Team Obsolete owner and AHRMA founder Rob Iannucci said June 12 that he was “amazed at the tone” of an AMA press release announcing that the organization has agreed to pay Roger Edmondson $3 million to settle Edmondson’s lawsuit against the AMA.

Iannucci said that he was amazed “given the fact that the courts made specific findings of fact that the AMA had acted wrongfully and maliciously. And that the management of the AMA has lightened the AMA’s treasury by apparently more than $4 million including their costs of litigation.”

Iannucci is currently involved in a lawsuit that he says is similar to the Edmondson suit, explaining “It’s similar in the sense that it accuses the AMA of predatory behavior.”

The AMA press release claimed that the organization has taken steps to avoid future problems, stating “Through this protracted litigation, the AMA’s trustees and staff have resolved to continue their work to protect the Association from situations like this….In today’s litigious climate, it’s virtually impossible to avoid lawsuits, but the Association has taken steps to guard against a recurrence.”

But, Iannucci said, “I just wonder exactly what steps they’ve taken to avoid similar litigation because over the past several years they have had several opportunities to avoid becoming defendants in a lawsuit brought by Team Obsolete, leaving us no choice but to go to the courts. And even now they are refusing to cooperate in accepting service of our summons and complaint voluntarily, requiring us to go through a more cumbersome procedure for serving them, which, ultimately, will cost them more money.”

Team Obsolete’s suit, filed in Federal District Court in Brooklyn, New York, names as defendants AMA, AHRMA, AHRMA attorney Ted Bendelow, AHRMA former Executive Director Jeff Smith (now an AMA Trustee), AHRMA current Executive Director Jack Turner, and several other individuals.

The complaint stems out of Iannucci and Team Obsolete being banned from AMA-sanctioned AHRMA races and the subsequent related loss of sponsorship revenue, along with other issues.

See related posts on June 11 and June 8.

New donations have pushed the Roadracing World Air Fence Fund to $137,690 with new sections of Air Fence already on order for deployment at non-AMA events.

Several new donations came at Road America, where Roadracing World hosted an Air Fence signing for contributors to the fund. The Wegman Benefit Fund’s Gordon Lunde delivered another $950 to add to the $2900 already received, bringing the Wegman Benefit Fund’s total contribution to $3850. NITRO (Northern Illinois Touring and Riding Organization) donated $300 at Road America. James E. Schaefer and Kevin Hanson each donated $50 at Road America, while Rod Klebsch contributed $40. Dave Harrison, Jeff Harrison, and Sled/Cross each donated $20, and Becky Rechek kicked in $10.

Road America was the site of several spectacular crashes into Air Fence at the notorious kink, a crash site that usually results in very serious rider injury. In one dramatic crash, a 370-pound racebike hit the Air Fence, located less than 15 feet off the track surface, so hard that a buckle on a restraining strap failed and the Air Fence was moved out away from the barrier and onto the track. Yet the involved rider did not suffer serious injuries. All of which demonstrates that ultimately, the best way to improve rider safety is to use a combination of more run-off room plus Air Fence.

After Road America, Patrick Roskam/HangingOff.com made a very generous donation of $3000. Ed Robinson/Robinson Partners contributed $500, and Wayne Nielsen/sportbikeworld.com contributed $200. An additional $110 from members of the Texas Sportbike Association was received, bringing the total TSBA contribution to $260. Marcel Fortney sent $100, Harlan Weishahn sent $25, and John and Arlene Gerard sent $10 In Memory of Gordy Lunde Jr.

Patrick Roskam sent a note with his generous contribution, writing “Here’s a little something to help keep our racers alive. If only we could throw a few of these Air Fences up in the canyons, too. Thanks for looking out and for keeping us informed.”

Wayne Nielsen wrote, “I wanted to take this time to commend the valiant effort put forth by John Ulrich and Roadracing World. All road racers from club level to professional level own a debt of gratitude. Mr. Ulrich implemented a solution instead of just stating what was wrong, and for this we at Sportbike World dot com wish to thank you. We wish it could be more.”

