Copyright, 2005, Roadracing World Publishing, Inc.

Local news reports say that damage from a tornado started a fire in a building at a Michelin car tire plant in Laurens, South Carolina.

Tires are burning in the fire.

Racers Eric Bostrom, Vincent Haskovec, Steve Rapp and Chris Peris toured the facility the Monday after the hurricane-delayed 2004 AMA finale at VIR.


FIRST PERSON/OPINION:

Via e-mail:

Hello,

Please revise the information you have posted online about South Carolina Michelin Tire Factory Building On Fire The fire occured at a warehouse operated by TNT Logistics that houses tires produced by Michelin. It is not a tire manufacturing facility.

Also, while I cannot confirm it, I am reasonably sure that Eric Bostrom toured a different facility. I believe he toured a tire manufacturing facility in Greenville, S.C.

Regards,
Phil Romba
Senior Public Relations Manager
Michelin North America

From a press release issued by Rizla Suzuki:

Dread rolls up with Rizla Suzuki

BRITISH Superbike Championship winning team Rizla Suzuki has appointed clothing specialist Dread for the third consecutive year as its official team-wear supplier.

Dread will supply corporate team clothing plus a full range of identical replica wear which will be for sale at all BSB race meetings throughout the season, as well as selected dealers nationwide.

Rizla Suzuki says Dread’s unparalleled quality of manufacture, design innovation and use of cutting edge materials made the choice of the Milton Keynes based manufacturer as its official team-clothing supplier a formality.

The Rizla Suzuki team clothing is designed to an extremely high specification, combining striking appearance with practical comfort and an appeal to fans and the general public who appreciate its unique fashion.

Dread also produces a wide range of corporate and team clothing for many diverse clients, including: Porsche, Brother and the local brownie packs.

Dread MD Dan Wheeler said: “Working with Rizla Suzuki is a very exciting project for us, they are British Champions and with the inclusion of Scott Smart in the team to partner John Reynolds I can only see them getting stronger, something which we are doing all the time.”

Rizla Suzuki team manager Robert Wicks said: “Rizla Suzuki makes a lot of demands of its clothing. It must be comfortable and practical for the mechanics to work on our Superbikes as well as representing our team in a colourful and attractive manner. It also has to be readily available for our fans.

“Dread ticks these boxes and for the first time ever we are now providing a replica range for general sale that will be identical in every aspect to the team clothing. Our merchandising programme in 2004 was extremely successful and we plan to further enhance and develop the range this year.

“We are the Champion team and will settle for nothing less but the best from suppliers and that is why we will be using Dread in 2005. I have no doubt that Rizla Suzuki will be the best dressed team in the Championship!”

The full range of Rizla clothing will debut at the first round of the British Superbike Championship at Brands Hatch on 28th March. For more information on Dread, visit www.dread.cc or call 01908-221666.

From a press release issued by Mazda Raceway Laguna Seca:

MOTORCYCLE CHAMPIONS TEST FOR SUPERSTARS OF SUPER KARTS RACE, PART OF 2005 RED BULL U.S. GRAND PRIX

MONTEREY, Calif. – Grand Prix motorcycle world champions Wayne Rainey, Eddie Lawson and Kevin Schwantz, along with three-time U.S. Superbike champion Doug Chandler spent today preparing for the Superstars of Super Karts race, one of the support events at the Red Bull U.S. Grand Prix July 8-10 at Mazda Raceway Laguna Seca, featuring round 9 of 17 in the MotoGP World Championship.


Photo by D&W Images, courtesy of Mazda Raceway Laguna Seca

While Rainey and Lawson have raced Super Karts several times on the 2.238-mile, 11-turn road course in the hills outside Monterey, it was the first time Schwantz and Chandler had driven the high-performance karts anywhere.

“I’ve been trying to get these guys (Schwantz and Chandler) into a Super Kart for a while,” said Rainey, a three-time Grand Prix motorcycle world champion (1990-92) who lives in Monterey. “I think they were impressed.”

“That was a lot more fun than riding a bike around here,” said Schwantz, the 1993 world champion. “I didn’t much care for this track on a bike, but these Super Karts are a kick to drive here. I was smiling the whole way around the track.”

