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MotoAmerica | Superbikes at Pittsburgh presented by LaRoche Aviation Services | Aug 19-21

Discussion in 'General' started by RossK6, Aug 16, 2022.

  1. Trainwreck

    Trainwreck I could give a heck

    I dunno man.. I know a good amount of top 5 club racers who pretty much don't want anything to do with MA.. So, not sure if this will work... Jr-Cup is really fun to watch, and it gets parents/kids kind of pumped up. I'm not into the baggers, but I get the gimmick behind it. Hooligan class fuckin rules and I want to see more of that shit for sure. Would be awesome to allow the Hooligan class to essentially be naked Superbikes, but ban electronics... make em wild! lol.

    Personally, I think the only way for these slower guys to get in the mix, is to continue to show up and be on track with these super fast MA guys... Look at Mesa, he demolished everyone last weekend at the WERA Sprint races, but is about 2.3 seconds off in Supersport and a full second off in Stock 1000.. (as of Q1) I would argue that he is in the top 3 club racers East of the Mississippi.. He races all year around too.. To continue to put a bunch more red tape around entering a series that has been busting it's ass to rebuild the sport in the USA, may not be the best move. These weekend warriors show up, pay their fee's spends thousands of dollars a round on tires, buy the VP fuel, etc..

    In classes like Stock1000 you have guys showing up with a small enclosed trailer, knowing that they're weekend is honestly based off what kind of times they're able to set, in comparison to dudes who are arriving to the track, and walking up to the semi that got there days before them. Then out of this semi comes a $40K Alpha built bike, with a full spares package and a knowledgeable crew. There's a HUGE underdog aspect in classes like Stock1000 and SuperSport, and to be honest that makes those classes really appealing to me. I assume I have an outer space view of what's going on in that paddock.. But John The Welder, whos doing what he can to make 3-4 MA rounds a year is fighting a massive uphill battle to stay on par with a team that's easily spending $100K a year to run a superstock program. If he's being safe, consistent, and predictable, while meeting the qualifying threshold. Let the fella run his laps.

    If N2/WERA can run a 4 Hour Endurance race with 200hp Superbikes on track with 100hp SV's, and MotoGP race winners vs John The Welder Jr in his first year of racing, and not have any red flags... I think the MA grid can handle some weekend warriors showing up to see how they can run with the series regulars.
     
  2. Pneumatico Delle Vittorie

    Pneumatico Delle Vittorie Retired "Tire" Guy

    Huh? Mesa has won a MA race, finished 6th in the points one year, and has 25 podiums according to the MA website
     
  3. Trainwreck

    Trainwreck I could give a heck

    I'm not implying that he's not doing great at all! I think Mesa is awesome, and I'm a big fan! . What I am saying is that he is prolly the best racer that the clubs have to offer. He beats people in the clubs by a good margin. Yet this doesn't always translate into MA. So requiring people to have to run a whole ass national club calendar, finish top 5 in it, THEN try to qualify for a MA round is silly..

    I think the points requirement structure is good. It allows guys like Mesa to try and cherry pick between WERA, CCS, ASRA, PanAm ETC. for contingency without having to be tied to a national challenge to meet requirements for MA.

    If people wanna race MotoAmerica they should be able to try and qualify if they want to. Based on speed and experience. Not how they ended up in standing in a club championship. There's a kid in Supersport right now that's literally only raced WERA at Grattan, Tally and Barber.. He's doing just fine I think he was top 15 yesterday. He's only been to Pitt once.

    FWIW I am usually cheering for Mesa in Stock1000 and Supersport, he's one of my favorite riders in the paddock, and I'd like to see him get a fulltime ride at some point.
     
  4. pjzocc

    pjzocc Well-Known Member

    Shiloh just stated Kevin Olmedo won’t be back this season.

    That sucks.
     
  5. kenessex

    kenessex unregistered user

    I guess I would like MA to be more professional than what it is, both for the fans and the racers, not to mention those that are trying to make a living out of it. I would not want to eliminate the number of riders that participate, but would like them to be more competitive in the classes they are in. I don't mind the baggers, except they seem to be more of a gimmic rather than true race bikes, but if it puts money in the game and butts in the seats, so be it. However, the Hooligan class offers the same opportunity to Harley and Indian to get their products on the track and can include a bunch of other manufacturers, too.
    I don't think a MA weekend is any place for developing riders and would rather see the Jr cup and the BTR stuff at the national club level with less pressure and expense to build skill and experience so the riders are ready to step up to the pro level. If they run out of skill and money before they get there then so be it.
     
