Although the California Highway Patrol closed two snow-clogged mountain passes leading toward Willow Springs Raceway last night, the raceway itself is just wet with rain, and no snow is on the ground.

In the early-morning hours, the Grapevine section of Interstate 5, the main north-south highway in California, was closed due to several feet of snow, and Highway 14, the main highway leading from I-5 to the track in Rosamond, was also closed. Highway 138, an alternative two-lane route to the track from the San Bernardino/Riverside/Corona area, remained closed at post time.

But while the track itself was sodden with rain still falling this morning and expected to continue through Wednesday, no snow is present on the track itself nor on the hills immediately surrounding it.

The weather front is playing havoc with Ducati testing planned for the track. The HMC Ducati and Competition Accessories teams had planned to test at Sears Point but cancelled due to rain and headed south 300 miles to Willow Springs, but the rain followed. The Ducati teams had planned to test Monday and Tuesday privately and then continue to test Wednesday and Thursday with the Suzuki and Kawasaki Superbike teams.

John Kocinski and Competition Accessories Ducati could not come to terms on a contract for the 2001 season even though they had been negotiating off and on for all of the 2000 season. In a matter of a couple of days, Aaron Slight signed a contract with the Ohio-based Competition Accessories team to ride in the AMA Superbike series for 2001 and immediately flew to California, arriving Monday to join his new team for scheduled tests at Willow Springs.

“Basically we couldn’t come to terms on our contract,” said Ducati North America Race Manager David Roy from his rental car headed to Willow Springs. “(John Kocinski) had different issues that we couldn’t help him with. We just decided to part company as friends instead of drawing anything out any further than we had to. He asked for his own mechanics, and we went ahead and provided those for him. That wasn’t a problem. There was never any conflict with tires this year. It wasn’t anything major. It was just more of a couple of little things, and we didn’t want to waste anymore time. So we decided it was better to dissolve our relationship as friends. I know the press wants to know all the details and stuff, but there’s not really that much with the John deal. We had been negotiating with John for basically the entire time that he had been riding for us. We just couldn’t wait any longer because the season is right on top of us. Those discussions were with the team. We (Ducati North America) were supervising all of that, but it was all done through Competition (Accessories).”

When asked the status of Aaron Slight, Roy said, “Aaron’s sitting right next to me in the car. I don’t know if he wants to give any interviews right now. He’s really tired from the flight. Aaron will be riding for us this season. We do have something signed, but I can’t go into the details of the contract at this time. I’ve been doing the negotiating with Aaron. I first met him at Brands Hatch. Basically the same way that I did things with Scott Russell and Tony “Slick” Bass. I initiated contact with those guys and negotiated the deals for the teams, of course, but Aaron’s contract will be directly with the Competition Accessories team though.

“It’s going to be an awesome season. The level of competition in the AMA this year is really, really good. We want to get through Daytona. Then we’ll go from there. I think Aaron’s going to do great. I’m looking for big things. I think this will be good for everybody. Ducati North America’s very, very happy. Ducati Corse is very happy also. They are really ecstatic. They really wanted to see Aaron on a Ducati this year.”

The HMC and Competition Accessories Ducati teams were originally scheduled to test at Sears Point but were rained out, so they headed for Willow Springs. But with rain predicted now in Southern California possibly through Thursday, Roy predicted that testing may in fact last through the WSMC race weekend.

“We might have to stay and cherry pick the WSMC races this weekend. I don’t know,” said Roy. “We’ll see what the team says and what happens. This is going to be a more a relaxing, get-acclimated-to-the-bike sort of week. We want to keep everything real low key, no bothers, so (Slight) can get used to the Ducati versus the Honda.

“We want some more leverage to influence the AMA,” said former pro racer Roy. “So we’ve increased our effort in the AMA two-fold to show them that we want to help anyway we can. Ducati doesn’t hold any cooperate membership within the AMA. Unless you’re a Trustee, it doesn’t really matter. It’s not worth it. There’s not really any secret alliance or anything. I wish there was. But we just rely on our sponsor relationship and participating with two teams and being involved as much as we can. I’m working on some stuff like getting the 748 included in the 600 Supersport class.”

Slight, 35, has won the Suzuka Eight-Hour three times (once with teammate Scott Russell), placed second in the World Superbike Championship twice, placed third in the World Superbike Championship three times, and has 13 World Superbike race wins. Slight finished the 2000 World Superbike series eighth in points after missing part of the season recovering from life-saving brain surgery. Slight has raced at Daytona twice, once on a Kawasaki 250 GP bike and once on a Muzzy Kawasaki Superbike in 1993.

The press office of SBK, promoters of the Superbike World Championship, has moved from Rome to London. The press office is now located at 25, Upper Brook Street-Park Lane, W1Y 1PD, London, England. News of the move came in a subscription change of address form FAXed to Roadracing World by Renata Nosetto, SBK Press Officer.

The following is an actual FAX received recently at Roadracing World headquarters, reproduced verbatim and without any (sic) references because using (sic) references would increase the length of the FAX by 10 or 20 percent:

Good day to you, how do you do?

In fact, I have been trying to get your address since long ago, to enable me confirm real information from you. And again to beg you for your candid assistance.

