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Team Ducati/Spider Grips Greg Tracy and Alexander Smith
Racing motorcycles is hard enough at sea level, but when you have to race three miles up in the atmosphere things get a bit more challenging. Team Ducati and spider grips not only raced, but took a first and a third place at this year's annual race at Pikes Peak Colorado. The team managed by owner Paul Livingston raced the pro class on the brand new Ducati Multistrada 1200. Greg Tracy number 555 took first place and team mate Alexander Smith took third both on the Multistrada.
Greg Tracy and Alexander Smith
Pikes Peak is the tallest eastern mountain in the continental USA. Within a stone's throw from Colorado Springs the peak casts a shadow on the great Colorado plains and on a clear day can be seen from Denver. When Lieutenant Zebulon Pike first set eyes on the mountain he swore that it would never be conquered by man or beast. Now the peak is the course of the Pikes Peak international hill climb, the second oldest motorsport function in America.
Dicati booth at the annual race at Pikes Peak Colorado.
Car and motorcycle enthusiasts race this partially paved twisty 12.42 mile course for their chance at victory. As they get closer to the 14,000 foot finish line their bodies and machines are put to the test as they must endure thinner air and harsher conditions.
For this invitation only race, top racers normally finish the race in around 12 minutes which means they are averaging speeds above 60 miles per hour on precarious roads. In 1914 the first race was won with a time just over 22 minutes. In 1994 a Japanese car racer set the record at 10 minutes cutting the original winning time in half. Greg's winning time was in the 11 minute range which really goes to show why he got the results he did.
Paul has been involved with his spider grips team since 2001 and has been involved with racing for a lot longer than that. When Spider grips first started out they helped racers in the Baja and the Bonneville salt flats. "K&N was partially responsible for our success from the very beginning" Paul said "With their filters and tuning we were able to know exactly how fast we could go which lead to our first records in the salt flats. Since our first success in Bonneville I have had an almost superstitious link to K&N to where the first thing I do is change the air and oil filters on all my race vehicles." Another one of Paul's secret to success is a no drama policy that he firmly believes in.
For both his win this year and his win in 2008 Paul had his Ducati Spider team ship out to Colorado's high altitude 5 days before the race to start getting acclimated. In the weeks before this he has his riders go out and get familiar with the bikes so they know exactly what they are riding when the race starts. Since these bikes are so new that Paul had the very first bikes on US soil he had his riders spend as much time on them as possible. They trained on the track so they could get used to cornering the Ducati so that they would be ready for the 130 some odd turns that await them on the peak. While the more traditional "dirt bike" has an advantage on the graded sections of the course the Multistrada really brought the win home on the street with speeds over 138 mph between corners.
Paul and his team have the mind set of having going out to have fun but with a little preparation this substantiates into wins for the team. If Ducati Spider grips team keep doing what they do and more results like this are sure to follow. For now they are off to Laguna Seca where Ducati plans to show case this winning crew.
The XDL Series has become one of the fastest growing motorcycle sports in the U.S. A typical XDL event consists of a practice day, followed by either one or two event days. Toyota Speedway in Irwindale, California, hosted the fourth round of the XDL Championship Stunt Series. Professional stunt bike rider Joe Dryden explains how he got started in motorcycle stunt riding and why he competes with an Aprilla motorcycle unlike most other riders.
Round 4 of the XDL Championship Stunt Series with Stunt Bike Rider Joe Dryden Video
Hill climbing is one of the oldest organized sports for motorcycle enthusiasts. The winner of the sport is the rider who crests the hill in the shortest amount of time or gets the farthest to the top. The North American Hillclimbers Association (NAHA) is considered one of the toughest circuits in motorcycle sports. Pro Hill Climbers Robbie Peterson and Brett Peterson talk about their involvement with hill climbing and what goes into getting prepared for the rigorous competition.
North American Hillclimbers Association (NAHA) Professional Hill Climbers Robbie and Brett Peterson Video
The original XDL Sportbike Freestyle Championship began in 2005 and was a combination of drifting and stunt riding. In 2006, the XDL Series was born consisting only of sport bikes. XDL Series owner Randy Grube talks about the origin of the XDL series and how it is similar to skateboarding. XDL Stunt riders Brandy Valdez and Alicia Speck share some history on how they got started as motorcycle stunt riders.
XDL Series Owner Randy Grube and XDL Stunt Bike Riders Brandy Valdez and Alicia Speck Video
Allen Johnson wins K&N Horsepower Challenge in Sanoma
Momentum can be everything when chasing points in any kind of motorsports and Tennessee based NHRA Driver Allen Johnson knows all too well that there is never a good time to slip when competing at the hardcore professional level of NHRA Pro Stock and seeking to earn points in the 2011 edition of the K&N Horsepower Challenge.
Allen Johnson at 2010 K&N Horsepower Challenge
"If you mess up a couple of races it costs you a bunch of points," explained Johnson. "You know that's what happened to me during the last Challenge and cost me the number two position when we DNQ'ed at both Richmond and Reading and that cost me at least 180 points and I would have ended up number two for this past challenge other than that."
During the second event of the "Western Swing" held at Infineon Raceway in Sonoma, California, and the third qualifying event for the next K&N Horsepower Challenge, Johnson had just come off of a healthy number three qualifying spot the prior weekend in Seattle, but like many drivers, looking for the pole position and the max points qualifying available for the Challenge.
The results from the first Pro Stock qualifying session on Friday afternoon found powerhouse Mike Edwards and his Penhall/K&N/Interstate Batteries GXP grabbing the top spot with his 6.600 elapsed time and Allen Johnson close on his heals at number two.
With an adjusted altitude of 400 feet and a comfortable track temperature of 80, conditions peaked for qualifying during session number two on Friday evening and that gave Johnson's Mopar all it needed to sail by Edwards for number one when he posted a 6.545 at 210.77 MPH. Not only was the pass more than good enough for the top spot but also reset both ends of the Infineon Raceway tracks records in the process.
Wanting to at minimum repeat his performance during the first session on Saturday, knowing conditions would be very similar for Sunday's eliminations, Johnson was very disappointed with his 6.60 effort.
"The conditions were quite a bit worse on Saturday," reflected Johnson. "Mike [Edwards] tried to get it back but he came up just a few thou short."
When qualifying came to an end, Johnson had held on to number one, making it his third pole of the 2010 season.
Although still very early in the season for the 2011 K&N Horsepower Challenge, points earned now are just as important as points earned in later events and Johnson is pleased to be sitting on top, a position he hopes to hold on to.
"Getting it started out right is very important in the whole deal," said Johnson. "We look at the K&N points very closely and to make sure we are in the K&N shootout for next year."
Johnson is very much looking forward to his chances at the next and final event on the "Western Swing" as the NHRA professional teams move on to Bandimere Speedway in Morrison, Colorado, just outside Denver, for the Mopar Mile-High NHRA Nationals.
"Denver has been very good to us, and we have won the Mopar event the last two out of three years and I'm going into it as the defending champion," smiled Johnson. "A number one qualifier and a win at our sponsor's race is what we hope to accomplish."
