Sport Cycle Pacific has moved to a new location.
The new address is:
627 N. Salsipuedes St.
Santa Barbara, CA 93103
Phone numbers remain unchanged, (805) 966-6508, FAX (805) 965-7774.
© , Roadracing World Publishing, Inc.
Sport Cycle Pacific Moves
Aaron Gobert Making Steady Recovery From Daytona Injuries
Copyright 2002, Roadracing World Publishing, Inc.
By David Swarts
Yamaha’s Aaron Gobert continues to make steady improvement at Halifax Medical Center in Daytona Beach, Florida. Gobert was upgraded from “serious but stable” to “fair” condition by the hospital and moved from the Intensive Care Unit to a regular room on Tuesday, March 12.
“He’s a million times better,” said Gobert’s girlfriend Melanie Riley, reached via Aaron Gobert’s cell phone on Friday, March 15.
After falling on the banking at the exit of the chicane at Daytona International Speedway during the AMA Supersport race held March 8, Gobert was transported directly to Halifax with serious injuries. At the hospital, the middle Gobert brother had a metal rod surgically inserted into his shattered right tibia early Saturday, March 9, and his fractured right fibula was also set at that time. On Sunday, March 10, Gobert received two surgical screws to the “inside portion” of his fractured left ankle; the fractured “outside portion” was set to heal naturally.
According to Riley, doctors have said that Gobert’s leg fractures will prevent him from putting any weight on his legs for four to six weeks.
The next area of Gobert’s injured body drawing doctors’ attention is his right shoulder. Riley said that doctors have told her that Gobert’s injury is “as if he hit something with, or something hit him, on top of the shoulder, crushing it inward.” The impact broke Gobert’s right clavicle and scapula, otherwise known as the collarbone and shoulder blade.
“They’re (doctors) hoping that it might be able to heal on its own,” said Riley. “But it might need to be re-constructed.”
Although his leathers did not fail, Gobert suffered “friction burns” on his right shoulder and arm down to his elbow. In one particular spot, said Riley, Gobert was burned through every layer of skin. “Monday, they’re going to put him under and take the dead skin off to see if he needs a skin graft,” added Riley.
Gobert, 22, was originally diagnosed as having two fractured vertebrae, C5 and C6, but, after further examinations by physicians, that diagnosis turned out to be false.
Although doctors never said how many, Riley said that Gobert had “multiple” rib fractures. The broken ribs punctured and collapsed both lungs, but the young Aussie was breathing on his own again on Saturday, March 9.
Gobert also received a concussion during the accident. Although he recognizes his family, knows where he is and is functioning normally, Gobert says he doesn’t remember ever starting the race in which he crashed. Riley said that ever since he has been awake, Aaron Gobert has wanted to see the tape of his crash. “I’m at the hotel picking up the tape now,” said Riley. “His mother and I are trying to make the arrangements to show it to him in his room tonight.”
In addition to his mother, Sue Gobert, and girlfriend, Gobert is also being kept company by his brothers Anthony and Alex.
Aaron Gobert is expected to stay at Halifax until Saturday, March 23, when he will fly, via air ambulance, back to his home in Lake Elsinore, California, where he plans to recuperate.
Reached at his Van Nuys, California shop Friday, Graves Motorsports Yamaha team owner Chuck Graves said, “We don’t have any plans to put anyone else on Aaron’s bikes. At this point, the team is 100% behind Aaron and helping him through a hopefully speedy recovery. We’ll just have to wait and see.”
Dunlop Declares Daytona Domination
From a press release:
DUNLOP DOMINATES DAYTONA
At a sunny and warm Daytona 2002, Dunlop riders swept the entire event by winning an amazing seven of seven races. In many cases, Dunlop filled out the podium and/or served as the tire of choice for the overwhelming majority of race finishers to 10th place and more.
