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!

Lombardi School, Lev 2: Pocono Raceway 9/4

As I have posted in the Absolute Cycle Forum:


I believe that last Tuesday the launch of the Lev 2 course was a success. I had 3 riders that at the beginning of the day displayed substantial differences in speed and technical skills, but still they looked compatible as group to me. Unfortunately one of them, Rich, had to leave the track after the second session to follow his friend to the hospital, because he had suffered a slight concussion in a crash. With only two students, Tom and Bob, Steven Lombardi and I had the opportunity to put together an extremely intense course. Both, Tom and Bob are motorbike veterans so it was like to teach " new tricks to old dogs". It's definitely easier to instruct someone totally new to bikes than someone with decades of riding under his or her belt. Regardless, I honestly believe that I was able to discover and correct hidden attitudes and frames of mind that were affecting their overall performance. Also, Tuesday I chose to adopt a teaching style where I was explaining: the concept, why it is supposed to be done in such a way and what we try to achieve from a technical point of view. A very intense approach to learn the art of riding that requires physical and mental concentration all through the day by the instructors as well the students. Both riders, Bob and Tom have improved dramatically their riding. By the last session Bob became much more proactive with his body and detailed in dealing with cornering while Tom almost seemed to be another person:by the end of day he was able to create calmness, smoothness and control in his riding. No more fish tailing on the brakes, no more sudden reactions of his front end during the turns, overall a new Tom, capable of being totally in charge of his riding.
Unfortunately my guys were forced to leave the truck a couple of sessions before the end of the day for different personal issues, right after having ridden their best sessions. They looked tired but extremely happy for their achievements. We were able to cover probably only half of the program that I had prepared for the event, but it was OK. The level two course is tailored exactly to the skills and the real needs of each rider so I take the person from where he or she is to escalate my instructing along with his or her improvements. For every topic I have created drills that could be used to facilitate the assimilations of concepts. Obviously every rider is different so there could be a person that can go from point 1 to point 9 of the program in one day vs another one who can only get to the point #5. Regardless, substantial improvements in lowering the lap time and in the technical skills are always guaranteed.
In our school we have always put a lot of passion and joy in instructing, and last Tuesday, even in the Lev 2 course, I feel that we laid out a new milestone for the Lombardi School. As always, you can find good instructors only with good students, so a big and honest thanks goes to Bob, Rich and Tom: you guys made my day.

Ciao,

"Another great event organized by Absolute Cycle, our boutique-style local road racing club" ..... thanks to Roy, Mark and the rest of their crew

Our first PMP girl track rider

Hello everyone,

My name is Krys and I am honored to be the first PMP female track rider. One thing a woman will never tell is her age. I believe age is relative to how you “feel”.
However wisdom and experience are two things I embrace with age.
I am the Service Manager at Global Auto Mall for the last thirteen years. I have 5 car lines. I have been with the company for approx 18 years and have had dealership service experience for the last 22 years. (I started young. Wink wink). My father owned a service/gas station for many years. When I was a little girl, I pumped gas for $2.00-$5.00/day. As time went by, I was managing the shifts at the station. Dad was no dummy. At 17 he had me pumping gas in shorts during the afternoon commute. Thank God he had more class than having me on stage and riding a pole. LOL! No Jerry Springer for me. Being around cars my whole life you’d think I’d be into Nascar.
Even then, I never ever wanted to be one of those provincial women with a conservative if not bigoted attitude.

When I was approx 12 years old, my brother came home with a Honda CR 125. I would sit on it in the basement learning shift patterns. This came easy for me because just a few months earlier, I had a dear uncle teach me how to drive a Toyota with a manual transmission. Not too much later, I was sneaking the CR125 out onto the street.
I eventually became friendly with some people who did trail riding at the Meadowlands landfill and invited myself. I started on I YZ80 and gradually up to a CR250.

