GingerMan RR

WEST COAST TO MID COAST... ... IT’S PURE

WORDS AND PHOTOS BY KEVIN MCINTOSH AND ETECHPHOTO

From the west coast (Classic MotoFest™ of Monterey) to the mid-coast, AHRMA’s roadracers arrived at the banks of Lake Michigan for some freshwater sunsets, perfect weather and like always, wonderful hospitality by our host, GingerMan Raceway. After checking off many a bucket list item (for some twice!) at Laguna Seca, GingerMan is like welcome comfort food: you know what you’re going to get, and you look forward to it; a well-maintained track with 11 unique and challenging turns. Navigating turn one from the start is always interesting and as close to rush-hour traffic as one will get on track, but after smoothing things out through turn two, you’re flying down Jill’s Hill into the very tight right-hand turn three. This is where many battles and even races will be decided. Then onto “Deep Demon” where linking turn five into turn six is one of the most challenging combinations to keep your flow and catch a few slower riders before turn seven. In turn eight and nine, a rider can make up a lot of ground or separate themselves from the pack heading into Wiggly Field, if you wiggle it right that is. Braking into the off-camber turn ten is a moment of trust between a rider and their tires, both thrilling and nerve racking. Did I mention GingerMan as “comfort food?” Well, ten is definitely the spicy snack that keeps it interesting and leads you right into an uphill grade where the difference in motor comes into play. Lots of “see ya laters” and “bye-byes” happening here, through Phoenix Flat heading into turn eleven where you get some of the best side-by-side corning action on the track right before the finish line. Turnout for this event was strong, with over 400 entries, 40+ classes and nine AHRMA Academy of Roadracing students on Friday, including Kyle Smith taking himself and his Hagerty sponsored XR250R off the dirt and onto the roadrace tarmac for the first time ever. All part of a challenge to experience six different styles of racing on the same bike, within the same calendar year. Kyle’s updates can be found in the pages of AHRMA MAG and in his blog at www.hagerty.com/media/ author/kyle-smith/.

Things got interesting right out of the gate with the first race of the weekend cut short due to a red flag after Mitchell Barnes #820 ran off track while battling John Scales #294 for second position in the CB160 (exhibition) class. Christopher Akaydin #784 took the hard-fought win with Scales in second and Jack Kainz #35L right on his heels 0.2 seconds behind. In Novice Historic Production Heavyweight, John Scheff #312 and his BMW toasted the field by 15+ seconds on Saturday. On Sunday, Mitch Skaggs #S7 pulled the plug on Scheff and took the win, with Travis Kestell #08 rounding out the top three spots both days. Colton Roberts #9 was on cruise control in Formula 125 on Saturday nursing a deteriorating gearbox and while James Pooler #787 was clearly making strides to catch him. The red flag ultimately secured Colton the win on lap five with Randy Knoop grabbing the third spot (brother Ken Knoop took seventh). On Sunday, Colton knew it was game on with Christopher Spargo in the race and while lap times dropped, Colton’s gearbox issues ultimately did him in and Spargo did what any good friend would do, passed him before the last turn with a dirty smile for the win. James Pooler #787 took home third with his father Neil Pooler #373 grabbing the fourth spot. Alex McLean #122 cleaned up in Pre-1940, ahead of Blake Wilson #73B and Ralph Wessell #1I both days.

RACE #2

Chris Haesemeyer #80H took the win both days in SOT 2, but it wasn’t due to a lack of effort by fellow racers like Gary Orr #111, who had blistering lap times on Saturday, but just seemed to get caught up in traffic and had to settle for third behind Brian Dobrowolski #41D on Saturday and second place Sunday, followed by Kevin Callaway #9x. In Motard, things didn’t really get exciting until Sunday where Steve Alexander #43A found another gear and gave Mike Harlow #X30 a photo finish ending with a difference of 0.030 of a second. Harlow still grabbed the win, Alexander in second and Andrew Berkley in third.

RACE #3

With the adrenaline still pumping from SOT 2, Chris Haesemeyer #80H and Brian Dobrowolski #41D went right back at it in Formula Thunder while Gary Orr #111 had a DNS and Paul Canale #553 slipped into the third podium spot. BOT 2 was true to its name; Tony Prust #15X and Clint Austin #1a traded the top spot of the weekend (Sunday by 0.029 seconds), with Bob Robbins #46 grabbing third both days. Next Gen Superbike Lightweight saw Sven Bley #83B and Philip Chovnick #82 swap first and second spots both days, while Andrew Mauk #X95 and Monty Stauffer #008 did the same between third and fifth place. Jonathan Hollingsworth #02 and Stauffer had a great battle for the third spot on Sunday.

