You Too Can Be A Formula One Steward!

In Formula One, it is apparently a requirement to change the rules every single year, in a substantial fashion, and also to provide levity and general entertainment for those of us who follow Formula One in spite of the silly governing body. I can't find any actual rule that supports this assertion; I only am claiming that it is a requirement by observation over time.

2009 is no exception, and the FIA has already released some of the new rules. One of my favorites has to do with the qualifications for stewards - effectively the equivalent of referees or officials. It says:

Any national steward participating who is officiating for the first time will be required to ‘observe’ a minimum of one Grand Prix prior to their event.

Wow. I would have thought it would require a little bit more familiarity with the sport than that. But apparently, if you have watched a Grand Prix race before in your lifetime, you qualify to be a Formula One steward. Excellent! This should help matters significantly.

I can imagine a similar rule in the NFL rulebook:

Any referee who is officiating for the first time will be required to 'observe' a minimum of one football game prior to their event.

That's right! We've had it with these referees who have never seen a football game before! From now on, we will only let people be referees if they have seen an actual football game before, at least one football game, sometime in their life!

Trying To Convice Myself That Ferrari != Happiness

It is said that possessions alone do not make you happy. This is true; sometimes you find the happiness through other people's possessions instead.

Another common belief about money is that the love of money is the root of all evil. This is also true - you should not love your money.

What you should do is give your money to Ferrari, in exchange for an F430. Or, make friends with someone who has a Ferrari, so their possessions can make you happy instead.

If you are like me, and you just can't find anyone with a Ferrari to be friends with (or, can't hide the superficiality of pretending to want to be friends with someone who has one already), the next best thing is to make friends with someone like Kyle who has a friend that will loan him his Ferrari F430 for the day in order to help Kyle complete his Halloween costume of "a successful person."

And then, of course, you have to be selected for a ride. Gratefully Kyle stopped by my cube first thing after he got to work this morning and asked if I wanted to go for a ride. When I looked at him, he showed the Ferrari key, completing the thought. A ride in a Ferrari? Is there really any other answer to that question than an emphatic "Of course!"?

When I walked outside this is what I found - a beautiful silver-gray Ferrari F430 Spider:

We got in, carefully, and gingerly - getting in is a bit of a feat, especially if you are 6'2". Kyle inserted the key, then pressed the starter button and that wonderful 480hp Ferrari V8 roared to life. We slowly pulled out of the parking lot here at Mozy and then onto the freeway.

If I had one of these, I might just drive it onto the freeway all day long, just pulling off so I could pull back on again.

This car is incredible. I must have said that ten times during the drive. The seats were incredibly comfortable; the side bolsters securely hold you in place, so much so that when going through corners you don't even feel the lateral g forces. The car is firmly planted on the road with no body roll through corners. And hearing that Ferrari V8 climb through the gears as you click them off with the paddle shifter - wow.

We cruised along the freeway at what felt like a crawl but was actually around 80 mph.

If you look closely you can see that we are well below the 8500 rpm redline, but at near redline for most normal cars. The engine sounds so nice you just can't think of shifting to a lower gear.

Oh, that black rectangle in the dash, pictured in the lower right corner? Yeah, that is the stereo. You don't really use that thing in a Ferrari - it muffles the sound system in back, pictured here:


You can see the cool air ducts in this rear view mirror shot at speed, and even some of the jealous people around us on the freeway. When you are in a Ferrari, everyone else on the road is jealous.

We're doing about 90 here, hoping to not find any cops. If I had this car, I don't know how I would possibly avoid getting a ticket. It is so easy to take it up over 90; this car gets there before you know it, without even thinking about it. And it doesn't even feel like you are going fast, other than the fact that you are blowing by everyone else on the road.

After leaving the freeway we went down into town to return to work via this nice curvy road called Pleasant Grove Boulevard. Speed limit on Pleasant Grove Boulevard is 40. We were taking those curves at 80 without even thinking about it. It didn't even feel like we were pushing it at all. Simply amazing.

Um, yeah. That plaque says "28 Formula 1 World Titles."


I didn't get to drive this car myself. Oh, I wanted to. But it wasn't loaned to me, it was loaned to Kyle. There's no way I'd even ask. Besides, even just getting to ride in it was awesome, and enough.
Still, here's a picture of me wearing a Ferrari. I think it looks pretty good on me.



