BRESLAU, Ont. Despite the discomfort of a broken wrist Team Toyota Yamaha / Fast Company Racing’s Kevin Lacombe came within a whisker of two victories at the final round of the Parts Canada Superbike Championship at Shannonville Motorsport Park last weekend. In the feature Superbike race the 25-year-old from Granby, Que. battled with Brett McCormick and crossed the finish line just 0.113 seconds behind on his Scott Miller-prepared Yamaha YZF-R1. In the Yoshimura Pro 600 Sport Bike race Lacombe had to settle for a third place finish, a tantalizing 0.651 secs. away from the victory on his Yamaha YZF-R6. “It would have been nice to win in the final round of the season,” said Lacombe, who broke his wrist in a crash at the previous Parts Canada Superbike event at Atlantic Motorsport Park on Aug. 9. “I can’t say enough about the whole team. I didn’t want to ride too much because of my wrist, but we made big changes every time and improved the bikes. “I was able to do some quick laps in practice and qualifying, but I was at a little disadvantage in the race when I had to push hard to overtake. If I lost the front end I couldn’t counter steer and I couldn’t really make passes.” Lacombe lined up fourth on the grid for the Superbike race but slotted into second behind polesitter McCormick off the start. The Yamaha rider followed the teenager until lap nine of 20, when he grabbed the lead in the hairpin. He stayed in front until lap 19, but as the leaders negotiated lapped traffic McCormick regained the lead in the hairpin. “If we had a couple more laps, we had a clear track in front of us and I could have tried something at the end,” Lacombe explained. “But I just didn’t have enough time.” Lacombe started third in the Pro 600 race and moved into second behind Szoke when the start lights went green. He passed Szoke on lap two of 18 and stayed in front for four laps before Szoke got him back at the end of the backstraight. Lacombe was lining up a pass in turn two on the final lap but found himself running out of racetrack. He eased off the throttle and McCormick pounced to grab second. “Jordan was slow out of turn two and I tried to go around him but I got pushed wide and Brett got around me. He ran a defensive line from there and I just couldn’t pass.” Lacombe ended the Parts Canada Superbike season third in points and took second in the Yoshimura Pro 600 Sport Bike standings. “We learned a lot this year,” said Lacombe of his first season with the Team Toyota Yamaha / Fast Company Racing team. “Hopefully we’ll be back together again next year. If we are, I think it will be a whole different ball game.” More, from a press release issued by Misti Hurst: Privateer Team, Slednecks Racing, Experiences a Tough Ending to what was Otherwise an Outstanding AMA Season Braselton, Georgia: Slednecks Racing will end their debut AMA season a little early after a string of tough luck hit riders, Josh Galster and Misti Hurst. During Sunday’s AMA Supersport race at Road Atlanta, Galster suffered a bad crash that has left him with a severely broken wrist and left hand, as well as a fractured C2-vertebrae in his neck. Also known as a “hangman’s fracture,” this type of break in the neck could have easily resulted in full or partial paralysis. Galster will be fitted with a halo to stabilize the neck before flying out to California where he will undergo surgery for his wrist and where they will make the final decision of whether or not to perform surgery on his neck. He is expected to make a complete recovery and is in good spirits. “I want to thank everyone for their thoughts and prayers.” He said. “People have been so supportive and awesome. Thanks.” The weekend was a difficult one for Galster who was in the running for the Rookie of the Year award. Chasing bike problems for the last three weekends in a row, the team spent most of the practice sessions working out the main issues and had little time left over to set up the bike and suspension before the start of the Supersport Race. Qualifying in 28th position with a time of 1:32.4, Galster got a poor start and was left pushing his way through the pack when the race was red flagged due to a crash that involved several riders. “The second start was much better.” Said Galster. “I was feeling really good, the bike was running awesome and I was gaining on some guys.” Galster dropped his times down to a 1:31.7 and was running as high up as 20th place when suddenly he lost the rear coming out of turn 5 and was launched high into the air. “I flipped a bunch of times,” He explained from the hospital, “people almost ran over me, and I jumped up and walked off the track, yelling at the corner workers and telling them NOT to red flag the race, that I would walk back to the pits. I knew my hand was bust because my ring finger was pointed to my thumb, and my neck hurt a bit. It wasn’t until they did the CT Scan and X-Ray that I found out it was actually broken.” Galster’s