(Z7) Jerry Duke photo by Kevin McIntosh

RACE #4

F250’s top spot-on Saturday went to Colton Roberts #9, with Eric Cook #62 and Brian Woods #96 rounding out the top three. On Sunday, Cook ran into some trouble when his bike slipped into gear and died while on the grid. Forced to pull off and miss the start, it looked like his race was over. After a red flag on the first lap, the race was restarted, and Cook was back in business. Thinking that he had secured fourth place points at the finish, Cook was then informed of a one lap penalty due to missing the original start. Oh well, that’s racing! Colton would take first again, with Jarl Wathne #188 in second and Marc Brown #C27 grabbing the final podium spot. In Class C Footshift, David Tompkins #33Q piloting the 1948 Vincent Comet took top honors, then Alex McLean #122 on the 1937 Norton Manx in second and David Roper rounding out the class in third on a 1948 Vincent Gray Flash. 200GP+ had some tight battles throughout the grid, with Christopher Spargo #19 grabbing the win both days. Jack Kainz #35L and John Scales #294 split second on the weekend and Tony Read #176 found the third spot on Sunday. Stuart Sanders #215, Tim Terrell #220 and Bill Doran #6 would keep things interesting behind the leaders both days. Classic Sixties 650 was night and day between Saturday and Sunday, with John Rickard #864 taking home top honors on Saturday, followed by Mike Baker #1M and Bill Gould #59C rounding out the podium. Sunday found Wesley Goodpaster #80 ready to race and indeed he was, straight to the top of the podium. Gould had to fend off David Spanjar #391 to take second by a mere 0.559 of a second at the finish line.

With some of the fastest bikes in the paddock, this battle to reach the podium took its toll. Both day’s races were cut short by late race red flags. Turn 10 got the best of Frank Schoenbeck #25 on Saturday in Open Two-Stroke and then Nick Hargis #42N in SOT 3 on Sunday. In SOT 3, Anthony Bangma #18 and Christopher Blair #611 were both protested for running unapproved bikes (R7/FZ-07) and DQ’ed. Chris Haesemeyer #80H officially took the win both days, with Nick Hargis and Shane Quigg #762 splitting second and Josh Saxe #619 taking home third both days. David Crussell took home first in Open Two-stroke, with Greg Glevicky right on his tail Saturday and Sunday. Adrian Jasso and Dave Frick were perfectly matched to battle for third, splitting the weekend.

RACE #6

Sidecars! What can you really say here? Plenty! From Jacob Trosper following in his father’s footsteps with the help of his girlfriend Emily Mauser #41B as his passenger, to Jeremy Maddrill and Chloe Peterson #515 pretty much going off the deep end from two wheels to three together on a loaner rig by Joe Fink and the MaddRatz Racing team, it is exciting to see younger riders embracing sidecars and the veteran racers giving them the opportunity to experience and fall in love with it. The TT2 rigs could not have been more evenly matched, with Dale Lavender and his daughter Milan #S46 just ahead of their only class competition, Eric Essaff and Dustin Richards on Saturday by 0.538 seconds. On Sunday the results were flipped, and the time difference was shaved down to .331 of a second. Now that is some fun racing! Lost Era Sidecar (SC3) had a nice battle both days between young guns Jacob Trosper/Emily Mauser #41B and seasoned veterans Timothy O’Brien/ Adam Kramer #981, swapping wins on the weekend. Classic Big Wheel (exhibition) class is where the biggest fun is. These rigs aren’t too serious and a great entry point to sidecar racing. Bonus points if you sport a mullet like Jeremy Maddrill did while piloting the #515 with Chloe Peterson (14K) Ken Knoop photo by etechphoto to first place Saturday. Of course, Byron Hannah II and Adam Bower were not terribly thrilled about a second-place finish or Jeremy’s flowing mullet, so they turned things around and grabbed first on Sunday by 0.048 second. Sorry Jeremy, I fear the drag from your mullet was the difference that day. Claude Fink Jr. and Michelle Le Clear-Fisher #620 rounded out the top three both days in Classic Big Wheel, but I’ll bet they won the after party!

