DeHaven makes successful AMA debut with two top-5 finishes. With all the nerves of a young 16-year-old Austin DeHaven overcame and took home two top-5 finishes in his AMA Pro Racing debut weekend. Competing on Dunlop tires for the first time against a stacked grid of AMA regulars and very fast riders Austin proved he can run with the best of them. After starting in 7th in Race 1, Austin’s nerves got the better of him and he made a minor jump on the start, though he came to a stop and self-corrected, and he got off the line in about 10th and had to work his way back up to 6th position where he ran strongly till the first red flag. “I was really just a bit nervous, and the way the lights came on, then off, caught me out a little as I was not ready for that. Normally they are just on the whole time till they go out and we start,” said Austin during the red flag break. With a small suspension change Austin took to the grid again now in 6th position. This time the lights were not an issue and with calmed nerves he got off the grid well and settled into the lead group. As the battle ensued Austin kept his head down and took home a solid 5th-place finish after the second red flag and shortened race. “That was so much fun I can’t wait for tomorrow!” said Austin when asked how it went.” Sunday’s Race 2 saw Austin take to the grid in 7th again, and with some major changes to the motorcycle by crew chief Robert Ward and some tips from riding coach Keith Code he was feeling confident. Again he got a good start and ran in the lead pack for much of the race, and was lining up for a move on 5th position when the first red flag came out. “That red was a bit unfortunate as just after Jake passed me I found a little more speed and was reeling him and Huntley back in, I felt I was ready to make the pass in that lap or the next.” On the restart Austin settled into a strong battle running nose to tail for 4th position with a group of three other riders “On the last lap I got a great drive down the esses, man it was fast. As I closed up to Elena over the rise into 9a I saw she got a big wiggle. I knew it was my only chance so I dove up the inside of her and I don’t think she had any idea I was there because I came from so far back. It sorta stood her up, and at the same time I missed a shift which allowed Tyler to get by and drag race me into the last turn. It was so close, we came out of the last corner and I cracked open the throttle as hard as I could, climbing all over the tank to keep the front down as I pulled along side of Tyler and we banged bars, elbows, knees, we just kept bumping each other all the way across the line, so close I missed out on 3rd by .014 of a second.” A great finish for his debut AMA Pro race. Austin wishes to thank all his sponsors, supporters, family and friends. Without everyone we couldn’t have done it. For more info visit ~http://www.austindehaven.com~ More, from a press release issued by Team GPal/Calguns: A TOP 15 FINISH FOR CRAIG MASON AND TEAM GPAL/CALGUNS IN AMA PRO RACING’S DAYTONA SPORTBIKE RACE AT THE WEST COAST MOTO JAM AT INFINEON RACEWAY IN SONOMA CA. GPAL/CALGUNS rider Craig Mason left the rolling hills of Sonoma, CA with two great finishes in the Daytona Sportbike Races at Infineon Raceway after struggling in qualifying. In Race #1 on Saturday Craig started from 29th on the grid, and he quickly pulled into the top 20 within a few laps passing riders that out qualified him. He had some hard fought battles with a factory backed rider. Mason was 20th till the penultimate lap and left the door open and finished 21st in race #1. The team worked a bit on the mental aspect to ensure Mason’s head was more into racing for Sundays Race, including convincing Mason to “Breathe” and make sure he was having fun. On Sunday in Race #2 Mason was on top of his game, and jumping from the very back row to mid-pack in the first lap. Craig went on to ride all the way to 14th place even on a bashed ankle, after being hit by a fellow competitor in turn 9 on the re-start. Ben Cannon Principal for Team GPAL/CALGUNS Racing. “I couldn’t be happier with Craig and the rest of our team, Craig has so much potential and we have the best and most motivated team I have ever worked with. This is the first outing for team GPAL/CALGUNS and to place this week is great for us. Look out for us at select AMA and AFM races! Craig Mason and team GPAL/CALGUNS are coming on strong!” Craig Mason Rider & Principal for Team GPAL/CALGUNS Racing. “The whole weekend was a bit surreal with so many cool people trying to help me do what I needed to do. I never seem to ever get enough