From a press release:

FORMULA USA ROAD RACE SERIES TRAINING SEMINAR IN PA

AURORA, Ill. – Clear Channel Entertainment’s Motor Sports division announces that Formula USA National Road Race Series will be conducting a cornerworker training seminar on February 9, 2002, at 7:00 p.m. at the Reading Motorcycle Club in Oley, Pennsylvania. National Safety Director,
Roger Lyle will be reviewing procedures for flagging, worker priorities, motorcycle pick-up, proper dress, and communications. This seminar is free and open to anyone with interest in learning how to cornerwork at the Formula USA National and CCS road races.

Local fast guy and National Champion Chris Carr has been invited to welcome all corner marshals and explain the importance of having trained safety personnel at the races. For more info contact Roger Lyle at [email protected] or 301-933-2599 or Keith Landis in Pa. at
[email protected] or 610-683-6049.

We thank the Reading Motorcycle Club, RMC, for opening their clubhouse and hosting this event.

Copyright 2002, Roadracing World Publishing, Inc.

AMA Pro Racing CEO Scott Hollingsworth has denied allegations made by OMS Ltd.’s Fred Bramblett that Hollingsworth is trying to exact revenge on SFX/CCE for a failed business deal Hollingsworth was personally involved in.

On Saturday, Bramblett told roadracingworld.com that Hollingsworth, prior to going to work for the AMA and while working as an investment banker involved with the talent agency FAME, structured a deal to purchase another company and won a bidding war to do so. But when a Letter of Intent to make the purchase expired before the contracts were signed, the then-owner of SFX swooped in and bought the company, leaving Hollingsworth holding the bag, according to Bramblett.

But on Tuesday, February 5, Hollingsworth told cyclenews.com “There is not a shred of truth to it. I was never involved with FAME and there was no letter of intent with any company. It is something that is being spread by an agent of Clear Channel with the intent of harming my reputation. There’s not a shred of truth to it and that’s all I can say at this point.”

Bramblett has been out of the country for several days and could not be reached for further comment.

Copyright 2002, Roadracing World Publishing, Inc.

By David Swarts

Yoshimura Suzuki’s Mat Mladin, Jamie Hacking and Aaron Yates recently completed their first test since the Dunlop tire tests at Daytona International Speedway in December of 2001.

After the team spent January relocating to a new facility less than a mile away from their old race shop in Chino, California, the three-rider squad tested their new 2002 Suzuki GSX-Rs at Bragg-Smith Motorsports Park in Pahrump, Nevada from January 31 to February 2.

The track in Pahrump is a relatively-new, 2.2-mile-long, 35-foot-wide road course located near the border of Nevada and California. The facility hosts no sanctioned motorcycle road races, but is a popular testing location for California-based race teams.

According to Team Coordinator Rich Doan, the team further evaluated new parts first tried at Daytona. Yates and Hacking split time between their GSX-R600 Supersport machines and GSX-R750 Superbikes, while Mladin, who tended to his new Suzuki dealership in Australia during the off-season, spent all of his time at Pahrump on his Superbike. Mladin’s best Superbike time was approximately 0.7-second faster than his teammates, but no lap times were released by the Yoshimura team.

Even though Doan termed the weather as “brisk” at times, there were no crashes during the test.

Yoshimura Suzuki plans to test alongside many other AMA teams February 12-14 at California Speedway before returning to Pahrump in late February for a one-day Daytona dress rehearsal.

From a press release:

Sears Point Raceway Sells Out of Suites Above New Permanent Grandstand

SONOMA, Calif. (IMMEDIATE RELEASE) – Sears Point Raceway has sold out of its new corporate luxury suites that are being built above the new permanent grandstand at start-finish on the road course for the 2002 racing season, track officials announced.

The 16 suites will feature an indoor-outdoor design, as well as upgraded furniture, telephones, wet bars, padded outdoor seats, air conditioning and private restrooms. Some extra amenities include internet access and a menu of fine Sonoma and Napa valley wines.

The suites are being built directly above pit road on the road course, offering corporate clients views unparalleled in motorsports to one of the most exciting aspects of a road race: pit stops. The suites will also provide a breathtaking view of NHRA POWERade drag racing on the refurbished Sears Point Raceway quarter-mile drag strip.