That does it. Someday, someday...

What's Kimi Thinking??

One of the most entertaining things about Formula One is the rules. There are many really dumb rules; new rules can be made up in the middle of a race, meaning that at any time a new stupid rule might crop up; rule enforcement is selective, meaning that depending on the driver or the team, the rule may or may not be enforced; and you never know what the penalty might be for breaking a rule. Every day is a new adventure in Formula One!

One of the dumb rules in Formula One is the prohibition of team orders affecting the outcome of the race (see the Formula One Sporting Regulations, article 39.1). How you prove this is another question, but there is no question that it happens, especially in obvious situations like last Sunday's Chinese Grand Prix, where Kimi Raikkonen allowed teammate and title contender Felipe Massa to pass him in the closing laps, trading second and third place. Since Felipe is in contention for the championship, and Kimi is not, obviously Ferrari would want the two to exchange places and allow Felipe to take second place, earning more points in his quest for the world driving championship.

The pass was admittedly a bit dubious. Massa, who was several seconds behind Raikkonen in third place entering the final stint, suddenly was making up several tenths per lap on his teammate, and passed him with ease on the back straight with just a few laps remaining. I suspect nobody watching had any doubt that Raikkonen slowed up and allowed Massa by intentionally. Although this appears to be against the rules, it is only actually against the rules if the team ordered Raikkonen to let Massa past (perhaps he did it out of the goodness of his heart?), and it is only enforceable if it can be proven, i.e. the FIA would need evidence that Raikkonen was ordered by the team to do so.

So, all of that seems pretty hard to come by, and it seems that Ferrari should be in the clear. Which is why it was pretty surprising to me to hear Kimi's post-race press conference comments, wherein he pretty much openly admitted that he was following Ferrari team orders to let Massa take second place.

Whatever Kimi is, he's no dummy. He knows the rules; and even if he didn't, Peter Windsor very clearly, if indirectly, reminded him in a follow-up question. So the conspiracy theorist in me started thinking: Did Kimi actually do that on purpose? Did he intentionally "accidentally" let it slip out that Ferrari gave team orders in this case?

Consider: Kimi is the reigning world champion. Yet he's basically been shown up this year by Massa. Kimi has driven fairly well, but had a couple of off months mid-season, which were enough to convince Ferrari to put all of their weight behind Massa as the championship candidate. Perhaps Kimi is a bit upset about the way he's been treated; perhaps he feels a world champion deserves a bit more respect than he's received. I can't help but wonder if, during the press conference, he put on his nonchalant, innocent Finnish face and then delivered on-the-record the information that the FIA would need to enforce this rule against Ferrari.

The only real questions remaining now are, first, whether the FIA will actually enforce the rule, and second, what the penalty might be. It might be an interesting week.

Motocross Guys Are Awesome

This guy is a stud.  No, not the old, gray, wrinkly fellow on the right; the guy on the left, wearing the Team Yamaha shirt.  That is none other than 2007 AMA Motocross champion Grant Langston, who I ran into at the US Open of Supercross last night.

Without attempting to spread rumors about Grant, as I understand he's found that the vision problem he's been experiencing this year is a melanoma in his eye and has been trying to get that taken care of.  It was pretty awesome to hear the crowd applauding in support of Grant when he explained the situation at the opening ceremonies last night.

I wanted to get a picture of him with my son, but he's so camera shy that he refused to take the picture before I could explain who would be in it with him.  So I snapped it myself instead.  Sorry to bring you down Grant.

Here's wishing you the best of luck.  I've missed seeing you out racing this year; you are a great competitor and a great ambassador to the sport, a true half-bad-boy of the type this blog espouses.  I hope you're able to overcome this scary eye problem and get back in the saddle soon.

Chad Reed Changes Bike Colors

See More Motocross Photos at VitalMX.com

Well, let's see here. That is definitely the current AMA and World Supercross champion, Chad Reed, throwing down a pretty sweet whip there. If the red #1 plate and the Thor gear didn't give it away, the word "Reed" across the back of the jersey ought to do it. And that is definitely a bright yellow factory Rockstar Makita Suzuki RM-Z 450 he's riding.

