Baker in Superprestigio Shock

Well, it was a shock to me. My cast iron, put-the-house-on-it prediction that Brad Baker would win the Superprestigio came up short. How short? As short as Dani Pedrosa stood in a pothole.

Baker was slightly off the pace in timed practice, being out-qualified by Supermoto champ, Thomas Chareyre, but it wasn't a concern to me or my prediction, because Baker's a racer.

The 2014 GNC champ comfortably made the Superfinal to race Marquez for the first time in the night. After a mid-pack run to the first corner, Marquez kept tight and exited turn 2 in the lead, with Baker behind him, then checked out. Even, and I say that with all due respect, Toni Elias passed Baker, pushing him back to third at the flag. It just wasn't Brad's night.

 The American said tyre choice was crucial and showed on Flat Track Live's feed that his soft Michelin Supermoto wet was chewing up. It seemed the same for everyone though. The official Superprestigio website quoted him as saying 'I haven’t feel at my ease in the race track and honestly I’ve been much more nervous in this event than in my current competition in flat track in the US.'

In a crash-strewn night, the British DTRA riders had mixed fortunes. A strong travelling support saw Ollie Brindley make the Open Finals, but one of the UK's brightest stars didn't progress to the Superfinal this time. George Pickering just missed out on the Open finals in his first Superprestigio, while Alan Birtwistle was out of sorts after having his van was broken into and robbed outside the event. Young Toby Hales had the bad luck too, when he couldn't avoid a crash bike on his line, was catapulted over the bars and broke his wrist.

 Keep an eye out for 2017 DTRA dates being released this week. G

Hard racing, decent crowd.

Ollie looking relaxed before the battle.

The appearance of 16/17in wheels on DTX bikes made the machinery look too much like Supermoto for some hardcore fans, others didn't care.

 Avoiding first corner carnage was crucial. 30, Alan Birtwistle about to go up the inside.

Baker leads Chareyre

 Japanese rider Masatoshi Ohmori styling it up for the crowd.

British rider Alan Birtwistle styling it up for the crowd. Rad his 'Get Schooled' How To guide tips for winning a championship without team back up in Sideburn 27.  

Ollie Brindley Flying at the Superprestigio

Young DTRA racer Ollie Brindley posted a quicker lap time than Brad Baker in Friday night's Open Class class practice. Marc Marquez topped the Superprestigio class and was quickest overall, Ollie second quickest.

Ollie has always qualified well at the big races, but hasn't always had the best luck in the races. He has made the grand final in the past.

Contrary to what we posted the other days, the Fanschoice stream is for the US only. Motors TV are showing the live footage in the UK. Go to DTXBarcelona for other country details.

The other Brits out there are Alan Birtwistle (who gives us his Get Schooled tips in Sideburn 27); George Pickering and Toby Hales. 

 Photo: Anthony Brown

Superprestigio: This Weekend

Superprestigio is on this weekend and the evening main event is being livestreamed for free around the world on fanschoice.tv.

2015 Superprestigio champion Brad Baker has been in Spain since early November, training on the bike he is going to compete on, including a visit to Rossi's Ranch. As long as he doesn't get tangled up in a crash he is going to win it, he's an indoor short track animal. He did crash in the Barcelona event in 2014, breaking his shoulder, with experts blaming it on unfamiliar 17in wheels. They're not unfamiliar any more. The Superprestigio rules demand 17in wheels and Michelin road race wets, not the regular 19in wheels regular dirt track races use. This is because Michelin are a sponsor and don't make suitable 19in tyre.

British interest is stronger than ever. The DTRA has four riders in contention - Superprestigio regulars Ollie Brindley and 2017 DTRA champion Alan Birtwistle, plus George Pickering and Toby Hales.

The DTRA were allowed to field extra riders when the troubled Spanish National dirt track series fizzled out before it could hold its end of season qualifying race.

For those unfamiliar with the format, the entry is split into two: Superprestigio and Open. The former is for road racers. The only current MotoGP rider in the whole field this year is Marc Marquez, where in the past there has been a handful of MotoGP men. There are still plenty of Moto2 and Moto3 riders and, for the first time, former WSB factory Ducati rider Ruben Xaus (see him below on a Ducati Hypermotard), but the entry is nowhere near as eyecatching as previous years, but don't let put you off. Indoor short track is never boring.

