This just in:

Just a note in comment to the issues raised by Hannas and Sadowski in relation to Sears Point and all the “improvements” that have been occurring there. I am just a local motorcycle shop guy, but have been building bikes and supporting local racers for several years now. I walked into Sears this weekend, and was stunned by what I saw. Firstly, a grandstand on the front straight that looks like Cape Canaveral misplaced on of their gantries. This thing must be at least 8 stories tall! Then I take a walk around the new track to check out all of the “improvements”. More grandstands for fans everywhere. I was suprised to see that even the hillside stands have seat numbers on them. Are they selling Nascar tickets for these seats? “Hey, you’re on my paving stone, man.”

For the track, in one or two areas, runoff has slightly improved, but in many others, been significantly reduced. It seems like Sears has spent all of their money to support their fans, and very little to protect their racers. I have a friend who took the new riders school on Saturday, and was extremely excited before the weekend to ride there. He called me Saturday afternoon and told me there was no way he was going to race on a track that dangerous. I have another friend at the other end of the spectrum, who is one of the top 15 AFM riders. He was hit by another rider in Turn 11, and was ejected off his bike, 8 feet in the air and OVER the first line of haybales, with both bikes slamming in behind him. It is with only the most unbelievable luck that he escaped with only minor injuries and walked away from that crash. Sears needs to address these problems, and it is with regret that I say that in some areas not even Air Fence will make it safe. More of us who are involved in the sport need to speak up.

Chris Van Andel
Moto Italiano
San Mateo, California


And now this:

I think the AMA Road Racing Division needs to take a good look at itself. I believe they have their head up their butt so far it’s unbearable. I think if they are supposed to watch out for the safety and well-being of the riders they should do more on setting up a track far better and pay attention to what the racers have to say and not tell them we will look into it.

I think myself that not giving the true privateer a chance is not right and when the organizers change the rules and not tell anyone first “about the 250GP race on qualifying” they should have let the grid be filled rather than try and reduce the class as it so seems.

A far as things go right now I am thinking of not renewing my AMA membership until the board is filled with people that care about the riders and racers as people and not as a money maker.

Lee Simmons
Long-time AFM member
Vallejo, California


Now More:

(Regarding the comment by) Chris Van Andel, “I have another friend at the other end of the spectrum, who is one of the top 15 AFM riders. He was hit by another rider in Turn 11, and was ejected off his bike, 8 feet in the air and OVER the first line of haybales, with both bikes slamming in behind him.”

I was a cornerworker in turn 11. Please be aware that the AFM does not use the same turn 11 as the AMA. I did not see a single person who made it that high. In fact, none of them went any higher than where they were when they were on the bike. The only incident that involved two riders was not nearly that spectacular. Guy on inside, guy on outside, guy on inside did not quite make the turn, guy on outside had nowhere to go, they came together, went into haybales which then sent them into the Air Bale. Both riders popped right up and walked away.

I feel that some good improvements have been made to Sears. I also feel that they could have done a lot more. The “improvements” that were made were to keep NASCAR happy. Bikes are a low priority for Sears and most other tracks in the USA. The exaggeration from above was just too much to keep me quiet.

Julia M. Green
Team Skidmark Racing
AFM #659 & 77w


Yet more:

I know this horse has been flogged quite a bit in the last few days, but I thought you might appreciate a new racer’s perspective.

On Saturday I completed the AFM New Racer School and entered my first race on Sunday. At the very conservative lap times I’m putting in the track feels moderately safe. However, I cannot imagine just how razor thin the margin for error might be for the top finishers in AFM or any other racing organization, regardless what they ride or drive. This past weekend saw more crashes than I care to remember, mine being one of them.

Entering turns 7 and 11 at speed are only a brake failure away from becoming a really bad day. I can only look at the race leaders in complete awe as they suppress any fear they might have when diving into these corners. For those unfamiliar with Sears Point turn 11 is a sharp right hander with only haybales and tires just a few feet away preventing the rider from launching off the track all together.

My only question is why track organizers chose not to extend this and other sections of track to provide adequate run-off. I can understand the need to provide better access to fans so they can watch the action from various points on the track, but if racers don’t feel comfortable with the track layout they will either, 1. choose not to race, or 2. not push themselves nearly as hard. Either way, the fans will end up paying for an inferior product unless safety concerns are addressed so racers can compete at a high level.

It’s obvious that the majority of construction in progress is geared towards the benefit of the spectator. What actions does the racing community need to take in order to insure our safety? Maybe I am naive, but I would think track improvements would be the first thing developers would want to tackle, then follow-up with improvements to grandstands and other seating arrangements.

