From a press release:

2004-2005 THQ World Supercross GP/THQ AMA Supercross Series, National and Regional Arenacross Series and IFMA Freestyle Motocross On-Sale Dates Announced

AURORA, Ill. (July 8, 2004) – Clear Channel Entertainment’s Motor Sports division today announced the on-sale dates for THQ World Supercross GP/THQ AMA Supercross Series, National and Regional Arenacross Series and IFMA Freestyle Motocross.

July 17-19 Cross Club On-Sale: Cross Club members can purchase tickets before the general public. July 24-30 Internet Pre-Sale: Fans can purchase tickets online only. July 31 National On-Sale: Fans can purchase tickets at all outlets.

Fans interested in joining the Cross Club will receive special benefits, including the ability to purchase tickets before the general public to Clear Channel Entertainment – Motor Sports events, including supercross, arenacross and freestyle motocross. In addition, Cross Club members receive the monthly Cross Club newsletter and stay up to speed on Clear Channel Entertainment – Motor Sports news. Memberships to the Cross Club are free at supercross.cc.com, fmx.cc.com and arenacross.com.

Tickets for supercross can be purchased at the following: supercross.cc.com, www.ticketmaster.com, and www.tickets.com (San Francisco only), and www.unlvtickets.com (Las Vegas only)

Tickets for Arenacross can be purchased at the following: arenacross.com, www.ticketmaster.com, www.centreevents.com (Rockford, Ill. Only), www.tickets.com (Guthrie, Okla.). www.ticketstar.com Green Bay, Wis.)

Tickets for IFMA Freestyle Motocross can be purchased at the following: fmx.cc.com, www.ticketmaster.com and www.tickets.com Greensboro, N.C.)


About Clear Channel Entertainment
Clear Channel Entertainment, the world’s largest producer and marketer of live entertainment events, is a subsidiary of Clear Channel Worldwide (NYSE: CCU), a global leader in the out-of-home advertising industry. Clear Channel Entertainment currently owns, operates and/or exclusively books 135 live entertainment venues, including 44 amphitheaters in the U.S. and 28 venues in Europe. Each year, more than 62 million people attend approximately 26,000 events promoted and/or produced by the company, including: Live music events; Broadway, West End and touring theatrical shows; family entertainment shows; and specialized sports and motor sports shows.

In addition, Clear Channel Entertainment owns leading talent management businesses that specialize in the representation of athletes and broadcasters, including independently operated baseball, basketball and football businesses. Clear Channel Entertainment is headquartered in New York City.

About AMA Pro Racing
AMA Pro Racing is the leading sanctioning body for motorcycle sport in the United States. Its properties include the THQ AMA Supercross Series, the AMA Chevrolet Motocross Championship, the AMA Chevrolet Superbike Championship, the AMA Progressive Insurance Flat Track Championship and the AMA Supermoto Championship.

From a press release issued by Proforma:

VMOTO EVENT AT PORTLAND HISTORICS TO INCLUDE JOURNALIST STEVE MIKOLAS

Vmoto announced today that motorcycle journalist/school instructor Steve Mikolas will race a West Coast Racing-prepared BSA B-50 in the Bell Microproducts Vmoto Vintage Challenge to be held in conjunction with the Portland Classics in Portland, Oregon, July 9-11. This is the first time in the 27-year history of the Portland Classics that motorcycles will be featured with a full race group at the event.

Vmoto is a new series for vintage road racing motorcycles on the West coast of the United States. The Bell Microproducts Vmoto Vintage Challenge Series will consist of races at Portland, Oregon on July 9-11, Reno, Nevada on September 18-19, Thunderhill Raceway on October 16-17 and the final round at Mazda Raceway Laguna Seca on November 22-23. In keeping with Vmoto’s philosophy of vintage racing, points will be given not only for best finishing position, but also most consistent lap times and most period-correct bike.

About Vmoto The purpose of Vmoto is to encourage the restoration, preservation and use of historic, vintage, and classic road racing motorcycles. Vmoto events are, in effect, rolling museums where historic bikes of the past can be ridden once again in a venue that respects their historic value. Vmoto believes in preserving the history of the bikes and giving the rider an opportunity to experience what it was like to race in the past. For more information on Vmoto, call (650) 903-4882 or visit their website at www.vintagemoto.com.

