John Hopkins ended the first day of his latest test session with the Red Bull Yamaha WCM team by bettering the times he turned on the bike during a test last year.

Hopkins flew to Vienna from his hometown of San Diego on the morning of Monday, July 9, after driving home from the AMA/World Superbike races at Laguna Seca. Barely 24 hours after arriving in Europe, and with a bad case of jet lag, Hopkins was aboard a Yamaha YZR500 at Brno.

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“He has a pretty serious case of jet lag,” said WCM Racing Director Peter Clifford of Hopkins. “He’s just been going around, although the weather hasn’t cooperated and we stopped after half a day because of rain. Pretty soon he got down to better the times he did here last year, just riding the bike, nothing ragged.”

As for bike set-up, Clifford said that the YZR500 was initially set-up as it was during Hopkins’ test last year. “He started with it virtually the same as last year,” Clifford said, “except for a slight difference in the forks. Since then we’ve been having him try some things that Hamish (Jamieson) knows are better just by our having another year of working with the bike. We’re letting him try things and his comments have all been very logical and in line in what Hamish expected.

“I think if you look in terms of the general way he rides, he does really, really well,” continued Clifford. “If all you looked at was the lap times you wouldn’t be stunned, because the way he goes about things is not to leap on it and break the lap record. It’s the way he moves on in periods two, three and four that are impressive. We don’t expect him to be blindingly fast right now. He’s doing well.”

The YZR500 Hopkins is riding carries his initials, JH, on its numberplates.

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Air Fence Safety Systems Managing Director Andy Coffey is at Texas World Speedway today, assembling 20 sections of Air Fence Bike soft barrier for use in turn nine, the corner where CMRA racer Ryan Smith suffered fatal injuries in 1999.

The Air Fence Bike sections were paid for by the Roadracing World Air Fence Fund.

Coffey is being assisted at Texas World Speedway by Tom Shields of RPM, the Texas-based WERA and AMA affiliate, and Charles Brothers of CMRA, the Texas-based CCS affiliate.

The Air Fence Bike sections will be used for RPM/WERA and CMRA/CCS motorcycle races at Texas World Speedway.

Officials from both organizations gladly cooperated in the project, recognizing that many racers in the area compete with both groups and that, ultimately, a racer is a racer regardless of what “brand” of license he or she holds.

The Roadracing World Air Fence Fund is dedicated to improving safety for racers from all organizations.

Copyright 2001, Roadracing World Publishing, Inc.

AMA Superbike Champion Mat Mladin responded to NHIS Safety Director Jerry Wood’s earlier comments regarding the situation at Loudon, via phone and e-mail. (See related post below, headlined “Loudon Video Delayed Until Tomorrow; Wood Comments On Situation”.) Mladin’s version of what happened at Loudon differs significantly with Wood’s.

In his statement to roadracingworld.com, Mladin wrote:

In response to Mr. Wood’s comments:

Thursday about lunchtime Ron Barrick came to my motorhome to ask me to come and look at the track. He wanted me to see the position of the airbags and if there needed to be any changes. He asked me to meet him in the AMA tech garage after the day’s riding had finished. I agreed. Doug Chandler was also asked and he agreed.

Within the next few hours I got talking to Aaron Yates (whose motorhome was parked next to mine, as was Doug Chandler’s, Jamie Hacking’s, Ben Spies’ and Roger Hayden’s) and told Aaron that we are doing an airbag inspection after practice. He said, great I’ll be there.

By the time we showed up at AMA tech there were a few more riders already there (Jamie Hacking, Rich Oliver and Steve Rapp). This so-called “posse” that I had nothing to do with getting together, certainly has a lot of racing experience!

From there we went onto the track, the first thing we looked at were the airbags at the end of the front straight. They were close to being in the right place so we were about to move on when we noticed a rubbery gum-like substance filling up all the cracks in the racetrack. While this stuff is definitely not good to race on it was actually quite funny that they thought it was acceptable to fill the cracks with. You could actually stick your thumb into this stuff up to the first knuckle and a lot of the cracks were at least one inch wide.

