Liamaniacs!

May 09, 2006

We missed the race

I guess another reason I was bummed last week was because for all our hard work, Kenny wasn't able to compete in Sunday's Formula Extreme race in Albacete! We tried a bunch of things to alleviate his hand, and with advice from Dean Miller (who works with Nicky Hayden, and John Hopkins, among others), Randy Mamola (who called us and talked for an hour while I drove us back to Barcelona one evening), and many more, we just weren't able to get everything "right" come race day. It was frustrating and disappointing, especially for Kenny, who has trained and prepared for this very race since late last year. You can read more about his crappy day here. We took a moment on Saturday afternoon to check out the competition, evaluate our status, and work on our tans.

On the flip side, we're more determined than ever to come back stronger than before, and while I crank stuff out on the computer, Kenny is recuperating and rehabbing in Bulgaria with his girlfriend, Iana.
I've been busy actively seeking sponsorship for the AMA rounds Kenny has lined up at Laguna Seca, Mid-Ohio, and Virginia, and so far it's been gratifying to see that several people have come onboard. While I haven't secured a title sponsor yet for the team, we will be running strong with a R1 massaged by noted tuner, Dale Lineaweaver , with support from Yamaha, Alpinestars, and Michelin. We lucked out, because Yamaha gave us the last R1 LE available, with Ohlins suspenders and slipper clutch, and we're putting together a nice package that will hopefully surprise a couple of the big dogs when we get on track. Speaking of which, we scored, because Roadracing World is taking care of the bike transport for us, so that means we won't have to bolt on some lights and a license plate and ride it cross country (just kidding).

Just think, you could have your very own team under your own easy up, in front of thousands of your friends at Laguna Seca. Not to mention they're broadcasting the AMA rounds here in Europe because it's connected with MotoGP that weekend.

This is Kenny's team mate in Formula Extreme, Antonio Salom. His family is from the island of Mallorca, and every time I see them, they bring a giant (pizza-sized) pastry called Empanada, which is like a powdered sugar covered apple danish, or something like that. Wish I had a photo of the food, but we always scarf it down as soon as we can.

My old boss, Luis D'antin, runs a complete team in the Spanish Championship. He uses the same hospitality rig and motorcycle transport semi trucks from the MotoGP team to get everywhere, and he has a great program running Kawasaki's. I know, you're thinking, Ducati Satellite bikes in MotoGP, and Kawi's in Formula Extreme - what's next - Vespa's in the cross country race?!? In all seriousness, this guy, Ivan Silva, is pretty quick. He finished second on the European Superstock/GSXR cup a couple weeks ago in Valencia, and here he muscles the ZX-10R around the track.

Don't you wish your CBR handled like this?

This is De Hea, the front runner in the Spanish Championship. He's 32 years old, and has been competing since he was 15, in GP. That means he has been racing professionally for more than half his life. Obviously, he hasn't lost any style points.

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