Sir, I am a escort rider/mechanic trained by Nigeria Police Force before I change my service to Nigeria Customs Service where I am still serving as a escort rider to the Comptroller General of Nigeria Customs Service, and I am very interesting to join any of the international racing team for any type of international competition.

And I don’t know anybody, I am from a poor family, because even when I got admission to America Motorcycle Institute Inc. at Daytona Beach, Florida and sent me form 1-20 and yellow paper for 20 weeks resident, Honda motorcycle mechanical training and my department said, they will not sponsor me, because I will not come back to serve them again, and hence I cannot afford it financially.

I am begging for your assistance or with any racing team to invite me to any training center in USA to release my dreams under your sponsorship an agreement as a private trainee.

And please, I want you to send me Roadracing World magazine through DHL Express.

I will be very grateful if my letter is considered and approve.

Thanks you, yours faithfully,

Mohammad Yussuf
Nigeria Customs Service
Headquarters Zone 3
Wuse Abuja
Nigeria

A long list of motorcycle racing greats will be on hand for AHRMA’s Daytona Bike Week activities, scheduled for March 5-6 at Daytona International Speedway. Joe Leonard will serve as the AHRMA Grand Marshall at Daytona; Leonard was the 1954, 1956, 1957 AMA Grand National Champion; 1957 and 1958 Daytona 200 winner; and two-time USAC Indy Car Champion.

Plans call for AHRMA’s Great Men and Great Machines parade to also include the following riders, among others:

Bill Baird; Art Barda; Everett Brashear; Tommy Byers; Yvon Duhamel; Chet Dykgraaf; Ed Fisher; Paul Goldsmith; Bob Hansen; Bobby Hill; Neil Keen; Dick Klamfoth; Al Knapp; Tommy McDermott; Dick Mann; Bart Markel; Dave Mungenast; Bill Nilsson; Gary Nixon; Ronnie Rall; Carroll Resweber; Jeff Smith; and Bill Tuman.

Many of the riders will also take part in an autograph sessions on the afternoon of Sunday, March 4 at AMI, 3042 W. International Speedway Blvd., Daytona Beach.

Grant Lopez was the fastest man in practice for a CCS regional race at Homestead Miami Speedway Saturday on a 2001 GSX-R1000 Suzuki.

Lopez’s best lap was a 1:28.01, or about one second off the lap record he set in December of 1999.

Lopez turned his time with stock forks, and after practice concluded, his crew installed a set of Ohlins racing forks.

“I’m not optimistic that we’re going to break the record tomorrow,” said Lopez. “We’ve got limited time on this bike, not much practice tomorrow morning, and we just put a completely different front end on it. I’m just looking at this as being pre-season testing and development.”

Rausch Creek Motorsports Park in Valley View, Pennsylvania, has scheduled the $20,000 Rausch Creek Superbike Challenge for September 23, 2001, with participation limited to riders who have competed in CCS and WERA club events at the track during the 2001 season.

The $20,000 Challenge will include six Superbike class races: Expert Unlimited, Expert Middleweight, Expert Lightweight, Amateur Heavyweight, Amateur Middleweight and Amateur Lightweight. (In WERA competition, Novice = Amateur.)

The rider who earns the most points in eligible CCS and WERA classes throughout the year will be awarded the pole position and free entry to the equivalent Challenge race. Points from both CCS and WERA races will be counted. Other eligible riders will be invited to qualify for the Challenge races, and will have to pay a $50 entry fee.

The Expert Unlimited Superbike race at the $20,000 Challenge will pay $2000 to win with $1000 for second, $650 for third, $400 for fourth, $325 for fifth, $175 for sixth, $150 for seventh, $125 for eighth, $100 for ninth and $75 for 10th.

The Expert Middleweight Superbike and Expert Lightweight Superbike races at the $20,000 Challenge will each pay $1400 for first, $700 for second, $455 for third, $280 for fourth, $230 for fifth, $120 for sixth, $105 for seventh, $90 for eighth, $70 for ninth and $50 for 10th.

The Amateur Heavyweight Superbike race will pay $1200 to win with $600 for second, followed by payouts of $390, $240, $195, $105, $90, $75, $60 and $45 for 10th.

The Amateur Middleweight Superbike and Amateur Lightweight Superbike races will each pay $1000 to win and $500 for second, followed by payouts of $325, $200, $165, $85, $75, $60, $50 and $40 for 10th.

More information is available from Rausch Creek Motorsports Park, 978 Gap St., Valley View, PA 17983, (570) 682-4600, FAX (570) 682-9051, www.rauschcreekracing.com, e-mail [email protected]

SFX Motor Sports Group has taken over licensing and number assignments for GPRA, which is now running the majority of its races in conjunction with Formula USA and CCS races. SFX Motor Sports owns Formula USA and CCS.

Riders who have already applied for 2001 licenses with GPRA will have to resubmit their applications to Nancy Selleck, SFX Motor Sports Group, 2501 Parkview Dr. #105, Fort Worth, TX 76102, (817) 870-9151, ext. 102.

To retain their existing number, GPRA members must apply for a new license with SFX by February 15, and must specify that they are applying for a GPRA license.