Copyright 2002, Roadracing World Publishing, Inc.

By David Swarts

The Yoshimura Suzuki road racing team will now be known as Team Blimpie Yoshimura Suzuki, in accordance with a new sponsorship deal.

In announcing the biggest motorcycle road racing sponsorship news in recent memory, Suzuki’s Morgan Broadhead, speaking at California Speedway, said, “We have come to terms with Blimpie, and the new name of the team for the rest of the (2002) season is going to be Team Blimpie Yoshimura Suzuki.

“It’s a very exciting deal that we’ve put together. Obviously, we’re very excited to have Blimpie as part of the team. An out-of-the-industry sponsor means a lot, and of course just having a good name like Blimpie in with the Suzuki program means a lot to us.

“I can’t comment on what the terms of the deal are obviously, but it’s a pretty good-size sticker.”

When asked about how the deal came together, Broadhead answered, “I just learned about it yesterday (Tuesday, February 12), and just found out it was official this morning. To the best of my knowledge, it started with Mel (Harris – Vice President of American Suzuki), but I don’t know more than that.”

Copyright 2002, Roadracing World Publishing, Inc.

The first bikes went on course at California Speedway at 10:20 a.m., following a delay while track workers cleaned dirt off the track surface; the dirt was deposited by recent wind storms, with gusts reaching 100 mph according to local news reports. Blowing dust and dirt is a major problem in the area surrounding the Speedway.

Curbing replaced cones previously used to define the turn one chicane, but riders reported that the chicane layout is different than it was during the last tests they attended at the Speedway, and is tighter.

The Yoshimura Suzukis showed up at California Speedway wearing stickers from Blimpie’s (a sandwich chain). According to Team Manager Don Sakakura, “They’re a potential sponsor. From the size of the sticker it looks to be a pretty big deal, but I don’t know any dollar amounts. All of the negotiations are through American Suzuki but it’s an outside-of-the-industry sponsor, so that’s nice.”

Andre Espaillat placed the winning bid of $1325 for a made-to-order set of Barnacle Bill leathers in an auction to benefit the Roadracing World Air Fence* Fund. Espaillat could not be reached at the close of the auction Friday, February 8 because he was away from home doing what racers do, running his Honda RC51 at Texas World Speedway in College Station, Texas.

Upon his return home, Espaillat wrote to roadracingworld.com via e-mail saying, “The Air Fence Fund is a life-saving effort by an exceptional group of individuals and companies. It’s a shining example of what makes the sport of road racing so great. It demonstrates our willingness to put our money where our mouths are and spend our hard-earned cash to protect our fellow sportsmen and women. Surely, none of us contributes because we intend to use the Air Fence ourselves!

“In the case of the Barnacle Bill custom suit, I know I’ll be protecting myself while helping protect others. I want to thank Barnacle Bill and Roadracing World for putting together a win-win package.”

Andre Espaillat
RPM/WERA Rider’s School Instructor
RPM/WERA #6
CMRA #6


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

Copyright 2002, Roadracing World Publishing, Inc.

By David Swarts

Even though Attack Suzuki team owner Richard Stanboli was not at California Speedway for the start of a three-day AMA team test Tuesday morning, the 600cc Supersport and Formula Xtreme team had some very qualified new hands at the test.

Crew Chief for 2001 European Superstock Champion James Ellison, Jack Russell has joined the Attack Suzuki crew through Daytona. “I was visiting some of my sponsors here in America and met up with Richard (Stanboli),” said Russell on pit lane Tuesday. “We got to talking and he offered me a job. I wanted to take it, but I had already made commitments to race in Europe in 2002. So I’m only going to be here through Daytona. Even then, I will be missing the first round of the Euro series at Valencia.”

Returning to the European Superstock series (1000cc production bikes), Russell said that he will be working with Chris Miller, a young up-and-comer from Scotland, in 2002.

Russell also said that he is currently trying to obtain new Ohlins cartridge fork kits for the Attack Suzuki GSX-R600 Supersport bikes. The kits are said to cost between $2000 and $4000, depending on the application, but provide the performance of a Superbike fork while staying within Supersport rules.

Factory-run AMA Supersport racing teams, most noteably Erion Honda and Kawasaki, have used aftermarket suspension internals for several years.

