QUICK LINKS REMEMBERING NIXON 8
IN THE WIND 14
CASTLE ROCK TT
HALBERT’S
HOMECOMING!
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X GAMES
ENDUROCROSS, WOMEN’S MOTOX TEST
2012 HUSKY TE310
INTERVIEW
DUCATI BOSS GABRIELE DEL TORCHIO
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CONTENTS
56
REMEMBERED 8
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GARY NIXON Remembering a legend.
RACED 32 CASTLE ROCK TT Halbert hauls at home. 40 X GAMES ENDUROCROSS Who else but Taddy? 48 X GAMES WOMEN’S MOTO X Gold for Golden. 56 NMA PONCA CITY Bogle shows off his Ponca power. 64 AMATEUR DIRT TRACK CHAMPIONSHIPS Top amateurs face off in Du Quoin. 80 MILLVILLE OMA Whibley runs away. TESTED 26 2011 HUSQVARNA TE 310 Husky’s very capable dual sporter. 72 AJS 500CC E95 PORCUPINE Riding the rare British road racer. INTERVIEWED 52 GABRIELE DEL TORCHIO Checking in with Ducati’s main man. DEPARTMENTALIZED 6 CAPTURED 12 VOICES 13 THE INSIDE TWEET 14 IN THE WIND 88 NEW STUFF 90 BIKES OF THE STARS 92 ARCHIVES 94 CLASSIFIEDS 96 CARRUTHERS SAYS 98 WHAT’S NEXT
QUICK LINKS REMEMBERING NIXON 8
IN THE WIND 14
VOL. 48 ISSUE 26 AUGUST 9, 2011
X GAMES
CASTLE ROCK TT
HALBERT’S
HOMECOMING!
ENDUROCROSS, WOMEN’S MOTOX TEST
2012 HUSKY TE310
INTERVIEW
DUCATI BOSS GABRIELE DEL TORCHIO
On The Cover: Sammy Halbert (7) held off Jared Mees (9) to win the Castle Rock TT in his home state of Washington. PHOTOGRAPHY BY DAVE HOENIG/FLAT TRAK FOTOS
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Mees his
OTOS
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CAPTURED
EndoCross Off-roaders got a rare chance to perform on live television during the X Games 17 Enduro X competition. Those who tuned in and showed up in person saw some great racing and plenty of spectacular get-offs, like this one by Ryan Hughes who won the 2004 EnduroCross in Las Vegas, the first ever held in the U.S. Photography by Kinney Jones.
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In Remembrance
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GARY NIXON, 1941-2011
Racer
THE
Gary Nixon and his first National Number – 63 – in 1963. 8-11 Gary Nixon.indd 8
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PHOTOGRAPHY BY DAN MAHONY
VOL. 48 ISSUE 26 AUGUST 9, 2011
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G
ary Nixon, Motorcycle Hall of Famer and twotime AMA Grand National Champion, died Friday, August 5 at St. Joseph Medical Center in Baltimore, Maryland, due to complications from a heart attack he suffered a week earlier. He was 70 years old. In a career marked by both extraordinary success and courage, Nixon became one of the most popular and most respected racers in the history of the sport. Nixon won the AMA Grand National Championship in 1967 and 1968. During his 19-year AMA professional racing career he tallied 19 National wins. His 1968 Grand National showdown with fellow Oklahoman Fred Nix is considered one of the all-time best championship battles in the history of the series. In a season-long race that wasn’t decided until the final lap of the final race at Ascot Park in Gardena, California, Nixon finished in front of Nix, who was on a hot streak having won four of the previous six rounds. Born on January 25, 1941, in Anadarko, Oklahoma, Nixon first came onto the National racing scene as a teenager in the late 1950s. He earned his pro license in 1960. In the first few years Nixon was a steady, if not spectacular performer, but on August 4, 1963 everything changed for him. On that day he won the National road race on a park course in Windber, Pennsylvania. He’d previously never finished better than sixth in a National. The
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Nixon gets down to business at the Sacramento Mile in 1967.
Windber victory opened the floodgates for Nixon and from then on he was a leading championship contender. The 1967 racing season turned out to be the best of his career. Riding for Triumph, he started the season with a hard-fought victory in the Daytona 200. By the end of the ‘67 season Nixon had tallied a total of five victories and had earned his first National Championship. Harley-Davidson responded to losing the title to Triumph by mounting an all-out assault in the national series in 1968, throwing a slew of factory-backed riders against Nixon. Nix emerged mid-season as the hottest of the Harley riders and he and Nixon waged an epic battle for the title, Nixon hanging in the championship hunt by way of solid road race National finishes. Nixon had been a hero to Nix, who came up through the ranks in Oklahoma,
a few years behind Nixon. Finally Nix earned a factory ride with Harley. So friendly was the rivalry with Nixon that whenever Nix beat Nixon, Nix’s dad would hop in his pickup early on a Monday morning and make an hour drive from Lawton to Oklahoma City to brag to Gary’s dad. The championship fight between Nixon and Nix came down to the final National of the season at the infamous Ascot Park HalfMile. Nixon didn’t like racing at Ascot. It was an ultra high-speed track that was infamous for being a place where scores of riders were injured or killed. He knew Nix, on the more powerful Harley-Davidson, would have an advantage. The two actually spent several laps of the Ascot National racing side by side. Nixon out-dueled Nix by simply holding the gas going into the dangerous Ascot turns longer than Nix was will8/8/11 3:25 PM
In Remembrance
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GARY NIXON, 1941-2011
the Nixon races as l Grand Nationa st fir e Champion for th Santa time in 1969 at ornia lif Ca in Rosa
ing to do. At the finish Nixon finished fourth over Nix’s seventh and scored just enough points to secure the championship. When he pulled in and learned he’d won his second-straight title he dropped his motorcycle where he stood and was overcome by emotion. Rival and friend Nix died less than a year later in an auto accident. By the early 1970s Nixon had switched almost exclusively to road racing and became a factory Kawasaki rider. After a brief, injury plagued pair of seasons with Suzuki, Nixon and mechanic Erv Kanemoto returned with Kawasaki backing to pursue the World Prize Formula 750 Road Racing Series. Nixon laid claim the F750, but international politics cost Nixon the title when results of the Venezuelan round (which Nixon won, but had taken from away from him by “corrupt”
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Venezuelan officials) were thrown out by the FIM due to numerous scoring errors. Nixon retired from full-time pro racing after the 1978 season, but continued competing in vintage road racing events for the rest of his life. “The Battle of the 9s” matchup between Nixon and Jay
Springsteen at Daytona in 2003 became one of the most popular vintage races in the history of the sport and eventually spawned the “Pair A Nines” Moto-ST endurance team. Nixon is survived by his wife of 47 years, Mary Nixon, his children, Gary L. Nixon, Jr. and Kary Ann Nixon and his sister, Penny Snellings. Gary is the son of the late Floyd and Floy Nixon and uncle of David, Sheri and Todd. The family will receive friends in the Lemmon Funeral Home of Dulaney Valley, 10 West Padonia Road (at York Road) Timonium, MD, 21093 on Wednesday, 2-4 p.m. and 7-9 p.m. A Celebration of Gary’s life will be held in the funeral home on Thursday, August 11 at 11 a.m. Burial will be private. In lieu of flowers, expressions of sympathy may be directed in Gary’s memory to the Gary Nixon Memorial Fund, c/o Bank of America, 14213 Jarrettsville Pike, Phoenix, MD 21131. Larry Lawrence
Nixon and his Triumph.
