Another Indian summer weekend
Am I still in Indiana? That was the question I was asking myself last weekend here in the Midwest in the middle of November. After our little lesson about the origins of the term “Indian summer” last week here at www.redbullindianapolisgp.com, I figured it would be snowing by this past weekend. To my surprise, central Indiana was once again blessed with a spectacular two days of fall temperatures and clear blue skies this past weekend. Several more weeks ago I shared with you all “A day in the life of a business traveler” going to Calgary, Alberta, so this week I thought I’d share a day in the life of a motorcycle enthusiast with yet another Indian summer weekend.
7:30 a.m.: Rise and shine. The sun is up, the sky is clear, the thermometer is approaching a favorable level, so it’s time to ride! Darn, all the bikes are back in cozy winter storage, so I’ve got to roll one up from the family room to the garage. It’s still a bit chilly, but I’ve got room for an extra layer under the leathers so I should be fine for a couple hours until it warms up.
8:30 a.m.: I’m suited up and ready to ride. I stopped by my riding mate Mike’s house to see if I can get him out of bed early on a Saturday morning to join the day’s ride. To my surprise, he’s already up and raking leaves in his yard and cleaning out gutters. Yikes, that’s really what I should be doing today!
9 a.m.: My temptations for Mike to join the morning’s ride apparently didn’t work, so I swung by Shapiro’s Delicatessen and met up with the local BMW riders club for breakfast. I’m the lone Ducati in a sea of BMWs, but we all share the same passion of two-wheeled adventures. Shortly after settling in to a piping hot cup of java and a plate full of eggs, bacon and toast, Mike comes zooming into the parking lot on his German steed. I guess those leaves and gutters will have to wait for another day.
11 a.m.: After a breakfast like that, my leathers seemed a bit tighter. But now that I’ve got Mike peeled away from yard work, we head up to Ducati Indianapolis on the far north side of town for a piping hot espresso. Now the table has turned, and Mike’s BMW is surrounded by a sea of Ducatis. After a couple shots of espresso and a pastry or two, it’s time to head off to the monthly meeting of the Motorcycle Sport Touring Association (MSTA).
1 p.m.: Dreyer Motorsports, on the west side of Indianapolis, had graciously offered their MSF (Motorcycle Safety Foundation) training room to host the MSTA meeting this month. Dwayne Dreyer was hanging out in the main showroom welcoming the arriving MSTA members and pointing us in the direction of the meeting room. After solving all the world’s problems, trading a few big fish stories and munching on chips and soft drinks, Mike and I suited back up once again to continue our Indian summer ride.
3 p.m.: With almost six hours since our last full meal, we head off to the far south side of town to grab a late lunch at one of our favorite neighborhood restaurants, Fireside Brewhouse. Hey, wait a minute, didn’t we just have snacks at Dreyer Motorsports and more treats at Ducati Indianapolis earlier in the day? This Indian summer riding is a very strenuous activity that consumes a lot of fuel for both the motorcycles and their riders.
5 p.m.: With the sun settling low in the November sky and the zipper on my leathers mysteriously getting tighter and tighter, Mike and I head over to another riding buddy’s place on the near south side of Indianapolis. To both our surprise, we find Craig finishing up a full day of yard work and chores around the house with his Italian and German two-wheeled steeds setting idle in the garage. I guess Craig is lucky I didn’t swing by his place earlier in the morning on my way to rescue Mike from the same late Indian summer fate.
7 p.m.: After a full day of eating my way around the City of Indianapolis, I finally roll up the driveway of my house, checking out my yard full of leaves, and wondering if Sunday will be a day of yard work and chores or if the siren song of a two-wheeled Italian steed tempts me to avoid it for yet another week.
Well, I’ve got to confess. Sunday dawned just as Saturday had. The crew from Ducati Indianapolis successfully rescued me from my home duties yet again with a full-day ride down through the twisty roads of southern Indiana. I guess the fall duties will have to wait for another weekend, and maybe I can persuade Mike and Craig to join me for a day of raking leaves!