According to Attack’s Stephen Rezmer, Stanboli will come to Fontana on the last day of the test with the team’s newly-built Formula Xtreme GSX-R1000s.

“I’m not too concerned with Formula Xtreme right now,” said Attack rider Jason Pridmore. “I’m more concerned in getting everything ready for Daytona.”

Pridmore, along with new teammate Ben Spies, recently tested alongside the Yoshimura Suzuki riders in Pahrump, Nevada. According to members of the Attack team, Pridmore shared the fastest 600cc time of that three-day test with Yoshimura’s Jamie Hacking, at a 1:38.6.

From an AMA press release:

Motorcyclists have picked up support from U.S. Rep. C.L. “Butch” Otter (R-Idaho) for their campaign to keep the federal government out of the business of regulating motorcycle apparel, the AMA reports.

During a hearing before the U.S. House Highways and Transit Subcommittee, Otter spoke out against a federal proposal to report clothing defects to the National Highway Traffic Safety Administration (NHTSA).

During the hearing, Otter told NHTSA Administrator Jeffrey Runge that “It was never the intent of Congress to regulate motorcyclists clothing under the TREAD (Transportation Recall Enhancement, Accountability and Documentation)” Act.

“I urge the administration to reconsider this rule and focus our limited resources on highway safety instead of intrusive bureaucracy,” Otter added.

The proposal is part of a package the federal government has drafted that would, if approved by Congress, require motor vehicle manufacturers and their suppliers to report customer satisfaction and other information to the federal government to help the NHTSA identify defects related to motor vehicle safety.

The AMA had previously told NHTSA officials that including motorcycle rider apparel in the reporting requirements appears to go beyond what Congress intended in approving the TREAD Act, and that such a requirement appears to be “impractical and unworkable.” Although the AMA supports improvements in rider-safety apparel, the Association notes that bringing federal bureaucracy into the marketplace could cripple an industry that has, on its own, made tremendous advances stretching back several decades.

Otter’s office is working with the AMA to have rider apparel deleted from the proposed reporting requirement. Otter’s office said the congressman adopted the position in response to numerous constituent calls from motorcyclists.

Edward Moreland, AMA vice president for government relations, added, “We look forward to working with more elected officials like Rep. Otter to ensure that federal traffic safety officials seriously consider the concerns of motorcyclists on this issue.”

Copyright 2002, Roadracing World Publishing, Inc.

AMA teams testing at California Speedway in Fontana, California today, Wednesday and Thursday include:

Yamaha Motor Corp.

Graves Yamaha

Yoshimura Suzuki

Kawasaki Motor Corp.

Attack Suzuki

Valvoline EMGO Suzuki

Copyright 2002, Roadracing World Publishing, Inc.

Racer Morgan Broadhead has been hired to run American Suzuki Motor Corporation’s road racing, drag racing and dirt track contingency and support programs.

Broadhead’s new title is Sports Promotion On-Road Specialist, and he replaces Jeff Wilson, who left Suzuki to become a Suzuki and Kawasaki dealer in Yuma, Arizona.

Broadhead most recently worked as National Sales Director for Freddie Spencer’s High Performance Product Line; he previously worked for Lockhart Phillips USA.

Copyright 2002, Roadracing World Publishing, Inc.

By David Swarts

Yamaha’s Anthony Gobert and his crew sent a serious message to the rest of the AMA paddock by turning a 1:27.120 lap during AMA team testing at California Speedway in Fontana, California Tuesday afternoon. What made Gobert’s lap time such a statement was aside from being the fastest lap among the five Superbike riders and the 14 total riders present at the test, Gobert turned his time in his very first outing on his new 2002 Yamaha YZF-R7 Superbike in his first real test day at the newest AMA track and on a race tire.

In fact, Gobert’s lap time fell just 0.2-second short of Nicky Hayden’s unofficial motorcycle lap record for Fontana’s 2.36-mile infield road course. Hayden turned his time (1:26.97) on his race-tire-shod 2001 Honda RC51 Superbike at the end of a two-day test in mid-January.

“The engine on the new bike seems quite a bit stronger off the bottom,” said Gobert Tuesday evening. “The new suspension bits are a bit better, too. We’ve still got a bit to do dialing in the suspension tomorrow.”