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Ducati Marlboro’s Nicky Hayden admits he wasn’t much of a student, but when the work mattered he put his heart into it. Hayden wrote a book report of Joe Scalzo’s excellent biography of Nixon, “Racer: The Story of Gary Nixon,” even before he met him. He would have no way of knowing that one day the youngster and the retired two-time Grand National Champion would bond, with the older rider making sure Hayden took the right path to the World Championship. Nixon told Hayden what he should do, but more importantly, what he shouldn’t do. The Oklahoman who later relocated to Cockeysville, Maryland, led a famously indulgent life that’s antithetical to the monastic existence of most serious motorcycle racers. “Nixon is a legend,” says Hayden. “He was a big help in my career, a big believer in me and would tell anybody that would listen that they needed to give me a chance. He helped me out, especially coming up. When TCR (Tom Cummings Racing) started helping me on the dirt track, he was a big help on that.” Nixon often made a point of stopping on Earls Lane on many of his road trips, stops that were more than social niceties. Nixon would put on the steel shoe and mix it up with the boys on the dirt track. “He was the only guy I’d ever seen wear a steel shoe with tennis shoes, because he didn’t want to wear motocross boots,” Hayden said. “He was always somebody you looked up to and sometimes for advice. I mean, he sometimes would tell you what not to do. Everybody wants to tell you what to do, Nixon wasn’t scared to tell you, ‘Don’t do this, don’t do that. I tried it, it didn’t work.’ The real
stuff, stuff riders really needed to hear, not the press-release stuff. One time he told me when I bumped at a dirt track to ‘make sure you hit him in the front of the footpeg,’ he said. ‘If you’re going to bump a guy in that spot, if you’re going to hit him, don’t hit their swingarm, because you’re the one who is probably going to crash. If you got to move him out of the way get in there, get in front of that footpeg and give him a nudge if you have to.’” Even though Hayden leads a very different life, he acknowledges that “in his era he did it his way. I’m no saint or nothing, but he definitely said, ‘Stay away from this, stay away from that,’ because he tried it all.” Hayden also admires Nixon for being one of the first Americans to travel overseas to road race. “If you hear his side of the story they robbed him out of a World Championship. He would’ve been the first one to get one.” Nixon and Hayden stayed in touch, with Nixon coming to both American MotoGP races, as well as a race in Europe, when he could. The former dirt trackers turned road racers spent time together at Mazda Raceway Laguna Seca days before Nixon passed. “That guy loved motorcycle racing; dirt track, road racing, amateur racing, vintage racing,” Hayden said. “The sport will definitely miss him.” Henny Ray Abrams PHOTOGRAPHY BY ANDREA WILSON
Nicky On Nixon
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Gary Nixon was a hero to many a young racer – including Nicky Hayden.
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CN III VOICES
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LETTERS TO THE EDITOR
“Since I live in the Midwest, I also appreciate the timeliness of the new format.” ENDURO FAN
Thanks for putting National Enduro on the cover of the latest issue. I’m a huge enduro fan and an even bigger Cycle News fan and it’s great to see some of the “grassroots” sports get some recognition. I know you have great coverage of each round, but it’s not often we get a cover. Since I live in the Midwest, I also appreciate the timeliness of the new format, although at my age it is taking time to get used to all this Internet stuff. But I’ll figure it out. Mike Bilby, Springfield, MO
LIKES IT
Just wanted to let you know that I absolutely love the new digital Cycle News. I really enjoy getting caught up in “full color” and with video. You’ve done a great job. Cycle News is better than ever. Rich La Rue Via the Internet
CONSPIRACY THEORY
And I say it again - someone does not want Ben Spies to win. In his own words after the U.S. Grand Prix: “The ECU had been set in such a way that it prevented me from using full power- we needed
more power in the first couple of gears going up the hill at full throttle. I couldn’t get my way through.” As for Nicky Hayden finishing behind Valentino Rossi, I would guess his orders were to “let Vale beat you.” Hayden has been riding better than Vale all year.
Raul Echeverria Via the Internet
H.R. 2584
As a representative for the recreation community, I am deeply concerned that anti-access groups and their supporters in Congress will try and have Section 446 stripped when the House considers H.R. 2584, the Department of the Interior, Environment and Related Agencies Appropriations Act. Section 446 is Congressman Wally Herger’s pro-access language that attempts to fix some anti-access tenets from Region 5’s version of the Travel Management Rule. Section 446 is almost identical to bill language in Herger’s H.R. 242 that was introduced in February 2011. The main issue is the Forest Service has proposed to close hundreds, if not thousands, of miles of old logging
roads to non-street legal OHV use. This access is important for continued recreational access, connectivity between existing OHV trail systems, and the rural economy. Please support H.R. 2584 and do not allow Section 446 to be removed. The removal of existing roads and trails will significantly diminish the public’s ability to access and enjoy public lands. Steve Koretoff Via the Internet
Got An Opinion? If you’ve got an opinion on something you’ve read in Cycle News. Or an opinion on something you’d like to read in Cycle News… or an opinion on anything motorcycle related, send it in. We want to know what our readers think. Email correspondence to Voices@cyclenews. com. Make sure to include your name and a daytime phone number.
Letters to the editor can be sent to
[email protected]. Published letters do not necessarily reflect the position of Cycle News. Letters should not exceed 150 words and are subject to editing. Anonymous letters won’t be considered for publication and each letter should contain the writer’s name, address and daytime phone number… Editor
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America’s Motorcycle News Source
Volume XLVIII EDITORIAL PAUL CARRUTHERS EDITOR
[email protected] KIT PALMER OFF-ROAD EDITOR
[email protected] P13
The Inside tweet… rogerhayden95 roger hayden RIP Gary Nixon. He’s been one of my biggest supporters through my career, and he was a legend. #9
CONTRIBUTORS HENNY RAY ABRAMS CONTRIBUTING EDITOR SHAN MOORE CONTRIBUTING EDITOR ALAN CATHCART EUROPEAN EDITOR
COPY EDITORS MICHELLE BAIRD COPY EDITOR MARY KETTLES COPY EDITOR
ADVERTISING SALES SEAN FINLEY GM, AD SALES MANAGER
[email protected] SUZZIE SMITH NATIONAL AD SALES MANAGER
[email protected] ART DIRECTION AND DESIGN SUNJU KWON ART DIRECTOR/ART MANAGER
[email protected] OPERATIONS DOUGLAS BRINEY OPERATIONS SPECIALIST
[email protected] NATIONAL HEADQUARTERS 17771 Mitchell North, Irvine, CA 92614 949-863-7082 P.O. Box 16121, Irvine, CA 92623
Meligirl13 Melissa Paris RIP- Gary Nixon. It was an honor to know you. I’ll be working on my one armed pushups just for you. JDBeach73 JD Beach RIP Gary Nixon. Glad I had the chance to know you. Always had a fun time when I got to hang out with you. elenamyers21 Elena Myers RIP Gary Nixon! You’ll always be a legend, and I’ll continue working on those one-armed push-ups! Will miss you!!! God Speed. DennisNoyes Dennis Noyes From @stuarthiggs (BSB race boss) marshals will show #9 for the inspection lap tomorrow at Brands BSB. The original Transatlantic legend. superbikeplanet Superbike Planet Evel, Sheene, Elvis and now Nixon. The Rolls is hammer down on the wrong side of the road, with panties being discarded out the window. NickyHayden69 Nicky Hayden There will only ever be one Gary Nixon Period end of story. Motorcycling will miss you. RIP #9 #legend yfrog.com/h256mwej Make sure and follow @CycleNews on Twitter and also on Facebook.
