Aloha and Welcome to *Liam's Wild Ride* , the Official Website of Liam Shubert. This is the mostly complete chronicle of my travels, adventures, and experiences while I was busy working in MotoGP, with stints in WSBK, WSS, and the World Endurance Championship! Please enjoy the Places, the Faces, and especially, the Races!
I'm currently living and working in beautiful Walnut Creek, California, just a short ride from San Francisco and Oakland. I'm still dabbling with cars and motorbikes, but since the Covid 19 Pandemic, I've been focusing my efforts on bicycling! How cool is that??
That night Hiro had invited me to his birthday party at a chic Italian Restaurant. It was a small group, about twelve of us. OhTanjoobi Ohmedetooo!
Half of the group was Hiro's friends, the other half belonged to this guy. Who's that?!?
None other than 3X World Champion Dani Pedrosa! I believe this kid is the future of MotoGP. I have watched him carefully and he has the touch. Hopefully he has the muscle to throw the big bike around. Later, I'm shooting his first ride on the Repsol "B" Bike. . . although I'm sure it will be the equal or better of the "A" Bike.
We went out and five of us lasted until 5AM!! I walked Hiro and his friend Ursula home since we live about ten minutes walk from one another. Tipsy Japanese guys are funny! Please note: Teh Shocker is alive and well in Barcelona!
After the Rallye race we took showers and had a snack. Snacking in Spain consists of cervesas and smokes. We had to hightail it back to Barcelona for a dinner. On the way back I saw this Repsol gas station. The first of many.
After the first section of the race was over there was a break for lunch and repairs. We meandered back to the rentawreck (a trick little Seat "THEE-AAT") and started moseying back to the compound. Once we got back we had a VIP lunch with several F1 celebs. Naturally I didn't recognize sh*t so I just chilled out and munched on the chocolate cakes. Oh, Carmelo Esposito was there but I was unable to introduce myself. I know I spelled his name wrong, but surely someone can guess who he is?!? After lunch my friends wanted to go to the amusement park but I wasn't interested. I was flat out tired. We went for a short drive and I found these: Actually, there were about twenty of them but they were all taking off sporadically and they weren't ever on the ground for very long.
The guy in charge of this helo was CossaMaria. He was very cordial and very funny. I don't know what he was saying but everyone was laughing so I did, too.
He started doing high G manuevers and he even went right up to a cliff face and landing one ski on a rock. I said "Yo Necesito El Bano!!" and pretending to unbuckle myself. Everyone got a kick out of that and I'm certain the pilot would have let me do it. He was way cool.
With my crappy cam I tried to take some pictures of the course so you guys could see the roads. These guys were hauling and the monkey (navigator) had to be really on the ball. Sometimes I could tell when he screwed up because the driver would execute perfectly but the road wasn't what he was expecting. Yeah. . . .right!
Here's another little township.
Here's a rare straightaway. . . . and the driver was taking full advantage of it. Can you see him?
A huge Thank You to my friends at Movistar: Elena, Nacho, and Santi. Without them I would've been stuck watching from the side of the road, instead of soaring through the clouds!
All fun things come to an end, though, and this was it for me on Saturday afternoon. Less than 48 hours in Europe and having a blast!
Here is a shot of the corner I was situated in with one of the Rallye cars booming through. So surreal. . . to be in this peaceful, quiet mountainside . . .. and then to hear these screaming, exploding, machines terrorizing the street. They'd be in and out so quickly you'd sit there and wonder if something really went by. They're fast, and unless I was rockin' a Super Super Moto, I don't know if I'd play with them. Well, the smaller Suzuki's (non-WRX) looked slow enough, haha
I must confess, I have a secret hatchback fetish. Ever since my cherry GTi MK2. Sweet little ride and getting it up on three wheels in Hawaii was no small feat because the roads aren't the best for traction.
Huge roar from the crowd in appreciation after this fellow left a tire track! Not many squirelly cars and I suppose this is because they're four wheel drive. Bleh!