My two bits,
Ian Gillies
AFM #967


And even more:

It is hard to believe that with the AMA having a full time position with safety as one of its responsibilities, that there is any debate at all when it comes to setting minimum standards for track design and layout. It is obvious that separate standards would be required for existing facilities already homologated, standards for future homologation, and standards for new tracks.

With the sudden increase in new racetrack construction, there should be no fear that by promulgating and enforcing new safety standards, that there would be nowhere to race. And strictly taking riders’ opinions from track observation and riding somewhat degrades the safety movement, because it falls back on opinions. It is not difficult to analyze existing course design, looking at historical crash data, utilizing radar guns to determine corner entry speeds (and anticipated future speeds), and calculating weights, impact velocity, etc. As a former (and hopefully again future) motorcycle racer, and safety professional, I understand both sides of the story. Just remember, safety does not mean the absence of risk, just how you control it.

Setting minimum standards is the way to go.

Patrick D Moore, CHST
Director of Safety
JM Olson Corporation
St Clair Shores, Michigan

From a press release:

FUCHS KAWASAKI TO FIELD SIX RIDERS AT SUGO

Kawasaki are out in force for the fourth round of the World Superbike Championship at Sugo, with Akira Yanagawa and Eric Bostrom, the factory’s lead riders in the All Japan and AMA Superbike Championships, joining Hitoyasu Izutsu and Chris Walker in the Fuchs Kawasaki Superbike team for this weekend’s event.

For Hitoyasu Izutsu, returning to the circuit at which he took a double World Superbike win in 2000, confidence is high for the weekend ahead.

‘I have been looking forward to this weekend since the start of the season,’ said Izutsu, who went on to win the Japanese Superbike Championship off the back of his Sugo double victory two years ago. ‘I like the Sugo circuit, I’ve won here before and, of all the tracks we’ve visited so far this season, I think this is the one that suits me and the Kawasaki best. Circuit knowledge is very important here and I definitely know my way around Sugo better than most. Whether I can repeat the success I had in 2000 remains to be seen, but I am confident that I’ll be a lot closer to the front runners this weekend than I have been in previous races.’

Chris Walker made his first appearance for Fuchs Kawasaki at Sugo, racing in the final round of the All Japan Superbike series shortly after signing for the team at the end of 2001, and the 30-year-old British rider is confident that he can continue the steady improvement that he’s achieved over the previous three rounds of the championship.

‘I’m excited about racing here at Sugo again,’ said Walker. ‘We’ve made real progress with the bike since the start of the season and, although it wasn’t really reflected in the results, I felt I rode my best races so far at Kyalami. It’s going to be a tough race, especially with four factory Kawasaki riders and a handful of very fast wild cards on the grid, but I like the Sugo circuit and I’m definitely looking forward to the weekend ahead.’

A veteran of the Fuchs Kawasaki World Superbike team, Akira Yanagawa returned to Japan at the end of the 2001 season to help develop the Ninja ZX-RR four-stroke machine that Kawasaki will make their return to the GP series with in 2003. A firm favourite with World Superbike fans, Yanagawa is looking forward to making a temporary return to the series at Sugo.

‘It will be good to race in World Superbikes again,’ said Yanagawa. ‘I haven’t raced at this level since the final round of 2001 but, as well as being heavily involved with the development of Kawasaki’s MotoGP machine, I’ve also been riding in the All Japan Superbike series as a way of keeping race fit. I picked up a podium finish in the domestic series last weekend, but World Superbikes is definitely a step up in terms of competition. It will make a pleasant change to be able to forget the development work for a little while and concentrate fully on the racing here at Sugo.’

Like his temporary team-mate, Chris Walker, Eric Bostrom made the trip out to Sugo to race in the final round of the 2001 All Japan Superbike Championship, and the American is happy to be back in Japan.

‘With the settings we’ve come up with recently, we should be in the ball park here at Sugo,’ said Bostrom. ‘I really enjoy the racetrack, that’s for sure. You know, I hope to win the thing, but I realise it’s going to be a tough job. All the guys are on top of their game, the wild card guys especially, but I really think we can make it interesting.’

The Fuchs Kawasaki Superbike pit garage may be bursting at the seams with riders, but it’s business as usual for the team’s two Supersport contenders, Andrew Pitt and James Ellison, this weekend.