The open class is for riders who compete primarily on dirt - flat trackers, speedway, long track and also, supermoto. There are top racers from Spain, Italy and the UK, plus Baker, the only American this year after Jared Mees pulled out because of injury.

The top four from each class face off in a Super final.

Here is the Superprestigio schedule so you can plan your fanschoice viewing. G

Joy at Johnny Lewis's 10 Training Camp

Earlier this year, Joy Lewis and her friends attended Johnny Lewis' (no relation) JL10 Dirt Track School in Florida and wrote this report for us. 

Above: Johnny and his son Maxsen, Joy, Shelby, Tammi

This spring I had the chance to spend a weekend with Johnny Lewis, his beautiful family and a couple friends at the Marion County Speedway in Florida. The training originally came up as a girl camp through @caferacerxxx but after being bombarded with interest my group was bumped to a later weekend. To be honest the draw for me wasn’t that it was catered to girls – whatever that means – I ride and race with mostly boys, so as far as I can tell the only perk to a girls-only camp is that we can all slumber party in the same hotel room and no one’s spouse gets pissy.

The three of us attending had various levels of experience and Johnny was able to identify immediately what our individual areas of focus needed to be. Having raced flat track for only a year in a handful of races on a shitty bike, I had a lot to learn and a few habits to break.

Mr JL10, Johnny Lewis

After covering body positioning, braking, and the cadence of corners, we started the bikes and hopped on the mini-track Johnny had made in the parking lot. To make things more crowded we were joined by the ridiculously talented and rad Oliver Brindley #24, who rallied around on a mini bike pushing our elbows up and our knees in. It seemed to only take that first session of laps for Johnny to have each of us figured out but rather than give us the answers, he makes you self-evaluate and come to whatever you’re doing wrong on your own. We spent most of day one running solo drills where we would ride one corner over and over and after every round we had to tell Johnny what we did wrong – he gave us tips for fixing it and it was onto the next. Every so often we’d stop to do donuts on the mini bike or some ridiculous exercise and then jump back into a drill and without fail something would click. Obviously the guy is good at what he does but what I was most impressed with was Johnny’s ability to completely break down flat tracking into bite-sized pieces and then figure out which we were choking on.

Tammi getting the 'look through the corner' chat

Day two we spent a good chunk of the day taking turns ‘racing’ against Johnny and Oliver. I learned that one of my weaknesses was chasing whoever was in front of me – apparently a common mistake racers make and one that rarely gets you to the top of the podium.  

Our day concluded on the big track with two-up hot laps on Johnny’s race bike (so maybe there were perks to being a girl because I can’t imagine many grown men sitting front seat holding onto a crossbar going sideways into a corner.) 

 Shelby figuring out weight transfer during direction change

I was lucky to go home to a month of back-to-back races where I could put it all together. I definitely had Johnny in my head while racing, reminding me to find my own line. All the time spent on that makeshift track focusing on weight transfer through corners paid off on the real track and I was able to feel more in control of the bike during the slide. all of this to say my time at Johnny’s was game-changing – and while I still refuse to ride a modern bike, I’m getting around a bit better on my shit bike.

Joy

A month later on my shit bike with everything clicking - photo: Scott Toepfer

Click to find out more about the 10 Training

DTRA Round 1 Report: Rye House

The first DTRA race of 2016 was the biggest ever UK short track race (except for the Dirt Quake two-dayers that we hold with the DTRA). The meeting was split into two, with self-contained morning and afternoon sessions. Juniors, rookies and minibikes ran in the morning. Pros, restricted, vintage and Thunderbikes got on track at 2pm.

Rye House has a new owner and is under-going renovation. The DTRA seemed much happier with the new regime and the track was well prepared and looked after during the meeting. In the past, the previous owner would dump 1000 litres on it halfway through the meeting and totally screw it.
One result of the track being looked after was a very safe meeting. I didn't see the medical staff called once.

