From a press release issued by MonsterMob Ducati:

EMMETT TO RACE FOR MONSTERMOB DUCATI

Former Grand Prix racer Sean Emmett will spearhead MonsterMob Ducati’s campaign for a third successive British Superbike Championship title in 2004.

The 33 year old from Weybridge, Surrey will replace Moto GP bound 2003 champion Shane ‘Shakey’ Byrne in the Paul Bird Motorsport squad having turned down a number of lucrative offers to sign for the defending champions.

“This is a fantastic opportunity for me to prove what I’m capable of after the injuries and uncertainties of the past few seasons” said Emmett who finished fifth in the 2003 title chase.

“As soon as I talked with Paul, I knew I wanted to ride for the team. There were a few things to sort out and I had offers still coming in but I had no doubts in my mind that this was the team for me. After all, just look at their success record over the past three years, why wouldn’t I want to be part of that?”

Emmett had four seasons in the 500cc world championship between 1993 and 1996, scoring a best final placing of 15th in 1994, before returning to race full time in the UK domestic series commencing in 1997.

An injury affected year in 1998 saw him salvage ninth in the series before a move to Ducati machinery heralded sixth place in 1999 aboard the Reve Red Bull bikes. An abortive year on an uncompetitive Honda SP1 followed in 2000 before he was reunited with the Reve Red Bull Ducati team in 2001 where he finished in third place. It was that season that Sean is best remembered when, after being injured early in the season, he magnanimously helped team mate John Reynolds to the title, ironically pipping MonsterMob’s Steve Hislop who was injured at the penultimate round.

2002 saw him take the title battle with Hislop to the final round despite having to change teams mid season from the IFC Ducati to a Virgin Mobile Yamaha R1. However, a crash saw him leave Donington with a broken wrist and only third place for his troubles and history was to repeat itself in a fashion when 2003 saw him have to change teams from Renegade Ducati to ETI Ducati also.

Team owner Paul Bird was left with a difficult decision as he contemplated Byrne’s replacement but in the end, he decided Emmett was the man to front an unprecedented championship hat trick bid: “At one point, there were around a dozen names in the hat and the team and I had some serious decision making to do. We took our time as we wanted to make sure we had the right person to give us our best chance of the hat-trick. Sean’s Ducati experience was an important factor and we will continue with our proven formula of gearing the team around him” said Bird.


Full Name: Sean Nicholas Emmett

Date of Birth: 04/02/70 – aged 33

Occupation: Professional Motorcycle Racer

Place of Birth: Walton-on-Thames, England

Home Town: Weybridge, Surrey, England

Nickname: None

Hobbies: Football (Arsenal supporter), Shooting, Golf

Injuries: Too many to list

First Race: 1989 Brands Hatch

Favourite Circuits: Brands Hatch

Race Machine: Ducati 999

Career Highlights:
3rd British Superbike Championship (twice)
15th World 500cc Championship


Career History.

1989 KRC 350cc Production Champion, Runner up Bemsee 350cc Production Championship

1992 Runner up (to crew chief Phil Borley!) British SS600 C’ship, 3rd British Supersport 400 Championship

1993 19th 500cc World Championship (Yamaha)

1994 15th 500cc World Championship (Yamaha/Suzuki)

1995 21st 500cc World Championship (Yamaha)

1996 22nd 500cc World Championship (Yamaha)

1998 9th British Superbike Championship (Honda)

1999 6th British Superbike Championship (Ducati)

2000 10th British Superbike Championship (Honda)

2001 3rd British Superbike Championship (Ducati)

2002 3rd British Superbike Championship (Ducati/Yamaha)

2003 5th British Superbike Championship (Ducati)

From a press release issued by Brainerd International Raceway:

BIR teams with mines to advance use of taconite asphalt

Meeting at Keewatin Taconite brings together agencies, mines, others

KEEWATIN, Minn. ­ A month after Brainerd International Raceway officials impressed U.S. Rep. Jim Oberstar by introducing him to their newly resurfaced drag strip that features special taconite tailings-based asphalt, it became clear that BIR could play a significant role in advancing the use of taconite tailings as a substrate in asphalt that’s used on public
roadways.

That was evidenced Monday during a meeting at Keewatin Taconite, where BIR was invited to join a discussion about taconite tailings with a variety of agencies and organizations. The meeting was organized by the Itasca Development Corp.