About Bell Microproducts
Bell Microproducts is an international, value-added provider of a wide range of high-technology products, solutions, and services to the industrial and commercial markets in the Americas and Europe. For more information on Bell Microproducts, visit their website at www.bellmicro.com.

From a press release issued by AMA Pro Racing:

AMA PRO RACING ON TV THIS WEEK

(All times Eastern)

AMA Chevrolet Motocross Championship (125cc/250cc), Red Bud Track ‘N Trail, Buchanan, Mich., Saturday, July 10, 12-2 p.m. ESPN2

AMA Lockhart Phillips USA Formula Xtreme/Repsol Supertock, Mazda Raceway Laguna Seca, Monterey, Calif., Sunday, July 11, 2-3 p.m. SPEED Channel

AMA Chevrolet Superbike Championship, Mazda Raceway Laguna Seca, Monterey, Calif., Sunday, July 11, 5-6 p.m. SPEED Channel LIVE

AMA Pro Honda Oils Supersport presented by Shoei, Mazda Raceway Laguna Seca, Monterey, Calif., Tuesday, July 13, 12-1 p.m., SPEED Channel

All times subject to change. Check local listings

Copyright 2004, Roadracing World Publishing, Inc.

FIRST PERSON/OPINION

By Bob Holcomb

The recent press release announcing that Ducati Motor Holdings (DMH) is offering to acquire a controlling stake in Aprilia frightens me. I am hoping that whatever combination is cooking dies a quick death. Should it not, I fear the great Ducati marqué will not survive. Let me frame my remarks by assuring you that I am a Ducatisti. I love Ducatis. I have two and am considering a third (the Mutistrada, of all things). I even think their new Superbikes are better then the 916-based collection, and even more deserving as an artistic benchmark.

The statements released by the CEO of Ducati are certainly passionate, but they strike me as delusional. The very first comment states that Ducati is not a financial investor. That they are moved by passion and dedicated to the long term success of Italian bikes worldwide. Then he goes on to profess that success will depend on how well they preserve brand individuality, respective markets, manufacturing locales, and their respective histories. He also brings up the classic B school notion of scale economies though combination. As sort of a validation, the CEO refers to their success in turning around Ducati.

1. With all due respect, Ducati is in fact a financial investor. They are a publicly owned business and all management performance is measured and priced by their owners every single trading day. The public stockholder is a ruthless and transient master. He absolutely requires financial returns. Anything otherwise is best left to private companies (which DMH should probably be). Since DMH isn’t private, they are relentlessly pressed to deliver financial performance quarter over quarter. If they fail, they eventually lose access to capital and die. To the capital markets, all that other stuff like ‘passion’ etc. is just rhetoric.

2. Case histories suggest the notion of preserving product and market individuality is certainly an important ingredient to successful brand combinations. However, it is no easy task. Moreover, it flies in the face of the concept of synergistic or scale gains. Few have carried it off.

3. Importantly, Ducati is not yet a successful turnaround. I understand that their VC is still stuck in the deal, which I suspect was not their plan when they made their investment. While Ducati has made incredible strides on most fronts, it has only been us Ducatisti that have been truly rewarded so far (and we are a pretty small group). The notion of bailing a bleeding scooter company seems ridiculous to me.

4. Regarding the claimed commercial advantages of Italian motorcycle consolidation; that must be some sort of government pitch. In fact, a lot of the statement seems more like government speak then business speak.

Perhaps the whole offer is being fostered by a government desire to preserve Aprilia for national pride. Or maybe it’s a deal promoted to get Aprilia’s lenders out of their jam. Maybe it is both. But it is not a plan to reward investors.

Ducati is a small company. They are marginally in the black and they struggle to produce unit sales growth. The Ducati market seems to be topped at around 40,000 units a year. If that’s the reality, acquiring brands that bring them new market segments is a sound solution for renewed growth. At the right price, Aprilia’s Guzzi line might make sense. It seems a bite-size fit and Aprilia has already sunk a fortune into nicely updating it. The heavy lifting has been done, so if DMH can take Guzzi at a steep discount, it is probably worth the risk. But to take over the entire Aprilia company is suicide. When manufacturing complexes go upside down, they eat cash every single minute they operate. If DMH were given Aprilia for free, I fear it would still sink them. It is just too big and complicated for their little balance sheet and small staff to handle. Just too many leaks and not enough patches in the tool box. I say assign Aprilia to somebody else.


Bob Holcomb is a managing executive with a prominant U.S. investment firm. His son, Gus, is a racer…Editor.

From a press release issued by Parts Unlimited Ducati Austin:

BOSTROM HEADS TO FAVORITE LAGUNA SECA CIRCUIT IN CONFIDENT MOOD

Monterey (California): Winner of two AMA Superbike races at Laguna Seca, Eric Bostrom is hoping to record his third superbike win at the Monterey peninsula circuit during the combined AMA and World Superbike weekend, a round which in recent years has seen fan attendance regularly exceed 90,000.

Currently fourth overall in points, Bostrom’s recent Michelin test in France showed positive results as he stayed on pace with the race leaders throughout the contest at Brainerd. Ducati Corse’s World Superbike experience from last year on a Michelin-shod 999 will also give the Parts Unlimited Ducati Austin team a head start with their set-up for the Laguna Seca round.

Heading into last year’s Laguna Seca race only six points back in the AMA championship lead, Eric’s season was prematurely ended when he was caught up in a crash that resulted in injuries which kept him from being able to continue his battle for last year’s superbike title.

“I’m excited to go to my favorite track,” said the 27-year-old from Las Vegas, Nevada. “I know it’s going to be a lot of work and a difficult race to win, but I also know that we need to win. And everyone is riding really well right now so it’s going to be a great race. I’m anxious to be a part of the best event in America. Unfortunately we can’t ride as wildcards in the World Superbike races because of their spec tire rule, and I know the fans will be disappointed to not see the local wildcards, but we hope to give them a good show in the AMA Superbike race.

“The crowd size and enthusiasm are normally really incredible, and Ducati always has a strong presence with Ducati Island and they have some cool activities planned, so I’m looking forward to being a part of that. It’s going to be a great weekend.”

The Laguna Seca event also plays host to the international launch of the new U.S. version of the 999R, based on the motorcycle representing Ducati in this year’s American Superbike Championship with Eric Bostrom and the Parts Unlimited Ducati Austin team.

The Circuit
During the 1950s, the “Pebble Beach Road Races” attracted some of the world’s best sports car drivers as they tested their skills on the winding roads of the coastal town. The prestigious races brought fans and money to the Monterey Peninsula but within a few years the event had outgrown the area and the cars had become too fast for the open road. The races needed a new home, and Laguna Seca Raceway was born.

Laguna Seca Raceway is recognized as one of the greatest and most spectacular road-racing circuits in the USA. Built by the Sports Car Racing Association of the Monterey Peninsula (SCRAMP) in 1957, it has hosted some of the world’s greatest racing series, including CART, NASCAR, FIA GT, GP Motorcycle and the Superbike World Championship. The 2.238 mile (3.610 km), 11-turn track is famous for its beauty and daunting Corkscrew turn, which features a difficult left-right swoop plunging more than 50 feet.

POINTS: 1. Mladin 358; 2. Duhamel 352; 3. Zemke 348; 4. E Bostrom 262; 5. May 241; 6. B Bostrom 210; etc.

Copyright 2004, Roadracing World Publishing, Inc.

Ducati North America is hosting a press intro for the 2005 Ducati 999R homologation special at Laguna Seca Raceway today.

Which is why there is no practice going on for this weekend’s AMA races, which are held in conjunction with World Superbike at the Monterey, California racetrack.

The production machines being introduced to the press today were built to meet AMA requirements for homologation of the Ducati Eric Bostrom rides in the AMA Superbike Series.

From a press release issued by the Muscular Dystrophy Association, LA Valley District:

The Victory Ride, sponsored by Harley-Davidson of Lancaster and benefiting the MDA (Muscular Dystrophy Association) will be held on Sunday, September 26, 2004 at Agua Dulce Airpark. A Pre-Registration Party will be held at Harley-Davidson of Lancaster on Saturday, September 4th from 11am-3pm. You can also register the morning of the Victory Ride at Harley-Davidson of
Lancaster from 8am-10:30am.