‘It promises to be an interesting weekend,’ said Pitt, the reigning champion and current series leader. ‘I’ve won the last two races and people are starting to ask me whether I can do what Bayliss has done in Superbikes and dominate the series. It’s not something I’ve given much thought to and, to be honest, I’m not sure it’s possible to dominate the Supersport championship in the same way as the Superbikes, because the front-runners are just too closely matched. But, having said that, we had a podium here last year and the bike is definitely stronger this season. If we can find a good set-up and a race tyre in practice and qualifying, then there’s no reason why I shouldn’t continue my winning streak this weekend. That’s definitely what I’ll be aiming for anyway.’

Since arriving in Japan, Pitt has had to field numerous questions from the press about the importance of a good result at Sugo; and what effect doing well at this particular round – at which representatives from the Kawasaki factory will be present – might have on his chances of landing a MotoGP ride on Kawasaki’s new Ninja ZX-RR in 2003.

‘It’s important that I go well at every round, not just this one,’ declared the Australian. ‘For sure, I want the Kawasaki GP ride as much as anyone, but I figure that the best way of putting myself in contention is not just to impress at Sugo, but to retain the World title that I won for the factory last season. So, although I’m sure that the people from Kawasaki who are responsible for making the decision about riders for next season will be here this weekend, I don’t intend to let that distract me from the job at hand; which is racking up enough points to ensure that I leave Sugo with my championship lead intact.’

Having fallen victim to another rider’s mistake in South Africa and crashed out of the race, James Ellison is keen to make amends at Sugo.

‘I’ve never ridden here before, but I ran round the track a couple of times on Wednesday and I definitely like the look of the place,’ said Ellison, the reigning European Superstock Champion. ‘We made some big improvements to the bike in South Africa, finding a set-up that better suits my riding style, and that should stand us in good stead for practice and qualifying here at Sugo. It’s going to be tough – Supersport races always are – but if I can qualify a bit higher up the grid than I have done previously, then I’m confident of picking up a few more championship points here this weekend.’

Copyright 2002, Roadracing World Publishing, Inc.

By Beth Wyse

The third and final day of AMA team testing at Road Atlanta was delayed yet again as water running onto turn five was again dried as much as possible.

Nicky Hayden continued to be the fastest among all of the riders present, running a 1:23.6 on his Honda RC51 Superbike during the morning. His time was nearly half-a-second faster than his best time on day two of testing.

“We have some stuff from last year that we want to go back and look at a little more. Today we have different transmissions in the bikes,” said Hayden, referring to the two Superbikes he is testing at Road Atlanta. “(We have) different lengths, different shocks on one bike and we’re going back and forth between the two.”

Miguel Duhamel is still riding both of his bikes, as well. He is testing two types of Dunlop race tires today.

Most teams are taking today to work on basic race set-ups. Yamaha’s Anthony Gobert is getting quicker on his Superbike, running a time of 24.2 in the morning session. He is not doing as well on his 600, however.

“The 600 is struggling a little bit,” said Gobert. It’s tough when you have two bikes (to test).”

Damon Buckmaster rode his Yamaha YZF-R6 all morning and switched to the YZF-R1 for the afternoon. He was just working on basic setup.

Doug Chandler made minor changes to his Ducati 998RS, and was most concerned with getting more comfortable on the bike. He’s been riding one bike for most of the test, but also has a second bike he spent some time on. “It was a very productive three days, so I’m happy,” said Chandler.

Tommy Hayden continued to drop his times on the Kawasaki ZX6, running 1:28.1s, about half-a-second faster than his best time yesterday. “We changed the suspension a lot last night,” explained Hayden. “I feel a lot more comfortable today and I’ve been able to go a lot faster.”

Tony Meiring has finally dropped into the 1:29s on his 600 and feels much more comfortable on the Kawasaki. He is very happy with his progress over the past three days.

The Yoshimura Blimpie Suzuki team is working on just the Superbike Suzuki GSX-R750s today, as Jamie Hacking and Aaron Yates are not riding their GSX-R600 Supersport machines. Mat Mladin has moved into the high 1:23s for his lap times, not giving Nicky Hayden much of a comfort zone. Yates has dropped his times to 1:24.0s.

Valvoline EMGO Suzuki’s Chris Ulrich and Tom Kipp worked on bike set-ups and tested out different Michelin tires today. Tom Kipp spent the first part of his morning on his Suzuki GSX-R600, dropping his lap times by half-a-second over his previous best. New fork internals have fixed a chattering problem that Kipp had yesterday. Ulrich also went faster, turning a 1:27.4 on his Superstock GSX-R750. This afternoon Ulrich will ride a GSX-R1000 Formula Xtreme bike for the first time.

Copyright 2002, Roadracing World Publishing, Inc.