time on the bike to get comfortable for qualifying, but I knew I was going to move up in the race. “In race one we got derailed going back and forth with another racer. I think we passed back and forth at least 9-10 times which made for a great battle but kept my head out of the greater race. “In race two we were able to hang with the lead group for about 6 laps prior to the red flag. I battled back and forth with faster guys that I am not used to riding with which was very cool. “Mid race I made up some time but I was a bit winded and I was trying to breathe which is something I forget to do at times. As the laps wound down I was trying to figure were I was at and I was thinking 15th. With 2 laps to go I had another rider close but I felt comfortable, but on the final turn of the race he dove under me and pushed me wide and we had a drag race to the line. Had he not swung over very abruptly in the last few feet I think we may have got him back. But it’s OK he was close enough to make that move, I have to be happy with a 14th as I have been off a bike for over 10 months and on the couch and it’s my best finish in AMA Pro Road Racing so far so. I am pumped.” Gpal.net/Calguns.net wants to thank all of the people who support them: Fast50s.com, Slide Motorsports, Greateryamaha.com, Advanced Metal Finishing and Powder Coating, Tech-Spec USA, Motion Pro, LeoVince, NJK Leathers, Bell Helmets, GPR Stabilizers, Maxima Racing Oils, Vortex, Sportbike Night Racing, Catalyst Reaction Suspension, Bickle tire warmer and knee pucks, Affordable RV in Auburn, CA, Mike Wymer Performance, Axial Video, Kevin Green Tuning, Mike D & Cytomax. More, from a press release issued by Rockwall Performance: CAMERON BEAUBIER VICTORIOUS AT INFINEON RACEWAY AMA Pro SuperSport East Division title leader Cameron Beaubier registered a tremendous weekend in a one-off West Division showing at Infineon Raceway. The teenager dominated both qualifying sessions and scored a pair of podium finishes, including a lopsided victory in Sunday’s 18-lap main event. Beaubier, racing with the Mazda Technologies team with technical support from Rockwall Performance in a non-points paying round for the East Division regular, scooped up the pole position by nearly a full second at the Northern Californian circuit with a quick time of 1:40.355. The local favorite appeared set to make good on that qualifying position in Saturday’s race but the contest played out in an eerily similar fashion to Sunday’s race at Road Atlanta, which saw the Yamaha R6 rider’s early lead erased by a red flag. A second red flag ended the race early with Cameron earning a runner-up finish. Beaubier proved his composure on Sunday, however, when yet another red flag robbed him of a hard-earned early advantage. This time the talented future star escaped with his lead intact at the restart and was never headed, running off to a 5.255-second margin of victory at the checkered flag. At the conclusion of the weekend, Cameron said, “On Saturday I felt really strong and pulled a little gap. I just put my head down and we did seven laps when it was red flagged. I didn’t really get a good start after the red flag and we were having a really good battle for first and then there was another red flag. I just got a little unlucky. “I was a little nervous when I saw that red flag again because it was a flashback to Saturday. But I just got my head together and made sure to get a good start,” said the Roseville, CA native. “It feels awesome to win again. I had a little bad luck the last two races but this time I got a strong start in the restart and I took off. I felt really comfortable and the bike was working great. I’d like to thank my dad, Mazda Technologies and all the people that joined together to make this West Coast race happen for me, and Rockwall Performance for helping me out. It’s really nice to be racing close to home because my friends and family were able to come out and watch me race. It was a lot fun.” Beaubier will fight to extend his AMA Pro SuperSport East Division title lead at Road America on June 4-6. More, from a press release issued by Nick Hayman: “Old Gun” Nick Hayman gets top 10 finish, AMA Pro Supersport, Infineon Raceway , May 15th. Munroe Motors of San Francisco’s head honcho, Nick Hayman, suffered from temporary insanity last week when he entered the Pro Supersport class on a Ducati 848 at the West Coast Moto Jam AMA Nationals at Infineon Raceway, May 14th-16th. “I road raced in the AFM here in Nor. Cal. from 1986 to 1992 when I was in my 30’s “¦on a Moto Guzzi , which shows how smart I am. In 2007, I started racing