The focus of the meeting was primarily the efforts of the Tinklenberg Group and the Duluth-based Natural Resources Research Institute, which are working to prove to states and contractors that taconite tailings are a viable alternative as an asphalt substrate. They’ve been working to eliminate the barriers for using taconite tailings in asphalt, which would generate new
revenue streams for Minnesota’s taconite mines, create jobs on the Iron Range and reduce the need to repave public roads as often because taconite
tailings produce an asphalt that is significantly more durable than asphalt with rock aggregate as the substrate.

The Twin Cities-based Tinklenberg Group, headed by former Minnesota Transportation Commissioner Elwyn Tinklenberg, has been working with a
number of states as far east as Pennsylvania and including Minnesota, North Dakota, Iowa, Illinois and Indiana, among others, to encourage the use of taconite tailings for paving projects. Many states, including Minnesota, are experiencing a shortage of rock aggregate for a number of reasons, one of which is that companies are finding it increasingly difficult to get permits
to open rock quarries. But the most important factor facing states, Tinklenberg said, is the emphasis they’re putting on developing long-lasting asphalt that doesn’t need to be replaced as often.

Taconite tailings, which is the course, jagged rock-like material left behind from the taconite mining process, is found in abundance on the Iron
Range in northeast Minnesota. The biggest obstacle to using taconite tailings is transportation. Because tailings are so dense and heavy, it’s very expensive to transport them. The answer, Tinklenberg said, seems to be in using rail and waterways. BIR, for example, bought its tailings from EVTAC in Eveleth, Minn., for $1 per ton but had to spend $7,000 to truck 700 tons from Eveleth to the track.

BIR has been in contact with a number of race tracks throughout the country that have heard of the success it’s had with its new track (one world record and a national record last summer), and are interested in gathering more
information. BIR is currently pursuing a federal grant to use taconite tailings-based asphalt to repave its three-mile road course and then allow
the Minnesota Department of Transportation and other agencies to use the track as a test facility. One of those agencies could be the state Department of Public Safety, which must use a road course to train its highway patrols annually. The track, of course, would continue to be used for world-class racing.

“We’d love to help out in any way possible to advance the use of this material,” Quick said of the taconite tailings. “We have the perfect
facility for testing and we welcome the opportunity to work with state agencies to move that forward. Our central location within the state and the fact that most of our racing events take place on weekends makes it an ideal
situation for the state.”

BIR’s parent company, Sports Resorts International Inc., its Board of Directors and BIR President Bill Singleterry support the gesture 100 percent and encourage the state to work with BIR on this issue.

Monday’s meeting also was attended by representatives of the Itasca County Board, CR Meyer (the contractor that built BIR’s track), the City of Hibbing, Keewatin Taconite and its sister mine, MnTAC, and Sen. Tom Saxhaug,
DFL-Grand Rapids.

BIR is a subsidiary of Michigan-based Sports Resorts International Inc., a publicly traded company on the NASDAQ exchange (SPRI). Now in its 34th season, BIR is one of North America’s largest racetracks, featuring 800 acres of rustic camping, 159 full-service RV sites and on-site condos. BIR is about 120 miles north of the Twin Cities, and it now has a new concrete drag strip that is one of the flattest and fastest in the country. Visit www.brainerdraceway.com.

From a press release issued by Team Suzuki News Service:

SUZUKI TO RACE WITH BRIDGESTONE IN 2004

Suzuki Grand Prix Team, the factory MotoGP team, will switch to Japanese Bridgestone tyres for next year’s World Championship assault.

The 2004 season is vitally important to Suzuki and the GSV-R development program has already been accelerated with a view to regaining the competitive edge in the premier racing class. With both the Bridgestone and Suzuki factories and race engineering headquarters located in Japan, the development program will benefit from faster communications, greater testing opportunities and enhanced engineering development.

Bridgestone has made great advances in their MotoGP tire program in 2003. The company joined the premier class for the first time in 2002 and in only their second season, Bridgestone-shod machines were challenging for pole position and finishing in top-three rostrum positions. The overall development of Bridgestone tyre performance has impressed many observers over the last 12 months and they were able to keep pace while still learning the special demands of the fastest and most powerful racing motorcycles. This proves the high level of their technology, and gives Suzuki confidence in future tyre development.

