Alanf's blog...

This past weekend marked the one year anniversary since I was stupid enough to tinker around with a blog. At the time, I just thought I’d post a few things to see how it worked and then move on to something more important like creating a Wiki of motorcycle racing information. However, this minor side trip into the world of online information quickly became an obsession and the Wiki never got beyond the initial install point.

As for the blog, for my first year I set myself the goal of writing one article per day of the work week and then taking weekends off to have something that resembled a life. As a result I have typed up nearly 250 articles and have kept to my schedule except for when vacations have pulled me away from the computer. I’ve covered almost every MotoGP, AMA and World Superbike race. I’ve also covered many of the AMA Supercross and Motocross races, some of the Supermoto races and done entries about the major motorcycle shows. In addition to motorcycle content I’ve tried to inject my perspective and strong opinions about the topics I cover rather than just regurgitating press releases or web pages. Finally, I’ve experimented with creative approaches to things in the hopes that I will improve as a writer and it prove interesting to readers.

In some cases I think I’ve been successful while re-reading some of the postings show they are pretty lame. On one hand I’m thrilled that I was able to successfully follow such a strict publishing schedule and that the sheer number of postings meant that I could cover so many different aspects of motorcycling. On the other hand, many of the postings seem rushed with perhaps more quantity than quality. Additionally, it takes between two and three hours for me to create, proof and publish each article which is a pretty significant time investment, no matter how much I enjoy maintaining the blog.

For the second year of my blog, I’m going to take on a more relaxed publishing schedule. I plan to continue writing when I have a topic in mind but won’t necessarily be posting every day. Hopefully, this will mean I have some extra time to do data collection and proof-reading on some of my postings rather than feeling pressured to keep up my daily postings. Maybe I’ll even find some time to start on that Wiki idea…

Finally, I want to say “Thank you” to everyone that has read my blog. My web stats show around 2,000 hits per month on my main blog page and another 2,000 per month as rss feeds. I’m indebted to everyone that has taken the time to read any of my writings and doubly appreciative of those who repeatedly visit my site. My birthhday wish for the blog is to hope that everyone who visits finds something interesting, enjoyable or informative.

Thanks for your support!

[image from the Allposters.com web site.]

It is last act, last scene and the curtain fallin’ down on the 2005 MotoGP season. This weekend marks the final race of the year and it takes place in the fireworks capital of Spain. Its the Comunitat Valenciana Moto GP at the now traditional season finale at the historic Ricardo Tormo Circuit of Comunitat Valenciana. Expect the racing to be explosive as every rider tries to close out the season with a strong result. This is particularly true for Nicky Hayden and Marco Melandri who are both still trying to settle the issue of who will be runner up in the championship this year. The Italian holds an 8 point advantage but the door is still narrowly open for the Yank to pull this one out of the bag. Additionally, Gibernau and Rossi still have some things to resolve, particularly with Gibernau leaving Honda for Ducati next year. Given that the season started with the last lap, last turn bang-up at Jerez I wouldn’t be surprised to see the year book-ended with some more sparks flying between the two riders in Valencia. Rumor also has it that Biaggi may not be with Honda next year after he voiced strong questions about the quality bike he is getting. (This is particularly ironic since Honda dragged their feet earlier about offering Vermeulen a MotoGP ride under the assumption Biaggi and Checa would be riding for Sito Pons next year). This may have once again breathed life into the twitching corpse that has been Barros’ MotoGP career over the past three seasons…the guy is like a mummy always coming back from the brink. Likewise, Colin Edwards really needs to show Yamaha he deserves to be Rossi’s teammate next year so he better find that elusive “fast” gear on the M1. Nakano, Elias, Tamada are all locked up for next year and will probably resume their regular battle at the back half of the top ten. Nakano is held back by the bike but what about the other two?