Did I say four wheel drive? This guy was all over the place, and for a split second I considered running for higher ground! The photo I shot after this was too blurried but it shows him in even worse shape. Don't know how he kept from cutting back too hard but he managed somehow. I think he's a pro or something . . .
I jumped across the track for a couple minutes to try and grab some closer pictures. Man, I was disappointed I couldn't use my big gun. After this race I bought two new memory cards and have been shooting at the Valencia testing. Wait for the pics, they're highly worth it! Here's a nice little WRX that would have the guys in cali drooling. Note the tire position in relation to the body. For cars that don't "roll" very much, this guy is really throwing some G's .
We hiked for a while and picked a nice scenic spot to watch the race from. It's not so much a race as it is a series of time trials. See that bit of road at the bottom of the photo? That looks like a great place to watch the cars :)
We had the best coffee I've ever had at some no name bar. It was up these rickety stairs and it was full of people at ten in the morning! I'm not even sure how we found the place, but it was worth it. The air was crisp, and still heavy with fog.
We got to drive along the race course through the mountains and we ended up in a small village in the middle of the nowhere. I couldn't pronounce the name if I tried so I just went for a walk.
Here's another shot of the place. The roads were closed a couple hours before that section of the race was to be run so we had made it with about an hour and a half to kill. Fortunately, because of our passes and connections (we were the title sponsors!) we were able to drive the same route as the race! It was a twisty serpent of a road, and I hope to bomb through there again one day on a Motard. My apologies for the poor picture quality. The humidity and the plane ride ruined my memory card for the Canon so these photos are from my small handheld Sony. I was pretty pissed because I was lugging all this camera equipment around and I couldn't use it. Fu*K!
Apparently Rally Racing is very big in Europe, but to me it felt like an overgrown Ricer convention. Except instead of rice they were cooking with foi gras and paella. The suzukis were going pretty well, also.
This is Rocio, one of Nacho's co-workers, and she speaks with a British accent, having studied in England for a year. She is very funny and her laugher is infectious. We juggled some rooms so we wouldn't be sleeping all over one another and tried to get some rest before the action the next day. Naturally, we ended up staying up late and having a drink at the Hotel snack bar! Dinner was amazing, with fresh fruits and various meats, and we overlooked a small pond with a waterfall in the background. The sounds were soothing and the photo doesn't do the place justice. Salou is about an hour outside of Barcelona, and there are cool villages in the mountains to visit.
I was so tired that I spent most of Friday (Oct. 28th) sleeping. I woke up in the afternoon to learn that we were headed to Salou to watch the RACC Catalunya Rally Race! I'd never been to a race like that so I was totally game. Movistar was the title sponsor of the race so I was a guest of theirs once again. Mad props to my friends at Movistar for hooking me up! The Race was run from the parking lot of a giant amusement park called PortAdventura. It was very strange but the buffet was off the hook. Here's the coporate mascot - look familiar?
My friend from Madrid, Nacho, came up to see me and we all went to dinner at a small cafe a block from the hizzie. I first met Nacho in Shanghai, China. We ran into one another at a bar around 4:30AM (!) after the GP race on Sunday. We traded emails and arranged to meet at the USGP race in Laguna Seca. It all spiralled out of control from there!
Made it back to the apartment in the evening and I was exhausted. We had a special guest over for dinner and some playstation and it was none other than Hiro Aoyama, Movistar 250cc rider and recently finishing the championship in fourth place after the race at Valencia! We hit it off right away, since I can say bad words in Japanese and we both like rice. I took this meeting as a good sign, since I came here to get a job in GP and here I was on my first night meeting a rider. We've since become good friends, and I help him with his English.
Dropped off my bags at my new apt. and met my three roomates. My room is about 8x8". Literally. If I stand in the center I can lean side to side and touch the walls. This is my new roomate Mario, from Madrid. We went for a long walk and ended up at the waterfront while there was a luxury yacht show going on. He speaks English very well and rides a Honda 650 Dominator. It's a nice bike, but not really my style.