again in the AFM, and I wound up setting myself the dubious goal of being the fastest/oldest guy out there. When I saw the opportunity to run an AMA National this weekend, in the Supersport ‘Top Gun’ category, I couldn’t resist the idea of beating up on some upstart 16 year-olds. Of course they kicked my ass – a girl too, for that matter – but I managed to get 10th place in the Saturday race, so it felt like I’d chalked one up for the has-beens, or in my case, never-wases. I did run one AMA National back in 1989 before most of my Young Gun competitors were born, but this weekend goes to show rusty racers everywhere that it’s still a bunch of fun racing motorcycles. Thanks to my friends for helping make the ridiculous possible:- Maestro Todd Chamberlin of Munroe Motors for doing so much work for Cola and Doritos, Pat Blackburn of Trackside Moto for the loan of the 848, my friends at Ducati North America, Dave, Jim and Nikki of Catalyst Reaction Suspension, Scott and Eric from Arlen Ness Leathers, Kyle USA, HJC Helmets, TCX Boots, Senor James Siddall of Super Plush Suspension, Tim, Rick and gang at Leo Vince USA, Yoyodyne, Dennis, Terry and the crew at Sport Tire Services/Dunlop, Jim from Vehicle Systems, and of course racer-chick extraordinaire Linda Jung.” More, from a press release issued by Zero Motorcycles: ZERO AGNI TEAM WINS FIRST EVER NORTH AMERICAN ELECTRIC SUPERBIKE RACE – Zero Motorcycles / Agni Motors Team Makes History at TTXGP – SANTA CRUZ, Calif. (May 19, 2010) Team Zero Agni took home top honors at the inaugural TTXGP and goes down in history as the first winner of a fully electric motorcycle championship series road race held in North America. The 11-lap duel took place last Sunday at Infineon Raceway in Sonoma, California, with accomplished AMA racer Shawn Higbee emerging victorious on his Zero/Agni prepared motorcycle. As the weekend progressed, Higbee dominated the field to qualify for the pole position and held off an intense battle brought on by second-place finisher Michael Barnes. The stealthy competitors maintained a consistent pace that was only 18 seconds off the lap times of the AMA Superbikes, which proved to be an impressive showing for the all-electric motorcycles in their first outing. To see videos and photos from the event, visit: ~http://www.zeromotorcycles.com/ttxgp~ “I think this could turn into something big. It’s going to introduce a whole new industry to motorcycling,” Higbee said. “The engineers at Zero Motorcycles and Agni Motors are a whole new breed. I’m surprised at how close we are to gas bikes already. The lack of vibration is a new experience and the bike is very agile, you just glide along.” “Shawn rode a great race, the motorcycle performed perfectly and the duel on the track made an already exciting race even more fun to watch,” said Gene Banman, CEO of Zero Motorcycles. “The effort that our team put into this race resulted in a fantastic demonstration of electric motorcycle performance. At the same time, Zero is using this as an opportunity to test the new designs and technology that will drive the next evolution of Zero’s production motorcycles.” Zero Motorcycles and Agni Motors are no strangers to competition. In 2009, Zero Motorcycles held “The 24 Hours of Electricross” which became the world’s first all-electric 24-hour off-road race. Also in 2009, Agni Motors produced a convincing win in the PRO Class at the inaugural TTXGP at the Isle of Man during the world’s first zero-carbon race. This year, Zero Motorcycles claimed first place in the final heat of a European off-road race and third overall amongst a field of 250 gas motorcycles. Based on the success that Agni’s motors have displayed on the racetrack, Zero Motorcycles incorporated a race-proven Agni motor into the powertrains of the 2010 Zero S and Zero DS production models. Zero Motorcycles is the next step in motorcycle evolution and represents the ultimate electric motorcycle technology. Unencumbered by conventional thinking about how they design, manufacture, and sell high performance electric motorcycles, they are on a mission to turn heads and revolutionize their industry by combining the best aspects of a traditional motorcycle with today’s most advanced technology. The result is an electric motorcycle line that’s insanely fast and environmentally friendly. Zero Motorcycles’ complete motorcycle lineup is available for purchase exclusively through the Zero Motorcycles website at: www.zeromotorcycles.com. To schedule a demo ride in your area, visit www.zeromotorcycles.com/locator. Agni Motors information is available at: www.agnimotors.com