RACE #7

Gary Orr #111 grabbed top honors in BOT 900cc-Open class on both days. Dakota Wolter #65W tried his best to figure out a way past Orr Sunday, but just fell short. Brian Larrabure #14 was tested by Wes Orloff #74 but was able to fend him off by less than a second to take third on Saturday, repeating his efforts again the next day. The Thruxton Cup Challenge saw Clint Austin #1a taking the win, while Seroj Terian #33T consistently improving lap times both days securing second place over Paul Canale #553. The Phillip Island Challenge included three well matched riders, but what Warren Wilson #W13 and Russell Jordan #302 lacked, wasn’t engine or skill, but an equal or better mullet like the one Jeremy Maddrill #515 was sporting, the MADDhouse mullet!

RACE #8

Jesse Davis #03 and his 1982 Yamaha XV920RJ “Son of Lurch,” follow the bike’s nickname and “lurched” away with the win in Formula Vintage with David Crussell #117 second and Jeff Hargis #84 third on Saturday. Alan Perry #162 gave

Crussell some competition on Sunday on his factory spec 1982 Suzuki Katana 1000s, but ultimately had to settle for the last podium spot. Sportsman 350 is always a fun, well matched class of riders. Clean racing, with David Miller #69M finding the top spot both days. Jack Mattlin #297 and Eric Cook #1P would share second place on the weekend, with John Waverka #647 grabbing third on Saturday.

Next Gen Superbike 2 had a great battle for first between Kurt Klein #714 and Scott Rothermel #29J, with Klein coming out on top both days while Jeff Nelson #030 grabbed third. Next Gen Superbike Middleweight was all Jonathan Hollingsworth #02 both days. While not the fastest in class, Hollingsworth was the most consistent lap to lap and that made the difference. Monty Stauffer #008 grabbed second on Saturday and Rick Patrolia #15G on Sunday. Some great racing in SOS 3, where everyone had the opportunity to battle for position, whether it was for first or 21st. Jordan Reid #17J and James Pooler #787 made it interesting down to the wire for first place, with Reid grabbing the win Saturday and repeating his efforts on Sunday against Edward Blount #55C. Adrian Jasso #112 kept pace just ahead of Frank Guadagnino #40 to secure third on Saturday, while Guadagnino would grab third on Sunday from Dave Frick #3Z by two seconds. Vintage Superbike Middleweight would find both #1 plates out early on Saturday’s race. And wouldn’t you know it, Jeremy Maddrill #515 and his Maddhouse Mullet slid right into the first place spot. Geez, that guy is everywhere! Alexander Cook #092 grabbed second after a great battle with Rich Richter #R3 and then again on Sunday while putting the Maddhouse Mullet in his place (Third that is). Kevin Rammer #1V sorted out his DNS Saturday and took top honors Sunday, lamb chops win the day (Kevin’s sideburns).

RACE #10

F500 had Christopher Spargo #19 keeping himself busy by catching lapped traffic. Granted, he was also the carrot to catch for many of the 500 Premier riders, like Tim Joyce #309 who took first, Andrew Mauk #X95 second and Tony Read #176 third. Sunday, the F500 grid grew a bit, with Brian Woods #96 making a last-minute switch from three wheels to two and grabbing third place. Dan Sokolich #77Z also made it for Sunday’s race and grabbed a second. Tim Joyce continued to chase the carrot (Spargo) on Sunday to just a 0.002 second difference, bringing the rest of the 500 Premier Vintage Cup group with him. Once again Mauk and Read finished two and three. Sportsman 500, the middle child in the Sportsman classes, saw plenty of evenly matched action thanks to the always fast CB350 bumpups. Mark Esterline #117X did his best to represent the true displacement bikes in the class by putting his CB450 in second place both days, while almost finding a weak link in Eric Cook’s #1P armor on Sunday (2.232 second difference). Greg Potter #132 and Simon Brown #C85 split third on the weekend.

RACE #11

In Sound of Thunder 1, Brian Dobrowolski #41D gave Chris Haesemeyer #80H a constant reason to stay on the throttle until the end, with a difference of only 1.394 seconds. Clint Austin #1a was just a few seconds behind, hitting the checkered in third on Saturday. While Haesemeyer’s pace on Sunday improved, Dobrowolski’s slowed just enough to give Austin a fighting chance to grab second place, and that’s what he did. Vintage Superbike Heavyweight once again saw Jesse Davis #03 outpace the field, with David Crussell #117 (second) and Alan Perry #162 (third). Formula Lightning included our very own Executive Director, Curtis Comer #24I, Head of Roadracing officials, Bill Doran #6 and Richard Illman #73X who grabbed second place Saturday. Curtis would find Richard napping on lap one on Sunday; spots were switched behind Doran who once again found his way to the checked flag first.