There were a ton of new riders in all the classes and some of last year's top restricted riders moved up to the Pro class. The DTRA has introduced a B Final for the Pro class to encourage those without a realistic chance of making the final to enter the dwindling Pro class in the knowledge they'll get three heats and a B Main. The B Main also acts as a last chance qualifier (LCQ) with the top two from the B Main qualifying for the A Main. There was a slight mix-up with the race order of this meeting so the B Main riders went straight from their ten-lap B into the 10-lap A Main without a break. That was a bit of a poisoned chalice, meaning they had to race knackered against the best amateur riders in Europe. The DTRA will sort that for future races.

The race attracted riders from Italy, Germany, France and Belgium, 12-15 foreign riders in total.
Thanks to the DTRA volunteers for all they do for the sport. They were working for ten hours on Sunday, plus travelling time, to make the event run as smooth as an oiled eel. GI

Sean Vukovic entered his very first dirt track race on his Survivor Customs CCM Rotax and won the Thunderbike class ahead of a strong field. Ross 'The King' Herrod was second, Survivor Mike Hill was third.
Want a potential race winner for £3500-£4000? Talk to Mike at Survivor Customs.

Frenchman Frank Chatokhine, #5R, came back to the series after missing much of last season and bossed the ever-growing Vintage class. We featured his Metisse Triumph in Sideburn 17.

17-year-old Ollie Brindley #24, hasn't had an off-season. over winter he has raced both Superprestigios and a bunch of Florida races, plus spent two weeks with AMA Pro Johnny Lewis. He followed the hard-charging current champ, Aidan Collins, for a few laps before finally making a pass stick and then he cleared off. Aidan came in second, Alan Birtwistle (aka Moto Ninja) came a good third. 

Vintage class rookie John Harrison looked like he'd been parachuted in from 1974. He is one of many riders who lost their dirt track virginity at Dirt Quake and now are racing in the DTRA.

Another is Ross Sharp, one of the Bike Shed MC full-time staff. Ross bought a used DTX bike last year, did a few practices, entered the Rookies and won first time out. A very confident rider.

Alessandro Rossi from Deus Milan bought Jason's gorgeous Wood Rotax (that we have a blueprint of for all the Wood Rotax fans out there) and flew in with his family for a weekend of motorcycle fun.

James from Hard Luck Tattoo is another graduate from the University of Dirt Quake. He raced two classes and was smiling like a loon every time I saw him. 

And me? I missed the Eastbourne practice because of bike problems at the Rye House practice the week before, then didn't get the bike working properly until the Friday before this race. It ran like a dream, but I forgot I only wanted to leave that rear tyre on for the pre-season practices and turned up to the first race with a worn Maxxis DT1. Better riders than me could cope with worn rubber, but I need all the help I can get. This photo shows ambition getting the better of talent. Still I made the Thunderbike final, stayed on two wheels all day and had a lot of fun. 

The next race is at the MCN Festival, Peterborough over the weekend of 14-15 May and Colin Edwards is racing with us! G

Photos: Ian Roxburgh

Oliver Brindley v The World

Sideburn flew out to Las Vegas to be at the finale of the 2015 GNC season and the inaugural Superprestigio of the Americas, indoors at the Orleans Hotel.

When we booked the flights we didn't realise the DTRA's rising star, Oliver Brindley would be competing. Chris Carr, who helped organise the Superprestigio and chose who was invited, contacted the DTRA and said the 2015 UK champion would have a place. 2015 DTRA champ Aidan Collins (who is interviewed in Sideburn 23) chose not to take up the offer, preferring a young up and comer to have the chance to grab the opportunity. After an initial no from the Superprestigio, who - it seems - wanted the champion or nothing, DTRA chief, Anthony Brown negotiated an invite for 16-year-old Ollie Brindley to be the British representative.

The event was a double-header - the GNC finale on Friday night, the Superprestigio on Saturday night.