An autographed Miguel Duhamel Shoei helmet has sold for $1825 in an eBay auction held to benefit the Roadracingworld.com Action Fund.

The auction started on April 11 with an opening bid of $400 by “tuckerracing”. Six bids and two hours later, “steph9985” matched the reserve price of $800. The auction stalled at $800 for three days before the bidding resumed in what would become a two-bidder contest between “steph9985” and “compms2”. The price rose to $1250 with less than two days remaining, then a flurry of back-and-forth bidding with one day remaining saw “steph9985” win the auction with a high bid of $1825.

The next auction to benefit the Roadracingworld.com Action Fund should start on Friday, April 19.

For information about the Miguel Duhamel autographed helmet and the Roadracingworld.com Action Fund, see the original web post announcing the auction below.

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This Miguel Duhamel Shoei motorcycle helmet was donated by Shoei Safety Helmet Corporation to be auctioned off to benefit the Roadracingworld.com Action Fund, a new non-profit corporation which has taken over the work previously done by the informally-organized Roadracing World Air Fence* Fund. Autographed by all-time AMA Superbike and 600cc Supersport win leader Miguel Duhamel, this helmet is technically not a replica, but instead is an actual Miguel Duhamel helmet.

Shoei only makes the X-SPII model in Duhamel’s Troy Lee-designed paint scheme for Duhamel himself to wear in races. Duhamel replicas that are sold to the public are only made in the less-expensive, entry-level RF900 model.

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This special lid is in brand new, never-worn condition. It is currently set up for a “Small” size, but Shoei’s Motorsports Manager Rob Vallejos says that the helmet can be re-fitted for any size, up to Large, with a swap of the helmet’s 3-D Liner internal padding system. Vallejos said he would be happy to help re-fit the helmet for the winning bidder.

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Like all new Shoei X-SPIIs, this helmet comes with a clear and a smoked CX-1 face shield, a breath guard, a chin curtain, a maintenance kit, owner’s manual, fleece-lined carrying bag, original box and a five-year warranty. Of course, only this helmet comes with Miguel Duhamel’s signature in white paint marker on the back!

Normal Manufacturer Suggested Retail Price for a Shoei X-SPII replica helmet is a little under $800.

The auction is due to close at approximately 12:00 p.m. Pacific Time, Thursday, April 18. To go directly to the auction, click on the following link:

http://cgi.ebay.com/ws/eBayISAPI.dll?ViewItem&item=1820700776

Roadracing World has a couple of items remaining that will be put up for auction in the near future, but we are always looking for more pieces of racing memorabilia, collectibles, products and/or services to be donated to benefit the Roadracing.com Action Fund. If you have an item that you would like to donate for auction, please call Roadracing World’s David Swarts at 909-245-6411 between 9:00 a.m. and 5:00 p.m. Pacific Time, Monday through Friday.

The Roadracing World Air Fence Fund was established in April 2001 to raise money to purchase and deploy Air Fence and Air Module soft barriers to protect crashed riders from hitting walls and other hard objects at racetracks. In less than one year, the Fund has raised over $174,000, with over $11,000 coming from the auctions of donated racing memorabilia such as this helmet. For more information about the Roadracing World Air Fence Fund, including a full accounting of the collections and disbursements and stories about racers being saved by soft barriers, go to the www.roadracingworld.com home page and click on the Air Fence headline.

The Roadracingworld.com Action Fund has taken over the work of the Roadracing World Air Fence Fund and will continue to use donations to buy and deploy Air Fence and Air Modules to improve racetrack safety.

*Air Fence is a trademark of Airfence Safety Systems of Australia.

From a press release:

Oklahoma City Formula USA Dirt Track Goes to a Cooler Date

New date is June 22nd for Oklahoma City Moto TT Dirt Track National

AURORA, Ill., (April 18, 2002) – Clear Channel Entertainment’s Motor Sports division announced today a change in the 2002 Formula USA National
Dirt Track Series presented by Drag Specialties.

The previously announced July Oklahoma City Moto TT Dirt Track National, round 5 of the Formula USA National Dirt Track Series has been moved to Saturday June 22nd.

“The date change puts the Oklahoma City Moto TT event onto a better weekend for weather, fans and for the riders’ routing needs. It’s a great move for the series and we’re looking forward to going to Oklahoma City in June” said Bob Moran, director of dirt track racing for Clear Channel
Entertainment’s motor sports division.

