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/128183
1 •. • ... _:-1_ .1'1 . . . . . . . . .I~"".~- Happenings In Motorcycling Athlete of the Year: fX1il@rtw! @@[JffLfiJD@!JD@@D Team Honda's Ricky Carmichael was awarded the AMA Pro Racing Speed Channel Pro Athlete of the Year award on Saturday, November 23, in a professionally-run, high-energy AMA Pro Racing Award Banquet at the Venitian Resort Hotel in Las Vegas, Nevada. The 22-year-old Floridian beat out AMA Superbike National Champion Nicky Hayden, AMA Grand National Champion ClJ,ris Carr, National Hillclimb Champion Dave Watson and 125cc National Motocross Champion James "Bubba" Stewart to win the award. It was the second time for Carmichael to take the Athlete of the Year award after the factory Honda rider won the award last year. For the first time in the award's history, Carmichael was given a commemorative Rolex watch for being named Athlete of the Year. This past summer, Carmichael completed the most memorable season in the history of AMA motocross by completing a perfect season. He went undefeated in 12 rounds and 24 motos of the 2002 AMA Chevy Trucks U.S. Motocross Championship en route to winning the title in the premier 250cc division. It was the first time a rider went undefeated in AMA motocross. Along the way Carmichael also broke Bob Hannah's record to become the alltime winningest rider in AMA motocross history. In addition to his outstanding national motocross campaign, Carmichael also won the 2002 AMA Supercross Championship, taking 11 wins in the 16-race series. The two titles in 2002 bring Carmichael's career total to eight AMA national championships. He has three titles each in AMA 125 and 250 motocross and two in AMA supercross. He also won a regional AMA supercross championship in 1998. He is the all-time win leader in AMA 125 motocross and AMA 250 motocross and is ranked second all-time in AMA Supercross and all-time combined motocross/supercross wins list. By ALAN CATHCART .. • A Triumph of Survival After being devastated on March 15 by what is reputed to be the largest industrial fire ever to occur in Britain in peacetime, with an insurance bll! well in excess of $155 mUllon after large sections of the main factory were destroyed and motorcycle production halted for half a year, the Triumph factory at Hinckley has now been entirely rebuilt and re.equipped. with complete. freshly-built motorcycles rolling off the company's revived ultra-modern assembly line. The Blaze was sparked for reasons which fire investigators, who have ruled out any foul play, are still unable to pinpoint. With its operation spread over several Hinckley sites - two of which, totalling 38,000 sq.m, house the main production facilities, while the spares, clothing, accessories and R&D functions operate from separate facilities - certain elements of Triumph's operation remained unaffected by the Ides of March inferno, which fortunately did not involve any human injury. Thus, spare parts supplies were unaffected, being housed in a separate area untouched by the fire - although Triumph did not hesitate to strip unsold bikes in order to prevent any shortages occurring due to the interruption in manufacture. Similarly, development was not disrupted of the Speedmaster and several other forthcoming new models which the J:lritJsh company is known to be working on, including a new range of 1200cc To casl your vole. log on 10 _---dl.llp:/I.www;cydenews.com. A. Ricky Carmichael B. Chris Carr C. Colin Edwards 6 DECEMBER 4, 2002' eye I e n e _ s Yamaha recently held its Race Team Intra at Dromo One kart track in Orange, CaUfomia, where members of the press got the opportunity to meet the various team riders for Yamaha's 2003 race effort and spin some laps in a go-kart. A three-hour relay kart race was held, with the win going to the team comprising Randy Hawkins, Barry Hawk. Jamie Hacking, Danny Coe, Kevin Duke, Steve Rounds, Jefferson Burks, Mr. Satoh (of Yamaha Japan), Luke Dawson and Carlo Tresser (the top three squads were aJJ within a couple of laps of one another, and only seconds separated the second- and third-place squads), Veteran motocrosser Doug Dubach turned the day's fastest lap. four-cylinder products including hypersports, Naked roadster and shaft-drive sport·touring variants, the 2200cc three-cylinder Twenty Two maxi.cruiser, and the new, sportier Daytona version of the TT600 four-cylinder Supersport due to be launched at the Birmingham Show in November. The TT600 is expected to prOVide the baSIS for Triumph's long·awaited entry into racing in 2003, and it features a reduced wheelbase for qUicker handling and, via a shorter sWlngarrn, better traction, as well as Ughter wheels and brake discs, uprated suspension, and more angular. sharper-looking styling featuring a central air intake like the Ducati Supermono or World Superbike champion Honda SP-2. Production is expected to begin early in 2003, with 1000 bikes built for homologation purposes by March, to ensure the TT600 will be able to compete in the 2003 British Supersport series as well as the Brands Hatch round of the World Supersport series in July as a wild card, prior to a full-on attack at world level in 2004, The TT600 will also probably compete in the AMA Supersport Championship. But the half-year production shutdown caused by the intense blaze was inevitable in an area near the final assembly area housing the rolling road on which all Triumph's fmished products are tested before shipping. This was located in the original 14-year old 20,000 sq.m factory in which production of Triumpn motorcycles under the mantle of John Bloor's bornagain company began back in 1990, The site also contained the engine manufacturing line, production stores, storage area for completed hikes, and paint shop - the latter highly inflammable section surprisingly surviving Intact, albeit damaged by soot. after locaillrefighters performed valiantly in preventing the fire's spreading further. However. the conflagration meant that production was completely halted In the aftermath of the flre, when the original factory had to be leveled to the ground for safety reasons, and work began on reconstructing it.