VFR4Lee Posted June 3, 2020 Share Posted June 3, 2020 I think it was that 1988 Laguna Seca 500 GP race that got me into racing. Saw it on over the air TV, and just had to get cable TV, and go to the races the next year. It's a great all day ride up the coast. Kevin Schwantz sticks in my mind, although I don't recall if it was because he had a good result, or crashed, picked it up and carried on, or what. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Member Contributer Jelorian Posted June 3, 2020 Author Member Contributer Share Posted June 3, 2020 Some pics from the 2012 WSBK Races at Miller Motorsports Park in Utah, USA #7 Carlos Checa #66 Tom Sykes #21 John "Hopper" Hopkins - miss seeing him out there. Amazing rider and very humble. Very cool guy in person as well. Felt so bad when he lost the BSB championship. #7 Rear shot of Carlos Checa Forgot the turn numbers from this back section at Miller Motorsports Pack Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Member Contributer St. Stephen Posted June 4, 2020 Member Contributer Share Posted June 4, 2020 1 hour ago, Jelorian said: We are all jonesing I'm sure! I should try and find the MotoGP year in reviews, if they exist for the earlier years. motogp videopass is ~120 euro/year, has full races back to roughly 1992. As you may already know. https://www.motogp.com Valencia 2006 is kinda fun... Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Member Contributer Jelorian Posted June 5, 2020 Author Member Contributer Share Posted June 5, 2020 Here are some pics from the 2013 MotoGP races at the Circuit of the Americas. This was the first time that MotoGP came to this track and it was a great time. Unfortunately, this track is not very photographer friendly. From being hassled at the entrance for having "professional" cameras to dealing with double fences and big run off areas which make it difficult in some spots to get close enough to get good shots. This is why most of my shots here are panning shots but I was still able to get some decent ones without having media credentials. Also this track is HUGE by the end of the first day my dogs were barking. Getting some gel insoles helped for the rest of the weekend. Moto3 from the grandstands #93 Marc Marquez blitzes by the Repsol comm station going down the front straight. Local boy #11 Ben Spies on the Pramac Ducati #69 Nicky "The Kentucky Kid" Hayden on the factory Ducati. May he RIP. #11 Ben Spies under very hard braking as he sets up for Turn 20 before the front straight. Notice how compressed the front end is and how high the rear is. Another shot of #69 Nicky Hayden. This shot was particularly difficult as I was shooting through not 1 but 2 chain link fences. You can see the horizontal cable supports as well. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Member Contributer St. Stephen Posted June 5, 2020 Member Contributer Share Posted June 5, 2020 10 hours ago, Jelorian said: Here are some pics from the 2013 MotoGP races at the Circuit of the Americas. This was the first time that MotoGP came to this track and it was a great time. Unfortunately, this track is not very photographer friendly. From being hassled at the entrance for having "professional" cameras to dealing with double fences and big run off areas which make it difficult in some spots to get close enough to get good shots. This is why most of my shots here are panning shots but I was still able to get some decent ones without having media credentials. Also this track is HUGE by the end of the first day my dogs were barking. Getting some gel insoles helped for the rest of the weekend. More great shots Jelorian, thanks for posting. I particularly like Ben Spies braking for all he's worth, a real action photo. I went to COTA in 2017 and enjoyed it, and I enjoy Austin, but I was having a hard time convincing myself to return this year pre-virus. I actually like Indy more, weird as it was to be in that vast track ("hey, look, there's a golf course!"). As you note, 20 turns is way too many, and you have to wait two minutes for the leaders to return! I placed myself above the endless esses from turns 3 to 10, which was fun, but my favorite spot turned out to be at the end of that endless back straight. I make a point of walking around the whole track when its new to me and that was indeed a hike! Anyway, here's some esses: Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Member Contributer Dutchy Posted June 5, 2020 Member Contributer Share Posted June 5, 2020 Austrian MotoGP last year (Plain old Canon 1100D) Please dont repost these last two anywhere else. We were allowed in as a favour/"off the record" 🙂 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Member Contributer Jelorian Posted June 6, 2020 Author Member Contributer Share Posted