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*Liam's Wild Ride*

MotoLiam said:
And who can tell me a little something about *this*?
Click to expand...

I'd bet it's a "pressure" sensor to gauge how much a rider might be preloading the shifter. Or not.

Dug the interview on MotoGPod , BTW. Keep it up!

-jim
 
Sorry guys, don't have time to answer everyone at this moment. Just thought you'd like to see a built up bike this morning :) Look at that radiator!

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Do Pirelli control tires have treads? That's it for today, talk to you guys later, if possible.

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Hi everyone, just checking in so you all know that I haven't disappeared into the desert. It's all around the circuit, and I spotted a couple camels behind the VIP grandstands. I knabbed this shot in the fifteen mile stretch of straightaway before you get to track. I don't really have time to get into answering everyone's questions (and answering my own), so I'm just going to post up a little and when everything is a little more settled down I'll write more. I definitely have a new opinion of Superbike, and a much better handle on the two World Championship series'. It's one thing to be a guest (which I still consider myself to be), and it's another to be in the thick of things, hustling to get everything ready before the technical inspections. Today I dealt with a man named Fabio, who also runs a team in the European Championships and does tech inspections all over the world. Stumbling through three languages is tough!

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Talk about getting in over my head! Generally I'm able to pick up on things pretty quickly, but today was a different story. Due to my ability to communicate in English, I was lucky enough to be selected to work on Talal Al Naimi's R1's in his bid to contest the Superbike races as the only Wildcard rider! The yellow/purple bike is his main practice bike in Qatar, and the red one was flown in from Spain. Together with my partners, David Vasquez (former multitime European Superbike Champion) and Pedro, we were responsible to prepping the bikes and making sure they passed the tech inspection. Along the way bodywork was exchanged, pieces repaired and replaced, and contacts were made with the Pirelli people. Because we didn't have any practical experience with the control tires, we relied heavily upon the Pirelli people's suggestions, and if not for them we would have been left with too many choices! We went with a solid choice, in my opinion, and hopefully tomorrow's practice will show some decent times for my rider and increase his confidence in them. Team owner Luis D'antin is not due to arrive until tomorrow, so we did the best we could under our own supervision, and surprisingly, a the twelve hour day flew by. I had thought we were staying until late at night but we managed to make it back to the hotel by ten. I also managed to spend a couple minutes in Race Control, the Time Keeping office, and in and out of various pits. It wasn't unusual to see someone moving a bike by themselves, and see another team member grab the rear stand and help him out (it was also a way for me to get inside and check out everyone's "home"!). I had some great conversations with some of the organizational people, from the television producers, the radio operators, and more. I think speaking with key people really allows you to see so much deeper into the workings of the series, instead of just standing in front of a tv staring at laptimes.

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We also performed a revision on the bikes (a tune-up) and cleaned everything we could get our hands on. This was my first time seeing vented brake pistons up close, and there was also a system in place to adjust the brake lever for fade during the race. . . .on the left handlebar! Moto-jewelry :)

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What an incredible couple of days for me! I met so many people in the pits, discussed the future of WSB and GP with some old-timers, and learned a ton of new things that I'm sure will help shape my career in the years to come. Just think, a few months ago I was working on Harley-Davidsons, and here I am halfway around the world prepping a Superbike! Lunch was great today, and I although I had several opportunities, it just didn't seem right to take a lot of pictures today because people were getting serious and starting to really focus on the first race of the season. . . . . and it's a long season! Had a couple words with the "Go-Show", turns out he's pitted right next to my garage, and at lunch I shot the breeze with Xaus (on a single crutch - ouch!), saw Abe, Yukio, Fonsi Nieto (nephew of Angel), and many other riders and teams that I'm not too familiar with. I must confess, the last couple years I haven't really followed the series very closely, so I wasn't able to recognize a bunch of the heavy-hitters. Next time. . . . . next time ;)
Because it's a fly-away race, the hospitality people don't travel with the teams, so everyone is forced to eat in the same large cafeteria. If you ever go to an overseas race and can get some access to a place like this. . . . .make like a tree and stay put! I don't think I've ever heard so much Italian and French, and many of the mechanics were gracious and forthcoming. I hung out in the Factory Yamaha paddock for a while because I needed to borrow some tools to help set-up our area and wall signs. Without any worries or concern, I was told to just come back in whenever and return the tools to the correct drawers in the tool boxes. Just like that! I wouldn't even let my old co-workers go in my box back in the states, even when I was standing right there! Oh, I might as well mention that the World Supersport teams are filled with Yamaha R6's this season, easily making up what seems like two thirds of the grid. It's like when the GSXR 1K arrived. . . everyone had to have one! This picture is at the end of the day, with the bike I spent most of my day on. I was really stoked because I have a preference for "simpler" paint schemes, and this matte black was right up my alley! Ok, time for me to hit the sack, see you guys later!

