Motourage

Today’s video of the day takes you on a fast lap around Virginia International Raceway.

One of the first permanent race tracks in the US, Virginia International Raceway hosted its first official race in 1957.  In its early years, VIR hosted automobile and motorcycle races, and the list of competitors reads like a who’s who of hall-of-famers.  Sanctioned events took place regularly for nearly 20 years, until the 1973 fuel crisis hit American motorsports hard, and VIR closed its paddock in 1974.  The track lay dormant for 25 years until it was revived in 1998. VIR reopened in 2000 after undergoing a complete overhaul.  The track was widened and repaved, but stuck to the original course layout.

This weekend, VIR will host the 10th-annual AMA Big Kahuna Nationals, and the party starts on Thursday night and doesn’t stop until the last bike crosses the line on Sunday evening.  Head up early and join the Motourage team at “Race to Texas,” the official Big Kahuna Kickoff party on Thursday, August 13th at 8:00 at Texas Steakhouse and Saloon in Danville.  If you’ve purchased your Motourage Celebrity Weekend Hospitality Passes, you’ll receive your tickets in the mail shortly, and they’ll be accompanied by your official Motourage schedule.  If you’re reading this – regardless of if you’ll be joining us in the Pagoda – you’re eligible for some cool prizes this weekend.  Stay tuned to Motourage.net throughout the week to keep updated about what’s going on at the track and elsewhere.

Flat Track fans are accustomed to seeing V-twin Harley Davidson motorcycles banging handlebars around oval dirt tracks in the U.S., but something you don’t see everyday is spec 883 Sportsters duking it out in a road race.  Today’s Motourage Video of the Day features the 1991 U.S. Pro Twins event at Mid Ohio.

Although not very well known away from the dirt track, Harley Davidson’s racing history is long and proud.  In 1908, Walter Davidson, Harley’s co-founder and president, rode a stock single-cylinder machine to victory in the Federation of American Motorcyclists two-day, 365-mile endurance and reliability contest through the Catskill Mountains of New York.  At the 1912 Bakersfield Road Race in California, a new track record was set on a Harley.  Throughout the 1950s and 1960s, Harleys dominated at Daytona, and even after HD’s racing operations shut down in the U.S. in 1969, the American-built 250 and 350s had success in Europe for the next 10 years.  During the late 80s and early 90s, Harley Davidson sanctioned several spec-Sportster classes in support of AMA-sanctioned road racing events but was unable to compete with the Japanese four cylinder machines in the regular series.

Harley Davidson returned to American road racing full time in 1994 with the VR1000, a bike that saw a flicker of success underneath Doug Chandler, Miguel Duhamel Pascal Picotte.  Like the Buell 1125RR, the VR1000 was criticized for being a race-purpose bike and unavailable in Harley showrooms in the U.S.  After the 1999 season, Harley ended development on the VR1000 and pulled out of AMA-sanctioned events, but the company continues to see success with their V-Rod in the NHRA Pro Stock Motorcycle drag-racing class and the XR750 in the AMA Flat Track Grand National Twins.

In 2008, rumors began circulating about a Harley-Davidson XR1200 Trophy series as a support class for the 2009 British Superbike championship.  Originally slated to run at eight BSB events in 2009, the series will now be split into two seasons with 2009 declared a development season and the original schedule being run next year. Similar spec Harley series are run in Italy and Japan with varied degrees of success.

The Motourage team is back from vacation, and we’re bringing you the newest edition of the Motourage Video of the Day.  Today’s video features the action-packed, dangerous sport of sidecar racing.

In honor of Nicky Hayden’s birthday today, the Motourage Video of the Day is this tribute to the Kentucky Kid.

Born July 30, 1981, Nicholas Patrick Hayden’s racing resume is quite impressive.  In 1999, he won the AMA Supersport championship and earned the Rookie-of-the-Year title in AMA Flat Track in a season that also saw him named the AMA Athlete of the Year.  In his first full season as an AMA Superbike racer, he finished in third place.   In 2002, he won the Daytona 200, the AMA Superbike championship and placed fourth as a World Superbike wild card rider at Laguna Seca.  That same year, he won four AMA Flat Track races, beating Chris Carr’s string of 13 consecutive wins at the Peoria TT.

He was drafted into Honda’s MotoGP team, alongside reigning world champion Valentino Rossi, immediately following his Superbike championship.  He finished in fifth place and earned Rookie-of-the-Year honors.  Three years later, he won the MotoGP championship, breaking Valentino Rossi’s string of five titles.

The seasons since Nicky’s MotoGP championship have been unremarkable at best; however, since his move to the Factory Ducati squad, he has begun to make improvements on a machine that, until now, no one other than Casey Stoner has been able to tame.  A failed tire-selection gamble at Donington may have hindered Nicky’s quest for improvement, but we at Motourage hope for the best for the Kentucky Kid and wish him a speedy rise back to glory.

Happy Birthday, Nicky.

Originally part of Donington Hill estate, Donington Park motor racing circuit was the first permanent race course in England.  Donington Park hosted its first motorcycle race in 1931, and it has been home to the MotoGP British Grand Prix since 1987.  This weekend, the MotoGP circus rolls into Donington Park for the final time, as the race will return to Silverstone next year after a 22-year absence.  Formula 1 will move from Silverstone to take MotoGP’s place at Donington.

Valentino Rossi has won at Donington Park seven times; however, he hasn’t graced the top of the podium there since 2005.  Defending winner Casey Stoner is hoping for a repeat, but he’s still suffering from health problems for the past few weeks.  The 250cc class is guaranteed a new winner, as none of the riders currently on the roster has ever won at Donington.

Today’s Motourage Video of the Day includes highlights form last year’s MotoGP British Grand Prix at Donington Park.

Since embedding has been disabled by the powers that be at MotoGP, you’ll have to go HERE to watch the video.

The big news around the AMA is the indefinite suspension of Al Ludington for the use of his language while tearing Johnny Rock Page a new one, while the talk in MotoGP circles is Jorge Lorenzo’s delusion that he’s worth as much money as Valentino Rossi.  In British Superbikes, though, the crash during the 23^rd lap of race 1 at Mallory Park and the subsequent suspension of HM Plant Honda rider Josh Brooks are still on people’s minds.  Today’s Motourage Video of the Day is that BSB crash from this past weekend.  Following an investigation by the BSB judiciary panel it has been concluded that “he [Brooks] had been guilty of reckless riding and riding in a manner not compatible with general safety.”  As punishment for his actions, Josh Brooks has been issued a suspension that will last through the Silverstone round.  Earlier this year, Brooks was issued a suspension for taking out former MotoGP and current Worx Suzuki rider Sylvain Guintoli on the sighting lap of race 1 at Donington.  The crash left Guintoli with a fractured tibia and fibula and has kept him out for the season.  Guintoli, who rode for Tech 3 Yamaha in 2007 and Alice Ducati in 08, was expected to make a serious run for the BSB title in his first year.