Cycle News - Archive Issues - 2000's

My OWN RACE 308 Ben Attard 10t h Australian Ben Attard club raced at Barber the week prior to the AMArace. They used it as a test. and it helped. but today there we re problems. "We had a reasonable race tod ay. but I just got swamped at the start. and I couldn't get through the pack as well as I have for the last two races." he said. "I tore my tires up the first five laps trying to get past everyone. By the time I got past. Meiring and everyone else was gone . I had no rubber left. I just cru ised aro und and tried to save my tires. " 40 Jason DiSalvo DNF Yamaha's Jason DiSalvo was in the middle of the lead pack when a tire problem put him on the ground. .., went into the bowl turn and got on the front. and the rear just kind of stepped around." he said. "There was nothing I could reallydo to save it. I kind of avoided a highside. so I was pretty happy about that . Going down into there. I tipped in and with an off-thrott le rear slide you have two choice there. Youcan lay it down or highside. If you try to stand it up. you can sometimes ride it out. but that was past the point of no retu rn. so I just laid it down. I got it started. but the handlebar was just too messed up to ride in. I had to call it a day." 5 Steve Rapp 5th "The 600 race. I could stay with them for the first six. seven. eight laps." Valvoline EMGO Suzuki's alvo crashed in front of Steve Rapp said. "(jason) DiS me. and that threw me off just that litt le bit to where I couldn't get back into the draft at all. And the n the rest of the race. I could hold the gap after a while. but Iwasn't going to catch them. My tire was movingaround a lot on the rear too . It was a pretty decent weekend considering the tires weren't perfect." This is what .030 of a second looks like . Roger Lee (95) takes the win. 11 Ben Spie s 7th Y oshimura Suzuki's Ben Spies didn't even think he was going to race Supersport, not after his accident in the earlier Superstock race. ·:Actually. I did better than I thought Iwas going to do." Spies said. In the beginning. he chased Kawasaki's Roger Lee Hayden. then fell back to second . third and finally to seventh. the pain from his earlier injuries blunting his drive. "The first few laps we were on the gas. then my whole right side locked up. My shoulder. my elbow. Igot contusions allon my elbow and my shoulder. Just did what we could and got away with some points." cle an pass on Tommy two from t he e nd an d s print ing ahead t o th e flag. "I was getting a little bette r drive s than Tommy," Roge r said. "He had a little gap. and I knew that wa s the on ly place I co uld get him. I was go ing to try and go on the outside and go under him in t he last corne r. but he ra n a little wide. and so I just put it in t here. I saw the ho le and took it and t he n blocked fro m t here o n in. He ran wide and made a mistake. and t hat made it easier on me ." "I was in th e re a little hot . a nd I was trying to slow down a lot so I cou ld get a go od drive off." To mm y Hayden sa id . " I made a little mist ake in th e midd le an d lost my drive . and we kind of drag rac ed out o f there . and he ha d a little be tte r drive than me." Tommy sa id he didn 't like to lose. " but if I'm goi ng t o get be at t he n Rog is the only one I ca n ha lfway accept an d not be too mad . We had a go o d weeke nd wit h two seco nds . and t hat's go od po ints . We 'lI just kee p working hard an d go ing afte r it." Gobert sa id he was d umbfou nd ed w hen t he brot hers pas se d him. "Then o n t he last lap . I was slid ing the fron t and th ou ght . 'I do n't re ally hav e a lot ." • he said. "T he n Rog stuck it to Tommy on the seco nd to last turn . and I th o ught mayb e I co uld ca pita lize and ge t t he d rive do wn t he straight. Th at unfo rtu- na tely didn' t happen . It was a good. clean race ." Hacking was just ove r a se co nd be hind t he lea ders in fo urth. well clear of the fight fo r fifth. ''As you can see. we're definitely not the domi nant mo torcycle t his ye ar." t he reigni ng class champ io n sa id . " We definitely have some wo rk t o do. and t hat' s all I had today - fo urth place . T he pace was te rri ble . It was ridicul o us ly slow . Th is morning I went ou t. and we t o tally changed the whole se tup o n the bike. and it was go o d . It was easy on t he tire s and everything. and ' could do lo w 28s . Th en I couldn't hit my ass wit h a low 29 o n the thi ng. , t hink w e go t one 28.8 or something like t hat. I had no d rive grip at all. an d t he Kaw asakis we re just killing us off t he corne rs . All w e ca n do is keep finish ing th e be st we can do and brin g th e points ho me . I hat e th at he' s [Tom my Hayden] making t he litt le bit of ground in points on us. but th at' s the way it is. It ' s a long se r ies. and we have 8 lot of races le ft." eN BAR8ER M OTORS PORTS PARK B IRMINGHAM, ALABAMA RESULTS: M AY 16 , 2 0 0 4 (ROUN D T im e : 2S min., 2-4 . 140 sec . Dist a nce : 17 laps. 39. 1 miles Ave r age sp e ed: 92 .4 mph . Ma rgin of victory: 0 .030 sec. PRO HONDA O ILS SUPERSPORT C'SH IP PO INTS STA N D INGS (Aft er 4 of II rou nds ): I. Tommy Hayden ( 128/ 1 win); 2. Roger l ee Hayden (123 / 1); 3. Jamie Hacking (1 13); 4. Aaron Go bert ( 109) ; S. Ben Spies (94) ; 6. Steve Rapp (91) ; 7. Michael Barne s (90) ; 8 . Jason DiSalvo (89); 9. To ny Me iring (8 S); 10. lee Acree (77); II. Aaro n Yates (73); 12. Jason Pe rez (69); 13. Ben Att ard (67); 14. Darren Luck (60); IS. Joh n Bowman (47) ; 16. Damo n Buckmaster (46) ; 17. Nat han He ster (" 3); 18 . Danny Eslick (42); 19. Pedro Valiente (33) ; 20. (TIE) Chris Peris/ Brad Hendry (32) . UPCOMING R OUNDS: Round 5 . F ounlain, Colorado, Moy 23 4) PRO HONDA O ILS S/S PORT: I. Roger Le e www.cyclenew s .co m Hayden (!

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