The Stalker Takes Three Wins, WMRRA Overall Championship Lead At Round 6

WMRRA Round 6 August 11/12, 2012

Pacific Raceways Kent, Wa.

John “The Stalker” Gessner extended his 2012 undefeated streak to 17 races and took over the lead in the Washington Motorcycle Road Racing Association’s overall points championship this weekend at Pacific Raceways, in spite of mechanical failures and some unexpected challenges. After a delay in the Saturday morning race program that cut the team’s practice to one session, John’s primary bike experienced an engine failure and was sidelined for the weekend right before the first race. Quickly getting up to speed on his backup bike, Gessner managed to get ahead of the Open Singles field on Saturday, beating a field of large displacement 4-stroke singles.

On Sunday, the team focused on small changes in body position and riding technique as well as learning to work with worn tires. At the start of the 250GP race, it was clear that some of the competition had come to win and Gessner crossed the line in second place for the first 5 laps of the race. The other riders upped the pace every lap, making The Stalker dig deeper than ever and use every trick he knew to finally win by less than .5 second at the line, also setting his personal best lap record at Pacific Raceways of 1:36.225 on the final lap.

“Going into the 250GP race, we didn’t think the tires would be good for this kind of lap time with as much wear as they had” said Gessner, “but the other guys pushed the pace faster than I’ve ever gone around here before, so I had no choice but to push harder and pass wherever I could. Lucky for me, the Bridgestones worked really well and I was able to try some new things and win. We’ll definitely be a lot faster next time with what we learned this weekend.”

John Gessner races with the family team T&J Racing, and would like to thank the friends and sponsors who have helped him realize his goals so far this year:

Vacationland RV Bellingham 

CMC Performance/Bridgestone Tires 

Vanson Leathers 

Impact Armor 

Constructors Racing Group 

Darren Beatty Photography 

Spider Grips 

The California Superbike School 

Aftermarket Cycles 

Forever 45 Racing 

Kristy Gessner

For more information about John Gessner, visit his Facebook fan page, or contact Troy Gessner at [email protected]

More, from a press release issued by Damian Cudlin’s publicist:

A hard fought second place in the 8 Hours of Oschersleben, the fourth round of the 2012 Endurance World Championship, promoted BMW Motorrad France Team Thevent to second in the series standings with just one round remaining.

Damian Cudlin, Sebastien Gimbert and Erwan Nigon rode a faultless race aboard the #99 BMW S1000RR at Oschersleben today. Cudlin got proceedings underway from second place on the grid, but dropped back to third on the opening lap, as the safety car was deployed in response to an early crash.

The Australian reclaimed second place later in his stint, before spending another few laps behind the safety car prior to the first pit stop. Gimbert took up where his teammate left off, defending second place while also pushing to close the gap on the race leader.

Nigon rejoined the race in second place after taking over the #99 BMW S1000RR at the three hour point, but it was already apparent that challenging for the win today was going to be extremely difficult, as it was impossible for the BMW trio to match the outright pace of the eventual race winner.

Undeterred, each rider continued to push to the maximum during their stints aboard the #99 BMW S1000RR, but while the gap back to third initially remained constant, so did the margin to the race leaders.

Gimbert, doing the last relay aboard the #99 BMW S1000RR, eventually took the chequered flag in second place, after holding off a late challenge from third place finishers, GMT94.

Today’s podium finish means that BMW Motorrad France Team Thevent are now tied on points with Honda TT Legends, but the race win in Qatar earlier in the season means they take second place in the championship standings ahead of the British team.

BMW Motorrad France Team Thevent now trail the series leaders by 19 points, but with 40 points on offer for the winner of the final round of the season in Le Mans, the world championship is still far from over.

More, from a press release issued by Colorado Springs Sports Corporation:

Records Shattered at 90th Pikes Peak International Hill Climb!

Colorado Springs, August 15: The 90th running of the Pikes Peak International Hill Climb had it all for thousands of fans and the drivers and racers who came to Colorado Springs for the race, delayed from its original date of July 8 by the horrific Waldo Canyon Fire.

The 37-day delay brought fans of the nation’s second-oldest motor sports race everything they ever dreamed of, and more.

It turned out to be the fastest of them all since it began in 1916.

83 automobiles and 87 motorcycles were on hand at the start of a sunny, cloudless sky at the Rocky Mountain Ford Start Line, but by the end of a very long day, the summit of Pikes Peak endured snow, hail, rain and wind, with race officials shortening the course by almost 3,000 feet for the last pair of divisions. By then, the temperature on top was just 38 degrees.

