A selection of relevant data and statistics ahead of Round eleven of the Championship this weekend at Brno circuit. Read about it here.
Archive for August 11th, 2011
(NEWS RELEASE)
NBC Sports Highlights Weekend Broadcast Coverage of Unadilla National
MORGANTOWN, W.Va. (August 11, 2011) – Through eight rounds of action, the 2011 Lucas Oil AMA Pro Motocross Championship has featured some of the most memorable racing in series history. As the championship prepares for its final four weekends of action this Saturday at the Rockstar Energy Unadilla National, the title fights in both the 450 and 250 classes remain captivating, and tonight, fans can see how it all unfolded over the first half of the season on FUEL TV, with a one-hour recap show at 10 p.m. Eastern and Pacific.
Additionally, a complete lineup of coverage across three networks domestically, is scheduled to showcase American Motocross’ return to competition on Saturday from New Berlin, N.Y. The action kicks off with live coverage of the opening motos of the Rockstar Energy Unadilla National on FUEL TV at 12:30 p.m. EST. The 450 Class title fight between Ryan Villopoto, Ryan Dungey and Chad Reed will resume, as will the tightly-contested 250 Class championship battle amongst teammates Dean Wilson, Tyla Rattray and Blake Baggett. Those online can also watch the world’s best riders via live internet stream at AlliSports.com.
NBC Sports kicks off final-moto coverage from Unadilla, presenting an exclusive live broadcast of the 450 Class on network television, beginning at 3 p.m. EST. Fans eager to see what took place in the 250 Class can watch what happened via same-day coverage on SPEED, beginning at 11:30 p.m. EST on Saturday night.
An impressive lineup of international coverage is also in store. Enthusiasts from all over the world will have the opportunity to witness live final-moto coverage from Unadilla in Europe, Australia and Brazil, on Motors TV, SPEED Australia and ESPN Brazil, respectively.
For easier access, here are FUEL TV channels from some major television providers:
DIRECTV – Channel 618
DISH Network – Channel 156
Verizon FiOS – Channel 198
AT&T U-verse – Channel 536
*Check local listings for cable operators
Tickets for the upcoming Lucas Oil AMA Pro Motocross Championship are on sale now at www.allisports.com. Special discounts and incentives are available for advance ticket purchasers.
For media information about the Lucas Oil AMA Pro Motocross Championship, please contact Media Manager Brandon Short via email at media@mxsportsproracing.com or by phone at 949-365-5750.
MX Sports Pro Racing
MX Sports Pro Racing manages and produces the world’s most prestigious motocross series – the Lucas Oil AMA Pro Motocross Championship. The industry leader in off road powersport event production and management, its mission is to showcase the sport of professional motocross competition at events throughout the United States. Through its various racing properties, partnerships and affiliates, MX Sports Pro Racing organizes events for thousands of action sports athletes each year and attracts millions of motorsports spectators. Visit www.mxsportsproracing.com.
Alli, the Alliance of Action Sports
Alli, the Alliance of Action Sports, is a global business that encompasses national and international action sports tours and events, multimedia production, and a consumer facing lifestyle brand. The Alliance includes: the Lucas Oil AMA Pro Motocross Championship, the Dew Tour, Winter Dew Tour, China Invitational, King of Wake series, and the Gatorade Free Flow Tour. Alli TV Productions creates original content, produces and presents content with partners, and distributes Alli content through a variety of channels. Alli is owned by NBC Sports and MTV Networks and represents a network of athletes, fans, brands and properties. Its mission is to facilitate the momentous growth of action sports, through competition and lifestyle, for a new generation of fans and athletes. The Alli properties are home to more than 550,000 spectators each year and broadcasts more than 150 hours of original content in 100 countries and 280 million homes worldwide. Visit www.allisports.com.
Lucas Oil Products
Lucas Oil is a worldwide leader in the production of oils, lubricants and additives. Based in Corona, Calif., Lucas Oil Products is one of the fastest-growing additive lines in the consumer automotive industry, featuring a premium line of oils, lubricants and problem-solving performance additives. Through innovative product research and development, along with aggressive marketing programs, Lucas Oil Products has established itself as the top-selling additive line in the American truck-stop industry. Lucas Oil is involved in an array of motorsports sponsorships, including the “Official Motor Oil of the AMA Pro Motocross Championship.” Visit www.LucasOil.com.