The contributor list now reads:
Erik Buell/Buell Motorcycle Company $5800
Trent Thompson/Paramount Racing $5000
Anonymous $4725
Wegman Benefit Fund/Gordon Lunde Sr. $3850
Dynojet Research $3200
Steve Brubaker/Race Tire Service $3000
Willow Springs Int’l Raceway $3000
Patrick Roskam/HangingOff.com $3000
John Ulrich/Roadracing World $2900
Aprilia USA $2900
American Suzuki Motor Corp. $2900
Ducati North America $2900
Jonathan Glaefke $2900
Susie and Bruce Meyers/BCM Racing Ducati $2900
Performance Machine $2900
Dunlop Motorcycle Tire Co. $2900
Max McAllister/Traxxion Dynamics $2900
Tom Chauncey/Team Wreckless $2900
Wendell Phillips/Lockhart Phillips $2500
Advanced Motor Sports/In Memory of Dirk Piz $2000
L.A. Bikers/labiker.org $1810
Dennis Smith/Sport Tire Services $1500
Marc Salvisberg/Factory Pro Tuning $1450
Bob Dragich/Roadracing World $1450
Fred Renz/Yoyodyne $1450
WERA Motorcycle Roadracing $1450
Lucky Deleoni $1300
Bob Blandford/N.E. Sportbike Assn. $1100
Chuck Warren/Arclight Suzuki $1000
Jim Rashid/4&6 Cycle $1000
Scott Willock/In Memory of Larry Schwarzbach $1000
Don Emde/In Memory of Cal Rayborn $1000
Jason Pridmore’s Star Motorcycle School $1000
Mark E. Dobeck/Techlusion Performance Group $1000
G.M.D. Computrack Network $1000
California Superbike School $1000
Tachyon Racing/Tachyon Sports Injury Research Foundation $1000
Team Pro-Motion Sportbike Club $1000
Anthony and Aaron Gobert $1000
Linda, John & Susanne Hopkins/In Memory of Roy Hopkins $895
Intrepid Café Racers $775
Yoshimura Racing $750
Team Daemon Racing $600
Derek and Gordon King $600
CMRRA $537
Don Lemelin/Scuderia West $500
Kevin Erion/Erion Racing $500
Pinky’s Pizza of Walnut Creek $500
Doug Gonda $500
Jerry Wood/Penguin School $500
Mike Canfield/Chandelle Motorsports $500
Jim Davis/J6 Racing/In Memory of Dirk Piz $500
Brooks Gremmels/Shogun Motorsports $500
Jim Di Salvo/Alien Racing $500
Dale Kieffer/Racers Edge Performance $500
The Plummer Menapace Group $500
Reg Kitrelle $500
Specialty Sports Ltd/Teknic $500
Ronnie Lunsford/Northwest Honda $500
Bob Holcomb $500
Aaron Yates $500
James D. Randolph $500
OMRRA $500
Terry Knott $500
Shawn Higbee/Team KWS/Millenium Technologies $500
Harley Davidson of Reno $500
Walt Schaefer $500
Gary Christopher/American Honda $500
Full Spectrum Design $500
Anonymous $500
Indigo Sports $500
Ed Robinson/Robinson Partners $500
Bill St. John/Project Monza $400
Jerry Jirkovsky $330
Richard Hood/Reptillian Racing $300
Edward S. Siccardi, Jr. $300
Dan Fischer/Copier1.com $300
David Finniff $300
Marietta Motorsports $300
Brendan Guy $300
Dean Scarpa $300
Anonymous $300
Kurtis Roberts $300
James Siddall/World Sports/Corbin Grand Prix $300
“Old Slo Gene Templet”/CMRA $300
Eric Kelcher/Blockworks $300
Zachry Lee $300
N.I.T.R.O. (Northern Illinois Touring and Riding Organization) $300
James Lickwar $290
Scott Fisher/Fisher Technical Services $250
Chris Pyles & Beth Walters $250
Peter Hively $250
Brian Mitchell $250
Al Ludington $250
Tim Simpson $250
Spectrum Motorsports/VJB Racing $250
David Roy, Ducati N. America $250
Debbie Roy/Frenotec $250
Joshua Hayes $250
Gina Nadeau $250
Jeannne Pyles $250
John Ross/Ross Racing $250
Brian Cincera $250
C. Renard Fiscus $250
Bruce & Edith Lind $250
Andre Espaillat $250
Aramel Racing $250
WMRRA $250
Papa Thiam/WERA BBS $200
Bill Capshaw/ICE Motorsports $200
Scott Decker $200
Terry Embury $200
Jim “Dutch” MacKenzie/WERA BBS $200
Scott Jenkins/Desmoto-sport $200