I’ll see you all here next week at www.redbullindianapolisgp.com
Greg
What is it?
“Indian summer is an informal expression given to a period of sunny, warm weather in autumn in the Northern Hemisphere, typically in late October or early November, after the leaves have turned following an onset of frost but before the first snowfall. The generally accepted use of the term is when the weather is sunny and clear, and above 21°c (70°F), and all of the leaves of the trees have turned but before the first snow has fallen; a period normally associated with mid-October to late-November in the northern states of the U.S.
Traditionally, in former times in Europe, ‘Indian summer’ was called ‘Saint Martin’s Summer,’ referring to St. Martin’s day, Nov. 11, when it was supposed to end. In British English ‘St. Martin’s Summer’ was the most widely used term until the American phrase Indian Summer became better known in the 20th century. In Italy, St. Martin’s summer (Estate di San Martino) was expected and celebrated as a rural tradition with ancient origins, and is marked by a festival throughout the peninsula on November 11. In Spain, it is called ‘Veranillo de San Miguel’ or ‘Veranillo de San Martín,’ depending on which date it occurs. It can also be called ‘Veranillo del Membrillo’ (little summer of the quince).
In Russia, it is called ‘Women’s Summer/Babye Leto (Бабье лето),’ in Poland – ‘Babie Lato’ and in Croatia ‘Bablje ljeto.’ In Galicia (northern Spain), it is called ‘Veraniño de San Martiño,’ and in Portugal it is called ‘Verão de São Martinho,’ both of which refer to St. Martin’s summer.
In Bulgaria, the phenomenon is sometimes called ‘Gypsy Summer’ (Bulgarian: циганско лято, tsigansko lyato) and in some places ‘Gypsy Christmas’ and refers to unseasonably warm weather in late fall or a warm spell in between cold periods.
In Sweden it is called ‘brittsommar,’ which is derived from Birgitta and Britta, who have their “name day” in the Swedish calendar on Oct. 7. That is when Britt Mass, an official fall open-air market, was held.
In Germany and Austria it is called “Altweibersommer”, in Hungary “vénasszonyok nyara” (Old Ladies Summer or Crone’s Summer) because the many white spider silks seen at this time of the year have been associated with the norns of Norse folklore or medieval witches.
An alternative to St Martin’s summer was ‘Saint Luke’s summer,’ as the saint’s feast day is Oct. 18. Another alternative was “All-hallown summer,” as Halloween is Oct. 31; the expression is used in Shakespeare’s King Henry IV, Part 1, Act 1 Scene 2.”
Hey, stop it, Wikipedia overload is setting in. OK we all now know that Indian Summer comes after Halloween, and every country has their own version of this time of year! Back here in good ole central Indiana, we had one spectacular Indian Summer weekend. I even had to bring one of my favorite two-wheeled toys out of a comfy winter storage to click off some miles on some of my favorite twisty roads in southern Indiana with a couple riding buddies.
Three other Yankees, two from Texas and our own “Kentucky Kid,” had a spectacular “Veraniño de San Martiño” ride last weekend at the Grand Prix of Valencia in Spain. American riders claimed three of the top seven finishing positions. Colin Edwards placed fourth on the Monster Yamaha Tech 3 machine, while 2006 World Champion Nicky Hayden finished fifth on the Ducati Team bike. 2009 Superbike World Champion Ben Spies finished a strong seventh in a wild-card ride for the Sterilgarda Yamaha Team. Check out www.redbullindianapolisgp.com for more race details.
Hopefully this bit of Indian Summer lasts a few more days before Old Man Winter rears his ugly head. I’ve asked my friends up in Calgary, Alberta, if they could keep their “Alberta Clippers” up in their neck of the woods this year.
I’ll see you all here next week at www.redbullindianapolisgp.com
Greg
Another lost Sunday
It’s another bright, sunny fall Sunday morning in Indianapolis with an expected high temperature of 58° F, and here I sit in the Minneapolis-St. Paul International Airport once again staring at the same scenery. Does this sound familiar? I think I was sitting in the same area in the C Concourse across from the sbarro – Fresh Italian Cooking restaurant, at the same table blogging to you all from the same table a couple weeks ago. Once again, what’s wrong with this picture?
