Just to clarify. The "dismal turnout" was by design. There were only ever 8 spots for SBK and 8 spots for DSB. This came from Dunlop early on because of how late the tire deal was. There were a bunch teams, like ours who were invited and would have gone if we had our deals in place. I went down personally to see what was going on. The timing due to some of the instablity and late coming of the rules had a big influance too. There will be more teams at Daytona in March than there was at the tire test. Promise.
I personally think it's great. If DMG can do some good promoting and get attendance up, I think more good sponsors will be attracted. Up until now, there was little or no reason for any kind of serious, non-motorcycle industry sponsorship. No matter what kind of money a corporation was willing to throw at it, they just couldn't win. Take Jordan for example. He has the money to buy whatever he wants, but the factories wouldn't sell it to him because they didn't want the competition. Why would a big time sponsor bother to drop millions of dollars to race for 4th place? Now with the playing field leveled, anyone with the money and talent can win. It will be tough the first year, but worth it in the end. Didn't the big manufacturers boycott WSB over the spec tire rule? Look how that turned out. WSB is arguably the most exciting motorcycle racing in the world, even without full factory support.
I believe ( hope), that next season when the M-4, RRW , KWS , Yamaha, Corona , Pegram, Erion, Jordan and who ever else guys are all battling for podiums and top 10s, instead of following the Yosh bikes around. The fans are not going to be crying that Mladin, Spies and DuHamel are not there. They instead will be looking to see if they can get Ben Thompson or Blake Young's autographs to add to their collection. It wasn't the end of the world for American roadracing when Edwards and Hayden were not here anymore and it won't be any different with out Spies, DuHamel and Mladin. The fans just want a hero or two and they will have plenty to choose from next year. There will be no shortage of talent nor competitive equipment. Ken
Thats just it, out with the old and in with the new. The "names" of the future will be racing in the AMA this year and there will be a few that will be the big names in a couple of years. The top tier was a bit stagnent for some time in the AMA, with a few sniffing about, but we might see a whole new set of names on the podium with a regular basis, ala Aquino, Fong, Carter, et all.
That's good to know. I was getting worried... The suck part is that I bet you guys have had the toughest year with sponsors seeing how late everything has turned out to be, eh?
Just a general observation. Did anyone take notice that with Roger Hayden out most of the season, that SuperSport was contested by privateer teams and NO FACTORY teams? There were 11 different riders from 6 different teams that stood atop the podium. I think the class offered close racing and was finally losing factory participation with the riders wanting to ride Super Bike only. .. though I could be wrong. Todd
I will have much better luck hunting for Moose, they aren't quite so strapped right now. I'm leaning more towards hunting for a comfortable chair to sit and watch you race in. I'm thinking multiple cup holders, maybee a fan unit and must fit on the side of a very large cooler. Probably find me in the proximity of Bacon when he is not working.:up: