Cycle News - Archive Issues - 2000's

o When we went to press on Tuesday, January 2, the Dakar Rally was all of twodays old, and defending champion Richard Sainct was leading the overall standings. Day one's route went from Paris to Norbonne on France's southeast coast, and day two crossed into Spain to finish at Castellon-Costa Azahar. The total mileage at that point was 915, just 22 miles of which was special test. Sainct, the Frenchman who switched from BMW to KTM in the off-season, won both specials and led overall by 54 seconds over second-place Spaniard Joan Roma, of BMW. Honda-mounted American Johnny Campbell sat in fifth place, a minute and 13 seconds behind Sainct, while BMW's Jimmy Lewis was 14th at three minutes and 12 seconds back. The rally finishes in Dakar, Senegal, on January 21 . Team Yamaha riders David Vuillemin and Tim Ferry were the big winners at the Perris Raceway Invitational Supercross in Perris, Califomia, on January ,. Vuillemin scored the win in the 125cc class over Greg Schnell (Yam) and Brock Sellards (KTM). In the 250cc class, Ferry took top honors over Robbie Reynard (Yam) and Mike Craig (Hon). Stephane Roncada (Yam) pulled off a couple of wins at the 5th Annual Chaparral U.S. Pro/Am Championships at Glen Helen Raceway in San Bernardino, Califomia, December 29-31. Roncada topped the 250cc class over Billy Lanninovich (Yam) and Mike Craig (Hon), and then he capped off the weekend with a win in the 125/250cc Shootout over Grant Langston (KTM) and Tallon Vohland (Kaw). Langston, however, won the 125cc class ahead of Justin Buckelew (Yam) and Vohland. The FIM has announced the confirmation of the Kyalami, South Africa round of the World Superbike Championship. Kyalami, scheduled for April 1, has been on the schedule, but was previously listed as "To Be Confirmed." The open date on September 23, however, will not be filled, according the FIM. The series will now consist of 13 World Superbike rounds, 11 World Supersport rounds and 10 World Sidecar rounds. Aaron Gobert - Anthony's brother has signed a contract to race a Graves Motorsports Yamaha in the 2001 AMA Formula Xtreme and 600cc Supersport Series, according to a press release issued by the team. Gobert will join fellow Australian Damon Buckmaster on the two-man team that will compete aboard Yamaha R1s and R6s. "We are very excited about the coming year," Graves said. "Aaron is keen to show the world that there is more than one fast Gobert. With Aaron on board we feel that good results are inevitable. " American Honda's motocross/Supercross star Ezra Lusk is currently being featured on the Abercrombie & Fitch website in a video section called A&FTV. The piece, shot on location at Honda's test track in Southem California, can be found at www.abercrombie.com. Car racer and motorcycle racing fan ( Stan Fox, 48, was killed in an auto accident on Monday, December 18 in New Zealand. Fox, whose racin9 career ended in 1995 in a horrific crash in the Indianapolis 500, was involved in a head-on collision on a highway some 200 miles south of Auckland. Fox started racing in 1972 and made eight starts in nine years in the Indy 500. Fox was often a spectator at motorcycle races across the country. He is survived by his ex-wife, Jean; a daughter and a son, and brother, Fred. The AMA has named Edward Moreland to be vice president of the association's newly revamped Govemment Relations Department, assuming overall responsibility and direction for the department, the Association announced. The AMA also announced that Sean Maher, legislative affairs specialist, has 'been promoted to the position of director of state affairs, overseeing the state govemment relation's staff in the AMA's Pickerington, Ohio, office. In his new role, Maher will oversee the department's increased emphasis on state activities and programs. Moreland, who has served as the AMA's Washington representative for the past three years, succeeds Robert Rasor, who took over as AMA president on November 1. Moreland will continue to work out of the AMA's Washington, D.C.. office. "Ed has been at the forefront in some of the toughest battles we motorcyclists have faced in recent years," Rasor said in making the announcement, "including federal efforts to close off millions of acres of public land to off-highway riders, and the misguided attempt to impose a 100-percent import duty on some European motorcycles. Although a few days before Christmas isn't the best time to get surgery, road racer Josh Hayes at least came out of his with positive results. The Bruce Transportation Group Honda rider returned home the night of the surgery - December 22 - after being operated on by Dr. Tiel at LSU in New Orleans. The surgery was to remove nerve tissue from Hayes' calf muscle and graft it to the ulnar nerve in his arm. Hayes says the surgery went well and was up and about almost immediately, though under considerable pain. Hayes will now concentrate on rehabilitating his injuries and preparing for the upcoming season. The Louisianan was injured in a multi-rider pileup in last year's AMA 600cc Supersport final at Daytona. More than $1 million in purse, bonus and contingency money will be up for grabs in the 19-round 2001 AMA Progressive Insurance U.S. Flat Track Championships. Minimum purses have increased 11 percent to $50,000 at mile tracks and 7.6 percent to $40,000 at half-miles, TIs and shorttracks in the premier Progressive Insurance Grand National class. Grand National mile winners can expect to pocket $10,000. In addition, the $100,000 Progressive Insurance Championship points fund and available contingency bonuses up the ante to $1.3 million, a number that will increase with three additional events yet to be announced. The two support class purses, SuperTrapp SuperTrackers and Harley-Davidson Sportster Performance, have increased 40 percent to $7000 per event. Michelin has announced that the American Suzuki motocross/Supercross team will use its tires in 2001. The Suzuki team, under the management of motocross legend Roger DeCoster, won the 2000 125cc National MX Championship with rookie sensation Travis Pastrana - using Dunlop tires. "We're elated that both Suzuki and KTM, two {)f the cal for the Nationals, - Smets said of '02. "My contract with KTM is finished at the end of the 2001 season, then I will look around and [see] what I want to do." Smets said that he is also not happy that he did not get the chance to race against Ricky Carmichael at the recent Motocross des Nations, where a class victory he feels would have been his. "It would not have mattered had I beaten Carmichael,Smets said. "America was the better team. I look at how much Ricky and [Sebastien] Tortelli beat Marnicq Bervoets, and I know I was beating him [Bervoets] by much more all season long. Had I not had my injury, I feel I could have beaten Carmichael. Of course, it did not happen, but I know in myself how I would have gone." Smets is currently recovering from a knee operation and will not race again until February, although he is confident he can race with his 2000 rivals again. "I see Stefan Everts and Bervoets as my main problems [next year]," Smets said. "I expect Everts to go much better this year. The Yamaha will suit him much better than the Husqvarna. I have to expect to lose more races this year than last year; I'll be surprised if it goes the same as 2000. I'll retum to racing in February, do about three Intemationals, then start the GP season." premier factory teams in American racing, have chosen Michelin for 2001," said Randy Richardson, manager of motorcycle competition for Michelin North America. As well as 17-year-old phenom Pastrana, the Suzuki squad also boasts two-time former 125cc Supercross champ Kevin Windham, who finished in the top four of both the AMA 250 Supercross and National Motocross points in 2000. Rounding out the team are Danny Smith, Frenchman Rodrig Thain, and upand-coming pro Ben Riddle, winner of two Amateur National MX Championships last season. KTM and Suzuki will compete on tires based on the StarCross MH2 and StarCross MS2 tread designs introduced to the U.S. market in 2000, according to Michelin. The StarCross series already has a world-class pedigree, having equipped the 1999 World Supercross Champion. "Developing technology in competition," Richardson said, "is the focus of Michelin's racing activities around the world. So the expansion of our U.S. motocross involvement is a logical extension of what we've already done with StarCross; using racing to make better tires for our customers. " Harley-Davidson Motor Company has made Fortune Magazine's annual list of 100 Best Companies to Work For, coming in at number 92. This is the third time in four years that Harley-Davidson has been on the list. according to the Motor Company. More than 36,000 employees at the candidate companies filled out the Great Place to Work Trust Index, an employee survey that evaluates trust in management, pride in work and the company, and camaraderie. Details will be available in the January 8, 2001, issue of Fortune, which hit the newsstands December 25, 2000. Robert Levering and Milton Moskowitz, best-selling authors of The 100 Best Companies to Work For in America, assisted Fortune in compiling the list. For more information visit: http://www.fortune.com/fortune/bestcompanies/ New Zealander Josh Coppins says that racing motocross in the United States is in his future. Coppins, who finished out the 2000 FIM World Championship 250cc MX Series in fourth, is hoping to win the 250cc FIM title in '01 so he can race in America in '02. "I want to be the best [andl winning a World Championship does not make that happen," the Corona Suzuki Team rider recently said. "The way the series has changed, I would rather race in America. The riders (jn the United Statesl have proved they are the best. and I don't want to race one moto a day [in Europel. It's not testing my ability at all." Coppins, who will retum to New Zealand over the winter, will return to Europe earlier than previous years to compete against what he feels will be a tough 250cc GP field next year. "I know I can race with [Fredericl Bolley, [Mickaell Pichon and [Pitl Beirer," Coppins said. "My aim in 2001 will be to beat them regularly. If you look at the results from last year's first moto alone, Bolley would have won the championship by just 10 points ahead of Beirer, I would have been 20 points further back. That gives me some confidence for the new season. I'm going for the championship, then I want an American Championship. " Work is currently ongoing at the Brands Hatch circuit in England, with bulldozers working to expand the run-off areas in several turns, including Clearways and Surtees Corners. The debris fences and Armco barrier have been pushed back, creating new gravel bed areas. The width of the current gravel bed area will be almost doubled, according to the World Superbike office. Work is also being done at the Hawthom and Stirling corners to increase the run-off areas. The Parts Canada Superbike Championship Series schedule was released earlier today, with the sevenround series slated to begin and end at the Shannonville Motorsport Park in Shannonville, Ontario, Canada. The series is as follows: Round 1 - Shannonville Motorsports Park, Shannonville, Ontario, May 17-20; Round 2 - Race City Motorsport Park, Calgary, Alberta, June 7-10; Round 3 - Namao Airport, Edmonton, Alberta, June 16-17; Round 4 - Autodrome St-Eustache, St-Eustache, Quebec, July 5-8; Round 5 - Mosport Intemational Raceway, Mosport, Ontario, July 20-22; Round 6 - Atlantic Motorsport Park, Shubenacadie, Nova Scotia, August 9-12; Round 7 -Shannonville Motorsports Park, Shannonville, Ontario, August 31-September 2. Recently, our European Motocross GP correspondent. Geoff Meyer, spoke with four-time World Motocross Champion Joel Smets, who had some interesting things to say. One of them was his concern about next year's FIM World Motocross Championships. The Belgian hero, who was a week ago named Belgian Sportsman of the Year, says he is ready to pack his bags and head to America to race if he cannot get enjoyment from the new one-moto format in GP racing. "What is happening to my sport?" Smets said. "It's my baby, what are they doing to it? I don't like it at all. I often think about racing in America. I think I could do with the change. I will race the 2001 European Series, and if I don't like it, I have to seriously think about [coming tol America." Even if"Smets stays in Europe for the 2001 season, he will seriously consider racing in the U.S. in 2002. "I can't race Supercross, so I would only go [to Ameri- cue. e Ducati Corse concluded its 2000 World Superbike season with a final day n e _ os • JANUARY 10. 2001 1 J J J o o o 8 o o o o J ~ J J J J J J o CJ o J ~ J J J J J CJ LJ ~ CJ ~ J n

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