GNC2
So, on his 17th birthday, after spending a week racing and preparing at tracks in California, Ollie lined up in his first ever AMA Pro GNC2* event. In an incredibly pressurised qualifying period made up of two short timed sessions of only FOUR x 10 second laps of the tiny, rough track, Ollie was number qualifier out of a class of 46 riders, many of whom have been riding the GNC2 class all season. So, that's a combined practice AND qualifying session of just 80 seconds of riding. You have to be on it for the get-go.

The heat race didn't go according to plan, and Ollie didn't make it through to the semis, and his GNC debut was over much earlier than he wanted, but he made his mark and knew the mistake he'd made. One of the great things about Ollie, and his dad Derek, are they don't get hung up on any failures. They shrug and move on, learning from it. Easier said than done, but the best way.

SUPERPRESTIGIO
Relatively few of the GNC stars were invited to compete in Saturday's Superprestigio, only a total of 16 from both GNC1 and GNC2, including former champions; the current GNC2 champ, Davis Fisher; the winner of the Peoria GNC2 race, Jesse Janisch; the winners of Friday's two classes - Briar Bauman and Dan Bromley.

Like the Spanish Superprestigio, there are two classes. Here it was pro flat track and All Star, but there was a very meagre bunch of 'All-Star' non-flat trackers, nowhere near as memorable as the star-studded Barcelona line-ups. It didn't affect the quality of the racing (but the crowd was much thinner for Saturday than it was for Friday's GNC Finale).

Ollie was put in the All-Stars class, avoiding the pro flat trackers - like Mees, Johnson, Halbert, Coolbeth, Smith, Bauman... He would race Franc Serra, Roger Hayden, Larry Pegram, Toni Elias, Jake Gagne, Aaron Colton... The young Brit qualified fourth in his class. Veteran road racer and flat tracker, Pegram was quickest.

The evening started badly for Ollie, he seemed to stall out of his first race. Then he totally missed his second race, but won his third and then won his 8-rider semi to put him in the 8-rider final.

By now the tiny, tight track was a rutted mess. Ollie was in podium contention for much of the 12-lap final, but eventually came fourth behind Pegram, Roger Hayden and Joe Roberts. It was enough to send him to the grand final (like he had made at the 2014 Superprestigio in Spain), and an opportunity to gain invaluable experience racing the current heroes of the sport - Mees; Baker; Coolbeth and Smith - riders with ten (right?) GNC titles and dozens of National wins between them.

The 15-lap superfinal was brutal, but Ollie stayed out of danger while staying in touch with the leaders and finished sixth, ahead of fallers Hayden and Smith.

The lad done good. And he'll be at the Spanish Superprestigio in December looking to impress again.

If any companies out there wants to sponsor Ollie, email us dirt@sideburnmagazine.com and we'll put you directly in touch. The lad is going places. G

PS I won't say who won in case you watch to watch on fanschoice.tv when they post it.

PPS Read a nice write up on Ollie's Californian warm-up races on the Poppawheelie blog

* GNC2, like Moto2, is the class below the premier class. It was formerly known as Pro Singles and is for up and coming riders looking to progress to GNC1, the class formerly known as Expert. 

DTRA 2015 - First practice

Although some riders have been practising on waterlogged tracks and driving to Spain for testing, last weekend the UK dirt track scene made its first proper pre-season DTRA test day at Eastbourne. Here's what series supremo, Anthony Brown (of Co-Built) says:

We had a massive attendance on what should have been a shitty raining Saturday, but wasn't. Loads of new riders and bikes and some of the regulars were really flying. 

Our next practice will be at Scunthope on Sunday 12th April. 10am till 3pm Anthony 

Photos: Lidia Lewska. http://lidialewska.photoshelter.com/index#!/index

George Greenfield. Won his class at Mablethorpe; has built his own flat track on a farm; should be very fast this year.

Novice James from Kingdom of Kicks on Sam Christmas's bike after his own Triumph was playing up.

BSB racer, Matt Layt (100) and Ollie Brindley (24)

The UK's quickest female racer, Leah Tokelove on her new KTM 350 (she raced a 250 against the 450s last year)

Milo on his Harley flathead. A new entry into the burgeoning vintage class, up from six entries to a threatened 20. The DTRA must have turned a blind eye to Milo's front brake, but they're banned from races. Just removing the lever will solve it, the hub can remain.