AMA Pro Racing
AMA Pro Racing is the premier professional motorcycle racing sanctioning body in the United States, operating a full schedule of events and championships for a variety of motorcycle disciplines. From its Daytona Beach headquarters, the organization sanctions professional motorcycle racing competition, which includes, AMA Pro Motocross, AMA Pro Road Racing, and AMA Pro Flat Track. Visit www.amaproracing.com.
FUEL TV
FUEL TV is the only cable and satellite television network that features the exciting world of adrenaline and thrill-seeking sports and the stories that surround them. This new generation of sports provides a rich landscape of some of the most vibrant and action-packed television entertainment in the world. See why young adrenaline sports fans call FUEL TV the channel they never turn off. FUEL TV, part of FOX Sports Media Group, was launched July 1, 2003 and is seen in more than 30 million U.S. homes and can be accessed by broadband, mobile devices and other digital platforms such as iTunes®. FUEL TV programming is available in more than 50 countries around the world with 24/7 channels operating in Australia and Europe. To subscribe to FUEL TV, call 877-4-FUEL-TV. For program times and other information, visit www.fuel.tv.
By Larry Lawrence
A story I did a few years ago for Cycle News.
I remember it like it was yesterday – 1982 and Cycle News East editor Gary Van Voorhis stood outside of Road America’s turn five with Nikon FM camera in hand. As other photographers in the area fidgeted (including me) and looked down to make sure they had the right settings on their cameras, Gary stood there talking casually to me as the AMA Formula One took the green flag and roared to life maybe 300 meters up the hill from us. A minute later Eddie Lawson, Wes Cooley, Steve Wise and the rest of the pack zoomed into view braking heavily for the downhill left-hander. You could hear nearby photographer’s camera motor drives clicking off dozens of frames. Not Gary. Instead of burning a roll of film with a heavy shutter finger, he waited for the perfect moment, had his focus point and composition set and just when the pack was in the perfect position he lightly pressed the shutter button, just once.
Being a rookie racing photographer at the time I looked up and laughed – “Gary, you took just one shot!”
“Don’t worry. I got the shot,” he smiled proudly. “I’m shooting this entire weekend with two rolls of Tri-X.”
Kodak Trix-X was the standard film for race coverage from the 1960s through the '80s. Not everyone could shoot an entire road race national with two rolls like Cycle News editor Gan Van Voorhis was famous for doing.
I couldn’t believe it. Gary was shooting for both East and West editions of Cycle News (thus the two rolls of film). He would photograph the Formula One, Superbike, 250 Grand Prix and Battle of the Twins races with two 36-exposure rolls of the classic Kodak black & white film. In addition to action shots Gary was famous for getting excellent personality portraits of riders talking to one another or to their crew members, girlfriends, fans, and the like. So in two days Gary would pack the photographic story of an entire AMA national weekend into just 72 frames. Today’s digital photographers will burn 72 frames in a single practice session.
Sure enough a week or so later when my Cycle News arrived there was Gary’s turn five photo from Elkhart Lake on the cover. Just as he had promised, he’d gotten the perfect shot of nearly the entire Formula One field battling to haul their bikes down from triple digit speed on the downhill slope, heading into the tricky turn. Not only had Van Voorhis shot the entire race weekend with two rolls of film, he also had to hoof it around the facility to get interviews with the racers and crews. Gary was a one-man crew for Cycle News that year. He was photographing the races and writing the race coverage as well.
As hard as it is to believe now, in those days if you didn’t actually attend the nationals, the first you would find out the results was when Cycle News came to your mailbox a week and a half or two after the event. The glossies like Cycle, Cycle World, Motorcyclist and Cycle Guide even did race coverage of the bigger races in those days for those who didn’t get Cycle News. So in reality a lot of people’s first knowledge of an AMA Grand National, an outdoor motocross national, an AMA Supercross or AMA road race national came months later in one of the glossies!
The speed at which you get the news from the races is the biggest change I’ve witnessed in my 30-plus years of being a motorcycle racing reporter. We take for granted that the internet and live TV have made today’s race coverage instantaneous. The technology has made race coverage a lot speedier, but it also demands more of those reporting on the races.