So, what would I be doing if I had my Sunday back? You guessed it! Yet another late autumn opportunity to stretch the legs of a favorite Italian steed now tucked away in the family room with few unlikely opportunities left this season to ride. Yup, you heard me right. 
For the winter months, my stable of two-wheeled steeds gets to hang out in a nice climate-controlled family room area of my house. If I can’t ride them, why not display them as any great works of art should be treated? A cold, damp garage during the “dark half” of the year is no place to keep beautiful examples of Italian craftsmanship.
Last Saturday, Eallra Hālgena ǽfen, which we all learned last week is now known as Halloween, the eve of All Saints’ Day, turned out to be a 
decent but a chilly 50° F day. My friends up at Ducati Indianapolis put on a very festive Halloween celebration at the dealership in Zionsville, Ind., on the far north end of Indianapolis. Maggie Carr especially enjoys putting out a festive display of Halloween decorations and treats. I guess my normal riding gear might qualify as a Halloween costume this time of the year.
Well, it’s getting close to departure time for my flight on to Calgary, Alberta, Canada, so I’ll wrap it up for this week,and I’ll see you all here next week at www.redbullindianapolisgp.com
Greg
Eve of the “darker half” of the year
From our friends at Wikipedia; “Halloween has its origins in the ancient celtic festival known as Samhain (pronounced sow-in or sau-an), which is 
derived from Old Irish and means roughly ‘summer’s end.’ A similar festival was held by the ancient Britons and is known as Calan Gaeaf (pronounced kalan-geyf). The festival of Samhain celebrates the end of the ‘lighter half’ of the year and beginning of the ‘darker half’ and is sometimes regarded as the ‘Celtic New Year.’ The term Halloween, originally spelled Hallowe’en, is shortened from All Hallows’ Even – e’en is a shortening of even, which is a shortening of evening. This is ultimately derived from the Old English Eallra Hālgena ǽfen. It is now known as ‘Eve of’ All Saints’ Day, which is November 1st.”
OK, now that we’ve all had a bit of a lesson about the origins of the Halloween holiday, the saddest part of Wikipedia’s lesson is the part about “summer’s end” and the beginning of the “darker half” of the year. I think I’ve shared with you all a couple times that I really like riding the sport bikes this time of the year. A bit of coolness in the air and the fall colors make for some very enjoyable weekend jaunts.
After a week in Calgary, I managed to make it back to Indy Friday evening. The pilots on my Delta-Northwest flight even remembered to land in Minneapolis. Saturday turned out to be a bit damp, but Sunday started off cool but quickly warmed up to an ideal day for a ride south of Indianapolis to take in some of the fall colors.
One thing I did have on the agenda for Sunday afternoon was to watch the final rounds of the Superbike World Championship in Portimao, Portugal, and the Grand Prix of Malaysia at the Sepang International Circuit. With a win in race one and fifth in race two, Texan Ben Spies wrapped up his first World Superbike title and Yamaha’s first-ever title in this series in his rookie season. At Sepang, Valentino Rossi celebrated his seventh MotoGP World Championship and his ninth title overall with his third-place finish in the MotoGP event. Check out more race coverage at www.redbullindianapolisgp.com
With Ben Spies moving over to the MotoGP series on the Monster Yamaha Tech 3 team with two-time World Superbike champion and fellow Texan Colin Edwards, the 2010 MotoGP season should be pretty interesting with a pair of Texans two-stepping their way through next year’s series.
2010 Red Bull Indianapolis GP go on sale very soon, so be sure to get your seats as soon as they’re available. When asked why you should get them on the first day, Colin Edwards said; “The earlier you get it, the earlier you can plan it and get the party started!”
With some additional business travel the next couple weeks, it looks like the two-wheeled toys are about ready to be tucked away for the “darker half” of the year, so enjoy your Halloween festivities this weekend, and I’ll see you all here next week at www.redbullindianapolisgp.com.