Now I learned to add in first grade, and so it isn't too tough to deduce that Chad Reed has signed a contract to ride for Rockstar Makita Suzuki for the 2009 season. Whether he was going to get a ride really wasn't much of an issue; the question was more about who would he be riding for. At least now my brother has a reason to keep his Suzuki RM 250. He thought he might have to sell it when Ricky Carmichael signed with Suzuki, and having Mike Alessi hasn't helped matters much. But now that Chad Reed's a Suzuki guy life will be good for us, since we are generally Suzuki folk.

Which doesn't explain much why I have a Kawasaki KX 250, although I can assure you most definitely that it isn't because James Stewart rides Team Green.

I do have to say that ChaCha really blew it on this one. Some weeks ago I asked ChaCha who Chad was going to ride for. ChaCha said JGR MX, which seemed reasonable at the time, but ultimately ChaCha was wrong, and quite simply I expect ChaCha to give the the straight dope 100% of the time, or more.

By the way, thanks to VitalMX.com for the photos and hosting the press release.

Daytona Motorsports Group - Planning To Destroy AMA Roadracing?

When the AMA selected the Daytona Motorsports Group to manage their professional racing series, it seemed like a reasonable thing. DMG would be in charge of racing and promotion, and the AMA could focus on the casual rider.

At least, it has seemed reasonable, until recently. Things changed when the DMG (motto: "We Make Cool Things Suck!") decided to make wholesale changes to the AMA road racing class structure that seem utterly ridiculous. Roger Edmundson tried to defend their decisions but ended up showing that he really knows nothing about AMA road racing at all; just read the link above and notice some of the boneheaded things he says. Roger, have you ever even seen an AMA street race?

One big problem I see with this is that it will completely separate AMA riders from the world series, namely World Superbike and MotoGP. How can we expect North American riders to be picked up for 1000cc World Superbikes and 800cc MotoGP prototype bikes if the premier class becomes a dumbed-down restricted-ability 600cc class?

Hey Roger. I have another idea. While you're at it, why not put restrictor plates on all of the motorcycle carburetors? We could drop the horsepower down to lower than what you can buy in the showroom, literally starving those engines for air and fuel! Lets weigh the riders with their bikes, so the fit riders don't have any advantage over the fat ones who look like, say, Tony Stewart! Then, instead of having them run on all of these "dangerous" street circuits, lets have them ride around and around in circles on oval tracks! Wow, that sounds like a lot of fun to watch.

Troy Bayliss Has Some Dance Moves

Former World Superbike Champion Troy Bayliss got the unfortunate chance to show off his awesome dance moves right after a hair-raising high side exiting Release during race 1 at Miller Motorsports Park. My heart was in my throat as I watched him, sitting there in the middle of the racing line, with bikes racing by on either side. I couldn't help but exclaim, "Troy - get up! Get out of there!!" as I watched him try to make his way off the track.
I'm glad you're ok, Troy. Awesome dance moves there on the straightaway by one of my favorite riders ever.

Comparing Lap Times at MMSP

I've wondered for a while what the difference is between World Superbike bikes and AMA Superbike bikes. Are the World Superbike bikes faster, and by how much? Or is it mostly the riders?

Now that they've come to Miller Motorsports Park this year, I at least have some anecdotal evidence. AMA Superbike ran the entire course this year, instead of the outer course only, which the World Superbike guys ran. So I went back to last year's AMA data for Miller Motorsports Park to get my data.

In 2007, the top AMA Superbike Qualifying time was by Ben Spies, at 1:49.405. This year, the top World Superbike Qualifying time was by Carlos Checa at 1:48:193, putting Checa just about 1.2 seconds faster than last year's top qualifier.

Even more interesting is to take an average of the top 10. In last year's AMA Superbike qualifying, the average time of the top 10 qualifiers was 1:50.271. This year, the average time of the top 10 World Superbike qualifiers was 1:49.007, again about 1.2 seconds faster.

Another interesting comparison was to look at the slowest qualifying times. This year in World Superbike, the slowest qualifier qualified 29th at 1:52.601. Last year's 29th-place AMA Superbike qualifier logged a time of 1:58.232.