Leading off with the pavement events, Team Honda’s 20-year-old young gun Nicky Hayden won the prestigious Daytona 200 in fine style, enjoying an 18-second cushion by race¹s end. Team Suzuki¹s Jamie Hacking and factory Yamaha-mounted Anthony Gobert rounded out the podium for Dunlop.
In the hotly contested 600 SuperSport race, six riders–all aboard Dunlops–swapped the lead 11 times during the 18-lap race before Yoshimura Suzuki’s Aaron Yates took the lead with two laps remaining. He held on for the race win ahead of Team Honda riders Nicky Hayden and Miguel Duhamel, who were trailing by a bare half-second.
Jimmy Moore captured the 750 Superstock win aboard his Corona Suzuki, veteran racer Chuck Sorensen guided his Team Stargel Aprilia to the 250 GP victory and Kirk McCarthy topped the Pro Thunder class aboard his Advanced Motorsports Ducati 748. Again, all winners rode Dunlop tires to the checkers, and Dunlops appeared on six different brands of motorcycles that earned podium finishes: Honda, Suzuki, Yamaha, Aprilia, Ducati and Buell–a telling statement to the universal appeal and undeniable advantage Dunlop brings to motorcycle racing.
Daytona 2002 also represented the turning point in AMA Supercross action, in more ways than one. This event not only marked the ninth of 16 SX races, but it was also the race in which Team Honda¹s Ricky Carmichael took over the Supercross points lead as he guided his Dunlop D773-shod CR250R across the finish line carrying an advantage of nearly 14 seconds over second place.
In the AMA 125 East race, Australian Chad Reed continued his domination of the class by winning his fourth consecutive race out of four, aboard his Dunlop-equipped Yamaha of Troy four-stroke mount.
As with the road racers, Dunlop showed well on the 250 and 125 Supercross podiums by appearing on three different brands: Honda, Yamaha and KTM.
TESTIMONIAL: Rick Moreau’s Tale Of Flying Into Air Fence Head First At Daytona
“You can’t put a dollar amount on the value of having that Air Fence.”
Rick Moreau originally posted this description of what happened to him during the AMA 250cc Grand Prix race at Daytona on the NEAR race list; he has since given roadracingworld.com permission to post it here:
Yes, it’s true, I got hit from behind by Jason DiSalvo and knocked out of the race. I guess DiSalvo came out from behind Sorenson to try for an inside pass into turn 6. He didn’t see me until it was too late. I wasn’t aware that the leaders were coming through, neither of them had shown a wheel or made their presence known. I was committed to my line, Sorensen was on my line behind me, DiSalvo T-boned me in the rear wheel and spun me around, sending me in the air. It was a hard hit, and I hit the ground hard with my left side.
I’m doing OK, just a couple broken ribs and a nasty bruise on my left hip. But I should be back to normal and ready to go for the first LRRS event.
I don’t hold anything against DiSalvo, He made a mistake, it cost him a good race finish and possibly a win, but that’s racing.
I wasn’t able to continue, but my bike is in remarkably good condition, considering DiSalvo’s hit, then the impact with the Air Fence. I hadn’t realized there was Air Fence in that turn. when you are on the track you don’t pay that much attention to what’s lining the edges of the course. But when I was sailing through the air and saw the white wall coming, the thought flashed through my head “oh sh*t, looks like a solid wall coming….oh man it’s going to hurt!”. I went in head first and hardly felt a thing, what a relief! I think if it had been haybales or something more solid, I probably would have broken my neck.
I’ve got to write to John Ulrich and thank him for persisting and getting Air Fence at AMA races. It has already saved many people from both personal suffering and monetary losses, and will continue to in the future. You can’t put a dollar amount on the value of having that Air Fence.
See you all at the races.
Rick Moreau
LRRS #39
Air Fence is a trademark of Airfence Safety Systems of Australia.
Jim Moodie quits Saveko Yamaha World Supersport Team
Copyright 2002, Roadracing World Publishing, Inc.
