Racetime will attempt to collect and repackage every relevant and important piece of racing news in once easy to find location. Check back from time to time and see if we pull it off. If you'd like to make a contribution or use the board to discuss racing topics, go for it. I'm available for support at john(at)racetime.com. Happy 2011!

John Valenty
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One of the top local riders in Alabama, Jonathan Dove, is in the hospital after a big crash last night.

I don't have the details, but you can check in and get updates on his sister's Facebook page-

www.facebook.com/AJM422

He has a bruised lung, cracked vertebrae, and is pretty banged up..

Think good thoughts... Hope he recovers OK...

Hey what up?

Welcome.

I think full results from that far back will be very hard to get. The AMA was not putting them on line until maybe 2000/2001. They did some media guides but that just had winners, or sometimes podiums.

Good luck. Let us know if you find something!

Heck back..

A bit slow here lately!

I'm at the MXoN, will do some pics when I get home.

First day was pretty cool..

Maybe when the AX Tour gets going again!

Not doing much moto right now. Going to MXoN next month.

Been working on a Space site.

Tonight X Games gold medalist Scott Murray is going to do a double backflip ramp-to-ramp at the MotoX Jam in Cookeville, TN..

www.motoxjam.com/home.html

It's a freestyle show with 4 rock bands.. Should be fun!

I'm on the way up there...Pics tomorrow..

 

The webcast by Allisports yesterday from the Freestone MX national was a train wreck.

Allisports had a page to show live video, with a chat window and photos of the leaders. Nothing was right, and the chat was disgusting. 

If someone was checking out the coverage to see what MX is about, they would have concluded that a a bunch of amateurs is running things. It was that bad!

I remember years ago when webcasting was new (just audio) and there were startup problems. People would complain, and I was one of those saying "Hey, it's free, stop whining!" But that was years ago. There is no reason to screw up totally anymore like yesterday.

A few observations:

The video didn't run right. It would stop and jump ahead like something wasn't set up correctly. 

The announcing was fine, but what fans saw was out of sync with what the announcers were talking about. 

They cut to interviews without sound while announcers were talking about the racing.

There was a place on the site for face shots of the top three, but they ran the wrong photos! Chad Reed sure looks a lot like Jessica Patterson. :)

The chat was pretty cool, but the content was embarrassing. While Chris Pourcel was racing, the chat was derailed by numerous haters talking about how much they hate him, hate France, and hate the French. WTF? 

The fans in chat, when they were not hating on Pourcel, were chatting more about the webcast problems and making fun of it than they were chatting about the racing.

Overall it looked like something Beevis and Butthead put together.

OK, this didn't make it to 450 words, it's not worth any more anyway.

 

The webcast by Allisports yesterday from the Freestone MX national was a train wreck.

Allisports had a page to show live video, with a chat window and photos of the leaders. Nothing was right, and the chat was disgusting. 

If someone was checking out the coverage to see what MX is about, they would have concluded that a a bunch of amateurs is running things. It was that bad!

I remember years ago when webcasting was new (just audio) and there were startup problems. People would complain, and I was one of those saying "Hey, it's free, stop whining!" But that was years ago. There is no reason to screw up totally anymore like yesterday.

A few observations:

The video didn't run right. It would stop and jump ahead like something wasn't set up correctly. 

The announcing was fine, but what fans saw was out of sync with what the announcers were talking about. 

They cut to interviews without sound while announcers were talking about the racing.

There was a place on the site for face shots of the top three, but they ran the wrong photos! Brett Metcalfe sure looks a lot like Jessica Patterson. :)

The chat was pretty cool, but the content was embarrassing. While Chris Pourcel was racing, the chat was derailed by numerous haters talking about how much they hate him, hate France, and hate the French. WTF? 

The fans in chat, when they were not hating on Pourcel, were chatting more about the webcast problems and making fun of it than they were chatting about the racing.

Overall it looked like something Beevis and Butthead put together.

OK, this didn't make it to 450 words, it's not worth any more anyway.

Funny huh? Pretty soon its gonna be the biggest thread on there, mmwwuuuhahahaaa

From last weekend:

www.facebook.com/album.php?aid=178724&am...191&l=59f5a5db5b

Back from a redeye..

KTM can't be disappointed, winning both classes on a hot day. Musquin killed it in MX2, dominating the qualifying and he led every lap of both motos.

Alessi had the fastest time in qualifying, and Cairoli seemed to be figuring the track out. Cairoli and Alessi had a great race in the first moto, then Townley caught Alessi and they started mixing it up, then "it" happened and Townley dropped way back. Townley was pretty pissed and said Alessi pulled a typical Alessi bullshit move (something like that), and Alessi said it was just racing. They crossed lines in a turn and Townley fell back with a damaged header pipe.

