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/128343
ride r, and I guess James had already been hired to be the mechanic. My plan had been just to ride my ow n motorcycles in the Formu la USA, but it' s a good thing that this came along because For mula USA end ed up not having a se ries. So I met Paul, we got together, and our first race was in Dayto na. We broke a rocker arm , but then we fixed it and made the main event. Then we broke the other rocker arm in the main event. We broke again at the Cow Palace, but then in the litt le bike races our worst finish has been seventh, and I have three fifths. You al so h aven't bee n doin g too badly on the 750. T hat was something that we concentrated on when we went to Savannah, Geo rgia, for the start of bike week. I had been riding the little bikes for so long that we knew we 'd be okay there, so we just co ncentra ted on the 750, and I just got more and mo re co mfortable on it. At Volusia, the last race before the Dayto na short tracks, I got third on it. T he n my first 750 Grand Nation al main event was Kentucky, and I made the main even t there and finished 14th, so we were pretty happy. I think we're just such a new team still. James worked with the Suzuki team the year before, and I think that we 're still figuring out wha t I like and don't like on the Harley. I think we 're getting better, but I do n't have those miles figured out just yet. We've just had a few little things that have kept Jared Mees ahead of me in the Rookie of the Year dea l. Let 's talk a bo ut that. It 's down to you two guys, a nd the titl e will probably come down to t he wire in t he se last three ra ce s, Columbus and th e two Du Quoin rac es. This has been one of the be st Rookie of t he Year battles that t he sport has seen in m any yea rs . How im portant is it for you t o get that title? I rea lly want to be able to put it on my resume, and I know that Jared does too. We have been racing eac h other for a long time, and I feel like if I can beat him in these last three race s I can beat him for Rookie of the Year, and that was one of our goals for this year. At the beginning of the year, Paul and James told me that they would be happy if we made the top 20, but after a couple a races I said, 'Man, I think that we can make it into the top 10, so let's make that the goal.' For these last three races I just want to put my head down and finish ahead of Jared . I'm I I or 12 points behind him right now, and Iwant to see if I can sq ueak inside the top 10 too. What d o you t h in k Jare d Mee s? I like him. He's a good rider, and I have been racing against him forever. I know that the last year we were amateurs we were both going fo r the AMA Horizon Award when I got hurt, and he got it. This [Rookie of the Year) deal is kind of like that . Iwant to see if I can get it because I couldn't race him for the Horizon Award. From the ti me you we re an a mate ur, yo u have a lwa ys been a " pin it " type of r ider, ha rd on t he gas . When yo u firs t came ou t a nd st a rted running with t he GNC gu ys as an Expert last ye a r, you started t o get a bit of a bad re p utati o n for running into people, There was t he Milwaukee Short Track incide nt where you cle aned off Rick Winsett, and t here were a couple o thers th at made the established guy s a little nervous about you , To be fair to you, you seem to have cleaned up yo ur act since t hen. I think that the biggest deal with the oth er guys was having a you ng guy come up and be competitive with t hem right off the bat, and they do n't tr ust the way you ride o r the way that you get that close to the m. Coming into this, I knew that they weren't going to cut me any slack, so I tried to push right back, but some of them got upse t. I definitely don 't want to be the kind of ride r who rides stup id and knocks everybody dow n. Right now I am just trying to make good, aggressive passes without running into every one. I feel like I'm getting smoother, but I also feel that racing with the guys every week has gott e n the m mor e used to the way that I ride, and I've talked to them about it. I just want to race clean, and I wa nt them to tr ust me . I have ton ed it down so me, but I haven't changed my style that much. I still try to ride aggressively, just not to the po int w here I'm making anyone mad. Talk mo re about your program. The team is called SjS Racing. Paul Seliskar owns it, and he is out of New je rsey. james Hart takes care of the motorcycles in Sout hern Ill inois, about two and a half hour s sout h of me . T hat's pretty goo d for me because I can dr ive down there and help james out or go riding wit h him. We have Tramontin Harley-Davidso n, a Harley and Honda shop that helps out a bunch with parts and stuff. We also have " My heart is in dirt track racing," says Perason, who is in his first year on a 750". "Our team is so new, but we're learning a lot right now. I'm in this for the long hau l," Parker Stores, which sells all types of hose and fittings, and Arthur H. T homas Co . Shoe i gave me helmets this year. K&N and Motio n Pro have been rea l good to us. We' re still looking for more all the time, and Paul has been rea lly goo d about that . He produces a newsletter every three races and sends that out, and the spo nsors www.cydeneW5.com really like that beca use it keeps everyone up to date on what we 're doing and promotes the ir products . Wh ere do yo u see yourself in the fu ture , Rookie of the Year o r not? Do you stay here a nd race d irt t rac k or do yo u move on to road racing? I tr ied some road racing last year, but dirt track is really where my heart is. I love dirt track, and I want to try and be Gra nd National Champion before I leave this sport. As far as road racing or supermoto , I don't know. I've tried them, but dirt track is my number o ne priority. I definitely want to be a cham pion in the years to co me . Last question: When you go to pick yo u r Grand Nat ion al n u m ber a t the e nd of t his season, w ha t 's it going to be ? It' s going to be 27. I have already talked to a lot of people around here, and it wou ld be nice to have Davey Cant lin's number back in Illinois. I have talked to some of his family members and his fans, and they are pretty excited about me having 27. I think I'll have the first pick, so I am definitely going to choose number 27 and use Davey's font and everything so that it looks just like his because he was a hero of mine. I remember when he used to come to race at Peoria Speedway, which is about 15 minutes from my house , every Wednesday night. I looked up to him when I was younger, and I remember that he was one of the only guys that I cou ld approach w ho was a pro and would ta lk to me . He eve n gave me one of his T-shirts. He was a great ro le model, and if I ever get to his status, the n I wou ld want to be just like him o r johnny Murphree and talk to ot her younger guys, give them advice and help them out . I eN want to be in th is sport for the long haul. CYCLE NEWS • SEPTEMBER 29, 2004 41