By Glenn LeSanto
Scot Jim Moodie has quit his World Supersport ride with Saveko Yamaha. Moodie, who was teammate to Rob Frost in the Dutch team, looks likely to be replaced by Australian Anthony West.
Moodie was unhappy with the performance of his machine before the race weekend, “It’s not as fast as my V&M R6,” said Moodie, who won the British Supersport Championship for V&M on a Yamaha in 2000.
Moodie retired from the race at Valencia and Frost crashed.
A Reader Comments On Tough-guy Rick Oliver’s Crash At Daytona
After reading about Rich Oliver’s crash at 145 mph up against the wall at Daytona, two very striking thoughts hit me:
1. What kind of stupid organization (Read: AMA) would flash cautions in only the chicane and not indicate there were problems elsewhere? Why does
safety continue to plague our only premier race series here in the U.S.? Why?!
2. As to Rich’s injuries, it really is clear that road racing is one dangerous profession, but I am also affected by how “casually” Rich seems to
be taking the loss of a finger. There’s not another sport on the planet where you would find a tougher guy than this Rich character. Anyone else cringe at the idea of grinding a digit down to the bone, and then issuing the declaration that “I just wanna get healthy again…to get back into it”?
He’s a “HE-MAN” in my book. I am mighty impressed.
But it does not surprise me, because I go to Laguna early each year and watch the teams un-pack and set up.
We were hanging out at Rich’s canopy, and I referred to Rich (talking to my pal), “There’s the Champ.”
I did not think that he had heard me, and he just laughed out loudly at my remark.
I meant that, Rich.
Dave Johnson
Key To The City? How About Bike Of The City! Ducatis To Run Bologna Coat Of Arms…
From a press release:
DUCATI CORSE PRESS INFORMATION
DUCATI AND THE CITY OF BOLOGNA TOGETHER IN THE 2002 WORLD SUPERBIKE CHAMPIONSHIP
This morning, in the courtyard of Bologna City Hall, the Managing Director of Ducati Motor Holding, Carlo di Biagio, presented to Mayor of the City, Giorgio Guazzaloca, the Ducati 998 Factory bike, on which was applied the coat of arms of Bologna City Council.
Left to right: the Mayor of Bologna Giorgio Guazzaloca, Ducati Motor Holding CEO Carlo Di Biagio and Paolo Foschini, City of Bologna Sports Councillor
The aim of the initiative is to underline the close ties between the Borgo Panigale manufacturer and its city.
In 2001 Ducati reached an important landmark in its history: its 75th anniversary.
In this long period Ducati, which has always had its roots in the area, has worked to consolidate its position in the international markets in terms of turnover, product and prestige, and at the same time has become one of the most recognised symbols of ‘Made in Italy’ throughout the world.
Today Ducati is an important industrial reality, one that is at the forefront in its high-performance sportsbike sector and, thanks to its commercial success in the world, has also helped to spread the culture and traditions of its city.
Furthermore Ducati continues to win not only on the international markets, but also on racetracks throughout the world, where the red bikes from Borgo Panigale have dominated the World Superbike Championship, winning 10 Constructors’ and 9 Riders titles in 14 editions.
“It is our wish to create a synergy and implement close ties between our company and the City of Bologna” declared Managing Director Carlo Di Biagio. “The union between industrial and sporting activities and their roots in the territory of Bologna create close ties between us, and for our company they are a source of great pride. The opportunity to bear the coat of arms of the City of Bologna on the fairings of the official Ducati bikes will further strengthen the rapport between the two, in particular due to the original and unique nature of the partnership.”
Despite Massive Injuries From Daytona Crash, Renfrow Plans To Race Again
Copyright 2002, Roadracing World Publishing, Inc.
Randy Renfrow is recovering at home from massive injuries suffered in a crash on March 1 at Daytona, during the F-USA/CCS weekend. Renfrow broke 18 bones in 23 places, including two bones in his right foot, the tibia and tibia plateau in his right leg, and 13 ribs. Renfrow suffered a concussion and also bruised both lungs, was spitting up so much blood (for a week) that his blood count dropped, and suffered nerve trauma that has resulted in the left side of his body tingling with no touch sensation on the outside of his left arm, although his range of motion and strength are OK.
