Moto Academy NZ goes to Portugal

[steveyb]

http://www.motoacademy.co.nz/news/

[Skunk]

Bloody Awesome Steve! Best chance for Kiwi's to get one step away from MotoGP!

Good luck to Mudboy (and the rest of you).

[Grub]

Brilliant ... well done guys. Here's wishing Luke all the best.

[portokiwi]

:woohoo: Way to go. I miss Portugal. The great food.... Fine wine and the best coffee ever. At the moment the tempture is in the high 30s.
The women are hot too.
Have fun race hard.:scooter:

[ajturbo]

YES.. i have had the call up.. they want me at the MOTO GP..
ok
ok

so it was my son Luke..

he has been chosen to have a ride with the

RED BULL MotoGP Rookies Cup in Portugal!!!!

Luke is the FIRST New Zealander to be offered this opportunity...

Casey Stoner :second:


came through the RED BULL MotoGP Rookies Cup....

so the chance is there for him....

now to find the $$$$$

any one willing to offer a couple of $$ do NOT be shy in asking for Luke's bank details..:clap:

[Meekey_Mouse]

Congrats guys! This is awesome :Punk: Wishin Luke and his support team all the best... Hopefully Lukey doesn't run you guys around too much ;)

And don't forget... Pics or it never happened!

[scracha]

Congrats guys! This is awesome :Punk: Wishin Luke and his support team all the best... Hopefully Lukey doesn't run you guys around too much ;)
And don't forget... Pics or it never happened!

All the best for the wee man AJ. Tell him to get a haircut first though otherwise he might end up as some Portuguese fellah's wife

Bank details...why not just set up an account and post the details online.

[wharfy]

This is really good shit - Good work guys

[wharfy]

All the best for the wee man AJ. Tell him to get a haircut first though otherwise he might end up as some Portuguese fellah's wife

Bank details...why not just set up an account and post the details online.

Please DONT post details online - some clever ( but criminal) bastards have been able to clean out bank account's from such info.

[ajturbo]

Please DONT post details online - some clever ( but criminal) bastards have been able to clean out bank account's from such info.

thanks for this matey..

and the other!!!:wari:

we have set up an acc for luke's travel

it is headed as the

"Portugal acc"...

the number will be PM'ed to those who are willing to send luke away...:scooter:

[Shaun]

thanks for this matey..

and the other!!!:wari:

we have set up an acc for luke's travel

it is headed as the

"Portugal acc"...

the number will be PM'ed to those who are willing to send luke away...:scooter:



PM and I will help> Well done DR STEVE

[Str8 Jacket]

Im happy to send Luke away.... :whistle:

[Nasty]

Im happy to send Luke away.... :whistle:

We are too... PM sent ;)

[mud boy]

i want to thank all those who have so generously donated their hard earned money to help me get to Portugal.

i will not forget this.......

what i have to do is get over there ( flights are around 4k!)
QUALIFY ..
then go even harder!!!


thanks !!!!!!!!!!!

[Str8 Jacket]

i want to thank all those who have so generously donated their hard earned money to help me get to Portugal.

i will not forget this.......

what i have to do is get over there ( flights are around 4k!)
QUALIFY ..
then go even harder!!!


thanks !!!!!!!!!!!

You go girl! :wari:

[mud boy]

You go girl! :wari:

hahaha thanks

[t3mp0r4ry nzr]

onya luke!!
go ard!
kyle

[ajturbo]

just found what luke will be riding, the chance that he has been given,
last year there were 1100 aplications.......


http://eu.redbullrookiescup.com/content.php?page=s_bike

[ajturbo]

also.. luke and i would like to thank someone for their donation.. i do not know who it is..
but THANK YOU!!!!

[flame]

Just spied this thread. AWESOME stuff Luke! Congratulations. Go get em!

Cant offer lots of cash but every little bit will help. Pm me your bank details and i'll sort it next week:sunny:

[Trudes]

I've just seen this too.
That's way cool Luke, good for you!! Have fun and kick arse!:2thumbsup

[ajturbo]

this is slowly sinking in for Luke, just how much of an opportunity this is... and where it could POSSIBLY leed...

