end Martin’s life – it was in fact the immovable extremely large banking which he was unable to avoid.

It has since been mentioned by several people that all precautions had been taken by the organisers and that no amount of air fencing would have saved Martin’s life, but might it be pointed out that had the banking not been there, that would not have been the case. That simple fact alone would surely therefore suggest the organisers did not take all necessary precautions, and the MCUI-UC should therefore not have issued a Track Safety Certificate.

As Mr Michael Maxwell, barrister for the family of John Donnan, rightly said during that inquest: “Far from being a freak accident, this was an accident waiting to happen.”

It should also be remembered that during an earlier preliminary hearing ahead of Martin’s recent inquest, Senior Coroner John Leckey heard Martin would have had a real chance of surviving his Tandragee 100 crash if the organisers had put a run-off area or slip-road on the dangerous Marlacoo Corner, instead he died of multiple injuries. Not only did this particular dangerous corner not have a run-off area it was also the only corner which allegedly didn?t have air cushioning either, and those omissions were allegedly said to be directly responsible for his death.

Senior Coroner John Leckey at that time also acknowledged motorcycle road races did not have the same safety measures in place as other motor sport venues here in Northern Ireland and allegedly then said – if it cannot be made safe to a requisite standard, then the question has to be asked – should motorcycle racing on public roads take place at all? This is the first issue that must now be addressed by the Department of Culture, Arts and Leisure.

The second issue to be addressed is that of those who were responsible for allowing the event to proceed without ensuring all necessary safety precautions actually had been taken – those persons should now be held to account.

Save Our Sport From Evil

Source: http://www.realroadracingblog.com/2012/01/price-of-lives-in-real-road-racing-who.html

Pedro Diniz Duke Dinsmore Frank Dochnal Jose Dolhem

30% of Honda?s Business to Come from India by 2020

admin — Sun, 20 May 2012 01:00:15 +0000

As several of our readers pointed out in the latest financial report from Honda, The United States, and North America as a whole, represent just a very small portion of Big Red’s total volume of motorcycle sales. For Honda’s 2011 fiscal year, North America sold a whopping 1.6% of the company’s total motorcycle inventory, while Asia accounted for nearly 79% of Honda’s total sales. While Honda and other motorcycle manufacturers certainly makes better margins on …

Source: http://feedproxy.google.com/~r/AsphaltandRubber/~3/gI_qcSPxjVQ/

Pedro Matos Chaves Bill Cheesbourg Eddie Cheever Andrea Chiesa

Elena Myers Wins Daytona 200 AMA Pro SuperSport

admin — Sun, 20 May 2012 00:11:09 +0000

Real Road Racing Motorcycle Blog by Barbiegirl Northern Ireland

Daytona 200 AMA Pro Road Racing SuperSport Race Two Result
Daytona International Speedway

Save Our Sport From Evil

Source: http://www.realroadracingblog.com/2012/03/elean-myers-takes-daytona-200-ama-pro.html

Walt Brown Warwick Brown Adolf Brudes Martin Brundle

2012 Le Mans MotoGP Thursday Round Up: On Casey Stoner’s Retirement

admin — Sun, 20 May 2012 00:00:15 +0000

It is hard to upstage Valentino Rossi. It takes something large, significant, to take the limelight away from the nine-time World Champion, and the man who has been the charismatic heart of MotoGP for the best part of 15 years. To do that, you have to "Go big or go home," as British road racer Guy Martin likes to put it.

At Le Mans, Casey Stoner upstaged Rossi. The press conference – usually a rather staid affair, with the usual niceties about the track, each rider's chances at the circuit and a couple of witticisms – started unusually, with Nick Harris, the veteran commentator who leads the official press conferences, saying that Stoner would like to make a statement to the press. Stoner then proceeded to press the big red button that set Twitter, the internet and newswires ablaze. In the process, he did not so much ignite the 2013 MotoGP Silly Season, as douse it in liquid oxygen and set a flame thrower to it.

Stoner's announcement that he will retire at the end of this season has been covered in depth just about everywhere – see transcripts of his statement to the press here, and his detailed responses to questions here – but the question is, what happened to the Australian's denials exactly two weeks ago at Estoril of the stories that emerged in the Spanish press? Was the report in Solo Moto correct, and had Stoner already decided to retire at Jerez, or was Stoner being truthful when he denied any decision had been made. Piecing together the puzzle of what happened over the past few weeks, the following picture emerges.