Renfrow has already undergone surgery on his tibia and tibia plateau, and may undergo surgery on his foot.
But despite all that, Renfrow plans to return to racing, and said he hopes to “Just get fixed up and see what happens. I plan to ride some more, get fixed up and hope my arm comes around, hopefully I won’t need any more surgery.”
Renfrow isn’t sure what happened in his crash, which occurred in the infield kink on the warm-up lap for the CCS 30-minute GTU race. “It would be speculation,” Renfrow said. “I remember everything up to going into that corner, and I remember the rear end coming around and the thing starting to get into a highside tankslapper and then coming up over the bars. My first thought was, ‘Somebody tapped me,’ but I don’t know. I was starting on the 25th row, in the second wave, of a race I didn’t plan to finish. I didn’t intend to finish, so I wasn’t charging real hard on the warm-up lap. I planned to just ride around for four or five laps and then pull in. It illustrates that it’s pretty easy to get hurt in this game.”
Update On Oliver Condition
From a press release:
Update on Oliver’s medical condition and recovery process.
Rich Oliver paid a visit to his Orthopedic Surgeon, Dr. Malcolm Ghazel on Wednesday, March 13th for his first examination. His broken pelvis and amputated ring-finger tip were both checked by Dr. Ghazel.
As far as the pelvis fracture is concerned, the displaced section of the iliac crest is only 2mm apart from the original location in the hip socket, but the gap does increase to about 7mm as the fracture continues up and to the top of the left iliac wing. This point on the pelvis is where the quadriceps muscle attaches, and since this section has broken away from the main body of the pelvis structure, it’s now difficult for Rich to lift his leg in an upward direction.
Rich gives these related comments, “I really wanted to ride the race at Daytona, but I knew I had to sit it out because I couldn’t get my foot on the footpeg. I had to lift my leg up with my arm, and if my foot were to slip off in the race, you can imagine my problems then! Otherwise I think I could have still done well and gained some valuable points.”
The good news from Dr. Ghazel is that no surgery will be required until the gap in the hip joint is over 4mm. The goal now is to fill in that 2mm gap with new bone and check the progress with new X-ray films on Wednesday, March 20th. Rich has been ordered to keep off the leg and rest until then. Rich comments further, “This rest time is killing me, but I know I have to do it. I’m downing the vitamins and minerals, along with lots of AST protein drinks and Cytomax. I’m hopeful Dr. Ghazel will see some good healing progress on the films next week.”
The situation with Rich’s ring finger is more straightforward, as the stitches are out and Rich is using the “new’ finger as much as possible to acclimate to the different sensation and length. The range of motion and strength are fine, but the nerve endings are very sensitive at this stage. Kushitani has been FAXed new hand tracings and special gloves are in the works in Japan at this moment.
Rich had this to say in closing, “I can move my leg more and more each day, so I think when the crack starts to fill in some I’ll be OK to ride, I feel that I’m really making a huge improvement every day. I also want to thank all my family, friends and fans for their concern about my condition, it really motivates me that much more to come back and ride to win again.”
Red Bull Yamaha Concludes Two-day Test At Valencia
Copyright 2002, Roadracing World Publishing, Inc.
Red Bull Yamaha concluded a two-day test at Valencia Thursday.
American John Hopkins and Frenchman Jean-Michel Bayle rode the team’s YZR500 Yamahas.
Hopkins took 0.4-second off his previous-best lap time at Valencia on the first day despite cold conditions, but then highsided late in the day on a new tire and rang his bell. Hopkins sat out the second day of testing with a headache.
Bayle is being considered as a test rider/replacement rider for the team, although nothing had been finalized at the end of the test.
The team expects Garry McCoy to be ready to race at the first round of the 2002 MotoGP World Championship, at Suzuka, Japan on April 5-7.