Until Ben Spies or Mat Mladin race World Superbike, we'll never know for sure how they compare to the likes of Troy Bayliss, Troy Corser, Carlos Checa, Nori Haga, and the other World Superbike folk. Mat Mladin, being from Australia, surely could have gone on to race World Superbike by now if he wished - he's won six AMA Superbike titles after all. Methinks he enjoys cherrypicking in AMA Superbike and so I won't expect him to move up soon. The rumor is that Spies will be moving on to MotoGP next year, not World Superbike. Personally, I'd sure like to see at least one good US rider in World Superbike, so we can find out if the World Superbike riders are really that much better, or is it just that the bikes are that much quicker.

Personally, I think the bikes are probably about one second faster. I have a very high opinion of World Superbike rider abilities. This especially shows up in the slower riders, as there was not nearly so much dropoff in times toward the end, which supports my other hypothesis, which is that World Superbike riders are generally more evenly-matched across the board.


UPDATE:
Freddy Spencer explained a bit in the World Superbike broadcast that the differences between the bikes are subtle; the main thing he mentioned was that World Superbike bikes are allowed to run more aggressive camshafts and timings than AMA Superbike bikes. I suppose that could explain about a second per lap advantage on a 3 mile circuit. But I'm guessing that, overall, World Superbike riders are much better across the board than in the AMA.

Two big questions though. First, why is it that the factory Rockstar Makita Suzuki team so completely dominates AMA Superbike (I don't think they've even lost a race in almost two years) but the bikes in World Superbike are much more evenly matched? And second, could Carlos Checa or Troy Bayliss win in AMA Superbike on a brand other than Suzuki?

World Superbike at Miller Motorsports Park

It was an awesome weekend; World Superbike joined the AMA for a racing event at Miller Motorsports Park this weekend. Derrick and I went yesterday and had a pretty good time.

When we got there we first spent some time in the vendor area and the paddock. We saw a bunch of really awesome custom choppers there; this was one of the coolest ones:


As we wandered through the paddock we saw some very clear reminders that we were really at a World Superbike event. Notice the names of Troy Bayliss and Michel Fabrizioso, the factory Ducati riders:


We stopped at the Scorpion USA booth and saw Bubba the Scorpion there:


In the Yamaha tent they were displaying Valentino Rossi's MotoGP bike. Okay, I realize it probably was not really Valentino's real MotoGP bike. Still, it was cool to see:


We watched most of World Superbike qualifying on the front straightaway, about 500 yards from the turn. This is literally the fastest part of the track, as they would get of the throttle and start braking for the turn right in front of us. Sorry for the pictures; apparently my camera phone distorts the pictures at 190 mph. Actually, with the delay between when I press the capture button and when the picture actually gets captured, it requires quite a bit of timing to even get a shot with a rider in it; it is amazing I even got any at all.



We also saw the World Superbike practice and Superpole event. I captured this shot of eight different riders making their way through Tooele Turn:


We also got to watch the AMA Supersport race and the first AMA Superbike race of the weekend. The superbike race featured some great racing between Aaron Yates, Neil Hodgson, and Jamie Hacking:


Mat Mladin was challenging for the lead until lap 3, when he went off the track right near us in an awesome high-speed lowside:


That left Ben Spies to take the win, which he did convincingly, thus making us a pretty happy bunch (we are all big Ben Spies fans):

2008 ALMS at MMSP

Derrick and I went to see the 2008 ALMS races at Miller Motorsports Park last Saturday. It was a beautiful day and good times were had by all.


We showed up just in time for the IMSA Lites races, which seem to have taken a cue from the AMA in their class naming conventions. Regardless, it was good fun to watch these guys race around and made me wish I could try it. And it just got better from there.

Action shot!

Next was qualifying for the SPEED Challenge series. Mostly Porsche 911s and Corvettes in this class.

The KPax Porsches were quite nice looking and pretty fast.

There were some nice looking Corvettes also.

Close Racing

Next was ALMS practice and qualifying. Last year we got to watch these guys race. Alas, this year the race was on Sunday so we did not get to see it.
Right as ALMS practice was about to start, Dave and my dad showed up. We watched the remainder of the events with them.

Here's a shot of one of the awesome, eerily-silent-running Audi LMP1 turbodiesel prototypes.

Like last year, this year one of the yellow Penske Porsche LMP2 prototypes won the overall, even beating the LMP1s which are supposed to be faster.

