| Author | Message | ||
     Redbuelljunkie |
For the third year in a row, arguably some the best racing in North America took place at an empty Daytona International Speedway. Sadly, the high banks were not friendly to Buell this year- but an 1125R was able to take a podium position after overcoming many challenges. I will upload some photos later today. | ||
| Redbuelljunkie |
Here are some pics... XB12R upon arrival (with sibling)  Lap 2 (find the three 1125Rs)  James Gang XB12R #70 on lap 4 fighting for the win and championship  Lap 5... #70 leaving the leading Ducati in the dirt after being punted from behind. Dumb move by the Ducati left the XB12R damaged, and ended his own race. Unfortunately, the Duc rider's brain fade would come back to haunt James Gang Racing.  James Gang put #70 back in action- pictured here L to R: XB9R, XB12R, PS1000  1125R burnin' it up (#8 was the fastest bike on the track during the race)  Free ride to the garage means the race is over for this 1125R  XB sorting out problems in the garage  Sunsets are always beautiful from the garage at Daytona International Speedway  Best paint job ever on a Ford van  Trying to keep all the fluids inside the cases of #70 during the last thirty minutes of the race  Final shot of the "crew" before the long, cold ride home  If you havn't made it to a Moto-ST race yet- plan to do it next year... it really is some of the best racing (and nicest people) that America has to offer. | ||
| Sd26 |
Great pictures! | ||
| Benm2 |
I think the Ducati rider that went down may have had some assistance from a third rider, and that caused him to run at Jeff as a result. Seems it was a "racing incident". I didn't hear anyone fixing blame. Considering the number of issues the JG crew had, it was a testament to the reliability of the XB motor. The fluids on the outide problem were related to the grass surfing, not any engine issues. Keeping the bike on the track from the halfway point on was a herculean effort by the entire JG crew, riders and crew alike. There were several times when it would have been easy & justifiable to throw in the towel, but that judgement never came. The bike went out for the final time with just over 10 minutes left on the clock, and took the checkered flag under its own power. It was one of the best demonstrations of "never give up, never give up, never give up" advice that I've seen on a racetrack. Also, the help given by the other teams & racers was great. My wife had never seen an endurance race before, she commented afterwards that she was surprised how many people came out of the woodwork to help in any way they could to get the bike back on track. There are people better qualified to tell the whole story than me, but suffice it to say it was experience I'll remember for a long time. | ||
| Redbuelljunkie |
The guy next to me was watching with binoculars when the accident happened- he said a Ducati went into the International Horseshoe too hot, ran into the grass, and re-entered hitting #70 from behind. It may very well have been instigated by a different Ducati (an SST bike maybe), but I heard a Duc ran off, and a Duc went down taking the XB12R with it. Whatever happened, it really sucked for James Gang from the very beginning... but they definitely refused to give up (made their way from 25th to 12th I believe before the next issue). Lesser bikes would never have survived the abuse the #70 XB12R endured. On the brighter side- Buell kicked some serious a$$ Friday and Sunday in ASRA and CCS racing. Congratulations to all of you fighting hard for Buell on the track- we appreciate it more than you know. | ||
| Buell2001b |
what do you think was the reason why buell could not win, was it rider, or the bike. I am just surprized how good the Aprilla are. 2 years in a row. are the riders puttiing to much weight on the bike maybe. lets get some midgets to ride the buells | ||
| Court |
>>> There were several times when it would have been easy & justifiable to throw in the towel That just would not be the James Gang's style . . . very cool and I'm loving hearing these reports. It was very few years ago that the Buells were not even on the scene. Seeing them winning all over Europe and such a strong contender around the world is exciting. Congratulations to all the Buell Teams! Court | ||
| Benm2 |
My wife's picture of JGR arriving back at the pits, after the rain started. The track conditions were awful, it had JUST started to rain, and MOST of the pavement was dry-ish, but the tar & paint strips were NOT. You can see a bit of grass in the tail section, and if you look closely you can see the fairing is mostly missing on the left side of the bike. The official is looking at the bike, that's the side that had the fuel leak.  | ||
| Benm2 |
Better pic of fairing. The firemen have started to collect here, no one was touching the bike yet, but there were lots of fire extinguishers aimed at it. Thankfully everthing stayed unlit.  | ||
| Benm2 |