Sport Cycle Pacific Moves
Sport Cycle Pacific has moved to a new location.
The new address is:
627 N. Salsipuedes St.
Santa Barbara, CA 93103
Phone numbers remain unchanged, (805) 966-6508, FAX (805) 965-7774.
Aaron Gobert Making Steady Recovery From Daytona Injuries
Copyright 2002, Roadracing World Publishing, Inc.
By David Swarts
Yamaha’s Aaron Gobert continues to make steady improvement at Halifax Medical Center in Daytona Beach, Florida. Gobert was upgraded from “serious but stable” to “fair” condition by the hospital and moved from the Intensive Care Unit to a regular room on Tuesday, March 12.
“He’s a million times better,” said Gobert’s girlfriend Melanie Riley, reached via Aaron Gobert’s cell phone on Friday, March 15.
After falling on the banking at the exit of the chicane at Daytona International Speedway during the AMA Supersport race held March 8, Gobert was transported directly to Halifax with serious injuries. At the hospital, the middle Gobert brother had a metal rod surgically inserted into his shattered right tibia early Saturday, March 9, and his fractured right fibula was also set at that time. On Sunday, March 10, Gobert received two surgical screws to the “inside portion” of his fractured left ankle; the fractured “outside portion” was set to heal naturally.
According to Riley, doctors have said that Gobert’s leg fractures will prevent him from putting any weight on his legs for four to six weeks.
The next area of Gobert’s injured body drawing doctors’ attention is his right shoulder. Riley said that doctors have told her that Gobert’s injury is “as if he hit something with, or something hit him, on top of the shoulder, crushing it inward.” The impact broke Gobert’s right clavicle and scapula, otherwise known as the collarbone and shoulder blade.
“They’re (doctors) hoping that it might be able to heal on its own,” said Riley. “But it might need to be re-constructed.”
Although his leathers did not fail, Gobert suffered “friction burns” on his right shoulder and arm down to his elbow. In one particular spot, said Riley, Gobert was burned through every layer of skin. “Monday, they’re going to put him under and take the dead skin off to see if he needs a skin graft,” added Riley.
Gobert, 22, was originally diagnosed as having two fractured vertebrae, C5 and C6, but, after further examinations by physicians, that diagnosis turned out to be false.
Although doctors never said how many, Riley said that Gobert had “multiple” rib fractures. The broken ribs punctured and collapsed both lungs, but the young Aussie was breathing on his own again on Saturday, March 9.
Gobert also received a concussion during the accident. Although he recognizes his family, knows where he is and is functioning normally, Gobert says he doesn’t remember ever starting the race in which he crashed. Riley said that ever since he has been awake, Aaron Gobert has wanted to see the tape of his crash. “I’m at the hotel picking up the tape now,” said Riley. “His mother and I are trying to make the arrangements to show it to him in his room tonight.”
In addition to his mother, Sue Gobert, and girlfriend, Gobert is also being kept company by his brothers Anthony and Alex.
Aaron Gobert is expected to stay at Halifax until Saturday, March 23, when he will fly, via air ambulance, back to his home in Lake Elsinore, California, where he plans to recuperate.
Reached at his Van Nuys, California shop Friday, Graves Motorsports Yamaha team owner Chuck Graves said, “We don’t have any plans to put anyone else on Aaron’s bikes. At this point, the team is 100% behind Aaron and helping him through a hopefully speedy recovery. We’ll just have to wait and see.”
Dunlop Declares Daytona Domination
From a press release:
DUNLOP DOMINATES DAYTONA
At a sunny and warm Daytona 2002, Dunlop riders swept the entire event by winning an amazing seven of seven races. In many cases, Dunlop filled out the podium and/or served as the tire of choice for the overwhelming majority of race finishers to 10th place and more.