Nick Ashley has retired his Cheney Triumph for a Handshift Harley flathead, modified for the series.

Ollie Brindley scrubbing the front.

NOTE: The DTRA is still looking for helpers, either in key roles for the season or for individual rounds as marshals. Get in touch is you want to help: dirt @ sideburnmagazine.com

Superprestigio Grand Final

I've been trying to track down and embeddable version of this and I finally found it. With the all-time great Chris Carr giving expert commentary.
Check out the DTRA's Ollie Brindley.

We have superb photos and analysis from Superprestigio coming up in the next issue. G

Mablethorpe Sand Racing: 21st December 2014

I've been sand racing a brakeless Honda SLR650 special I bought on a bit of a whim. The first two meetings we're something of a trial, as I hadn't stored the bike well (no room) and water had leaked into the electrics, combined with sea water and I felt I pushed it further than I rode it. Then my van got stuck in the deep sand trying to get off the beach.
The last meeting, just before Christmas, was better. Five starts, five finishes and one third place in the biggest class on the beach. It wasn't without it tribulations though. One rear shock collapsed when the top eye screwed out, and the long-slung modified Harris silencer had enough of bumping on the deep ruts, but with help from Carl CFM and Anthony Co-Built (who came along to give support) we patched the bike up for the next race.
I took the kids and we even managed to get off the beach when others were getting stuck. I much prefer the DTRA, but the beach racers are a great bunch too. A good day for £35 entry fee (plus the club's annual membership). Find out more at Mablethorpe Sand Racing Club.

Glyn raced his CCM road bike at Dirt Quake III and was bitten by the racing bug. He's getting his eye in on the beach on this Suzuki 200, and converting his road bike for the DTRA.

Neil has never raced before. He's barely even ridden on the road, but he wanted to give racing a go, so he bought this 125 and gets up at 6am on a Sunday morning to pit himself against the beach. An inspiration to those standing on the sidelines who think they can't race for whatever reason.

 The grasstrackers are the quickest things on the beach, though they seem a bit fickle.

A few DTRA regulars are always on the beach, though not the same ones every meeting. George (above) and Leah (below) compete most meetings. George's dad was racing too. Tom Neave often races his 450 too, a few juniors and others too.

Just one week after his Superprestigio heroics, Ollie Brindley turned up on a borrowed Honda 250 in the road bike class and was as impressive as usual. Broke down in the final heat though.

Anything and everything has raced the beach at one point or other. This Bonneville flies. The owner, Mark, has been racing here since he was a teenager. The Triumph might be a lump, but it often takes the holeshot.

 Petrol station diesel gloves keeps the North Sea out of the Triumph's ignition electrics.

I now wear an old Weise waterproof onesie over my leathers. Not glamorous, but this is Mablethorpe, not Milan. I wear my old Arai and Biltwell goggles. I chopped the heel off some old Frank Thomas boots to get my steel shoe on. Gloves are Triumph 'adventure'.

Lining up for the road bike class. I'm on the far right of the grid. The guy in the hi-vis vest is the starter. He's in the middle of the grid. There are 10-12 bikes spread across the line, all trying to pick a spot without a massive trench. You can see one of the trenches near the bright green wheel. 

The starter pulls a lever that lets the elastic bungee cord, that is stretched in front of the bikes, twang across. Then it's a quarter-mile drag race to the first corner and four laps of the oval.

These are the dates for future races. Racing starts about 1.5 hours after sign on and lasts 2-3 hours. 

11th Jan - 9:00 am sign on
25th Jan - 9:00 am sign on
8th Feb - 9:00 am sign on
22nd Feb -  9:00 am sign on
8th Mar - 8:30 am sign on
22nd Mar - 8:30 sign on

 Photos: GI and Anthony Co-Built

Superfinal Video

Ben found this on YouTube.
So proud to see Ollie with his DTRA sticker on his helmet and DTRA plate on the grid in this company.
Can anyone find a YouTube post with Chris Carr commentating? G

Ollie Brindley - Hero

No apologies for harping on about the Superprestigio for the last few days. It was an amazing race.