“The layout and design of these suites is going to be unlike any other in the Bay Area,” said Steve Page, president and general manager of Sears Point Raceway. “We are delighted to see such an immediate and positive response from the marketplace.”

The sales continue a trend in motorsports in the San Francisco-Sacramento markets as Sears Point Raceway experienced attendance gains at every major event during the 2001 season, including the Dodge/Save Mart 350 NASCAR Winston Cup. Moreover, NASCAR television ratings saw a 17-percent gain in San Francisco over 2000, while Sacramento experienced a 20-percent gain over 2000. Sears Point also experienced gains in television ratings for its NHRA POWERade FRAM Autolite Nationals.

Sears Point Raceway was able to target both corporate sponsors at the regional and national levels for suite sales, including DuPont, UPS and Budweiser. At the local level, Big O Tires, Rombauer Winery, Slakey Brothers and Frank Howard Allen Realty are a few of the businesses that purchased suites.

“We’re flattered at the response of our corporate customers,” said Tim Schuldt, vice president of sales and marketing at Sears Point. “We’re thrilled that we will be able to provide our customers with the world-class amenities they demand.”

The suites are part of Sears Point Raceway’s comprehensive $50 million Modernization Plan that will transform the facility into one of the premier motorsports and entertainment venues in the country. The two-year project began in September, 2000, and will be nearly complete by the Dodge/Save Mart 350 NASCAR Winston Cup, June 20-23. During the two years, more than 8,000,000 cubic yards of dirt has been moved.

Copyright 2002, Roadracing World Publishing, Inc.

By David Swarts

As bidding in the Roadracing World Air Fence Fund benefit auction for a made-to-order set of Barnacle Bill leathers holds at $1225, we’ve added an extra bonus to the auction.

The winning bidder for the Barnacle Bill custom leathers will receive two columns (half a page) of coverage in an issue of Roadracing World, complete with a photo of themselves wearing the leathers along with a profile of their racing program and a complete list of their sponsors.

The auction is due to end Friday, February 8 at 1:37 p.m. Central Time.

Custom leather suit maker “Barnacle Bill” Burns has donated a custom-made set of his motorcycle leathers (in road race, flat track, speedway, drag race or street style) to be auctioned off with the proceeds, minus the cost of the eBay service, going to the Roadracing World Air Fence Fund.

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Burns is offering to make a suit to the specifications of the winning bidder, as if they were a customer ordering one of his standard racer package deals, and Burns says, “The most important suit that I will ever make is the suit that I make for you.”

All of Barnacle Bill’s suits are custom-made from hand-selected 3.0-3.5-ounce leather, feature triple-stitched and glued seams from the inside of the garment to increase durability, come with plastic composite body armor, have optional venting, an optional aerodynamic hump, includes the rider’s name on the front and back and road race suits come with knee sliders. Additional lettering is available at an additional cost.

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Virtually any design, color or combination of colors is available to the winning bidder. And the suit can be made in either a one-piece or two-piece design.

After their bid is received, the winning bidder’s name will be forwarded to Burns by Roadracing World. The bidder and Burns will then begin to work on the winning bidder’s new suit. Burns says that the suit will be ready to wear in approximately four weeks, if not earlier.

“Hurt racers don’t come back as customers,” said former racer Burns on why he is donating a suit to the Roadracing World Air Fence Fund. “I’ve hit something solid before, and it doesn’t feel good.”

Custom-made leather suits typically range in cost anywhere from $800 to well over $2000.

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Although leathers are the most effective safety clothing worn by motorcyclists on the street and the racetrack today, sometimes well-made leathers are not enough. As a result, the Roadracing World Air Fence Fund was established 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.

To go directly to the auction on eBay, click here:
http://cgi.ebay.com/aw-cgi/eBayISAPI.dll?ViewItem&item=1802522825

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

Southern California Triumph Named Top Dealer

According to a press release, Southern California Triumph has been named the Number One Triumph Dealer in the United States for 2001 by Triumph Motorcycles America.

The 21-month-old dealership in Brea, California was also named as one of Dealernews Magazine’s Top 100 Dealers in the United States.

Southern California Triumph is located at 515 West Lambert Rd., Brea, California 92821.

For more information, call (714) 256-6700 or e-mail [email protected].