Other riders hoping to impress this weekend are Kawasaki’s Alex Hoffman who is back after breaking his ankle at Motegi. He is without a ride in 2006 and will want to convince team bosses that he is worth a look. Checa seems to have locked up a Honda ride so he may return to his lackluster results until silly season of ‘06 cranks up. Capirossi is back from his Phillip Island injury but will probably be struggling with his health this weekend. Since he has a Duc contract signed and delivered for next season he can be forgiven if he turns in an usually bad performance. Hopkins is also signed for ‘06 but with riding the Suzuki he will always have lackluster results even if he turns in extraordinary displays of riding.

Yamaha hasn’t announced its’ plans for the satellite team next year so Xaus needs to show a flash of brilliance in front of the home crowd. Rolfo should be a shoe-in for D’Antin’s rumored two rider Ducati squad next seasaon but can’t afford to slack off less Ducati’s favored son Xaus steal his seat. Naturally the WCM guys are always hoping for a faster ride and Ellison may actually deserve one. If Dorna is still pressuring the MotoGP squads to hire an English rider then Ellison, along with ex-KTM rider Byrne, may actually be a hot commodity for ‘06.

The final group of riders hoping to impress this weekend are the wild card and replacement riders. Suzuki’s Nobuatsu Aoki is standing in for the injured Kenny Roberts, Jr. He has spent the past year as a test rider and would love to be back in the big show. Likewise, Kawasaki’s test rider Olivier Jacque will be a wild card this weekend and will hope for another China result (as opposed to another Sepang-like DNF) if he is going to raise any eyebrows. British Superbike superstar Ryuichi Kiyonari is standing in for the still-injured Bayliss (following the path blazed this season by Ukawa, Byrne and Vermeulen as Camel Honda stand-ins). He needs a top 10 finish to better Vermeulen’s results for Camel Honda and seems to be adapting well to the big MotoGP bikes. Finally, TeamKR are back in the paddock with their old V5 motor and their old 2003 rider Kurtis Roberts. The youngest Roberts is looking for a ride and the oldest Roberts is looking for sponsorship for next year. Both will be fighting an uphill battle for the weekend…

The racing circuit offers its own challenges. In some respects it is a mini-Motegi as it is primarily defined by a stop-and-start flow. The track is relatively short at 2.49 miles in length and is very tight since it crams 14 turns into that small space. The track is reasonably wide and has a very abrasive surface so stable, hard braking may be the trait most needed by the bikes with strong acceleration a close second. This is especially true in the first and final corners. Turn 1 is a 90 degree left taken in the mid-80 mph range but with eye-popping breaking after the riders have hit 180+ on the preceeding straight. Expect lots of late braking here which means bikes the bikes will be set up with super stiff front forks. The final turn is equally tricky since it is a relatively slow, off-camber hairpin left taken after flying through a sweeping left hand kink at 125+. Expect some riders to wash out the front end here and take a tour of the Valencia gravel traps on the outside of the turn. The final turn worth mentioning is the “where men are men” left hand kink at turn seven taken over a buck fifty. Lets see, fast left hand bends in turns 3, 7 and 13…who is it that likes fast left hand turns? Oh yeah, Nicky Hayden. Nicky has been fast in the past at the Spanish circuit but always seems to find the limit of front tire adhesion the bad way. Lets hope he can keep it on two wheels this time.

Alright, lots of hard braking. Lots of hard acceleration. A few fast left hand sweepers. An abrasive track surface. Sounds like tires may again be a factor. The Michelins have traditionally ruled at Valencia but Bridgestone made up some serious ground this season as evidenced by Capirossi and Checa’s podiums over the last five races. Keep a close eye on the tire war, especially because a strong Bridgestone performance could move perennial mid-pack guys like the Suzukis and Kawasakis up into the top five while a strong Michelin showing will increase the excitement of the Hayden-Melandri and Rossi-Gibernau issues.

The fuse gets lit this Sunday and should make for a grand finale for the MotoGP series.

[image from the Ricardo Tormo Circuit web site.]

This past weekend, I finally got around to watching the DVD One Man’s Island. This is the story of Canadian road racer Mark Gardiner who quit his job, sold all his belongings and moved to the Isle of Man to compete in the annual TT races back in 2002.