The 2002 Formula USA National Dirt Track Series schedules is as follows:

Sat, Apr 27 Baytown, TX Houston Raceway Park

Sat, May 4 Mesquite, TX Devil’s Bowl Speedway

Sat, June 8 Plymouth, WI Sheboygan County Fairgrounds

Fri, Jun 14 Rochester, NH Rochester Fairgrounds

Sat, June 22 Oklahoma City, OK State Fair Speedway

Sat. Jul 20 Duluth, MN Proctor Speedway

Wed, Aug 7 Rapid City, S.D. Black Hills Speedway

Sat, Sept. 14 Sacramento, CA Cal Expo *

Sept. 21-22 Tacoma, WA Tacoma Dome

Sat, Sept. 28 Boise, ID Les Bois Park

Sat, Oct 5 Del Mar, CA Del Mar Fairgrounds Short Track

Sun, Oct 6 Del Mar, CA Del Mar Fairgrounds Mile/Grandstand *

* (No 80cc class)

From a press release:

Superbike World Championship
Round four: Sugo, Japan
Wednesday 17 April 2002
Event preview

HM Plant Ducati/GSE Racing in the land of the rising wild card

Britain’s number one World Superbike rider, Neil Hodgson, and his increasingly successful team-mate James Toseland enter the final leg of the fly-away phase of the 2002 championship. The HM Plant Ducati/GSE Racing team arrived in Japan well before Friday’s initial practice session and have been busy preparing for the fourth round of the series in Sugo.

As well as facing their regular adversaries, both riders are fully prepared for the event and are looking forward to doing battle with the factory-mounted wild card riders that so dominated last year’s competition at the 3.73km circuit.

“I really want to close the points gap before the series returns to Europe,” said Hodgson. “I love Sugo and have challenged myself to secure a podium finish here. After coming so close at Kyalami, it would be extra-special for me to do it this weekend. The Japanese wild cards are incredibly competitive, but we found a great set-up for this circuit in 2001, and this year we’re in an even stronger position than before. So, it looks like everything’s in place to help me achieve my goal.”

James Toseland is determined to maintain his recent run of form: “Things are going really well for me at the moment and I’m not planning on letting up now. Sugo is a great track – very challenging and technical – and last year I managed to beat some of the top WSBK riders around it. I’ve had plenty of time to acclimatise to the conditions and I feel on top form. Physically and mentally, I’m more than ready for the weekend.”

2001 results
Race one:
1. M. Tamada (Hon) 37:45.090; 2. T. Corser (Apr) +4.090; 3. H. Izutsu (Kaw) +7.668; 4. S. Ito (Hon) +12.117; 5. A. Ryo (Suz) +12.431; 6. G. Lavilla (Suz) +18.697; 7. N. Hodgson (GSE Racing) +19.091; 8. P. Chili (Suz) +19.224; 9. B. Bostrom (Duc) +25.008; 10. W. Yoshikawa (Yam) +25.307; 11. J. Toseland (GSE Racing) +36.006

Race two:
1. M. Tamada (Hon) 37:43.033; 2. H. Izutsu (Kaw) +3.122; 3. T. Serizawa (Kaw) +4.303; 4. B. Bostrom (Duc) +5.988; 5. N. Hodgson (GSE Racing) +9.022; 6. T. Corser (Apr) +11.788; 7. A. Ryo (Suz) +17.504; 8. P. Chili (Suz) +17.810; 9. S. Ito (Hon) +10.088; 10. Y. Kagayama (Suz) +19.238; 16. J. Toseland (GSE Racing) +54.583

Lap record: M. Tamada 1:29.522 (2001)
Superpole: M. Tamada 1:28.797 (2001)
Qualifying: M. Tamada 1:28.658 (2001)


In other HM Plant Ducati news:

We are proud to announce the launch of a very special credit card. GSE Racing has teamed up with MBNA to offer you the chance to aid Neil Hodgson and James Toseland in their bid for World Superbike glory.

THE GSE RACING MASTERCARD



The GSE Racing MasterCard carries a fantastic image of Britain’s number one Superbike rider Neil Hodgson in action. Not only does it look the business, but it could help you save money with it’s competive interest rates.

The best thing about the deal is that when you take out the GSE Racing MasterCard and make purchases with it, you are helping the team. MBNA has pledged to make a donation to the team every time the card is used.

To find out more about this fantastic deal check out http://www.hmplantducati.com

Get ready for a big prize competiton, being launched around the card in the very near future.