Greg
A day in the life of a business traveler
6 a.m. EDT: It’s way too early for an alarm clock on a Sunday morning. This just isn’t right!
7:30 a.m. EDT: What, economy parking at the new Col. Weir Cook Terminal at Indianapolis International Airport has gone up to $9 a day! Oh, and now the economy parking shuttle drops you off at the transportation center instead of the upper ticketing level of the terminal. Um, the driver said this was to try to encourage travelers to use the higher-priced parking lots nearer the terminal by several yards. For $12 a day, they’ll drop you off at the departure level. OK, so much for the much touted parking conveniences of the new $1,400,000,000 terminal. Yes, that’s a lot of zeros.
9 a.m. EDT: Here I sit on Delta Connection flight 3543 on a beautiful, clear Sunday morning on my way to a work assignment this week in Calgary, Alberta, Canada. First off, what’s wrong with this picture? Didn’t I mention it was a bright, clear Sunday morning? Shouldn’t I be rolling out of bed this time of a Sunday morning for a leisurely breakfast, cup of coffee and a bit of news of the weather for the day? Oh, it’s supposed to get up into the mid-50 degrees F today, which should be beckoning me for a spirited jaunt through the rolling twisty roads of southern Indiana on one of the two-wheeled steeds now tucked away at the house during my absence this week. It also appears to be a potentially prime autumn day for leaf watching. I guess I’ll be checking out the fall explosion of color from 30,000 feet today.
Given the amount of air travel I do in a typical year, my elite level frequent flyer status usually gets me complimentary upgrades into first class. Dang, not this morning! What’s up with all these business travelers this early on a Sunday morning? Usually the next best thing is to snag an exit row seat. These seats usually have a bit more leg room to stretch out in, but not this morning. It’s kind of funny how narrow an airline seat can become with a rather generously size person sitting next to you.
9:30 a.m. CDT: News flash! The pilot just announced our initial approach into Minneapolis. The local temperature is 39 degrees F. That is an improvement from the 33 degrees F in Indianapolis a couple hours ago, and it’s a clear, blue-sky morning in Minneapolis.
10:30 a.m. CDT: Wow, check this out. An airport cop just whizzed by on some kind of three-wheeled, stand-up contraption. That would sure be the hot setup for tracking down some fresh hot donuts! Well, I have my first-class upgrade for the three-hour flight segment from Minneapolis to Calgary, so maybe I should stop whining now. Dang, my favorite seat 1A is already taken.
11:20 a.m. CDT: Northwest flight 2672 is climbing out of Minneapolis heading for Calgary, Alberta, Canada now, and I’m all settled into a nice, cushy, roomy seat 4D for the next three hours. The pilot just announced the weather in Calgary is a brisk 5 degrees C, overcast and light rain. What’s with this Celsius stuff? 5 degrees C just sounds downright frigid!
1:30 p.m. MDT: Welcome to Canada, eh! Wow, Calgary must be one popular place to fly in to on a Sunday afternoon. The line at the Canadian customs must be a mile long. I sure hope this doesn’t turn into an all-afternoon ordeal. The Australian round of MotoGP at Phillip Island is on at 3:00 p.m. MDT on SPEED TV. I’ve already called Lisa at the Hilton Garden Inn Calgary, and she has set aside a room for me with a brand-new, 37-inch HD TV and verified they have SPEED on their TV cable system. Hey, you learn a few tricks as a seasoned traveler!
5:00 p.m. MDT: Well, I made it through Canadian customs with no tricky questions, snagged a rental car and found the hotel in plenty of time to settle in and enjoy the Australian rounds of the 250cc and MotoGP events. It looks like the 250cc championship is going to go down to the final event in Valencia with Marco Simoncelli’s victory. With Lorenzo’s first-turn mishap in the MotoGP event, Rossi followed Stoner to the finish line and now appears to be staged to wrap up the season with his ninth World Championship. Check out www.redbullindianapolisgp.com for complete race results from Phillip Island.