[steveyb]

Hi all.
I thought that I might offer some explanation around how the opportunity for a Moto Academy NZ rider to participate in the final selection event for RBMotoGPRC 2009 came about, why it is as it is and where we might go next year.
Once I had decided on the idea and the set up for Moto Academy NZ and what I wanted to achieve, I decided that I should shoot for the stars and so contacted Peter Clifford at RBMGRC. Of course making use of the extended Kiwi network through Greg Percival and others helped alot.
Peter was excited by the idea of someone setting up an academy type structure in NZ as he has strong affiliations to NZ. Given that it was an academy being established and not just another racing team, he was able to offer the possibility of a position at the final selection event for 2009, on the proviso that Moto Academy NZ actually did something and had riders that would be worthy of attending.
So for the first year to set up the academy we looked locally, for riders from Victoria Motorcycle Club, so as to allow us to ease into the new structure with some familiar faces around.
Given the age restrictions around RBMGRC it turned out that Luke was the only rider of the founding group that was eligible, but that did not necessarily guarantee him anything. He still needed to demonstrate the right attributes.
RBMGRC is not about finding all the fastest riders around the world, it is more about finding the riders with the right attributes that will allow then to be moulded into the fastest riders in the world.
So, Luke started out as rough and tentative as you might imagine a young fulla riding a 125 for the first time would be. But through his application and our coaching and mentoring he has, in a very short time, developed his approach to the sport and his skills within it. Just what we were all looking for.
So, I made the determination that Luke is demonstrating the right stuff and as such I put his performances and my impressions to Peter Clifford and he agreed to open the spot for us.
This is similar to what happened in Australia, but their spot is now a contestable process.
Assuming Luke is not overawed by the whole thing, he will perform as well as anyone else there I think!!
Which brings me to next year and subsequent years should we be successful enough to be invited back.
In consultation with various interested parties around NZ I believe that we will instigate a contestable process that will allow riders from all over NZ the chance to benefit from this opportunity.
So, given that it was me that got off my arse and actually asked someone about it, and have set up the coaching/mentoring around it (with more than generous help from friends) and have been negotiating with Peter Clifford, I believe that I deserve the time and space to explore this in the way I see fit without being hassled, or having to see Peter hassled either. There has been some talk (not talking about Oyster this time hehehehe) around the place about why not this and why not that. So, this time round it is what it is and that, my friends, is that.
Peter Clifford will be in NZ later this year so perhaps we can organise a forum of relevant parties to discuss a more formal process for next year before he gets here and then present a united proposal to him.

Anyway, the more assitance the better and thanks to everyone who has contributed to the fighting fund and might be thinking of doing so, or has just wished us the best.

Thanks

Steve Bagshaw
www.motoacademy.co.nz :innocent:

[Her_C4]

YES.. i have had the call up.. they want me at the MOTO GP..
ok
ok

so it was my son Luke..

he has been chosen to have a ride with the

RED BULL MotoGP Rookies Cup in Portugal!!!!

Luke is the FIRST New Zealander to be offered this opportunity...

Casey Stoner :second:


came through the RED BULL MotoGP Rookies Cup....

so the chance is there for him....

now to find the $$$$$

any one willing to offer a couple of $$ do NOT be shy in asking for Luke's bank details..:clap:

What can I say but 'wow'.

Terrific news - PM me bank account details, alwyas happy to help.:woohoo::wari:


EDIT: Oh and congratulations of course!!:wari::woohoo:

[ajturbo]

hey steve.. how was the shift?...

[Duke girl]

What fantastic news that is for the Moto Academy and for yourself and Luke. Steve you have put in so much time and effort to get this all up and running and I congratulate you for that. I hope it all goes well for you while you are over there and to Luke I wish you good luck and what a great experience this is for you and for New Zealand Motorcycle racing. A.J u must be so proud of Luke for what he has achieved so far?. I look forward to hearing all about how he goes over there and wish him and the Moto Academy all the very best. Kick arse Luke.:niceone::2thumbsup

[vtec]

Awesome, wish I'd started racing as a young un. I had to do it under my own steam so ended up waiting till I was 23.

Congrats Luke, I don't know you, but sounds like you're worthy. Don't want to put too much pressure on you, but we'd love someone to follow in international road racing.

[steveyb]

Awesome, wish I'd started racing as a young un. I had to do it under my own steam so ended up waiting till I was 23.