Apparently, it's on BT Sport from 6-8am tomorrow.

In this photo of the grand finale, the Superfinal you will see:

#4 Thomas Chareyre (multiple World Supermoto champ, I said he was a dark horse) going down having been nudged from behind going into turn 1 on lap 1.
Marc Marquez is so close to crashing, but manages to stay up, but pushes Dani Ribalta (yellow and black helmet) out wide.
#1 Jared Mees gets fouled up in the crash, losing momentum and running wide.
MotoGP star Bradley Smith in the pale blue sleeves (on the podium Philip Island earlier this year) is outside Mees and outside him is…
Ollie Brindley!

Little Ollie Brindley! The DTRA's Ollie Brindley. Ollie Brindley that smashed his shoulder to pieces (ask to see the scar) just four weeks ago while racing to qualify for this meeting. Ollie Brindley who turned 16 just one week ago.

Marquez, Mees,  Smith, Brindley!

Ollie came in sixth, ahead of Smith. Kenny Noyes was an amazing third.

The list of riders who didn't make this final includes - Shayna Texter, Alex Marquez, Tito Rabat, Troy Bayliss, Taddy Blasuziak, Toni Elias, Guy Martin, Mikka Kallio, Scott Redding, Lorenzo Baldassarri, Joona Kylmakorpi, Ivan Cervantes...

Thanks from Sideburn and the British dirt track community to Kawasaki UK for sponsoring both Ollie and Alan Birtwistle (who made the Open Class final).
If anyone out there wants to help out this young lad in terms of sponsorship (or any of the other young Brits who did amazingly well in Spain - Tim Neave put in a faster qualifying time than everyone except Brad Baker, Tom Neave was only a tenth behind), contact us and we'll put you in touch. G

Dani Ribalta's Superprestigio Final

Lining up next to young Brit Ollie Brindley and alongside Marc Marquez, Jared Mees, Kenny Noyes, Bradley Smith, Thomas Chereyre, Gerard Bailo. G

Watch Superprestigio LIVE

The Superprestigio goes off tomorrow evening in Barcelona, Spain. It's arguably the most hotly anticipated dirt track race of the 21st century, and Fanschoice TV, the same great service that has brought live casts and YouTube recordings of every GNC race this year,  is offering a live feed.

If that wasn't enough, our old mate Chris Carr is guest commentator.

The official press release (aimed at Americans, hence the Eastern Time - just google it to work out what time that is where you are) says:

The Superprestigio is set to begin at 12:00 noon ET (9:00 a.m. PT) on Saturday, Dec. 13 and all of the action will be broadcast live on www.FansChoice.tv, the official home for live streaming of all AMA Pro Flat Track events.

There is an incredible line-up of riders including:

SUPERPRESTIGIO CLASS
Marc Marquez - 2014 MotoGP WC
Tito Rabat - 2014 Moto2 WC
Alex Marquez - 2014 Moto3 WC
Scott Redding
Bradley Smith
Toni Elias - 2010 Moto2 WC
Troy Bayliss - 2001, 2006, 2008 WSB WC
Kenny Noyes - 2014 CEV SBK champ

OPEN CLASS
Brad Baker (2013 GNC Champ)
Jared Mees (2x GNC champ)
Shayna Texter
Joonas Kylmakorpi (4x long track WC, who is racing a Zaeta painted by Maxwell Paternoster!)
Thomas Chareyre (3x Supermoto WC - surely a dark horse)
Fabrizio Vesprini (2x FIM Euro flat track champ)
Francesco Cecchini (2014 FIM Euro flat track champ)
Ivan Cervantes (4x Enduro WC)
Taddy Blazusiak - (5x Superenduro WC)
Guy Martin

And from the DTRA in the Open Class

Tim Neave (2014 champ), Tom Neave, Aidan Collins (4x UK champ), Ollie Brindley, Alan Birtwistle

(WC = World Champion)

The winners of each class race each other in a grand final.

Below is a photos from the @marcmarquez93 instagram feed of him practicing yesterday at the Canudas track. Many of the top riders were there.