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WIND THE NEW VICTORY IN THE
V
ictory unwrapped its Cross Country Tour this week at its dealer meeting, the newest in the family of Victory Touring models – including the Vision, Cross Country, Cross Roads and the new for 2012, Cross Roads Classic Limited Edition. The Cross Country Tour comes standard with the brand-new Victory Comfort Control System, which gives adjustable control of the airflow to the riders and passenger; the
Cross Country Tour also provides the most cargo capacity of any production motorcycle in the world, according to Victory, with more than 41 gallons of storage available. The Cross Country Tour features a cast aluminum chassis and Vic-
tory’s Freedom 106/6 V-Twin engine and non-linked anti-lock brakes. Victory also announced at the show that all of its touring models would now come with anti-lock brakes as standard equipment.
200 BIKES SET FOR MECUM AUCTION Over 50 motorcycles from the Michael Taggart Collection will be offered at No Reserve in the Mecum Auction in Monterey, California.
M
ecum Auctions will put nearly 200 motorcycles on the auction block during its upcoming event in Monterey, August 18-20, at the Hyatt Regency Monterey Hotel &
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than 600 collector cars and vintage wooden boats live on national television – marking the first-ever motorcycle auction broadcast live on “Mecum Auto Auction: Muscle Cars & More” on Discovery’s HD Theater from 3 to 7 p.m. PST on August 18. Fans can also watch the auction via live webcast at www.Mecum.com. “We’ve got everything from an 1885 Penny Farthing bicycle to a 2011 Yamaha R1 being guest auctioneered for charity by none other than Jay Leno and the “King” himSpa on the Del Monte Golf Course. self, Kenny Roberts,” said Dana MeThe Mecum Monterey Auction will cum, president of Mecum Auctions. feature names like Vincent, BSA, TriFor more information, visit www. umph, Ariel, Matchless, Indian and Mecum.com or call 815.568.8888. Harley-Davidson, all joining more 8/8/11 3:40 PM
VOL. 48 ISSUE 26 AUGUST 9, 2011
OHV UPDATE: H.R. 1581 S
upporters of H.R. 1581 - the Wilderness and Roadless Area Release Act of 2011 -told U.S. lawmakers on July 26 that the bill would allow local communities to decide the proper uses of 43 million acres of protected public land, which could include off-highway riding, according to the AMA. Critics, however, opposed releasing the protected land all at once. Instead, they want Congress to release the land on a piecemeal basis. The statements were made during a U.S. House Subcommittee on National Parks, Forests and Public Lands hearing on H.R. 1581. The measure would remove the stringent use restrictions on almost 6.7 million acres managed by the federal Bureau of Land Management (BLM) and on 36.1 million acres of U.S. Forest Service (USFS) land that was evaluated for strict congressional Wilderness land-use designations. A Wilderness designation is one of the strictest forms of public land management, according to the AMA Once Congress designates an area as Wilderness, nearly all forms of non-pedestrian recreation are illegal, including off-highway vehicle (OHV) and bicycle riding. The BLM and USFS have determined the 43 million acres covered by H.R. 1581 aren’t suitable for Wilderness designation, but because of various laws and rules they must continue to strictly manage the land until Congress releases it for other possible uses. The Wilderness and Roadless Area Release Act would release the land, freeing up land managers to determine new uses, if any, such as allowing responsible OHV recreation where it currently isn’t allowed. U.S. Representative Kevin McCarthy (R-California), who was joined by other lawmakers in introducing the bill, said the measure “simply acts on recommendations made by the federal government and returns the management of tens of millions of acres of public land to local communities so that more Americans can have access to our public lands. These communities know best how to manage the lands, whether for increased recreation, preservation or development.”
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Briefly...… Honor The Man Roger DeCoster will join Kenny Roberts in being honored as a Motorcycle Hall of Fame Legend at the annual Motorcycle Hall of Fame Induction Ceremony at the Red Rock Casino, Resort and Spa in Las Vegas, Nevada on November 18. Jason Grows Sportbike Track Time and the Jason DiSalvo Speed Academy have entered into a strategic partnership designed to broaden each company’s service portfolio to their customers. Through the partnership, Jason DiSalvo Speed Academy will expand its school location from one track, (Talladega Gran Prix Raceway) to multiple tracks in a wide region. Meet Paul Sr. Paul Tuetel Sr., star of Discovery Channel’s “American Chopper: Senior vs. Junior” will be at the Legendary Buffalo Chip Campground on Wednesday, August 10 to help BIC Flex4 razors raise money for The Kids & Chrome foundation through BIC 4 Good. The BIC 4 Good program will be at the Buffalo Chip until August 11. BIC is asking bikers at the Chip to shave their heads in support of Kids & Chrome. New Suzuki Site American Suzuki has announced a new website – Suzuki Now – a destination for customers who want access to the latest Suzuki
news, info and special offers. For more information, visit http://suzukicycles. com/suzukiNow. Paris Lid AMA Pro Daytona SportBike rider Melissa Paris switched the signature redand-white livery on her HT Moto Yamaha YZF-R6, her leathers, and her helmet to the color pink for Passionately Pink for the Cure, an awareness and fundraising program benefiting Susan G. Komen for the Cure at the Laguna Seca round of the series. Now she’s auctioning off that helmet. To bid on it, visit eBay and search for Item Number 140583780376 to place your bid. To donate to Melissa’s campaign for Susan G. Komen for the Cure, visit http://www. info-komen.org/goto/MelissaParis. Holden Hurt AMA road racer Jake Holden suffered two broken ribs and a lacerated spleen in his first-lap Daytona SportBike crash at Mazda Raceway Laguna Seca. Holden is expected to be healthy for the final round of the series at New Jersey Motorsports Park, August 3-4. MV Wine Wine & Trust, in collaboration with MV Agusta, will be offering 1000 cases of wine for fans of the Italian marque. The package includes five bottles of wine, a silk-screened and numbered MV Agusta carafe continued on page 19 8/8/11 3:40 PM
P16
IN THE
WIND
BIKE SHOP BOYS
Pirelli has re-inked a deal that will see them as the spec-tire provider again in World Superbike.
PHOTOGRAPHY BY GOLD & GOOSE
(From left to right) Roger Lee Hayden, Nicky Hayden, Tommy Hayden and Cal Crutchlow paid a visit to their bicycle sponsor, Specialized, after the Red Bull U.S. Grand Prix. Ben Spies and Toni Elias also stopped by the company’s Morgan Hill, California, headquarters.
PIRELLI STILL THE ONE
A
s expected, Pirelli has renewed its contract as the exclusive tire supplier for the World Superbike Championship, with the Italian manufacturer now locked in until 2015. Other companies did tender for the contract, and according to Paolo Flammini, CEO of Infront Motorsports: “We had unexpected interest, let us say, from more than one com14-25 WIND.indd 16
pany.” With so many other commitments – Formula One cars, many national spec- tire championships, World Rally, World Endurance for bikes, the Ferrari World Challenge, etc. – there was a chance that Pirelli may have grown jaded by its long term presence in the series, but there were several reasons to stay.
