Interesting threads from Cycle News.

[CYCLE_MONKEY]

Rossi on Bridgestones:
http://www.cyclenews.com/ShowStory.asp?HeadlineID=11571
New Honduh:
http://www.cyclenews.com/ShowStory.asp?HeadlineID=11572
Spies and Schwantz on the GSVR
http://www.cyclenews.com/ShowStory.asp?HeadlineID=11578
Schuey on the Duc (lookin' pretty good!)
http://www.cyclenews.com/ShowStory.asp?HeadlineID=11580

Yes, I know some of these were posted before....but from a different source, so it's still relevant.

[lth]

I only read a couple of these articles. Very interesting; thanks for posting. It sounded like Schwantz said Spies carries too much corner speed & thus has to wait too long to get to wide-open throttle. I thought corner speed is where it's at in small-displacement racing & superbike/Moto GP guys would be all about picking the bike up & getting it pointed straight as soon as possible. Since Spies is a Superbike badass, I'm surprised he wouldn't already be doing this. What do you racers out there think? As you've moved from less-hp to more-hp bikes have you changed your technique much? How easy was it to do?

The Cycle News Schumacher article doesn't mention it, but I read on crash.net that he rode within 5 seconds of Stoner's race record time using his Desmo. That's astonishing.

http://www.crash.net/motorsport/moto...togp_bike.html

That, along with this article in which Dovizioso says the 800cc MotoGP bike is easier to ride than his 250, makes me think MotoGP isn't enough about the rider anymore. Does anyone else miss those crazy 500s?

http://www.crash.net/motorsport/moto...an_my_250.html

[CYCLE_MONKEY]

I only read a couple of these articles. Very interesting; thanks for posting. It sounded like Schwantz said Spies carries too much corner speed & thus has to wait too long to get to wide-open throttle. I thought corner speed is where it's at in small-displacement racing & superbike/Moto GP guys would be all about picking the bike up & getting it pointed straight as soon as possible. Since Spies is a Superbike badass, I'm surprised he wouldn't already be doing this. What do you racers out there think? As you've moved from less-hp to more-hp bikes have you changed your technique much? How easy was it to do?

The Cycle News Schumacher article doesn't mention it, but I read on crash.net that he rode within 5 seconds of Stoner's race record time using his Desmo. That's astonishing.

http://www.crash.net/motorsport/moto...togp_bike.html

That, along with this article in which Dovizioso says the 800cc MotoGP bike is easier to ride than his 250, makes me think MotoGP isn't enough about the rider anymore. Does anyone else miss those crazy 500s?

http://www.crash.net/motorsport/moto...an_my_250.html

Absolutely. I've been following the GP circus since the good olde days of the smokers ('83), and they've gotten a LOT more easy to ride. I think they need to completely ban-and police-traction control. Let the bikes separate the men from the boys again. I liked the early days of the 990's best probably. No traction control besides organic......the riders wrist. Notice how suddenly Stoner's competitive and doesn't crash anymore?

[lth]

Completely agreed on traction control. Here's what some riders said about it last year:

Colin Edwards:
This is not real anymore. I spent my life learning throttle control but with this thing you just grab a big handful and let the software figure out how much stick the thing can really take. I wonder if some of these guys could actually ride a bike that didn’t have traction control.”

Schwantz:
The factor that used to control how long your career was, was how long you were prepared to race on the absolute edge. You knew that if you kept pushing the thing would snap and you wouldn’t always catch it. Our traction control was kinda how much your last crash was still hurting you. I’m going to Barcelona and I’ll see the bikes on track, but I think what is happening is that all the electronics has made it easier for the guys from 250 to ride these bikes hard.

(from http://www.speedtv.com/articles/moto/motogp/26146/ )

In the movie Faster, Rossi said something like "the 500 is more exciting, the 990 is more sweet". Now we have the 800, and it's like watching computers race each other. Bring back the excitement!

[CYCLE_MONKEY]

Completely agreed on traction control. Here's what some riders said about it last year:

Colin Edwards:
This is not real anymore. I spent my life learning throttle control but with this thing you just grab a big handful and let the software figure out how much stick the thing can really take. I wonder if some of these guys could actually ride a bike that didn’t have traction control.”

Schwantz:
The factor that used to control how long your career was, was how long you were prepared to race on the absolute edge. You knew that if you kept pushing the thing would snap and you wouldn’t always catch it. Our traction control was kinda how much your last crash was still hurting you. I’m going to Barcelona and I’ll see the bikes on track, but I think what is happening is that all the electronics has made it easier for the guys from 250 to ride these bikes hard.

(from http://www.speedtv.com/articles/moto/motogp/26146/ )

In the movie Faster, Rossi said something like "the 500 is more exciting, the 990 is more sweet". Now we have the 800, and it's like watching computers race each other. Bring back the excitement!

Dude, is that a pic of you with Schwantz? I had an old poster I had him sign at Laguna in his "Pepsi" days with Haslam. My dad's k#nt of a wife pitched the posted. But, a couple of years ago at the Suzuki event here I had a buddy bring my old Laguna ticket from '93 (the year he won the championship) to him to sign. Everybody freaked because nobody had seen a ticket like that in years.

[Sortarican]

Schwantz:
.....Our traction control was kinda how much your last crash was still hurting you.....

LOL,
Great Quote.


Hayden on the new Honda:
"They’ve got these pressure things."

Is that a technical term there Nicky?