The DVD itself is very well done. Video quality is fantastic and the documentary was shot by someone that understood camera angles, video production, building a story line and developing characters. But its the contents of the DVD that really make it a worthwhile watch. Gardiner’s story is compelling on a number of different levels.

First and foremost is just the thrill of watching someone chase their dream. Mark got into racing late in life but went on to successfully compete in Canadian club racing, then Canadian national racing and then on to the AMA 250GP series. (As an aside, it was wild that I didn’t recognize his name but immediately recognized his leathers from all my time following the AMA series…). Ultimately, Gardiner decided that his real goal was to race the Island of Man TT. Realizing that he didn’t have the funding to chase this dream on the side he had to make a drastic decision. He sold everything, quit his job and headed for the small island in the Irish Sea. The story is guaranteed to be interesting when it starts like that…

Second, Gardiner faced a couple of different challenges which add another interesting ingredient to the story: He is pretty old to be starting real “road” racing. While most of the road race specialists are in, like Gardiner, in their 30s they got their start at half that age. Its quite a daunting proposition to start learning the 38 mile long circuit at an age when most racers are retiring. Gardiner also has lupus which saps muscle strength and endurance. Racing 150 miles over dangerous public roads taxes the body of even the most fit racer. He is very humble about this issue and its just a small part of the overall story line but I think is something that amplifies both this dream and his accomplishment.

The story itself is very well laid out talking about Gardiner, the history of the TT, the famous TT course, the components which came together to help him compete and finally his results. Great on-board footage is used, including an entire lap which is available as a DVD “extra". There are also a few short interviews with a few famous IoM legends including nine time winner Dave Jefferies (this interview being done the year before Jefferies lost his life during the 2003 TT). The DVD really holds a lot of little gems like this which combine to make for a very enjoyable film.

If you’re looking for something to add to your DVD collection, this one is worth picking up. Its available from both Aerostich and White Horse Press.

[image from the Aerostich web site.]

I normally try to do a blog posting each day during the week but the attentive readers will notice there wasn’t a new post yesterday. Well, the reason is that I normally spend my evening working on an article but had to spend Monday evening trying to get police reports and insurance paperwork…

This past weekend my wife and I were going to take a bike trip down to Manitou Springs (just outside Colorado Springs) for a little R&R. When we got up Saturday morning it was cool and dumping rain. At the last minute we decided to skip the motorcycle and take my wife’s 2004 Toyota Rav4 instead.

While driving through Denver, a group of high school graduates, still in their graduation gowns, ended up causing a four car pile-up resulting in a train of three cars slamming into the back of our car. The back of the car was pretty trashed but thankfully we only had sore neck muscles…no lasting damage for us.

Anyway, with the wheels now in motion to get the insurance paperwork filed, the police report in-hand and the damage estimate scheduled I can return to my blog duties. I’ll try to do a second posting today with the review of this weekend’s racing so I’m caught up.

[image from my photo collection.]

I have a couple of big blog entries in the hopper but found some news posted on some of my favorite motorcycle web sites today that has me so excited I wanted to share the news.

Dunlop has decided to make posters of their recent Legends line of print ads. These excellent black and white photos show incredible scenes of famous racers like Kenny Roberts, Wayne Rainey, David Bailey, Bob Hannah, Jeff Ward, Bubba Shobert and others. The first one I saw in a magazine was a shot of Kenny Roberts and the rest of the 1983 Grand Prix grid doing an old Le Mans style push start of their bikes at the Grand Prix of San Marino. I was blown away by the picture and then in other magazines continued to see these amazing photos from the ’80s showing Dunlop riders in action. (Interestingly enough, Roberts is much better known as a Goodyear rider since it was on that brand of tires that he had his greatest success…). At the time I thought Dunlop should make posters of them.

Well Dunlop realized there was an audience for these posters but in a rare case of corporate compassion decided to donate the net proceeds from the sale of them to the Clayton Memorial Foundation which helps injured riders with their medical bills. Not only do I get some more garage eye candy but it will help riders too. Sweet!