The main one seems to be technical, as Pirelli has used the World Superbike paddock to test its latest tech developments ever since it became spec-tire supplier. Pirelli road and race tires are claimed to have a more direct link between track and street than most, despite the race tires being 16.5 inchers. The visibility of World Superbike for Pirelli also works for the target market, and as effectively the main sponsor of the championship, Pirelli is an omnipresent backdrop on TV and in magazines. “We want to continue to race in all forms of activity,” Pirelli boss Uberto Thun said. “We consider World Superbike to be a very important championship and the one which is closest to the real end user… Even if we invest an important amount of resources in Formula One, Superbike is again important for us. We had a good experience in the past, we enjoyed things from it, and we want to continue. It is important for both technical and marketing reasons.” Gordon Ritchie
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REDMANN DOUBLES, LAU THREE-PEATS N
FILE PHOTOGRAPHY COURTESY OF BETA
ate Radmann won the Xtreme and Unlimited classes and Ian Lau took his third Pro Sport win in a row at the fifth round of the AMA Pro Hillclimb Championship Series at Canaan, New Hampshire on July 31. Redmann’s only ride in the Xtreme class came in the first half when he broke into the five-second range, setting the fastest time of the day - in all classes. Shane Green followed with the only other sub-six second ride for second place. Vinny Nuzzolilli stepped onto the podium for his first time in the pros with midsix second rides in both halves. Redmann found himself in 10th after one run in Unlimited, but sort-
ed things out and came back for the win over Jay Sallstrom in the second half. Shawn Farnsworth rounded out the podium. Lau’s third win was earned the hard way, as he was second behind first-timer Ryan Carey after one run. But he knew what he had to do, and he pulled out all the stops and flew over the top jump for the win by less than a tenth-second. In the series point standings, Sallstrom holds the lead in Unlimited; Redmann leads Xtreme by 21 points; and Lau’s win broke his tie with rival John Koester. Jeff Whitehead
PHOTOGRAPHY BY JEFF WHITEHEAD
IN THE
Nate Radmann won the Xtreme and Unlimited classes in New Hampshire.
RAGA OVER BOU
A
fter a tense battle with reigning World Champion Toni Bou, Gas Gas’ Adam Raga won round six of the SPEA FIM Trial World Championship, held at the awe inspiring Nevis Range in Fort William, Scotland on July 31. Bou ended up second with his teammate Takahisa Fujinami taking the final podium spot after a battle with Sherco’s Albert Cabestany. Raga’s impressive first lap and equally efficient second were enough to keep Bou off the top step of the podium for the first time in four rounds. The Spaniard beat his countryman by a sole mark to clinch a well-deserved victory. While Bou was a little disappointed he conceded that Raga was a worthy winner of what proved a technical and hugely enjoyable Trial. Bou still leads Raga by 15 points with two Grand Prix events and four scoring days remaining. Meanwhile, Fujinami’s fourth podium this season sees him tied with his nemesis Cabestany in third place overall in the series. Both have 99 points. Adam Raga beat Toni Bou to win in Scotland.
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P19
Briefly...
MV AGUSTA GOES GOLD
M
V Agusta has announced that the new MV Agusta F3 model, which is expected in dealerships before the end of the year, will also be available in a limited edition model – the “Serie Ono.” Only 200 of the special models will be made to order and they will feature gold frame plates and swingarm as well as gold forged wheels. There’s also a special paint scheme and the clutch cover and the frame plates are machine polished, while the alternator cover is milled and the bike gets a gold DID chain, handmade leather seat covers and each bike’s number will be gold-plate mounted on the upper triple clamp. The bike also gets the trick brakes, fork, etc.
COMING TO AMERICA
A
merican Honda has announced that it will be bringing 2012 HRC NSF250R road racers into the country. Newly developed for FIM GP road racing Honda will import its NSF250Rs for racing in the U.S.
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(all packaged in a wooden presentation case), and a one in 250 chance of winning a brand new MV. The cost for the package is $1877. For more information, visit www.wine-trust. com. 2012 ISDE The FIM has announced that the 2012 International Six Days’ Enduro (ISDE) will be held in Germany – near the Sachsenring circuit that currently hosts a MotoGP every year. The race will be held September 24-29. The Sachsenring circuit will be the start and finish line on each of the six days. Enfield Factory Royal Enfield Motors, manufacturer of the Bullet motorcycle line and the world’s oldest motorcycle brand, has announced the construction of a new manufacturing facility on 50 acres in Chennai, China. The factory is slated to be finished by the first quarter of 2013. Once completed, the new plant will more than double Royal Enfield’s current capacity of 70,000 units per year to 150,000 units per year, according to the company. Sales Up The Motorcycle Industry Council has announced sales of new motorcycles and scooters increased 1.7 percent in the second quarter with the dual-sport, scooter and streetbike segments showing the most improvement. Dual-sport, scooter and street had
year-to-date sales increases of 13 percent, 28.9 percent and 3.3 percent, respectively. Motorcycles and scooters made up 71 percent of total new-units sales, while ATVs accounted for 29 percent, according to MIC figures. Things aren’t all good however as the off-road market continues to plummet with dirt bikes dropping some 16.9 percent while ATVs went down 17.3 percent. Hero Portraits Noted photographer Fran Kuhn has opened a new website (www.frankuhn. com) that features some cool Avedon-style portraits of heroes like Malcolm Smith and Roger DeCoster. Kuhn says it’s a work in progress that will continue to grow. Stop And Go Passed in both the House and the Senate, House Bill 2860, sponsored by Representative Dan Beiser (D-Alton), would permit motorcycle operators, facing a steady red signal that fails to change to green within a reasonable period of time because of a signal malfunction or because the signal fails to detect the presence of the motorcycle, to proceed subject to the rules applicable after making a stop at a stop sign. The bill was forwarded on June 27 to Governor Pat Quinn; he has until August 29 to make his decision. 8/8/11 3:40 PM
P20
WIND In 2012, the NSF250R will be legal in the USGPRU Moto 3 and WERA classes as well as in other local racing events according to Honda.
The NSF250R will carry a suggested retail price of $28,599 and will be included in Honda’s 2012 contingency program. Delivery is estimated for February 2012.
CASELLI LEADS CLASS AT ISDE
D
ay one of the 86th International Six Days Enduro in Kotka, Finland, is in the books and Team USA has gotten off to a mixed start. The U.S. Trophy team is fourth, but already 10 minutes out of first place - a spot held by the host team, Finland. The Finns are also already five and a half minutes ahead of the second-place team from Spain. Australia is holding down third, a little under two minutes ahead of Team USA. In the Junior World class, Sweden leads over France and Great Britain. The U.S. Junior World team is seventh, and the U.S. Women’s
team is down to just one rider after Kerry Schwartz houred out and Nicole Bradford dislocated her shoulder. Mandi Mastin is still running. Kurt Caselli leads the E2 class after day But the most excitone at the Six Days in Finland. ing news from Team USA is that Trophy with difficult trail had all the riders rider Kurt Caselli is riding extremely working hard on day one. well and is leading the E2 class. “This is, technically, the most difFirst-time Trophy rider Russell Bobbitt also had a good first day and is ficult Six Days I’ve ever done as far seventh in class. Destry Abbott is as the controls and the tests,” said Caselli. 11th. Rain the night before combined Mark Kariya
DESALLE TAKES CZECH GP T
he diverse demands of the FIM Motocross World Championship was revealed within the space of a week after the deep and punishing sand of Lommel in Belgium was replaced by the slippery one-line hard-pack of Loket for the Casino Bonver Grand Prix of Czech Republic, August 6-7. On this damp, cold and tricky stage, the same three riders in the premier MX1 class managed to shine, with Rockstar Energy Suzuki’s Clement Desalle earning victory for the first time in six rounds (he was second the previous Sunday in Belgium). World Champion and clear series leader Red Bull Teka KTM’s Tony Cairoli played second fiddle after winning at Lommel and Honda World Motocross Team’s Rui Goncalves made the top three in MX1 for the first time, somewhat belatedly after a mechanical problem robbed him only corners before the flag last week.
PHOTOGRAPHY BY MARK KARIYA
competition in the Moto3 class, the NSF250R is powered by an all-new liquid-cooled single-cylinder 249cc four-stroke engine specifically designed for racing.
