The new 2008 PMP graphic at the Jennings event in Florida

According to an old Italian saying “A wet bride is a lucky bride”, so I feel to extend a similar wish to our 2008 PMP graphic. Last weekend the PMP crew was in Jennings, Florida for the customary winter event down South, in the so-called Sun State, but on Saturday the guys (I remained in NYC) were welcomed by heavy rain and unusual low temperatures. Indeed Sunday was a dry day and the temperature went up to 52, warm enough to let starving riders to satisfy their hanger for riding accumulated after almost 4 months of inactivity. I have not met yet the guys to get more details, but I did hear that despite the winter rust, they were going as fast as they could, inspired by the presence of a “Canadian champion” in Jennings for a week of tests.
Anyhow, thank you to Almos we have a few picture about the weekend and the new PMP 2008 graphic too! This year our “painter” Mario Pires opted for a mono-color bike, white pearl with blue reflections, while the graphic, inspired by one of Rossi’s bikes in 2007, was developed by our artist and graphic specialist Diana Sliwa, JS Typography. It is again Diana behind the creation of the beautiful PMP poster/wall paper picture that shows in detail our beloved trademark logo.

On a different note it’s with a lot of curiosity that I post the following picture:

This the GPS layout of the track with info about the rider’s performance as memorized by Almos’s latest gadget on his GSX-R 750: I will let him, maybe in the comment section,to describe the different functions of this expensive toy.
The next track event for us will be only in April, but with all the MotoGp tests scheduled in the next future and all the speculations and suspense that they create the time will go by fast …very fast.

The 2008 PMP graphic soon unveiled in Jennings

Twelve months ago in Jennings we unveiled the new PMP bikes. During the season several other friends decided to join our group, so during the summer it happened more than once to have 8-12 PMP bikes lined up all together in front our tents in the pit areas. The attention generated by the bikes along with our friendly attitude have created the opportunity to meet a lot of interesting people with whom we have hanged out at the race track as well at fun nights out in NYC.
Anyhow, in the last couple of months we have decided to add new graphic ideas so, again with the help of Mario Pires and Diana Sliwa we created a PMP re-interpretation of a design used by our hero, Valentino Rossi, during the past season: next week, the first 2008 PMP bike will roll on the track along with the “old sisters” … pictures will follow!

Luca Scassa: an Italian Champion in AMA

A month ago when with the PMP guys I was in Jennings, I was in the race track facilities when I noticed, among others, a picture of an aggressive rider stating "Luca Scassa, 1:14.81 new track record". This morning I went to read again the post about our winter trip to Florida, and in the picture of the race track lay out I noticed that at that time the record belonged to the canadian Pascal Picotte with a time of 1:15.4 ……
The difference is substantial, so out of curiosity a made a quick research on line to discover that Luca Scassa is the 2006 Italian Superstock Champion that has signed a contrat with Claudio Castiglioni , President of the MV Augusta, to race the AMA Superbike in USA under the colors of the Ferracci Team.
Luca is only 23 year old: a tall, slim guy from Arezzo, Toscany, with undisputed technical skills that are going to be tested and sharpened in the difficult American tracks.
For more info and pictures of Luca, check his website lucascassa.com

Good luck Luca!

Picture source topmoto.it

PMP in Jennings Gp, Florida: Jan 13 & 14

Last Thursday the PureMotorbikePassion crew & friends left their homes in NY-NJ to travel down south to Jennings Gp, a race track located in Florida at the border with Georgia. After 16-17 hours trip we arrived in Lake Park, a little town a few miles away from Jennings.

On Friday we were able to visit the track, unload the trailers and to walk the circuit: 2 miles long, with 2 straights and 14 turns. The in-field of the track starts right after the longest straight (characterized by two kinks) with a very tight double S leading to the first of the 9 twisty, but well connected, turns: it’s here where the rider’s technical skills along with a good suspension set up can transform a simple dice in a breathtaking show with riders constantly switching the inside-outside lines. The track has been specifically designed to racing specifications with extremely safe run offs, excellent asphalt grip and slightly cambered turns to boost rubber contact at the entrance of the fastest turns.

The two day event was the first one organized by the boutique-style club, Absolute Cycle: Roy and Mark were “absolutely” right in limiting the number of riders to 50 and having an “opened track” instead of the typical 3 group format required in the North-East circuits: indeed we had just a few beginners in a track reasonably wide, with very light braking involved, and where the accidental excursion in the grass, to avoid a slower rider unable to keep the line, is a trivial occurrence.
Absolute Cycle event in Jennings has been a total success inside and outside the track: people were smiling, laughing and helping each other. The club provided free lunch to everybody for both days, great discounts on tires and blended its services to the others offered by the track and the other vendors. A special gratitude goes to the photographer Ken for his wonderful pictures and to Rick, the suspension set-up specialist from the Suzuki Hooters Team, for his ability to improve dramatically the handling of our bikes.


As we have already announced , the PureMotorbikePassion crew had chosen the Jennings weekend to unveil the new paint scheme of our bikes. The new PMP plastics became an event within the event stirring the curiosity and the interest of the majority of the people surrounding us. While the rays of the warm Florida sun were playing with the metallic flakes of the three-color painted plastics and the reflective decals of our logos, more than one time we caught people standing by our bikes and moving their heads up and down - right and left to seize with their eyes elaborated rainbows created by the surrounding colors ……

As Rick, Parts Manager of Absolute Cycle, has commented on my MySpace page:

“Jan 16 2007 2:11P

awesome weekend alex...the new bikes look absolutely great! ……”



Photo Album provided by Almos, Mark, Alessandro

PMP bikes: Painting by Mario Pires, Decals by Diana

Practice, practice ....mental practice

Last Monday I went to see Dr. Hausman to confirm that my collarbone is healing correctly. My good impressions were supported by his X-Ray reading. Even though he wants me to use freely my right arm,I am not allowed to lift or to practice any sport that could jeopardize the curing process. To stay in shape he suggested me to do some running starting from next Sunday, so 4 weeks after fracturing the bone in that low side in Summit, VA.
About the trip to Florida on Jan 13th, he will give the ok only after evaluating my healing process at the end of December, after another 4-5 weeks ...It’s ok because it could have been worse or it could have happened at the beginning of the season, so I consider myself lucky.
I am not the guy that can idle for 2 months so I am looking forward to running again. I am going to start with a 3 mile run and add more distance a little bit at the time. Running can be boring, but I have always used that time to “meditate” on things and one of them it’s going to be the memorization of the Jennings circuit, the sequence of those 14 unknown turns!


Picture sourceVideo source