From a press release:

ATTENTION REGISTERED PIRELLI ROAD RACERS: CORRECTION TO RACE-TIRE SALE ANNOUNCEMENT

(Rome, GA) Pirelli has issued a correction to the recent “Race Tire Sale Announcement” sent to all registered North American Pirelli road racers.

The website for Trackside Racers Supply is incorrect. It should read www.tracksideracerssupply.com. However, Moose and Teresa Kuykendall said they would actually prefer that their racers contact via phone, at (828) 235-8400, or email at [email protected].

Copyright 2005, Roadracing World Publishing, Inc.

Racer Jason Smith credits Max McAllister of Traxxion Dynamics with uncovering a series of thefts police say were committed by a drag racer Smith described as being “my best friend.”

The thefts came to light after a drag racer sold parts from Smith’s Yamaha YZF-R6 on the WERA BBS to a road racer who took the parts to McAllister to be set-up and installed on his own YZF-R6 racebike. McAllister recognized the parts and alerted Smith.

The drag racer police have charged with the theft “was my best friend for 15 years, Joe Perry,” said Smith when Roadracingworld.com called him for comment. “Max McAllister has done a really good job seeing that this guy gets brought to justice. It’s really good that he thought enough of me to remember that my bike had been stolen and to watch out for the parts.”

Perry has been charged with breaking into Smith’s family dealership in Johnson City, Tennessee and stealing, among other things, a CBR1000RR belonging to former racer Jason Lewis, a Patrol Officer working for the Johnson City Police Department.

Reached by phone, Lewis told Roadracingworld.com that the theft involved “in excess of $115,000 in merchandise,” that Perry had been arrested on suspicion of burglary and that he had “bonded out on $16,000 bond.”

Lewis said that his own bike had been recovered “in about five different boxes.”

Copyright 2005, Roadracing World Publishing, Inc.

Here for your reading enjoyment are the current AMA Pro Racing homologation forms.

Note that manufacturers are not required to have new models available at dealerships prior to the season opener at Daytona, contrary to recent rumors.

(While the question of whether or not current homologation requirements are fair is open for discussion, it is clear that the existing rules are not being broken.)

From a press release issued by Kawasaki Racing Team:

RAIN IN SPAIN AS KAWASAKI TEST AT JEREZ

Following on from successful tests in Malaysia earlier in the year, the Kawasaki Racing Team arrived at a cold and cloudy Jerez circuit today to start the European phase of their preparations for the 2005 MotoGP season.

With the continued development of the Ninja ZX-RR MotoGP machine a priority in the run up to the new season, Kawasaki’s regular MotoGP pilots, Shinya Nakano and Alex Hofmann, were joined at Jerez today by Japanese test rider Kazuki Shimizu.

Cold track temperatures delayed the start of testing, and the onset of rain at noon forced a long break in the test schedule, but both Hofmann and Shimizu managed to work their way through a shortened test programme despite the conditions.

While Hofmann evaluated a number of new components aboard his Ninja ZX-RR, Shimizu worked closely with Kawasaki engineers from Japan and Europe to develop further the ‘big bang’ engine that Nakano debuted during early season testing at the Sepang circuit in Malaysia.

Nakano’s test programme, also centred around the big bang engine, was brought to a premature end when the 27-year-old Japanese rider suffered a minor injury after colliding with the fuel tank of his Ninja ZX-RR under heavy braking.

Nakano underwent a precautionary examination by doctors at Jerez hospital, where he received stitches in a small cut to his inner thigh, but returned to the circuit later in the afternoon. The Kawasaki rider will make a decision in the morning about riding in tomorrow’s second day of testing at Jerez.

Alex Hofmann: #66
“Track conditions haven’t been ideal today. Even before the rain arrived the track was slippery and quite dirty because of the building work going on around the circuit. The track started to dry out in the afternoon, but there are always spots on this circuit that seep water long after the rain has gone, which means the track was never completely dry. We only managed to test a few things on the bike this afternoon, but at least we got a feel for the circuit ready for a full day of testing tomorrow.”

Shinya Nakano: #56
“I didn’t get in one fast lap today. We started testing late because of the low track temperatures and then I managed to pick up an injury just as the rain arrived. I’ve had stitches in a small cut, which is quite painful whenever I move, so I’ll wait until tomorrow morning before making a decision about riding during the second day of the test.”

Kazuki Shimizu: Test Rider
“This is my first time in Europe, so part of today was spent learning the circuit as well as continuing the test and development work on the latest ZX-RR engine that we started in Malaysia. Hopefully the track conditions and the weather will improve tomorrow and we’ll be able to put in a full day of testing.”

From a press release issued by Ducati Corse:

DUCATI XEROX TEAM’S 2005 SUPERBIKE CAMPAIGN GETS UNDERWAY IN PERSIAN GULF STATE OF QATAR

Losail (Qatar), Wednesday 23 February: World Superbike heads to the Middle East for the first time in its history as the Losail International Circuit in Qatar plays host to the opening round of the 2005 championship. Last October James Toseland became the youngest-ever WSBK champion when he beat off the attacks from team-mate Régis Laconi to take the 2004 title and the Anglo-French duo will be lining up on the grid again as team-mates on the red 999 machines from Borgo Panigale, this time in the colours of new title sponsor, Xerox.

The world’s leading office technology supplier has linked its name to the Ducati Corse factory squad for the next two years and in the first year of the partnership the Ducati Xerox Team has every intention of continuing the Italian manufacturer’s winning streak, which has seen it take 11 Riders’ and 13 Manufacturers’ titles since the start of the World Superbike Championship in 1988.

Last weekend Toseland and Laconi made final preparations for the championship in a two-day test session at Losail, which left the British rider with tenth quickest time and several bruises after a nasty highside on Sunday. But Toseland was quick to play down any fears that he would not be competitive this weekend:

“I’m still feeling a bit black and blue but apart from that, I’m fine” declared Toseland. “I was quite relieved because it was probably the biggest crash I’ve had in my career. Before the crash, I was quite happy with my performance even though I didn’t get the chance to try a qualifying tyre on Sunday.

“As far as the whole package and the team is concerned, I believe that the Ducati is still the bike to beat, we have put a lot of effort into retaining this title and for my part I’m not going to be giving up that number 1 plate without a fight”, he concluded.

Laconi, fourth fastest last weekend, was satisfied with his progress during the pre-race testing. “We did a lot of laps and worked very hard last weekend and found everything we were looking for, reliability, speed and tyre endurance so I’m happy with the progress” declared Régis.

“The track will be different for sure during the race, but now it’s important to get good results this weekend and start the championship in the best possible way. The track is new for everyone and will be slippery, but it will be interesting to see how many riders stay fast lap after lap until the end of the race. I am pretty happy with my performance, so we will see what happens”, concluded Laconi.

THE CHAMPIONSHIP: The 2005 championship promises to be tougher than ever as Ducati’s traditional Japanese rivals, Suzuki, Yamaha and Kawasaki together with Honda, already present last year with Vermeulen, and Malaysia’s Petronas, line up on the 30-strong grid with their latest four-cylinder machinery. Toseland and Laconi also face a stellar field of competitive riders, including former champions from Superbike (Corser) and Supersport (Vermeulen, Muggeridge, Pitt), proven race winners (Chili, Bostrom), a powerful Japanese trio (Haga, Abe, Kagayama) and WSBK regulars (Martin, McCoy, Walker). Other names to watch out for are Italian youngster Lorenzo Lanzi, who lines up in Stefano Caracchi’s satellite Ducati team together with 250GP refugee Fonsi Nieto.

THE CIRCUIT: Name: Losail International Circuit; Length: 5380 metres; Pole Position: left; Corners Left/Right: 10/6; Finish Line Length: 1068 metres.

STATISTICS: Best lap: new circuit; Lap record: new circuit; Superpole: new circuit; Unofficial best lap: Kagayama (Suzuki), 2:01.480.

TV COVERAGE: British Eurosport (UK): Friday 25 February 17.45 – 18.45 Superpole (delayed), Saturday 26 February 07.30 – 13.45 SBK 1 + SSP + SBK 2 (live); Eurosport (Europe) Sunday 27 February 21.30 – 22.30 all races (highlights).

Copyright 2005, Roadracing World Publishing, Inc.

Suzuki MotoGP racer John Hopkins has given his fan website a complete makeover, including the addition of a discussion forum where Hopkins exchanges messages with and answers questions from race fans.

The re-made website is at the same address, www.hopperracing.com.

From a press release:

Richie Morris Racing along with Daytona Harley Davidson/Buell announced its 2005 racing season plans today. Due to a career ending injury sustained at Road America in 2004, Morris will not be the rider in 2005. However the team will stay in tact with Morris being team owner, Daytona Buell is staying on as the main sponsor, Glen Veatch will be the head tuner, and Clint Brotz the rider. The team will make a bid for the championship in the Formula USA, Thunderbike class.

“The only thing that took so long was choosing a rider. I made sure that Glen had a large part in choosing a rider and our first choice was Dave Estok. It was a done deal way back in October; Then Dave had some personal problems, which I am happy to hear have been cleared up. But when an 11 year sponsor says no to a rider choice, you have to listen to them. I talked to Dave several times about it and he truly understood that it was out of my hands. Glen and I both wish him the best. He is defiantly the one to beat on the track. And I know for a fact that he can turn everything around for the better in his life. I truly consider him a friend.