Cliff Nobles $200
Jodie York/RPM Cycles Ventura/WSMC #11 $200
Mostro.org/Jeffrey Fillmore $200
Jeff Bowis $200
Rich & Lynda Alexander/In Memory of Dirk Piz $200
Nils Menten $200
Melissa Tomlinson/G-Man Racing $200
DP Enterprises $200
Jeffrey S. Stathes $200
RPM $200
Wayne Nielsen/sportbikeworld.com $200
Dennis Woods/Doppio Racing $200
MZ Scorpion Cup Racers $175
Chris Kelley/California Cycleworks $150
Robb Mc Elroy $150
Tim Chin/Team Bandit $150
Ed & Catherine Sorbo $150
Damon Buckmaster $150
Chris Hamilton/Grand Prix Direct $150
Marc Palazzo/Synergy Racing Honda $150
Texas Sport Bike Association $260
Stuart Stratton/Stratton Racing $150
Hewitt & Prout Attorneys at Law $150
Jim Williams/13x.com $125
David Boosales/WERA BBS $125
Mike Brown/Team 222 $125
Pete Martins $125
Road Atlanta Crash Truck Crews $111
Chris Normand/Firestorm Racing $101
Pat Stricker $100
Gary Rand/In Memory of Rusty Bradley $100
Michael Roberson/WERA BBS $100
Sean Jordan/WERA BBS $100
Army of Darkness $100
Stuart Gregg $100
Pinky’s Pizza/Lippman Racing $100
Bob Szoke $100
TyrSox $100
Ron West/Omzig Productions $100
Joe Facer $100
Preston Rash $100
Geoff Maloney/GP Tech $100
Melissa Berkoff/Neighbor Of The Beast $100
Caesar Gonzales/WERA BBS $100
Dorina Groves $100
Dorina Groves/In Memory of Jamie Bowman $100
Philip Rusin/RC51.net $100
Allen “Spence” Spencer $100
Matt Wadsworth $100
Dean N. De St. Croix $100
Tony Tugwell/TZ250.com $100
Bart Fuqua/Team LGC $100
Brian Stokes/Marietta Motorsports $100
Chris “Opie” Caylor/Marietta Motorsports $100
David McElvain/NEDoD $100
Ned “Peanut” Brown/NESBA/TPM $100
Vance Hacecky $100
Patrick Mee $100
Dave and Jason Parker $100
Paul Kingsburgh/RC45.net $100
Tom Drumm $400
David Brown $100
Steve Moonitz/Team Squid Pro Quo $100
Jake Swan $100
Chris Story $100
Chris Eklund $100
Randy Ball/WERA BBS $100
Mark Hellvig $100
Gary Schilling/On Time Racing/WERA BBS $100
Steve Sumner $100
Laura Granato/WERA BBS $100
Norm Viano/Lawdog Sports Mgmt $100
Kevin Jordan/Jordan Motorsports $100
Val Gregory/In Memory of Dirk Piz $100
Dave Gess $100
Rob Berlind $100
Paul Black $100
Steve Hewitt $100
Mike Ciccotto $100
Tripp Nobles $100
Scott Rehl $100
Steve & Lorraine Aledort $100
Jeff Rozycki/29dreams.com Racing $100
Chris Ulrich/In Memory of Russ Paulk And Toby Jorgensen $100
Giorgio Milesi/Galfer Brakes USA $100
Al Lyons/CMRRA $100
Linda Hopkins $100
John Hopkins/In Memory of Jamie Bowman and Toby Jorgensen $100
Vicky&Michael Menard $100
Silvia Salenius/Ducati.net Online $100
HG Racing/AMA Pro Thunder $100
Red Fox Racing $100
Greg Ruffin $100
John Donald/PTC Racing $100
Larry Pegram $100
Pamela Skaff/WERA BBS $100
J.D. Hord/Meccanica Corse Racing $100
Mark Sutton $100
Steve Scott/LRRS#47 $100
Eric Putter $100
Jim Doerfler $100
Ira Englebardt $100
Joe & Nancy Fenech $100
Earl Hayden $100
Chuck Sorensen $100
D&D Thrush Farms $100
Jeff Wilson/American Suzuki $100
Adam Vella/Webcrush Racing $100
Chuck Gault/Motobama $100
Gary Longren $100
Stephan Hottenrott $100
David Kunzelman $100
C.R. “Critter” Gittere/WERA BBS $100
John Light/Lightsmith Racing $100
Ken & Arlene Block (Ed Sorbo’s Mom) $100
Chris Link/CMRA/In Memory of Jamie Bowman $100
Josh Steinberg $100
Broad Squad/CCS NE $100
Logan Young $100
Bob & Sherrie Young $100
Ann Sands $100
Troy Green/www.TG-Racing.com $100
Colin Fowler $100
Asphalt & Gas $100
CelentoHenn Architecture + Design $100
Norm Mc Donald/CMRA $100
