Amazing Super Slow-Mo video with JS7 and CR22

This is dating back to 2009 and I apologize to chad for having him advertize for Thor still, after their relationship ended in not so good terms, but these images are outstanding.


Motocross Super Slow Motion Clip from Maroš Likavec on Vimeo.

Sacramento, California, Friday night in May

I am seriously slacking on this blog. Luckily my audience is limited to 3 or 4 friends ;-) but I need to get back on it, I have too many things I'd like to write about and discuss with me, myself and I.
So I'm in Sacramento (for a Parts Unlimited Showcase) and I am not even staying for the Hangtown National tomorrow, flying out of SAC at 6 a.m. Luckily Davey Coombs has led MX Sports in the right direction and tomorrow night we will be treated for the first ever live broadcast of an AMA Outdoor National race on national TV. Hopefully a landmark towards the growth of the sport.

What happened at Glen Helen 2009, here's the Alli/MX Sports video recap



More reading on the MX Nationals (some of my favs')

Steve Matthes' Observations & Andy Bowyer's Rev-Up

It snowed in Chicago and we have 4 Supercross races to go

Today March 29th, the Chicagoland woke up with a thick blanket of snow, so thick one of the large bushes in our backyard just collapsed under the weight. Unbelievable, at a time when I was getting exciting that Spring was settling in enough for the mountain-bike trails to dry a bit. An tomorrow the forecast is calling for 49F.... more mud.

Well, talk about being a non-consistent blogger, my production follows Davi Millsaps' Supercross results this season. After traveling to New-Orleans and St Louis for AGV and Dainese business events and witnessing the SX races in the Superdome and the Edward Jones Dome, I stayed home this weekend and followed Jason Lawrence's Canadian misadventures on the webcast (Holley and Weege's excitement level during the SX LCQ had never risen that high before) and through the live blog of one of the best citizen-journalists of the moment, Steve Matthes' Pulp MX.

New Orleans SX (March 14th)

It was my first trip down to Louisiana and, apart from a Friday the 13th flight down to a land of black magic and voodoo, I really enjoyed the trip and town. New-Orleans is full of history and character, has great restaurants, lounges and boutique hotels but still keeps an eerie feeling at time, with testimonies from Katrina's disaster. We were treated with good heavy rains during the weekend which was a bit of a bummer in the pits, although the privateers and some non-factory teams were pitted inside the stadium. The Superdome is a pretty big place but looked empty due to the smallish turn-out of 36,000+ souls. It isn't bad though considering the area, the economy and the fact that many didn't make the trip from TX, AL, FL, KY or Mississippi due to the cost of gas and travel.
Of course the shocker in the 250F was the non-qualification of Martin Davalos and Nico Izzi who didn't make the Main. Martin ended up being hurt when Lemoine landed/rode on his legs in their Heat and Izzi who faced some bad luck and bad starts, even in the LCQ.
Christophe Pourcel had 2 very bad starts but saved it with a good 4th place in the Main while Austin Stroupe did what he had to do and took the 25 points as he is trying to come back on his PC team mate. Jesseman (after a good manly pass on Wharton in the last corner) got a well deserved 2nd and Blake "Purple Rain" Wharton took his 1st podium of the year in 3rd.

In the 450 Main things settled very quickly with Bubba gapping Chad Reed and going for his 8th win of the season. The only exciting things during that Main Event: Broc Hepler's 1st podium of the year and Kevin Windham coming back from 8th to 4th, passing a few good guns on the way and melting the gap with Hepler. of course this is K-Dub's home and the crowd was cheering all the way for him, even when he was passing lappers, LOL! Maybe, with 2 more laps, he could have got by Hepler and make it a race. Not sure.
The Transportation Revolution, the Triumph,Ducati and Vespa dealer in New-Orleans, run by Zach and Max Materne and their parents did an amazing job with the AGV Open House party they organized on the Friday before the race. I was very surprised and happy by the good turn-out and results. If you're traveling to New Orleans, go visit that shop.

