An AMA team test at Road Atlanta encountered problems Tuesday morning when riders found new sections of the track to be too slippery. One part of the problem was repairs recently made in Turns Four and 12 left the track surface with a very smooth, dusty and slippery finish, contributing to at least two crashes. “The track had to be ground in the new sections [Turns Four and 12], and they’re like glass,” said six-time AMA Superbike Champion Mat Mladin. “As soon as I got to the new [Turn 12] corner,” said Cory West, “I turned in and rode across the new ground-down section. I didn’t even pick the throttle up or anything, but when I was on it the rear tire just slid out from under me, went to full lock and threw me over the highside. I almost hit the ground running I was going so slow.” The grinding process was necessary to finish repairs done to remove significant bumps from the new, motorcycle-only sections and was identical to the grinding process the track performed last year in Turns Five, Six and Seven, track representatives told the riders. Another problem, one the teams anticipated needing to evaluate, was the new Turn Four chicane, installed last winter to replace the old, third-gear, wall-lined Turn Four. But the new Turn Four chicane immediately proved to be unsuitable for motorcycle racing. “We can’t run it as it is because the direction of [crashed] bikes is leading them directly back on the track and wiping people out,” said Geoff May. “Robertino [Pietri] laid it down there, I think, on his out lap, and it still ended up out in the race line. So we’re trying to figure out a short-term solution so we can race for the weekend coming up, and a better long-term solution.” After completing a little over 10 laps, Mladin and his team packed up and called it a day, but he left open the possibility of riding on Tuesday. Pietri’s team, Team Roadracingworld.com Suzuki, and West’s team, Team M4 EMGO Suzuki, packed up their transporters and left the test. “Keith [Perry, Team M4 EMGO Suzuki Crew Chief] made the call,” said West. “He said this isn’t testing. This is more trying to not tear anything up. So he called it quits.” Other riders at the test met with representatives with Road Atlanta (including President Geoff Lee and Motorcycle Operations Manager Marnie Lincoln) and AMA Pro Racing Special Projects Manager Bill Syfan to discuss the situation and try to come up with solutions. To address the lack of traction in the slippery sections, Road Atlanta sent sweepers out to clean dust off the surface and sent other vehicles to drive over the sections to put some rubber down. Turn Four required more work, however. First, riders suggested using traffic cones to change the angle of entry into the chicane so that a rider who crashed at the entrance would not slide across the exit and hit another rider. If it worked, hopes were to replace the cones with temporary curbing for the AMA Superbike event at Road Atlanta, which is scheduled for August 29-31. Riders tried this set-up for a short time, but a third option and a back-up plan were quickly formed, according to riders at the test. Road Atlanta will try to add a new section of asphalt between the new and old Turn Fours creating a fast yet simple kink between the Turn Three chicane and the existing Turn Five. If the new section of asphalt cannot be added in time for the AMA Superbike race weekend (it will require blasting away solid granite just under the surface of the ground), the old Turn Four will be used. “Both Bostroms [Ben and Eric] were up there, [Jamie] Hacking, [Miguel] Duhamel and [Neil] Hodgson and myself and [Josh] Herrin and [Josh] DiSalvo,” said May, “and we were looking at it and looking at possibly saying why don’t we just run it straight, make a straight line through the grass between the old and the new and straighten it out for a long-term thing. It keeps you away from the wall on rider’s left, which is the reason why they made it, and you won’t have to worry about a bike coming across the track and hitting you, either.” Either way Turn Four is run, the event will happen in the rain, riders were told. Ben Spies did not ride on Tuesday, using the time to continue to recover from the Mid-Ohio race weekend and his recent abdominal surgery. Tommy and Roger Hayden also did not ride Tuesday, instead attending a funeral for their maternal grandfather, Richard Kamuf.