Andrew S. Mueller/WERA BBS $100
Mary Miskovic $100
Mark Van Hoff/The Plastic Doctor/WERA BBS $100
Anonymous $100
Mauro Cereda/In Memory of Jamie Bowman $100
James B. Norwood/Bad Iguana Racing $100
Bakersfield Yamaha $100
Matt Gerard/In Memory of Gordy Lunde Jr. $100
MMCZYK/Concerned Fan $100
Kendall Davis/WERA #326 $100
Jerry Daggett $100
Miller’s Modern Garage $100
TFS Racing $100
Sabrina Phillips 100
Jane Phillips $100
Twin Cities Yamaha $100
Fernando Peris $100
Louis Gagne $100
Peter Christensen & Stasia Moore $100
Paul D. Harrell $100
Manny Otmane/Team Hooters $100
Rich Desmond/WERA BBS $100
Larry Lawrence $100
Tony Iannarelli $100
Marcel Fortney $100
Tyson Kamp $75
Vito Dionisio/WERA BBS $75
R.J. McLeod $60
George Gervasi/Projekt9 Racing $60
Kelly Thornton $58
Erica B. Smith & John F.X. Walsh $55
Max Buxton/NEDoD $50
Nelo Hakola $50
Tyler Sandell $ 50
David J. Kopfinger $ 50
Aaron Loyd $50
Martin Voelker $50
Steve Hopkins $50
Louis DeBlois $50
Leigh Taunton/EMGO $50
Randy Sinisi $50
Danny Hull $50
Team Skidmark Racing $50
Ryan Meskimen/WERA BBS $50
Erik Astrup $50
Paul Zavada $50
James Greeson/WERA BBS $50
Victor Mokler $50
Steve Clark/J. Guthridge/Tight Squeeze Racing $50
Nate Olsen $50
Anthony Moey $50
Dustin Miller $50
Jim Frost/NEDoD $50
Steve Martinez $50
Jason Temme/Serpent Racing $50
Mike Hodgson/WERA BBS $50
Chris Borre/Motorcycleroadracer.com $50
Richard Barker/AIM/In Memory of Dirk Piz $50
Mike Reish/Reish Dot Net $50
Kenyon Kluge/K2 Racing $50
Darin Nichols/Team Unit $50
Richard Davis $50
Allen Lyon/Ducati.net Online $50
Eric H. Mathy $50
Steve Breckenridge $50
Jim Race/Speaksy Racing $50
James Aragon $50
James Hayton/Kochenbaulz Racing/WERA BBS $50
Anthony D’Augusta $50
Norm Brown $50
Isaac Ward $50
Jason K. Michelson $50
Qi Guo/WERA BBS $50
Schaefer Brothers Racing $50
Tommy Lancaster/Tommy Built Fireplaces $50
James Gaal $50
Rod Mahr/Follow the Helmet Racing $50
Charles Brothers/CMRA $50
Francisco Prats $50
Keith Mc Cammon $50
Rick Haskins $50
Larry, Janice & Jimmy /Moto Liberty $50
Friends & Family/Firestorm Racing $50
Akos Feher $50
Brian Cox/CMRA#318 $50
Greg Gorman $50
James E. Schaefer $50
Kevin Hanson $50
David Yesman $40
Rod Klebsch $40
Don Moody $35
Brent Kilgore/Clark Kilgore/Kevin Bridges/Slow To Heal Racing $35
Lindsey Leard $30
Dave Deggendorf/WERA BBS $30
Steve Sturm/Squidvision Racing $30
Bob Elam $30
The Heidepriems/WERA BBS $30
Kimberly Scheffel/rider/race fan/pit keeper $30
Bryan Norton $30
Scott D. Cortese $30
Stephen Warburton/Ducati Online $30
John Scherer $30
Greg Gabis $29
Ripley Howe $29
Mark Hatten/Meccanica Corse Racing $29
Ted Angle $25
Susanne Hopkins $25
Nolan Ballew $25
Josh Loberant $25
Charles Tomes $25
Jon DeMent $25
Timothy Wilson $25
Mark Novak $25
Rene Ferron $25
Sean Patrick Brisini $25
Richard Korol $25
Eric and Christine Loranger $25
Dee Moses $25
Kyle Kirschenmann/Bayou Riders of Louisiana $25
Marc Asmus $25
Mike Henry $25
Henry Hallmark $25
Ronnie Reyes/CMRA $25
Kathleen Mc Laughlin $25
John Jancoski $25
John C. Pfeiffer $25
Bernis B. Conatser $25
Tony Day $25
Harlan Weishahn $25
S.C. Pittman $20
Jamieson D. Yonker $20
Garret Swearingen $20
Darrin Zumbaum $20
Andy Lenz/CMRRA $20
Dave Harrison $20
Jeff Harrison $20
Sled/Cross $20.
Irwin Arnstein/CMRA $10
Frank Shacklee/CMRA $10
John & Arlene Gerard/In Memory of Gordy Lunde Jr. $10
Becky Rechek, $10;
Jan Steven/Carpet Dog $5
Anonymous $5
Joe Knight $5
Erik Schmitt/CMRA $1