In pre-internet days reporters and photographers would pretty much leave the track as soon as the racing was over. A reporter would generally only use quotes from the podium finishers so a post-race walk through the paddock was icing on the cake and would really only be necessary if one of the big-name riders had experienced problems. Reporters and photographers would then go out to a decent restaurant or bar and have dinner at a civilized time then get back to the hotel, and if they were ambitious, start typing up their story on a typewriter to be faxed the next day. Photographers would often get to an airport to drop off film to go on an airline to California (or Atlanta) to be picked up and processed the next day. For the glossies the slides would be sent out for processing and sent via Fed EX or UPS a couple of days after the race. It was a pretty relaxed pace.
Today if you walk into a media center after a race you’ll see writers and photographers alike toiling like crazy over their laptops. The quest now is to be the first to post on various websites or news outlets. And they may spend three or four hours in the press room after the races and eventually leave a dark and lonely track in search of any place that’s open. More often than not it’s fast food.
Fax machines were the way to get the story on deadline. If one wasn't available you might have to transcribe your story to someone on the phone.
When I first came into race reporting in the early 1980s, ink pen, notepads, portable typewriters and fax machines were state of the art. Photography was primarily done on black & white film, because color was rarely used (never in the case of Cycle News in those days).
Paul Carruthers, who came to Cycle News in the early 1980s, said things were a bit more basic during that era.
“We didn’t have live TV and modern timing and scoring, so you’d go somewhere where you could see the most of the track,” he says. “You had a stop watch and you would take your own lap chart and keep track of the gaps and take occasional lap times. In some ways it was better compared to today. Now you cover it like almost everyone else from the TV monitors and you only see what they’re showing you.
“You might have used a micro-cassette recorder for quotes, but more likely you’d just take notes. Today everyone digitally records everything and you spend hours during the course of a weekend transcribing press conferences.”
Getting the typed pages and photos to Cycle News in those day could be a real adventure. When Henny Ray Abrams was living in Belgium and covering the GPs, he would often go to an airport, park, walk in and find a gate for a flight that was going to Atlanta and offer a total stranger 10 or 20 bucks if they would carry an envelope with story and film to Atlanta, where a Cycle News staffer would meet them at the gate to pick up the stuff on arrival.
We'd hook up these little Radio Shack computers to an acoustic phone coupler to send the story.
At the office the staff would build the paper column by column on paste-ups. Typed pages would come in, the editors would go over them and make corrections the margins in red ink, then hand the sheets off to typesetters. Photos would come in and be made into to half-tones and pasted up as well and the paper would take shape.
When computers first began showing up at the races by the mid-1980s they were these little Radio Shack TRS-80 computers that would run for two or three days on four ‘AA’ batteries.
“The big thing then was you could transmit your story over the phone,” Carruthers remembers. “But you had to get the settings just right on the computer and you’d do a count down to someone at the office to get the computers to talk to one another at the same time. It was a little bit of a hassle, but it saved a lot of time.”
Later in the 1980s quick results could be had on the internet with text-only services like CompuServe and Prodigy, but very few people were online.
I remember going nuts trying to send out race reports to outlets like the Associated Press, USA Today and various local newspapers, each with their own unique computer systems that you had to spend 15 minutes on the phone with their computer experts to get the settings (like baud rate, parity, stops bits, xmodem or ymodem) and the pre and post-text codes that had to be used in sending stories and results.
In 1994 a fellow journalist and road racer named Brent Plummer called me and told me he’d launched Motorcycle.com on the World Wide Web. Even though I was fairly computer literate, I had no idea what the World Wide Web was and I had to go to my local college, which had Mosaic browsers, to be able to see what he was talking about. There I saw a website for the first time. Little did I know almost 20 years ago how the Web would totally change the world forever.
(NEWS RELEASE)
AURORA, Ill. (August 11, 2011) – Feld Motor Sports® announced today, following this past weekend’s Amateur National Motocross Championship at Loretta Lynn’s, that the top-eight riders from 250 A and 250 B Modified classes have solidified a spot in the Amateur All-Star class at the Monster Energy Cup. The Inaugural Monster Energy Cup is set to take place from Las Vegas’ Sam Boyd Stadium on October 15.