Unfortunately, I was on my own at a tender age and was forced into taking on a lot of responsibility and not much room for fun. I had to find my place in the world. I don’t want to bore you so……


Jumping ahead, approx 6 years ago, I met Pete. Pete had a CBR 600 F2 and a Suzuki Bandit. Pete and I work at the same dealership. One day he rode to work. We were chatting and he asked if I knew how to ride. I told him of my earlier days. He handed me the keys and said,” here. Go. “ I instantly became so excited. Pete and I started dating and eventually got married and I became addicted to riding and watching AMA, MotoGp and World Superbike races. I took the MSF course and every bit of free time I had, I was on the bike, becoming better and more confident.

My friends went to Pocono for a track day and took the Lombardi School course. They came back from that day somehow different. I liked what I saw. I wanted it too.

In 2004 I had my first track day with the Robert Lombardi School. I didn’t know what to expect and I was very nervous. The instructors were so knowledgeable, kind, patient and perceptive. By the 3rd session I knew I wanted more, more, and more! I also knew I wanted to be around these people. Positive, helpful, and solid people. I instantly bonded with Rob Lombardi and became friends with him. I followed his career and kept in touch. I also adored Alex and Todd from day 1.

Unfortunately, with my crazy hours at work, I could not be aggressive with my track days and because of my job, I lost a whole season. I am now learning to put myself first and will not allow my work to dictate my life.

This season I have dedicated myself to be the best person I could be. Mentally, spiritually, and physically.

I am now traveling to different tracks, I have taken motorcycling vacations, and I am expanding.


I will be great at this!

I have a personal trainer and I do Bodyflow. (Copy write Les Mills…www.Lesmills.com) which incorporates Tai Chi, Pilates, and Yoga. I will be writing about this form of exercise for the PMP blog. It’s great for a solid core, balance, strength, and a clear and healthy mind. It balances blood sugar, cholesterol and helps you sleep better.





Whether at the track or just enjoying each other’s company during a meal or a couple of cocktails, the friends I have made from this sport are the best friends I have ever had in my life. I will never jeopardize these friendships. They have helped my riding skills. But more importantly, they are helping me to shape the real person I am. They have helped me grow as a person. Instead of sympathy, empathy or pity, they offer love guidance and solutions to whatever plagues me.

Rob, Alex 555, Todd…….Thank you for all your support, encouragement, guidance and love. I am eternally grateful to you guys: Mike, Naim, Frankie, Uncle Steve, Antonio, Pete, Maurizio, Diana, and a very gracious Bill Jones. Thank you for being so loving and generous. I couldn’t ask for better friends. Diana.. stop work enough to breathe and get on the bike! You’re the best girl!
The list continues. Almos, Mario, Alex, Alex, Dave……I can’t wait to get to know you guys. Thank you in advance.


All good things
Krys aka Gearheadgirl
Krysified@aol.com
Myspace.com/krysified

PMP Event: VIR August 25-26-27

Last weekend we were in VIR for a three-day event: South Course Saturday and Sunday, and the beautiful North Course on Monday.

NESBA was the organizer, and as usual this big club put together an impeccable service for the 100-150 riders attending each day event.
Saturday we experienced temperatures above 100F. The heat was brutal: I was working as CR with the club so I must have ridden 7 beginner and 5 advance seesions drinking at least one half liter bottle during each brake and I think that still I went to the bathroom only once, maximum twice all day. I cannot wait for the announced Dainese leather suit with the cooling system: in a day like Saturday I would have spent even 3K for such a luxury. By the way, as reported by MotoinSight next Sunday in Misano we will see some Dainese prototypes with the airbag system.
Going back to VIR, regardless of the heat, we had a blast, laughing and joking the whole trip. Naim and Frank, as usual, entertained the rest of us (Antonio, Steven, Almos, Rosa and myself) with their endless comical situations like those in the videos.


In the race track there was not too much to laugh about with the local riders flying in a full fledged open race-practice atmosphere.Until the new track, Thunderbolt in South NJ, is ready we will have to leave with only two present options, Pocono Raceway in Pennsylvania or Summit Point Main in West Virginia, that I personally consider too dangerous. In these conditions it’s very difficult to be able to compete head to head with the riders from South who normally practice in racetrack as VIR or Barber.
Anyhow, we are not racing as of now, so the main goal it is always to have fun and you can bet that … we do have fun.