Leading off with the pavement events, Team Honda’s 20-year-old young gun Nicky Hayden won the prestigious Daytona 200 in fine style, enjoying an 18-second cushion by race¹s end. Team Suzuki¹s Jamie Hacking and factory Yamaha-mounted Anthony Gobert rounded out the podium for Dunlop.
In the hotly contested 600 SuperSport race, six riders–all aboard Dunlops–swapped the lead 11 times during the 18-lap race before Yoshimura Suzuki’s Aaron Yates took the lead with two laps remaining. He held on for the race win ahead of Team Honda riders Nicky Hayden and Miguel Duhamel, who were trailing by a bare half-second.
Jimmy Moore captured the 750 Superstock win aboard his Corona Suzuki, veteran racer Chuck Sorensen guided his Team Stargel Aprilia to the 250 GP victory and Kirk McCarthy topped the Pro Thunder class aboard his Advanced Motorsports Ducati 748. Again, all winners rode Dunlop tires to the checkers, and Dunlops appeared on six different brands of motorcycles that earned podium finishes: Honda, Suzuki, Yamaha, Aprilia, Ducati and Buell–a telling statement to the universal appeal and undeniable advantage Dunlop brings to motorcycle racing.
Daytona 2002 also represented the turning point in AMA Supercross action, in more ways than one. This event not only marked the ninth of 16 SX races, but it was also the race in which Team Honda¹s Ricky Carmichael took over the Supercross points lead as he guided his Dunlop D773-shod CR250R across the finish line carrying an advantage of nearly 14 seconds over second place.
In the AMA 125 East race, Australian Chad Reed continued his domination of the class by winning his fourth consecutive race out of four, aboard his Dunlop-equipped Yamaha of Troy four-stroke mount.
As with the road racers, Dunlop showed well on the 250 and 125 Supercross podiums by appearing on three different brands: Honda, Yamaha and KTM.
TESTIMONIAL: Rick Moreau’s Tale Of Flying Into Air Fence Head First At Daytona
“You can’t put a dollar amount on the value of having that Air Fence.”
Rick Moreau originally posted this description of what happened to him during the AMA 250cc Grand Prix race at Daytona on the NEAR race list; he has since given roadracingworld.com permission to post it here:
Yes, it’s true, I got hit from behind by Jason DiSalvo and knocked out of the race. I guess DiSalvo came out from behind Sorenson to try for an inside pass into turn 6. He didn’t see me until it was too late. I wasn’t aware that the leaders were coming through, neither of them had shown a wheel or made their presence known. I was committed to my line, Sorensen was on my line behind me, DiSalvo T-boned me in the rear wheel and spun me around, sending me in the air. It was a hard hit, and I hit the ground hard with my left side.
I’m doing OK, just a couple broken ribs and a nasty bruise on my left hip. But I should be back to normal and ready to go for the first LRRS event.
I don’t hold anything against DiSalvo, He made a mistake, it cost him a good race finish and possibly a win, but that’s racing.
I wasn’t able to continue, but my bike is in remarkably good condition, considering DiSalvo’s hit, then the impact with the Air Fence. I hadn’t realized there was Air Fence in that turn. when you are on the track you don’t pay that much attention to what’s lining the edges of the course. But when I was sailing through the air and saw the white wall coming, the thought flashed through my head “oh sh*t, looks like a solid wall coming….oh man it’s going to hurt!”. I went in head first and hardly felt a thing, what a relief! I think if it had been haybales or something more solid, I probably would have broken my neck.
I’ve got to write to John Ulrich and thank him for persisting and getting Air Fence at AMA races. It has already saved many people from both personal suffering and monetary losses, and will continue to in the future. You can’t put a dollar amount on the value of having that Air Fence.
See you all at the races.
Rick Moreau
LRRS #39
Air Fence is a trademark of Airfence Safety Systems of Australia.
Jim Moodie quits Saveko Yamaha World Supersport Team
Copyright 2002, Roadracing World Publishing, Inc.
By Glenn LeSanto
Scot Jim Moodie has quit his World Supersport ride with Saveko Yamaha. Moodie, who was teammate to Rob Frost in the Dutch team, looks likely to be replaced by Australian Anthony West.
