Bobby Fong was (rightfully I think) complaining in his post race interview, haven't heard a ton outside of that.
Exactly. WERA Endurance is/was run for the racers and teams. The 200 is run as entertainment and needs a different criteria. I'd have done the restart. Now I'm still torn on working on the bikes under a red, have to think on that more. Overall though the decision was the right one and it did exactly what it should for the people paying 175k to the riders to put on a show.
Personally I wish they could do it totally away from Bikeweek. Although I haven't been there in a while - if they're still doing all of the infield stuff like shows and the like that is good for roadracing in general. Overall the stands have never truly looks full there even in the good old days.
Don't know what the record is, but my dad's first Daytona was 1948 (I still have the program). Military tours/assignments to Korea, Japan, California, and Germany did not allow a streak to really begin until 1972, when he retired (still made 1970, IIRC). Both my parents were at Daytona Bike Week every year from 1972 to 2001 - 30 years straight. A lot of Fall events as well.
Ya the working on bikes is an odd one. I can see allowing adding warmers or no tools allowed to be used under a red (except to run warmers but you get the drift). We were so used to wera rules we double checked with the officials during the red just in case. All we were doing was a nut/ bolt check so nothing major.
Sorry to hear that. Agree on the air filter but it's just a line in the sand and easy enough to follow.
Being the 200 and the length of the warmup and red laps I could possibly see adding fuel but the rest I personally would say no to. Love Jason and he rode his ass off that year but you shouldn't win with an engine swap
Fanschoice.TV now has the race archived and available to view on their site. Just scroll to the bottom to previous videos.
Thanks, I need to go back and watch laps 6 - 10, that's when the feed dropped and what I missed. Eslicks incident etc.
Per the race director, it was Daytona's decision to restart. Daytona owns the 200, they made the call. FWIW. I met Kyle at YCRS, so of course I was rooting for him. Anyone who has ever ridden at Daytona knows that these lap times are pure insanity. These guys have mastered every trick in the book and are on a whole different level. That lead pack was crazy coming through the tri-oval. They have an extra 750 RPM on everyone else, you can hear it plain as day when you're standing there, they are alot faster, than even the 1:52 guys. I don't think they were cheating, just optimized engine / bike setup, smaller / lighter weight, awesome drives, working the draft perfectly, etc. Last year I think I was doing 167 on the GPS and Eslick came by me 15 MPH faster. Like I said, just a whole 'nother level! For me the best is Pat Mooney- turning 1:54's with a ground up pinky and knee. Guys like that are an inspiration to me. Great show for the fans, and this year the speedway was more packed than I have ever seen it in my 15 years of going there. Gives you the feeling that motorcycling is not quite dead yet! Of course I did see a Harley with a 32" front wheel at the Applebee's which almost made me throw up, but hey, that's Daytona...
I had wondered at first about the restart with only a few laps to go,and thought it was silly.Then realised its not like a GT that depends on milage or time,whichever comes first...... its based on completing 200 miles regardless of time........correct? Hence the restart with only a couple laps to go
Restart made sense for the drama/excitement, I just wish the winner would have been 1 of the 2 who were leading right before the red flag. Sucks for both Paasch and Fong
I was rooting for Pat no matter what - now I've seen that nasty ass picture I'm just in awe of the crazy old man Yes, I know he's not much older than I am
Yep. Then again, Kyle set the fastest lap and none of the others could stay close enough to even draft him at a track where that almost never happens so the fastest rider that day did win the race. Give and take in all of it really.
Thanks Pat ! You are an inspiration. Proof that age does not need to stop us racing seriously if we are determined enough. That matters to some of us older guys ...
I was in garage (Y5) right beside you. Much respect to you and your team. Congrats on the great finish !!