Participants may ride from Harley-Davidson of
Lancaster to Agua Dulce Airpark or just meet us there. Three tribute bands will be performing at the airpark, with free BBQ lunch and drinks served. Other activities inclue bike games, biker bingo, pie eating contests,
vendor booths, bike raffle, and other miscellaneous contests. Call or email
Desiree at MDA to have your registration materials sent to you: (818) 848-7000, [email protected].

Be sure to watch the Jerry Lewis/MDA Telethon September 5th and 6th, beginning at 6:00pm on KCAL 9.

From a press release issued by event promoter Jim “Jimmy The Greek” Gianatsis, who was an ace motocross reporter and photographer in a previous life but who now specializes in taking photos of scantily-clad young women posed with various motorcycles:

The World’s Top Custom Bike Builders highlight the LA Calendar Motorcycle Show Weekend July 17-18th

LA Calendar Bike Show Latest News – Just Announced!

FREE Top Bike Builders Seminars both days and Saturday Night Iron & Lace Builders Party on the Queen Mary with Paul Yaffe, Jesse Rooke, Cyril Huze, Harold Pontarelli, Don Chica, hunk male model turned builder Russell Mitchell and celebrities! Elle3.com Sister Pop Country Group will rock our Queen Mary party to 1am!

Performance Machine Ups the Ante!
Adds new $5,000 Best PM Equipped Bike Award to already the Richest Bike Show in Ameica at $65.000 with TV coverage by 10 major networks and production companys includng Discovery, Speed TV!

Plus… classic chopper builder Zero Engineering from Japan! Army Apache Attack Hilicopter! Warner Brothers Studio “Cat Woman” Ducati Bike Giveway! TV Show “Blind Date” casting. Russian Mail Order Brides. Incredible new chopper premiers from Motocreations.com and DreamcraftStudios.com. Meet Mikuni’s “Explict Performance” girl Andra Cobb and the FastDates.com Calendar Angels with Free Autographed Poster. Our new 2005 Calendars! Model Search Pageant! Extreme 19-yr old sportbike stunt girl JoJo Farmer. 2 Day long Mini Blues and Mini Classic Rock Festivals with 6 different beautiful girl performers. Jardine West Coast Dyno Horsepower Shootout. More Beautiful Girls than a head-on 2 train wreck at the Playboy Mansion between Miss America & Hawaiian Tropic pageant contestants! And did we mention zillions of hot bikes & beautiful girls?

The Los Angeles Calendar Motorcycle Show Weekend sponsored by Performance Machine held at the Queen Mary Event Park in Long Beach, CA, continues to grow every year as the most popular consumer street bike show in America. Highling this year’s Show is the biggest lineup of reknown celebrity builders from across America and around the world

FREE Iron & Lace Calendar Party and Seminars with Top Builders!

Two new Show activities this year will showcase some of America’s leading custom bike builders who are featured in the Iron & Lace Calendar. Capitalizing on the popularity of custom bike building featured on national TV programs , spectators will be able to attend Iron & Lace Bike Builder’s Seminars both days at the Show. Scheulded to be holding seminars are 2-time Performance Machine best of Show winner Jesse Rooke, Paul Yaffe, Cyril Huze, Russell Mitchell and Harold Pontarelli. Each celebrity builders will offer their own personal vision for building great bikes, discuss the techiniques used to build a Show winning custom, and answer questions from the audience.

Among the other top celebrity builders confirmed for this year’s Show are Japan’s Shinya Kimura from Zero Engineering with their famed retro choppers that have customers back ordered on a 4-year waiting list. You’ll also meet many Discovery Channel featured builders including Mitch Bergeron, Don Chica and Mike Stafford, plus West Coast superstars Ron Simms and Mike Powers among the many builders who will be showcasing their latest rolling hardware. And currently scheduled to make a full day premier appearance just on Saturday is Dreamcaft Studios with their industry shattering hi-tech chopper which leaves for a follow-up premier to the world automotive press at the Pasadena Art Center of Design on Sunday. So both press and spectators will want to attend both days of the Show to be assured of not missing a thing!