Moodie was unhappy with the performance of his machine before the race weekend, “It’s not as fast as my V&M R6,” said Moodie, who won the British Supersport Championship for V&M on a Yamaha in 2000.
Moodie retired from the race at Valencia and Frost crashed.
A Reader Comments On Tough-guy Rick Oliver’s Crash At Daytona
After reading about Rich Oliver’s crash at 145 mph up against the wall at Daytona, two very striking thoughts hit me:
1. What kind of stupid organization (Read: AMA) would flash cautions in only the chicane and not indicate there were problems elsewhere? Why does
safety continue to plague our only premier race series here in the U.S.? Why?!
2. As to Rich’s injuries, it really is clear that road racing is one dangerous profession, but I am also affected by how “casually” Rich seems to
be taking the loss of a finger. There’s not another sport on the planet where you would find a tougher guy than this Rich character. Anyone else cringe at the idea of grinding a digit down to the bone, and then issuing the declaration that “I just wanna get healthy again…to get back into it”?
He’s a “HE-MAN” in my book. I am mighty impressed.
But it does not surprise me, because I go to Laguna early each year and watch the teams un-pack and set up.
We were hanging out at Rich’s canopy, and I referred to Rich (talking to my pal), “There’s the Champ.”
I did not think that he had heard me, and he just laughed out loudly at my remark.
I meant that, Rich.
Dave Johnson
Key To The City? How About Bike Of The City! Ducatis To Run Bologna Coat Of Arms…
From a press release:
DUCATI CORSE PRESS INFORMATION
DUCATI AND THE CITY OF BOLOGNA TOGETHER IN THE 2002 WORLD SUPERBIKE CHAMPIONSHIP
This morning, in the courtyard of Bologna City Hall, the Managing Director of Ducati Motor Holding, Carlo di Biagio, presented to Mayor of the City, Giorgio Guazzaloca, the Ducati 998 Factory bike, on which was applied the coat of arms of Bologna City Council.
Left to right: the Mayor of Bologna Giorgio Guazzaloca, Ducati Motor Holding CEO Carlo Di Biagio and Paolo Foschini, City of Bologna Sports Councillor
The aim of the initiative is to underline the close ties between the Borgo Panigale manufacturer and its city.
In 2001 Ducati reached an important landmark in its history: its 75th anniversary.
In this long period Ducati, which has always had its roots in the area, has worked to consolidate its position in the international markets in terms of turnover, product and prestige, and at the same time has become one of the most recognised symbols of ‘Made in Italy’ throughout the world.
Today Ducati is an important industrial reality, one that is at the forefront in its high-performance sportsbike sector and, thanks to its commercial success in the world, has also helped to spread the culture and traditions of its city.
Furthermore Ducati continues to win not only on the international markets, but also on racetracks throughout the world, where the red bikes from Borgo Panigale have dominated the World Superbike Championship, winning 10 Constructors’ and 9 Riders titles in 14 editions.
“It is our wish to create a synergy and implement close ties between our company and the City of Bologna” declared Managing Director Carlo Di Biagio. “The union between industrial and sporting activities and their roots in the territory of Bologna create close ties between us, and for our company they are a source of great pride. The opportunity to bear the coat of arms of the City of Bologna on the fairings of the official Ducati bikes will further strengthen the rapport between the two, in particular due to the original and unique nature of the partnership.”
Despite Massive Injuries From Daytona Crash, Renfrow Plans To Race Again
Copyright 2002, Roadracing World Publishing, Inc.
Randy Renfrow is recovering at home from massive injuries suffered in a crash on March 1 at Daytona, during the F-USA/CCS weekend. Renfrow broke 18 bones in 23 places, including two bones in his right foot, the tibia and tibia plateau in his right leg, and 13 ribs. Renfrow suffered a concussion and also bruised both lungs, was spitting up so much blood (for a week) that his blood count dropped, and suffered nerve trauma that has resulted in the left side of his body tingling with no touch sensation on the outside of his left arm, although his range of motion and strength are OK.