June 6, 2020 16 hours ago, St. Stephen said: More great shots Jelorian, thanks for posting. I particularly like Ben Spies braking for all he's worth, a real action photo. I went to COTA in 2017 and enjoyed it, and I enjoy Austin, but I was having a hard time convincing myself to return this year pre-virus. I actually like Indy more, weird as it was to be in that vast track ("hey, look, there's a golf course!"). As you note, 20 turns is way too many, and you have to wait two minutes for the leaders to return! I placed myself above the endless esses from turns 3 to 10, which was fun, but my favorite spot turned out to be at the end of that endless back straight. I make a point of walking around the whole track when its new to me and that was indeed a hike! Anyway, here's some esses: Thank you sir! It is a fun track and Austin is a nice little city. Indy is a fun track as well with a lot of racing history. The museum is pretty nice as well. The city really goes all out in welcoming the race fans. I thought Monterey's Cannery Row during a motorcycle race weekend was awesome, but as you probably know it pales in comparison to downtown Indy. Literally thousands of bikes all over the place and the street names are temporarily renamed after the racers. 15 hours ago, Dutchy said: Austrian MotoGP last year (Plain old Canon 1100D) Please dont repost these last two anywhere else. We were allowed in as a favour/"off the record" 🙂 Dutchy, thanks for these pics! I want to get out to Assen someday. I hear it is a great track to visit. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Member Contributer Dutchy Posted June 6, 2020 Member Contributer Share Posted June 6, 2020 Assen is an event for sure! WSBK 2003 Pitch a tent beside the track Drunk guy digging his bike in until the engine blew up....🤢 Do bring your earplugs... Taking the championship Back then, Corona was something to long for.... Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Member Contributer Dutchy Posted June 6, 2020 Member Contributer Share Posted June 6, 2020 WSBK 2012 Nurburgring Staying @douglasthecook En route Traffic stop Doug only got away with multiple infractions thanks to his USAF plate.. Hubba hubba Surely not one of the ladies above eh? Heroes of yore.... Oh yes............... the racing!!! Ooopsie.... (this was in 2010.... Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Member Contributer Jelorian Posted June 8, 2020 Author Member Contributer Share Posted June 8, 2020 On 6/6/2020 at 2:56 AM, Dutchy said: WSBK 2012 Nurburgring Staying @douglasthecook En route Traffic stop Doug only got away with multiple infractions thanks to his USAF plate.. Hubba hubba Surely not one of the ladies above eh? Heroes of yore.... Oh yes............... the racing!!! Ooopsie.... (this was in 2010.... Great pics Dutchy! Thanks for sharing these! Love the pics of the ride going to the track. Why did you guys get pulled over by the police? BTW, I am a big fan of Troy Corser! What a great guy. We threw an after party after the 2010 WSBK races at Miller and he was a party animal! The thing is, because of the predominately Morman population the alcohol content in the beer is much lower than the rest of the USA. So you could practically drink them like water! Hahahaha. Love the umbrella girls as well. Shall I start a new thread just for them? Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Member Contributer Jelorian Posted June 8, 2020 Author Member Contributer Share Posted June 8, 2020 This was the 2002 WSBK races at Laguna Seca. Here are a few shots taken before I got into motor sports photography. Taken with my point and shoot Sony Powershot S1 (if I remember correctly) Later I decided I wanted to get better and take shots like the pros. I bought everything used and just started taking pics. Asked for tips from the pros and just kept practicing. The Honda NAS concept motorcycle. One of the craziest concept bikes I've ever seen and to think it came out in 1999. 21 years later and we still don't have anything like it on the road I saw a crowd and I wondered what the fuss was. Then I saw a bike and a beautiful woman and a pro photographer (Jim Gianatsis) taking shots with medium format camera (at the time I had no idea what the difference was). Fast forward to about 10 years later and I figured out it was a shoot for the Fast Dates motorcycle calendar. Little did I know that I would come across pro photographer Jim Gianatsis and his Fast Dates calendar shoots in the future. One of my favorite riders, Troy Bayliss and his "biggest fans". Hahahha. Another favorite of mine, Noriyuki Haga who was then, riding for Aprilia. A view of Turn 3 and Turn 4 and the exit of Turn 9 aka Rainey curve in the background. Before the big renovation of Laguna Seca and the dedicated garages, the teams had to setup in shipping containers and temporary tent garages. Here is Noriyuki Haga's paddock area. Even the "local" American rider, Colin Edwards aka The Texas Tornado had a temporary garage. By comparison the AMA guys had the support of their big semi trucks and had much better setups. Still my dream bike. 2002 Ducati 998S Bayliss Replica. Only 400 of these were made. This was in commemoration of Troy's 2001 WSBK championship. They also made a Ben Bostrom replica. Partly overlooking Turn 4 and the entrance to the paddock The infamous Corkscrew. This was before they moved the pedestrian bridge which now spans between the middle and last bike now. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Sweeper Posted June 8, 2020 Share Posted June 8, 2020 On 6/5/2020 at 12:10 PM, Dutchy said: Austrian MotoGP last year Please dont repost these last two anywhere else. We were allowed in as a favour/"off the record" 🙂 That's it Leon, I'm never riding pillion with you again! I thought I was the one and only. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Member Contributer Dutchy Posted June 8, 2020 Member Contributer Share Posted June 8, 2020 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Member Contributer lazyeye Posted June 9, 2020 Member Contributer Share Posted June 9, 2020 Laguna Seca WSBK 2016 Mine aren't nearly as good, but who cares? Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Member Contributer lazyeye Posted June 9, 2020 Member Contributer Share Posted June 9, 2020 MotoGP Austin 2018 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Member Contributer lazyeye Posted June 9, 2020 Member Contributer Share Posted June 9, 2020 More MotoGP and MA Austin 2018 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Member Contributer lazyeye Posted June 9, 2020 Member Contributer Share Posted June 9, 2020 and MORE Austin MotoGP and MA 2018 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Member Contributer St. Stephen Posted June 9, 2020 Member Contributer Share Posted June 9, 2020 Great shots Lazyeye! In 2017 I had the good fortune to attend the WSBK opening round at Philip Island, and motogp at Mugello. Both exceeded my incredibly high expectations despite being drastically different. The similarities were limited to great racing, incredible natural beauty, and excellent Italian food (not a typo!). Here's PI: Pino's in Cowes is great. It's always a good sign when you see the Italian race teams eating there. In addition to these original leathers (58!), they have Valentino's coolest helmet, where the image of his face is on the top--the one nobody understood until they saw him at 200mph! Can't remember seeing three of these together outside of a dealer. Siberia, looking towards Antartica. What a beautiful track! The laid back vibe seemed to me to match the flowing nature of the track itself. BTW, I promised my wife that if we went to the race we would also go see the famous PI penguins emerge from the ocean. It worked, she wants to go back! Sticker shock! He's got to be the most friendly and gregarious rider in WSBK. Inconsistent results but a great personality. Obviously this was one of Nicky's last races before the bicycle accident in Italy. He was 10th and a DNF as I recall. That bike that Honda gave to Ten Kate sucked. The races according to JR65 were "slow" tire conservation affairs, but as a spectator I couldn't have asked for more. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Member Contributer Jelorian Posted June 9, 2020 Author Member Contributer Share Posted June 9, 2020 16 hours ago, lazyeye said: Laguna Seca WSBK 2016 Mine aren't nearly as good, but who cares? Lazyeye! Great pics! And I care! In a good way! Thanks so much for sharing and I thank you for taking the time to post them! ! I am loving all the contributions to this thread. Please keep them coming and I'll do the same. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Member Contributer Jelorian Posted June 9, 2020 Author Member Contributer Share Posted June 9, 2020 3 hours ago, St. Stephen said: Great shots Lazyeye! In 2017 I had the good fortune to attend the WSBK opening round at Philip Island, and motogp at Mugello. Both exceeded my incredibly high expectations despite being drastically different. The similarities were limited to great racing, incredible natural beauty, and excellent Italian food (not a typo!). Here's PI: Pino's in Cowes is great. It's always a good sign when you see the Italian race teams eating there. In addition to these original leathers (58!), they have Valentino's coolest helmet, where the image of his face is on the top--the one nobody understood until they saw him at 200mph! Can't remember seeing three of these together outside of a dealer. Siberia, looking towards