This is defiantly not to take anything away from Clint. He is a proven winner in the class and will fit in good with the XB. He has ridden for Brotz Motorsports the majority of his life. And the owner of Brotz Motorsports just happens to be my father in law. So racing can not go in front of family, it can get a little tedious. However we as a family have went over every thing and all is cool. Clint will ride soley for Richie Morris Racing LLC. And Brotz Motorsorts will be one of our valued sponsors. Last year he was having difficulties with the bike as was I and many others in their first year with the XB. The fuel injection just takes some getting used to. I feel he was a little discouraged. This year he knows Glen rocks with the computer and can make the Buell fly. Therefore, he is in training and looking forward to running with the podium crowd. Also I want to thank all of the racers that applied for the chance to ride on the team. Especially the ones, that flew or drove up to Elkhart Lake, to discuss the ride in person. It was an honor says Morris.”

The team will run Pirelli tires. I have been with Pirelli since 1996 and I see no reason to change. Moose with Trackside Race Supply told me he would sponsor the team and that is good enough for me. A contract is not required. Moose is one of the few people in this business I would base the season on a promise.

Other expected sponsors will be: Buell Motorcycle Co and their contingency program, Brotz Motorsports, EBC Brakes, Suomy helmets, Traxxion Dynamics, Tsubaki chains, Vortex Sprockets, and more are expected to join in.

As for those who are interested in Richie’s health, after the April, 2004 crash at Road America. As stated in the beginning, it was career ending. The right knee was crushed so badly, that a total knee replacement was necessary. The surgery was considered a success. With the damage done there might be a slight limp that will hang around forever. “It is life changing say Morris” There are so many things that I will not be able to do now with the leg in this condition. But what the hell, no need to whine, I should have quit when Scott Russell did, but it is hard to quit when you are fortunate enough to still be running up front. All and all I had an ok career replied Morris”

In closing we look to be one sponsor short this season. It is not final yet, but after the hurricanes and the R.O.C. being moved to Homestead last year. We may have lost 10 year sponsor, The Ocean Deck. Dick told me to see him in March, so we will see. If not, I have another place in mind that will take good care of the racers while in Daytona. Also we have big plans for a throw down at Elkhart Lake in April. We will let you know at the track about all of the off track FUN and the sponsors making it happen.

From a press release issued by CBS News:

You think you know Jesse James? Think again. Correspondent Vicki Mabrey sits down with the king of “Monster Garage” for his most revealing interview ever, on 60 MINUTES WEDNESDAY, Feb. 23, at 8:00PM ET/PT.

His millions of fans know him for transforming automobiles into monster machines, but there’s a lot more that makes this master mechanic tick.

James has become one of the most respected builders of custom motorcycles in the world. From very humble beginnings just a few years ago, he’s now hand making some of the fastest, sexiest and most expensive choppers on the planet.

And his list of clients reads like a who’s who of Hollywood’s rich and famous. James takes us along for the fastest ride of his life on 60 MINUTES WEDNESDAY.

From a press release:

George Taylor, owner/rider of Team 2Old Racing announced today that for the first time in five years, 2Old Racing will have two riders at the AHRMA Vintage National Road Races at Daytona on March 7th and 8th.

2Old Racing has signed Chris Spargo to ride the team’s Yamaha TR3 in the Formula 500 race, along with George Taylor riding the team’s Yamaha TD3 in the Formula 250 race.

George said: “It’s been five years since my co-founder of Team 2Old Racing, Brad Palmer, had to retire from racing due to a knee injury, so I’ve been going it alone. But this year is going to be different. I’ve signed Chris Spargo to ride my TR3 at Daytona. I’m really pleased to have him riding the Formula 500 race for Team 2Old Racing!”

From a press release issued by SPEED Television (at least it mentions Performance Machine, home of former AMA 250cc GP Champion Roland Sands):

TELEVISION’S LONGEST RUNNING MOTORCYCLE SHOW CELEBRATES ITS 10TH ANNIVERSARY!

Speed Channel’s American Thunder is celebrating its tenth anniversary! Mayhem will be had by all in Daytona Beach on March 9 at Performance Machine’s compound located on Beach Street. American Thunder is the longest running motorcycle program on television. This popular motorcycle television show brings the world of American motorcycle culture, customs and bikers rumbling into 68 million Speed Channel homes every Tuesday evening.

American Thunder featured Hollywood actor and motorcycle enthusiast Michael Madsen for its first 13 episodes. Hosting duties were passed on to Chad McQueen for a season before handing over the reigns to blond bombshell and Playboy cover girl Michele Smith. She continues these duties today.

The show has also showcased America’s greatest custom bike builders such as Dave Perewitz, Jessie James, Matt Hotch, Arlen Ness and countless others who were introduced to television audiences years before other networks jumped on the Chopper bandwagon.

This year at the 2005 Daytona Bike Week rally American Thunder will celebrate a decade of success in conjunction with its oldest sponsor, Performance Machine. Coincidentally, they are celebrating their 35th anniversary as leaders in the custom wheel and brake industry.

Please join the American Thunder crew, host Michele Smith, and the gang from Performance Machine in Daytona Beach, Fla., on Wednesday, March 9 at the Performance Machine compound on Beach Street between 12 noon and 3 p.m. ET for autographs, photo opportunities and some cake. Cameras will be rolling!