teammate Hurst, who withdrew from the race at VIR and was not in attendance at Road Atlanta due to unexpected circumstances, was relieved to hear that Josh was fairing OK. “I was watching the race on Live Timing when I saw that he went down. It is a helpless feeling to not know what is happening and I was on the phone immediately waiting to hear the news. I’m just glad that he is alright.” Slednecks Racing had plans to attend the final round of races at Mazda Raceway Laguna Seca later on in the month where both riders were to compete, but unfortunately neither will be in attendance. “It’s a very volatile sport,” Says Hurst “Anything can happen and plans change all the time. That’s racing.” Josh and Misti would like to thank all of their incredible sponsors, fans, friends and family for their support throughout the season. Keep up with Slednecks Racing’s news, upcoming events and plans for next season at www.slednecks.com or www.mistihurst.com More, from a press release issued by Sportsbike.com.au: RACE REPORT — AUSTRALIAN SUPERBIKE PRO-TWINS CHAMPIONSHIP. ROUND 6 — SYMMONS PLAINS TASMANIA : 29 — 31 AUGUST 2008 MARTIN CONSOLIDATES 6TH IN ASC PRO-TWINS CHAMPIONSHIP. Peter Martin riding the Sportsbike – ducationly.com Ducati 999S now has an unassailable hold on 6th position in the ASC Pro-Twins and remains the highest placed non Ducati 1098 rider **in the Australian Superbike Pro-Twins Championship. The challenging Symmons Plains layout gave every opportunity to lose time and little to gain time, Martin had not been there before and worked hard to drop 2 seconds off Practice lap times to Qualify at the back of the Pro-Twins Grid. With consistency Martin moved up finishing 6th, 6th & 6th in the three races. Martin can not now be challenged for 6th Position in the Championship and while 5th position is still possible, it would require a significant lift in performance and the misfortune of others to move higher in the Championship. Craig McMartin took another three race wins and has now secured the title for a record 8th time. Craig McMartin (Ducati 1098S) now leads the Championship with 400pts followed by Daniel Wheeler (Ducati 1098S — 300pts), Mick Johnston (Ducati 1098S – 281pts) closely followed by Richard Liminton moving up to fourth (Ducati 1098S – 249pts). Damian Sutton (Ducati 1098S — 242pts) has dropped to fifth and Peter Martin goes into the last Round in 6th position with 216 Championship Points, fourth highest placed Privateer and the highest placed non Ducati 1098 rider in the field. RIDER COMMENTS: “I had not been to Symmons Plains before, it’s a great Circuit. Packed into the comparatively short 2.41kms there are so many places to loose time and so few to get time back. There are elevation changes, fast corners, hard braking, flowing left and rights and slow precise corners all asking much of the rider. I Tested Thursday and quickly got my times down to 1:06’s, from there I dropped a further 2 seconds in Qualifying yet it was hard work to get below 1:04 and I did not go quicker all weekend”. “To be honest, I am disappointed that I did not do better. I feel as if I can do better and I am not, there is always something in ‘reserve’. Maybe I am lacking the level of AGGRESSION required, the ‘Mongrel’ to compel me to push to the limit. There is improved confidence and other riders tell me that technically I am riding well and holding good corner speed yet all that is undermined by the actual results. I am still rolling off the throttle earlier than I should and only occasionally braking as hard as I can. There is one more ASC and I have 7 weeks to get my head right.” “My sincere congratulations to Craig McMartin on winning his 8th Pro-Twins Championship, Craig’s success is well deserved. The whole Pro-Twins Class has someone to chase and while Daniel Wheeler and Damian Sutton have gone close this year, Craig has seldom been pushed. There are riders out there who can push Craig and they have not shown themselves by entering this great racing class and credible Australian Championship”. “My thanks goes to MV Agusta’s Trinder Brothers Racing for helping me get the bike out for races and Qualifying, also to Terry Hay of Shock Treatment for his Suspension help and with a wet set up on Sunday”. More, from a press release issued by American Honda: Erion Racing Honda wins third consecutive Formula Xtreme Championship; first title win for Jake Zemke Erion Racing Honda’s Jake Zemke was victorious in claiming his first-ever Formula Xtreme Championship aboard his CBR600RR at round 10 of the AMA Superbike Championship in Atlanta over the weekend. Zemke headed into the event with a 45-point lead over second place. After adding 32 points to his championship tally at Atlanta, Zemke locked up the title with one round remaining over his teammate, 2006 and 2007 Formula Xtreme Champion Josh Hayes. “It’s really great to win my first Formula Xtreme title,” said Zemke. “It means a lot to