This is the answer I got to the same question LAST WEEK....... http://www.wera.com/pdf/carolina041600.pdf
It kinda goes like this: Bring bike and stuff to track on correct weekend. Bring WERA license. Bring lots of money. Have lots of fun. Go home.
TIW's race weekends: 1. Arrive in media center at 7am. 2. Tell the media they are beautiful, special people. 4. Go home somewhere between 8pm and 1am.
Unless you're riding a motorcycle that weekend. Please refer to TIW Factory Racing post for more information.
You gotta go to more WERA races. We get there at 7am and leave anywhere from 8pm to 1am but nowhere in there do we stroke the media egos (wonder if that's why JU is the only consistent press we get...hmmmm) - I still don't understand feeding the media - I'd rather feed the corner workers and officials. I think the media in the US has gotten wayyyyyy too spoiled and impressed with their own "power" - they need to realize that the story is what's important, not how much free shit they got (and again I will say that JU and RRW reporters have never, ever written any differently even when we did do the suck-up stuff with Pro Series). Sorry, jumping back off the soap box now. Wonder what phone calls the boss will get for this one Guess I should do the disclaimer - all opinions expressed in this post are strictly the opinions of Sean Clarke and not the opinions of WERA Motorcycle Roadracing. And Sean's opinion is of course always correct - just ask him.
Oh, Mongo, you think American journalists are bad? Try dealing with the European press... FIA spoils them rotten, so when they come here, nothing is good enough. Sorry, uh...... the opninions stated in this post reflect those of TIW, and are in no way associated with her kinder, gentler, mortal form.
Sean, I'll expect a limo to pick me up at the airport for every National race that I come to cover, a golf cart to haul my preciuos ass around the track, and jelly beans with all of the yellow ones taken out.
If the average magazine reader wasn't so stupid, the press would have a lot less power. no disclaimer.
ROTFLMAO - luckily I know better - you can be "bought" with a ride in the mule to the other end of the paddock and a doughnut!
I don't consider anybody a motorcycle journalist unless they have a racing license and race, or at least have taken a serious run at racing. All the rest of them are poser hacks. What I really love is when poser hacks do stories "predicting" who will win this or win that, or pass judgement on a guy's riding or on his team. Like they know what it's like to rail into turn eight at Willow or turn one at Brainerd or into the (RIP)gravity cavity at Road Atlanta. Or like they've ever hung it out and put on the line or gotten hauled off in the ambulance when it all went wrong. I spit on them! I hold them in contempt! And I prefer to deal with racers...
JU - I have one exception to your sweeping statement, although I agree at 99%: I think John Burns at Motorcyclist is the one non-racing journalist who is actually worth a damn. Most people here don't read the glossies, I assume, but I believe he (or at least his writing, I don't know the man) deserves special mention. He sounds humble, aware of his own limitations as a rider, and he is HUGELY entertaining to read. He's the only reason I read MC. [This message has been edited by thiam1 (edited 01-24-2001).]
He gets special dispensation because he actually did race a RS125 Honda at least once...and is a decent human to boot.
