HOLDEN UTILIZES AFM WEEKEND IN PREPARATION OF AMA SUPERBIKE RACE AT INFINEON April 27, 2010 (Sonoma, CA)”” Jake Holden made the trip down from Washington to Sonoma, CA to participate in an AFM round at Infineon Raceway. Holden was using the AFM weekend to sort out his personal CBR1000RR that he will be racing in the upcoming AMA Superbike race. In addition to working on his machines baseline set up, Holden was using the weekend to break in his freshly rebuilt EDR Performance engine. With a minimalist crew from the Pacific Northwest including Eric Dorn of EDR, and Barry Wressell of KFG suspension, and some entry and tire budget money from Don Page of Wow Baking Company, Holden signed up for Open Superbike and Formula Pacific. Both races were gridded based on points which put Holden well back in the field. In Open Superbike, Holden was gridded on the fourth row, based on the “known fast guy rule”. By the third lap, of the eight lap race, Holden eased into the lead going into turn one. Having run as fast as a 1:37.1 in morning warmup, Holden ran consistent mid 1:37’s in the race, and crossed the finish line first. The Formula Pacific race was also gridded by points, and being the premier race of the AFM weekend, the field was quite a bit deeper. Jake was gridded on the sixth row and made short work of those gridded in front of him. By lap four, he made a pass for the lead going into turn nine. Unbeknown to Holden, he bent his shifter on a curb during his progress through the field. When he went to backshift in turn 11, he missed the bent shifter and tucked the front end, his race was over. Jake Holden: “Although I would have liked to have won both those races, I feel pretty good with what we accomplished. We ran 1:37’s pretty easy, even with a crowded racetrack. I like this track, and usually go pretty good here. I’m feeling pretty confident for the AMA weekend. Thanks to the Wow Baking Company, who helped me out this weekend with some entry and travel money, and Dunlop helping me out with tires, the budget pain was reduced a little.” For Sponsorship inquiries contact Murph at Syndicate Motorsport Management, LLC: (+1) 831 464 3458 or email: [email protected] About Holden Racing Holden Racing was created when three time AMA race winner Jake Holden was left without a ride prior to the 2009 season. Last year, Holden was a victim of paddock downsizing and was left without a full time ride. He substituted for the injured Neil Hodgson at American Honda for a few rounds, but for the most part he rode on his personal bike buying all his tires and paying all the bills. Although he had some impressive rides last year, including a fourth place at Topeka, the overall economic fitness of the AMA paddock hasn’t returned to previous levels and he was again without a full time ride in 2010. In 2009, Holden depleted his personal savings and liquidated his assets to continue racing. The Fontana round will be the first of three planned appearances for Holden in the American Superbike class, the other two being Infineon and Laguna Seca. Currently, Holden is trying to find the funding necessary to get his bike to as many additional AMA Superbike rounds as possible. The mission of Holden Racing is to showcase the riding talent of Jake Holden and provide the equipment necessary for Jake to run up front and make his way back to a factory supported team. Holden Racing understands that support, sponsorship, and opportunities all come through hard work and results. Holden Racing is supported by Bazzaz, GPR Stabilizer, Shoei, Sidi, Traxxion Dynamics and Vortex. About Syndicate Motorsport Management Syndicate Motorsport Management, LLC, is a leading motorsports management and consulting firm specializing in motorsports and motorcycle related marketing. Syndicate Motorsport Management has experience with athletes, brand building, licensed merchandise, sponsorship development and race teams. More, from a press release issued by M1GP: Results for M1GP’s 8H3 – The 3rd Annual 8 Hours at Grange – Motorcycle Endurance Race M1GP would like to thank all the racers, families and friends who came to the 3rd Annual 8 Hours at Grange (8H3) Motorcycle Endurance Race April 24th, 2010. There was a lot of great racing and pit action within the 8 hour period which added to the drama and excitement of the race. CONGRATULATIONS TO ALL THE WINNERS! (T) = Trophy Winners STOCK 100cc (T) 1st Place Team CAFE RACER Bike #81 Chris O’neal, Jason Van Slyke Best Lap Time: 1:11.691 Total Laps: 383 STOCK 50cc (T) 1st Place Team POISON DART FROG RACING – Bike #12 Kenny Anderson, Tracy Schram, Jason Aguilar, Sean Heeney Best Lap Time: 1:11:061 Total Laps: 377 (T) 2nd Place Team JAPAN – Bike #21 Yasuyo Nakamura, Ayumu Takeichi, Yoshiori Sato, Kaz Chiba, Yusaku Yoshimura Best Lap Time: 1:12:646 Total Laps: 365 (T) 3rd Place Team DMENTED RACING – Bike #2 Darren Simms, Randy Hayden, Eric