From AMA Pro Racing:

Thursday, May 2

3:00 – 7:00 p.m. Registration: Riders, Crew, Sponsors & Guests

3:00 – 7:00 p.m. Tech Inspection

Friday, May 3

7:30 a.m. – 4:00 p.m. Registration: Riders, Crew, Sponsors & Guests

8:00 a.m. – 5:00 p.m. Tech Inspection

8:30 – 10:30 a.m. Practice (in the following order):
Pro Honda Oils Supersport
Lockhart-Phillips USA Formula Xtreme
Genuine Suzuki Accessories Superstock
MBNA 250 Grand Prix

10:40 –11:40 a.m. Chevy Trucks Superbike Practice

11:40 a.m. – 12:40 p.m. Lunch break

12:40 – 2:30 p.m. Practice (same order as morning session)

2:40- 3:30 p.m. Chevy Trucks Superbike Qualifying

4:20 – 4:40 p.m. Genuine Suzuki Accessories Superstock Qualifying (even #s)

4:50 – 5:10 p.m. Genuine Suzuki Accessories Superstock Qualifying (odd #s)

Saturday, May 4

7:30 a.m. – 3:00 p.m. Registration: Riders, Crew, Sponsors & Guests

8:00 a.m. – 5:00 p.m. Tech Inspection

8:00 – 9:40 a.m. Practice (in the following order):
Pro Honda Oils Supersport
MBNA 250 Grand Prix
Genuine Suzuki Accessories Superstock
Lockhart-Phillips USA Formula Xtreme

9:50 –10:50 a.m. Chevy Trucks Superbike Qualifying

11:00 – 11:20 a.m. Pro Honda Oils Supersport Qualifying (even #s)

11:30 – 11:50 a.m. Pro Honda Oils Supersport Qualifying (odd #s)

11:50 a.m. – 12:40 p.m. Lunch break

12:40 – 1:00 p.m. Chevy Trucks Superbike Practice

1:10 – 1:45 p.m. Lockhart-Phillips USA Formula Xtreme Qualifying

2:00 p.m. Chevy Trucks Superbike Race One (100K – 26 laps)

MBNA 250 Grand Prix Qualifying (20 minute session)

Genuine Suzuki Accessories Superstock Race (60K – 16 laps)

Sunday, May 5

8:30 a.m. – 12:00 p.m. Registration: Riders, Crew, Sponsors & Guests

9:00 a.m. Tech Inspection Opens

9:00 – 10:50 a.m. Practice (in the following order):
Pro Honda Oils Supersport
MBNA 250 Grand Prix
Lockhart-Phillips USA Formula Xtreme
Chevy Trucks Superbike

11:00 a.m. Lunch Break

12:00 p.m. Pro Honda Oils Supersport Final (60K – 16 laps)

MBNA 250 Grand Prix Final (60K – 16 laps)

Lockhart-Phillips USA Formula Xtreme Final (60K –16 laps)

3:00 p.m. Chevy Trucks Superbike Race Two (100K – 26 laps)

Copyright 2002, Roadracing World Publishing, Inc.

Bidding on an autographed Miguel Duhamel helmet has reached $1225, with approximately 24 hours remaining in the auction to benefit the Roadracingworld.com Action Fund. The highest offer for the unobtainable helmet reached $800 on the first day but then stalled at that amount for the next three days. Interest renewed when “compms2” joined the process, and seven new bids later, the highest bid of $1225 is held by “steph9985”. With five bids each, it appears that this auction will be a two-horse race between “compms2” and “steph9985” unless a new bidder appears in the closing minutes of the sale.

The auction is due to close at 3:11 p.m. Eastern Time Thursday, April 18.

The original web posting announcing the auction appears below:

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This Miguel Duhamel Shoei motorcycle helmet was donated by Shoei Safety Helmet Corporation to be auctioned off to benefit the Roadracingworld.com Action Fund, a new non-profit corporation which has taken over the work previously done by the informally-organized Roadracing World Air Fence* Fund. Autographed by all-time AMA Superbike and 600cc Supersport win leader Miguel Duhamel, this helmet is technically not a replica, but instead is an actual Miguel Duhamel helmet.

Shoei only makes the X-SPII model in Duhamel’s Troy Lee-designed paint scheme for Duhamel himself to wear in races. Duhamel replicas that are sold to the public are only made in the less-expensive, entry-level RF900 model.

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This special lid is in brand new, never-worn condition. It is currently set up for a “Small” size, but Shoei’s Motorsports Manager Rob Vallejos says that the helmet can be re-fitted for any size, up to Large, with a swap of the helmet’s 3-D Liner internal padding system. Vallejos said he would be happy to help re-fit the helmet for the winning bidder.

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Like all new Shoei X-SPIIs, this helmet comes with a clear and a smoked CX-1 face shield, a breath guard, a chin curtain, a maintenance kit, owner’s manual, fleece-lined carrying bag, original box and a five-year warranty. Of course, only this helmet comes with Miguel Duhamel’s signature in white paint marker on the back!