To pledge a contribution, call Roadracing World at (800) 464-8336 between 9:00 a.m. and 5:00 p.m. Pacific Daylight Time, when operators will be standing by. Credit cards accepted. Pledges can also be made by e-mailing [email protected]. Make checks payable to Roadracing World, and mail to P.O. Box 1428, Lake Elsinore CA 92531. Money raised will be used for buying Air Module/Air Fence sections, as well as for deployment expenses and for shipping, tax and import duties.

A full accounting of all Air Fence Fund money will be posted on this website as it is disbursed, along with lists of any pledges still outstanding.

AMA Pro Racing just issued this press release:

“HACKING DISQUALIFIED FROM SUNDAY’S SUPERBIKE RACE AT ROAD AMERICA

“PICKERINGTON, Ohio — Jamie Hacking has been disqualified from the Sunday race of last weekend’s (June 9-10) AMA Chevy Trucks U.S. Superbike race at Road America in Elkhart Lake, Wisc.

“During the red flag break in Sunday’s final, Hacking’s Team Suzuki crew worked on his machine in the paddock area, a violation of the following passage in the AMA Pro Racing rulebook:

“Chapter Two, Section I, Paragraph No. 4, ‘Only in the designated pit or work area may any adjustment, repair or refueling be made to competing motorcycles by pit crews during a race or during a red-flag period. Any motorcycle that enters the paddock/garage area will be prohibited from returning to the race track. Crash trucks retrieving disabled motorcycles from the track may pass through the paddock/garage area to deliver such motorcycles to the designated pit area.’

“Hacking will lose the points and purse he earned from his original 21st -place finish. Official results and points are modified to reflect this change.”

AMA 600cc Supersport and Formula Xtreme Champion Kurtis Roberts underwent surgery by Dr. Art Ting in California yesterday to relieve compartment syndrome in both arms.