7:00 p.m. MDT: All of a sudden, my ole stomach is reminding me it’s really 9 p.m. EDT as far as it’s concerned. Another one of my seasoned traveler recommendations to you all is to seek out local eating establishments to get a taste of the local culture and flavor.
9th Avenue in downtown Calgary is known as a hive of interesting shops and restaurants. Wandering around the area, Jacqueline Suzanne’s Bistro appeared to be a rather eclectic-looking establishment tucked into a heritage building, proudly proclaiming it’s self to be a Purveyor of Fine Food & Spirits. Well, Jacqueline Suzanne’s Bistro turned out to be a very cozy, family-owned and operated establishment full of European charm and elegance. 
Suzanne prepared my meal, her son served me, his girlfriend kept my water glass filled, a cousin manned the bar, and grandmother folded the napkins. A true family affair!
9:30 p.m. MDT: After a delightful dinner experience on 9th Avenue in downtown Calgary and a fully sated appetite, I’m back at the hotel and ready to call it a day. Sometimes weekend business travel blues can include some very pleasurable experiences that help to mitigate the grueling grind of today’s air travel.
Hopefully some fall colors and temperate weather are left over for next weekend in central Indiana so I can report back to you all some memorable riding and dining experiences here at www.redbullindianapolisgp.com.
Greg
A couple years ago a very entertaining movie came out called The Bucket List.
Jack Nicholson and Morgan Freeman starred as two terminally-ill cancer patients who decide to break out of the hospital and live their last days to the fullest in director Rob Reiner’s seriocomic road movie. Though initially the pair seems to have nothing in common, conversation gradually reveals that both men have a long list of goals they wish to accomplish before they kick the bucket, one of which was racing the fastest machines on four wheels.
The Bucket List arrived on Christmas Day in 2007 to remind us to live life to its fullest and leave no cliché unturned. And while most of us would confess to not exactly seizing each day as if it is our last, many of us adventurous types have seized upon the idea of a bucket list of things we’d like to accomplish before kicking the preverbal bucket.
One such bucket list goal of fellow motorcyclist and local MSTA member Rick Dorfmeyer was to attempt a motorcycle land speed record at the Bonneville Speedway on the Bonneville Salt Flats near Wendover, Utah. The salt flats were first used for motor sports in 1912, but didn’t become truly popular until the 1930s when Ab Jenkins and Sir Malcolm Campbell competed against each other to set one of the first land speed records.
Rick’s long time bucket list dream has been to break a motorcycle land speed record. The record Rick chose to attempt has stood since 1986, set by Les Ranger on a Honda in the 650cc APS-BF motorcycle class at 180.733 mph.
Thus was born Project 212. For the past year, Rick and a small army of friends and family have helped him see his bucket list dream come to be with his attempt at the 650cc APS-BF motorcycle class record. He made the attempt last week on the Bonneville Salt Flats on a modified Honda CBR600.
Rick’s first experience started off with some qualifying runs last Thursday that revealed that their aerodynamic body design was very stable at speed. They were able to achieve a 155 mph run Saturday morning and followed those attempts with 165 mph and 168 mph runs during the afternoon attempts. Like all “speed” projects, lots of little gremlins tend to rear their heads and lots of small adjustments can result in incremental improvements towards a goal. That’s racing!
With the clock ticking down Sunday, Project 212 made their last attempts at the class record. Rick’s last run was 173 mph, a mere 7 mph short of the record, ending their first experience at the Bonneville Salt Flats. The always positive Rick and his crew are already speaking of the head start they have on chasing the record once again in 2010. Their hard work and determination are definitely inspiring to all of us speed junkies with a dream of fulfilling a bucket list experience.
I’ll see you all next week at www.redbullindianapolisgp.com.
Greg
Fall is in the air
Fall officially arrived a couple weeks ago, at 5:18 p.m. (ET) Sept. 22. Last week I confessed I really like riding this time of the year, but what’s happened to fall? It got way too cold way too fast. The past couple mornings have dawned just barely breaking 40°F. That’s way too far away from my normal low temperature threshold of 50°F. My riding gear selection does not include any “heated” items. The only “heated” gear I own are the front seats in my H3 Hummer! So far this week, all my morning commutes have been on heated seats in a four-wheeler. Oh, well, I guess you can call me a lightweight.