It was at this point that everyone had very serious doubts about racing in the rain. Although some people will try to make you believe that last year I said the surface was too slippery to race on in the rain, this is not true. Whilst the surface at NHIS in my opinion is definitely not good, it is not my main worry. The walls are my main concern. You see, people think that when you are riding in the rain you are going a lot slower than in the dry. Whilst you do go slower there is one thing for sure, and that is, when you crash in the rain it takes a lot longer to stop than it does in the dry. Now, if you make the track surface better and don’t move the walls then, bingo, you hit the wall harder.

With 40 bikes racing in the rain and no room between the track and the airbags as soon as you have a crash you could have people lying everywhere on the racetrack. I’m sure you can imagine what happens next.

My recent crash at Road America in the wet is a good example of how long it takes to stop when you crash in the rain. I would say that it took me at least 60 to 70 yards to stop. This crash was second-gear doing approx 110 mph compared to third gear at NHIS entering turn three at approx 125 mph with a concrete wall protected by car tires just 10 yards away. Last year in the dry, I tangled with somebody in that same corner and made it into the wall covered by car tires. While I walked away with only a tweaked neck, I didn’t expect the response I got from Mr. Jerry Wood telling me that the car tires work great because I hadn’t broken anything. I couldn’t believe what I had just heard.

Then there will be the argument that there are airbags on the walls, agreed. Unfortunately when the airbag is placed directly on the edge of the track as they are at NHIS, there is every chance of hitting it and bouncing back into the oncoming bikes. So yes, the airbag stops you hitting the wall but no guarantees about what’s next. Airbags were meant to go on walls after slowing down through a gravel trap.

From there we move on and continued to sort out the airbags. Another funny thing happened in turn three. You could see where somebody had grabbed the gum and pulled it out for about 10 feet. A lot of these gum-filled cracks were running parallel with the racing line.

We continued to go around shaking our heads, then we got to the penultimate corner when there was this painted arrow on the track right on the race line. We took a look and realized it was a piece of the track that you could grab with your hand and lift it about two feet in the air. We were told that they were flying some epoxy in overnight and it would be fixed. Well, on Monday we raced around the outside of it. It had some temporary curbing nailed on top of it which made any passing in that section of the track almost impossible. There are plenty of issues between turn three and the penultimate turn that were discussed, but to be honest I am quicker on the track than I am at typing and I can assure you I have a sore neck.

From there, we headed back to AMA tech to discuss the track. This went on for about 10 minutes and the last thing somebody asked Ron Barrick was, “Are we racing here if it rains?” (It wasn’t me.) The answer was “no”. Not maybe, just a plain “no”.

This is my recollection of what happened on Thursday afternoon, June Bike Week 2001.

Mat Mladin

On Saturday the AMA-affiliated Motorcycle Hall of Fame Museum opened a new exhibit on Indian motorcycles. The following text is from an AMA press release on the opening of the exhibit, which is officially known as A Century of Indian, presented by Progressive Motorcycle Insurance:

This exhibit, the most ambitious in the museum’s 11-year history, commemorates the 100th anniversary of the founding of the Indian Motocycle Manufacturing Company.

The exhibit officially opened during ribbon-cutting ceremonies held this afternoon (July 7) at the museum. In attendance were several hundred motorcycle enthusiasts, local officials, and many of the men and women who rode Indian motorcycles during the first half of the 20th century. Also on hand were classic motorcycles from the “Century Ride Home,” a 15-day ride from Los Angeles, California, to Springfield, Massachusetts (original home of the Indian Motocycle Manufacturing Company).

The new Indian exhibit celebrates one American motorcycling’s most heralded brands. It features 50 important motorcycles from Indian’s tumultuous history, as well as period sales literature, memorabilia, photos never before displayed, and informative text that chronicles the rise and fall of an American icon.

“Indian remains one of the true touchstones of American motorcycling, as well as a fascinating study in American business,” said Mark Mederski, Executive Director of the Motorcycle Hall of Fame Museum. “The museum is proud to present an exhibit that not only showcases classic motorcycles, but also documents the people, events and cultural context surrounding the Indian saga.”