My favorite cars in all of ALMS are these yellow Corvettes - they sound AWESOME!

Here an Acura prototype has just completed a pass on a Ferrari 430 .

That yellow LMP2 Porsche wasn't behind these other two cars for long.

Next was the Star Mazda series race. I didn't get to see them last year so I was kinda looking forward to it.

There was some pretty close racing in Star Mazdas. Notice the paint job on the red car in front - it looks a lot like F1 Ferraris did a few years ago, when Vodafone still sponsored them.

The last race of the day was the IMSA Challenge series - all Porsche 911s.

My favorite shot - four Porsches in one photo!

Belgium vs. Australia

The other day I was talking with my dad on the phone about the recently concluded AMA Supercross championship, and my pleasure that the Australian Chad Reed had managed to claim the championship (if you read this blog you already know that I'm a big Chad Reed fan).

Dad was trying to be supportive but he just wasn't really showing the love. Finally I asked him about it, and he said, "Well, I know you really like Reed, but I was kinda hoping that Windham would win it. You know, since he's an American. I just think since you are an American you should cheer for Windham over Reed."

Well, Dad's entitled to his opinion. So I thought about this for a while. Then I realized: This is the same man who had posters of Roger DeCoster on his workshop wall when I was little.

Roger DeCoster. The Man. The legend. The Belgian.

Chad Reed - AMA Supercross Champion

Embarrassingly, I have neglected to blog about the awesome fact that Chad Reed is the 2008 AMA Supercross Champion. Sincerest apologies, readers.

2008 will be one of those Supercross seasons to remember, unless your name is Kevin Windham. Don't get me wrong, I'm not dogging on K-Dub. He rode a great season and shouldn't be at all upset with his effort. But I'm betting that this one hurts enough that he would like to forget it.
Maybe he'll remember it just enough to compete the 2008 Nationals and win that title. I'm all in favor of that.

But this post is not about K-Dub, it's about Chad Reed. Chad had an uncharacteristically inconsistent season, with some rather distant finishes in a number of races due to minor things like a blown engine or a broken shoulder. This season, it was Windham who was consistently top-5 or better every race, not Chad. What Chad did do that was very Chad-Reed-ish was to fight like a dog for every point possible, against conditions and obstacles that would sideline practically any athlete of any sport you want to name.

I'm a big fan of both Windham and Reed. What made the difference this season was that Reed went out and got that championship. At the start of the season, when Stewart dropped out, everyone thought we might as well just hand the championship to Reed. Well, it wasn't handed to him - he went out there and earned it, every point of it. Both Windham and Reed had opportunities to seize the championship; the difference was that Reed seized it when it really mattered, and Windham didn't. When Reed faltered, when Windham had those opportunities to take points and really make it hurt, he didn't always grab those opportunities.

That, my friends, is the difference between winning and just having a really great season.

Ralph Sheheen Should Watch Supercross

I'd like to invite Ralph Sheheen of Speed TV to watch supercross. At least, I think he should watch it if he is going to announce it professionally.

I'm giving him the benefit of the doubt and assuming he doesn't actually watch it. Otherwise, his statement from Seattle's race of "Chad Reed is one of the luckiest riders there is" makes him look like an idiot.

However, in case he really did mean to say that, and in case he really does think that Chad is one of the luckiest riders, let's recap:

• He gets sick on the day of the Minneapolis race and ends up only able to race to 7th place.
• He completely dominates the Daytona supercross only to have his bike quit on him three turns away from the finish line on the last lap, when he was over one minute ahead of second place.
• He breaks his shoulder blade and separates his shoulder in Detroit and manages to only place 12th.

Gosh, Ralph. Does that sound lucky to you?

On Doing Whatever It Takes

I just finished listening to the awesome webcast of the Seattle Supercross on supercross.cc.com (you guys do an awesome job). If you haven't heard or seen the race, Honda riders were supposedly trying to help Kevin Windham win his championship by holding off Chad Reed as he tried to come through the field. When Chad passed got inside Andrew Short (cleanly, I might add) and passed him, Short grabbed a handful of throttle and T-boned Chad, almost taking both of them out. After the race, they interviewed Shorty, who said something to the effect of, "Hey, Chad doesn't pay my salary. Honda pays my salary, and I'm just doing my job. I'm supposed to do whatever it takes to help Honda win a championship."