This past weekend did turn out to be a couple beautiful crisp fall days. My normal Saturday morning ride up to Ducati Indianapolis for a steaming hot espresso was delayed just a bit until the thermometer started to sneak up close to that magic 50°F point. Maggie and Laura Carr were busy decorating the showroom with spider webs, orange lights and other spooky decorations. Oh, it is October, and Halloween is just around the corner. Rumor has it there’s going to be a Halloween party at Ducati Indianapolis on Friday, Oct. 30, so start working on your costumes. Let’s see, maybe I could dress up as an over-the-hill motorcycle road racer!
Word circulated last week on the iDESMO forum about a local Triumph club ride Sunday morning out to Newport, Ind., for the 100th running of the Newport Antique Auto Hill Climb. Indy DESMO member Chris Hollandbeck braved a 48°F morning on his Ducati Multistrada to represent the Ducati crowd among a pack of Triumphs for a chilly morning ride from Indianapolis out to Newport.
Chris reported there were over 350 old cars there for the centennial running of the Newport Antique Auto Hill Climb, the newest year being 1941. For this competition, entries must be 1942 or older, must have an internal combustion engine and must be 
American-made, stock production vehicles with no modifications. Most everything was pre war, including both cars and motorcycles with most of it totally restored from a Stanley Steamer to old Indy 500 cars. Cars are divided into classes. They have a start tree, and when the light goes green, up the hill they go. The point is to get to the top of the hill as fast as you can. Way back when, auto manufacturers treated this race as a big deal for bragging rights.
Anyway, Chris reported it was very interesting to see all the old cars and watch them run flat out, which for the Stanley Steamer isn’t fast but for some of the Indy 500 cars, they climbed the hill pretty quick. The quaint little town of Newport was totally packed, with people everywhere, a gigantic parade, big wheel races, baby contest, gospel music jamboree, flea markets, fireworks, a free street dance, a big variety of festive cooking and an endless display of beautiful antique and show cars. Um, festive cooking! This might be a good event for the Motorcycle Sport Touring Association (MSTA) group I hang out with to attend next year.
I’d like to thank iDESMO member Chris Hollandbeck for the ride report and all the great photos of the event. I should have braved the chilly morning and joined you all, bolstering the Ducati ranks. I wonder how fast my 1098 R Bayliss LE would have made it to the top of the hill. Maybe for the next centennial celebration!
I’ll see you all next week at www.redbullindianapolisgp.com .
Greg
Hanging out with friends…
OK, now what have I been up to for the past couple weeks? I have missed hanging out with you all here at www.redbullindianapolisgp.com, but there’s been a lot of activity at work, which is a good thing in this day and age! After long days of training followed by evenings of entertaining guests, my blogging juices have been pretty much dried up for the past couple weeks. But I’m back in the saddle and ready to jump back into my Brickyard blog, The Experience.
A lot of the experiences and camaraderie we all share are centered around the enjoyment of common interests. As you all may have ascertained over the past two years, I love motorcycles. There are endless ways to share these common interests with other like-minded enthusiasts through various clubs, forums and events.
The local chapter of the Motorcycle Sport Touring Association (MSTA) is a group of like-minded enthusiasts who take every opportunity to get together for rides and activities centered around our mutual love of motorcycles. Many of these MSTA gatherings eventually include the breaking of bread and the enjoyment of various gastronomic delights around a table or camp fire with tall tales of our last motorcycle adventures.
One of my favorite MSTA events recently was something called a “Hobo” picnic. Meeting in Brown County State Park on a bright Sunday afternoon, everybody brought a veggie item, and our fearless leader, Don “Moose” Parish, supplied the meat and other supplies. For those who never have indulged in a Hobo Dinner, let me explain. Forming an aluminum-foil boat, you fill it with a cornucopia of veggies, a portion of hamburger, add a little water, wine or beer for moisture, wrap it up tightly and set it in a charcoal fire for about a half hour with the result being a “Hobo” stew. Matt Carr gives his creation the thumbs up. Um, um good!
