One of the top racers in the world

[merv]

TV ADVERT,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,, "No surprises there then"

I watch with interest the silly turn into the depths this thread has taken.

Here's the result from her last BSB Superstock race last year at Brands Hatch - scroll down the page to Superstock 1000 http://www.britishsuperbike.com/medi...1/race_sat.pdf

I think one problem is its bloody competitive in UK - she finished a 16 lap race in 24th place, but only 16 seconds behind the winner. From what I saw for most of 2012 she was fast enough to make the % cutoff but they have a grid size cutoff which meant many times she didn't get to start. Now imagine that here if you could get over 50 riders attempt to qualify for a race.

Mylaps doesn't show the latest NZ Nationals as the last one it has up is Ruapuna . Note in the first 13 lap superbike race http://www.mylaps.com/results/showrun.jsp?id=2550830 Hayden Fitzgerald in 4th place was almost 14 seconds behind Robbie Bugden and and Nick Cole in 5th was over 21 seconds behind while Sloan Frost in 7th was almost 30 seconds behind and they were no better in the second race of 15 laps with Sloan Frost a DNF. So are they total losers for being so uncompetitive? Funny I never hear that talked about on here nor people saying "they must be taking it up the arse to get a ride when they are so useless" if you know what I'm saying.

Crikey I'm sure Katman can do the maths and see the logic of this.

Haha, and in this other thread http://www.kiwibiker.co.nz/forums/sh...meeting/page24 you boys are wondering what would bring more people to the races yet on this thread you talk in a way that would totally alienate half the population of NZ, namely the women. No wonder the sport is losing fans, they've got better things to do than idolise neanderthals.

[Crasherfromwayback]

I watch with interest the silly turn into the depths this thread has taken.

..

You've got it for her bad haven't you Merv....she's a waste of fucking space.

[merv]

You've got it for her bad haven't you Merv....she's a waste of fucking space.

Haha just pointing out some inconsistencies and you for one I thought were onto it enough to understand that.

[suzuki21]

Ask Bobbie bugdn and Stauffer, not sure if it was both at the same time

She bought home more girls than Mr Stauffer did.

[steveyb]

While this subject is getting way too much airplay (or waste of space play perhaps?), I think that from this saga there are good lessons to be learned by many people if you care to look for them. I am critical of this person, but for reasons (although I will take the piss when possible like anyone else) of quality rather than quantity.

It is clear that Sandra has a serious amount of athletic ability, confidence and toughness. However, she entered this (dangerous, and I should know) sport at a level that was inappropriate to her ability and experience. This caused all sorts of mayhem both on the track and off. This also caused significant chagrin from other competitors who had worked hard to learn the skills and were not getting the assistance she was from wherever it was coming.

If, on the other hand, she had arrived here, decided to go racing and had then entered the sport at a level appropriate to her skill and experience base and taken the time to develop those skills and acquire the experience, I for one have little doubt that she would actually be a really good racer by now and would have cost her backers significantly less money.

I for one cannot understand why so many people, not just her, think that they can jump on a Superbike after a few trackdays, or even years of road-riding, and then think that they can race it at a high level. Racing is not trackdays or road-riding.

She was a downhill skiier in a past life, with about the same record as her bike racing (I checked), but what she did here was the equivelent of knowing how to ride the learner slope then scoring a pair of skis, riding the lift to the top of the mountain and trying to ski down the black runs. It can only end in tears. How she did not get hurt is a matter for the gods of speed I suppose.

If she had taken a few seasons to learn and progress (e.g. 250 Proddy, Pro-Twin, 600 SStock then a Superbike) she would be doing well and we would ALL be applauding her achievements, I have NO doubt about that.

The other aspect is the self promotion and marketing. In NZ we are pretty shit at self promotion and really tend to dislike those who do it and do it well. We are a strange lot when it comes to that and even worse, when someone does want to do it they often don't because they are afraid that they will get knocked for doing so. Where Sandra is from (Europe) this is not the case and self promotion is one of the major tools in your toolbox, it is your loss if you don't use it. And we have to agree, she was/is pretty good at that side of the equation. Sure, she has some attributes that make it a bit easier to do it, but everyone has something they can promote, it isn't always a case of T & A. Hell, just being a Kiwi is a good start at this if you are marketing around the world.

So, sure, I am on the knocking bandwagon in this case, but only 'cos she pissed me off by not taking the time to learn the craft and by being seemingly unwilling to take advice in that regard. By crashing all the time. By being lucky to not get hurt or to hurt someone else. By blowing up engines because she was ignorant and had not spent the time learning what needed to be learned, then convincing people to fix it for her then going out and doing the exact same thing! By being so arrogant that she thought she knew it all but clearly didn't and wasn't willing to learn, but worst of all, by not really being able to demonstrate the abilities that I reckon she actually has.

So please take this as a "learn the lessons rant" rather than an anti-Sandra rant.

[roogazza]

I watch with interest the silly turn into the depths this thread has taken.

Here's the result from her last BSB Superstock race last year at Brands Hatch - scroll down the page to Superstock 1000 http://www.britishsuperbike.com/medi...1/race_sat.pdf

I think one problem is its bloody competitive in UK - she finished a 16 lap race in 24th place, but only 16 seconds behind the winner. From what I saw for most of 2012 she was fast enough to make the % cutoff but they have a grid size cutoff which meant many times she didn't get to start. Now imagine that here if you could get over 50 riders attempt to qualify for a race.