  6. Trainwreck

    Trainwreck I could give a heck

    I just saw the commercial for Laroche’s Aviation Tree Service company.

    That shit looks wild as hell! Lol
     
  7. Gino230

    Gino230 Well-Known Member

    I think we ALL would wish for a bigger, more talent laden race series, kind of like what we had in the good old days. That takes one thing, and one thing only. Truckloads of MONEY. Talent will follow. Right now, maybe 10 riders are making a living racing MotoAmerica? Everyone else is paying to be there.

    Now that the series has grown, I wouldn't be opposed to seeing the 110% classes move to 108%, especially at the rounds with 40 entries in Stk 1000 and Twins.

    I don't think it will happen, though. MA wants the revenue. Tires, fuel, etc..... And the back markers really aren't hurting anything. They may not make the racing up front any better, but they are contributing to the show- fans want to see bikes going around the track. Not wait 2 min for a pack of 5 to blast by 10 times.

    Speaking from a personal back marker perspective- MotoAmerica has helped me to up my game a lot more than I ever would have club racing. I've been racing for over 20 years, and I'm faster now that I ever have been. Without the motivation and excitement of racing Twins Cup, I might have become a 2 weekend a year club racer and moved on to something else. YMMV of course.
     
    E Reed, Waterboy, socalrider and 8 others like this.
  8. 418

    418 Expert #59


    The way some of the comments that were made at Brainerd I got the impression it'll be a miracle if he's back at all.

    Very sad.
     
  9. henry_carlson

    henry_carlson BREAD_RACING

    Hello stock 1000 title battle, nice to see yah
     
    418 likes this.
  10. 418

    418 Expert #59

    C. Alexander just broke.

    Gilim in the lead.
     
    henry_carlson likes this.
  11. henry_carlson

    henry_carlson BREAD_RACING

    Corey stayed on, he was down to 15th… lets see where he can finish
     
  12. Banditracer

    Banditracer Dogs - because people suck

    So the old outdated GSXR sweeps the podium. :)
     
    418 likes this.
  13. 418

    418 Expert #59

    Gillim doing work. The guy should have never been away from the paddock.
     
    rugbymook and kirk erlinger like this.
  14. StaccatoFan

    StaccatoFan My 13 year old is faster than your President

    Someone fucking help me. I’m on Spectator Hill and @pjzocc is telling corny cow jokes. Someone take away his Coors Light. Pleeeeeze!!!
     
  15. rwdfun

    rwdfun

    I’ve come to the sad conclusion the STK1000 class is only about MA making more money on entry fees.

    If your lap times wouldn’t qualify you for the top 10 of twins, you don’t belong out there racing MA STK1000. Go get faster at the club level first.

    MA doesn’t need to run a separate STK1000 class let along 2 races in a weekend. Just run a sub-race within the SBK class. If you are worried about lappers causing issues make the cutoff equal to not being lapped by the top guys. That could vary depending on length of race and track. YMMV
     
  16. 418

    418 Expert #59

    Herrin's starting grid interview. o_O
     
  17. Yama-saurus

    Yama-saurus Well-Known Member

    Here on pitlane... MotoA peeps no likey...... certain redhead reporter walked past and said... " what a douche".... :crackup:
     
  18. 418

    418 Expert #59


    And if riding a twin is the only way you can make a MA round maybe you shouldn't be there either. It's a slippery slope where you get to a point that if you can't run with 107% of SBK pole don't even bother showing up...

    BTW I was talking about the general track etiquette not the speed of the guys in SSTK.

    Also, a place like PITT having a bunch of horsepower doesn't mean shit. They just said 600's are getting around that place better than the 1000's.
     
  19. Ducman851

    Ducman851 Been told I’m that guy, but I’m really not

    :crackup::crackup:
     
  20. 418

    418 Expert #59


    I...I got nothing. WTF.
     

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