Cycle News is a weekly magazine that covers all aspects of motorcycling including Supercross, Motocross and MotoGP as well as new motorcycles
Issue link: https://magazine.cyclenews.com/i/127782
class where all riders have equal horsepower - an d not much of it. He reasoned that one of the most critical areas was on the approach to a comer. "The window of your braking , backshifting an d initiating the tum is a very small ti me frame," he says. "So I've tra ined myself to be al most inst a n taneous i n the transition fro m bra ke to thr ottle." Zampach puts the sa me 'kind of rigorous though t into the off-tra ck sid e of his cr af t. He negotia tes his own co ntracts, nu rtu res his spo nsors and hands out high-qu ality pre ss packs of a quality w or thy of a factory World Su p erbi ke team . He spends up to $2500 a year producing them, bu ys "thank you" ad s in motorcycle p ub lica tions and ar ranges ... displays at public events. "Last January I d id five ap pearances at mo tor sp orts shows, banquets and a hobby exhibition in Wisconsin," he says. "I like meeting the public and talking about racing, and I can show my sponsors that I do things above and beyond the call of duty." The wo rk pays off. Zampach's busi ness - Z-Man Motorsports Racing Inc. attracts major sponsors, including EBC brakes, Spectro Oils, Dun lop tires, Arai helme ts, Barnett clutches, a n d DID chains. Its success has enabled h im to start a famil y and bu y a new home: In 1993 he married Dinah and ad op ted her 8-yea r-old dau ghter, and they now have a noth er d aughter w ho was bo rn las t year . Although Zam pach' s nam e is synony mous with Ha rley- Davidson Spo rtsters, he has ridd en bikes ran ging from 250cc Grand Prix mach ines to Suzuki GSXRllOOs. But does he fret at not having had a superbike opportunity? "Yes, I do regret that I've never been hired by theSmokin' Joe 's team, or so mething like that," he says . "But then I look back at w ha t I've accomplished on my own, the relations hips I' ve b uil t with m y sponsors, the companies that have helped me, and I've really go t a lot of unique things going." Zampach was hired as a test rider on th e Harley-Davidson VRI000 project in1993, but neve r got the chance to race the bike. "It's u nfortunate, because I have all the ability and determination of an y rider," he says. "Given the proper ~ circumstance and .equip men t, I can win the race, if it's on a Harley, a Speed Triple, or in the BEARS on the Taylormade Trium ph . If you're in p rofessional racing, an d you're on a motorcycle fast . or slow, it all begins to feel the same e uphoria. Your mind slows it down, like th e white lines are barely coming past you. When everything is rig ht you feel like yo u co uld step off and walk alongside the b ike. If yo u gave m e Miguel Du l-lam el's superbike I'm su re I'd be rig ht at the front of that class as well." Zampach will be wary of the British riders in the Transatlan tic series after his experiences at the Bol d'Or last year. . "I was very surprised to win that race, because the European riders are so aggressive ," he says . "They really stuff you and smash into you, and get all erratic and wild and all over the track as part of their style. For me, racing is more of a fluid , p recise, seat -of-the-pants type of riding. Tha t was the biggest race ever for Speed Triples, so they had a lot of 4 incen tive to win, plus they were probably a little upset that I was on their pace immediately, so they might have been a Iittle fluste red." But the rough stu ff d idn't panic him in to losing at the 601 d'Or. The British h ad better bew are w hen the Z- Ma n takes to Donington Par k's curves. . (l\" ****WAY \J~r "TWO TH\JMBS \J~~ - The Star " 1\,vtT'NG~ A~Owt1\ T1\'~~" . .- .The Dai ly Post - .s: _. . . . __ ' .- .' : :;'::...:' -:- . . ..: -, ~:: :... -:'. J~ tas~y v~sual t,eat1 NASB and fo,mula USA events aye the ones toribune see1" - The T NortnAmericanSport Bi~e prese nts a formula USA production featuring S Race fuels formula UA, EBC Bra~es unoco S . Triple Crown,Han ey-Davids w onTinSports, ~BC Bra~es S~rt Bi~e, Bueilligntni~g Series,T riumpnSpeed Triple . . C hallenge an I ternatioalGrand P presen by' ldemitsu and HRC dtne n n rix ted special effects by Wis eco P sandCometic Gas~ets star ring formula U,SA ~namp io~ CnrisTaylor ist?n co-star ring D Sadows~I, T Batey, Cnuc~ G ave rq}' raves,Doug Polen,fritz ~lng, David Stanton , , C urtisAdams,Seon Z pacn Stem P man Nob icnOliver,D Kief~r and more am ,Jeij ,Joe in ,Tripp les,R r . Attractions: AUGUST 2-4 ROAD AMERICA ROAD AMERICA CYCLEf EST ROAD AMERICA ' E I.XIIAIlTLW .WISCONSIN AUG. 30·SEPT. 1 OCTOBER 18 - 20 M ETZELERPOCONO CYCLE f ESTIVAL .RACE Of CHAMPIONS POCONO INTERNAnONAl RACEWA POCONO. PENNSYlVANIA Y' DAYlONA INTERNATION SPEEDWAY' D NA B AL A!TO EACH. flORIDA POCONO TIC KETS I'< INFO 8 0 0 DAYTONA • 9 3 9 • 9 3 7 2 crORY N MONA Smokin' Joe's Racing (520ERV equipped) 2 D.I.D VM Series X-Ring chain is designed for today's high performance motorcycles. The patented X-Ring construction creates a chain that is low in friction and high in wear resistance. D.I.D's 520ERV2, 525HV, and 530ZV2 also have X-Rings. The 520ERV2 (Exclusive Racing Chain) is used by lop o • • . . • factory road race teams ·50%LessFrtct,on than stand~rd O -Rmg cham worldwide. For the very best in · 50to 100%Longer Wear ReSIstance than performance and durability ask standard O-Ringchain. your dealer for D.I.D VM Series Premium X-Ring Chain. X Type P-2 O- ing R