The posters can be ordered from a link off the Cycle News web site. Mine are already on the way!

[image from the Dunlop web site.]

Back in November of last year I did a blog entry about the how important it is on Veteran’s Day to remember those who have served in our military.

Well, today is Memorial Day and despite the continual degradation of my sense of patriotism, or even simple respect for of country, I am still humbled by those that have chosen to dedicate their lives to protecting our country. Even while I openly flip the finger to those currently in power in our government, I have nothing but the deepest respect and admiration for those who have given their lives for our armed forces.

I hope you’ve taken at least a little bit of time this Monday to think solemnly about those who have fallen in all our country’s conflicts whether it be the fight for independence or those who died just today in foreign lands.

I’ll pick back up with motorcycle talk tomorrow.

[image from my photo collection.]

Normally, my Monday posting is a review of the weekend’s racing. Well, the weather threw a monkey wrench into things so the race review will have to wait until tomorrow.

As for the weather review, the story is pretty impressive. For the past few weeks we’ve had incredible spring weather. Warm temperatures, sunny days and the winter gravel had finally blow away revealing clean motorcycling roads. Then, starting last Thursday night, the snow flakes started falling again up in the mountains of Colorado. As the last of the frozen stuff fell this morning the measuring stick shows three foot of snow over the past four days.

This wasn’t the light fluffy stuff that usual graces the high altitudes but was a wet, heavy snow that bent trees and weighted down power lines. The all important electrons quit flowing to my house four times in five days. Ah, the joys of rural mountain living! The final tally was one dead APC UPS, three dead hard drives and two crashed servers. I spent the entire weekend installing drives from my spares pool, re-installing Solaris and restoring backup tapes. As of 4am Monday morning all the servers are back up, though one of them is still propped up with iffy parts and a computer geek’s prayer. I’ll finish that one up Tuesday night after I’m caught up on sleep.

Anyway, the power of the blog has returned. I’ll get the usual weekend race review posted tomorrow. Thanks for your patience with dorje.com’s ups and downs.

[image from my photo collection.]

My motorcycle blog is taking a break today. Instead, I’d like to take this time to wish a happy 40th birthday to my favorite motorcyclist…my wife Jonna!

[image from my photo collection.]

After riding my bike in January, seeing Carmichael get beat in Supercross, watching Mladin crash and seeing someone throw down a faster lap that Rossi I was beginning to get worried.

Well, Rossi has said he was testing parts and Capirossi said he was using a Q tire. Mladin still ran the fastest time of the Daytona tire test despite the crash. RC has dominated the SX rounds after muddy Anaheim I and now we’ve gotten two foot of snow in the mountains. My bikes are back to running down their batteries and collecting dust for another two months. Everything is, in fact, back to normal.

If you listen closely, you can hear the stable doors being slammed shut on the four horsemen’s mounts…

[image from my camera]

Happy Holidays to everyone!

Its been a busy and exciting year. Work has been crazy but it looks like our products will roll out in 2005 so we will see some success after three long years. Jonna and I did lot of traveling which, as always, was the highlight of our year: motorcycling in Italy, hiking in Moab, visiting friends in Chicago, an anniversary weekend in Crestone, CO and trips to visit family in Florida and California. I helped a friend at some of the local MRA races with his Ducati 999 and maintained my race obsession by watching nearly all the MotoGP, World Superbike and AMA races on SpeedTV. I made it down to watch the AMA races at Pikes Peak International Raceway. I also got in 6000 miles of riding, including a great weekend DP ride with my buddy Todd. I’m looking forward to more of the same in 2005!

We are heading to Florida for Christmas, then going over to New Orleans with my parents to enjoy the Big Easy for a few days. As a result I won’t be posting any new content to the blog until after New Years Eve. Its also possible that dorje will have a problem while we are away and our housesitter won’t be able to fix it, so don’t be surprised if dorje.com becomes unreachable.

Have a safe and happy holiday!