Forget that stuff about 36 corporate members controlling 6 of 12 AMA Board seats and now getting to decide whether or not to further restrict who and who cannot be elected by the members.

Despite what AMA President Rob Rasor told us, there are actually 23 Corporate members of the AMA, as follows:

American Honda Motor Co.
(AMA Director Ray Blank)

American Suzuki Motor Corp.
(AMA Director Mel Harris)

American Motorcycle Institute

BMW of North America

Cannondale Corporation

Cycle News, Inc.

Ducati North America

Dunlop Tire Corporation
(AMA Director Mike Buckley)

Exxon Mobil Coporation

Filter Publications
(AMA Director Davey Coombs)

Hachette Filipacchi Magazines

Harley-Davidson Motor Co.
(AMA Director Ken Sutton)

Indian Motorcycle Company

Kawasaki Motors Corp.
(AMA Director John Hoover)

KK Motorcycle Supply

KTM Sportmotorcycle USA, Inc.

Motorcycle Mechanics Institute

National Auto Research

Parts Unlimited/Drag Specialties

Polaris Industries, Inc.

Primedia

Triumph Motorcycles

Yamaha Motor Corp.

Although all details are not available, reports from Europe indicate that German Katja Poensgen, 25, the first woman to ever score points in the FIM 250cc Grand Prix World Championship, is without a ride.

In late 2001, Poensgen was announced as part of Jeff Hardwick’s 2002 Shell Advance Honda squad, teaming with Spainish rider Alex Debon on factory RS250R-Ws, but due to financial difficulties, Hardwick’s 250cc program has folded. Poensgen is now looking for her fourth team in 13 months.

Poensgen earned recognition when she finished on the podium once and in the top five three times in the 2000 FIM Superstock World Championship. Poensgen then signed to ride for the Umoto Aprilia team alongside Jeremy McWilliams in the 2001 250cc World Championship series. The Umoto team collapsed without warning leaving Poensgen at the first IRTA test without a bike to ride. Poensgen made her way onto the Dark Dog Racing Factory line-up with teammate Alex Hofmann, raced the first half of the season and scored her two World Championship points. Mid-season Poensgen and the Dark Dog Racing Factory team split company, and Poensgen was subsequently picked up by Jeff Hardwick’s Shell Advance unit.

Hardwick had planned to run a two-rider team in the 250cc class and two riders on 500cc V-4 two-strokes in the MotoGP class in 2002. Reports indicated that Hardwick had signed Poensgen and Debon to ride factory Honda 250s, and Debon even tested one of the new bikes at Suzuka in December. But late last month, news that Hardwick’s 250cc effort had folded began to leak out of Europe. Then on February 4, Hardwick was introduced in a Honda press conference in Japan as the Team Manager of Pramac Racing with Tetsuya Harada riding a Honda NSR500 in the 2002 MotoGP World Championship.

Poensgen and Debon are now left without rides with only two months remaining until the start of the 2002 season, but both are currently working on finding teams before the first IRTA test at Valencia starting February 15.

A February 4 letter from Poensgen to her fans appeared on her website, www.katja-poensgen.de, saying,

“Hi folks,
“Where should I begin????
“As you might already know, once again I have no racing-team.
“No, I don’t feel completely at a loss. No, I’m not crying all the time. Everything is quite normal. The only thing missing, is a team. But I won’t give up. I keep reminding myself of my motto: Everything comes as it comes and better times will come.
“The only thing I can do for the moment, is to wait.
“Anyhow, now I know why Grand Prix’s make you old. I always wondered why my colleagues look so worn-out.
“-sorry-
“I feel a bit tired. And I’m asking myself: Where am I?
“Well, I’ll find out and let you know.
“Kat”

From an AMA press release:

In what could be the first step toward regulating the gear that motorcyclists wear, the federal government is considering requiring motorcycle rider apparel manufacturers to report clothing defects to the National Highway Traffic Safety Administration (NHTSA).

The proposal is included in a notice the government issued stating that it plans to propose rules for motor vehicle manufacturers and their suppliers to report customer satisfaction and certain other information to the federal government to help the NHTSA identify defects related to motor vehicle safety. The rules would implement the early warning reporting requirements of a federal law – The Transportation Recall Enhancement, Accountability, and Documentation (TREAD) Act – that was approved in 2000 following problems related to Firestone tires on Ford Explorers.
Specifically, the notice of proposed rulemaking notes that the rules would cover, among other things, “accessory equipment and `off-vehicle equipment’ that is not part of a motor vehicle, such as retroreflective motorcycle rider apparel and child restraints.”