I arrived in BCN two hours late and immediately noticed the Moto Ad at the airport. These signs are everywhere in the cities. I managed to fly through Amsterdam, but didn't have time to leave the airport and try the brownies. This was my first taste of European air, and I was raring to go! I hopped in one of these cabs and made my way to my apt., where I was to meet my new roomates for the first time.
I couldn't sleep a wink on the flight so I watched movies. I watched the Last Samurai and a couple other flicks that I can't remember now. I sat next to this guy from Nigeria named Moramaramadingdong, but he said it was pronounced Albert. Oh, it's taken me months to remember, but I saw the Hitchhiker's Guide to the Galaxy. Not the best sci-fi, but what're you gonna do when you're stuck on a plane?
I flew via KLM, a dutch airline. As far as I can tell, Dutch is the most difficult languange I've ever heard. Upon arriving at SFO I was told that my two suitcases were too heavy. They were each 100 pounds and I was forced to run around like a maniac looking for another suitcase or bag to buy. I finally found a guy selling boxes and bags and managed to get a cheap bag for only twenty bucks! Here I am with all my belongings open on the floor as I rearrange the load.
Liam Shubert is a surfer from Hawaii who fell in love with
motorcycling ten years ago. Since then he has travelled throughout
the U.S., studying under greats like Bob Pynn (Harley-Davidson guru)
and Burton Gabriel (Euro-moto expert), and honing his skills
as a master mechanic. Among his specialties are dynomometer tuning,
engine and transmission modification, complete chopper building,
custom mini-bike design and fabrication, race bike prep,
maintenance, and more. At age 29, he relocated to Barcelona,
Spain, and got busy working with the Losail National Cup (Qatar), and in two world championship motorcycle series, MotoGP and World Superbike, as a mechanic, journalist,
photographer, and industry promoter.
2008 finds Liam once again with his Satellite Ducati Team, now with sponsorship from Italian telecom conglomerate, Alice. For this new season, Liam will once again working in the capacity of Parts Manager, and is fired up to be working with two young and vicious riders, Terrible Toni Elias, and Sylvain Guintoli!
In 2009 Liam moved back to the Bay Area, California, and began fabricating and working more with Composites, specifically Carbon Fiber and Carbon Kevlar weaves. He spent part of 2010 and 2011 working with Cisco Systems alongside their User Experience team and 2012 will be even more interesting. He is very interested in modifying and preserving older Japanese cars and building unique parts for unique motorcycles. How special do you want to be?
Motoliam is an active participant, and thoroughly enjoys all aspects
of professional and amateur motorcycling. Having assembled a unique, effective,
and streamlined team of industry specialists, we are proud to offer
the following services -> And we're not constrained to just motorbikes!
Concept, Design and Fabrication of Special Parts
Complete Motorcycle Builds, all styles
Consultation and Analysis for Web and Product
Project Management
UX/Web Design
Graphic Design
Racer/Sponsor Relations
Team/Rider Promo Videos
On/Off Track Photography
P.R./Advertising Services
Blogging/Podcasting
and more...
Please contact me with any questions. What can Motoliam do for you?
Since I'm frequently on the move, I often use Skype to stay in contact with people around the world. Click the icon below to initiate a Skype call with me!
Music is a huge part of my life, and I hope to share my love for it with everyone. Most people have a hard time figuring out what makes me tick, and the short answer is music. It's a huge and essential part of my life, and one of the main things I want to be able to share more of with people. I have songs that identify a specific period of time for me, and in turn, I have songs that I think fit perfectly with the races and places I've been to. Want to know what I was listening to at a certain race? Find out below! If you right-click the links, you can download the music directly to your desktop, and listen to it in your iPod later!
GP08 Mugello 3-- Straight up classic, I must've listened to this for six months straight when I first got it!
GP08 Le Mans--
On the way out, one song shone the way.
GP08 Shanghai-- Once this song starts rollin' - watch out! It's the secret sauce that'll get your juices flowin'!
GP08 Shanghai 2-- This one's just hilarious. Can you believe I heard this the day before I left for China?
