Carmichael, Duhamel and Zemke Victorious in Ohio

Red Rider Weekend Race Report:
Mid-Ohio Formula Xtreme
AMA Superbike Rounds 13 and 14
Troy Motocross National.


Formula Xtreme
Round 9
July 24, 2004
Mid-Ohio Sports Car Course, Lexington, Ohio

Duhamel takes sixth win of season in Formula Xtreme at Mid-Ohio

A big weekend of racing for the Red Riders kicked off on Saturday with the
Mid-Ohio Formula Xtreme race. A huge crowd and perfect Spring weather
combined to make for a wonderful day of racing, especially for Miguel
Duhamel. The Honda veteran claimed his sixth win of the season aboard his
CBR600RR, and his 78th win of his celebrated career.

Duhamel set the tone in qualifying, claiming his third Xtreme pole of the
season with the time of 1:28.731.  Erion Honda's Jake Zemke was second in
the grid with a 1:29.383 while his teammate Alex Gobert started seventh for
the day.

"It was just incredible," said Duhamel. "I went out there with a really
hard race tire and went super fast, and then we put on a softer race tire.
I'd be curious to see what we could do on a qualifier on that bike."

At the start, Zemke grabbed the holeshot followed by the CBR600RR of
Duhamel, both machines charging to the front of the field and opening an
early gap on all other racers. Zemke held the lead for the first six laps
before Duhamel took over and never looked back. "We were riding hard and
set a really fast pace," said Duhamel. "We've been putting a lot of
pressure on each other all year." Shortly after Duhamel took the lead,
Zemke lost the front end in the extremely slippery Keyhole section of the
track, and ended the day with a DNF.

Duhamel's sixth win of the season gave him a 45-point lead over Zemke for
the championship going into round 10 at Road Atlanta on Labor Day weekend.

AMA Formula Xtreme Results
1. Miguel Duhamel-Honda
2. Jason Pridmore-Suzuki
3. Vincent Haskovec-Suzuki
4. Larry Pegram-Yamaha
5. Heath Small-Yamaha
7. Alex Gobert-Honda

AMA Formula Xtreme Points
1. Miguel Duhamel-Honda-320
2. Jake Zemke-Honda-275
3. Alex Gobert-Honda-244
4. Vincent Haskovec-Suzuki-217
5. Larry Pegram-Yamaha-189


AMA Superbike Championship
Round 13
July 24, 2004
Mid-Ohio Sports Car Course, Lexington, Ohio

Ben leads, Miguel takes second at Mid-Ohio

In the early laps of the first Superbike race at the Mid-Ohio
double-header, it was Ben Bostrom who chased down early break-away leader
Mat Mladin. Bostrom made up nearly three seconds to catch and pass Mladin
for the lead. In the end, however, it was Miguel Duhamel who nearly scored
another Superbike win, but instead came up just .337 seconds short at the
line.

Qualifying put all three Honda riders on the front row. Erion Honda's Jake
Zemke took his CBR1000RR to a new track record of 1:26.376, taking the pole
for the first race of the double-header. "Credit goes to the team because
the bike was a lot better than it was yesterday (Friday) for sure," said
Zemke. "The bike is definitely doing what I need it to do now." Duhamel
qualified second with a stellar time of 1:26.515. "I'm happy Jake got pole
and not Mat," said Duhamel. "We're going to make very minor changes; the
bike's pretty good. Just get a good start and hang on, and go out racing
Mid-Ohio style. It's going to be very tight." Finishing out the front row
in fourth was Honda's Ben Bostrom.

The hills of the Mid-Ohio course were lined with a capacity crowd to
witness round 13 of the AMA Superbike Championship. The spring-like weather
added a nice element to a weekend of competitive racing.  As the field shot
off the line, it was Eric Bostrom who led followed by Mladin and Ben
Bostrom. The running order quickly reshuffled, and by lap seven Ben was
challenging Mladin for the lead. On lap eight Ben surged to the front and
he led the next five laps-only to have Mladin re-take the lead in traffic.

As the battle in the front heated up, Zemke and Duhamel were locked in
their own race, maneuvering their CBR1000RRs through traffic.  Zemke would
later admit to making the wrong front tire choice and paying the price with
a shortage of grip. Not so Duhamel: On lap 17, Miguel passed Jake for third
and set his sights on his teammate Bostrom. "I just got a good drive coming
out of turn one," said Duhamel. "Ben was looking back, and I just kind of
flew on the inside of him."

