Rossi “Laguna Seca unsuitable for bike racing”

[Wellyman]

He just gets paid so much as a 'factory rider' he has the right to bitch and moan. but i think personally he should harden up. I have ridden it on the playstation and the corkscrew is for sure the hardest part of the track.
WM

[k14]

All current Moto 125 class bikes do in excess of 200kph at places like Phillip Island and Mugello.

They do it at every track. Think they can do 230 on the longest straights and would do over 200 on all of them. Heck even my one would be able to nudge the 200 mark at puke. Estimate 180ish at rupuna with current gearing.

[pete376403]

Even if Rossi doesn't like the track he still made a fairly good job of it. 3rd place is still a whole lot better than most of the others.

[pritch]

He just gets paid so much as a 'factory rider' he has the right to bitch and moan. but i think personally he should harden up. I have ridden it on the playstation and the corkscrew is for sure the hardest part of the track.
WM

As a "leading rider" he maybe feels a responsibility to himself and the other riders. As Wayne Rainey says on "Faster" sometimes even the obvious hazards don't get attended to until someone gets badly hurt. And there speaks the sad voice of experience.

Of course then it's too bloody late!

Sorry, but Playstation has fuck-all to do with anything. That gets a mention in "Faster" too (Hopkins?).

May I recommend that those who think Rossi is a poof, or needs to harden up watch the movie "Faster". If your attention span permits you to stay awake right through the movie, you will understand a whole lot more about motorcycle racing than you do so far.

And I mean that in the nicest possible way :-)

[Lou Girardin]

He just gets paid so much as a 'factory rider' he has the right to bitch and moan. but i think personally he should harden up. I have ridden it on the playstation and the corkscrew is for sure the hardest part of the track.
WM

For God's sake, next you'll say wanking's as good as shagging.
Or an alcopop is as good as a bottle of Grange.

[placidfemme]

May I recommend that those who think Rossi is a poof, or needs to harden up watch the movie "Faster". If your attention span permits you to stay awake right through the movie, you will understand a whole lot more about motorcycle racing than you do so far.

And I mean that in the nicest possible way :-)

Rossi rocks... and he's cute in a furry little animal kinda way.... can you rent "Faster" at video stores? If not where could I get a copy?

[Bob]

As a "leading rider" he maybe feels a responsibility to himself and the other riders. As Wayne Rainey says on "Faster" sometimes even the obvious hazards don't get attended to until someone gets badly hurt. And there speaks the sad voice of experience.

Of course then it's too bloody late!

Sorry, but Playstation has fuck-all to do with anything. That gets a mention in "Faster" too (Hopkins?).

May I recommend that those who think Rossi is a poof, or needs to harden up watch the movie "Faster". If your attention span permits you to stay awake right through the movie, you will understand a whole lot more about motorcycle racing than you do so far.

And I mean that in the nicest possible way :-)

I'm normally Mr Neutral around here, but WELL SAID. Rossi, as leading rider, is THE person who is in a position to complain if things are not right. Anyone recall Philip Island not that many years ago, when Troy Corser got the 2nd World Superbike race called off as it was too dangerous to ride? Only he could do that with any degree of officialdom, as he was the leading rider in the championship at the time.

This carries on from precendents set by Sheene and Roberts, who both campaigned long and hard to get improvements made at tracks.

And for anyone who thinks that playing on a Playstation compares in any way to actually riding a bike.... get real will you.... or at least get back on a bike again and see what real life is like.

Rant over.

[Pixie]

In 2040 the Rossi knockers of today will be boring their grandchildren with....
"aah todays Zap Brannigan is no great racer.I remember Rossi back in '05,There was was a racer!Seven feet tall ,if he was an inch!He had eyes that glowed like the fires of hell.Constantly surrounded by hoards of beautiful women.Didn't ride no fusion powered anti-grav bike either.Young poofs....."

[erik]

Rossi rocks... and he's cute in a furry little animal kinda way.... can you rent "Faster" at video stores? If not where could I get a copy?

Motomail have it.

[Motu]

Phill Reed was the first rider to get on the safety kick,he got a reputation as a touchy testy prick and got all the ''too scared to race'' allegations,I think it was him who first refused to ride IOM.To doubt the talent of these guys is an insult.

[That Guy]

They do it at every track. Think they can do 230 on the longest straights and would do over 200 on all of them. Heck even my one would be able to nudge the 200 mark at puke. Estimate 180ish at rupuna with current gearing.

I think the top factory 125s will do 240 at Mugello, Estoril, Phillip Island and the like with a bit of drafting. The coolest part though is that unlike motoGP bikes they don't brake for the corners until the apex is 20 metres away....well....maybe 100 but it looks like 20 when you watch them

[erik]

I think the top factory 125s will do 240 at Mugello, Estoril, Phillip Island and the like with a bit of drafting.

wouldn't the bike in front have to be doing 240 for any drafting bikes to be doing 240?
Or can you use drafting to go faster than the bike you are drafting behind?

[James Deuce]

wouldn't the bike in front have to be doing 240 for any drafting bikes to be doing 240?
Or can you use drafting to go faster than the bike you are drafting behind?

Drafting boosts the average speed of all the participants. By having another bike RIGHT behind you, your wake departs from your bike a lot further back, thereby reducing drag. You can see it in Nascar when someone in a top team drops off the draft. They slowly drop back from the pack, despite having essentially the same horsepower and drag figures as the cars they've been running with.

[TwoSeven]

The basic rule with aerodynamics is that you must put back what you displace, or you get a vortex forming behind the vehicle which has the effect of sucking you backwards.

When riding a 250/125 at speed, its important to get the correct curve shape in your back so that you form the tear drop off the front faring to the rear of the seat. Modern rules allow for a dove tail rear section now, so use that to complete the shape.

Ditto with the side of the bike and elbows/knees.

[gav]

No wonder Marco Melandri complained......Ouch!!
THey didnt stop going to Laguna because it was dangerous, they stopped going because no promoter would touch the event as they were losing money hand over fist. Think King Kenny Roberts promoted the last two rounds raced there. 1993 the race was the week after local hero Wayne Rainey was paralysed and never to walk again after his crash in Italy. A very sombre occasion for the US crowd to accept, for sure. They sure had some bad luck there . American Bubba Shobert ended his career after running into a stationary Kevin Magee who was doing a burnout, (same place Colin Edwards stopped this year ) The next year Kevin Magee nearly lost his life after suffering serious head injuries in a crash and hitting a wall. Mick Doohan also crashed after colliding with a haybale and ended up sitting in the middle of the track.