the team to hold onto the title after Josh’s success over the past two seasons. The win really demonstrates Erion Racing Honda’s dominance over the Formula Xtreme competition. I won my first-ever Formula Xtreme race aboard an Erion Racing Honda-prepared race bike when I was racing for the Bruce Transportation team many years back, so to win my first Formula Xtreme title now for the Erion Racing Honda team is awesome.” Zemke finished the Atlanta race in second, just 0.043 seconds behind race-winner Hayes. Zemke’s finish gave him the points he needed to hold off Hayes for the title win. “Jake has been a fierce competitor all season and has done a consistent job each week, getting his bike over the finish line,” said Hayes. “Having the honor of being the Formula Xtreme Champion for the past two years, I know how much work it takes to consistently win titles. It’s been an up and down season of highs and lows for me and if I had to hand my title over to someone else, who better than my own Honda teammate.” Laguna Seca will host the final round of the AMA Superbike Championship series on September 27-28, 2008 and the Erion Racing Honda pilots will both be out chasing down points in the Supersport class, as well as competing in the Formula Xtreme race on their CBR600RRs. In Supersport, Zemke is currently second in the championship hunt, only 24 points behind the leader, and with a little luck on his side he could possibly claim title number two for the season. Hayes is currently in third in Supersport points. More, from a press release issued by RMP Racing: Dedicated Crew Keeps Millson Top 10 in Championship Points SHANNONVILLE ON September 3, 2008 At the final around of the 2008 Parts Canada Superbike Series held this past weekend at Shannonville Motorsports Park, RMP Racing’s Ross Millson overcame a devastating crash during Saturday’s morning qualifying to maintain his status as the second highest ranked Superbike privateer in Canada. Millson’s pre-race schedule began early Wednesday morning where he, Motorcycle Instructor Bob Sagon King, and RMP Racing’s development rider Steven Nickerson spent the morning chatting with CHCH TVs Morning Live’s Lesley Stewart. Motorcycle training, equipment and Superbike racing were discussed during the live broadcast from Ultimate Cycle in Hamilton. During the broadcast two lucky call-in contestants were treated to two prize packages. The featured giveaway included two free passes to this past weekend’s race courtesy of Shannonville Motosports Park and R.A.C.E, a T-shirt and one year subscription to Inside Motorcycles courtesy of the magazine and a 2007 Series DVD and hat courtesy of PMP. Millson took to the track Thursday morning for a pre-race Trackday. He utilized this event to gage his setup and investigate any changes to this temperamental track. Friday morning’s practice sessions were a washout due to a continuous light rain. By mid-afternoon the track conditions improved allowing for the competitors to finally test their setups. Millson’s best lap time of 1:07.762 positioned him as the 11th fastest rider of the session. Sunny skies and warm weather was just what the doctor ordered for Saturday’s morning qualifying session. Millson took to Shannonville’s 2.45-KM (1.5 miles) ‘Pro’ Track configuration and began to get the tires up to temperature. Beginning his ninth lap Millson entered corner 6 and lost the front end of his Summit Gearworks Suzuki GSX-R1000. The rear tire regained its grip sending Millson, intertwined with his bike, into the air. Millson was taken to the local medical center and received stitches, to close a large laceration to his inner left thigh. Millson also suffered from contusions to his lower legs. Sore and disappointed, Millson returned to the paddock to find that his mangled bike was already being stripped of all its damaged parts, just in case he could race in Sunday’s feature. “I knew if he could race we had to get on it!” said Crew Chief Mark Millson. “It takes a lot to keep Ross from giving it his all, and we had to be prepared to give him a bike to race if he was able to.” It took most of Saturday afternoon and into the evening for RMP Racing’s Crew Chief Mark Millson, Blaine Groves, the Roz-Gar Racing crew and Suzuki SVCUP racer, John Jarvie, to get the battered bike race ready. Sunday’s weather was once again picture perfect for a full day of racing at Shannonville Motorsports Park. Millson spent most of his morning resting and icing his injuries. After consulting with “Doc” Walker, Millson decided he would attempt to ride for points in Sunday afternoon’s feature race. Millson rolled out onto the front straight to take his 14th place position on the grid. In front of the packed Shannonville stands the lights went out and field was off. Initially it had appeared that Millson was slow to react however moments later it was determined that rider in front and to the right of him had jumped the start. Looking stronger