Kirwan, Henry Clancy Best Lap Time: 1:14:898 Total Laps: 353 4th Place Team NOT-NOT-GOOD – Bike #5 Jeremy Ayers, Darren Beasley, Scott Deer Best Lap Time: 1:12:796 Total Laps: 350 5th Place Team It’s The Pits – Pitbull Rescue – Bike #59 IRONMAN Joshua Tootell Best Lap Time: 1:21:409 Total Laps 197 85cc 150 cc CLASS DISQUALIFIED Special thanks to: Howell Tumlin of Riders.org Pat Brennen – Medic Shelby Jocelyn – Timing Yumiko Funakoshi – M1GP Girl Blythe Mitsui – M1GP Girl Bobbie Wampler and her corner marshals Jim Granger – (Grange Motor Circuit) Very Special thanks to our volunteers: Alan Mortenson – Technical Inspector (Motorcycle) Jo Tootell – Technical Inspector (Gear) Kiki Rodriguez – Race Announcer Yasuyo Nakamura – Registration and more Very Special thanks to prize contributors (in alphabetical order): Grange Motor Circuit KORP CYCLE MotoDepot.com Simpson Racing TSO Racing Yoshimura USA For the best in mini road racing, please visit www.m1-grandprix.com More, from a press release issued by KTM North America: James Randolph Wins Formula Pacific Race aboard KTM 1190 RC8 Sonoma, CA KTM support rider James Randolph took home the first-ever Formula Pacific class win for the KTM 1190 RC8 at round 2 of the AFM Series held at Infineon Raceway. Randolph was victorious in all racing efforts that day including two wins earlier in the day where he led flag to flag in both the CityBike Open Grand Prix and Desmoto Sport Open Twins class. In the heavily contested Formula Pacific race, Randolph took the early lead until he was passed by Jake Holden. Shortly after the pass, Holden suffered a crash on turn 11 handing the lead back to Randolph who held on for the win. “It feels great to get the first win for the KTM RC8 in such a premiere class amongst top machines and riders. The bike performed great today I can’t say enough about the quality of the bike and the people involved that help make this happen,” remarked Randolph. Sponsors: KTM, Arlen Ness, Motorex, Powerstands, FMF, KTM PowerParts, Kyle Racing, Dunlop, Scuderia West, Ohlins, Epic Images, Lou Saare, Sato, WRM, Thermos Man Tuning, ACT, PFC, Catalyst Racing Composites and Shoei. More, from a press release issued by LRRS and written by Robert Holcomb: LOUDON, N.H. (April 25, 2010) – As members of the Loudon Road Race Series arrived at New Hampshire Motor Speedway, they were quickly made aware of the on-going improvements at the track. The redesigned infield RV lot was open for competitor camping along with a new shower facility located just outside of the infield tunnel. Equipment improvements include a crash retrieval hook truck stationed near pit-in and new debris sweepers for fast, efficient clean-up. A children’s playground area is nearing completion. Jerry Gappens, executive vice president and general manger of the speedway, thanked the racers for their continued support and explained plans to “improve the program… and take it up a notch.” Tom Blanchette was introduced as the new Director of Operations at the speedway. In addressing the riders for the first time, he welcomed them back to the speedway as it begins its 20th Anniversary Celebration. He outlined policy changes for paddock safety and parking. Riders cheered when Blanchette introduced a new trophy program that gives riders the option to select credits towards future entry fees. Eric Wood explained the improvements to the road course. The wall outside Loudon’s famous ‘Bowl’ has been pushed back 15 feet. An extensive gravel trap fills the space between the soft barriers along the wall and the track surface. A new strip of paving was added to the outside edge, providing a smooth transition into the gravel. Seventy-five feet of additional run-off were added to turn 7, and a gravel trap was added to the inside of turn 9. Riders were reminded to call on the Karen Hornbecker fund if they became injured and needed financial aid. Saturday’s first big race, Middleweight Superbike, was red flagged when Christian Cronin blew the engine on his Chronic Motorsports R6 at the start. After the clean-up, Scott Greenwood grabbed the holeshot aboard his Argo Cycles/Dunlop Kawasaki ZX-6R. Cory Hildebrand slotted his Bruce Transportation R6 in second right behind Greenwood, and the two made a break from the pack. Hildebrand teammate, Brent Lyskawa, got a good start from the back and held a solid third position during the early laps. Rick Breen rode his Plaistow Powersports Yamaha through the pack to take over 3rd at the half flags and held it to the finish. Kip Peterson rounded out the top 5 aboard his Motorace Michelin Suzuki GSX-R 600. Homecoming After being away for years, Dan Frisbie, the 1994-1996 champion, returned to action onboard the Seacoast/Souhegan/Cirrus Ducati PS1000. The bike was undefeated in 2009 so he knew he had good equipment to freshen his skills. Frisbie dominated Formula 50 Lights, taking the lead on the fifth lap