Ed Youngblood, the exhibit’s curator, agreed. “Our goal has been to create an exhibit that can be enjoyed by everyone–from motorcycle enthusiasts to history buffs; from business majors to school-age children. The array of rare and beautiful motorcycles can be appreciated in their own right, of course, but we also present the intriguing story of the Indian brand, in a way that brings the legend to life.”

Progressive Motorcycle Insurance, the exhibit’s presenting sponsor, is well-known for insuring more motorcycles than any other American carrier. But the company is also committed to preserving motorcycling’s heritage.

“Progressive is proud of its long-standing commitment to motorcyclists,” said Ben Sheridan, General Manager of Special Lines for Progressive Insurance.

“Our customers tell us that history is important to their sport. As the presenting sponsor of ‘A Century of Indian,’ Progressive Motorcycle Insurance is pleased to do its part to preserve that history.”

Motorcycles in the exhibit represent the entire history of the Indian marque — from a 1905 Lightweight Single to a 1961 Royal Enfield Chief. The most contemporary Indians on display are a 1969 Velo 500 designed by industry legend Floyd Clymer, and a 1998 Chief produced by the new Indian Motorcycle Company of Gilroy, California.

“A Century of Indian, presented by Progressive Motorcycle Insurance” will be open through December 2002. An accompanying 200-page, lavishly illustrated catalog of the exhibit will go on sale this fall.

The goal of the Motorcycle Hall of Fame Museum, located on the campus of the American Motorcyclist Association in Pickerington, Ohio, is to tell the stories and preserve the history of motorcycling. The Motorcycle Hall of Fame honors those who have contributed notably to the sport, and three major exhibition halls showcase the machines and memorabilia that have shaped motorcycling. For more information, call (614) 856-2222, or visit the Museum’s website at www.motorcyclemuseum.org.

The Motorcycle Hall of Fame Museum and this exhibit are not sponsored or endorsed by Indian Motorcycle Company, and these two entities are not affiliated in any way. The use of the Indian designs are for historical purposes only and should not be construed as endorsements of or promotions for Indian Motorcycles.

7:00 p.m. Bike Week (from Laguna Seca)
7:30 p.m. Rolling Thunder
8:00 p.m. AMA 600cc Supersport – Laguna Seca
9:00 p.m. AMA Formula Xtreme – Laguna Seca
10:00 p.m. FIM World Supersport – San Marino

All times Eastern Daylight Time.

People with non-traditional work schedules may have already watched coverage of both World Superbike races from Laguna Seca plus the 250cc and 500cc Grands Prix from Donington Park, aired earlier today.

AMA Director of AMA Sports Hugh Fleming has left his post and has taken another position within the AMA, according to Brenda Erichsen of AMA Human Resources. Fleming worked directly with the transportation and set-up of the newly-purchased Air Fence sections for AMA Pro Road Racing events. The AMA is now looking to fill Fleming’s position “as soon as possible,” according to Erichsen.

Roadracing World learned of Fleming’s departure when a reader alerted us to a want ad placed on the job search website www.monster.com. The ad placed on Monster.com reads…

“The American Motorcyclist Association, a 270,000-member organization with an unparalleled history of pursuing, protecting and promoting the interests of the world’s largest and most dedicated group of motorcycle enthusiasts is seeking a Director of Sports.

“Full-time position, based in Pickerington, Ohio.

“Qualified candidates should have demonstrated management abilities, solid verbal and written communication skills, and creativity in programming and problem-solving. Demonstrated knowledge and experience in one or more forms of motorcycle sport are essential. A working knowledge of the motorcycle industry and racing infrastructure is highly desirable.

“Qualified individuals should send resume with cover letter and salary requirements to:

“American Motorcyclist Association
“c/o Human Resources / Job Code EE127
“13515 Yarmouth Drive
“Pickerington, Ohio 43147”

Erichsen declined to comment on any details of Fleming’s transition, instead saying that she would have the head of Fleming’s department call us back. At post time, Vice President of Member Activities Bill Amick had not returned our call.

AMA 250cc Grand Prix racer Bruce Lind is in the Intensive Care Unit of Monterey Community Hospital with injuries sustained in a crash during a MBNA 250cc heat race Saturday July 7 at Laguna Seca.