(74) Wes Orloff, (x95) Andrew Mauk

(787) James Pooler

(022) Cindy McLean

RACE #12

In 350GP, Jason Roberts #54 was dialed in for the win on Saturday, with James Pooler #787 about six seconds behind and Alex McLean #122 fighting off David Roper for third. Jim Eich #51P brought the heat to Vintage Superbike Lightweight on Saturday, getting the best of John Rickard #864 by just 2.236 seconds. Lance Yeager #819 was 5.619 seconds back to take the third podium spot. Novice Historic Production Lightweight was led by Mitch Skaggs #7S both days, with solid battles behind him. Kristen Baustert #077 and Tom Rohe #06 finished in second and third position with only a 1.001 second margin at the finish. Corey Golla #G3 and Beasley Ayers had a hard-fought battle for fourth, with Golla coming out on top by only 0.580 seconds. On Sunday both Rohe and Ayers would find ways past their rivals from Saturday. Rohe taking second, Baustert third and Ayers in forth.

RACE #13

With the exception of sidecars, this race was probably the most anticipated and watched each day due to the head-to-head battle between Jeff Hargis #84 on his Yamaha XS650 and Matt Esterline #237 on his Honda 750-four in Sportsman 750. True to form, it was a battle both days. On Saturday, Jeff lost his brakes at the end and went off track, giving Matt the win. Michael Dixon #839 caught Stephen Pettinger #736 at the finish to put them two and three. Sunday’s race between Hargis and Esterline, though exciting, was clearly won by Hargis, crossing the line almost 11 second ahead. I’m sure he did plenty of mental fist pumps after the win, but to know this guy, you would know he is far to gracious a competitor to brag about a win and surely was quick to congratulate and thank Matt on another epic weekend of racing, because that is what it’s all about.

Thank you to GingerMan Raceway, staff, volunteers, racers, supporting family and friends for making this a wonderful weekend at the track. The logistics of moving everyone and everything from Laguna Seca to GingerMan I’m sure was not easy for many. Just a taste of what it’s like to be on the MotoAmerica® or MotoGP® circuit. Now hurry up, Blackhawk is next weekend, grab some coffee and we will see you there!

off the track @ gingerman off the track @ Gingerman

PHOTOS BY KEVIN MCINTOSH

Jason Roberts (Colton’s Dad) taking his 1957 350GP prepped Harley-Davidson to the rider’s meeting. That’s quite the pit bike...lol! Eric Watts prepares to hit the track while his wife Colleen and Eileen Morrow ham it up in the background.

LEFT: Matt Esterline’s son Jackson holding the rear wheel stand for his father’s return.

ABOVE: Matt returning the pits after racing. Jackson hooking up the rear wheel stand with the help of Matt’s friend George. Ted Robinson (#838 - 1974 Sportsman 750 - Triumph T140) and his daughter Katy (#837 - Sportsman 500 - 1971 Triumph) keeping the love of vintage racing alive and in the family on their respective Triumph race machines.

Newly minted and approved racer Nick Mitchell from Valparaiso, IN, took part in the Road Race Academy Friday and was ready to get on with racing his 2014 Ducati 899 Panigale. Running in Sound of Thunder 1 and 2. Warren Wilson’s niece Lieutenant Leah McMannis and her daughter Gwendolyn enjoying some shade and a great day of racing.

The gate keepers at many an AHRMA roadrace event, Dan and Jennifer Thornton. There are many couples who volunteer with AHRMA and some who race as well.

Jacob Trosper chatting with Emily Mauser while warming up his Sound of Singles 3 Honda RS125. Note: Jacob and Emily would also team up as first-time side car racers on a 1972 BMW Mach 7 SC Lost Era Sidecar SC3 Rig

Jesse Davis with his very special tribute build, a 1982 Yamaha XV920RJ. Jesse built this bike as a replica tribute to a bike his dad Vernon Davis built and Kevin Schwantz raced during an AMA Superbike event at Laguna Seca back in 1984. The bike was nicknamed “Lurch” due to how it jumped off the line.

When Jesse finished the build, the first to ride it was his dad at a track day. That was a very special moment for dad and son. Vernon is also a cancer survivor, so the opportuntiy for Jesse to get his dad on the bike and enjoy a day of twisting the throttle on the replica build was extra special. Note: There is a full write-up on Jesse’s story with this bike at: bikebound.com/2021/07/16/lurch/