Gobert’s 2002 YZF-R7 came with a new frame and a new set of nitrogen-charged Ohlins forks. “It’s hard to tell on this track ‘cause this track doesn’t have so much grip,” explained Gobert about the performance of the new forks. “Sort of the way the corners are, it seems we can’t get the full advantage of these forks. They will probably work better at Sears Point or somewhere like that.”

Times from Tuesday morning were useless for comparisons because the turn one chicane, made of fiberglass curbings and traffic cones, had been laid incorrectly. The result was an overly fast chicane. Kawasaki’s Tommy Hayden, the fastest 600cc Supersport rider from the January tests, felt the morning chicane lowered his lap times by over a second.

Kawasaki’s Eric Bostrom brought the incorrect chicane configuration to speedway officials’ attention during the lunch break. The artificial series of turns were reconfigured to a nearly-exact replica of how it was laid out for the last AMA team test January 14-15.

Although riders’ opinions on the chicane’s layout varied from “good” to “dangerous”, the unanimous verdict was that a configuration needed to be finalized Wednesday.

Bostrom ended up being the second-fastest rider Tuesday with a 1:27.656, nearly two full seconds faster than he went during his last, real test at California Speedway. Bostrom credited the improvement to continued testing and hard work by his crew.

The third-fastest overall rider was Damon Buckmaster on his Graves Yamaha YZF-R1/R7 hybrid Formula Xtreme bike with a 1:27.844. Any question to whether Buckmaster cut any of Fontana’s five chicanes was put to rest when his own teammate, Aaron Gobert, testified to the time’s validity. Aaron Gobert added, “He did a bunch of high-1:27s/low-1:28s.”

Buckmaster’s best time bettered the previous best Formula Xtreme lap time of 1:28.59, set by Erion Honda’s Mike Hale during January testing.

Mat Mladin ended Tuesday with a 1:29.445 for fourth-fastest overall time. Mladin calmly explained that he and his team are still testing new components for his 2002 GSX-R750 and would start looking for a race set-up on Thursday, the final day of the test. Mladin was seen sorting through several different shocks, forks and ram-air intakes Tuesday.

Aaron Yates spent a little over an hour on his Yoshimura Suzuki Superbike at the end of Tuesday afternoon. The reason, according to crew member Chris Weidl, was mainly to evaluate the internal gear ratios in the bike so that if anything needed to be changed, it could be done Tuesday night instead of wasting track time Wednesday. Yates netted the fifth-fastest time at 1:29.801.

The third Yoshimura Suzuki rider, Jamie Hacking, spent all of his time on his Supersport GSX-R600 and doesn’t plan to get on his Superbike until the final day of the three-day test.

Yates and Hacking were the only riders known to have crashed Tuesday. Both fell without injury or drama in the very tight chicane at the entrance to the “Playground” section of the road course. The final section of the infield was referred to as the “Playground” section for the children’s jungle gym that stands just to the riders’ right of the chicane that leads to the final series of turns.

Tommy Hayden retained his title as the fastest 600cc Supersport rider at California Speedway with a blistering 1:29.937. Hayden mounted a new set of forks with less than 30 minutes remaining Tuesday and carved 1.3 seconds off his best time from the January tests.

Tuesday Afternoon’s Unofficial Lap Times:

1. Anthony Gobert, Yamaha YZF-R7, 1:27.120
2. Eric Bostrom, Kawasaki ZX-7RR, 1:27.656
3. Damon Buckmaster, Yamaha YZF-R1/R7, 1:27.844
4. Mat Mladin, Suzuki GSX-R750, 1:29.445
5. Aaron Yates, Suzuki GSX-R750, 1:29.801
6. Tommy Hayden, Kawasaki ZX-6R, 1:29.937
7. Jamie Hacking, Suzuki GSX-R600, 1:30.729
8. Aaron Gobert, Yamaha YZF-R1/R7, 1:30.751
9. Tom Kipp, Suzuki GSX-R600, 1:31.203
10. Jason Pridmore, Suzuki GSX-R600, 1:31.558
11. Aaron Yates, Suzuki GSX-R600, 1:31.806
12. Aaron Gobert, Yamaha YZF-R6, 1:32.110
13. Tony Meiring, Kawasaki ZX-6R, 1:32.285
14. Ben Spies, Suzuki GSX-R600, 1:32.382
15. Josh Hayes, Suzuki GSX-R600, 1:32.501
16. Chris Ulrich*, Suzuki GSX-R750, 1:35.696

Unofficial Superbike Radar Gun Speeds From Front Straightaway:
1. Eric Bostrom, 161.3 mph
2. Anthony Gobert, 159.0 mph
3. Aaron Yates, 155.7 mph
4. Mat Mladin, 155.4 mph

*Injured

Copyright 2002, Roadracing World Publishing, Inc.

