Copyright 2003, Roadracing World Publishing, Inc.

FIRST PERSON/OPINION:

By John Joss

Rich Oliver will hang up his racing leathers after the 2003 season and park the TZ250 Yamaha that has brought him such success over the years. The Pacific Grove, California native has enjoyed some of his greatest successes at Laguna Seca over a racing career now spanning almost a quarter century, but he has won pretty much everywhere else, too. He started the Laguna Seca 250cc race on the pole by a few hundredths of a second from his old teammate and protégée Chuck Sorensen, the 2002 #1 plate holder, and went on to take the race by a huge margin from Sorenson in one of his typical focused efforts.

Interviewed in his race pit at Laguna Seca on Thursday, during a break from rebuilding his motors after the Brainerd races two weeks earlier, the intense and perfectionist Oliver discussed the stresses of his racing life, the multiplication of challenges he has faced in 2003 as he has tried to integrate three separate careers, and the choices he’s making for the future.

“For many years I’ve organized my life around the AMA race program, considering where I have to be and when, and how I have to assign my energies to meet that specific schedule.

“This year, with my 250 racing over [with the AMA’s class changes for 2004] I’ve had to balance and prioritize three different activities—my racing, my Mystery School and my art. I’ve already spoken out strongly against the AMA’s discontinuing the 250 class, and I stand by what I have already said. The class is ideal for beginning racers. The bikes are responsive, excellent for learning. And they allow racing within a reasonable budget. It takes $200,000-$300,000 to mount a competitive 600 effort, and that sort of money is out of reach for many young racers.

“I’m a private person. After years of keeping my methods secret, I’m revealing what I believe is the key to success in road racing. I have to go into [this teaching] with a record of achievement that makes my students realize that I’ve been there and come out on top.”

Oliver has paid a physical price for his intensity and determination, as have many racers. Anyone who watched him get off his Yamaha Superbike at Road Atlanta a couple of years ago, and suffer a severe arm injury, would understand. The wrist-to-elbow scar from that experience is, ahem, not trivial. Many racers carry equivalent memories and evidence.

Art? Yes. Visit Oliver’s website (www.richoliver.net) and see how his creative side works. Simply beautiful. Racers are supposedly focused into macho. Rich Oliver breaks the mold.

***

Laguna’s flat, seemingly simple Turn 3 caught out dozens of riders throughout the weekend. It looks easy but it isn’t. Some of the best riders in the world tossed it away mid-corner, low-siding into the gravel (all without serious injury). Turn 4 has its own special little trap for the unwary or inexperienced, a little like Turn 4 at Willow but subtler: A slight off-camber low spot on the exit, right where it looks like fistfuls of throttle will do the job, that once nailed Carl Fogarty, who never liked Laguna anyway. Turn 5 has a lip just after mid corner. The high-G ‘tunnels’ of Turn 6 and Turn 10, which can cause a bike to ground in mid corner, also get respect from riders. As Jamie Hacking put it: “Laguna is very technical. You can’t lose focus or attention for an instant.”
***

SPEED’s TV coverage at Laguna reverses many, but not all, of my recent critical comments of past TV coverage (Roadracing World, May and June 2003). Doug Polen’s presence in the booth added depth and insight, and he displayed good microphone skills and judgment on what needed to be said and when. He and David Sadowski made an excellent team. Coverage of the Turn 2 brouhaha in WSB Race 1 was particularly impressive, from all the critical angles. They edited and showed the tape quickly, before the restart. It became immediately obvious that Aaron Yates tried to stuff his bike inside, into too tight a space—he touched the painted strip on the inside, lost the front and was down instantly, taking others with him. SPEED, with good timing, caught Chili talking to Yates before the restart, admonishing him without rancor (Chili is a class act). Chili went down in the melee, and hurt his wrist, but went on to win the first race anyway.

They still should talk more about that vital element: Tires. And they still need to get Brian Drebber off the ceiling. Or bring in Dave Despain, please!

***

Jamie Hacking’s early-apex inside moves out of the Corkscrew into Rainey Curve (Turn 9) in the 600cc Supersport race, to make daring passes, had old Laguna hands shaking their heads. It’s easy to run wide on the exit—even Eddie Lawson once fell here, breaking his collarbone. Asked about it after the race, Hacking said: “I like a tight entry line. I watched some of the WSB racers doing just that, right there, and decided to try it. It worked, didn’t it!”

***

James Toseland was a huge beneficiary of the Race 1 restart. Forced to get off late, long after the field, when his bike wouldn’t start, he was still in Turn 10 when the race started, and had a lot of catching up to do. He was late enough to miss the Turn 2 carnage but got his correct grid spot in the restart. He never looked back. He acknowledged his luck on camera to SPEED’s Greg White.

***

Frankie Chili, emotionally overwhelmed by his WSB Race 1 victory and his first-ever win at Laguna, spoke eloquently to SPEED interviewer Greg White (who is improving with every race): “I am very ‘appy. I see Reuben and Gregorio fall, and I think I can win. ‘Ere it is often a good idea to let the leaders make the mistakes.” Yes, indeed.