after starting from the back row. He later went on to score a strong third in the highly contested Thunderbike class on Sunday. Frisbie raced on Dunlop slicks. $1,500 Motorace Dash for Cash Scott Greenwood gave up the holeshot to Charles Sandoz’s Seacoast Ducati 848, but quickly made the pass to lead the first lap. Cory Hildebrand also got by to secure second. Sandoz was riding well and hung tough in third place while Kip Peterson repeatedly tried to close in for the spot. On lap seven, Peterson came under attack from Brent Lyskawa, giving Sandoz some breathing room. Heavy lapped traffic wasn’t enough to change the order with Rick Breen, David Fett and Jason Carter rounding the top 8 purse paying places. Exciting New Machines Back in the paddock, two brand new Superbikes were being readied for Sunday’s liter bike classes. Brett Guyer, the most dominant lightweight racer in recent years, brought a beautiful new Aprilia RSV4 1000. While getting ready to race out of the Seacoast Sport Cycle garage, Guyer commented about feeling out the big V4. “I’m just taking it real easy right now,” Guyer said. “I’m trying to feel what she likes and doesn’t like. When I get to feeling what she doesn’t like, I just think this is good enough right here for now. I’m not much of a DOT guy, but the bike is only legal in four classes and one of them requires DOT labeled tires. It’ll be interesting, but they seem to work well enough so far.” At the other end of the paddock, Robby Nigl was readying a new BMW S1000RR Superbike under a Max BMW canopy. Max BMW is a new and exciting addition the LRRS field, and Nigl is a good rider for developing it. He has many championships both in LRRS and in historic racing, plus his Peach Pit custom paint work is some of the best on the planet. “The bike is nice”¦ Just an excellent street motorcycle,” said Nigl about his new ride. “It’s going to take 2-3 race weekends to really see where we are with the set-up. It’s so adjustable. “I started out with both the traction control and ABS off, and now I’m running with the traction control on, but the ABS off. The ABS seems to slow everything down. I am running the new Michelin for the race that requires a DOT, but I’m not sure what we’ll do for the other races.” Club Record Falls on Sunday Unlimited Grand Prix produced three of the fasted laps in LRRS history. Eric Wood lined up his Woodcraft/Dunlop Ducati 1098 on the front row with Shane Narbonne starting his DAS Performance/Dunlop GSX-R1000 from row 3C. Last May in the same event, both riders had a tremendous battle that set the previous club record with identical laps of 1:11.0. Narbonne barely won the race, and Wood barely claimed the lap record with a 1:11.05. This time Narbonne was going to need a good start and he got it. Stunning the crowd with a launch that took him through the gaps, Narbonne slammed his big Suzuki into turn 1 just ahead of Wood and put his head down to claim a small gap in the opening lap. Wood immediately began reeling him in. On the second lap, the gap closed visibly with Wood laying down an incredible 1:10.6. Narbonne clawed back a tenth on the third lap with his own 1:10.7 to Wood’s 1:10.8. By the fourth lap, they hit traffic, but still ran low 11’s while coming through. With only bike lengths separating them, Narbonne overtook a large group on the front straight who were waging their own battle. He got through clean, but Wood was balked getting through turns 1 and 1A. That was all Narbonne needed to seal the win. Steve Giacomaro, Rob Nigl and Ivan Debord filled out the top five in order. “First race, right?” said Eric Wood as he smiled reading over his time sheets. “There’s more to come don’t you think?” Tire Choices For the first time in a long while, LRRS racers were served by five trackside tire vendors. Dunlop’s Race Tire Service, Michelin’s Motorace, and Bridgestone’s Street ‘n Comp, were joined by new efforts from Pirelli and Continental. MTAG was created over the winter to offer trackside Pirelli service at Loudon as well as Tony’s Trackdays. They bring with them the latest product and a big cash paying contingency program for Expert and Amateur racers. In addition, Pirelli has launched the Diablo Challenge 600 race hosted every Sunday. It will pay cash to half the field. MTAG is led by 2001 LWGP champion, Tony Iannarelli. Boston Moto is offering the new Continental race tires that have been making their way onto eastern club grids since last season. Like Pirelli, Continental offers a large contingency program for racers scoring well on Continental racing tires. Boston Moto offers trackside tire vending at their track day venues as well as LRRS. They are headed by long-time LRRS racer, Scott Lian. Both Dunlop and Michelin have responded with not only new product, but a wide range of price points and tire combinations to offer their riders. More on LRRS trackside tire services soon.