Source: http://feedproxy.google.com/~r/MotoGPMatters/~3/euFv3Q81kMc/2012_le_mans_motogp_thursday_round_up_on.html

Tony Brooks Alan Brown Walt Brown Warwick Brown

From Kimi Raikkonen to Casey Stoner ? An Interview with HRC?s Rhys Edwards

admin — Sat, 19 May 2012 23:00:12 +0000

The longer I get to work in the MotoGP paddock, the more it strikes me how many talented people contribute to the show by working behind the curtain while a small percentage of personalities get most of the media attention. Rhys Edwards, whom you may recognize from his frequent position in Casey Stoner?s seat during shots of the Respol garage, is one of many people I?ve met who manage to perform roles of great responsibility …

Source: http://feedproxy.google.com/~r/AsphaltandRubber/~3/y_kYlc3TeZ8/

Bobby Ball Marcel Balsa Lorenzo Bandini Henry Banks

When The Dream Becomes A Reality, And Betrayal Is Your Only Friend

admin — Sat, 19 May 2012 22:00:16 +0000

Real Road Racing Motorcycle Blog by Barbiegirl Northern Ireland

At 61 Degrees – A stunning novel from Mike S Martin that will have you gripped and on the edge of your seat until the very end. A must read for Motorsport and Motorcycle fans and Military Personnel alike. Immerse yourself into the world of Motorcycle Riding, Racing and the MotoGP World Championship as young Aaron?s dream becomes reality in this breathtaking, exhilarating and moving story that is only available from Amazon
The Official Synopsis: Seeing is believing, that is until we open our eyes. Aaron Rose is a modest young man whose skill at riding and racing motorcycles defies his lack of experience. His talent earns him a ride within the pinnacle of the sport, the MotoGP World Championship.

It is race day at his home Grand Prix in front of thousands of British fans and whilst Aaron and his team are preparing, they are visited in their garage by the Race Directors and the officials.

Aaron?s team look on in disbelief as the officials demand that he remove his race leathers to confirm if their suspicions are correct. If they are, there is only one outcome – he cannot race.

Not just that day – but ever again.

When life doesn?t give us what we hope for, we are forced to dream.

But what happens when the dream becomes a nightmare and betrayal is your only friend.

This fast paced, exhilarating but emotional story follows a modest young guy called Aaron Rose who gets persuaded by friends to take his motorcycle test. It is not long before his talent is recognised whilst riding on track days in Britain and Europe, in particular Monza, Italy where he meets Jon Locke. Together they experience triumph and tragedy whilst competing in the national championships and it is through Jon that Aaron gets given the chance to compete within the pinnacle of the sport, the Moto GP World Championship against the likes of Valentino Rossi.

To prepare for this huge challenge, Aaron being an unproven rider with a new team on a new bike, they both set out across Europe to test themselves on all the European circuits on the GP calendar. It is on this trip that their friendship becomes stronger and they resort to funny and desperate measures to be able to ride the famous and dangerous 20km Nurburgring circuit/toll road in Germany.

Aaron just about survives pre season testing before the GP season is upon them. In front of sceptics and doubters Aaron defies his experience by riding elbow to elbow with the best riders in the world, his race results gradually improving circuit by circuit.

Whilst Aaron and his team are preparing for his home grand prix in front of thousands of fans they are visited in the garage by the race directors and officials. His team look on in disbelief as the officials demand he remove his race leathers to confirm if their suspicions are correct.

If they are he cannot race. Not just that day but ever again.

When life doesn?t give us what we hope for we are forced to dream but it is when our minds try to protect us – that is when it can also betray us.

And not one single mention was made of our allegedy much maligned and loved MCUI-UC Dinosaurs.

Save Our Sport From Evil

Source: http://www.realroadracingblog.com/2012/01/when-dream-becomes-reality-and-betryal.html

Eugene Chaboud Jay Chamberlain Karun Chandhok Alain de Changy

Schumacher: Driving at Monaco is worth the risk | 2012 Monaco Grand Prix

admin — Sat, 19 May 2012 21:00:16 +0000

Schumacher: Driving at Monaco is worth the risk is an original article from F1 Fanatic. If this article has been published anywhere other than F1 Fanatic it is an infringement of copyright.

Michael Schumacher admits Monaco does not match the safety standards set by other tracks, but says the satisfaction of driving there is worth the risk.

Schumacher: Driving at Monaco is worth the risk is an original article from F1 Fanatic. If this article has been published anywhere other than F1 Fanatic it is an infringement of copyright.

Source: http://feedproxy.google.com/~r/f1fanatic/~3/l9AhzTBCFIc/

JeanChristophe Boullion Sebastien Bourdais Thierry Boutsen Johnny Boyd

2012 Le Mans Moto3 Qualifying Practice Result: Front Row Settled In Final Minutes Of Crash-Filled Session

admin — Sat, 19 May 2012 20:00:14 +0000

Results and summary of qualifying practice for the Moto3 class at Le Mans

Race Details

2012

Source: http://feedproxy.google.com/~r/MotoGPMatters/~3/KzOhe6D17P8/2012_le_mans_moto3_qualifying_practice_r.html

Antonio Creus Larry Crockett Tony Crook Art Cross