Big Thanks to EX#331 at VIR on 6/21!

[salvagerider]

Chris, I saw the whole thing.  He couldn't have hit you any better if he tried.  Way out of control!!!!!!!!  I know your pissed.  I was pissed and it wasn't even me.  You are more than welcome to use one of my Honda's if you can't get your bike done in time for Summit.  Just give me a call.

[bambam]

Chris, I saw the whole thing.  He couldn't have hit you any better if he tried.  Way out of control!!!!!!!!  I know your pissed.  I was pissed and it wasn't even me.  You are more than welcome to use one of my Honda's if you can't get your bike done in time for Summit.  Just give me a call.

Damm man thats a great offer to a fellow competitor. Hopefully one that never needs to be used but incredibly cool just the same.

[MELK-MAN]

Antoine Richards of Devonshire, Bermuda #331
Yup, he is a reasonably nice kid off track and can be fast, but i have seen a few occasions where he rides totally over his head with little regard for others. I wish his buddy Paul Decouto would have a talk with him. (Paul is a cool dude and good safe rider). I stay as far away from Antoine as possible in practice, and am glad im gridded fairly far in front of him this season.
I normally don't point this type of thing out on a forum, but there seems to be a pattern forming with #331. 

I had nearly the same thing happen to me in a race that weekend, however i at least was not on the loosing end of the situation. The rider i had clearly passed going into t7 i think, decides to try and brake way late after nearly crashing exiting the esses that allowed me to easily drive past. Looking through to the corner and leaning to the right i feel a big hit and fight to retain control of my bike. I look over my shoulder as im running wide up the hill and a blue r6 is skidding off track .. same guy that had all kinds of problems for 2 laps trying to stay in front of me. I was glad he was ok, and MORE glad that it was him on the ground (but ok) not me. We talked briefly the next day so it was all good.

[Hollywood]

Antoine Richards of Devonshire, Bermuda #331
Yup, he is a reasonably nice kid off track but i have seen a few occasions where he rides totally over his head with little regard for others. I wish his buddy Paul Decouto would have a talk with him. (Paul is a cool dude and good safe rider). I stay as far away from Antoine as possible in practice, and am glad im gridded fairly far in front of him this season.
I normally don't point this type of thing out on a forum, but there seems to be a pattern forming with #331. 

Thanks for speaking up, Greg. You have been around for a bit and have probably seen your share of this kind of stuff. I really appreciate your input. The question is, what will CCS do with this information? What is done is done, obviously. If taking a guy like Antoine off the track for a bit or letting him know he's being watched very closely averts another encounter that may have more drastic consequences, will they do that? I have a tremendous amount of respect for the organization, race director and race day staff and I know they have our safety in mind at all times. I look forward to competing again soon.

[cyclecareracing]

Hey Hollywood , its me Paul Decouto , I had the pleasure of racing with you ( toe to toe  at Road America last season ( we battled for last place and I won !!!...( last place that is ; ) the best battle I have ever had, thanks !!! Anyhow I did pass on the word to Antoine and he says he will respond . He is a great guy ( usually ).. he has a bit of an "over competitive" streak that he needs to tame before he or someone else gets hurt seriously , he has had several warnings here at our local track in Bermuda . I believe he has potential to be a great rider .... like Pirelli's slogan .... "Power is Nothing without Control" ...  Antoine , dont rush things , there is a learning curve that takes time .... take the time to learn .... its not ALL about the destination its about the journey , enjoy it .. :thumb

pd

[Hollywood]

Thanks Paul, I look forward to hearing from Antione. I appreciate your input, and hearing what a few people have now said about his riding, I also look forward to seeing how he will be recieved at the track in the future.

Best of luck to you this season Paul!

[MELK-MAN]

Awesome, thanks Paul. Antione has potential and has the fire in him but he needs to take "baby steps". Going fast is one thing, passing riders safely is another and that for some has to come with experience. See you guys at Barber or Daytona !
CCS will do what is required when needed, but personally I don't think pulling a rider off the track is the call right now. He does not ride this way every weekend (from what i have seen). It is up to other riders to perhaps point out to officials to "keep an eye" on him. Now that he knows im sure he will take the steps to be a better and safer racer. He has the skill to do it, he just needs to know that we all have to go to work on monday and that this is club racing. Few of us get a paycheck out of this, in fact most pay substancial amounts of money to get a bike to the grid let alone finish a race.

[GixrB]

A reasonable post in my opinion, Chris.

Racing means we will wreck, possibly because of the actions of others.  I was taken out the first turn of the first race this weekend.  Thankfully I just have some bruised ribs (hope they aren't cracked), a beat up shoulder, and a big bruise on my opposite hip, the bike was largely ok.  I simply couldn't afford to race following a wreck like that.  It would take a lot of money and several weeks for me to piece it back together.

It's a hard thing to balance progression with the importance of safety.  In fact I'd say sometimes it's impossible to get faster without taking those risks... but doing so without the control necessary endangers everyone on the track.  This kind of thing rarely happens with control, and that's where I think the other rider is wrong.  Not for hitting you, or punting your bike off track, but for failing to maintain the appropriate amount of control over his machine... that is what he should apologize for.

[F2RGK]

With Racing, regardless of waivers, comes with Great responsibility.  First, responsibility of making decisions at a blink of an eye with regard to your fellow rider....remember we all have to work on Monday!! 

[SV88]

In club and any other form of motorcycle racing, respect and trust have to be paramount.  Through negligence you can maime or even kill fellow racers which is why I don't particularly like racing against/with kids (particularly with the CMRA) - I don't feel that I can get too aggressive with them and would feel horrible taking someone out of racing permanently. 

We had a younger expert who took out a grizzled veteran who may never ride or potentially walk again.  It was clearly  a rider error.  This expert did the right thing and quit racing.

To be able to race cleanly aggressively, you need a certain level of maturity and patience.  Think twice about making that sketchy pass because it may cost you and the other rider $100k in medical bills, lost wages etc...

Unfortunately, some riders have the bin or win it mentality.  Which is "ok" if it does just involve themselves.  I have a good friend who is ultra competitive and crashes out once a weekend - but he never takes anyone else out and will take himself out to save another rider.  This case up here is clearly different.

I think that it's a good post because it certainly causes one to stop and think.  it is fortunate that the punted rider was not injured.

I'd like to see more hurddles for racers to make the expert ranks.  What about a review board from veteran riders?  Track orgs ban certain riders and race orgs can certainly do the same even with talented riders if these individuals present too much risk to the rest of the grid.  If the race org choose not to weigh in, then racers can police themselves to some extent.

My $0.02

Stephen

[Burt Munro]

Not gonna say it............

God, it's a good thing when I take my happy pills early in the morning!

[cyclecareracing]

Antoine asked me to post the following message :Hey Paul. I checked the CCS forum again and I still can't post a reply because the administrators haven't accepted my registration. Would you mind posting something explaining why I haven't responded yet so it doesn't look like I'm just ignoring the situation?