PMP Event: Pocono Raceway 7/23

We had hoped for beautiful weather but we were told that it was going to be overcast all day with some rain late in the afternoon. Then on Monday morning we heard that we would have had a few drops in the morning followed by a break leading to the afternoon shower but … we got not break, just a long shower.
The event was hosted by Absolute Cycle, a new club that in a short term has already position itself as one, or maybe the best, NYC road-racing club. Unfortunately the rain has ruined the party so in the morning we had a limited number of people that took the chance to drive up to the Pocono Raceway to gamble with the volatility of the weather conditions. In the Robert Lombardi school we had only 5 students, a situation that would have been perfect for them under dry conditions, given the instructor to student ratio of 4:5, typical of more advanced classes. Anyhow along with Steven Lombardi, Todd Cuso and Naim Behdzet, I tried to give the school hoping that the sky would open but in reality it got worse by the hour: after only two sessions we decided to call the day and issued a credit for the class to be used in one of our future school events. In the Lombardi School we believe that a course should be thought in fair conditions, the only way for the students to refine and improve their skills while achieving the “Basic Level” goals.
A special thank to the control riders Frank Aluzzo and Joe Russo for riding with the participants to the event under such inclement conditions.
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PMP Event: Pocono Raceway, May 3rd

After going to Jennings in Florida, last Thursday the PMP crew had its second event hosted by Absolute Cycle, but this time in Pocono Raceway in PA. Luckily, given the unstable temperatures in the North East, we were blessed with a blue sky and a warm sun that made even more pleasant a racetrack day where we started our engines in the morning a turned them off, who knows at what time, in the afternoon.
The PMP crew & Friends have done a wonderful job in helping this new club in organizing a really professional event. While Naim Behdzet, Steve Lombardi, Todd Cuso and I were instructing in the Lombardi School, Mario Pires and Alex Herrera guaranteed the Control Riding in the Intermediate Group and characterized the Expert Group with some exciting dicing.
The school itself was a success because the entire class, 11 riders, improved dramatically from one session to another one. A round of claps definitely goes to Michael and Kevin: these guys were able to push hard their German and British “Cows”. When in the morning I saw their touring bikes, a BMW and a Triumph, I feared the situation where we had to commit an instructor just for them, instead they end up rolling those machines as fast as their colleagues with sport Japanese bikes.
During the day I had the opportunity to leave the classroom to show my face and/or my wheels to all my friends around the track and I have to say that Roy and Mark from Absolute did a wonderful job in putting together a real “stress free” event: their boutique-style club has in its dimensions and care for details a unique combination that has not competitors at local level. Of course on the field we have to give credit to the professionalism of the corner workers, PA POSSE, guided by our friend Speedy and to the passionate work performed by our Control Riders.
I am going to let the email received from my friend, and pure motorbike lover, John Glass, to summarize the event:
*********
Alex, I would like to thank you for being so helpful and going out of your way to check out my progress yesterday at Pocono. Also, my thanks to Alex Herrera for the generous use of his time! My main concern yesterday was to get a good track day behind me without trying to go too fast, and that is exactly what I accomplished. Remember. this is only the second time I have ridden a motorbike since last Fall, but it did wonders for my confidence. I now feel ready for more track time. Also, I really enjoyed the way the event was run by Absolute. It seems to me that Roy is doing this simply for the love of the sport, which makes for a much different atmosphere than an event being run by an organization that is simply trying to make money. I also appreciate that they had an Advanced Life Support unit there. Something that we hope is not needed, but is very important to have if necessary.

Getting back to Alex Herrera, following him was a great experience! He is so quick and smooth and being behind him I saw how late he could turn in to a corner which gave me the necessary confidence to try it. I certainly can't do it like him (or you) but it gives me a good learning base to build on. We are never too old to learn! I spent some of my time between sessions watching the fast guys, and especially Alex H. I saw some very fast and excellent riding.