Suzuki Motor Corporation would like to express its sincere gratitude and goodwill to Michelin, the factory’s racing partners for nearly three decades. Together Suzuki and Michelin have won six World Championships, achieving racing success both on the 500cc two-strokes and the new-generation 990cc four-strokes. The partnership has been valuable to both, and the good relationship between the Japanese motorcycle factory and the French tyre manufacturers remains otherwise unchanged.

From a press release issued by KTM:

Stoner takes first victory with KTM in Australia

After the first Grand Prix victory of his career at Valencia one month ago, new KTM signing Casey Stoner took his first win for the Austrian factory in an Australian dirt track race last week. The 18 year old picked up a 450cc cross bike on his return home from Spain and collected a win and a second place on his first competitive appearance aboard the distinctive orange and black livery.

“The bike was incredible – all we did was put a new rear tyre on it, take two clicks of compression off the front suspension and adjust the gearing a little bit and it was set up perfectly for dirt track,” explained Stoner, who won the 125cc Rookie of the Year after finishing eighth in the championship. “I was racing against the Australian Long Track Champion and a few other fast guys who were extra determined to beat me, so the competition was pretty tough but I enjoyed it. There is another race at the start of December but I won’t be able to compete because it is too close to my first winter tests.”

Stoner is set to fly to Europe on the 7th December for a three-day shakedown session with the KTM Grand Prix outfit at Estoril and revealed that he was looking forward to the challenge. “It is quite a big thing for me because I’ll be travelling over to Europe without my parents for the first time in four years, meeting a completely new team and riding a completely new bike but I really can’t wait to get started. I met most of the guys at Valencia and they seemed really nice, and it will be important to try and build a relationship with them as quickly as possible. I guess I will come away from Estoril either feeling very excited about the season or knowing that I have a lot of work to do over the winter – but either way I am anxious to get on with it.”

In the meantime, the youngster will be trying to fight the tedium of the off-season interval and enjoy an unusually dull summer at his home near Sydney. “The weather really hasn’t picked up here at all yet and the fishing season hasn’t started, so I’m finding it hard to find things to do. Really all I’m thinking about is getting to Estoril in a few weeks’ time and starting my work with KTM – it should be a massive season for me and I am determined to give it everything.”

From a press release issued by Infineon Raceway:

Thanksgiving Food Drive Nets More Than 1,300 Pounds of Food for FISH

SONOMA, Calif. – Infineon Raceway made a donation of more than 1,300 pounds of non-perishable food items to Friends in Sonoma Helping (FISH) following the facility’s 3rd annual Thanksgiving Food Drive. This marks a record amount of food collected in the three years of the food drive.

The record-setting donation was raised with the help of partners Destination RKA in Healdsburg, Froggy 92.9 FM, Sonoma County Mary’s Pizza Shack locations, Inn Marin and Infineon Technologies. Individuals who donated at least four non-perishable food items were rewarded with a ticket voucher good for one admission to qualifying for the AMA Kawasaki Showdown on Friday, April 30, 2004.

Infineon Raceway has generated more than 3,300 pounds of non-perishable food items since 2000 for FISH, which will assist needy Sonoma Valley residents during the 2003 holiday season. FISH receives more than 2,500 calls for food requests each year.

From a press release issued by Aprilia:

TEST SESSION AT JEREZ DE LA FRONTERA/3rd DAY

BIG IMPROVEMENT FOR SHANE BYRNE

JEREZ – After the first contact with the MotoGP world and the Aprilia RS Cube, Shane Byrne reveals his talent: even if he was at his absolute debut at Jerez the English rider improved his lap time of 2 seconds compared to yesterday lap time. He made more than sixty laps trying to understand the different changes that the mechanics were making on the bike and without the point of reference given by other riders. Shane Byrne is spirited and willing to work hard and he firmly believes in the work made by the team. Therefore the atmosphere in the pit garage has immediately been very positive.

Manuel Poggiali instead had a difficult day, he fell after having made about 30 laps. Because of the fall and the bruise on the right arm, Manuel decided to stop the test session, even if his health conditions were quite good.

Good day for Randy de Puniet, who was very fast on track and for Ui with his 250 kit.