Let's clear something up right now. Intentionally trying to wreck into someone to take them out of the race is only acceptable in a demolition derby. In any other form of racing, it is a dirty, disrespectful tactic, shows poor sportsmanship, and is dangerous. Bumping and rubbing are acceptable in some racing forms, and supercross is definitely one of them. Intentional takeout attempts, successful or not, are a different thing altogether.

So at this point I don't know who to not be a fan of anymore - Andrew Short, or Honda. Maybe I'll choose both. When Chad passed Davi Millsaps just a lap or so earlier, Millsaps raced Chad fair, but didn't try any kamikaze takeout moves. Davi and Shorty are both factory Honda riders. If Short is telling the truth, then Davi failed to follow team orders by not trying to take Chad out of the race, which means that Honda is a dirty team. But if Davi was racing the way he had been instructed, then Shorty took it too far by attempting a desperate takeout move when Reed passed him, in which case Short is a dirty rider.

I've seen it from Short a number of times, so here's to betting it is Short deciding to be dirty, since he can't be as good as Reed is. Maybe he's trying to compensate for never having hit puberty. Or maybe he secretly wishes that he was with Ellie instead of Chad. Whatever the reason, I've thought it through - Andrew Short has officially lost a fan. I doubt he cares, but nonetheless, I'm rooting against him from this point on. And Honda too. He's a factory rider. Whether it was team orders or not, he represents Honda when he rides and when he speaks.

Hey, Andrew Short! Hey Honda! Check this - Chad Reed came from dead last - 21st place - and beat your factory rider, who led almost the whole race but couldn't hold on to win it, who could not keep from being beaten by Chad Reed even when he tried to wreck him. With a broken shoulder. Choke on that, Honda. Choke on that, Andrew Short.

The Perils of Motocross to the Young Mind

Anyone who reads my blog at all knows that I have a real thing for Motocross and Supercross, the world's greatest sports, alongside football. But I have to admit, I'm worried a bit about the effect of motocross on the minds of young professionals.

Take Trey Canard for example. He is doing absolutely fabulous so far in his rookie season, having won the first three pro Supercrosses he raced in so far. But perhaps his avid involvement in racing is having an effect on his brain; perhaps the home schooling is not going quite so well as one would hope.

Apparently, this is at least true somewhat in math. Trey has, in repeated interviews, indicated his plans this year to give "200%" to his racing effort.

Oh. I see. Trey is planning to give even more than people who are only going to give 110%, 120%, or even 150%, although apparently he doesn't plan to be as committed as anyone who is going to give 1000%.

Well, Trey, I've got news for you. You cannot give more than 100%. This is a mathematical fact. Perhaps if you went to school instead of racing so much you would already know this.

I will translate Trey's statements, in order to make them easier to understand: "This year I plan to give twice as much as possible. I plan to be two times more dedicated than is possible. I plan to perform in the races two times better than I possibly can."

Maybe I'll try this at work. I'll give 200%, and bill my employer for two times the amount of work than I can possibly do.

James "The Spoiled Baby" Stewart Drops Out of 2008 AMA Supercross

Last Saturday, James Stewart announced that he was dropping out of the 2008 AMA Supercross season because he hurt his knee again last December 20.

This is a bunch of baloney. I mean, I believe James when he says he hurt his knee again. But he is dropping out of the season because he is afraid that if he doesn't, he will lose the title straight-up to Chad Reed.

Consider:

1. Chad and James were tied for the points lead going into last Saturday's Anaheim II round.
2. Each had won one race, and in each race they were running very similar lap times.
3. James won the last race - he WON THE RACE with a "hurt" knee!

James knows there is a very good chance he will lose the title to Chad, hurt knee or not. He also knows that he is stronger outdoors than everyone else. Racing the rest of the supercross season puts his outdoor season in jeopardy, whereas the supercross season is already in jeopardy because Chad is sufficiently competitive. He also knows that by dropping out, everyone will speculate that, had James raced the whole season, he would have beaten Chad, which we all know is not necessarily true (and also just as dumb a thing to say as "If James hadn't crashed he would have won").

One thing we do know - Chad Reed wouldn't have dropped out. He raced an entire second half of a season with a third degree shoulder separation. He would suck it up and race, because he is a tough dude. That is something James is not familiar with.

James Stewart: "I am a spoiled prissy baby mama's boy."

2007 Supercross Series Half Bad Boy Race Report - Toronto

The Half Bad Boy Race Report - the decidedly biased, not-necessarily-true, fun-to-read supercross race report


Well, the 2007 Supercross series got off to a rip-roaring start this past weekend in Toronto, Canada. So far the season is looking like a good one; Chad Reed won the first main event of the season, forcing the television announcers to pull out their programs to figure out who this guy is as they learned that James Stewart and Ricky Carmichael are not the only two people racing.

Stewart caught Reed about halfway through the main and they diced back and forth for several laps. Completing lap 18, Stewart was barely ahead of Reed when he pulled in front of Reed and brake-checked him going up the face of the finish line jump. Reed ran into the back of Stewart, causing Reed to roll the jump while Stewart jumped off the track completely.

Reed then took over the lead, while Stewart, in a very James-Stewart-esque move, pulled directly into oncoming traffic without looking. Travis Preston landed from the double and had nowhere to go - he T-boned Stewart directly, causing both to crash. Stewart was able to remount and continue, while Preston was out of the race.

After the race, Stewart dropped his bike to the ground and then fell to the ground himself, grabbing his ankle and rolling around on the ground like a European soccer star. Travis Preston walked over to tactfully explain to Stewart that Stewart is an idiot, but before he could make his case, he was escorted off the floor by official JC Waterhouse and the rest of the James Stewart entourage.

After the race, Erin Bates interviewed Jeremy Albrecht, Stewart's mechanic, who summarized the incident thus: Stewart went off the track. Since Stewart is better than everyone else, every other rider is expected to accomodate him and avoid crashing into him at all costs. So Stewart naturally expected Travis Preston to turn his bike in mid-air and not crash into him. They were both very disappointed in Preston, as well as all the other riders who could have had anything to do with his failure to win.

Albrecht and Stewart then filed three unsafe riding complaints:

1. Against Ivan Tedesco, for "riding underneath the place where James wanted to land."
2. Against Travis Preston, for "landing from a jump in the place where James wanted to drive sideways."
3. And against Chad Reed, for "winning the race when James wanted to win instead."

I'll let you know how this all plays out.


(Some or all of this may not be true. In fact, it may be a complete lie. For example, James Stewart might not actually be a big baby.)

AMA Superbike at MMP - Hopefully the First of Many

Last weekend I had the opportunity to attend the AMA Superbike event at the brand-new Miller Motorsports Park in Tooele, Utah. AWESOME.

The new track at MMP is sweet. Rave reviews were given by pretty much everyone who was asked. The fast, wide track, extensive runoff areas, and amenities make it the new standard by which American road courses will be judged. Hey, don't just take my word for it. I think it was Jake Zemke who said, "It is nice to finally have a world-class road racing facility in the United States." Most comparisons I heard were not to other road courses in America, but to Formula One courses around the world, which represent the cream of the crop when it comes to racing venues.

Congratulations, Larry Miller, on creating an awesome racing venue. Hopefully you can get the support you deserve to keep the events coming.

As for the event itself, well, the AMA Superbike event was the first ever sanctioned race at the new MMP, and in one of the best races of the year, Ben Spies managed to pull out yet another victory over Mat Mladin and Ben Bostrom. It was SUH-WEET.

Of course, visiting the vendor area is part of the appeal of these events, and this one was no exception. I was surprised at how small the vendor area was, but I expect that it will be bigger next year.

Here's some pictures:


Here's a picture of me standing next to a sweet MV Agusta. Oh, yeah. Italian motorcycles.



Here's a brand-new Triumph Daytona 675. Cycle World is raving about this bike, calling it the best middleweight sportbike available today. Oh, yeah. British motorcycles.



Here's a picture of me standing behind Ben Bostrom's racing Ducati, or at least a replica of it. Oh, yeah. Italian motorcycles again.



Finally - the start of the AMA Superbike race. Yes, these people really are insane. They are taking that corner at, oh, let's say 90 mph.

Some Rich People are Still Stupid - But I'd Rather Be Smart

Just because you are smart doesn't mean you will be rich - and just because you are stupid doesn't mean you can't be rich. As evidence we need look no farther than this article which tells how Ben Roethlisberger recently crashed while riding his 2005 Suzuki Hayabusa. Without a helmet.

