From a press release issued by Rich Oliver’s Mystery School:

AMA 250 Grand Prix Race Preview

Team Oliver Yamaha’s Rich Oliver and Robert Ward head to Virginia next week, a circuit reminiscent of the two-lane roads on the Monterey Peninsula where Rich found his love of motorcycling. “Virginia is narrow and winding and has lots of elevation changes which reminds me of some of the great roads I used to ride on when I was growing up in the Monterey Bay area. I really think it is one of the best tracks in the country. It is very challenging and exciting to ride around. However, I really want to improve on my lack of results from last year’s visit which involved a bad start, working hard to get into the lead and just as I did, the bike seized.

“Last year, I got off of the line poorly and had to first work my way past Jason DiSalvo. After doing that, I still had to contend with the leader, hard riding Chuck Sorenson. Finally, after battling into the lead, I heard a shrieking sound from the engine as I entered a left-hand corner. Next thing I knew, the bike tire had locked solid and I had spun around and crashed directly in front of Chuck. When I went to pick up the bike to restart it, the rear wheel was seized solid and I had to drag it through the gravel trap to get it out of harm’s way. Weeks later when we examined the engine, we found that the sixth wheel gear had seized on the first gear shaft inside the transmission. It had seized so violently that the parts had actually welded themselves together. Even our five-ton press couldn’t budge the gears apart!”

Heading into this year’s event, Rich comes in with the 2003 Championship already in hand, which takes the pressure of achieving that goal off of his shoulders.

“Yes, we have won the Championship but as I so adamantly teach in my Mystery School programs, achieving that goal will in no way reduce my motivation, drive, or desire to win.”

In regards to the race next weekend, Rich says, “I’m feeling great at the moment. I just finished teaching a two-day fun camp at the Rich Oliver Mystery School and was able to ride a little bit more than usual which aided in my preparation for Virginia. Also, since the Championship is in hand, we are going to experiment with some new untested components that will hopefully enhance the bike’s speed and performance. If the trials of these parts go well in practice, we will install them for the race and hopefully gain another small advantage that we can use to continue our success this season.”