Plus, on Saturday night the 17th there will be the Iron & Lace Calendar Builders Night Party beginning at 9pm on board the Queen Mary in the historic Observation Room Bar. Many of the top Iron & Lace Calendar bike buiders together with all the other top celebrity builders attending the Show weekend will be there, together with fans and the beautiful FastDates.com Calendar Angels featured in the Iron & Lace Calendar. Live musical entertainment will be provided at the party by the beautiful sister band Elle3.com.

And as always, the Show also features a huge weekend of activities with over 160 major motorcycle and product manufacturers, exhibitors and venders, together with the world’s leading custom bike builders. There’s an incredible lineup of weekend activities including the Jardine Performance West Coast Horsepower Dyno Shootout, the Iron Works sponsored Olive Crest Children’s Home Charity Ride-In, a special appearane by the Las Vexas Extremes stunt sportbike riding team featuring beautiful 19-year old stunt girl JoJo Farmer, the Purrfect Angelz all-girl stage show, Saturday’s live Mini Blues Festival and Sunday’s Classic Rock Festival, premier of the 2005 FastDates.com Calendars with the beautiful Calendar Angels, and free complimentary admission to the Queen Mary historic ocean liner.

From a press release issued by Ducati Corse:

DUCATI FILA HEAD TO CALIFORNIA FOR LAGUNA SECA SHOWTIME

Laguna Seca (USA), 8 July 2004: The coastal town of Monterey in sunny California hosts the Ducati Fila team and the rest of the World Superbike regulars for the US round of the championship, which will be held this weekend at the spectacular Laguna Seca raceway.

The mid-point of the championship one month ago at Silverstone threw up a couple of unexpected results, but Ducati Fila riders Regis Laconi and James Toseland still came away from Britain with their top two places in the standings intact, the Frenchman and his English team-mate separated by just three points with five rounds left to play for.

After a crash and a third place at Silverstone, 28 year-old Laconi from St Dizier, France is confident he will put things back on the right track in California aboard his Fila-backed Ducati 999.

“My confidence is still 120% after Silverstone – it was just one race,” declared Laconi. “The most important thing for us now is the rest of the season. We have to do a good job and be fast all the time and I’m sure we have everything in place to make a good race in Laguna.”

Last year Laconi was leading the first race and set fastest lap but crashed at turn 1 ten laps from the chequered flag while in race 2 he finished fourth. The championship leader, with 171 points to his name, is aware that gaining a good set-up compromise is vital for the Laguna Seca track.

“Laguna is a difficult track for the chassis,” he added. “You need to find a good set-up at the front and a good feeling at the rear because of the Corkscrew and the downhill corners. Turn 11 is the worst corner because it’s very slow and easy to make a mistake there. You can’t gain one second but you can lose the race.”

23 year-old James Toseland, from Sheffield, England wants to rapidly erase the memories of Silverstone, where he had a high-speed crash, damaged his thumb and lost the championship lead in front of his home crowd.

“I’m looking forward to Laguna but I’m not happy about being three points behind the leader. My best result there was third place last year, I had just taken Neil Hodgson for second, but then unfortunately fell off. I’ve always gelled with the circuit; it’s fast and furious, a bit dangerous in places but that only adds to the attraction.”

Toseland, second in the table on 168 points, is aware of the peculiar nature of the Laguna Seca track, which combines several flat corners with a long uphill stretch, the world-famous ‘Corkscrew’ left-right switchback ride, and a fast downhill stretch that test men and machine to their limits.

“You’ve got to have a good set-up because of the undulations and the forces the bike is under in the dips, which make it compress more than usual. You have to have good support on the suspension while not sacrificing the neutral position because there are a few flat corners as well as cambered corners. It’s a fine balance, I don’t think you can get the bike perfect for every corner at Laguna but I don’t think we’ll have any problems,” concluded Toseland.

POINTS (after 6 of 11 rounds):
(Riders) 1. Laconi 171; 2. Toseland 168; 3. Haga 139; 4. Vermeulen 137; 5. Chili 129; 6. McCoy 128; etc.
(Manufacturers) : 1. Ducati 295 ; 2. Honda 144 ; 3. Petronas 128; 4. Kawasaki 76; 5. Suzuki 65; 6. Yamaha 35.