Another recent event was the first annual Ducati Indianapolis September Fest this past Saturday. Many activities took place, including raffles, demo rides, a poker ride, bike show and standing-stop competition. How slow can you go for 10 feet? Local Indy Desmo Owners Club member Rob 
Camarillo, 
aboard his 1995 Monster 900, took first place in the standing-stop competition, beating 16 other riders to take the honor of the slowest rider at the event. The weather was perfect as a large contingent of motorcycle enthusiasts took in the atmosphere on a perfect autumn Saturday afternoon at the dealership. And like all great events, copious amounts of bratwursts and hot dogs were served up to fully sate everyone’s appetite.
One of my favorite riding seasons of the year also started last week with the September Equinox at 5:18 p.m. (EDT) Sept. 22. There’s nothing better than a crisp autumn day to explore your favorite twisty back roads and see the first glimmer of autumn colors starting to peak out of the dense greenness of summer.
Well, it’s already been a month since the ultimate motorcycle enthusiast’s event took place out on West 16th Street here in Speedway, Ind. We’re now counting down to Aug. 29, 2010 for the third running of the Red Bull Indianapolis GP, so I’ll do my best to continue sharing all the experiences of hanging out and clubbing with the local motorcycle community here at www.redbullindianapolisgp.com
Greg
The daily grind grinds on
It’s only been a week since the second running of the Red Bull Indianapolis GP on Aug. 30, 2009. A year ago, I titled my post-race blog, “The Calm after the Storm,” and lamented about how the following week kind of felt like the day after Christmas. Well, it still does!
With the Ducati track day at Putnam Park Road Course on Monday, last week ended up being a shortened four-day week. With Labor Day last Monday, I’ve got another short week to help get over the post-Indy GP blues. However, there was plenty of motorcycle racing on this past Sunday to partially sate my “need for speed.”
The 13th round of the 2009 MotoGP championship, the Gran Premio Cinzano di San Marino e della Riviera di Rimini, took place in Misano Adriatico, Italy, last Sunday, Sept. 6. Sporting a donkey on his helmet, Valentino Rossi sailed from pole position to take the checkered flag, bolstering his championship lead to 30 points over teammate and Red Bull Indianapolis GP winner, Jorge Lorenzo. Check out full race coverage at www.redbullindianapolisgp.com
The 11th round of the Superbike World Championship also took place last Sunday at the Nürburgring in the shadow of Count Ulrich’s 12th-century patriarchal Nürburg castle. Former AMA Pro Racing superstar, Ben Spies, continues to take the world superbike stage by storm. With a closely fought victory in race one and second-place finish in race two, Ben moved into the championship lead over Ducati’s Noriyuki Haga by 18 points. Check out www.worldsbk.com for complete details.
Last Sunday was also the season finale of the AMA Pro Road Racing series at the Thunderbolt Raceway at New Jersey Motorsports Park in Millville, N.J. Danny Eslick, aboard the No. 9 GEICO Powersports/RMR Buell 1125R, wrapped up the championship with his seventh-place finish in the AMA Pro Daytona SportBike presented by AMSOIL series against a field of production-class 600cc middleweight motorcycles. Hmm, I don’t get that, either, but you can check out www.amaproracing.com to try to figure it out.
With four rounds left in the MotoGP series and three remaining Superbike World Championship rounds left to go, there should be some great heads-up racing to view Sunday afternoons before we have to hunker down in central Indiana to a long dreary winter.
I’ll see you all next week at www.redbullindianapolisgp.com
Greg
Robots Love Motorcycles on Meridian St.
Take Me to Your GP Human
Ladies Love GP
Wow, what a weekend jam packed with MotoGP activities and experiences! It’s taken me a couple days now to recover and get back in to the normal daily office grind.