According to reports, Lind highsided in turn three and his Yamaha TZ250 landed directly on top of him. Lind is being kept company in the hospital by his wife, Edie, along with racing friend and teammate Ed Sorbo. Sorbo’s wife, Catherine, e-mailed an update on Lind’s condition to Roadracing World Monday evening saying that Lind “is improving, yet Bruce is still in ICU. He has 11 broken ribs, some with multiple breaks. His ankle may or may not be broken, and he suffered some internal injuries (including a punctured lung) also but has not had to undergo surgery. Bruce is a hearty guy, so he should heal quickly.”

Contacted Tuesday, July 10, Catherine Sorbo said that Lind had taken a turn for the worse late Monday night, was put on a ventilator, and underwent surgery to remove his spleen Tuesday morning.

Fans who wish to send a Get Well message to Lind can do so at this address:
Bruce Lind, ICU patient
c/o Monterey Community Hospital
P.O. Box HH
Monterey, CA 93942

Messages can also be sent via e-mail, c/o Sorbo, to [email protected]

The hospital telephone number is (831) 424-7705. The number for the FAX machine in Patient Relations is (831) 625-4568.

Contrary to reports posted elsewhere, AMA Pro Racing Technical Manager Rob King said Yoshimura Suzuki’s Aaron Yates, not Jamie Hacking, was fined $600 for having a non-functioning thermostat in his GSX-R600 after the 600cc Supersport race held at Laguna Seca on Friday, July 6.

“I don’t believe they’re appealed the fine, and I don’t believe they will,” said King.

The fine was assessed against Yates–who does not prepare, tune or work on his racebikes–because mechanics and teams have no official standing in AMA competition.

Yates was injured when he crashed while leading the AMA Superbike race at Laguna Seca on Saturday, July 7. Yates suffered a broken arm just above a plate installed to repair an earlier injury.

Honda displayed a concept bike at Laguna Seca last weekend. A press release on the bike follows:

American Honda revealed a new concept bike at The Honda International Superbike Classic at Laguna Seca Raceway in Monterey, California.

Dubbed the New American Sports, this innovative exercise in design and styling takes direct aim at the over-arching theme that motivates the majority of motorcyclists everywhere: Gorgeous hardware.

According to Martin Manchester, project director at Honda R&D Americas, “This concept bike takes a new direction in motorcycling, a path that emphasizes the aesthetics in the execution and creation of a sport bike. Performance always takes a high profile in motorcycling, but we were looking to reinforce the emotional attachment that owners have with their bikes. We achieved that goal by placing a major emphasis on the exposed hardware on this machine, dressing it up rather than concealing it behind bodywork.

“We applied a great deal of forward-looking technology plus distinctive styling touches throughout, and lavished a huge amount of detail work on this bike. Because every bit of hardware on this machine has been designed for aesthetic appeal, the New American Sports purposely transcends the compromises typically dictated by production, function and cost issues.”

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With a super abundance of eye candy (carbon fiber, titanium, machined billet aluminum) all rolled into one package, it becomes difficult to list the highlights on this forward-think exercise. Centralizing the mass around the engine played a key role in the original design, and the front and rear ends are purposely left with a light and airy appearance. A carbon fiber/aluminum mono-arm front suspension with a massive steering head and integrated steering damper certainly draws attention, as do the organically shaped billet wheels and aluminum frame. The single floating rim-mounted front brake is likewise startling in appearance, and then you notice that the handsomely finished liquid-cooled V-Twin engine appears to lack a radiator–it’s actually hidden away beneath the bodywork in the abbreviated tail section!

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Exquisitely formed carbon-fiber skinwork abounds, and the single-sided Pro-Arm swingarm incorporates a skeletonized structure. Four projector beam headlights lend to a compact nose, and the Indiglow instruments along with the compact controls and switches add to the clean, Spartan look.

As Martin Manchester summarizes, “We set out to re-create the sports category using the inherent beauty of well-executed motorcycle hardware. This concept should attract the serious enthusiasts, those who appreciate the high-tech, finely turned-out elements in a motorcycle.”

Take one look at the New American Sports, and you’ll surely agree. But then, what else would you expect from an all-out effort by Honda R&D Americas?