Once past Bostrom, Duhamel began a steady march toward Mladin. Diving
through lapped traffic, Duhamel closed to within striking distance of
Mladin with two laps to go. Unfortunately, on the last lap Duhamel was
blocked by a lapped rider in the infamous Keyhole turn. The incident cost
him more than a second, and any chance he had of passing Mladin for the
win. "I was right on Mat until that point," said a somber Duhamel. "And
then I had to make that back up." With only a few turns remaining, Duhamel
managed to close to within .337 seconds of Mladin, and finish second for
the day.  Ben Bostrom would finish fourth with Zemke following him across
the line in fifth.

"The bike was working really good," said Duhamel. "I put my head down, and
to me it seemed I was the fastest guy out there. I was able to reel in Mat,
and on a few occasions through even lapped riders. Even though he would
break away, I'd run back in. So things are looking good for tomorrow. It
was a fun race. It was definitely greasy. I was spinning up everywhere and
sliding.

"It's hard when you start sixth, seventh, and you're fighting with guys you
don't even see just to get back up to the lead group. Thank God our bike is
really fast and works real good. I'm pretty highly motivated for tomorrow,
I can tell you that."

AMA Superbike Results
1. Mat Mladin-Suzuki
2. Miguel Duhamel-Honda
3. Aaron Yates-Suzuki
4. Ben Bostrom-Honda
5. Jake Zemke-Honda



AMA Superbike Championship
Round 14
July 25, 2004
Mid-Ohio Sports Car Course, Lexington, OH

Zemke takes his CBR1000RR to victory at Mid-Ohio

With the threat of rain in the forecast, there was plenty of drama for
round 14 of the AMA Superbike Championship, the second race of the Mid-Ohio
double-header. Jake Zemke set the bar high by breaking the qualifying
record on Saturday with a lap time of 1:26.376. On Sunday, he controlled
the race from start to finish, scoring the second Superbike win of his
career and moving into second place in the championship chase behind Mat
Mladin. Honda's Ben Bostrom finished second and moved into fifth in the
points standings.

Miguel Duhamel's quest for the Superbike championship took a dramatic turn
at the Mid-Ohio racetrack on Sunday.  Duhamel, a close second in points for
the title as of Saturday, crashed during the weekend's second race on one
of the track's many slick concrete sections due to a suspected mechanical
problem. Though unhurt, he was unable to finish the race and slipped back
to third in points.

Making changes from Saturday's race, Zemke chose to run a slightly
different set-up and a different front tire in Sunday's event, and the
impact was immediately apparent. Jake gapped the field by nearly a second
in the first lap, and rode flawlessly to the checkered flag, winning by a
whopping 12.723 seconds. "It worked out pretty good," said Zemke. "I had a
really good start today, and that was definitely an improvement over
yesterday. Yesterday, I chose the wrong front tire. We had no hope but just
to bring the thing home. Today, we had a new front tire and the setup was a
hair different. Not much. Just a little bit here and there. But everything
came out a lot better. The guys gave me a better bike than I had yesterday.
Hats off to my crew. Everybody's been working hard all weekend long."

Ben Bostrom got a good start and settled his CBR1000RR into a lonely second
place, where he would finish well clear of Mladin in third.  "I was riding,
but Jake was flying," said Bostrom. "I didn't know where Miguel was. So I
just continued my pace, trying to haul down Jake."

The day was less then perfect for Duhamel. From the very beginning of the
race, Duhamel found himself down on power, and then came the crash in the
Keyhole section on lap 11. "We're still looking at the data," said Duhamel
after the race. "It could be rider error, but in my experience, I seem to
think it was a mechanical. I downshifted as usual and the rear tire locked
up and the engine went dead. I saved it with the clutch, popped it up
again, and I thought, 'I'm gonna keep on going.' Then it locked up again."

As he struggled to re-start his machine in the gravel pit, the field passed
him by. Finally, he managed to make his way back to the pits, where the
crew worked franticly to repair his CBR1000RR. He rejoined the battle, but
was soon parked trackside with smoke pouring from his machine. Duhamel's
travails would drop him to third in points, with a 45-point deficit behind
the leader.

The Road Atlanta double-header in Braselton, Georgia is next on the
schedule. Will Miguel be able to gain back some much-needed points? Will
Jake Zemke once again set the pace, and close the gap in the championship
points chase? Will Ben Bostrom repeat his Laguna Seca performance and score
another runaway win? Tune in over Labor Day weekend.