Former NHTSA Administrator Joan Claybrook, now president of the public interest group Public Citizen, told the government that equipment manufacturers, including the makers of motorcycle jackets, should report defects to both vehicle manufacturers and the NHTSA “because reporting by the vehicle manufacturers (to the NHTSA) is the simplest and easiest way for NHTSA to maintain a usable database.”

Imre Szauter, AMA legislative affairs specialist, notes that creation of a database is usually the first step in setting up new regulations to regulate equipment. This notice of proposed rulemaking, he said, could be the first step for mandatory rider apparel certification and use.

The AMA told the NHTSA that including motorcycle rider apparel in the reporting requirements appears to go beyond what Congress intended in approving the TREAD Act.

“The AMA believes that requiring motorcycle apparel manufacturers to report defects under the TREAD Act is both impractical and unworkable,” the Association said. “There is typically no direct connection between the brand of motorcycle and the brand of rider apparel chosen by a motorcyclist. Unlike other motor vehicle equipment, original equipment and replacement equipment, tires or child restraints, apparel is neither installed in or on a vehicle.

“In addition, motorcycle apparel is not worn exclusively during motorcycle operation,” the AMA said. “For example, motorcycle jackets are often worn in cars, buses, trains, planes, while walking, etc.”

The Association added that the NHTSA should focus on the major issues that lead to the need for the early warning reporting requirement of the TREAD Act — identifying specific vehicle-related equipment that, if defective, would possibly lead to death or injury.

The NHTSA is accepting written comments only, sent by mail. The comment deadline is Feb. 4, 2002, but the agency will also consider comments received after that date “to the extent possible.” The final rule must be issued by June 30.

To comment, refer to Docket NHTSA 2001-8677, Notice 2, and send two copies of your comments to: National Highway Traffic Safety Administration, Docket Management, Room PL-401, 400 Seventh St. SW, Washington DC 20590.

(Note: There is a form letter that you can print out, sign and mail to the NHTSA available in the Rapid Response Center on the AMA website, www.ama-cycle.org.)

Copyright 2002, Roadracing World Publishing, Inc.

On the heels of several announcements clarifying their “alliance”, Suzuki and Kawasaki simultaneously began the first full tests of their new MotoGP four-stroke racebikes at Sepang in Malaysia Monday, February 4. This is the first time that four-stroke MotoGP bikes of two different manufacturers have been at the same track at the same time.

After a short test session at their Ryuyo factory test track in Japan two weeks ago, Suzuki factory World Championship riders Kenny Roberts and Sete Gibernau and All-Japan Road Racing Series riders Akira Ryo and Yukio Kagayama began their first, full test of Suzuki’s new XREO four-stroke, 990cc, 60-degree V-4 Monday at Sepang.

Then, in what was termed by many as a “surprise”, Kawasaki’s four-stroke development rider Akira Yanagawa rolled out of a garage on the bike that the smallest of the “Big Four” Japanese motorcycle manufacturers hopes to begin racing during the 2002 season. Kawasaki hasn’t released any details about the MotoGP four-stroke machine except to say that it will race in select rounds of the World Championship and All-Japan Road Race Series this season.

Timing with the announcement of the Suzuki/Kawasaki “alliance” may be coincidental, and it is not known whether Suzuki and Kawasaki are co-developing a MotoGP bike. Having said that, Suzuki and Kawasaki must have cooperated in planning for both teams to be at the private test in Malaysia.

News of the Suzuki/Kawasaki alliance was first released in August of 2001 and recent releases from both companies continue to clarify the relationship. A January memo to Kawasaki dealers stated, “The alliance–created to allow the two brands to share certain production platforms, related sourcing, and engage in selected product co-development–was announced last August and will begin to take form by the middle of this year.”

When asked about the cooperative Suzuki/Kawasaki test at Sepang, American Suzuki spokesman Mark Reese said that he wasn’t informed on Suzuki’s MotoGP plans and had no information to give. However, Reese was aware that both Suzuki and Kawasaki development teams were at the test together.

Stay tuned for more details as they become available.