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/452615
CN III ARCHIVES BY LARRY LAWRENCE B y the early 1990s, it had been better than a decade since something other than a Japa- nese multi had won an AMA Superbike race. That all changed in 1992 when Doug Polen, racing the potent Ferracci Ducati 888, won the AMA Super- bike race at Laguna Seca. It marked the first win for anything other than a Japanese multi since the 1979 season. It also marked the start of a new era that by 1993 saw Polen and Ferracci Ducati become the dominant force in AMA Superbike. Surprisingly the one track where Ducati seemed to face its biggest challenge was the tight and twisty New Hampshire International Speedway in Loudon, New Hampshire. You would think the technical Loudon circuit would fit right into the wheelhouse of the torquey Ducati, but the problem for the speedy Bolo- gna Twins at that point was the weight balance of the machine, it didn't like to turn in tight corners. Polen, Pascal Picotte and others reported the 888 pushed in tight turns and preferred inside more flowing tracks that featured high-speed sweepers. That put the bike at a distinct disadvantage at Loudon, which was among the most technical and tight circuits ever raced by AMA Superbike riders. That was the backdrop young Aussie Troy Corser faced in his first visit to Loudon in June of 1994. He might have not realized it, but Corser was set to contest what, at the time, was one of the premier races in America. In that era, two road races in the U.S. could truly claim the title of a Classic—Daytona and Loudon. As it turned out, Corser loved the twists and turns of the chal- lenging NHIS. The 22-year-old Australian man- aged to do what no other Ducati rider since Rich Schlachter in 1979 had ever been able to do—win an AMA Superbike race at Loudon. Vance & Hines Yamaha rider Jamie James put Corser's '94 Loudon Classic win in perspective. "I never thought I'd see someone do something that Doug Polen wasn't able to do on a Super- bike," said James referring to the tough time that Polen had riding Ducatis at this circuit. "I enjoy these types of circuits," Corser said of NHIS. "It takes a bit of aggression to be good here, that's probably why Scott Russell always did so well here." In talking about why he thought he was able to master Loudon when someone the caliber of Polen seemed unable to, Corser compared his approach to Polen's: "My riding style is different," he said. "I get off the brakes early and don't put as much weight on the front end. I'm on the gas P112 CORSER CONQUERS LOUDON