Normal Manufacturer Suggested Retail Price for a Shoei X-SPII replica helmet is a little under $800.

The auction is due to close at approximately 12:00 p.m. Pacific Time, Thursday, April 18. To go directly to the auction, click on the following link:

http://cgi.ebay.com/ws/eBayISAPI.dll?ViewItem&item=1820700776

Roadracing World has a couple of items remaining that will be put up for auction in the near future, but we are always looking for more pieces of racing memorabilia, collectibles, products and/or services to be donated to benefit the Roadracing.com Action Fund. If you have an item that you would like to donate for auction, please call Roadracing World’s David Swarts at 909-245-6411 between 9:00 a.m. and 5:00 p.m. Pacific Time, Monday through Friday.

The Roadracing World Air Fence Fund was established in April 2001 to raise money to purchase and deploy Air Fence and Air Module soft barriers to protect crashed riders from hitting walls and other hard objects at racetracks. In less than one year, the Fund has raised over $174,000, with over $11,000 coming from the auctions of donated racing memorabilia such as this helmet. For more information about the Roadracing World Air Fence Fund, including a full accounting of the collections and disbursements and stories about racers being saved by soft barriers, go to the www.roadracingworld.com home page and click on the Air Fence headline.

The Roadracingworld.com Action Fund has taken over the work of the Roadracing World Air Fence Fund and will continue to use donations to buy and deploy Air Fence and Air Modules to improve racetrack safety.

*Air Fence is a trademark of Airfence Safety Systems of Australia.

Copyright 2002, Roadracing World Publishing, Inc.

By Beth Wyse

The second day of AMA team testing at Road Atlanta got started late for the same reason as the first day: Turn five had water flowing onto it from the saturated ground beside the track. Road Atlanta’s maintenance crew put oil dry down to soak up some of the water, but the turn remained damp throughout the morning. Most teams sent out representatives to go inspect the turn themselves and bikes did not get on track until 10:30.

Damon Buckmaster was the first rider on track this morning. Buckmaster was not able to ride during the first day of testing because all of his gear was in the Graves Yamaha transporter, which just arrived last night. He spent the day testing both his YZF-R6 and his R1-powered Formula Xtreme YZF-R7.

Anthony Gobert has new suspension components on his Yamaha YZF-R7 Superbike this season, and spent the day trying to find the right set-up for Road Atlanta. “We got new suspension parts earlier in the year and it’s kind of frustrating because now everywhere we go we have to waste a lot of time getting it dialed in,” explained Gobert. “It’s frustrating because I want to go fast, and I’m in and out, in and out, changing (the set-up).” During the afternoon sessions, Gobert ran 22 laps on the same tires before putting in a fast time of 1:24.6.

Yoshimura Suzuki’s Jamie Hacking spent most of his time riding his Supersport GSX-R600 with his mechanic making adjustments to the engine tuning. Hacking posted the quickest 600cc time of the day with a 1:27.6, nearly an entire second faster than Tommy Hayden’s fastest time on the Kawasaki. Hacking spent the afternoon riding his GSX-R750 Superbike.

Mat Mladin continued working on his Superbike’s race set-up, running in the mid-to-low 1:24s today. He is determined to repeat his prior success at Road Atlanta. “I expect to win. I never expect anything less than to come to a race and win,” said Mladin. “We have to win, anyway, because we need to catch up, so there’s really nothing else we can do.”

Aaron Yates spent the entire day on his Suzuki GSX-R750 Superbike, posting a fast time of 1:24.6 and working on race set-up.

Kawasaki’s Tommy Hayden is concentrating on getting used to riding the Kawasaki ZX-6 for the first time at Road Atlanta and making suspension changes. Hayden felt that the bike was uncomfortable on the first test day, but that the team is heading in the right direction now with the current set-up of the bike.

Tony Meiring is feeling more confident on his Kawasaki. After making extensive changes on the bike, he says he feels good and he dropped his lap times for the second day of testing.

Doug Chandler was running consistently in the 1:24.6-24.7 range, matching his fastest time from yesterday. He felt good on the HMC Ducati and enjoyed running with Nicky Hayden and Miguel Duhamel during one of his sessions.

Nicky Hayden spent much of the day on the track, and his lap times showed that his efforts were worthwhile. He posted the fastest time of the day with a 1:24.0, beating Mladin’s fast time by 0.2-second.

Miguel Duhamel continued to work on the set-up for his Honda RC51, coming into the pits frequently for adjustments. His fastest time of the day was a 1:24.8.