Antartica. What a beautiful track! The laid back vibe seemed to me to match the flowing nature of the track itself. BTW, I promised my wife that if we went to the race we would also go see the famous PI penguins emerge from the ocean. It worked, she wants to go back! Sticker shock! He's got to be the most friendly and gregarious rider in WSBK. Inconsistent results but a great personality. Obviously this was one of Nicky's last races before the bicycle accident in Italy. He was 10th and a DNF as I recall. That bike that Honda gave to Ten Kate sucked. The races according to JR65 were "slow" tire conservation affairs, but as a spectator I couldn't have asked for more. More good stuff sir! Much appreciated! I'm loving all these pics! I hope to get out to more tracks once this Covid19 is over. Need more racing and need to get out to the racetracks! Cheers! Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Member Contributer lazyeye Posted June 10, 2020 Member Contributer Share Posted June 10, 2020 WSBK/MA at Laguna Seca 2019 We ran into the Thrashed Bike Racing crew at Black Bear Diner and chatted them up about race stuff. The next day we found them in the paddock and they let me pose on their bike. If only I had talent and money I could get out of the Novice race class and ... oh hell who am I kidding I'd never be able to qualify for SBK. LOL. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Member Contributer lazyeye Posted June 10, 2020 Member Contributer Share Posted June 10, 2020 WSBK/MA Laguna Seca 2019 Forza GP has an exhibition of kiddos on Ohvales. First step to rebuilding American race talent starts with little kids. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Member Contributer lazyeye Posted June 10, 2020 Member Contributer Share Posted June 10, 2020 WSBK/MA Laguna Seca 2019 WSBK Riders doing their thing Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Member Contributer Dutchy Posted June 10, 2020 Member Contributer Share Posted June 10, 2020 On 6/8/2020 at 4:29 AM, Jelorian said: Great pics Dutchy! Thanks for sharing these! Love the pics of the ride going to the track. Why did you guys get pulled over by the police? Well.................... Pre-ride out, We did notice and comment on: "But, but, but It is all approved here on base....." Sure, they are used at jets make obscene noise levels, so an open mc exhaust sound ok no? As with most tracks here, on race day the polis is out in force to catch rule breakers. I reckon Germans police especially keen on that. So close to the track we were all pulled over; they must have heard Doug coming from a couple of miles away. They descended like flies on a pile of..... Keny started taking pictures; they DIDNOT like that...... Luckily the German soccer team had beaten the Dutch recently so I cracked a joke "Do Not Mention The Soccer".... The chief inspector had a big grin as he noticed Doug's bike. But then (I speak German) could here them start a discussion amongst themselves,,, "Oh no, he is an American" "From the airbase" "Must we now call in Military Police??" So they decided to give him a Euro 20 warning ticket. Doug wanted to argue that; I told him to STFU..... 😉 Had it been Jeroen, Keny or me, we would have gotten in instant ban to ride 1" further.... I was checked too "that exhaust is not OEM correct, but it has EU approval markings "where is the approval paperwork for that exhaust?" I donot need that "why not? I am not German "ah ok" "Has that exhaust been open up?" Why? "to make more noise" I took of my helmet to show my grey hairs and commented that I was too old for that kinda stuff.. Here is Turn 1 at the Nurburgring... Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Member Contributer BusyLittleShop Posted June 10, 2020 Member Contributer Share Posted June 10, 2020 Lets keep the great shots coming... it really feels good to reminisce... a few of my favorites... Hirotoshi Honda... #1 son of Soichiro Honda and president of Mugen... 1980 Japan... King Kenny on Mr.RC45 inside a bar for Sportbike Night Kevin Schwantz Mr.RC45 inside a bar for Sportbike Night Larry Pegram at the Busy Little Shop ( I machined a custom steering stem for his Ducati) Giacomo Agostini at Laguna Seca pits... John Kocinski Laguna Seca Rossi at Laguna Seca pits Mick Doohan Mugello pits DO NO SIT ON THIS BIKE Rossi's RC211V Laguna Seca The elusive Casey Stoner who dodged posing Adriana Stoner who didn't mind posing 3 Amigos at Ray Abrams shop on Sparky (Kenny Roberts TZ750 flat tracker) Super Wrench Jermey Burgess at Laguna Seca pits The RC45 still is Shuhei Nakamoto's baby... he was chief development engineer for Team Castrol during the 1997 WSBK season. HRC's "go to guy" Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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