“People look at these Super Karts and think they are cute little toys, but they haul butt around here,” according to Lawson, who should know. The four-time world champion (1984, ’86, ’88, ’89) set the Super Kart lap record at Mazda Raceway Laguna Seca in 2003 – 1:23.875, an average speed of 100.864 mph. (As a point of reference, Troy Bayliss turned the fastest lap on a motorcycle at Laguna Seca when he road his Ducati around the circuit in 1:24.833 during the 2002 World Superbike Championship event.)

Salinas resident Doug Chandler, who won three U.S. Superbike Championships (1990, ’96, ’97) and competed in 54 Grand Prix motorcycle world championship events from 1991-94, enjoyed his first taste of Super Karts. “Driving a Super Kart around here is completely different than racing a motorcycle. These karts have so much more grip than a bike through the corners. It is going to take some getting used to, physically. But this is just a good opportunity for us (Rainey, Lawson, Schwantz and himself) to get together on the race track again.”

The Superstars of Super Karts will feature several motorcycle racing champions competing against some of the top drivers in Super Kart racing, including European and Australian/New Zealand champions, in 250cc racing karts. Super Karts feature semi-enclosed bodywork and rear wings and reach speeds up to 140 mph at Mazda Raceway Laguna Seca.

Tickets for the Red Bull U.S. Grand Prix July 8-10 are on sale now by calling 1-800-327-SECA or logging onto www.ticketmaster.com or www.laguna-seca.com.

From a press release issued by Foggy Petronas Racing:

Foggy appoints new team manager

Carl Fogarty has recruited Jack Valentine as the new race team manager of his Foggy PETRONAS Racing outfit.

Jack, 51, who has a wealth of experience in motorcycle racing, was responsible for a succession of British championship and TT successes with the V&M Racing set-up. For the last two seasons he masterminded Triumph’s return to racing with his own ValMoto team in the British Supersport championship.

His relationship with Carl dates back to 1992 when the seven-times world champion rode for Jack’s team in the 400cc Supersport Isle of Man TT, breaking the lap record from his first standing start.

Jack takes over the responsibilities performed last season by chief engineer Steve Thompson, who continues in a technical consultancy role in the World Superbike project.

His first involvement with new riders Garry McCoy and Steve Martin will be at the first official World Superbike test of the season on February 19 in Qatar, followed by the first race of the season a week later.

Carl said: “I’m really pleased to have Jack on board. I have been looking to change things around for the new season and have been looking for a figurehead team manager, as we did not have anyone in that specific role last year and we needed to balance things up. I have known Jack for 15 years and wherever he has been he has done a good job. His teams have always been professionally run and I am certain that he will bring experience and fresh ideas to my team.”

Jack said: “I am delighted to be working with such a prominent team. I have admired how Foggy PETRONAS Racing has been put together from nothing in such a short time and I have the same frame of mind as Carl – I give everything I can towards winning races.

“I started ValMoto two years ago to be purely involved in racing and, although I do not own this team, my role will just be an extension of that and I will be putting in exactly the same effort. I’m also looking forward to working with Garry McCoy and Steve Martin and am confident that we can continue the progress that FPR has made over their first two years of racing.”

From a press release issued by Erion Racing:

Erion Racing becomes exclusive U.S. distributor for Ten Kate products

Anaheim, California: In addition, Erion Racing now becomes the exclusive distributor for Ten Kate racing products in the United States. Ten Kate offers a full line of track-proven engine and chassis kit parts for the dedicated racer.

As American race fans will remember, Ten Kate took the spotlight in World Superbike and World Supersport racing last year, as Aussie Chris Vermeulen thrilled the Laguna Seca crowd by winning both legs of the 2004 U.S. WSB races aboard his Ten Kate Honda CBR1000RR Superbike. Ten Kate’s Karl Muggeridge topped that spectacular showing by snaring the World Supersport Championship aboard his Ten Kate Honda CBR600RR. Both riders will contest the World series aboard bikes prepared with Ten Kate race parts once again in 2005.

For more information on Erion Racing, go to www.erionracing.com, or call (714) 630-8850.