***

SPEED’s ‘inside’ treatment of the 600cc Supersport bikes enlived the coverage, using the team riders to explain the bikes (and very well they did it). Best of the bunch: Miguel DuHamel, as usual generous in introducing his guys by name, on camera, ended up with Crew Chief Al Luddington. Smiled Miguel to the camera: “Al will tell you that the rider is the most important part of the bike.” Al, deadpan: “And the easiest part to replace, Miguel.” Ouch!

***

Track announcer Ralph Shaheen, on a busman’s holiday from SPEED, did a masterful job, light years ahead of 2002’s dismal performances. He also managed the pre-race Press conference with aplomb. This man does it all, now—four wheels, two wheels, and almost everything in between. When not on SPEED, he’s getting gigs on network TV (CBS, NBC) and has earned them through exemplary homework and a delivery style that has calmed down effectively. Motorsports TV is giving us better stuff with talent like this.

***

Nick Ienatsch’s publisher David Bull (see Sport Riding Techniques book review in the September issue of Roadracing World, and the forthcoming review of his Superbikes Of The ‘70s by Roland Brown) was at Laguna. The hope is that he’ll continue to create new two-wheel titles, with his exemplary attention to great photography and high production values. He’s a former executive at Robert Bentley, one of America’s foremost motorsports publishers.



More Laguna Seca FIRST PERSON/OPINION, from a reader, via e-mail:

Hope all is well…thanks for the continuing awesome coverage.

I wanted to make a few comments concerning the World Superbike weekend, that may or may not have been caught or experienced by all. I, however, am one, who fanatically catches all within my view down to the small details that shape a race weekend. Of course, often, we are all surprised.

Firstly, camping at Laguna’s priority sites, for the first time, was an expensive and bogus set up, in which, upon buying tickets for reservations on the phone, one is told that the campsites will be there…reserved for you. It seems solid enough, only to arrive on Thursday night and be told “It’s really crowded up there in turn ten, I don’t know if you’ll find anything, but you might be able to squeeze in.” No, we couldn’t squeeze in, but moved up the hill, because we had no choice. Fine, $245 for our reserved, in advance, sites (2) that we didn’t have reserved. So we weathered the obnoxiously drunken neighbors and dynamite-like explosions every night, and hung out with the few respectful, true motorcycle-enthusiast neighbors.

During each day, we found that our special, all access passes, provided by Yoshimura friends, thankfully, were not special enough in certain areas, like the bleachers, where an additional $10 per day was required. At least, I got a break on the entry this year, but last year, I found it ridiculously expensive, and prohibitive, in a way that one only experiences in the U.S. For instance, at a Le Mans GP, I could basically go anywhere and camp anywhere (I camped in the middle of the track) for a basic entry fee, without someone asking for more money at every gate, or treating me like a disobedient child.

Traffic and traffic related problems are always obvious at Laguna Seca…and I love the place, otherwise.

Secondly, during WSBK qualifying on Friday, I noticed the obvious head games going on, but more abrasive action coming from two riders that I do have a lot of respect for…the American wild card entries of Aaron Yates and Mat Mladin. The first thing that blew my mind was Aaron Yates coming out right after Neil Hodgson, and just razzing him from behind. Not in a totally professional way. Kind of messing up his rhythm and getting in his way, and finally passing him in a hairy kind of slip-sliding way…then riding, rather raggedly in front of him, while he (Hodgson) was trying to get a rhythm and feel on the track, with the new 999. It seemed to me that Hodgson was getting pretty annoyed. Then, a bit later in the session, Mladin came out and slowed on the track, waiting for Hodgson, and then followed him for a while, eventually blasting by, maybe in a less ragged way, but definitely proving some sort of point. Mladin then let him by again, and procede to do the same thing again. I understand psyching out and all, but it seemed more of an ego trip to me…trying to show up the World Superbiker. It just seemed a bit stupid, especially for someone of Mladin’s demeanor. And, I do want to stress, again, that I love all of these riders, however I hate that ego shit.

I would say that to witness the start of the first WSBK race, Yates ate some crow…getting in really hot, on the white line, on the inside and knocking down Bostrom, Chili, Hodgson, Corser. It was interesting and funny to see Chili holding his wrist, smarting and limping, until realizing race one would be restarted, then shrugging it off and running, at 39, all the way to the pits. Hodgson’s face and gesturing in the pits, after the incident, did not look positive…you could almost see and hear the words. By the looks of Yates face on the camera, at the restart, he seemed to be in very deep contemplation. I’m not blaming it all on him, but perhaps there is something about karma. You might also see it in the way that Chili went over to Yates and looked to be saying, don’t worry about it it’s cool, I’m not pissed. Only to go and win the race, right after. And Chili was a true gentleman in the pits.

Lastly, hats off to Xaus for ruling, and not falling in the second race, proving to all, just how much he is improving. And did anyone notice that he, number 11, fell on turn 11, on the 11th lap of race 1?

Thanks again, for the reporting, and I hope my observances, as a true fanatic are interesting.

Andrew Victor Nabagiez
Los Angeles, California