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Last edited:
Liam

i'm so excieted. I am about to piss my pants its official, winters over.

Can you do me a favour if you meet jimmy T (James Toseland) tell him to pull his finger out and then he can show it to david t as he passes his riders.

Don't stand too near the track untill Rubens has fallen off and watch troy B show Moto GP what he's still got to give.

I was quite suprised Frankie still had his clothes on so i guessed you lucked out there.

You my son are going to have so much fun don't forget to keep the camera with you. Fatshady
 
fatshady said:
Liam

i'm so excieted. I am about to piss my pants its official, winters over.

Can you do me a favour if you meet jimmy T (James Toseland) tell him to pull his finger out and then he can show it to david t as he passes his riders.
Click to expand...
Hey fatshady, if you mean the lack of racing over the winter is over I'm with you there. :banana but if you mean winter weather in London, no way! I lived there until a year and a bit ago and I hear your about to get a bit of snow. That's one of the reasons I moved to California although we did have snow in the hills around the Bay Area last week and I rode through some hail at the weekend. Of course it's fine now and the weekend should be good (excellent by UK standards). On the flip side I still haven't found a decent Indian resturant and you can't get proper sausages or bacon anywhere:cry
+1 on Toseland. I hope he stuffs the Ducati squad.
:newbie If your ever in San Jose drop by and say Hi.
 
Hey fatshady, if you mean the lack of racing over the winter is over I'm with you there. but if you mean winter weather in London, no way! I lived there until a year and a bit ago and I hear your about to get a bit of snow. That's one of the reasons I moved to California although we did have snow in the hills around the Bay Area last week and I rode through some hail at the weekend. Of course it's fine now and the weekend should be good (excellent by UK standards). On the flip side I still haven't found a decent Indian resturant and you can't get proper sausages or bacon anywhere
+1 on Toseland. I hope he stuffs the Ducati squad.
If your ever in San Jose drop by and say Hi.

Thanks man thats cool. but if you really want s**t weather come to Donnington in July and the last two years the disorganizers have allowed us to see it for up to 6 hours after the event . what nice chaps.

Ain't it just British of me to speak about the weather!

Back to WSBK Theres going to be SPARKs with so many Axe's to grind. Game on.

Pass the HP Mother.
 
Hey fatshady, if you mean the lack of racing over the winter is over I'm with you there. but if you mean winter weather in London, no way! I lived there until a year and a bit ago and I hear your about to get a bit of snow. That's one of the reasons I moved to California although we did have snow in the hills around the Bay Area last week and I rode through some hail at the weekend. Of course it's fine now and the weekend should be good (excellent by UK standards). On the flip side I still haven't found a decent Indian resturant and you can't get proper sausages or bacon anywhere
+1 on Toseland. I hope he stuffs the Ducati squad.
If your ever in San Jose drop by and say Hi.

Thanks man thats cool. but if you really want s**t weather come to Donnington in July and the last two years the disorganizers have allowed us to see it for up to 6 hours after the event . what nice chaps.

Ain't it just British of me to speak about the weather!

Back to WSBK Theres going to be SPARKs with so many Axe's to grind. Game on.

Pass the HP Mother.
 
Speaking of James Toseland, he still wears his HM Plant Ducati hat around in the pits, and at lunch!

Speaking of strange hats, here's the pit lane fire marshall!

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Anyone want to comment on these beautiful, conical shaped, scalloped forks? I've never seen anything like this before, and it's absolutely *Gorgeous*!

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Here's our finished portable room. Behind the stand up walls are tons of tires, machinery, and spares. Not bad, huh?

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