Chris Ulrich spent the entire day on his Valvoline Suzuki GSX-R750 and used most of the morning track time to test brake pads. After some minor suspension changes, Ulrich went back to the brake pads he normally runs and continued practicing throughout the afternoon, turning a total of 59 laps.

Tom Kipp rode his Valvoline EMGO Suzuki GSX-R1000 Formula Xtreme bike all day, although he has not yet settled on the best set-up for the bike. Both Kipp and Ulrich said they will focus on testing different compounds of Michelin tires tomorrow.

FAST TIMES, SUPERBIKE:
Nicky Hayden, Honda RC51, 1:24.0
Mat Mladin, Suzuki GSX-R750, 1:24.2
Aaron Yates, Suzuki GSX-R759, 1:24.6
Anthony Gobert, Yamaha R7, 1:24.62
Miguel Duhamel, Honda RC51, 1:24.8
Doug Chandler, Ducati 998, 1:24.6

FAST TIMES, SUPERSPORT:
Jamie Hacking, Suzuki GSX-R600, 1:27.6
Damon Buckmaster, Yamaha YZF-R6, 1:28.9
Tommy Hayden, Kawasaki ZX-6R, 1:28.5
Tony Meiring, Kawasaki ZX-6R, 1:30.4

FAST TIMES, SUPERSTOCK:
Chris Ulrich, GSX-R750, 1:27.7

FAST TIMES, FORMULA XTREME:
Damon Buckmaster, Yamaha YZF-R7/R1, 1:25.2
Tom Kipp, Suzuki GSX-R1000, 1:25.77

Copyright 2002, Roadracing World Publishing, Inc.

This just in, from Daytona 200 winner, former racer and television commentator David Sadowski:

Just had to drop you a line regarding Michael Hannas’ commentary on Sears Point.

Knowing that the circuit is in the process of a “major face-lift” and the management has been open about communicating with the motorcycle racing industry leaders reporting the new changes, with rider approval. Michael Hannas steps up three weeks out of our visit to Sears and reports a detailed evaluation of the new changes that is troublesome. Hannas’ report is obviously unbiased and you know he will continue to ride at Sears Point. Despite the fact that he has risked not winning the popularity contest at this year’s event (I commend his bold honesty) is Hannas on the level with his observations? Raises some questions in my mind that I have to ask.

First–Why have the other riders that commented on the track not seen what he sees? (I know the answer, but plead the 5th!)

Second–Who is sought after from the AMA to inspect and suggest motorcycle-racing-related safety issues. (Usually it is the local hero who is contracted by a factory team and is apprehensive to “Rock the Boat”)

Third–Most of what is suggested by the chosen pro is just that, a suggestion. There is no standard established in America that specifies what a racetrack needs to look like to have a professional motorcycle racing event. In my experience with track evaluation, having been the “Chosen One” on numerous occasions, and having written proposals with drawings before the construction process began, I know the battle lines pretty well. Despite my suggestions to have concrete walls and Armco Barriers not erected or moved away from the track at almost every venue in the U.S., they (racetrack designers & engineers) keep building the circuits in America to suit the sanctioning bodies of automobile racing, and their track standards. Specifically to attract an F-1 or IRL car race to the track under construction in most cases.

Questions–Can a standard be established in America that suits both the auto & motorcycle racing communities? I’ll answer:

A. Hell No! We (the motorcycle racing community) can’t agree in one accord about much, and we give conflicting, off-the-cuff assessments when inspecting the tracks. Motorcycle races are low priority when safety is concerned at most tracks. Decision makers have no idea what a Superbike, 250 GP, Supersport, Pro Thunder or (OH MY GOD) a Formula Xtreme bike is like in anger around their tracks.

B. Who will spend millions of dollars to make necessary changes for Motorcycle events? (Especially those who have just overhauled a facility)

What can we do?

1. Buy more Air Fence and have a respected cornerworker (Non-butt kisser) involved with a retired Pro (Non-butt kisser)working on solutions to these safety issues.

2. Stop accepting a single row of haybales in front of a wall that is on the outside of a 140-mph corner.

3. Look at every turn with “catastrophic brake failure” in mind when assessing run-off and intersecting traffic. (Bikes highside and “Right” themselves most of the time and brake failure is a reality!)

4. Become united on track safety issues by mandating factory riders to take the AMA and OEM leaders on a “Hot Lap” around the circuits with overheated tires.

I have other thoughts and questions, but this will do for now, I’m getting too excited, or am I?

Hannas–You’re OK in my book!

David Sadowski