First off. Find me on Twitter at TheRideIndyGP and find me on Facebook at Jarrod Krisiloff. I do my best to give sneak peaks to my blogs on Facebook and of little snippets of my daily life 140 characters at a time on Twitter. While I’m fairly proficient in the social Web world, I have to say that I am not one who actively participates in it.
Before I get into my life, let’s talk about Stoner and Hayden making the podium at the annual Madonna Di Campiglio press event in northern Italy. The 2009 launch event features Scuderia Ferrari drivers and Ducati Corse riders in a combined press event on the slopes of northern Italy. Stoner won the karting event, F1 championship runner-up Massa was second, and Red Bull Indianapolis GP runner-up Nicky Hayden was third.
Last weekend was a big weekend. Not for riding, but for motorcycles. Well, maybe it wasn’t a big weekend, but I certainly got my moto crave for the year.
Last year I spent at least a day a week on my Tiger throughout the winter. No thanks to this years snowy, figg’n cold and wet winter, I’ve been grounded on four wheels. As I mentioned in my last e-mail, my wife purchased a trip for me and my “bros” on what we are calling “The Man Trip.” The Man Trip is going to take place in early March at RideRoyalBlue.com. She picked up the Redneck Lodge for me and five buddies. So, armed with two motos and two quads, we have a solid group of guys that can’t wait for the trip.
Since the trip is getting close and I’ve been off my bikes for quite awhile, I felt that it was time to take a few minutes to fire them up. My Triumph Tiger started right up. By the way my son, Van, absolutely loves my Tiger. Every time we walk down to the garage, he points and grunts. From what I can tell…That means start it up!
Anyway, so last weekend me, Bobby Wilson (bobbywilsonracing.com) and my buddy Phil went over to our shop and fired up the Scrambler, which took forever. Finally she fired and growled for warm air. Once we cleaned the Scrambler, it was on to the dirt bikes.
Phil’s Honda 230F fired up pretty easily - it has an electric start - and my Suzuki 250 took a little time. I swear I kicked 50 times before I finally got it running. Once it was fired up, it was a wheelie machine! So cold (20F), yet so much fun. The three of us wheeled the bikes on to our trailer and headed over to Dreyer for a little 2009 tune-up. Both Phil and I had a list of items that needed to be done so that we could be sure that we got to enjoy every bit of the 430 miles of trails at Ride Royal Blue.
Here is my list:
1. New rear tire…no wonder I can do donuts on any surface!
2. New rear brakes…I never really examined my brakes considering the bike is still new to me, but I had about a Band Aid’s worth of pad left. Time for a change.
3. Bark Busters…OK, I’m not the strongest guy or the best dirt rider yet so I figured that bark busters would be a good idea in case I drop or crash my bike.
4. Overall tune-up…fluids, air filter, etc., because I’m too lazy to do it.
5. Flywheel weight…I have the RMZ 250, and I’m not the best rider YET! So its really important to not stall my bike through slow-moving trails. Do you know how tiring it is to kick-start your bike every five minutes? The flywheel weight essentially helps the flywheel rotate at low RPM. This is key when trail riding since you are stopping and going, grabbing controls, putting your foot down, etc.
I have to also give a plug to Chelsea at Dreyer. She’s always helpful and knows her stuff. The entire time Bobby was trying to act like he knew what I should do because he is a karting genius. Yo, driver, I have a dirt bike, not a go-kart. When I got out of the shop, I told him that Chelsea was a bad-ass dirt biker and has more hardware in her body then he could ever dream of (broken arms, pelvis, etc.). She’s pretty much a bad ass on two wheels.
Well, that’s the update. March can’t come quick enough! Tomorrow we have a meeting with Red Bull to discuss this year’s Red Bull Indianapolis GP. Of course, I can’t tell you everything, but I will slip a few insider comments for next week’s blog.
Stay tuned, stay warm.
P.S.: I had great customer service at mxsouth.com.
Jarrod
The holiday season is over! The second for the little guy and the first as an official family. The downside, much like the economy, is the frigid cold weather that has kept me off of my motos.
The only “moto-related” news on a personal level is that my wife, Megan, purchased a cabin for me and a few of my buddies for a weekend in Tennessee at a powersports park. Essentially she willingly suggested that me and a few of my friends go attempt to kill ourselves in the mountains of Tennessee … something smells fishy. I’m not going to complain, and I am looking forward to it. From what I recall, it’s quite nice in March in Tennessee.
In other news, the motorcycle world is finally being affected by the global automotive, financial and economic crisis. Kawasaki has withdrawn from MotoGP in 2009. We’ve already seen Honda cancel their factory teams in F1 and U.S. Superbike, Subaru and Suzuki ended their World Rally teams, and NASCAR teams are in a merging frenzy!
It will be interesting to see what happens with Kawasaki riders John Hopkins and Marco Melandri, and I’m also curious to see the direction MotoGP will take. Could MotoGP be headed in an F1 mindset of controlling costs? Who knows?
On a positive note, Ducati is not pulling out, which means that a factory team filled with World Champions Nicky Hayden and Casey Stoner will compete at the Red Bull Indianapolis GP on Aug. 28-30 at IMS. Former Valentino Rossi archrival Sete Gibernau is back in MotoGP in 2009 with a satellite Ducati team. 250cc standout Mika Kallio is climbing to MotoGP this season, on another Ducati satellite team. He was a force to be reckoned with in 250cc. If nothing else, Kallio has the best save EVER, last year at Phillip Island!
Check this out: http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=jSCuuTa6y-c
I have to say that was an amazing ride. Mika walked away from this one, but Sete, who is returning after a massive crash with Ducati, is racing for the factory-backed Spanish Team Onde 2000. If you didn’t know, or haven’t heard, Sete took a lick’n a few years ago. Here’s the crash: http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=-P4StMtpa9I
Stay tuned. Regardless of Kawasaki’s departure, there will be plenty of action this season. Cross your fingers for a mild hurricane season!
Jarrod