In a phone call to Roadracing World this morning, Roberts said that the surgery involves cutting a muscle sheath to allow the muscle to expand, relieving a problem commonly known as arm pump. Dr. Ting recently performed the same surgery on Larry Pegram.

The symptoms of the syndrome include numbness in the hand and an inability to feel or properly operate the controls. Roberts had said earlier that his right hand went numb and he couldn’t feel the handlebar after three laps at Sears Point.

“I should be back for Mid-Ohio,” Roberts said. “It could be a little earlier, it could be a little later, but it likely will be Mid-Ohio.” The Mid-Ohio AMA National is scheduled for July 20-22.

Roberts also said that he did not have effective braking power when he hit John Hopkins, then running third, entering turn five on the second lap of the 600cc Supersport race at Road America last Sunday.

“They think maybe I got an air bubble in the system when I fell down,” Roberts said, refering to his warm-up-lap crash. “When I pumped the brakes I started to get some but not enough. I wasn’t even trying to make the corner, I was just looking for a hole and trying to get it slowed down enough so I wouldn’t hit the wall.”

About Hopkins’ anger at getting hit, (expressed by Hopkins flipping-off Roberts with both hands, and seen on the TV broadcast of the race), Roberts said “I know exactly how he feels. It’s happened to me.”

Roberts came to Hopkins’ pit immediately after the incident and told a crew member “Tell John I didn’t have any brakes. Tell him I’m sorry.”

When the crew member relayed that information to Hopkins, who was out on pit lane with the rest of his crew, Hopkins said, “Oh, okay.”

As quoted in a Ducati North America press release:

“These conditions make it so difficult for the riders. There is no wet practice, so no time to set-up the bike properly and no wet weather experience–that’s why there were so many crashes today. Thank goodness we have the Air Fence. We definitely need more of them.”

WERA racer Joseph Benedetto married Debby Hodgson June 10th in Niagara Falls, Ontario, Canada. Debby Hodgson is the sister of WERA racer Mike Hodgson.

Racer and Army Of Darkness crew member Nolan Ballew married Theresa Schehl on Saturday, June 9th in Washington, DC.

Final Race Order, After 10 Laps:
1. Jimmy Moore
2. Ben Spies, -0.226 seconds
3. Chris Ulrich, -0.258 seconds
4. Mark Junge, -7.435 seconds


Qualifying Times:
1. Jimmy Moore, 2:15.441
2. Ben Spies, 2:15.746
3. Mark Junge, 2:16.110
4. Chris Ulrich, 2:16.369

Race Times
Jimmy Moore, Ben Spies, Chris Ulrich
Lap
2. JM 2:15.136, BS 2:16.697, CU 2:15.126
3. JM 2:16.096, BS 2:16.848, CU 2:15.499
4. JM 2:15.825, BS 2:15.621, CU 2:15.743
5. JM 2:16.725, BS 2:16.267, CU 2:15.883
6. JM 2:15.790, BS 2:16.317, CU 2:15.929
7. JM 2:15.675, BS 2:16.030, CU 2:15.371
8. JM 2:15.936, BS 2:15.571, CU 2:15.760
9. JM 2:15.874, BS 2:16.328, CU 2:16.163
10. JM 2:15.565, BS 2:14.960, CU 2:15.501


Jimmy Moore
Fastest Lap 2:15.136
Slowest Lap 2:16.725
Average Lap 2:15.847

Ben Spies
Fastest Lap 2:14.960
Slowest Lap 2:16.328
Average Lap 2:15.916

Chris Ulrich
Fastest Lap 2:15.126
Slowest Lap 2:16.163
Average Lap 2:15.664


Positions at end of Lap One:
1. Spies
2. Moore
6. Ulrich


Positions at end of Lap Five:
1. Spies
2. Moore
3. Ulrich


Positions at end of Laps Six through Nine
1. Moore
2. Ulrich
3. Spies

A press release just received from Dunlop follows:

“Buffalo, NY

“Goodyear Dunlop Tire North America is pleased to announce the launch of a new web site dedicated to Dunlop Motorcycle Tires.