Riding a motorcycle without a helmet is stupid.


This story hits home to me because my father, who is smart but not rich, was also recently injured in a motorcycle accident. My father has been riding motorcycles for over forty years. I have never known him to be injured in any way in a motorcycle accident prior to this one. In fact, I don't think he's ever even received a traffic citation during all of that time.


He was taking a corner on a highway at a very reasonable 25 miles per hour. Who knows exactly what happened next. Apparently, the front tire lost traction as the bike high-sided and threw my dad into the rocks that were piled next to the side of the highway.


Here's what happened:

• Broken right ulna near the wrist, and multiple fractures to right radius near the wrist, requiring surgical repair
• Broken left humerus and severely dislocated left elbow with ligament and tendon damage, requiring surgical repair
• Broken left tibia and fibula beneath the knee, and torn left patellar tendon, requiring surgical repair
• Broken left ankle in multiple locations, requiring surgical repair
• Burst fracture to fourth thoracic vertebra, which has not required surgical repair - yet

He is in the midst of a two-month stint of laying on his back, waiting for the bones to heal, and meanwhile not ever getting up - EVER.


Here's what didn't happen: He didn't die. He didn't split his head open and die. Because he's not stupid.

For those of you that are stupid: Can you see the scratches on this helmet here? The impact cut entire sections out of the shell. Some of those scratches, like those more horizontal ones on the side, are about 1/8 of an inch deep. The impact was so hard, it burst the face shield completely off the helmet.

I love this helmet. Without this helmet, my dad would now be dead.

If you are stupid, like Ben Roethlisberger, it is time for you to wise up. You might be a great rider. Unfortunately, it isn't always about you. You might be riding properly until you get cut off by some idiot driver in an SUV. Or you might be involved in some freak accident, high-siding into the rocks unexpectedly while going carefully around a corner at only 25 miles per hour. Don't be stupid.

A Supercross Season for the Ages

My son and I just got back from maybe the best sporting event I will ever attend - the 2006 Las Vegas Supercross.


Now this is no small thing. I was in the audience in Logan, Utah when Utah State University upset Brigham Young by the score of 58-56 in football. It was against the rules in that game to play defense. Oh yes, that game rocked.

I should say, it rocked, unless you have the sorry lot of being a BYU fan - but then, if you were, you wouldn't be reading this blog. This blog is for half bad boys, not sissy pansy-waists. As anyone knows, if you wish to attend BYU, you must agree to adhere to the code of conduct, part of which reads, "I vow to consider myself superior to everyone else," and another part which reads, "I disavow myself from ever being a half bad boy; rather, I vow to be a sissy pansy-waist."
If you ARE a BYU fan and happened to arrive here by accident, I apologize. I recommend you try http://self-righteous-sissy-pansy-waists.blogspot.com/. That is probably where you meant to go anyway.


Another great sporting event right after BYU's guard tandem of Randy and Robby Reid were featured in the Sports Illustrated Swimsuit Issue. No, they were actually featured for their supposed basketball prowess, not for being sissy pansy-waists. Although it was later said of them, "The two biggest boobs in this year's SI Swimsuit Issue are Randy and Robby Reid."

Anyway, BYU came to Logan where a complete unknown point guard named Roddie Anderson completely schooled the Reids for 40 minutes as USU routed BYU by like 20 points.


Amazingly, many of my great sporting moments revolve around USU upsetting BYU.


But I digress. As I said, I took my son to the 2006 Las Vegas Supercross, where Chad Reed and Ricky Carmichael came into the event tied for the lead in points with James Stewart only 5 points back. The buildup was awesome and so was the racing. In the Supercross class main event, it all came down to the start. Chad was the fastest of the night, but it was only by tenths. By the end of lap two, Stewart had a 3 second lead on Carmichael, who had a 3 second lead on Reed, and that is how it ended.

I was disappointed, sure, because Chad didn't pull it off. But in true Chad Reed style, he was gracious, appreciative of the opportunity, respectful of the other two champions, a good sport, and above all, he remembered to thank his wife Ellie.


And I got to experience it all with my son. Nope, I'll never forget that one for sure.