A very good result for Locatelli, 1:48.2 was his best lap time.

Test lap times:

Shane Byrne (Aprilia MotoGP) 1:44.7 63 lap

Randy De Puniet (250) 1:44.2

Manuel Poggiali (250) 1:45.2

Youichi Ui (250) 1:47.3

Roberto Locatelli (125) 1:48.2

From a press release issued by Ducati Corse:

DUCATI MARLBORO TEAM TESTING CONCLUDES POSITIVELY AT JEREZ WITH SUPERB TIMES FOR CAPIROSSI (1:42.8) AND BAYLISS (1:43.1)

Jerez (Spain) 26 November 2003 – Ducati Marlboro Team MotoGP testing – The weather cleared up considerably for today’s third and final day of testing at Jerez de la Frontera for the Ducati Marlboro Team, after the rain of the previous two days. Capirossi and Bayliss were both able to take advantage of the good conditions to try out several new components for the 2004 version of the Desmosedici.

The Ducati Marlboro Team riders put in a considerable number of laps around the Spanish GP circuit today. Loris Capirossi completed a total of 46, recording the quickest time in 1:42.8, while Troy Bayliss set his fastest time of the day, 1:43.1, during his run of 52 laps.
Loris and Troy lapped in a superb pace throughout the test session. Their 2003 Desmosedici bikes were in race set-up, and both riders also tried out a series of new Michelin front tyres.

“We are really pleased with today’s performance” declared Ducati Marlboro Team technical director Corrado Cecchinelli. “We lapped a lot quicker than last May’s GP race pace on this track, despite the track temperature today being a lot colder. These three days of testing have confirmed that we are working in the right direction in the development of next year’s Desmosedici”.

The Ducati Marlboro Team will continue its pre-2004 testing programme at the Valencia circuit in Spain with Loris and Troy from 10-12 December.

From a press release issued by Infineon Raceway:

Infineon Raceway Joins Forces with Police, Fire Departments for High-Powered Toy Drive

SONOMA, Calif. – Infineon Raceway has joined forces with the Sonoma Police Department, Schell-Vista Fire Department and the Sonoma Fire Department to help spread some cheer during the Holiday Season.

The four entities will combine for the first High-Powered Toy Drive, which will benefit needy children in the Sonoma Valley through FISH (Friends in Sonoma Helping).

People are encouraged to drop-off unwrapped, new toys during regular business hours (Monday-Friday, 8:30 a.m.-5 p.m.) at one of four locations, Nov. 28-Dec. 17:

* Infineon Raceway, 29355 Arnold Drive, Sonoma, 95476.

* Sonoma Police Department, 175 First Street West, Sonoma, 95476.

* Schell-Vista Fire Department, 23000 Broadway, Sonoma, 95476.

* Sonoma Fire Department, 630 Second Street West, Sonoma, 95476.

You can also mail your unwrapped, new toy to: Denise Silver, Infineon Raceway, 29355 Arnold Dr., Sonoma, CA, 95476. For more information on the Toy Drive, call 707-933-3950 or e-mail [email protected].

FISH, which will distribute the toys to those in need before Christmas, has been serving the less fortunate in the Sonoma Valley since 1970. For more information, or to contact FISH, please call 707-996-0111.

Other general FISH drop-off spots for toys include: Highway 12 Fire Station – #1 W. Agua Caliente Road; Valley of the Moon Fire Station – 877 Center Street; Sonoma Valley Hospital – 347 Andrieux Street; Vintage House – 264 First Street East; Prestwood School – 343 E. MacArthur Street; Longs Drugs – 201 W. Napa Street (Sonoma Marketplace); The Toy Shop – 201 W. Napa Street (Sonoma Marketplace); Fiorini – 248 W. Napa Street; Beauty Store and More – 500 W. Napa Street; and Rite Aid – 19205 Sonoma Highway (Maxwell Village).

From a press release issued by Michelin North America:

Michelin MotoGP star Colin Edwards will be the featured guest on Speed TV’s “2 Wheel Tuesday,” airing on Dec. 2 at 10:30 p.m. EST, with a re-air Wednesday, Dec. 3 at 10 a.m. EST.

Viewers can e-mail questions for the two-time World Superbike Champion, who joins the Telefonica MoviStar Honda team in 2004, to [email protected].