by Steve Dye
250 Words: RedBud
Tuesday, July 5, 2011 | 3:45 PM
GYTR (Genuine Yamaha Technology Racing) is Yamaha’s performance and racing accessory brand. GYTR products are developed and tested to the highest standards by Yamaha’s in-house factory engineers. Used extensively by the Yamaha Race Teams, these factory parts are readily available to every Yamaha rider.
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PrintWil Hahn sure picked a good day to come back to action and pull a couple of monster starts on his GEICO Honda – in a day full of lows for the team, Wilbur’s return was definitely the high point. Hahn was making his actual debut on the Factory Connection bike after missing most of the season with a first-round practice session injury, and when he left the line at RedBud it was obvious that he was more than ready to finally hit the gate. After rocketing into the first turns with evident enthusiasm, Hahn would ride solid 8-6 motos to a sixth-place finish for a first-rate comeback in an extremely competitive field.
Otherwise… It all went wrong right away, during early practice, for Factory Connection. Eli Tomac slightly over-doubled into LaRocco's Leap and feet-over-head freestyled out to a body-blow landing. And then it all too quickly went worse when an unknowing Travis Baker happened along to plant ET to earth. Bleeding, bruised, and possibly worse, Tomac was out for the day and off for evaluation and observation. Then it got better, briefly: Hahn was running at the front of the pack at the start of the first moto, and teammate Justin Barcia had pulled a holie and split on the field – throwing a big early lead on a sloppy and uncertain track surface. And then it got worse: Barcia went down hard on the downhill ski jump, punching the ground in frustration. And then still worse when he crashed again and pretzeled his handlebars, ending his first moto early. And then still worse again when Barcia missed the second race altogether, his bike refusing to re-fire after the parade lap.
Wil Hahn got the jump on the field in the second moto.
Photo: Andrew Fredrickson
It did get better when Tomac came back from the hospital with a (relatively) clean bill-of-health. It got better when Hahn brought it home safe and well inside the top ten. But on the whole... No points for Tomac, still fourth overall in the series but with a much bigger gap to make up. No points for Barcia, who dropped from fifth to seventh in the standings. It was a rough outing for team manager and local hero Mike LaRocco's FC squad. At the other end of the table, at the top of the points race, it was Pro Circuit reshuffling the deck and controlling the game. Blake Baggett shrugged off that whole "every other race" weight and dominated a second race in a row with 1-1 scores to take over second in the series. Tyla Rattray posted a solid 5-3 for third overall on the day, but fell two points back of Baggett in the championship chase. And Dean Wilson kept his overall points lead with yet another pair of frustrating yet rewarding runner-up finishes.
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HOOOLEESHOOT!!! Theres only 3 people that can touch Blake Baggett. 1. Justin Barcia 2. Dean Wilson 3. Jason Anderson
@Kawi567, that would true BUT.... Jason Anderson isn't racing
Kiwi, scratch barcia off that list. That lil punk is such a liar. He lied about having a broken wrist in SX. He lied about having mono. Than he plays the game of "my bike wasn't running on the site lap". What a joke. What happened to hey guys, I hit the deck, rung my bell and i'm probably not safe to ride moto 2 without getting hurt. Nope he plays it off like its a bike problem. thats not moto, thats tiddleywinks bam bam. Geico would still be getting top 5's if they put durham on the bike. Nope, put vincent on it. Durham got screwed on that one. Jason Anderson is a beast. He better have factory support next year. Too fast, just having a tuff time dealing w/ the pressure. Barcia just wanted more time to heal before millville, why cant they just say that??? instead of these lies and deceit. that and he's the dirtiest rider out there
@organdonar you are possibly the dumbest person ever !!! That is all I have to say.. Durham, Vincent and Anderson over Barcia .... Durham has a fast bike now and hasn't got on the podium yet, Vincent can start but has nothing left to stay in the top 10.. Check the results. Anderson ... hmmmmm .. Dealing with the pressue is part of racing and being a champion ask Bagget or Wilson, they didnt choke their rookie season..
Posts like the one from OrganDoner make me angry with myself for foolishly going beyond the story and reading these threads. Here's a kid who gutted out nearly an entire SX Lites season with a cracked wrist - never finishing off the podium and taking the title - then coming down with mono and still managing some of the fastest laps in the outdoors ... yet OrganDoner "knows" that it's all a big fake. Yet another genius on the keyboard....
And another note: people should realize that when a rider (in this case Durham) is already on a particular team, it's not just a matter of jumping ship and running to the next open slot. It's called contracts and obligations. Vincent apparently wasn't tied to a team, and therefore was available for the Geico ride. He opened eyes in SX, and despite his inability to keep it in the top ten, Geico is getting their money's worth by the exposure he's created with those great starts. Regardless, he was available.
OD did you get a boner for your brain transplant? Along with many other reasonable and knowledgeable moto fans whether newer fans or oldtimers as myself it is embarrassing to have people like you following the sport. How could you even think you "know " all this info?
Lets just wait and see. let the 156 get re grouped. HAS ALOT of pressure on him and also being named the most prestigious rookie this year.
he was the horizon award winner so theres no doubt this kid i can go FAST.
Once he drops the hammmer on Bagget ,its over , its just a matter of time..
then he will build up some confidence exactly like a amateur ON THE 312 machine . UNSTOPPABLE.. hopefully he will build it up again as a pro..
Show em how its done Jason
rep 505
Problem is, not much time left in the season for Anderson... Hope he can do it,
For Anderson, if he has "family issues" his mind has not been on racing. When it is, he KILLS IT, hopefully the current problem can be fixed and he come out swingin'. I think it would mean more to Jason and everyone at MX if he won a few races. Winning a championship your first pro year is unrealistic for any rider. Like John Tomac said, it can take a year to a year and half to understand what needs to be done to be winning.
Dam Organ Donor, did you wake up this morning in bed with BamBam? You sure seem to know a lot about the guy. Are just bummed out because Bam Bam didn't go out in the 2nd moto and lawn dart himself for you. Cut the guy some slack. If he didn't ride like his hemrroids were on fire, he might win a moto. He rides like a few other past champions in their early years. When he gets tired of hitting the dirt so many times and wises up, he'll be alright. He is a wild child, just like Hannah was.
great to have hahn back. was deffinitly my favorite in the 250 class. Seems a bit earlier but i thik it will take til hes back on his game and he will be the one to dethrone the monster team for at least one moto this summer. as soon as he has his race legs back. cause he was flying til it seemed like he may have gotten a lil winded compared the rest of the front runners.
Wow, check out the raw speeds on the Sign of Lap Times article. 250 Moto 1: Barcia 2:15.00 (almost 2 full seconds faster than BB), Baggett 2:16.965....and then Baggett easily topped every on Moto 2...
Well, another championship completely dominated by team PC. The best the rest can hope for now is spoiler status. Of the three choices I like an American for the title but, Rattray seems ready to make a run at the Championship. He'll find even more speed @ Southwick as well.
Geico should bring Jimmy Decotis back!!!! That is where it is at. Give the kid a shot. I bet at The Wick 66 will kick some butt in the 250's!
I don't think they dropped Decotis - he's been hurt.
I think its really sad that if you dont ride pro circuit or gieko honda you get no props. What about the solid 4-4 cunningham turned in? Sound like the editor is of this and may other articals is alittle one sided about who he writes about. There are a alot of people that deserve to talked about more then someone who rode8-6 finish.......
Did anyone notice when they went up to interview Barcia in the pits some guy yelled "shake your head" and he did it?
under most situations i would agree with you but this was his first race back from a broken back. i think they made the right choice in selecting him.