Start of the behind-the-wall repairs from the 2nd crash, after the fuel had been drained.  More work, re-attaching the spare front fairing, and de-grassing & duct taping the tail section. ("Duct tape is like the force: it had a good side, a dark side, and holds the universe together...")  Almost ready to roll here. Watched carefully by Henry Duga, among others.  | ||
| Benm2 |
The start of the oil issues, the bike behind the wall for repairs.  About ready to go out, finishing up the work. It was obviously dark, and shop lights were everywhere. Its a dark photo, but there were A LOT of people standing around during the repair, looking for an opportunity to help. The officials were standing right there, watching to see when/how the repairs got done; they were key to getting the bike back on track.  Now its good to go: refuel and back on track.  | ||
| Benm2 |
This is the last picture my wife got, oil issue #2 mid repair. We finished this repair up with only minutes to go in the race, around 11 minutes or so if my addled brain serves me right. Paul took the bike back on track, and took it to the checkered flag.  | ||
| Sd26 |
Great photo's and story! | ||
| Rocketsprink |
Ben has it summed up pretty good. The ride home was the always expected "shoulda-woulda-coulda" routine. The Ducati team did everything they could to hand JG the Championship. Just wasn't meant to be I guess. Seeing that we survived 2 crashes, and 2 oil leaks and a torn open frame, I'd say we did everything we could. The thought crossed some's minds after the 2nd oil leak that brought out the red flag, but that was quickly brushed aside and we went back to work as Ben's photo's show. From my own prospective, being a part time crew member (my own racing, work, family) leave me little time to help out JG, I did not want to see it end with only a few minutes remaining. You try to interject your opinions, points and idea's, but you also don't want to overstep your bounds. But too many people have too much time, money, blood and sweat into this effort to give up. Giving up is easy. Fighting to the bitter end is the hard part. Made even harder when you know that when it's all said and done there is no "payoff". My payoff, however, was to see that Crew Chief Mike Kirkpartick was holding his head high. With all the issues, his bike still finished the race. In fact, that's the first non podium finish for this team dating back to, I believe, July of 2007! Would we have liked to podium and get the National Championship? Hell yes! But it is also a victory in it's own way when people can pull together and finish something they started. I'd like to thank Mike, Paul, Jeff, Walt, Rita, Pete, Alex, Zack, Jim, Jim and Ben for making it one hell of an exciting weekend. I'd also like to that Joel Spaulding(CCS Amateur Thunderbike Champ) for bring us Coke for a much needed caffine boost. I'd also like to thank all the Buell riders that stopped by to say hello and good luck. You guys being there means more to us racer and team member than you know. If you ever stop by, and we aren't shoulder deep into the engine or something else, please do not hesitate to introduce yourself. There are always chairs to sit in and talk with the crew and or riders. You may be surprised, you may get a team shirt thrown at you and asked to help in the pits. Believe me, there are no menial tasks. From the guy that tunes the engine to the tool "go-for" to the lollipop holder, fueler, fire watch, tire changer, time keeper, and general pit helper, NO ONE is not needed. Teams win Championships. | ||
| Indy_bueller |
Amen Rocco. I'm damn proud of our performance at Daytona this weekend. No we didn't win. But we proved we have what it takes to win. Most of the credit here goes to Mike Kirkpatrick. His incredible level of attention to detail at all times is what made it possible to finish the race. I'm proud of everyone on the team. I'm proud to be associated with all of you. | ||
| Budc |
To all "Buellers" who participated in this weekend's races at Daytona-JOB WELL DONE! 2-3rd place finishes overall in Moto-ST. Congrats to RMR and JGR teams. 1st place overall for JGR in ASRA Team Challenge. Amateur Thunderbike Champion, Joel Spalding. Joel also had a 4th place finish on his new 1125R in Amateur Heavyweight Superbike. 1-2nd and 2-3rd place finishes for amateur Jay Smith. Not too shabby for a guy who didn't know if he would ever race again after his accident a couple months ago at Blackhawk. And to all those that I may have missed, a great effort! On a final note, what can you say about "Coolice"? Is he a GOD or what? I think he should receive sainthood or something. Great job by the whole team keeping that bike on the track! We do what we do because we know no other way and because Mike said so! GO BUELL BudC (Message edited by budc on October 20, 2008) | ||
| Schmitty |