I shared with you all the Moto Taxi team training day experience in last week’s blog. After getting household duties squared away early in the week, MotoGP weekend activities started cranking up to full speed last Wednesday afternoon.
One of my favorite shopping venues in downtown Indianapolis is Nordstrom in Circle Centre Mall. Once again, they were eager to get into the Red Bull Indianapolis GP spirit by displaying a dozen Valentino Rossi replica helmets out of my collection in their Espresso Café and around the store. They also placed my 2008 Yamaha YZF R1 Fiat replica motorcycle in one of their display windows for a very special Red Bull event. During the course of Friday and Saturday’s “Motorcycles on Meridian” festivities, a local Red Bull artist painted an exciting mural inside the Nordstrom’s display window to the delight of thousands of motorcyclists and onlookers, proclaiming “Everybody Loves the Red Bull Indianapolis GP.”
Thursday morning started off over on West 16th Street at the Brickyard. One of my Moto Taxi team mates and I were tasked with picking up the Ducati Desmosedici two-seater MotoGP bike at the track along with a crew of Ducati mechanics, Dorna MotoGP photographers and Alpinestars representatives. Two more of our Moto Taxi members joined us with two of the KTM 990 Adventure demo bikes, and we all headed to downtown Indianapolis for a Red Bull Indianapolis GP kickoff event.
Former MotoGP race winner Randy Mamola piloted the Desmosedici two-seater through downtown Indianapolis with NHRA Top Fuel dragster racer Antron Brown hanging on for dear life. The Ducati may not be as fast as one of Antron’s Top Fuel dragsters, but it definitely does bigger wheelies! Our two KTM-mounted Moto Taxi riders carried the two Dorna photographers, documenting the parade to the Red Bull Energy Station on South Meridian Street across from Nordstrom
Friday dawned a bit overcast with a forecast that brought back memories of a very wet inaugural Red Bull Indianapolis GP in September 2008. Never fear, Tucker Rocky Distributing had outfitted the entire Moto Taxi team with new gear from their Speed and Strength line that promised to keep the team totally dry and comfortable throughout whatever Mother Nature could throw our way.
With a slight dousing Friday afternoon, Saturday arrived bright, clear and cool, and turned out to be a glorious day of 
practice and qualifying. The Moto Taxi team was kept fairly busy, ferrying fallen riders back to their garages after demonstrating the highly technical protective gear they wear to tens of thousands of onlooking fans. We wrapped up Saturday with another downtown Indianapolis media event with fellow Moto Taxi member Jeff Henderson and me accompanying the Red Bull Beatcar, a very curious musical vehicle, through the throngs of motorcyclists on Meridian Street to the Red Bull Energy Station.
7 a.m., Sunday, Aug. 30, 2009. The day of the 2009 Red Bull Indianapolis GP main events dawns with the promise of a crisp, cool day of glorious sunshine from every forecaster on every local TV and radio station in central Indiana. The Moto Taxi team assembled for a morning photo op on the “Yard of Bricks” and preceded to our assigned areas around the 2.61-mile, 16-turn GP course at the Indianapolis Motor Speedway with the first bikes hitting the pavement for warm-ups at 9:40 a.m. The day of events clicked off right on schedule without the slightest hint of Mother Nature’s fury that made for a memorable inaugural event last year.
Each event yielded some interesting results with some favorites getting an unwelcomed ride with the Moto Taxi team and other local favorites climbing that famous Indianapolis Motor Speedway victor’s podium in celebration of a top-three finish. Be sure to check out www.redbullindianapolisgp.com for a complete summary of this year’s events, stories, photos and experiences.
Once again, I completed the perfect Red Bull Indianapolis GP weekend with the perfect Monday morning activity. For the second year in a row, Ducati North America, Ducati Indianapolis and Sport Bike Track Time sponsored a track day out at Putnam Park Road Course in Mount Meridian, Ind. What better way to wrap up a week of motorcycle experiences. It’s too bad the 2010 Red Bull Indianapolis GP, August 29, 2010 is 12 long months from now!
I’ll see you all next week at www.redbullindianapolisgp.com.
Greg