Last week I touched on the downside of racing while describing a recent crash; this week the upside of racing crowds out the bad in this column and in my life. This upside is visible throughout the AHRMA (American Historic Racing Motorcycle Association) paddock and was especially apparent in garages 10 and 11 at the New Jersey Motorsports Park last week.
For this 57-year-old motorcycle lover, AHRMA is a chance to race interesting bikes against like-minded people surrounded by friends known and unknown. The seriousness of racing is on the surface, the joy of life swims underneath. Winning is the goal but just being on the grid has a satisfaction that lasts for months. There’s a glimmer in the eyes of the participants, the tuners, the crew, the AHRMA staff. And that glimmer says, “We are the luckiest people in the world at this moment.”
My best pal Brian Smith rented garages 10 and 11 and we filled it with friends fast and new. Rob Cichiello and his son Robbie joined us and earned podium trophies—dad on a Duc 848 and son on a Suzuki SV650. Brian added five podium plaques, including three wins aboard his Moto Corse 796 Monster, and the Paul Smart we have examined here on Ienatsch Tuesday a few times. I chimed in with a pair of wins in the new Next Gen Lightweight class on the Speedwerks Honda NSR250. I hope you have a chance to watch the vid of Saturday's extremely fun race.
RELATED: The Racing Bad, The Racing Good, Part 1
Glenn Picklesimer had a spot for his SV650 and enjoyed his third-ever AHRMA round on a track he had heard about but never seen. Glenn is a longtime street rider and rider coach who has caught the racing fever very badly! Welcome to the addiction. Stephen Wilson, an N2 Track Days Rider Coach and Robbie Cichiello’s MotoAmerica crew chief, was the sixth member of our garage on his SV650. Unfortunately, YCRS owner Josh Siegel had a business emergency that pulled him away from us and his KTM. Next time, Josh!
Mark Morrow’s RZ runs Mikuni flat-slides, 65mm Wiseco pistons, Spec 2 pipes, Hinson clutch with “the” Scott Clough doing the work with Tony Doukas’ technical help. The chassis is trick too: FZ600 swingarm, Bandit 600 rear wheel, Penske shock, and Katana 600 fork redone by Traxxion Dynamics, with an SV650 front wheel and GSX-R750 brakes. Morrow runs on Bridgestone R11 DOTs. Pure heaven for two-stroke lovers, and it has won Morrow a lot of races and championships in AMA, AHRMA, and WERA; eight last year alone. Morrow’s main sponsors are: SCR, Worldwide Bearings, Fast From The Past, Moto Tassinari, Hinson Clutch Components, TDR, Cycle Gear, VO2 Leathers, and Bridgestone Tire.
Chovnick's EX500 has a box-stock engine but runs a Honda F3 front end and Ninja 600 swingarm with Pirellis mounted. Philip is one lucky kid because his dad Ben Chovnick does all the building and tuning out of the family's shop, Motoconsult in Mansfield, Connecticut, and dad put Philip on a CRF50 when he was 5 years old, complete with slicks! This family effort has combined to win two USCRA championships on the EX in Period 4 Formula Middleweight and Period 4 Formula 3. The 22-year-old just graduated from Columbia College Chicago with a bachelor's degree in film and TV. And to prove it, check out this great video Philip put together of our Saturday race.
See that helmet just above Brian’s left shoulder? That’s Robbie Cichiello on an SV650, fresh off a second-place finish in the WERA endurance when he teamed with his dad Rob the week before at Roebling Road Raceway. Behind them, and tough competition all weekend, is Bill Brown on an air-cooled Pierobon tuned by the meticulous Brian Sharp of Boulder Motor Sports.
“The racing good” isn’t winning, though that is pretty special. For those I know, the racing good is your relationship with cool machines, facing your nerves and fear in a truly risky environment, and putting your skills to a real test and ensconcing yourself in a community of almost universally wonderful people.
I’d like to get my knee on the ground, pull a few wheelies, line up in anticipation of a green flag surrounded by noise and nerves…and be in the hunt, leaving my best effort for that day on the track. That’s the racing good for me, and AHRMA delivers it.
More next Tuesday!