“This new Web site, located at www.dunlopmotorcycle.com, offers a clean, high-impact design and very intuitive navigation, with a stunning depth of motorcycle imagery. The new site allows customers to easily access tire information for their particular application, and is also full of useful tire tips, racing imagery and information, and features that offer insight into the sport of motorcycling.

“‘Dunlop is the leader in the motorcycle tire field,’ said Mike Buckley, vice president of Dunlop Motorcycle Tires. ‘We wanted a site that reflected our leadership position through high-quality design and innovative content. Dunlop has a great story to tell, and this new site allows us to tell our story in ways that were not available to us before. It also provides customers with a convenient means to communicate with the company. Dunlop places great value on the input received from the people who know our tires.'”

FIRST PERSON/OPINION:

A. Barrister, the noted Joint Venture lawyer who has periodically commented on the Edmondson v. AMA case, has commented on the AMA’s press release announcing its settlement with Roger Edmondson for $3 million.

The announcement of the settlement comes just months after the AMA heralded an appeals court ruling requiring a retrial on damages, spinning the decision as being a great victory. Which begs the question, if it was a great victory, and if they really didn’t do anything wrong, why are they now paying Roger Edmondson $3 million?

But on to A. Barrister’s comments:

“The AMA’s press release quotes AMA Chairman Rick Gray as saying ‘Our efforts to settle this matter when it first arose were unsuccessful and resulted in the lawsuit.’

“The Edmondson case has given the AMA many opportunities to practice the art of bamboozling its members, and this final statement from Mr. Gray is a truly masterful example. Mr. Gray omits that the AMA never made a reasonable settlement offer prior to the lawsuit. In fact, Judge Thornberg specifically ruled that the AMA had never made a reasonable settlement offer when he ordered the AMA to pay all of the costs of the lawsuit (including Edmondson’s attorneys fees) and the appellate court found no error in that ruling.

“Mr. Gray’s statement is the rhetorical equivalent of the German government issuing a press release to its people after losing World War II and saying ‘Our efforts to settle our differences with England were unsuccessful and resulted in our conflict.'”

A. Barrister



Speaking in the Road America pressroom June 9, AMA spokesman Larry Lawrence denounced the above opinion piece as being biased and unfair, specifically objecting to what he said was comparing the AMA to Hitler and Germany.

Terms of the settlement agreement specifically barred Edmondson from commenting on the case before the close of business Monday, giving the AMA time to spin the settlement.

This is a press release issued by Yamaha Motor Corporation:

“CYPRESS, Calif., June 8, 2001 – With the enthusiastic support of his family, Yamaha Racing Director Larry Griffis recently announced that he will retire on June 22, 2001. Larry’s Yamaha career spanned 23 years including a two-year stint with the Yamaha Service group and 21 years with Yamaha Racing.

“‘The timing is right for me and I am confident that Yamaha’s racing staff will give the best possible effort to keep the ‘BLUE’ motorcycles up front. I am also thankful for the privileges and opportunities presented to me in helping to guide the racing department into the successful and competent team that it has become,’ said Griffis.

“Griffis says he’ll spend time with his wife, kids, and nine grandchildren, as well as work on some home projects including two 1960s muscle car
restorations.

“When asked for career highlights, Griffis responded, ‘There was something memorable every year we were racing – even when we weren’t winning. However, I’m really proud of Doug Henry’s 1998 National Champion title win on the four-stroke YZ400. That was something special.’

“During Griffis’ career, he’s worked with many of motorcycle racing’s greatest champions including motocross racers Bob Hannah, Mike Bell, Broc
Glover, Doug Henry, Jeremy McGrath, Damon Bradshaw, Doug Dubach, Jeff Emig, John Dowd, Kevin Windham, and Yamaha’s two current Supercross/motocross riders David Vuillemin and Tim Ferry.

“In addition to the off-road riders, Griffis worked with road racers Eddie Lawson, Wayne Rainey, Jim Filice, John Kocinski, David Sadowski, Thomas Stevens, Jamie James, Colin Edwards, Rich Oliver, Tom Kipp, Scott Russell, and Yamaha’s current riders, Anthony Gobert and Tommy Hayden.”