***Spoiler--the Laguna Seca MotoGP Thread***

[Ralf]

How irritating, another win for Monkey Boy!.

With good luck, the next round will provide some interesting results. A bloody shame the U.S. contingent was unable to place. Time to step up lads, time to step up!

How irritating? Rossi made the race fascinating. Just because some Americans didn't make the podium doesn't make a race uninteresting   And this coming from a big fan of Rainey, Schwantz, Mamola, Spencer et al.

[jwhite518]

Wow! I didn't watch it but just reading the comments here tells the whole story. Wish I had seen it! Who's got it Tivo'd? Thanks for posting the shot of Rossi in the dirt. A picture is worth a thousand words.

[Scoop]

How irritating, another win for Monkey Boy!.

With good luck, the next round will provide some interesting results. A bloody shame the U.S. contingent was unable to place. Time to step up lads, time to step up!

I think that Nicky would have done better if it were not for the tires.  Spies is not sure what to do when he has not lapped half the field by the third lap.  Hacking almost lapped his "teammate", a guy who had two years on the bike where Hacking had two hours.  I would have liked to see Edwards do better, but his year has not been that bad.  

[pearsonm]

Don't get me wrong, I like motorcycle racing, but man MotoGP seems so uncompetitive.  Especially if this is considered one of the best of the year.

My theory is that when it comes to important subjects, there’s only two ways a person can answer. For example, there’s two kinds of people in this world, MotoGP people and WSBK people. Now MotoGP people can like WSBK. And WSBK people can like MotoGP. But nobody likes them both equally. Somewhere you have to make a choice. And that choice tells me who you are.

[Stray Cat]

My theory is that when it comes to important subjects, there’s only two ways a person can answer. For example, there’s two kinds of people in this world, MotoGP people and WSBK people. Now MotoGP people can like WSBK. And WSBK people can like MotoGP. But nobody likes them both equally. Somewhere you have to make a choice. And that choice tells me who you are.

Huh?
I like them both.  
They are both a form of entertainment. Nothing more.

[scott-sts]

My theory is that when it comes to important subjects, there’s only two ways a person can answer. For example, there’s two kinds of people in this world, MotoGP people and WSBK people. Now MotoGP people can like WSBK. And WSBK people can like MotoGP. But nobody likes them both equally. Somewhere you have to make a choice. And that choice tells me who you are.

I like 'em both equally.

[Colorado]

How irritating? Rossi made the race fascinating. Just because some Americans didn't make the podium doesn't make a race uninteresting   And this coming from a big fan of Rainey, Schwantz, Mamola, Spencer et al.

Rainey was at the race.  I saw him in the Yamaha box and said hello to him as we were leaving.  IMHO he would have been the best of all time had his career not been cut short.  One helluva nice guy too.

[Orson]

Rainey was at the race.  I saw him in the Yamaha box and said hello to him as we were leaving.  IMHO he would have been the best of all time had his career not been cut short.  One helluva nice guy too.

he may have been one of the best road racers of all time, although he & Schwantz tied with 25 GP wins. Who knows how many championships Saarinen would have won?

However, when you throw in Roberts' dirt riding career, riding underpowered Yamaha 650s against Harley 750s to 2 national championships, that cements him as the King in my book  

[kevin_stevens]

he may have been one of the best road racers of all time, although he & Schwantz tied with 25 GP wins. Who knows how many championships Saarinen would have won?

However, when you throw in Roberts' dirt riding career, riding underpowered Yamaha 650s against Harley 750s to 2 national championships, that cements him as the King in my book  

Since we're referencing Laguna this week...  Soon after I moved to the Bay Area, I had a chance to go down and see the last AMA race of the season.  Kenny Roberts was back from one of his first GP championships in Europe and going to run the race.  His bike had a mechanical or something in qualifying, and he had to start from the back of the pack.  He was in seventh after the first lap, second after the second, and if I recall, went on to lap all but two riders by the end of the event.

And I had decided not to go...  

KeS

[DredheadV2.0]

I think that Nicky would have done better if it were not for the tires.  

I have to wonder about that.  If the top six finishers of this race were to swap tires, would they also have swapped positions?  Were the Michelins really sucking so hard that they were a second slower per lap?

[Jeff]

If the fact that the Michelin riders were practicing on intermediate tires IN THE DRY is any indication, then I'd say yes... Michelin really screwed the pooch on this one.


http://www.superbikeplanet.com/image/2008/mgp/laguna/schnarvilla/Toseland_Inter.htm

Jeff

[Jeff N]

Quite a few of the Michelin riders are very upset with Mr Bib. A suggestion has been made that they hire someone who knows how to look up a weather forecast online and maybe not make their tire plans 2 weeks in advance of the event. The sight of some of them on intermediates was to laugh.

[keystonejenks]

Quite a few of the Michelin riders are very upset with Mr Bib. A suggestion has been made that they hire someone who knows how to look up a weather forecast online and maybe not make their tire plans 2 weeks in advance of the event. The sight of some of them on intermediates was to laugh.

Also, if I remember hearing it correctly, Michelin riders were only provided with two tires?  

[Orson]

Quite a few of the Michelin riders are very upset with Mr Bib. A suggestion has been made that they hire someone who knows how to look up a weather forecast online and maybe not make their tire plans 2 weeks in advance of the event.

It was the rules change that did them in, wasn't it?

I remember reading an article on how Michelin made Rossi's race tires the night before the race, based on the 24 hour weather forecast, then had them express delivered to the European venue just a few hours before race time.

[Jeff]

It was the rules change that did them in, wasn't it?

I remember reading an article on how Michelin made Rossi's race tires the night before the race, based on the 24 hour weather forecast, then had them express delivered to the European venue just a few hours before race time.

I've heard that as well. One would think a big company such as Michelin would be able to adapt after 1.5 years.
Jeff

[Yamadog]

I've heard that as well. One would think a big company such as Michelin would be able to adapt after 1.5 years.
Jeff

One would think so, but in my experience the larger the company the larger the bureaucracy, not unlike the US Government.

[Mr Sunshine]

One would think so, but in my experience the larger the company the larger the bureaucracy, not unlike the US Government.

Bridgestone is the largest tire manufacture in the world.  They don't seem to be having a problem.

[Yamadog]

Bridgestone is the largest tire manufacture in the world.  They don't seem to be having a problem.

I take your point; I thought Michelin were larger, but it could be the difference between a Japanese company and French, or it might have no bearing at all. Might simply be the corporate culture, peter principle, or?

But my comment was based on working in a SD8(a) business which graduated. When I first started there, we had no HR department or employee manual or any other trappings of a large corporation. But as the company grew, the bureaucracy eventually got their talons in, and the once flat management structure became hierarchical and on and on. My older sister worked for MaBell and her work environment reminded me very much of government bureaucracy (which I saw from both military and civilian sides.)
YMMV

[DogBoy]

The previous CEO of Michelin was killed in (I think) a boating accident in late 2006. Michelin's MotoGP effort has been uneven ever since.

[black hills]

Hmm...... an "accident" you say??? Sounds very suspicious to me.......