AMA Superbike Results
1. Jake Zemke-Honda
2. Ben Bostrom-Honda
3. Mat Mladin-Suzuki
4. Aaron Yates-Suzuki
5. Josh Hayes-Kawasaki

AMA Superbike Overall Points
1. Mat Mladin-Suzuki-457
2. Jake Zemke-Honda-436
3. Miguel Duhamel-Honda-413
4. Eric Bostrom-Ducati-336
5. Ben Bostrom-Honda-306


AMA Motocross Championship
Round 7
July 25, 2004
Kenworthy's Motocross Park, Troy, OH

Carmichael Keeps Perfect Season Alive

As the history books closed on Kenworthy's Motocross Park at round seven of
the AMA Motocross Championship, Honda's Ricky Carmichael wrote the best
ending for a track full of history by keeping his perfect season alive. RC
won both motos on his CRF450R for a total of 14 consecutive moto wins in
2004. "It's sad that this is the last race on this track," said Carmichael.
"I have a lot of good memories racing here over the years."

Amsoil/Chaparral Honda's Kevin Windham ended the day with a third overall
and RC's teammate, Ernesto Fonseca, claimed fourth overall on his CR250R.
In 125 action Amsoil/Chaparral Honda's rookie Josh Grant grabbed the
holeshot in moto one and finished third overall. Team Honda's Nathan Ramsey
, who got the holeshot in moto two, took fourth overall.

Carmichael got a good start in the first moto, but did not lead into the
first turn. "I got off to a bad start," said Carmichael. "I warmed my tire
up a little too much and spun the tire." It only took RC a lap to gain the
lead, and with clear track ahead he built a 14-second lead over second to
win the moto. "It's a good track, I like the dirt." said Carmichael.
Windham got a great start off the line and maintained third position for
the entire moto. "My Honda was running great," said Windham. "I got a good
start and things are looking up." Fonseca got held up a little at the start
but was able to pilot his CR250R to a fifth-place finish in the first moto.

In the second moto, Carmichael grabbed the holeshot and lead flag to flag.
"It felt really, really good," said Carmichael. "I had fun racing with
Chad. It's been a while since I have ridden some tight stuff like that."
Windham repeated his first moto performance in third. "It was a good day,"
said Windham. "I'm going to keep my head down and keep charging and put it
right there on the edge." Fonseca got a good start and ran up front in the
second moto, bettering his first moto finish by one position to lock up
fourth place overall.

The 125 class had some great action, with Josh Grant grabbing the holeshot
in the first moto and battling with his teammate Ryan Mills for the lead.
Grant would ultimately finish second. "The track was better then I thought
it would be," said Grant. "It wasn't as rough, and I felt pretty good."
Ramsey was stuck in a thicket of riders early on and finished eighth in the
moto.

In moto two, Ramsey took the holeshot but would quickly lose the spot to
James Stewart. Ramsey finished second in the moto for fourth overall. Grant
had a tougher start but he put his CRF250R into fourth place for third
overall.

Will Carmichael and his CRF450R remain undefeated? The next round of AMA
Motocross action will be at Washougal, WA next weekend.

AMA 250 Race Results
1. Ricky Carmichael-Honda (1,1)
2. Chad Reed-Yamaha (2,2)
3. Kevin Windham-Honda (3,3)
4. Ernesto Fonseca-Honda (5,4)
5. Sebastien Tortelli-Suzuki (4,5)

AMA 250 Overall Points
1. Ricky Carmichael-Honda-350
2. Chad Reed-Yamaha-296
3. Kevin Windham-Honda-277
4. David Vuillemin-Yamaha-224
5. Michael Byrne-Kawasaki-189
8. Ernesto Fonseca-Honda-151

AMA 125 Race Results
1. James Stewart-Kawasaki (1,1)
2. Matt Walker-Kawasaki (3,3)
3. Josh Grant-Honda (2,4)
4. Nathan Ramsey-Honda (8,2)
5. Michael Brown-Yamaha (7,7)

AMA 125 Overall Points
1. James Stewart-Kawasaki-325
2. Michael Brown-Kawasaki-252
3. Broc Hepler-Suzuki-212
4. Nathan Ramsey-Honda-186
5. Josh Grant-Honda-171