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/128386
Briefly... Continued from page 7 Riders for Health will be selling wristbands at the United States Grand Prix at Mazda Raceway Laguna Seca with the proceeds going directly to the motorcycle-linked work in Africa. Dorna has given permission to the riders to sell the wristbands in the paddock. The bright orange wristbands are debossed with the Riders for Health tire track logo and motto: "Get Africa On Track." They will sell for $5 each and supplies are limited. For more information, visit www.riders.org. uzuki MotoGP racers Kenny Roberts Jr. and John Hopkins have both donated their leathers to a charity auction to support the victims of the Asian S tsunami. Bidding for these items will take place in an auction of motorcycle memorabilia that is the brainchild of Dutch road racer Jurgen van den Goorbergh. Van den Goorbergh has contacted many racing greats with the request for them to supply items for the auction. They have responded in numbers, and alongside the leathers provided by the Suzuki racers will be a signed Valentino Rossi shirt; signed Freddie Spencer, Kenny Roberts and Erv Kanemoto photos; helmets by Loris Capirossi, Carlos Checa, Colin Edwards and Stefan Everts; plus paddock and VIP passes for Grand Prix and Superbike events. The items can be viewed online at www.driversaid.net. and bidding has already started. The aim of DriversAid will be to support a housing project in Sri Lanka. All the money made with www.driversaid.net will go directly to that project. "We wanted to do things right," van den Goorbergh said. "Not just an auction, but something really special. We will be supporting a project in Sri Lanka where they are rebuilding houses, an absolute necessity when rebuilding your life." For more information, www.driversaid.net. visit Lazzarini, SeeI to X Games Husqvarna Supermoto rider Ivan Lazzarini will be the first Italian rider to ever race in the X Games Supermoto, the factory star set to join Belgian Eddy Seel, Who finished second last year, at the big race. The X Games will run from August 4-7 in Los Angeles, California, with the Supermoto race slated for the Home Depot Center in Carson. Seel is the current points leader in the S2 class of the World Supermoto Championship, with Lazzarini currently fifth overall in the S I class after four rounds of the series. At the X Games, however, the riders will compete together in one class: 4S0cc, a displacement in which Lazzarini is trying out to improve his riding tech- nique in order to be ready for the X Games event. Both Seel and Lazzarini will be competing on Husqvarna SMR450 factory race bikes. "I want to came back to the X Games, because last year was amazing." Seel said. "The public is great and so was the track. Really awesome, and I had such a good publicity afterwards here in Europe. But this time... no mistakes any more, I want to win. Now I know better how the race will be, even with the new rule, which will be more challenging for everybody. It will be a great show, I am sure about that," Shoei helmets has hired five-time AMA 250cc Grand Prix Champion Rich Oliver as the official spokesperson for its Shoei University, the company's dealer training seminars. The purpose of the seminars is to educate the dealer network on Shoei production methods, including how Shoei helmets are made, why they are constructed as they are and the differences between the varieties of helmets, according to Shoei. Mike Schield, Shoei sales director of marketing, said: "We are really pleased to have a person of Rich's caliber join the Shoei team. With Rich's history in motorcycle racing, he can attest to the Shoei commitment and passion for safety. His involvement with Shoei University will be a firsthand account of the high value and reliability of the Shoei product," "It's an honor for me to represent Shoei, as 1do feel a special respect for the quality and performance of the Shoei helmet," Oliver said in the release. "I have proven that in using a Shoei helmet in racing competition, my results have been consistently good in various conditions, as the Shoei helmet helped me survive my few serious crashes without injury. Because of Shoei, 1can be here in good health to give these seminars!" For more information, visit www.shoei-helmets.com. A brief pictorial history of Grand Prix road racing will be given away at the U.S. GP as a supplement to Moto-furo magazine. The 2Bpage souvenir copy will be available free at the Moto Euro booth on Ducati Island at the race and at the display booths of Aprilia, BMW, Pirelli and Triumph. Patriot Motorcycles Corporation has announced that its full line of Yamoto offroad dirt bikes and ATVs have been approved for listing and evaluation in the Kelley Blue Book. "It is an important milestone for our company:' Patriot Motorcycles president Dan Cwieka said. "Kelley Blue Book valuations for our products opens the door to enormous benefits especially for our deaier organization. These range from the ability to establish dealer flooring [financing] of Patriot products to paving the way for consumer financing and standardized resale pricing," With the World Supercross Championship returning to Canada for the opening rounds of the series on December 3 and 10, the CMA is looking for flaggers (must be over IByears of age) for both rounds. For more information, call 90S/S22-5705. The CMA will celebrate its 60th anniversary next year, with several events scheduled to help commemorate the Diamond Jubilee Celebration. Among those is a round of the World Enduro Championship, slated for Parry Sound, Ontario, July 15-16, 2006. It will be followed one week later by a round in the United States. Young road racer William Dunlop, the son of Robert Dunlop and nephew of the late Joey Dunlop, will get the chance to race a Rizla Suzuki GSX-R I000 Superbike in the Castle Combe Grand National on July 31. Dunlop was awarded the opportunity after a recent test on British Champion John Reynolds' Rizla Suzuki GSX-R I000 at Donington Park, where he impressed the team. Dunlop is a regular podium finisher in the Irish I25cc Championship, according to Rizla, and at 19, he is heralded as one of the best young up-and-coming racers in the UK. "This is a dream come true for me," Dunlop said. "Rizla Suzuki is the championship-winning team, and it doesn't give out test rides to just anybody. When I was invited to test the bike, it was a fantastic experience. Then, when I was invited to race it against some of the best riders in the world at the Castle Combe Grand National, I was ecstatic," The Grand National takes place at Castle Combe near Bristol on the weekend of July 30-31. The AMA has announced that it's making final preparations for AMA Vintage Motorcycle Days 2005, to be held July 1S-17 at Mid-Ohio Sports Car Course in Lexington, Ohio. Ducati will be the featured marque at this year's event. In celebrating the Italian marque, the 14th annual AMA Vintage Motorcycle Days will benefit the Motorcycle Hall of Fame Museum. The event will feature exhibits of classic motorcycles and memorabilia, along with Grand Marshal, Paul Smart, winner of the 1972200 Miles of Imola aboard a Ducati, and World Stunt-Riding Champion Christian Pfeiffer, who will perform on his Ducati. The Mid-Ohio circuit will again host AH RMA road racing; motocross, observed trials and dirt track racing also are on the schedule. The AHRMA racing is expected to attract more than 1500 competitors. Spectator tickets for AMA Vintage Motorcycle Days 2005 are available from Mid-Ohio Sports Car Course at BOO/MID-OHIO or www.midohio.com. For more information about AMA Vintage Motorcycle Days 200S, including dirt-track tickets, auction details and swap meet registration, visit www.AMADirectlink.com or call BOO/AMA-JOIN. OC Metro, the business lifestyle magazine of Orange County, California, recently selected the Motorcycle Industry Council as one of its seven best companies to work for in 2005. MIC president Tim Buche, three other staff members and a new cruiser motorcycle were featured on the color cover, and an entire page inside was Continued on page 13 CYCLE NEWS • JULY 13, 2005 9