From a press release issued by Triumph Motorcycles (America):

Monday March 7th Through Friday, March 11th

Free Triumph demo rides at Daytona International Speedway

Monday March 7th, 2005

Spectate at the AHRMA Thruxton Cup Challenge Series

Tuesday March 8th, 2005

Spectate at the AHRMA Thruxton Cup Challenge Series

Thursday March 10th, 2005

King’s Head Pub Run, Ride leaves from the Volusia Mall Parking Lot across the street from Daytona International Speedway at 6:00pm and heads north to St Augustine’s, FL and the Kings Head Pub

Inaugural Rocket Launch, Ride leaves from Newnan, Georgia at 10:00am and heads south to St Augustine’s, FL to intersect with the King’s Head Pub Run

Friday March 11th, 2005

Attack on Main Street, Ride leaves from Volusia Mall Parking Lot at 9:00pm and heads to Main St and points unknown

Saturday March 12th, 2005

Riders Association of Triumph is sponsoring a Ride to Cape Canaveral and the Kennedy Space Center, Ride leaves from the Volusia Mall Parking Lot at 9:00am

Please email [email protected] for more information concerning any of these rides.

From a press release issued by FIM:

FIM DONATION FOR THE VICTIMS OF THE TSUNAMI

The FIM has decided to make a donation of 60’000 Swiss Francs (US$ 51,000) in favour of the victims of the tsunami that severely hit several regions of southern Asia and Africa.

The President of the FIM, Mr. Francesco Zerbi declared on this occasion: “The FIM and its 93 national federations as well as the worldwide motorcycling community manifest their solidarity with the victims of the tsunami and wish by this gesture to be associated in concrete terms with the efforts undertaken to bring them help and assistance.”

From a press release issued by Harley-Davidson:

HARLEY-DAVIDSON CONTINUES SUPPORT FOR AMERCIAN SOLDIERS

Harley-Davidson recently announced its partnership with the U.S. Army in the Partnership for Youth Success (PaYS) program to help appropriately qualified soldiers exiting the Army find possible employment opportunities at Harley-Davidson.

Harold Scott, Vice President, Human Resources, took part in the ceremony that formally acknowledged Harley-Davidson’s commitment to the PaYS program.

“With rapid pace of change in manufacturing, in technology, and in every field, a highly skilled pool of employees with the right backgrounds and training is more critical than ever,” Scott said. “That’s why we took great interest when the Army came to us to discuss the PaYS program.”

The PaYS program is designed to help soldiers exiting from the Army find employment. At the time of enlistment, a soldier can register with a company and agree to Army training in a particular job skill or set of skills that match the company’s needs. If a company requires specific job qualifications, certifications or licensing, the soldier can utilize his or her two-year and six-year time of service with the Army to satisfy those requirements.

Participation by the company, the soldier and the Army is secured with an agreement that affords the soldier some priority consideration in the employment process. However, the company reserves the right to determine whether to ultimately hire the PaYS soldier based on the company’s current hiring needs.

“PaYS is a win-win situation for the Army, participating companies and exiting soldiers,” explains Lt. Col. Andrew Frank, Commander, Milwaukee Army Recruiting Battalion. “While the Army enlists the manpower it requires to fulfill its mission with the help of this recruiting incentive, companies save money, time and effort.”

In its fourth year, the PaYS program has enlisted 25,995 active duty soldiers and 1,096 reserve soldiers who will, over the course of the next eight years, process out of the Army and into companies such as Harley-Davidson.

For more information about the PaYS program, visit www.armypays.com

From a press release issued by Harley-Davidson:

NAVY ANNOUNCES WINNER OF 2005 HARLEY-DAVIDSON MOTORCYCLE

The Morale, Welfare and Recreation (MWR) department at the Naval Air Station North Island in Coronado, Calif., announced AME1 (AW) Richard Winders has won the 2005 Harley-Davidson Fat Boy raffle sponsored by the Motor Company.

Harley-Davidson donated the 2005 Fat Boy motorcycle to Navy Morale, Welfare and Recreation while hosting a special new model year unveiling ceremony at the naval base in July. Harley-Davidson President and COO Jim McCaslin and Chief Styling Officer Willie G. Davidson presented the bike on behalf of the Motor Company to MWR as a token of appreciation and respect for the enlisted men’s and women’s service to the country. The bike was then raffled off by MWR with all proceeds benefiting the organization’s Navy quality of life programs.