GP08 Estoril-- Uplifting, fun stuff. Just what I need to keep this ship a'rollin'!
GP08 Jerez-- Nothing like bouncy, bouncy little beats and boops.
GP08 Qatar 3-- Love the twangs of this guitar, and the New Zealander providing vocals has really captured me with her Stevie Nicks-ish flow. Love the words, which is rare for me, because I so rarely can hear them.
GP08 Qatar 2-- Dark, moody, the fog rolls in to hide the track in the mist.
GP08 Qatar 1-- In the shadows, where the hands are moving . . . .
GP08 Preseason 2-- Bringin' it back Ole School! Walk around Smiling and Happy!
GP08 Preseason 1-- Now this is what I'm talkin' about! Hold On, Hold Tight, and Hang On!!
Xmas07.2-- Christmas wrapped up for me officially with this song, which was perfect, mellow, and full of love. Thanks to Joe H. for sending it my way.
Xmas07.1-- Music for all night engine builds! Must*Be*Cranked*Up!
Xmas07 -- A beautiful, breathy, dutch song that flows and grooves like my Christmas in California did.
GP07 Valencia 2-- The Remix! I'm going to Valencia to put the wrap on 2007, as next season begins for me officially on November 5th. Bring on 2008!
GP07 Valencia 1-- I love MotoGP, I love the racing. This simple, high-energy song makes me smile - just like the races. I'm going into Valencia to finish this season that I started so long ago.
GP07 Sepang-- Caught this on Lele's iPod playing through the van sound system on the way to the circuit one morning, and it just seemed to fit.
GP07 Motegi 1--Flying out of Portugal before dawn, this is the only feeling I had going into Japan.
GP07 Estoril 1-- The genres this song bridges are not to be missed!
GP07 Estoril 2-- The Funkier, Fresher version of the previous song, haha. One of my favorites!
GP07 Misano-- Such a perfect vibe song - the boys from K and from D really are masters.
GP07 Brno-- I really get a kick out of the baseline in this one, and the pseudo strings - reminds me of a modern day Chic . . . . . So simple and clean.
GP07 Assen-- OK, ok, so this girl isn't singing in Dutch, but to me it sure sounds close enough! See if you can figure out what language this is!
The Jerez Race Song,--Beautiful Chords, powerful strings, this is the build-up to the first European race of the season!
Qatar GP07 --Not the most technically interesting song, but full of drive and energy. Similar to how I feel about Doha - lots of untapped energy and enthusiasm to change, but 'just not right'.
Phillip Island Preseason Test 07.1--80's Flashback! In the land Down Under, I wanted to get my "Van-Halenish" beat on, complete with synthesizers (Korg, anyone?)
Sepang Preseason Test 07.1--Just back from the USA, and I'm already enroute to Sepang, Malaysia, to start the Preseason tests. This bouncy little tune is just the thing to get back in the swing of things - Euro Style!
Bologna 07.1--Beautiful, dreamy, and it encapsulates many of the thoughts and feelings I had when I first visited Ducati Corse in rustic Bologna, Italy. Sooo much beauty. Soo much struggle.
Valencia 06.1--I've loved this song for years, and it captures so much of the "Nintendo" generation while managing to stay classy. Is this the future of R&B/Jazz?
Valencia 06.2--Fantastic remix of a second generation Brazilian talent, by my favorite German specialist!
Valencia 06.3--One of the most underrated talents to come out of Canada, with an interesting blend of Eastern and Western instrumentation.
Estoril 06.1--I've got some longs drives ahead of me before Estoril really starts, so something mellow is in order. I'm initially going to Madrid to meet up with my team, and then we're all headed to Lisbon together, in a caravan of semi-trucks and Mercedes vans. Hmmm, how about something peaceful, but something that moves.
Estoril 06.2--However, once I get there, it's time for some racing! Yee-Haa! With the season coming down to the wire, I have HUGE expectations for Estoril. This is a bumpin' song with a little old-school guitar to drive it home!
Motegi 06.1--You might recognize this song from a Coppola flick. I'd like to find this kind of peace one day, and maybe in the midst of the Tokyo crowds, I'll finally be alone.