St Louis SX (March, 21st)

A Friday evening Parts Unlimited dealer showcase motivated my trip South to St Louis, home of the Cardinals and Budweiser (me likey). I drove down the mostly boring highway to Missouri, stopping on the way at Hall's Cycle, the Ducati and Husqvarna dealer in Springfield, the Illinois State Capital. Hall's is mostly an "off-road" dealer and probably the biggest Husqvarna representation in the Midwest. They told me they had sold about 22 Huskies in the last month which was pretty positive and motivating news in regards to the actually state of the economy.
Friday morning I visited Donelson Cycles, the oldest dealership in St Louis and one that I really suggest because they have a small Dirt Track and MX bikes museum in their St Ann' store. Very cool with some Penton, BSA, Triumph scramblers and more; definitely worth the visit.
I don't think that the Dealer Showcase was very good with a small number of dealers coming, despite the free dinner, the complementary VIP passes for the SX and the presence of motorcycle superman Travis Pastrana. But I would think that it is a correct representation of the St Louis region which looks pretty touched by the economical crisis and poorer than most places where I travel through.

Well, that was the big USP (upper selling point) at the St Louis Supercross, apart from the ongoing very tight race between San Manuel Yamaha James "Bubba" Stewart and Rockstar Makita Suzuki Chad Reed: the guest-star of the night was the guru of the Nitro Circus tribe, the #199, the Master of all Backflips, the fast, charismatic, crazy, ADD, super nice, entertaining, great-for-the-sport and the designer of the very goodly alternatively exciting St louis SX track, Travis "TP199" Pastrana

TP raced St Louis because he had a debt to Feld Motorsports after crashing his 199 Monster truck during a backflip attempt for the Nitro Circus TV show. The debt included TP's participation to 1 SX and to the finals of Feld's Monster Jam series.
Pastrana offered us 2 (two!) backflips during the opeing ceremonies and raced his heart out. It was awesome to see him again on a track and to see that he still has speed, despite his drastic lack of "race training". Travis had the speed need to make the Main but got unlucky, kind of crashed, couldn't restart the bike and ended up destroying his left radiator in the LCQ. His presence was very good for the crowd and the Edward Jones Dome was quasi-full. Rumor has it that TP is frustrated with his STL results and is planning to try again this season, probably in Salt Lke City, home of Ogio and Nitro Circus member Andy Bell.

Back to racing. One week after New Orleans, St Louis gave us another shocker and a good surprise to Factory Connection Honda when Blake Wharton won his first Main event (it is also the first Lites Main event win by a Texan - thanks DC for that info). Austin Stroupe did what he had to do again, trying to eat points away from his French team mate, coming back to second despite a bad start. CP had bad first laps but managed to finish 5th overall, controlling his lead in the series.
Nico Izzi was a very disappointing 3rd of the night. Why disappointing? Because I believe that he has the speed to win a Main but does not have the level of fitness necessary for that. In the first half of this race he wasn't able to charge on Wharton, never really threathening him for 1st and in the second half he just faded, giving Stroupe the opportunity to come back on him like an Exocet missile locked on his target and ended up throwing away the 2nd spot when AS past him with half a lap to go. At this level, you don't fade half a lap from the end of a Main: you crash trying, you resist until the end, you block your opponent, you ghost ride your bike of the finish line, you go find that last rush of adrenaline deep inside you for an extra 30 seconds.
Noticeable riders in this Lite main were Matt Goerke, Steven Clarke, Matt Lemoine.

We had a very exciting night in the 450 class (you can check my other log for some of the live comments during the race) but I know that you have already watched the race on TV, read the various race reports on Racer X and others.
Travis definitely designed a challenging track but I didn't think that Stewart would be the main victim of that very cool track layout. James went down twice in his heat, just making it into the main. He then went to pass Chad Reed for the lead in the Main and had established a nice 5 or 6 seconds gap when he missed a shift and crashed. Shocker! Chad got by and controlled the remaining laps taking a deserved win in Missouri and taking his lead back to 11 points with 5 races to go. Wow, is that a tight series or what!?
5 races to go, 25 pts for a win, 22 pts for a 2nd... Skippy needs to win 2 more races to seal the title; James Stewart needs to win them all. Anything can happen.