Just as it looked as though Cairoli would run off with it, he slowed and Alessi got by about lap 12. Cairoli lost his shifter and was stuck in third gear. He kept racing and passed Alessi back in 2 laps and they went at it and finished 1-2, and gave each other an orange hug.

The second moto was all Townley. Cairoli was about 5th and just caught up to third. Desalle, who was 5th in moto 1 looked stronger and stayed ahead of the KTMs for second in moto 2. Cairoli passed Alessi on lap 12 for third.

Townley is back and will keep getting better.

Cairoli opened his series point lead up on his top rivals, many who had a bad moto or 2.

If you were wondering what happened to Seb Pourcel, he has been recovering from injured shoulders (sounds like labrum, same thing that kept RC out of the MXoN that time).

During the second MX2 moto, the Red Bull finish line structure fell over and the race was red-flagged at lap 9. Doh!

Zach Osborne won the first ever "Marty Moates Cup" for the top finishing American. That was worth $5,000, which he said he would probably just put in the bank. He went 4-2. (Alessi was 2-5.)

The trophies were those cool guitars, and they seemed popular.

Cairoli took his hat off when they played the Italian national anthem at the podium, and the Italian journalists at the podium were singing it too. (Not sure I have seen him before without some hat on.)

Attendance was disappointing, but people didn't expect this first one to pack them in either. It's a multi-year deal and this is just the start. Youthstream, the FIM, and Glen Helen wanted this first one to re-start the tradition of the USGP in SoCal and show what GPs will be like in the US.

Kawasaki CLS, (The Euro Pro Circuit guys) are both really strong. Steven Frossard was second overall in MX2 and Jeremy van Horebeeek was 5th.

Besides KTM and Kawi CLS, the one to watch in MX2 is young Ken Roczen, who said in press that he didn't get to ride last week and was catching up.

The USGP did a lot for Marty Moates. Dubach rode a replica of the bike he won the 1980 USGP with for one lap. People who worked on the Marty Moates cup project put the bike on the podium and talked about Marty between motos. Brad Lackey, Chuck Sun, Broc Glover, and Ricky Johnson were up there, with the organizers (Scott Cox, Todd Huffman, and more).

Chuck Sun rode the vets race with Moates and Magoo stickers on his bike.

Dubach won the vets race (1-1) and Darrly King was second (2-2). The defending vets champion Mats Nilsson went 3-3, and KTM's Kurt Nicoll was 4-4.

Some of the Euros commented that the Glen Helen track was really fast, and the hills steeper and longer than what they are used to.

KTM mechanics said the 350s handle like 250s and can hang with the 450s. They don't seem to have any trouble with starts, even long ones like Glen Helen's. The 350s are fuel injected, electric start, and have suspension linkage.

The weekend started with rumors that there might even be 3 USGPs next year, but the real number is more likely 2. This makes people doing the nationals freak out because if they ran them right after supercross, the nats schedule would be delayed. (FIM rules prevent the AMA from running a national on the same day as a GP.) At the press conference Sunday, Luongo just said that they were talking to a second location, and the USGPs would be at the end of the series, not the beginning. They might do round 1 in Australia.

It was cool to see close co-operation between US factory teams and GP teams. The US riders pretty much stayed away, but the semis were there for the Euro teams to use in the pits.

The GPs are headed to St Jean D'Angely in France next weekend, where the 2000 MXoN was (RC, Pastrana, and Hughes won)

Pics tomorrow. I didn't even bring laptop!

Was a cool day. I was looking forward to Alessi and Cairoli going at it in qualifiers, but Mike ran away with it.

Townley worked up a spot or two and was second. Cairoli looked a bit off. This reminds me of Budds in 2007, when he just wasn't ready for an American prepped track.

Musquin was gone in the MX2 qualifier.

Most of the comments were that the track is fast and one lined. Townley bagged on the track prep and said it wasn't as good at GH had been for the nationals.

Dubach is doing the Marty Moates honor lap tomorrow. He and Brad Lackey talked about him at the press conference.

No spectators today. Not sure what that will mean for tomorrow.

Lots of comments on the organization and presentation. GH traded up.

There was some pit buzz about the Monster deal, but not a lot yet. It was a surprise.

US teams stayed away except for Star Racing/Moto Concepts, and Townley is here for Lucas Oil Honda, and of course Mike Alessi with KTM.

US Honda sent both semis and they have 2 different Euro Honda teams pitting in them.

Kawi sent two Team Green semis, with their off roaders in one and the Euro Kawi team in the other. Pro Circuit sent their semi and the euro team that Pro Circuit is working with pitted there.

Yamaha also sent a semi and the Monster euro Yamaha team is there. Most of team yamaha's techies are there, even McCarty.

Alpinestars built a Fricking house next to the track for hospitality. 

Ryno did great! 7th in the qualifier..

Check Glen helen's website:

http://glenhelen.com/