Lastly, I am sorry I missed you at the end of the day. I waited a while but did not see you and as it was getting late, me being tired and a long ride ahead, I decided it best to get started.

Best wishes to you and all the PMP guys. Hope to see you soon

John Glass

*********

Also I wish to Eliecer Montoya, PMP rider and owner of “Strawberry - Shakes and Grill”, our headquarter in North NJ, a quick recover from the accident that will keep him away from the race tracks for a few weeks.
I have attached a few pictures kindly offered by Dennis Cuevas, from Racedayphoto. The Lombardi School instructors are wearing blue shirts while the students are in red. The control riders were wearing orange shirts.











PMP bikes: Painting by Mario Pires, Decals by Diana

PMP Event: Pocono Raceway 4/21 – 4/22

We could have not dreamed a better weekend than this one! Last week started with torrential rain that has caused severe flooding in the Tri-State area. On Monday, Pocono International Raceway was covered by more than 11 inches of snow, and when we learned that the forecast was calling for a warm and seasonal weekend we were obviously skeptical about it. Well, the bleached smile people were damn right, because April gave us a memorable weekend.
The two-day event was organized by SBTT, Sport Bike Track Time, a club that has absorbed the former local Red-Duc organization that we had already used in the past. My impression is that the new club has somehow maintained the same warm and pleasant atmosphere, with a relaxed but well regulated organization that was able to guarantee a flawless weekend.
Even missing all the guys from NJ, the PMP crew had more than 10-15 riders from NY that along with friends and family members made a nice thick group of people eager to enjoy these two wonderful days. The dicing in the track and the playful mocking around the trailers have entertained everybody causing loud laughing and big smiles on our faces. In a club track event, there are obviously people faster than others, but somehow the interpretation of the facts is always very “personal” especially without the support of a lap timer. It goes from “..I didn’t want to stuff you …” to “ I could have passed you in that turn but I didn’t want to embarrass you” or ”… let me ride your bike and I will show you how you are supposed to ride it …” The historical situations between Rossi and Biaggi were nothing when compared to those created by our Frank and Naim, especially when you had everybody else pouring “gasoline over the fire”.

A special thank to Diana (JS Typography) for bringing the PMP shirts to us; Tina, Diana and Benny for the trays of freshly brewed coffee; Dave and Dima (Lee Miles Brooklyn) for offering their ethnic delicatessen; Almos (666 Cycle) and Rob Lombardi for the mechanical help to fix my GSX-R, and John, Peter and Antonio (Techline) to spare their bikes with me on Saturday.








For more action pictures visit RaceDayPhoto

PMP bikes: Painting by Mario Pires, Decals by Diana

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

Ice road racing: a specialty for the boldest bikers.

After a couple of months of unusual mild temperatures, the North East winter has shifted its gears with blasting cold winds pushing our thermometers down in the low teens. Regardless in NYC the wintry weather is never long enough to make people overcoming their natural tendency to cocoon in their homes and other indoor places during the coldest time of the year. If anything, we challenge ourselves with winter sports, and in my case, along with others PMP guys, I go skiing to Vermont. Very often during these weekend trips I have seen people riding their snowmobiles in polar temperatures to get to the local restaurants and bars for a “hot date” or to meet their friends. They looked like the Michelin man with their huge specialized outfits that contain infinite layers of Gore-Tex garments to guarantee enjoyable time at high speed in the farm fields or iced rivers and lakes. I have always looked at them with some sort of admiration, but they suddenly became normal people once I stumbled on this video of roadracers challenging themselves on icy tracks. They are Swedish, people that have a long tradition of speedway (flat track) on ice, but I have never heard about iceroadracing …. These guys have some guts: it looks that they are wearing “normal” leather suits and also it seems that they are constantly on the verge of a huge high-side: I wonder how they would ride under ordinary conditions on a race track after training in “cold blood” temperatures and extremely dicey conditions.



Video Source

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