Jason Lawrence raced in St Louis (after missing Indy and New Orleans) and rode well and smart. he moved away for Reed and Stewart, not wanting to interfere with their race and rode behind Short in 5th for most of the Main, not trying anything stupid but after having parked Mike Alessi in the first laps. Lawrence has the speed to be a major factor in the 450 class and has proven that he knows how to race with his head too, when needed. I hope this gave him a boost of motivation for the last 2 rounds of the West Lites series when they roll into Seattle and Salt Lake City. Could he be a factor in the race between Weimer and Dungey? Maybe...

Toronto SX (March 9th)

Well, I didn't travel across the border in Canada but I wish I had because it is one of my favorite town in Northern America (with New York, San Francisco, Quebec, New Orleans) and I have good memories from time spent there with my bud Lorne White.
So I listened on the webcast and will be watching the CBS broadcast after I'm done blogging :-)
#377 Christophe Pourcel wins the Lites Main event and wins his first US title with the East Coast Lites 2009 Championship.
"Felicitations" to the Frenchy who is coming back from hell after being paralyzed for 8 months due to his dramatic crash in 2007. An example of determination, of work and believing in it. I have tremendous respect for Mitch Payton who believed in the kid and stood by him during the last year and a half, when Christophe was in recovery, trying to walk and ride again.
Stroupe finished second, first podium for Tickle in third and Izzi, once again had an inconsistent night.

James Stewart win in Toronto, Chad goes 2ndand Josh Hill rides awesome to 3rd overall! Great work for the #75.
So James eats 3 points back and we've got Skippy with an 8 pts lead with 4 to go. Gnarly!

St Louis Supercross Photos

Here's my album of the 2009 St Louis Supercross. I hope you enjoy these and particularly the black and whites.

St Louis Supercross 2009

New Orleans 2009 Supercross album

New Orleans SX 2009

Daytona SX

Well, after the shocker and excitement we all got in Indy with Stewart going down twice and Reed capitalizing on these mistakes and riding solid to his first SX victory of the year, things went crazier in Daytona last Saturday.
Again, thanks to Speed TV for the live broadcast.

So James "yardsale'd" in the first corner, taking about 14 other riders with him while Mike Alessi took the holeshot and Jason Lawrence added to his history of controversies by dashing for the first opening he found, while stuck behind a mayhem of bikes and bodies.
A very fast Jason Lawrence passed Alessi in lap 3 and lead the race until Chad Reed passed him a few laps before the finish line. Another very solid, very mature, ride by Skippy who scores his second SX in a row.
The shocker comes from James who still managed to finish 7th after that big crash and being a bit dazed and confused for a few seconds before remounting.
The shocker is Jason Lawrence on the podium and second.

Reed leaves Daytona with 11 points on James Stewart. This championship is pretty tight.

Frenchy Christophe Pourcel wins his 3 SX Lites of the season and reinforce his lead at the top of the series.

I wasn't there of course as I had a Dainese open house to attend to at MCC in Villa Park, IL but my sweet DVR recorded the race and I watched in owe, despite the 2 hours delay. I think that this 450 Words: Daytona by Racer X's DC would give you a much better insight of what happened in Florida.

Off to New Orleans this weekend, don't miss the AGV Open House at The Transportation Revolution on Friday night.
The twisty SX track could make for good racing. Bubba has to break Skippy's streak down in Louisiana. Can he?