Renfrow has already undergone surgery on his tibia and tibia plateau, and may undergo surgery on his foot.
But despite all that, Renfrow plans to return to racing, and said he hopes to “Just get fixed up and see what happens. I plan to ride some more, get fixed up and hope my arm comes around, hopefully I won’t need any more surgery.”
Renfrow isn’t sure what happened in his crash, which occurred in the infield kink on the warm-up lap for the CCS 30-minute GTU race. “It would be speculation,” Renfrow said. “I remember everything up to going into that corner, and I remember the rear end coming around and the thing starting to get into a highside tankslapper and then coming up over the bars. My first thought was, ‘Somebody tapped me,’ but I don’t know. I was starting on the 25th row, in the second wave, of a race I didn’t plan to finish. I didn’t intend to finish, so I wasn’t charging real hard on the warm-up lap. I planned to just ride around for four or five laps and then pull in. It illustrates that it’s pretty easy to get hurt in this game.”
Update On Oliver Condition
From a press release:
Update on Oliver’s medical condition and recovery process.
Rich Oliver paid a visit to his Orthopedic Surgeon, Dr. Malcolm Ghazel on Wednesday, March 13th for his first examination. His broken pelvis and amputated ring-finger tip were both checked by Dr. Ghazel.
As far as the pelvis fracture is concerned, the displaced section of the iliac crest is only 2mm apart from the original location in the hip socket, but the gap does increase to about 7mm as the fracture continues up and to the top of the left iliac wing. This point on the pelvis is where the quadriceps muscle attaches, and since this section has broken away from the main body of the pelvis structure, it’s now difficult for Rich to lift his leg in an upward direction.
Rich gives these related comments, “I really wanted to ride the race at Daytona, but I knew I had to sit it out because I couldn’t get my foot on the footpeg. I had to lift my leg up with my arm, and if my foot were to slip off in the race, you can imagine my problems then! Otherwise I think I could have still done well and gained some valuable points.”
The good news from Dr. Ghazel is that no surgery will be required until the gap in the hip joint is over 4mm. The goal now is to fill in that 2mm gap with new bone and check the progress with new X-ray films on Wednesday, March 20th. Rich has been ordered to keep off the leg and rest until then. Rich comments further, “This rest time is killing me, but I know I have to do it. I’m downing the vitamins and minerals, along with lots of AST protein drinks and Cytomax. I’m hopeful Dr. Ghazel will see some good healing progress on the films next week.”
The situation with Rich’s ring finger is more straightforward, as the stitches are out and Rich is using the “new’ finger as much as possible to acclimate to the different sensation and length. The range of motion and strength are fine, but the nerve endings are very sensitive at this stage. Kushitani has been FAXed new hand tracings and special gloves are in the works in Japan at this moment.
Rich had this to say in closing, “I can move my leg more and more each day, so I think when the crack starts to fill in some I’ll be OK to ride, I feel that I’m really making a huge improvement every day. I also want to thank all my family, friends and fans for their concern about my condition, it really motivates me that much more to come back and ride to win again.”
Red Bull Yamaha Concludes Two-day Test At Valencia
Copyright 2002, Roadracing World Publishing, Inc.
Red Bull Yamaha concluded a two-day test at Valencia Thursday.
American John Hopkins and Frenchman Jean-Michel Bayle rode the team’s YZR500 Yamahas.
Hopkins took 0.4-second off his previous-best lap time at Valencia on the first day despite cold conditions, but then highsided late in the day on a new tire and rang his bell. Hopkins sat out the second day of testing with a headache.
Bayle is being considered as a test rider/replacement rider for the team, although nothing had been finalized at the end of the test.
The team expects Garry McCoy to be ready to race at the first round of the 2002 MotoGP World Championship, at Suzuka, Japan on April 5-7.