Congrats Luke, I don't know you, but sounds like you're worthy. Don't want to put too much pressure on you, but we'd love someone to follow in international road racing.

Hi again all.
The aforementioned situation of vtec is precisely why in NZ we are unlikely to ever have another world champion road racer, unless the situation here changes.

The sport of motorcycle road racing has changed completely since the days of Anderson, Molloy, then Scott, Crosby and even more recently Crafar, Slight and Stroud.

Around the world riders are now being encouraged and mentored at increasingly younger ages, and new initiatives such as Red Bull Rookies Cup have been set up to identify, groom and train these riders for selection into higher levels of the sport.

The days of a rider picking it up at even 18 years old, learning a couple of years on 400's or something, then heading to somewhere else in the expectation (well, hope really) of being picked up are well and truely over.

All the riders from nations with organised academys (Spain, France, Germany, USA, Australia etc) , Rookies Cups or similar will simply have the same talent (or more) than our rider has, but will have all the background and sponsor exposure that will ensure they get noticed and supported first.

The strongest national youth competition in the world CEV 125GP in Spain is basically all 13-16 year olds with the odd older more experienced rider, 18 yrs, thrown in. These 13 year olds already have more backing than half (or maybe all) of all the 125 riders in NZ put together. Clearly due to the greater amounts of money in Europe, but mostly simply because people are willing to support them and mentor them and provide racing teams for them.

Hence the establishment of Moto Academy NZ and, I hope, many more youth oriented teams in support of growing the youth segment of the sport. We simply cannot have each and every rider reinventing the wheel and operating in isolation if we want to be able to take pride in seeing an NZ rider push into the world scene again.

Cheers

Steve

[johnsv650]

well done to get such an opportunity for a kiwi up and coming rider,
i hope all goes well......are you picking the best person for the country ?
i think the aussy riders have had to win the class (over 5 meetings) to get the ride overseas, and you know it also.....
i know this year has opened some doors but to be fair to everyone in nz i believe it should be open to all, to pick one from a team of three isn't fair and we might not get the best rider to represent our huge group of young developing riders.
Do you think the people who raced in the 125cc nationals last year deserve to be futher up the order than they are now, not even considered ?
even if you get picked from the big group how much is a ride on red bulls for a year ? $80000-100000 who in nz has that amount behind them for one year.......
i believe nz has only two or three people have the backing to go ahead if picked.
is the person who ranks the highest in the nationals (and in the right age group) going to be selected or just people from one team for next year ?
This is just what our developing young riders can aim, plan and budget for but i believe it should be like austrailia and a national class be raced and the winner knows the costs and budget before they enter and have shown the skills over 5 meetings against the others who want the trip and possiblities overseas.....
to pick from nz, i think is going to develope nz riders better than from a 3 man team ..........
good luck who ever goes and look forward to a open competition for 2009 season.

[k14]

John, just so you know, if you get past the selection process then the bike and all those costs are covered for by the red bull academy. The only costs the competitor has to cover are travel to and from each event. Not the $80-$100k but still to go from NZ to europe for 7 or 8 races you would be looking at the best part of 50k. I guess that bridge will be crossed when it arises.

To be honest (and not wanting to tread on any toes), I also had similar thoughts to John on first hearing about this. Now that Steve has explained himself I can understand where he is coming from. All the best luck to Luke for the trial, will be closely watching his progress. Lets hope he makes the most of this massive opportunity for the future of NZ road racing :2thumbsup

[steveyb]

Hi again.

I don't know Johnsv650, but please, have a good read of my earlier post on the reasons for why this opportunity is as it is for now.

I was the one who got off their arse and asked and I have spent nearly $30k and 1000's of hours getting Moto Academy NZ off the ground. Almost all on my own, with input from my good mate Mike and a special donor who wishes to remain anonymous. It has been a passion of mine for some time now and I will run and develop it as I see fit. The RBMGPRC opportunity might remain open only to Moto Academy NZ, it might not, that is a discussion to be held with RBMGPRC.

The rider that has been selected to go will perform at the selection event as well as anyone else who we might chose to send, because RBMGRC are not looking for all the national champions in anything to go there and beat each other up. They are looking for riders with a whole range of attributes.