The top-eight riders from the Loretta Lynn’s 250 A and 250 B modified classes will be highlighted on the world stage as the best amateur riders compete for the prestigious honor of being crowned Monster Energy Cup Amateur All-Star Champion. This class will provide us with a rare glimpse of the talented athletes who will be the new class of super stars.
The Amateur All-Star class main event will follow a two-moto, six-lap format. Overall results will be determined by combined main event results.
Leading the way into the Monster Energy Cup from the 250 B Modified race at Loretta Lynn’s is Kawasaki’s Thomas Covington, finishing 3-1-2 on the weekend, which was good for the overall win and championship.
“I’ll probably be the youngest guy in the 250A/B class so I am already training hard for it,” said Covington. “I was going to take a few weeks off after Loretta’s but I have been riding all week in Alabama because I need to get faster to win this race. To find out I can race this event, which will be broadcast live on television is just really cool.”
Like many other amateur racers, Covington grew up watching Jeremy McGrath and Ricky Carmichael, who are designing the track for the Monster Energy Cup, and looks forward to competing on the track his heroes create.
“Knowing those two guys, I am expecting a really good track, said Covington. “If those two don’t know what a good track is, nobody does. I’m kind of expecting it to be a track that can get rough as the night goes on. I know RC (Ricky Carmichael) always did better than the rest when the track was at it roughest. I expect MC (Jeremy McGrath) to build some cool jumps and stuff. Both of them are my heroes and are so nice to their fans.”
Covington will square off against the top riders in the 250 A division in the All-Star Class race, which is led by Yamaha’s Kyle Peters.
“I know that I’ll be racing against the best guys and I’ll have to step up my game,” said Covington. “I want to come in as an underdog and do well. There are so many guys that can win this race. Coming out of the B Class, the competition level is going to be the best I have ever raced against. For the A Class guys, it will be a big chance for them to show they are ready for the pros, so they will be hanging it out.”
Amateur All-Star Class Lineup
250 A Qualifiers
- Kyle Peters, Greensboro, N.C., Yamaha
- Justin Bogle, Cushing, Okla., Honda
- Jessy Nelson, Templeton, Calif., Honda
- Grand Ransdell, Milner, Georgia, Yamaha
- Jesse Wentland, Elk River, Minn., Yamaha
- Gavin Faith, Duncombe, Iowa, Honda
- Preston Tilford, Fontana, Calif., Yamaha
- Chris Plouffe, Castaic, Calif., Honda
250 B Modified Qualifiers
- Thomas Covington, Temecula, Calif., Kawasaki
- Blake Savage, Washington, Utah, Kawasaki
- Zack Williams, Elko, Minn., Honda
- Vann Martin, Houston, Texas, Honda
- Justin Summers, Milton, Fla., Suzuki
- Cody Chisholm, Seminole, Fla., Yamaha
- Chris Carrillo, Simi Valley, Calif., Honda
- Joey Savatgy, Thomasville, Georgia, Suzuki
The unique hybrid track will consist of supercross/motocross terrain and will have a tremendous motocross-style influence, making it unlike any other stadium race in the world. This track will be the perfect blend of supercross and motocross combined and created into the ultimate battleground. The Monster Energy Cup posts a $250,000 purse with the winner walking away with a $100,000 check, and for the “first time ever” $1 Million will be paid to a rider that wins all three main events.
Tickets for the 2011 Monster Energy Cup can be purchased at the Thomas & Mack Center Box Office, the Galleria at Sunset, all Stations and Fiesta Casinos, online at www.UNLVtickets.com, www.supercrossonline.com or by phone at (866) 8-FINALS. Tickets will be available at the Sam Boyd Stadium Box Office on the day of the event only.
About Feld Motor Sports®
Feld Motor Sports®, Inc. is the world leader in specialized arena and stadium-based motor sports entertainment. Feld Motor Sports, Inc. productions include Advance Auto Parts Monster Jam®, Monster Energy Supercross, AMA Arenacross Series, Nuclear Cowboyz℠, and IHRA® Nitro Jam®. Feld Motor Sports, Inc. is a division of Feld Entertainment, the world’s largest producer of live family entertainment. For more information on Feld Entertainment, visit www.feldentertainment.com.
