Copyright 2004, Roadracing World Publishing, Inc.

FIRST PERSON/OPINION

Via e-mail:

Let the whining begin.

I can already hear the factory Superbike stars complaining about lappers screwing up their program at Pikes Peak. It’s not bad enough that the track is extremely short, with lap times under one minute. Now, they take away an entire day from the schedule! So the privateers will now get, what, three total practice sessions all weekend? Is it any wonder they can’t get close to the times set by the factory riders? Any wonder why you see some guys getting lapped 4 or 5 times at PPIR?

The factories send their teams to every track in the country during the off-season, and between races, so their riders can turn literally hundreds of test laps. By the time the race weekend comes along, those guys know exactly what suspension settings to use, what kind of gearing to run, which tire compounds will work best, and the perfect line through every turn.

The privateers – some of which have never seen the track before – have to figure all of that out in just a few dozen laps. After the race, they have to endure all the derisive comments by the superstars – or in some cases, physical attacks – because they’re “idiots who have no business being out there”.

Gee, why not get rid of practice altogether, and send everyone to the starting grid right off the trailer?

Scott Willock
Tucson, Arizona