First off, Congratulations to all the Buell racers at Daytona. Second, Congratulations to the entire James Gang team! I was watching the live timing and scoring with anticipation for almost the whole race. Sometimes things just aren't meant to be. Regardless, you can all hold your heads high! This was an amazing effort by all of you! The problems that were overcome to still finish the race are a true testament to the passion, commitment, and most important of all PRIDE that this team has. Buell truly has a genuine grassroots racing team here that they can be proud of. It doesn't matter how busy this team is there is always time for a question or an autograph or conversation. I'm damn proud to say that I race with these guys on the weekend! To Mike, Paul, Jeff, Walt, PJ, Rocco, Alex, Zach and the rest of the team, way to go, you proved what Buell racing is all about. Never quit, never say die! Hey Coolice, Everybody jokes around the paddock about how particular you are, some might even say "anal"  , but without your attention to detail, endurance racing just wouldn't work. You truly are a great asset and resource to us "amateurs" on race weekends at BHF. Thank you!! GO BUELL RACING Schmitty (Message edited by Schmitty on October 20, 2008) | ||
| Gearhead |
What everyone else has said!!! Congratulations, guys!! | ||
| Walt221 |
I would like to personaly thank all the people involved with the James Gang crew. Their determination and speed in which problems were fixed was nothing short of amazing. Every team around us saw this demonstrated as well. Even Chris Ulrich mentioned to someone something like our team was like the McGyver race team! I have worked with Mike, John and the guys for a few Moto-ST races and the Daytona 200. I can honestly say there is no one else I would rather have in my corner. Obviously, I'm disappointed with our ultimate finishing position and the fact that the championship escaped us. I really wanted to help win it for the team. Being part of something great like this though will be a memory that lasts a lifetime - championship or no championship. Thanks guys, you are awesome. | ||
| Rrrrrrrick |
As you all know, the James gang is a class act, without them, we would not have even started 2 races this year, and at the 8 hr, even with the problems they had on track, when our clutch burned up, and we were franticly tearing into our teamates motor to steal his, the james gang sent over a clutch pack, which cut our down time in half, Also thanks to Keith, we finished an 8 hr race. Racing a Buell has been great this year, even with all the teething problems (our first year racing an American Sportbike), and we will be back again next year RnR Repsol Racing Rick Beggs | ||
| Cavscout08 |
That's awesome. I would love to race on my M2 but I don't think I could hang with the XB's, 1125Rs and Duc's. Great job guys! | ||
| Court |
I've got to say the entire crop of Buell racers is REALLY starting to make this fun to watch! | ||
| Benm2 |
Maybe not so much fun next year? The current posted rules (just up on Roadracingworld and the AMA site) seem downright goofy. I just got done reading the MOTO-ST rules, specifically these two items seem to be at odds: 1. GT 2 - Machines that develop no more than 90hp when tested for compliance. Minimum weight is 360lbs. 2. All items not mentioned in the following articles must remain as originally produced by the manufacturer for the homologated machine. Unless otherwise specified, all parts must originate from the same make/model as the homologated machine, meaning no updating or backdating is permitted. The wheel & frame regulations are typical MOTO-ST fare, stock wheels, brakes & frame prepped for endurance racing. So far, there's no mention of converting to chain for those that need to (is Buell still a title sponsor?). The listing under engine modifications allows for a reprogrammed ECU or a 'kit' ecu, and that's it. Reading the above to the letter of the law, there will be ONE bike that's fast in the class, as the rules won't allow you to modify the ENGINE at ALL to either lighten it or make it faster?! This seems like the chosen path of SCCA SOLO rules: you have the fast car for the class or fight it out for 7th place. Also, the rules (as they are) don't even seem to allow for basics such as an aftermarket header. They even seem to exclude the modifications allowed for the main AMA sprint categories?! I HOPE these are "draft". Sounds like a return to the old "production" class racing, where the "hot" model won the race, and racers ran bashed in stock exhausts since the OEM stuff was so expensive to replace. Within those constraints, no air cooled XB will stand a chance. A restricted/reprogrammed R6 will be SO much lighter than an XB, likewise with the new "standards" like the FZ6 and such, what with the new 4-cylinder rules. | ||
| Sd26 |
Wow! Moto-GT...so, it isn't ST...sport twins. As for a reprogramed R6...my old R6 ready to blow up made more than 100HP on a Dynojet dyno. I think the upto 90HP class is for SV's, etc. Does seem like it might be reasonable for an XB to be involved. 600's are going to be in the faster class, I would speculate. Still, it's a stark change from the previous investment of time from the teams. | ||
| Redbuelljunkie |
Under Daytona Sportbike it states: Final drive system, if not by chain, may be modified to chain type, using kits specified on the Eligible Equipment List. I would bet that this rule applies to all classes under the new AMA Pro Racing Rules Package. I also believe that 2009 will be some of the best racing in the history of American road racing. I cannot wait! |