Mike Alessi, emotional winner at Indy SX

Actually I'm not sure what this means or what I'm really trying to say because for sure Chad Reed and his camp were pretty emotionally pumped by his first win of the season at the Lucas Oil Stadium last weekend.
Somehow though, I think that Mike Alessi won a much bigger battle in the Hoosiers' State capitol. Mike has fought a few many battles in the last year, from his horrible crash at Red Bud '08, to the arrival of Reed in the team taking the #1 rider position, the rumor mills going passed the rev limiter about him during the off season and early in the year and more. Recently things were a bit up and down in his private life and this had for sure an impact on his mental strength coming into A1.
The Alessis have generated controversies and drama most of their amateur career and into their young pro life. Many people have been happy to see Mike fail at the doorstep of championships against the likes of Tedesco, Villopoto or Langston; many rivals moved to the pro class with Kime and his brother Jeff, like Millsaps or RV. Those families have a pretty heated Amateur past together without a doubt.
But along the years, from Honda to KTM to Suzuki, Mike has been working hard. Pounding lap after lap on practice tracks, races afte races, he has made his place into the top rank of AMA Motocross, finishing championships runner-up 3 or 4 years in a row. He was probably on his way to another 2nd overall in the series if not for his crazy crash at Red Bud.

For sure the guy is solid, serious, hard-working and very focused. Still, it's not easy to get away from the past sometimes and in that MX past, Mike has had a few mishaps and some are still bashin on him as often as they can. Some people are still saying that he's not a supercross rider.

So his race to 3rd at the Indy Supercross last week was an amazing achievement for Mike Alessi as he proved many wrong by riding steady, solid and surely to his first podium in the Supercross class, on the 450. An emotional victory for Mike The Hype because it was his first race s entire career, amateur and pro, without the presence of his dad who stayed in Florida, it was his first race with Daniele back in his close entourage. The first race I heard him thanked his mom on the podium, more than once.

I don't think that he can win a Supercross this season, I don't think that he'll be on the podium all next 8 rounds,but Mike made a point to the critics and to himself this weekend when he proved that he is podium material. I hope to see him again up there, it's surely freshnig to see a very happy, relieved and fullfilled rider like MA was on Saturday night.

Believe The Hype! ;-)

March 29: Broc Glover's Breathe Easy Ride

The 2009 edition of Broc Glover's Breathe Easy Ride Against Cystic Fibrosis (BER) takes place from 10am-4pm on Sunday, March 29, 2009 in Temecula's Old Town California Row. AMA Hall of Fame announcer Larry "Supermouth" Huffman will kick things off at 10am with pre-ride festivities including rider check-in and registration, raffles, autograph and photo ops, interviews with the Legends, food and fun. Attendees, both rider and non-rider alike, are encouraged to bring their cameras (don't forget fresh batteries and empty digital media cards!).

Sign-up online to ride with
THE LEGENDS OF MOTORCYCLE RACING
www.BreatheEasyRide.com

At 12 noon all registered riders will hit the road alongside our group of Legends who collectively have captured 70 national titles, 17 World Championships, and 4 ISDE Gold Medals. Riders may choose one of three different rides: two 100-mile street routes for Cruisers and Sportbikes intermingle with each other, and a dual-sport ride guided by AMA Hall of Fame off-road champion Scot Harden has been added for those preferring to ride their dual-sport bikes. All three rides begin and end at the same Old Town Temecula venue. It's important to remember that these rides are not "races" and that all riders, regardless of skill level, are invited to participate so long as he or she is riding a licensed, street-legal motorcycle.

Even if you can not make the ride please visit our event website Breathe Easy Ride to learn about this very worthy cause. View last year's event photos and preview our upcoming eBay auction where some amazing one-of-a-kind memorabilia has been donated by motorcycling's most famous personalities including James Stewart, Wayne Rainey, Kevin Schwantz, and many more. There is no government funding for CF, a progressively fatal disease, and 100% of the proceeds from the Breathe Easy Ride will go directly to the Cystic Fibrosis Foundation to fund life saving research. Cash donations of any denomination are encouraged and welcomed.

AMA Outdoor Motocross Nationals going Live TV

At the Indy SX, MX Sports, Lucas Oil, the AMA and Speed TV announced the new series sponsor as well as a great TV package for the fans:

The Lucas Oil AMA Motocross series will have 6 races live on TV this season, 3 on NBC and 3 on Speed, along with live video broadcast on the Internet.