The Ducati Team riders are targeting strong displays at Brno this weekend in the 11th round of the MotoGP World Championship. Read here.
(NEWS RELEASE)
PICKERINGTON, Ohio — The American Motorcyclist Association (AMA) is pleased to recognize two premier motocross events in the state of Texas this fall. Both the AMA Texas State Championship, which will be held Nov. 5-6 at the Freestone County Raceway in Wortham, Texas, and the AMA District 20/41/42 Final, scheduled for Oct. 29-30 at 3 Palms Extreme Sports Park in Conroe, Texas, will offer AMA racers excellent tracks and top competition from all across the Lone Star State.
“Motocross racers in Texas are some of the most dedicated in the country,” said AMA Director of Racing Joe Bromley. “For these competitors, this fall will prove to be one of the most action-packed in recent memory. This will be a rare opportunity to compete in two premier races back-to-back, taking on some of the region’s best racers. Some serious bragging rights will be earned at both Freestone and Three Palms this fall. I sincerely hope all of our racers support both these events and show the country why Texas is among the nation’s top motocross states.”
The 9th Annual AMA Texas State Championship meet will be held on the world-class Freestone County Raceway in the epicenter of the state. The championship race is located on the same track that has hosted rounds of the AMA Pro Racing National Motocross Championship. Freestone is recognized as one of the top motocross tracks in the country. The AMA Texas State Championship at Freestone is a winner-take-all weekend and does not require qualifiers. More information and online pre-entry can be found at FreestoneMX.com.
New in 2011 is the AMA District 20/41/42 Final, which will take place at 3 Palms Extreme Sports Park in southeast Texas. The AMA District 20/41/42 Final will feature riders who have qualified through AMA District Championship Series in District 41 (Northeast Texas), District 20 (Southeast Texas) and District 42 (West Texas). The 3 Palms facility features a range of challenging terrain, as well as top-notch facilities for competitors and fans. More information and event sign up is available at ThreePalmsESP.com.
The full schedule for both premier races, as well as the individual AMA District Championships, is below.
AMA Texas State Championship
Nov. 5-6: Freestone County Raceway, Wortham, Texas. FreestoneMX.com
AMA District 20/41/42 Final
Oct. 29-30: 3 Palms Extreme Sports Park, Conroe, Texas. ThreePalmsESP.com
AMA District 20 Championship Series
Aug. 13: 3 Palms Extreme Sports Park, Conroe, Texas. ThreePalmsESP.com
Aug. 27: Cowboy Badlands, Beaumont, Texas. CowboyBadlands.com
Sept. 25: Cornerstone MX, Waller, Texas. CSMXPark.com
Oct. 9: Cycle Ranch MX, San Antonio, Texas. CycleRanchMX.com
AMA District 41 Championship Series
Sept. 4: Underground MX Park, Kemp, Texas. UndergroundMXPark.com
Sept. 18: Johnsonville MX Farm, Yantis, Texas. (903) 217-7965
Sept. 25: Buffalo Creek Motocross, Canton, Texas. BuffaloCreekMX.com
Oct. 16: River Valley, Boyd, Texas. RiverValleyMotocross.com
AMA District 42 Championship Series
Sept. 25: Andrews MX, Andrews, Texas. AndrewsMX.org
Oct. 23: Andrews MX, Andrews, Texas. AndrewsMX.org
For more information about AMA-sanctioned competition events, see AMARacing.com.
About the American Motorcyclist Association
Since 1924, the AMA has protected the future of motorcycling and promoted the motorcycle lifestyle. AMA members come from all walks of life, and they navigate many different routes on their journey to the same destination: freedom on two wheels. As the world’s largest motorcycling rights organization, the AMA advocates for motorcyclists’ interests in the halls of local, state and federal government, the committees of international governing organizations, and the court of public opinion. Through member clubs, promoters and partners, the AMA sanctions more motorsports competition and motorcycle recreational events than any other organization in the world. AMA members receive money-saving discounts from dozens of well-known suppliers of motorcycle services, gear and apparel, bike rental, transport, hotel stays and more. Through its support of the Motorcycle Hall of Fame, the AMA preserves the heritage of motorcycling for future generations. For more information, please visit AmericanMotorcyclist.com.