PHOTOGRAPHY BY RAY ARCHER
IN THE
Czech Republic GP winner Clement Desalle gained a few points on MX1-class leader Antonio Cairoli, but still has a long ways to go to catch him with just three rounds left. 14-25 WIND.indd 20
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MX2 unsurprisingly belonged to Red Bull Teka KTM duo Ken Roczen and Jeffrey Herlings; the pair finishing one-two for the seventh time in 12 rounds, with Roczen celebrating his seventh overall of the season. CLS Kawasaki Monster Energy Pro Circuit’s Tommy Searle won an entertaining multi-rider battle for the third spot. Desalle went 2-1, Cairoli 1-4 and Goncalves 3-3 for the MX1 podium, and Desalle’s starts helped the Belgian to his fourth win of the year (tying him with Cairoli) and allowed him
to cut the points margin down to 48 with three races to go. Cairoli was undone by a mediocre second-moto launch and a frightening moment when he landed on Monster Energy Yamaha’s Steven Frossard during the first lap, causing the Frenchman to crash. Cairoli pushed on to pass Christophe Pourcel and teammate Max Nagl later in the race. Frossard was actually okay and charged back to 12th. The Frenchman was surprised to see that he extended his points margin over Honda
World Motocross Team’s Evgeny Bobryshev and solidify the third spot in the standings. Pourcel finished both motos, going 13-5 for ninth overall. Monster Energy Yamaha’s David Philippaerts was absent after a nasty mid-week training crash led to a pair of broken wrists. Roczen ruled the roost in MX2 although Herlings made a challenge in the second moto when the German became inconsistent with his lap-times, apparently due to sweat running into his goggles. Adam Wheeler PHOTOGRAPHY BY LARRY LAWRENCE
IN THE
BOGLE, PETERS STAR AT LORETTA LYNN’S
J
ustin Bogle and Kyle Peters shared A-class victories at the 30th running of the AMA Amateur National Motocross at Loretta Lynn Ranch in Hurricane Mills, Tennessee, August 2-8. But it was the 250 A-class final that had everyone rushing to the trackside fencing. Both riders went into the final 250 A-class moto with 1-2 scores, and it was Peters, on the Triangle Cycles/Star Racing Yamaha, who got out in front early, while Bogle, on the Factory Connection/Amsoil Honda, settled into second. Bogle, who captured three class championships the week before at Ponca City, closed the gap on Peters and put on a tremendous late-race charge that caught everyone’s attention. Peters just did manage to hold off Bogle to take the win and class championship. Bogle, however, did not leave
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the Ranch empty handed, as he went 1-1-1 to take the 450 A-class Championship. Both Bogle and Peters will make their pro debut at Unadilla when the Lucas Oil AMA Pro Motocross Championship resumes this weekend. Team Green Kawasaki’s Adam Cianciarulo rebounded from last year’s disappointment of two DNFs by winning a pair of championships in the two Supermini classes. Kawasaki riders Blake Green and Austin Forkner went home with the first-place trophies in the 85 Stock and Modified (12-14) classes, respectively, while Yamaha pilot Matt Biceglia topped the Schoolboy 1 (12-16) B/C class, and Suzuki rider Jace Owen won the Schoolboy 2 (13-16) B/C class. JM Racing Honda’s Taylor Higgins won the Girls (12-15) Championship.
Kyle Peters won a thrilling championship in the 250 A class at Loretta Lynn Ranch.
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8/8/11 8/8/11 1:59:36 3:20 PM
P24
IN THE
WIND
HOPKINS DOES THE JOB J
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John Hopkins had a good weekend at Brands Hatch.
day’s race one, and nearly on pole for the third race in a row, Hopkins struggled as the track dried to finish fourth in the race won by Brookes. With grids for the following race set by the rider’s fastest lap, Hopkins ended up 12th, and on row three, for race two. But he’d earlier put himself in a hole by crashing in morning warm-up after hitting a false neutral, forcing the team into triage mode to be ready for the race (BSB rules only allow one bike). The Californian quickly made short work of the field, moving into fourth on the third lap and third on the 11th lap. He stuck with the leaders, Byrne and Hill, until the 18th of 20 laps when he dropped off the pace to finish third. Later he would say the issues with the false neutral were resolved, but that there were other
PHOTOGRAPHY BY GOLD & GOOSE
ohn Hopkins could sit out the next round of the British Superbike Championship, miss out on 75 points, and still win the championship. How could that be? Simple. The tripleheader Cadwell Park meeting, the ninth of 12 rounds, is the last before the Showdown - the three-round, seven-race championship-deciding finale. Hopkins has enough points that even if he didn’t score a single point in the three Superbike races at Cadwell Park at the end of August, he’d be one of the six riders to qualify. What he needs are podium credits, which are awarded on a 3-2-1 basis. Hopkins currently has 18 to 20 for HM Plant Honda’s Shane Byrne and 21 for Swan Yamaha’s Tommy Hill, the series wins leader with five. Hill and Byrne had split wins on Sunday on the Brands Hatch GP course, a day after Relentless Suzuki by TAS rider Josh Brookes raced on intermediate tires to win Saturday’s race on a drying track. Brookes wasn’t a factor in either of Sunday’s races. He sits fifth in the championship and could also make the Showdown. The Showdown riders each start with 300 points, plus the podium credits. So if the Showdown started today, Hopkins would have 318 points. One hundred seventyfive points are up for grabs in the Showdown, on top of what the riders start with. Hopkins improved with each of the three races at Brands Hatch. Having qualified second for Satur-
gearbox issues. In Sunday’s second race Hopkins would spend the first threequarters of the race chasing Hill, whose Yamaha would leap off the corners better than Hopkins’ Suzuki, and use up less tire doing it. “I tried absolutely everything in that race to stay with Tommy [Hill] and he just started to edge away from me,” Hopkins said. “Once the tire got used a little bit [around the 15th lap], I just couldn’t hang with him.” Hopkins is now two-thirds of the way through a unique trifecta. The weekend before Brands Hatch, he raced in the World Superbike round at Silverstone. Then came the BSB outing and the following weekend he’ll be in the Czech Republic to race the Rizla Suzuki in MotoGP alongside Alvaro Bautista. Henny Ray Abrams
8/8/11 3:40 PM
SUPERBIKES ON THE HIGH BANKS T
he viability of running Superbikes on both bankings was put to the test during last week’s very hot Dunlop tire test at Daytona International Speedway, and even though there’s considerable interest from the Daytona Motorsports Group to restore the Daytona 200 to Superbikes, and on both bankings, the results from the very limited test made it seem unlikely any time soon. Rockstar Makita Suzuki teammates Tommy Hayden and Blake Young both rode their Superbikes on both bankings - Hayden for two three-lap runs, Young for a lap less. Given the concerns over the tires, as well as their championship positions, the riders weren’t taking any chances. Still, the tire temperatures produced on a day when it was 98F, with track temperatures of 128F, made it clear that Superbikes, for the moment at least, couldn’t race on both bankings. “I think from the tire point of view is one issue, and then also just whether it should be done period, quite honestly,” Hayden said. “They have a lot of data with comparisons from the SportBike, because they did a lot of laps on our track and they did a lot of laps on the big track. So they see the average on those tires, the difference. So they have a pretty good reference with that. And it’s definitely quite a bit more. And I’m sure it’s at least that if not more with our tires. Definitely some work to do there, but in the end, I don’t… it still doesn’t seem like a good idea to 14-25 WIND.indd 25
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PHOTOGRAPHY BY ANDREA WILSON
PHOTOGRAPHY BY GOLD & GOOSE
VOL. 48 ISSUE 26 AUGUST 9, 2011
Tommy Hayden thinks there’s work to be done before Superbikes could run on both the high banks of Daytona.