CIRCUIT INFO
Name: Mazda Raceway Laguna Seca.
Length: 2.23 miles/3.58 km.
Pole Position: right.
Corners left/right: 7/4.
Finish line length: 300
m.

STATISTICS:
Best lap: Bayliss (Ducati) 1’24.833 (2002).
Lap record: Haga (Aprilia) 1’25.475 (2002).
Superpole: Edwards (Honda) 1’24.888 (2002).

2003 RESULTS:
Race 1: 1. Chili (Ducati); 2. Hodgson (Ducati); 3. Toseland (Ducati).
Race 2: 1. Xaus (Ducati); 2. Hodgson; 3. Walker (Ducati).

From a press release issued by Proforma:

JIMMY MOORE TO RETURN TO RACING BY MID-OHIO

Two-time (2001-2002) AMA Superstock champion Jimmy Moore will return to racing in the 2004 AMA Chevrolet Superbike Championship as early as the Mid-Ohio round. Jimmy has been on the mend since re-injuring his previously-broken left arm in a near-crash at the California Speedway round of the series in April. Following the incident, Dr. Arthur Ting performed surgery and attached a larger, higher-strength compression plate to the arm. Jimmy has been making regular check-up visits to Dr. Ting’s office, and got approval to begin rehab on the arm in mid-June.

“According to Dr. Ting, the bone is healed,” said Jimmy, who has been staying fit for the last two months by running, swimming and stationary bicycling. “With the proper rehab, I should be back racing as soon as Mid-Ohio, though I’m not coming back until I’m 100%. I guess the No Limits (Motorsports Suzuki, the team that Jimmy started the year with) thing didn’t work out, but I’ve got a few options for teams to ride with when I do come back, so I’m happy about that. Suzuki’s been great, they’ve been very supportive.”

Jimmy will be attending this weekend’s combined AMA/WSB event at Mazda Raceway Laguna Seca, July 9-11, attending a variety of sponsor functions and visiting with fans.


More, from another press release issued by Proforma:

HEATH SMALL LOOKS FORWARD TO LAGUNA SECA

Rider Heath Small and the HAS/Shogun Racing team head to Mazda Raceway Laguna Seca in Monterey, California this weekend, July 7-9 for round eight of the AMA Chevrolet Superbike Championship.

“I really like Laguna Seca,” said Small. “I finished sixth there in 2002 on the Ducati in Pro Thunder. The track is a lot of fun and I just seem to go well there.” Since the last round at Brainerd, Minnesota, Heath has been training and trying to ride dirt track, though recent flooding rains in the Houston area have made it hard. “I’ve gotten to ride a little bit, but it’s rained so much that part of the track was under water,” said Heath. “So I helped Dave (Sanders, crew chief) work on the transmissions on both bikes. We were having a few problems at Brainerd, but we’ve got them fixed now.”


More, from yet another press release issued by Proforma:

MILLENNIUM TECHNOLOGIES SUZUKI TO LAGUNA SECA

The Millennium Technologies Suzuki team with riders Shawn Higbee and Danny Eslick are headed to Monterey, California this weekend, July 9-11, for round eight of the AMA Chevrolet Superbike Championship at Mazda Raceway Laguna Seca. This is the last round on the West coast, before the series moves East for the last three events in Ohio, Georgia and Virginia. Combined with the U.S. round of the World Superbike Championship, this event has a compressed schedule, meaning less track time than normal for competitors to find proper settings for their motorcyles for the final race events.

Shawn Higbee
Shawn finished eighth in last year’s Superbike event at Mazda Raceway Laguna Seca, and is looking to better that result this weekend. “Laguna’s not so much of a horsepower track,” said Higbee. “It’s more of a rider’s track, more technical than the last two rounds. Our bike is handling better than it has all year, so if we can find a good set-up in the short amount of track time we have, I think we’ll do well.”

Danny Eslick
This will be Danny’s first race at Mazda Raceway Laguna Seca, though he did participate in a STAR Motorcycle School at the track in March. “I got a lot of laps during the school earlier in the year,” said Danny. “I’m gonna ride both classes (Pro Honda Oils Supersport and Lockhart Phillips USA Formula Xtreme) this weekend, so I think I’ll be alright as far as getting up to speed, even though we don’t get a whole lot of track time. It’s not a big deal, it’s the same for everyone.”