Yamaha R1

Paralyzed by perception, the call confirming I would be riding Valentino Rossi’s 2005 MotoGP bike sent seismic waves across the phone lines, rocking and shaking the fabric of my known world. Seconds turned to hours, minutes to days, as every heartbeat began ticking down the time till I would take the ultimate motorcycle challenge. How could one motorcycle strike so much fear in my heart, and so categorically undermine every component of my life that represented stability and security? Not cut from the same cloth as Rossi, nor possessing the heart of a lion or the courage of David, there was no machine I had ridden that could have prepared me to ride Vale’s personal MotoGP bike.

Last Ride of Valentino Rossi

by Rob Brooks | Nov 15, 2021 | Industry & Racing, Ride Life | 0 |

I tuned in to NBC Sports Sunday to watch the final MotoGP race of the season, taking place at the famed Valencia track in Spain. It was a fantastic race, with Ducati taking a first-ever sweep of the podium as Francesco Bagnaia took the checkered flag, with Jorge Martin and Jack Miller rounding out the all-Italian brand winners circle. But what I followed was the number 46 of Valentino Rossi, the legendary veteran in his final race as a competitor. It was a bittersweet moment, watching Rossi cross the finish line one last time, taking a respectable top 10 finish for the Petronas SRT Yamaha team. The day and the race was all about him, and deservedly so.

Back In The Saddle Again

by Rob Brooks | Aug 16, 2021 | Industry & Racing | 0 |

Toni Elias just fired a shot across the bow of every racer and team in the MotoAmerica paddock at PittRace this past weekend.

5 Questions With Jake Gagne

by Ted Edwards | Jun 29, 2021 | Industry & Racing, Ride Life | 0 |

Jake Gagne has won every race he has finished in the 2021 MotoAmerica Superbike championship, in dominating fashion. His string of seven consecutive victories astride his Fresh N Lean Attack Performance Yamaha R1 has him standing firmly atop the Superbike points race. He’s drawing comparisons to five-time MotoAmerica Superbike champ Cameron Beaubier, even as Jake smashes lap records set by his predecessor. Man and machine are truly dialed in with each other, as evidenced by Jake’s mastery so far this season. He’s riding like we’ve never seen him ride before.

Farewell To Morning Song

by Ted Edwards | Nov 18, 2020 | Ride Life, Rides & Roads | 16 |

Welcome to my tearful farewell, my wistful goodbye to a house in the middle of a God-kissed corner of the Pacific Northwest bereft of time’s depravities, a place to run where the most important things in life are not things, but people. In this house, this oasis from life’s downward plunging corkscrew and its horrible sucking tempest there lived a gentle, retired Presbyterian minister and his wife.