[image from www.christmaslightsetc.com]

I was out of town last weekend visiting my in-laws in the San Francisco area, thus the lack of new content on Friday. I already have a few things I hope to take from thoughts to blog entries early this week. Additionally, the Cycle World International Motorcycle Show is in Denver this weekend, Michael Jordan claims to have a press event scheduled for early this week, the World Superbike guys are testing in Spain this week and the AMA Dunlop tire tests start soon. Hopefully that will be enough fodder to keep the blog entries coming…

[image from the Official San Francisco City web site]

I’ve told a few folks that I’d have blog entries with rider line-ups for the various series (AMA, World Superbike and MotoGP) online this week. Well, I’ve decided to delay a week, in the hopes that some of the smaller team’s will sort out their riders during the US holiday. In particular, I’m waiting for Proton and Aprilia in MotoGP, the rumored Italia Honda team in World Superbike, Jordan and the Suzuki support teams (Valvoline, Corona, Hooters) in AMA.

If there aren’t new press releases from these teams by next week, I’ll just take some guesses about who I think will end up where so I can get things posted. Consider this the Thanksgiving Break for my blog.

[image from Turtle Island web site]

This past Thursday, November 11th, I was at the fancy new post office in Boulder buying stamps from the vending machine. In case you didn’t immediately make the connection, Nov 11th is Veterans Day in the U.S. and is recognized by the Federal Government, including postal employees, as a holiday. As such, the bank was closed, except the self-service machines and the public mail boxes. Anyway, I’m there starring at the machine and deliberating on whether to buy the flag stamps (Since 9/11, I’ve developed a mental association between the displaying of the flag and ultra conservative, blindly patriotic pro-US rhetoric which I still haven’t been able to overcome) or pay extra for the Breast Cancer or Child Abuse fund raising stamps.

Suddenly the creasing of my frontal lobe is interrupted by a guy asking me if I knew when the Post Office counter would be open. I quickly pointed out that today was a federal holiday and returned to my quandary. However, this guy walked my way and let out a quip that really shook me. He simply said “What? Veterans Day isn’t a real holiday. These post office folks will make any excuse to get off work.".

Now, as you can see from my flag stamp problem, I’m definitely not the patriotic type. In fact, I’m not even particularly pro-military, being that I’m a long-haired, pacifist, vegetarian, bunny-hugging commie. One thing I am, even if I’m not particularly fond of our country at the moment, is a major history buff. I can quote from memory most of the facts and major events of wars from 1776 to the 1980s. I have memorized even trivial items from WWI and WWII. This, at least to me, is living history. History which connects directly to my life through my relatives.

Finally, I am constantly aware of the tremendous achievements that soldiers in all wars, and particular the two World Wars, have brought about and I regularly find myself lacking when compared to what these people have experienced and accomplished. I’m not sure I could survive a day in the winter of 1944 in the forests of Germany or in the summer of ‘44 in the jungles of New Guinea. Yet my Grandfather Cecil marched through France, Belgium and Germany for a year with the 3rd Army. And my great-uncle Charlie spent three months in the jungles of New Guinea after his bomber was downed. These men survived something beyond my imagination but lived on to be loving, caring men.

Certainly men worthy of respect and definitely men worthy of a holiday.

[image from virtualtourist.com]

Welcome to my blog.

For the past few years, I’ve been somewhat critical…okay, very critical, of the whole blog explosion. In fact, this criticism goes back to when personal web pages first started popping up in the ’90s because I said then that it managed to be both egotistical and nihilistic. The former because it assumes other people actually care and the second because it reduces people to bland words on a computer screen. However, I eventually built a web page and now I’m starting a blog. Was I wrong? No, I’m just egotistical enough to think someone cares and don’t really care if everyone thinks I’m as boring as my blog will probably be.

Anyway, thanks for reading. I’ll pontificate at random here but you can be sure it will be dominated by my obsessions with motorcycles. In fact, my first few posting will be about motorcycles and motorcycle racing.

Comments will be moderated but I’ll approve everything that isn’t spam, so I hope it will make for interesting reading for anyone with some time to waste.

Welcome and enjoy!

–
Think Peace.
- alanf