Motegi 06.2--Very nice "koto" sounding instrument - can you guess where this group is from?
Phillip Island 06.1--Quite possibly one of the greatest songs of all time, it's the beautiful combination of poetry and magic that make this song, by an Australian film-maker, one of my all time favorites.
Phillip Island 06.2--Men at Work? INXS? I keep getting the feeling that there's going to be a showdown on the Island, and a nice Ennio Morricone Remix should do nicely for the Italians that i think will be squaring off shortly.
Sepang 06.1--It's time to start getting pumped about the upcoming three fly-away races! While this duo is normally know for their chill vibe, this version is anything but!
Sepang 06.2--This one goes way back in my history, and although it's not Malay, just thinking about being on the road for this many races outside of Europe has got me thinking - is my love in league with the freeway?
Brno 06.1--There is a beautiful tranquility in this one, and this is how I felt watching this peaceful city of Brno.
Brno 06.2--This one is quite simple, really. It goes out to The Boss!
USGP 06.1--Who needs a vacation after the USGP? Me!
USGP 06.2-- Not the best recording, but I finally managed to get some relaxing done yesterday and today(7.29.06), and I just really like the "surf-esque" feel of this tune. You can totally tell it's a Fender. Beautiful. Just like the clouds this afternoon.
Valencia G5.2--At this point, I was still feeling very homesick for the US, and the streets of BCN were always empty.
USGP 05.1--A whirlwind of action, and a year's worth of good times thrown into a single week - the '05 USGP holds amazing memories for me, just like this song.
USGP 05.2--What a great place to think about going around the world. . . . . .
ShangHai 05.1--Nothing like feeling Global, when you're halfway around the world and no one speaks English. I hope to see all of these cities at some point.
ShangHai 05.2--I ran into a trio of Germans on the street in ShangHai, and we went looking for a girl, a girl who dj'ed this song!
Here's a little taste of what's going to be coming in the future:
MotoLiam Explains All!
Just a couple Wallpapers to get it started. I took these in Qatar during the '06 GP.
If you'd like to download a larger high resolution version of this photo, please right-click below: Loris Capirossi 1024 x 768
If you'd like to download a larger high resolution version of this photo, please right-click below: Valentino Rossi 1024 x 768
Also, if you've seen a photo on this website that you'd like to have, please let me know and I'll see about getting you the full size version.
This website is funded by your generosity. If you'd like to see more photos and enjoy more downloadables, please contribute to cover my bandwidth. The email address to send money to is MotoLiam@Gmail.com
Ladies and Gentlemen, step right up and be the first on your block to floss the latest MotoLiam, Squadra delle Pecore Nere, and "All Things Moto" style! The 2007 season see's a fresh, new line of gear coming to you direct from the USA, or from the European print shop, and these high quality shirts, sweatshirts, and more, go a long way towards keeping this website active and up and running.
Click on the RED shirt (me) to view the US store. Click on the BROWN shirt (Mark) to see the EURO store. Each store features slightly different items, so be sure to check out both. More cool things will be added shortly, so stay tuned!
I've met a ton of people in the motorcycle industry within the last decade, and it's true, Motorcycle people are good people. Here is a short list of companies who have helped me in the past, and who continue to support me today as I travel throughout the world working in MotoGP.
Northern California's amazing motorcycle store that sells everything you could possibly need. They ship internationally and have been instrumental in keeping me in the game, and looking great!
The Bay Area, San Francisco, California, internet motorcyle forum I first started posting pictures and stories to. A fantastic resource covering many aspects of motorcycling and it's filled with thousands of knowledgeable and friendly people. Check it out!
your ontrack video production guys. These guys will follow you around the racetrack and capture all the mistakes you're making - as well as some of the good stuff! Digital, of course.
Liam Shubert uses a MAC Powerbook for his computing needs and a Canon Rebel 350 XT for his action sports photography. Many of the photos on this website were also taken with a small Sony DSC-P8 handheld camera.