me, either way.” Surprisingly, this was the first time Hayden had ridden a 1000cc Superbike on both bankings; he had raced 1000cc Superstock bikes and 750cc Superbikes on the long course. One of the more harrowing segments was the transition out of the infield onto the west banking. “You definitely are aiming, especially on a Superbike, you’re trying to keep the bike picked up and get some traction, and you go across the transition and you are literally accelerating as hard as you can straight for the wall as you go through the transition,” Hayden said. “Then you begin to start turning away from it a little. It was pretty sketchy. I was thinking, ‘I’m glad I’m not out here qualifying trying to find a couple tenths.’” Teammate Blake Young believes that the 200 needs to be the premiere class, that all the top riders need to be in it, “but if we can’t do it just because the tire technology is not there, then we can’t do it.” Young had never ridden a 1000cc Superbike on both bankings and, like Hayden, found the transition “sketchy.” “The thing that I noticed the most
was the transition, you really had to cross up and go up onto that transition straight because that’s not something you want to hit at an angle or sideways and with that said you’re pointed straight up at the wall,” he said. “It’s kinda hard to get your mind into holding the gas on when you’re pointing it straight up at a wall going from that transition up. That was a big problem that I had. And you’re riding around without any grip on top of it, so it was pretty tough.” Still, overall, Young found it an interesting diversion. “I don’t think the tire technology is there yet for the tires to do that, but I thought the course was kind of different, you could say,” he said. “But I think that transition there was kind of iffy.” The decision will rely heavily on the opinion of Dunlop, the control tire supplier. Dunlop’s road race manager Sabastian Mincone said talk of two bankings was a bit premature. “My opinion right now is that we still need to do more work and collect more data if we wanted to do two bankings,” he said. Henny Ray Abrams
8/8/11 3:40 PM
JOY RIDE
P26
2011 Husqvarna TE310
You can hammer the street-legal TE310 all you want without feeling guilty. 26-30 Husky TE310.indd 26
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MIDDLEWEIGHT
MASTERPIECE If you like the TE250, you’ll love the TE310. BY SEAN FINLEY PHOTOS BY KIT PALMER
O
ne of the most impressive and perhaps surprising off-road machines we rode all last year was the 2010 Husqvarna TE250 dual sporter. And we’re still talking about it. The bike arrived in ’10 with a new frame, new fuelinjected motor, new chassis and a new attitude, and we found it to be an incredibly capable offroader thanks to a remarkably spunky (for a small-bore 250cc) motor and a super light and agile chassis. The suspension was tuned for hard-core off-road riding, too, and, perhaps best of all, it was street legal (but you’d never know that by riding it). Simply put, it was (and still is) a great machine. The only thing that might be better would be a
26-30 Husky TE310.indd 27
slightly larger displacement version of it – ta da! Like in 2010 with the TE250, the 2011 TE310 debuted as an all-new machine, but it really isn’t much different than the previously updated 250. For all intents and purposes, the TE310 is a TE250 but with a larger bore and longer stroke, and that’s all it needs to be, really. Even weight is the same; Husky claims both bikes tip the scale at 233.7 (dry) pounds. But the 2011 TE310 is 13.2 pounds lighter than the previous TE310. The 310’s DOHC motor, which is in essence Husky’s latest-generation TC250 (MX) motor, has a larger 82.0mm bore (versus 79.0mm) and a longer 57.3mm stroke (versus 50.9mm), giving it a total displacement of 302cc. Fueling is, like the TE250, managed by a Mikuni FI system but with 3mm
larger throttle bodies at 45mm. Even though the TE gets a larger fuel tank, six-speed transmission, lights and turn signals, you can still feel the TC’s motocross roots when you hit the dirt, much like the TE250 does. In fact, the TE310 is such a performance-oriented bike that Antoine Meo is using a TE310based bike in the World Enduro Championship and is leading the points in the E2 class, which is for bikes up to 450cc. The U.S.-based Zip Ty Husqvarna team has also chosen the TE310 for EnduroCross. As far as dual sport capabilities go, however, the TE310 is not a bike you will want to ride for extended distances on pavement, and that’s how it should be. The license plate is nothing more than a free pass to get you to the good stuff – the dirt. The 310 comes with 13-40 sprockets
8/5/11 4:01 PM
JOY RIDE
P28
2011 Husqvarna TE310 The TE310 is essentially a TE250 with more usable power.
On
The few extra cc’s compared to the TE250 is very welcomed in soft terrain and steep hillclimbs.
installed but includes a 50 tooth rear sprocket and longer chain, and if you plan to ride any tight trails, you will want to make the change. The 40-tooth sprocket is okay for road use but far too tall of a ratio for any slow or technical 26-30 Husky TE310.indd 28
trails. With the alternative gearing, the 310 is transformed into a very good off-road motorcycle. However, the relatively close ratio six speed transmission is a little short on gearing for pavement with the larger rear sprocket and
will top out at about 55 miles an hour. You may be able to find a better compromise depending on your mix of riding. The suspension settings are very “sporty,” compared to many other dual sport bikes, especially Japanese-built ones. In fact, riders in the 170 pound and under range will find that they can really push this bike through rough trail conditions and could even ride a mellow motocross track. The Sachs shock and 48mm Kayaba fork are compliant, stout and very adjustable. The TE310 feels light and compact on the trail, just like a full-on off-road bike. It changes directions instantly and pivots effort8/5/11 4:01 PM
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Bazzaz EFI Controller
On the trail, you quickly forget you’re aboard a street-legal bike.
lessly through tight or technical trails, so if that is your preferred riding conditions, this is a great bike for you. The 2.25 gallon fuel tank will safely get you 100 miles of fuel range, and since this is a bike that is better suited for tight trails than long adventures, that is very adequate. On one ride, we got almost exactly 50 miles to the gallon on a mix of slow fire roads, pavement and trails. As for the ergonomics and components, most riders will find the TE to be a very comfortable bike. It comes standard with good quality Magura handlebars, a hydraulic clutch and a reasonably comfortable seat. The handlebar clamps can be reversed for different preferences. The Brembo disc brakes are strong and offer excellent fell. One glitch with the TE310 is the throttle response at low RPMs. It is a little unresponsive off idle, especially in slow riding conditions where the bike is otherwise very strong. It’s still very rideable but irritating and the 26-30 Husky TE310.indd 29
If you choose to tune your Husky TE310 into a closed-course bike, then the Bazzaz Z-FI MX controller is a great way to get the full performance potential out of your bike. Bazzaz makes these units for most fuel-injected motorcycles, and it provides improved performance and tune ability, especially after any aftermarket modifications. They come pre-programmed with two maps (one for stock and one for bikes with aftermarket exhaust) and they come with the software and USB cable necessary to do your own tuning. The multiple wires and connectors can be intimidating for even an experienced “do it yourselfer,” but the Bazzaz instructions are very detailed and accurate. So if you have decent mechanical ability, you should have no problems installing the unit. We were happy with the improvement provided by the pre-installed map so we did not use the software to create our own maps. This is certainly a product we would recommend for anybody looking to tune their own FI motorcycle. For more info, visit www.bazzaz.net 8/5/11 4:02 PM
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2011 Husqvarna TE310 bike will sometimes stall. This appears to be caused by the EFI map and we made a big improvement by installing a Bazzaz Z-FI MX control module (see the sidebar). It is otherwise difficult to find any real flaws with the TE310. Unlike last year with the 2010 TE250, we were pleasantly “not surprised” at all by the TE310’s outstanding performance. And why wouldn’t we be? After all, Husky took one of our favorite dual sport bikes and basically gave it more power without giving it more weight. What else could you ask for? CN
S P E C I F I C AT I O N S
2011 HUSQVARNA TE310
ENGINE TYPE:......Liquid-cooled, DOHC, 4-valve, 4-stroke, single DISPLACEMENT:............................302cc BORE X STROKE:........82mm x 57.3mm FUELING:.Mikuni fuel-injection system w/45mm throttle bodies STARTING SYSTEM:......................... Kick CLUTCH:..........................Wet, multi-disc TRANSMISSION:.........................6-speed FINAL DRIVE:...................................Chain FRONT SUSPENSION:.....48mm Kayaba REAR SUSPENSION:......... Single shock, swingarm, Sachs, fully adjustable FRONT WHEEL TRAVEL:................11.8 in.