Mylaps doesn't show the latest NZ Nationals as the last one it has up is Ruapuna . Note in the first 13 lap superbike race http://www.mylaps.com/results/showrun.jsp?id=2550830 Hayden Fitzgerald in 4th place was almost 14 seconds behind Robbie Bugden and and Nick Cole in 5th was over 21 seconds behind while Sloan Frost in 7th was almost 30 seconds behind and they were no better in the second race of 15 laps with Sloan Frost a DNF. So are they total losers for being so uncompetitive? Funny I never hear that talked about on here nor people saying "they must be taking it up the arse to get a ride when they are so useless" if you know what I'm saying.

Crikey I'm sure Katman can do the maths and see the logic of this.

Haha, and in this other thread http://www.kiwibiker.co.nz/forums/sh...meeting/page24 you boys are wondering what would bring more people to the races yet on this thread you talk in a way that would totally alienate half the population of NZ, namely the women. No wonder the sport is losing fans, they've got better things to do than idolise neanderthals.

It's hard to argue with the numbers there Merv. I've only ever seen her in action once and thought she was pretty gutzy.

Is she really so different to the young bloke from Raumati heading over to Europe on nothing more than a belief ?
Good on them for taking the plunge and having a go.
But I think it's easy at the moment to judge yourself on the state of play here in NZ and miss read the levels overseas.

[Edbear]

It's hard to argue with the numbers there Merv. I've only ever seen her in action once and thought she was pretty gutzy.

Is she really so different to the young bloke from Raumati heading over to Europe on nothing more than a belief ?
Good on them for taking the plunge and having a go.
But I think it's easy at the moment to judge yourself on the state of play here in NZ and miss read the levels overseas.

True, but I think young Sam has no illusions about what he may discover over there and is going with the attitude of learning a lot from the experience.

[Crasherfromwayback]

Haha just pointing out some inconsistencies and you for one I thought were onto it enough to understand that.

I have no problem with that Merv. What I do have a problem with is people like her burning generous people and not seeming to give a shit.
Then repeating it over and over...

[Deano]

I think one problem is its bloody competitive in UK - she finished a 16 lap race in 24th place, but only 16 seconds behind the winner.

Hayden Fitzgerald in 4th place was almost 14 seconds behind Robbie Bugden and and Nick Cole in 5th was over 21 seconds behind while Sloan Frost in 7th was almost 30 seconds behind and they were no better in the second race of 15 laps with Sloan Frost a DNF. So are they total losers for being so uncompetitive? Funny I never hear that talked about on here nor people saying "they must be taking it up the arse to get a ride when they are so useless" if you know what I'm saying.

It's hard to argue with the numbers there Merv.
But I think it's easy at the moment to judge yourself on the state of play here in NZ and miss read the levels overseas.

I find it hard to believe she would be quicker than the likes of Hayden, Nick and Choppa.

[merv]

I find it hard to believe she would be quicker than the likes of Hayden, Nick and Choppa.

Personally I doubt she is too in the same race, but who knows now really. I was pointing out some interesting statistics. Wouldn't we love races where the first 24 finishers over 16 laps of a circuit with a minute 30 sec lap are all within 16 seconds at the end and all 31 finishers were covered by around 32 seconds. That is some close racing with big fields. That might attract a few more to the track to watch.

Some more stats for ya: At the last MotoGP race of the year in 2012 at Phillip Island crasher's boyfriend Casey won the race over 27 laps and was ahead of Gazza's boy in 7th spot by 37 seconds. The last two finishers on CRT bikes were lapped. The gaps are quite big but I'm not complaining as long as the Hondas win lol.

[snapoff]

How can she be a top level nz rider when u hant raced at a national race.

[Deano]

How can she be a top level nz rider when u hant raced at a national race.

Don't get Roogazza started mate

[Mental Trousers]

... steveyb's terrible sensible explanation ...

This is KB, could you piss off with lot. Ta.

PS

[steveyb]

Is she really so different to the young bloke from Raumati heading over to Europe on nothing more than a belief ?
Good on them for taking the plunge and having a go.
But I think it's easy at the moment to judge yourself on the state of play here in NZ and miss read the levels overseas.

She is completely different.
He is hardly heading over there on nothing more than a belief. That is pretty condesending really.
Sam has spent quite a few years learning how to ride and then how to race, and to race hard, but safe.
He has no illusions about jumping on a Superbike and trying to race at a national level.
AND, he is doing it on his, his family's and some helpful supporters dimes, not wrecking havoc on some race teams budget.
True, one can only know the level when you get in amongst it, but at least Sam is going there with the track and bike skills to be able to have a good go.

Completely different.

[koba]

She is bound to be better now than when she was crashing over here, years of experience racing with other people's money has to help skill levels.

I'm not sure if it's true but I've read that the pop group "the monkeys" could hardly play instruments when they were created, but pretending to be good for so long they actually learnt to play really quite well in the end.

Still, It's annoying to see the bare faced lies she has used in her 'self promotion'. It thank a lot of us have an issue wither her approach because of concepts like honesty and integrity.



It think to rock into a 'scene' with what amounts to false, or at best extremely exaggerated, credentials and expect the average punter with no better idea to lap it up is a sound strategy. I also think it's devious and disrespectful to other people who put time and effort into furthering the sport.

It's obviously worked well for her, "sweetener's" or not.