Two major crashes and a flurry of red flags delayed the program for more than two hours, but before those, the now fully-paved course was turning over records as fast as one could blink.

The first five motorcycle divisions produced course records, highlighted by the blistering 9:52.819 turned in by Ducati’s Carlin Dunne in the 1205cc field, the best ever on the mountain by a motorcycle. It wiped out the old record of 11:11.329 that Dunne established last year as a rookie.

He needed the record because Greg Tracy was right behind him on his own Multistrada and ripped off a 9:58.262. That’s the stuff of legends, two bikes under ten seconds right away!

The stunner of the day came in the loaded Electric auto division, and it was a shock.

Japan’s Nobuhiro Tajima, who had won the last six Unlimited titles and who was the defending King of the Mountain, roared off in search of another course record. But a fire in his engine forced him to the side early. He climbed out of his auto and walked back to the start line.

But that only set the table for the drama that soon was to unfold.

French star Romain Dumas, winner of the 2010 24 Hours of Le Mans, had entered the Pikes Peak Open as a rookie, but a rookie with worlds of experience and a great endurance performer. Veteran observers during the week noted his fast practice times and nodded.

Buckled into his sleek Porsche GR3R, Dumas roared through his 156 turns and obliterated Tajima’s course record set last summer with a fire-and-ice clocking of 9:46.181 that reverberated up and down the mountain, and around the racing world on the internet. There he was, atop America’s Mountain, with the fastest time ever.

Now came Rhys Millen for the 18th time on the Peak, the son of famed Rod Millen and an eight-time champion who originally was entered in Unlimited, but switched to Time Attack in the spring.

Mixed in a tough field with defending champion Brianne Corn, veteran Dave Kern and others, Millen had a goal to return the record held by his father until 2011 to the Millen family in his familiar Hyundai Genesis Coupe.

No mechanical issues this time, no squishy brakes, no misses at all for the polished Californian by way of New Zealand.

When he got the flag at 14,100-feet and unbuckled himself, people were running to him from the Summit House, and they were yelling “9:46.164!” Millen heard it and believed it, and his arms went to the sky.

The record was back in the Millen family by the narrowest of margins.

A total of eleven new records had been set by drivers and racers from 14 countries and the benefits of a fully-paved course were obvious, and so were the dangers and the speeds.

2012 Pikes Peak International Hill Climb Results

Automobile Classes

Time Attack: Rhys Millen, Huntington Beach, CA”¦”¦”¦”¦”¦”¦”¦”¦”¦”¦…9:46.164 (Course record)

Pikes Peak Open: Romain Dumas, Basel, Switzerland”¦”¦”¦”¦”¦”¦”¦..9:46.181 (New Record)

Open Wheel: Spencer Steele, Denver, CO”¦”¦”¦”¦”¦”¦”¦”¦”¦”¦”¦”¦”¦. 4:13.240 @

Super Stock Car (Modified): Layne Schranz , Birmingham, AL)”¦”¦”¦4:21.290 @

Super Stock Car: Clint Vahsholtz, Woodland Park, CO”¦”¦”¦”¦”¦”¦”¦.. 4:36.870 @

Vintage Auto RMVR: Jess Neal, Colorado Springs, CO”¦”¦”¦”¦”¦”¦”¦. 12:03.858 (New RMVR Record)

Unlimited: David Donner, Colorado Springs”¦”¦”¦”¦”¦”¦”¦”¦”¦”¦”¦”¦”¦”¦ 10:04.652

Electric Auto: Fumio Nutahara, Hokkaido, Japan”¦”¦”¦”¦”¦”¦”¦”¦”¦”¦”¦. 10:15.380 (New Record)

Exhibition: Rick Knoop, Laguna Beach, CA”¦”¦”¦”¦”¦”¦”¦”¦”¦”¦”¦”¦”¦”¦. 10:56.240

@ Shortened course/weather

Motorcycle Classes

250cc: Jason Archuleta, Colorado Springs, CO”¦”¦”¦”¦”¦”¦”¦”¦”¦”¦”¦”¦”¦ “¦”¦.11:41.015 (New Record)

450cc: Travis Newbold, Montrose, CO “¦”¦”¦”¦”¦”¦”¦”¦”¦”¦”¦”¦”¦”¦”¦”¦”¦”¦”¦”¦.11:06.618 (New Record)