This is not to say that anyone else is not worthy, of course they are, but so is Luke. For anyone to ask "Are we sending the best rider for NZ?" is being condesending towards him and towards me, quite frankly. And actually FYI, all of the age eligible riders in NZ were considered for this opportunity. I even spoke to the parents of one of them because I had no idea if Luke would be capable when he started out, or indeed if the opportuntity was concrete. But he has shown very clearly that he is capable, so the opportunity was offered to him.

I could say "Why don't you get your facts right" like many others do, but this has all been kept quiet quite deliberately because the opportunity was only confirmed on 10 August!! So there were not many facts to be had.

One of the reasons for establishing Moto Academy NZ was to be able to offer this type of opportunity. For it to come so quickly is due to my persistance and negotiating skills (?? not sure about that last one) and the goodwill of Mr Clifford. If we then go and open up the selection to all comers then that will detract from the value proposition of Moto Academy NZ will it not? But that is a discussion for the future.

Yes, this is an opportunity for New Zealand, but altruism only goes so far and for so long, and if I am to turn Moto Academy NZ into a viable, sustainable activity then I need to follow some business principles, with a strong value proposition or else it will all fall over. Then we will just go back to the days of everyone reinventing the wheel and smaller and smaller youth numbers. (On that note: if not for our 3 bikes at the latter VMCC rounds we would have had 1, maybe 2, 125s there. I know the situation is different in Chch, but in the NI that is how it is at the moment, even the older blokes are not riding their bikes).

Perhaps one might look at it in another way, if you want the opportunity to compete for a spot at RBMotoGPRC 2010 then join Moto Academy NZ and get the next best thing!

OR, now here's the thing, RBMGPRC is open to qualified applicants from ANYWHERE to enter. Red Bull AMA USA Rookies Cup is restricted to applicants from the Americas and Carribean regions, the MotoGP Rookies Cup is for everyone else. Red Bull MotoGP Academy is another thing altogether and only 5 riders are selected for that. So, maybe people could actually enter their kids just to see what happens. You never know your luck, or ability until you try.

Some basic requirements: to be considered for RBMGRC riders must be 13-16 years old in the year of the cup (one year either side are also considered in special cases). All racing costs are covered and equipment supplied, which must be returned as soon as the rider ceases to be a part of the Cup. Riders must purchase their own health and accident insurance. Metrakit PreGP125 bikes are used at selection events, KTM RC125 GP bikes are used in the cup series.One might consider traveling to Europe for each meeting (about $5k pp) but maybe it is more realistic to consider temporarily relocating to Europe (UK?) for the racing season and immersing in the whole thing. Riders can enter other race series only with the permission of RBMGPRC and this will not be granted where there is a conflict of interest. In 2007 Red Bull MotoGP Rookies Cup valued a year racing in the Cup at 150,000 Euros per rider. If a rider from RBMGRC is subsequently hired into a paying team, the contract they signed with RBMGPRC makes them pay 10% of their earnings for a total of 7 years including the time they were in RBMGPRC, so that they might recoup their investment.

Anyway, after this season and after Mr Clifford has had his holidays here in NZ we will re-evaluate and see what we should do. How about also considering the feelings and the ambitions of the idiot who went out of his way to set the whole thing up, as well as those of the potential riders, for a change. I know I can't please everyone, but how about helping me push my barrow for a while?

All the best

Steve

[ajturbo]

i WAS going to add to Steve's post...
but i will not say what i am thinking ..

all i will say is..

Luke knows full well how lucky he is to be CHOSEN for this trip of a life time...
this trip will cost Luke around 6k..
how many 15year olds have that????
he will get there, he has a chance, i will make sure that he is able to take it,

lets hope that steve can get another young rider over there next year!!!

[gav]

Holy Cow, just catching up with this news! Best of luck for you Andy and Luke! You going to be holding the umbrella on the grid AJ? :whistle:
Make us all proud!!
And well done SteveB on making this happen and a big thanks to Peter Clifford too!
15 years old, huh? Ya know Scott Redding is 15 and won the Brit GP? No pressure or anything then .... :oi-grr:
Lets not get into a shit fight over this, lets all get behind the boys and give them the opportunity of a lifetime.
PM me the a/c details AJ .....