REAR WHEEL TRAVEL:................11.6 in. FRONT WHEEL: ............................ 21 in. REAR WHEEL:................................ 18 in. FRONT BRAKE: ............ Brembo, single 260mm disc REAR BRAKE:................Brembo, single 240mm disc FUEL CAPACITY:....................... 2.2 gal. SEAT HEIGHT:............................37.4 in. GROUND CLEARANCE:................11.4 in. WHEELBASE:..............................57.9 in. CLAIMED DRY WEIGHT:........ 233.7 lbs. MANUFACTURER COUNTRY:..........Italy MSRP:.......................................... $8199
You can pick one up for about $8200. 26-30 Husky TE310.indd 30
8/5/11 4:02 PM
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8/8/11 7:41 PM AM 8/5/11 3:07:59
ROUND 13/AUGUST 6, 2011 CASTLE ROCK RACE PARK/CASTLE ROCK, WASHINGTON
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HOMECOMING KI
FLAT TRACK
AMA HARLEY-DAVIDSON INSURANCE GRAND NATIONAL CHAMPION
SAMMY HALBERT WENT HOME AND WON BIG
STORY AND PHOTOS BY DAVE HOENIG / FLAT TRAK FOTOS
T
he AMA Pro Racing HarleyDavidson Insurance Grand National Championship returned to the Northwest with the Mount Saint Helens Motorcycle Club bringing Grand National TT racing back to the Castle Rock Race Park. And it was a night for
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the locals. Much like “back in the day,” local riders who cut their teeth on the small, slick, technical track dominated the night. Despite the fact that Castle Rock no longer holds weekly professional races, the 19- rider National field had seven Washington-based riders qualifying for the 25-lap main event.
And one stood clearly above there as the night belonged to series points leader Sammy Halbert, who hales from nearby Graham. Halbert was nearly flawless all day with the only chink coming as he posted the second fastest qualifying time. Halbert then went out and threw down the fastest heat race time by over two seconds. 8/8/11 3:55 PM
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VOL. 48 ISSUE 26 AUGUST 9, 2011
KING
HAMPIONSHIP
Washington’s Sammy Halbert had a night to remember at his home track, the series points leader putting a bit more distance over his rivals in the chase for the championship with a decisive win at the Castle Rock TT.
By the time the main event rolled to the line, it was painfully obvious that a good start was going to be the most important part of the race. Halbert needed not just one, but three perfect starts to win his fourth National of 2011. “It was a good race,” said Halbert after riding his Woody Kyle Racing/Fredericktown Yamahabacked YZ450F to victory. “We 32-37 Castle Rock.indd 33
pulled the hole shot and that was important. There were a couple restarts, but I just kind of stayed focused. The bike was just jumping right off the line. We got the holeshot every single time.” The first start of the National was aborted when a scary crash occurred on the face of the jump with riders scattering in an effort to avoid the fallen riders. Bryan Smith, Johnny Lewis and Chris Carr all went down in the melee and all made the complete retstart, even though Lewis seemed the most shaken. Halbert repeated his start, but this time Montgomeryville Cycle/ Lucas Oil’s Jared Mees was right behind him. “I put my local track knowledge to use here,” said Halbert. “I kept my head down and rode a smooth race; a little conservative through the infield. I just didn’t want to run wide and have someone stick a wheel in there. We had the bike really hooked up, it was pulling hard off of turn four.” The race order quickly settled with Halbert and Mees maintaining a gap over Monster Energy Kawasaki’s Henry Wiles and Major League Motorsports/R3 Moto’s Brad Baker. Local hotshoe Scooter Vernon held fifth early on his Innovative Suspension-backed mount, but he gave way to defending Grand National Champion Jake Johnson and his Zanotti Racing Honda. Just as the half way flags were displayed, Chad Cose, who
Briefly... Sammy Halbert’s dominating performance has rewarded him with a 10- point lead over Jared Mees and now 20 over Jake Johnson in what is fast becoming a threerider battle for the AMA Pro Racing Harley-Davidson Insurance Grand National Championship. “Leading up to the main event, we couldn’t have had a worse day,” said Johnson. “I got some good points out of it, but we lost a lot of points with Jared and Sammy running one two. There’s still quite a few races left. We were down by this much a few to go and worked our way back. That’s been the story of the season. We just keep fighting back. We’ve got some good tracks coming up for us. Hopefully, we’ll be able to get back up there.” Pre-race ceremonies included a tribute to some of the greats who have raced at the “Rock.” Three-time Castle Rock winner Chuck Joyner, two-time winner Mert Lawwill, 1971 winner Sonny Burres and Washingtonians Randy Scott and Mike Sullivan were all honored. Just before practice was due to start, the fairgrounds were hit with a power outage, delaying the start of qualifying. Temporary generators were rounded up so that timed practice/qualifying could continue. The problem was corrected in time for the program to start as scheduled. It’s not unusual for Mom and Dad to follow their racers around the country, but Betty and Ken Coolbeth have taken a novel approach continued on next page 8/8/11 3:55 PM
ROUND 13/AUGUST 6, 2011 CASTLE ROCK RACE PARK/CASTLE ROCK, WASHINGTON
FLAT TRACK
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AMA HARLEY-DAVIDSON INSURANCE GRAND NATIONAL CHAMPION
Halbert (7) held off the determined charge of Jared Mees (9).
was running mid-pack, fell on the back straight. The red lights stopped the action on lap 13 and any advantage Halbert and Mees had gained was washed away. “The restarts didn’t bother Washingtonian rookie Brad Baker finished third.
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me,” Halbert said. “I knew I was out front of the single file start. I could just keep my head down and do what I needed to do.” Meanwhile, Mees was now on Halbert’s rear wheel and ap-
peared to be faster in several sections of the course. “Before the red flag, I felt like we were there,” said Mees. “He was just getting off turn four better than me, but I was faster in the infield. After the red flag I was on him for the first half a lap and we went through turns three and four and I just busted that thing in half sideways and he just checked out. It was just kind of like… ‘I have to stay here now.’ He rode well. I’ve got to hand it to him, he was flawless all day. To come out of here in second, I’m pretty happy with it.” Halbert was pleased with his performance. “I was fairly dominant today,” he said. “I felt like I could do it and we did. We qualified well 8/8/11 3:55 PM
VOL. 48 ISSUE 26 AUGUST 9, 2011
P35
HAMPIONSHIP and were able to pick the inside pole position. I think that definitely helped. We just had a good technique on the starts today and it showed. I’m beaming with joy. I was just happy to run out front, it felt great. I haven’t had a great month leading up to this, so it felt great to win. I’m just more energized and ready to go for the rest of the year. This year has
just been fantastic for me. I’ve won more Nationals than I have in my entire career.” The battle for third took center stage and had the large crowd’s attention as local favorite son, Brad Baker, was attacking Wiles. And on the 19th lap, the youngster made his move on the veteran. “It felt really good. We got rolling there at the end of the
Callies Does It
consecutive win in the series, but started mired in sixth before moving forward. As the seventh lap started, Taylor and Martin made contact going into the first turn with Taylor ending up on the ground. He eventually got restarted, but ended up three laps down. Callies and Bauman ran nose to tail all the way with Bauman looking for the mistake that never came as Callies won by a scant .146 of a second. Martin held off Spencer for third as Sandhill Ranch’s Cole Crowley rounded out the top five.