than expected, Millson would gradually work his way up to 12th place. Millson stayed with a tightly packed group of riders for over half of the 20 lap feature. However in the final few laps of the race it became obvious that Millson’s injuries were preventing him from maintaining the pace. Millson eventually dropped back and crossed the finish line in 15th place. Although this was not the result he had envisioned earlier in the week, he was able to earn enough points to finish the 2008 season 9th overall in the Championship point standings. “I had nothing left for the end of the race. I couldn’t grip the tank or extend my knee.” said the visibly exhausted rider. “I can’t thank Mark, Blaine, Sabrina, Jessica, John, the whole Roz-Gar Racing crew and ‘Doc’ Walker enough. Without their amazing efforts I wouldn’t have been able to race today!” RMP Racing would like to congratulate Roz-Gar Racing’s Jodi Christie on winning the Amateur 600 Sport Bike Championship. Millson will spend the next few weeks recuperating before beginning to train for the 2009 season. Visit http://www.rmpracing.ca to learn more about the team and the sponsors that support RMP Racing. Up next for RMP Racing’s Steven Nickerson is the final round of the 2008 R.A.C.E. SUPER SERIES at Shannonville Motorsport Park – September 26-28. More, from a press release issued by NCR Ducati: NCR-Ducati, NATIONAL THUNDER CHAMPIONS!!! Shannonville, Ontario – Wednesday, September 3, 2008: What more can be said!!! The NCR-Ducati 848 dominated the final round of the Parts Canada Superbike Championship in the Thunder Class. Competing against an overwhelming class of Buell’s, BMW’s, KTM’s and Ducati’s, the NCR-Ducati team finished 1st and 2nd for the fourth time this year. In fact, the NCR-Ducati team has captured every single pole and won every race in the series. In the weight restricted and horsepower restricted series, the Ducati 848 was the perfect weapon of choice and performed flawlessly to capture the National Thunder Championship. Many thanks goes out to the team, NCR, Ducati North America, Poggipolini Titanium and all the fans for their strong support and encouragement throughout the season. Best wishes to Patrick Chartrand for a speedy recovery who crashed while in a solid podium finish position in the Canadian ST Class. More, from a press release issued by Alex Gobert: RRPA’s Hook continues learning curve in Tasmania For Immediate Release: 3 September, 2008 Alex Gobert’s Road Race Performance Academy rookie Josh Hook continued to gain experience in the 2008 AMCN Australian 125 Grand Prix Championship last weekend, racing to seventh position at the sixth round of the series held at Symmons Plains Raceway in Tasmania on 28-31 August. The 15-year-old qualified his Honda-engined Moriwaki MD250H four-stroke in ninth position during Saturday morning’s final qualifying session amongst a field of race-bred 125cc two-strokes, lowering his lap times with every lap of the 2.41 kilometre circuit. The opening race of the weekend saw the teenager from Taree, New South Wales, race from the third row of the grid up into fourth spot into turn one, before settling into ninth position for the remainder of the nine lap race on Saturday afternoon. Sunday morning’s warm-up session was held in wet conditions, with Hook catapulting up into second position in the session, which also marked his first time ever on full wet weather tyres. A drying circuit greeted the riders come Sunday morning’s race two of the weekend, with Hook racing on wet weather tyres to a solid sixth position. That result was mirrored in the third, and final, race of the weekend, with Hook again scoring sixth after a battle with previous round winner Brad Gross. That result handed Hook seventh overall for the weekend, with the overall taken out by multiple times Australian 125GP Champion Peter Galvin (Honda RS125) ahead of Rhys Moller (Honda FRS125) and Andy Lawson Jr (Honda RS125). The result also moved Hook into 11th position overall in the championship after competing at only four of the six rounds run, with Motologic Honda factory-supported rider Brodie Waters the top four-stroke in the series in ninth position. Hook will now compete at the final round of the MRRDA Series on his Honda CBR150 at Phillip Island, Victoria, on 6-7 September, where he currently sits in third position in the championship after winning the previous round at Wakefield Park last month. Returning to Wakefield Park for more experience on his Moriwaki MD250H, Hook will attend the Road Race Performance Academy’s inaugural coaching school on 10 September, with positions still available for riders who want to advance their riding under the guidance of Alex Gobert and current Australian Superbike Championship points leader Glenn Allerton. Visit the Road Race Performance Academy website at www.rrpa.com.au for entry forms and further information or contact Alex Gobert via email at [email protected].