By David Swarts

Yoshimura Suzuki’s Mat Mladin recorded the fastest unofficial lap time Tuesday morning during AMA team testing at California Speedway in Fontana, California. Mladin turned a 1:28.433 on his 2002 GSX-R750 Superbike while further evaluating suspension pieces that he previously tested at Daytona International Speedway and Pahrump, Nevada. Mladin’s crew had three different sets of forks, three different rear shocks, four different rear springs and one set of fork springs laid out on pit wall for Mladin to try Tuesday at Fontana.

Yamaha’s Anthony Gobert led all 600cc Supersport riders with a time of 1:29.623 on his YZF-R6. Like many of the other riders with two bikes to test, “Go Show” decided to start on his 600cc machine before moving to his larger bike later in the three-day test. While Anthony Gobert was setting his fast time, his Superbike crew was back in the paddock garages preparing his 2002-specification Yamaha YZF-R7 for its maiden voyage. Gobert’s new R7 is equipped with a new frame and the latest gas-charged Ohlins forks, similar to thos seen on Eric Bostrom’s Kawasaki.

Yoshimura Suzuki’s Aaron Yates and Jamie Hacking also plan to move on to their Superbikes later. Likewise, Team Valvoline EMGO Suzuki’s Josh Hayes and Tom Kipp; Attack Suzuki’s Jason Pridmore and Ben Spies; and Graves Yamaha’s Aaron Gobert and Damon Buckmaster will split the later part of the test between their 600s and Formula Xtreme bikes.

Team Valvoline EMGO Suzuki’s 750cc Supersport specialist Chris Ulrich cruised around California Speedway Tuesday morning, cautiously testing out the strength of his healing shoulder. Ulrich suffered a level-three separated right shoulder when he crashed four weeks ago.

The turn-one chicane at the track has been reconfigured. Where there had only been orange traffic cones during AMA team testing in January, there are now four short sections of red and white fiberglass curbing marking the apexes of the chicane in addition to fewer traffic cones.

Of the changes to the chicane, Kawasaki’s Tommy Hayden, one of the fastest 600cc Supersport rider during last month’s test, said, “It’s different, for sure. I don’t like it. The exit takes you too close to the grass and the wall on the left. It also doesn’t leave you set up very well for the left around the apron. It’s faster now, though.”

From track side, it appears that the middle apex of the three-apex chicane has been pushed toward the exit, opening the beginning and tightening the end of the switchback. Riders said that it may be possible for two bikes to go into the chicane together but not all of the way through. Team Managers have reported being told that AMA officials present at the speedway will try to determine the final, official location of the chicane during the three-day test.

Unofficial Lap Times From AMA Scoring:

1. Mat Mladin, Suzuki GSX-R750, 1:28.433
2. Eric Bostrom, Kawasaki ZX-7RR, 1:28.526
3. Anthony Gobert, Yamaha YZF-R6, 1:29.623
4. Jamie Hacking, Suzuki GSX-R600, 1:29.811
5. Tommy Hayden, Kawasaki ZX-6R, 1:29.893
6. Aaron Yates, Suzuki GSX-R600, 1:30.738
7. Damon Buckmaster, Yamaha YZF-R6, 1:31.116
8. Aaron Gobert, Yamaha YZF-R6, 1:31.384
9. Jason Pridmore, Suzuki GSX-R600, 1:31.580
10. Tony Meiring, Kawasaki ZX-6R, 1:32.107
11. Tom Kipp, Suzuki GSX-R600, 1:32.244
12. Ben Spies, Suzuki GSX-R600, 1:32.617
13. Josh Hayes, Suzuki GSX-R600, 1:32.793
14. Chris Ulrich, Suzuki GSX-R750, 1:37.549