[ajturbo]

Holy Cow, just catching up with this news! Best of luck for you Andy and Luke! You going to be holding the umbrella on the grid AJ? :whistle:
Make us all proud!!
And well done SteveB on making this happen and a big thanks to Peter Clifford too!
15 years old, huh? Ya know Scott Redding is 15 and won the Brit GP? No pressure or anything then .... :oi-grr:
Lets not get into a shit fight over this, lets all get behind the boys and give them the opportunity of a lifetime.
PM me the a/c details AJ .....
i'll hold anything to get luke and me over there...
pm on way

[MadDuck]

i'll hold anything to get luke and me over there...


Anything???? What an awesome opportunity for Luke and you. You both deserve this more than some people probably realise.

[Grub]

i'll hold anything to get luke and me over there...


Does that include your ankles? :buggerd:

[steveyb]

Ewwwwwwwwwwwwwwwww!!!!!!!

You are sick!!! ;-)

[Colapop]

Just a little 'behind the scenes' note on this about AJ and Lukes commitment to this opportunity. AJ and Luke are doing everything they can possibly do to realise this goal. It may sound like just a statement but it's not as simple as that. These guys love to race anything on bikes - from buckets up. To get to where they want, they've even given up this. The hours that AJ is putting into work are seeing him crawl away to his bed at about 11 o'clock at night most days. This is no easy road but both these guys are working as hard as they possibly can to see that this happens. All the support they are getting, they deserve - and more!!

[wharfy]

Hey lets keep this suitable for 15 year olds to read eh... :2thumbsup

[Trudes]

PM me the bank account details AJ.

[ajturbo]

Hey lets keep this suitable for 15 year olds to read eh... :2thumbsup
to late.. i've read it.....

[Buddha#81]

If AJ started walking now can he make it on time?

[merv]

Me and Mrs merv are happy to contribute something too AJ and mudboy so PM me the bank account details like others are saying. How could we turn down a chance like this for a guy that has mud in his name?

[ajturbo]

If AJ started walking now can he make it on time?
IF i weighed HALF as much as you .. i could... hashahahahah

[Buddha#81]

IF i weighed HALF as much as you .. i could... hashahahahah

You are 1/2 my weight, so run you slacker!

Nah seriously good luke in getting you and young Luke there.

Are you getting him a haircut before you go?

[Colapop]

Nah, Luke reckons he'll get a perm before he goes....

[Trudes]

Now there's a fundraising activity.
I'd pay $50 to do something to Luke's hair (he'd probably need to shave it afterward but)....
any advances on $50 to mess with Luke's head....?

[Her_C4]

Now there's a fundraising activity.
I'd pay $50 to do something to Luke's hair (he'd probably need to shave it afterward but)....
any advances on $50 to mess with Luke's head....?

Yep I will pay $100 :first::niceone:

[Trudes]

Yep I will pay $100 :first::niceone:

Excellent!!!:clap:

Can't do worse than how his hair looks now eh!!

Ok, to keep with the theme...
I'll start the bidding at $50 to do Luke's make-up to go with the new hair do. :laugh:

[Her_C4]

Excellent!!!:clap:

Can't do worse than how his hair looks now eh!!

he he he - I reckon this should be a group approach... think what we could doooooooooo with a concerted effort :sweatdrop:Oops:...:crazy:

[Trudes]

Poor Luke. Do you think we'll have to tie him up to be able to do this to him? Then again, it's better than some things people will pay money to do to young boys!!:eek:

[FJRider]

Poor Luke. Do you think we'll have to tie him up to be able to do this to him? Then again, it's better than some things people will pay money to do to young boys!!:eek:

Its not that sort of forum....... is it ????

[Colapop]

All bids should be put into a pool and then a poll run to see what should be done to him (within reason.) No need to tie him up, I'll just tell him to sit. He's trained quite well now. Come to think of it, they've both been well behaved lately - I might take them out for a walk this weekend....

[ajturbo]

should we tell Luke??

or just surprise him after the next races?...
or at Col's 40th??????

but thanks for this people....
i am STUNNED at all the suport...

and the hair thing is GREAT

[Colapop]

Keep the support coming. AJ doesn't mind wearing make-up either!!!!! :girlfight:

[MadDuck]

AJ doesn't mind wearing make-up either!!!!! :girlfight:

So I hear :msn-wink:

[Meekey_Mouse]

Hey AJ, could you PM me the account number for the Portugal trip?