Full Throttle/Sioux Falls Truck & Trailer’s Gerit Callies led the 16- lap Motorcycle-Superstore. com Pro Singles main into the first turn and was never headed. Gallies was chased by Hooper Motorsports’ Rod Spencer, Rod Lake Racing’s Brian Bauman and About Time Glass’ Hunter Taylor, but it was Bauman, the 2010 AMA Horizon Award winner, who was able to go with Callies as those two pulled away with Taylor slipping into third. Current series points leader Weirbach Racing’s Mikey Martin was looking for his fourth
Briefly...
to following Kenny for the last few weeks. The Coolbeth’s left Connecticut on their Harley-Davidson and have followed Kenny to Lake Odessa, Michigan, Sacramento, California and now Castle Rock, Washington. “It’s a trip many would envy, but it is not without its challenges,” said Betty Coolberth. “It was so hot the first two weeks. I can take the cold, but there is only so much you can do to fight the heat.” “The trip up here after Sacramento has been great and we have seen some beautiful country along the way,” said Ken Coolberth Sr. “It’s been fun, other than the heat. Now we just have to find a cooler way home.”
Gerit Callies (76L) held off Brian Bauman (10Z) to win the Pro Singles main event.
Henry Wiles is slowly working his way back into the swing of things after his knee surgery. “I talked to one of my sponsors and my mechanic and they were just real happy with the way I rode. They are the two people [Nick Nazzisa and Johnny Olmstead] that really know what I have been going through. I’ve been hanging out with them throughout my rehabilitation. I was a little bit bummed that I didn’t continued on next page 32-37 Castle Rock.indd 35
8/8/11 3:55 PM
ROUND 13/AUGUST 6, 2011 CASTLE ROCK RACE PARK/CASTLE ROCK, WASHINGTON
FLAT TRACK
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AMA HARLEY-DAVIDSON INSURANCE GRAND NATIONAL CHAMPION
Joe Kopp (3) battled with Jake Johnson (1) and Kenny Coolbeth (2) for fifth place. Halbert (center) celebrates with Baker (left) and Mees (right).
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race,” said Baker. “We were spinning up at the beginning and they kind of gapped us a little bit. I figured something out there before the restart. Scooter [Vernon] got by, but I got back by him. I stuck it in on Henry [Wiles] and got the best of him once again. That felt good. I was reeling in Jared [Mees] and the bike really came in at the end of the race. “It just feels great to be on the podium on my home track. I think if I had about five more laps, if that, I would have been right on his [Mees] butt. I think I would have been able to do a maneuver on him. I’m really good at setting people up there out of the right hander and coming into the sweeper. I could have done a high low on him there.” Wiles ended up fourth. “It was going pretty good. Before the restart the leaders had a gap on me,” said Wiles. “I had a gap on fourth and then it tightened all back up. I didn’t quite get in the same rhythm as I was before the red flag. Brad was hanging there with me. I missed a shift on the bike so it just kind of freewheeled. That really messed my whole race up. I was faster than those guys 8/8/11 3:55 PM
VOL. 48 ISSUE 26 AUGUST 9, 2011
P37
HAMPIONSHIP
Briefly...
in spots and they were faster than me in places. Since I was trying to make up time I would make a mistake here or there and they would get away from me a little bit.” Another four seconds back was a tight race for fifth as Latus Harley-Davidson’s Joe Kopp, Jake Johnson and Chaplin Kawasaki’s Kenny Coolbeth ran nose to tail. A late race charge from the back row by American Motorcyclist Association/Dallas Fort Worth Honda’s Carr moved him just behind Coolbeth as the laps ran out. Scooter Vernon dropped to ninth as he edged out Matt Reecy Racing’s Rob Pearson. CN
My Own Race: #9
JARED MEES
2ND
“It would have been nice to beat Sam,” said Mees after coming up some two seconds short. “I knew coming in here that Sam was the guy to beat; we’re having a National in his backyard. He’s had hundreds and hundreds and hundreds of laps here. He grew up here racing from the 50s to the 450s. I think he knows this track pretty well. You never know what’s going to happen when you get back on the 450s after riding the Harleys so much, but I’m pretty happy.”
#12
BRAD BAKER
3RD
#3
JOE KOPP
5TH
“It was cool. It was helpful to know the track,” said Baker after putting his Honda on the podium. “A little bit of it [the track] is different, but a lot of the aspects of it are the same as it has always been. We’ve got a few tricks under our sleeve. Sammy [Halbert] just really got out front and did his thing. I think if I would have got off there and could have rode with him, we would have had a pretty good race. Hat’s off to him. We’ll come back again next year and try to put it on top.” “It felt good. I’m happy with fifth coming from the second row,” said veteran Joe Kopp – another Washington native. “I qualified real good today [first]. Second row in the main is kind of a tough spot. This is a real hard track to pass on. I’m not aggressive right now. I can feel that I’m not as aggressive as these guys; they race with each other each week. During both starts I was telling myself going into turn one, ‘just get through this corner’ because guys were just so close. Every time I told myself that,and on both starts I got passed two or three times. I thought, ‘this is wrong thinking here.’ I slapped myself on the ass when I went over the jump and thought, ‘why did you do that?’ The restart kind of helped me out;
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get on the podium. I guess I can’t expect a whole lot. I think it was a good preview for what we’ve got coming up. I’m really excited. I came out here and I kept telling them that I was just going to test. Then we got here and that kind of all went out the window. You get racing and start having fun. I had a real good time in the heat race with Joe Kopp. He passed me a couple times and I passed him back. I’ve probably never told him this, but he’s one of my favorite riders to ride with, him and JR [Schnabel]. It was fun that I got to battle out here with Joe like that on his hometown track. Since he is not riding with us all the time, I don’t get those battles with him like I used to. Overall it was a real fun night.”
I gave myself a talk and decided to get aggressive. These guys are not doing anything dirty - they are taking a hole and making it bigger, making it happen. I needed to do the same thing. I got past Jake [Johnson] and Kenny [Coolbeth] and a few guys and thought, ‘These are fast guys, this is cool.’ On the last few laps, I heard somebody right there, but I didn’t know who it was. When I got up to fifth I was judging off Brad [Baker] and Henry [Wiles] and I was having a hard time closing that gap. I got into defense mode.”
#1
JAKE JOHNSON
6TH
“I would have been ecstatic if I had gotten fifth, from where the day started,” said Jake Johnson. “I couldn’t get out of my own way. I qualified 25th and had a second-row start for the heat race. I worked my way up to fifth in the heat. I didn’t feel really good all day. I got the hole shot in the semi, just kind of rode smooth and still didn’t feel like I was doing anything special. It was pretty crazy on the first start. There were guys all over the place in the right- hander. John [Lewis], Bryan [Smith] and Chris [Carr] went down. I had to go off the side of the jump. On the restart I got a good start from the third row. I got right up in there, inside the top 10. I made some passes. The only place I could really make any passes was on the outside of the right-hander. It was a little bit risky, but if you carried some good speed off the right-hander and just launch off the jump, then get them back in the left. The last few laps there Joe [Kopp] was kind of protecting a little bit, trying not to make any mistakes. I tried him on the outside a few times. He was getting through there just good enough to where I couldn’t get there. I wanted to try it one last time within the five to go. I knew Kenny [Coolbeth] was right there breathing down my neck. I was trying to hold him off and trying to pass Joe at the same time. I was just trying to do it as safe as I could without losing that spot to Kenny.”
8/8/11 3:55 PM
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