750cc: Gary Trachy, Orange, CA”¦”¦”¦”¦”¦”¦”¦”¦”¦”¦”¦”¦”¦”¦”¦”¦”¦”¦”¦”¦”¦”¦”¦.10:40.753 (New Record)

1205cc: Carlin Dunne, Santa Barbara, CA”¦”¦”¦”¦”¦”¦”¦”¦”¦”¦”¦”¦”¦”¦”¦”¦”¦ “¦9:52.819 (New Motorcycle Course Record)

Quad Modified: Steve Tutt, Platte City, MO”¦”¦”¦”¦”¦”¦”¦”¦”¦”¦”¦”¦”¦”¦”¦”¦”¦11:40.521 (New Record)

Sidecar: John-Thomas Wood, Victorville, CA “¦”¦”¦”¦”¦”¦”¦”¦”¦”¦”¦”¦”¦”¦”¦”¦”¦11:41.406 (New Record)

Vintage: Marc LaNoue, Houston, TX”¦”¦”¦”¦”¦”¦”¦”¦”¦”¦”¦”¦”¦”¦”¦”¦”¦”¦”¦”¦”¦..12:39.782 (New Record)

Exhibition Powersport: Doug Siddens, Austin, TX “¦”¦”¦”¦”¦”¦”¦”¦”¦”¦”¦”¦”¦.10:40.669

More, from a press release issued by Team Johnny Killmore:

Team Johnny Killmore Sets Sidecar Record At Pikes Peak

The Pikes Peak International Hill Climb saw no less than eleven records broken in the car and motorcycle division this year. With the 12.42 miles and 156 turns now fully paved, the speeds have increased dramatically. 2011 winners in the sidecar class Team Johnny Killmore (John Wood/ Chris Rizzo) smashed their previous record under clear conditions, but not without a fight. Thirteen-time Isle of Man TT veteran Wade Boyd (with passenger Christine Blunk) brought his Calgaurd Special road-racing sidecar for an attempt at America’s Mountain.

Practice showed onlookers that the winner would not be decided this year until the final turn. Day 1 (middle section) had Team Johnny Killmore ahead by 5 seconds, but on day two (top section) the gap was less than 1 second. The final day of practice (qualifying, bottom section) saw Subculture Racing move into the lead by more than 2 seconds, winning the Citizens Of Humanity- Stuntmen’s Association Top Qualifier award and a $250 prize.

The starting procedure was changed this year however, and the motorcycle division would be leaving one-by-one, with 30 second intervals between machines, and 5 minute gaps between classes. This left all competitors in the sidecar class a clear track to race with. There was no way to tell who was in the lead without updates from the live radio coverage, so the racers themselves were unsure at the summit for several minutes as to who had taken the victory. With Wood/Rizzo’s previous experience they had an edge, but they had also spun out in a hairpin near Devil’s Playground, costing them precious seconds. In the end Team Johnny Killmore’s effort gave them the win by little more than 3 seconds over Subculture Racing, with a new class record at 11:41.406, besting their previous record of 13:09.04 by a wide margin. Hans Schultz and Steve Stull finished 3rd on their home-built, street-legal machine. Quoting Wood, “This year we got a really clean run in on a gravel-free track. Wade [Boyd] gave us a helluva fight. My visor was fogging at the top and I had to go through sections with one eye closed, then we had that spin and I was thinking it was all over. I kept cracking my visor on straights but then my eyes would dry from the wind. I just tried to stay focused and it worked out.”

Team Johnny Killmore will now switch gears to the SRA-West series, which heads to Miller Motorsports Park for the Bonneville Vintage GP hosted by AHRMA. Subculture Racing will prepare for racing in Australia early next year, while driver Hans Schultz heads to the speed trials at Bonneville.

Team Johnny Killmore is a road-racing sidecar Team from Victorville, California. Driver John Wood partners with passenger’s Giorgina Gottlieb and Chris Rizzo aboard their Windle/ Suzuki Formula 2 machine. Competing in the Pikes Peak Hillclimb as well as the SRA-West Formula Sidecar series, they remain dedicated to the sport of sidecar racing in all its forms, and endeavor to promote the sport as a whole through their actions. Learn more at www.johnnykillmore.com . The team is supported by Victorville Motorcycle Center (www.vmcracing.com), Sinful Flesh Clothing (www.sinfulflesh.com) , and by the generous help of friends. The team also thanks the Wagner family and friends for their generous support of the sidecar class at this year’s race to the clouds.