Joined Sep 2005
4K Posts | 3+
Lancashire UK
Originally from Montreal in the Canadian province of Quebec, Rob Roston left his home country and headed to Europe, where he joined the Kawasaki Racing Team for the 2001 World Superbike and World Supersport Championships.
In his five years with the team Rob has progressed from mechanic through to crew chief and on to his present job as the Parts and Logistics Coordinator with the Kawasaki Racing Team; one of the most difficult and demanding jobs in MotoGP.
Q: How would you describe your job, and what are your main responsibilities within the team?
A: It's my responsibility to ensure that we have enough parts, consumables and equipment at the racetrack to support two riders and their respective crews. I'm also responsible for arranging shipment of all our parts and equipment to the overseas races, to which we normally ship around eight tonnes of freight.
To give you some idea of the size of the job; each bike is made up of around 2,500 individual components, and we carry enough spares to build four complete bikes from scratch, as well as extra components that we know from experience tend to get damaged in crashes.
It's a little bit worrying when you get to the first overseas race of the season, because you spend the first couple of days thinking that someone is going to come and ask you for something that you haven't shipped to the track. It hasn't happened yet, and I hope it never does!
Q: How did you become involved in motorcycle racing?
A: I was actually diesel mechanic, but then I ended up working on an RZ350 production race bike for a friend and one thing led to another I guess. I worked as a race mechanic at home in Canada before moving down to the US to work in the AMA Championship, and then in 2001 I joined the Kawasaki Racing Team when they were contesting the World Superbike and World Supersport Championships. When the team moved up to MotoGP I moved with them, and I've been here ever since.
Q: What is more important in your job; qualifications or experience?
A: Definitely experience. I don't think it would be possible to do this job if you hadn't been a mechanic first. Understanding the mechanic's job, and what they need to complete it, is very important for someone in my position in the team. It's this experience that allows you to have everything prepared even before the mechanics ask you for it, and that saves us a lot of time at the racetrack.
Q: When you're not at the track what do you like to do in your spare time?
A: I ride motocross - very badly. I bought a Kawasaki KXF250 last year to learn how to ride motocross and it was a very steep - and painful - learning curve. I'd been out on the bike a couple of times with a few people from the team without incident, but then I decided it was time to try attacking the jumps rather than rolling them and that's where it all went wrong. To cut a long story short, I had a bit of a crash and ended up with a fractured collarbone, much to the amusement of my extremely sympathetic teammates! It hasn't put my off though, but it has made me a little more cautious.
Q: What do you enjoy most about your job?
A: To be honest, the best part of my job is definitely the people I work with. We have one of the most professional teams in the MotoGP Paddock, and it's always a pleasure to work with people who are experts in the respective fields.
Q: What is your ambition for the future?
A: Eventually I'd like to go back to Canada and maybe run my own team. I've certainly got the experience, after working with some of the best people in the MotoGP paddock, and I think running my own team is something I'd like to do in the future.
Q: What, in your opinion is the most important attribute a rider needs if he is to be a World Champion?
A: I think it's important that a rider, if he is to be a World Champion, must have the ability to work with other people. Although it's the riders who everyone sees on track, this is definitely a team sport. Without the crew chief, the mechanics and the technical people - not to mention the engineers in Japan - even the best rider in the world will struggle to win races. I guess they must be able to get the best out of everyone they work with to give themselves the best possible chance of winning races.
Q: Who do you think is the greatest Grand Prix rider of all time, and why?
A: It has to be Valentino Rossi; the guy wins on every bike he throws a leg over, and that takes some talent in such a competitive arena as Grand Prix racing. You look at his history and when he first gets on a bike he crashes it, but then he very quickly finds the limit and, from that moment on, he's a real threat regardless of the competition.
Q: Who is the man to beat in this year's MotoGP World Championship?
A: Again, I'd have to say Valentino, despite the fact that his season didn't get off to quite such a good start at Jerez, where he could only finish 14th after being knocked off in the first turn.
Q: You race all over the world, but can you name the capital city of Turkey?
A: Is it Istanbul? No, hold on, I remember now, it's Ankara!
Interesting read that!
Some pressure on that guy huh!
In his five years with the team Rob has progressed from mechanic through to crew chief and on to his present job as the Parts and Logistics Coordinator with the Kawasaki Racing Team; one of the most difficult and demanding jobs in MotoGP.
Q: How would you describe your job, and what are your main responsibilities within the team?
A: It's my responsibility to ensure that we have enough parts, consumables and equipment at the racetrack to support two riders and their respective crews. I'm also responsible for arranging shipment of all our parts and equipment to the overseas races, to which we normally ship around eight tonnes of freight.
To give you some idea of the size of the job; each bike is made up of around 2,500 individual components, and we carry enough spares to build four complete bikes from scratch, as well as extra components that we know from experience tend to get damaged in crashes.
It's a little bit worrying when you get to the first overseas race of the season, because you spend the first couple of days thinking that someone is going to come and ask you for something that you haven't shipped to the track. It hasn't happened yet, and I hope it never does!
Q: How did you become involved in motorcycle racing?
A: I was actually diesel mechanic, but then I ended up working on an RZ350 production race bike for a friend and one thing led to another I guess. I worked as a race mechanic at home in Canada before moving down to the US to work in the AMA Championship, and then in 2001 I joined the Kawasaki Racing Team when they were contesting the World Superbike and World Supersport Championships. When the team moved up to MotoGP I moved with them, and I've been here ever since.
Q: What is more important in your job; qualifications or experience?
A: Definitely experience. I don't think it would be possible to do this job if you hadn't been a mechanic first. Understanding the mechanic's job, and what they need to complete it, is very important for someone in my position in the team. It's this experience that allows you to have everything prepared even before the mechanics ask you for it, and that saves us a lot of time at the racetrack.
Q: When you're not at the track what do you like to do in your spare time?
A: I ride motocross - very badly. I bought a Kawasaki KXF250 last year to learn how to ride motocross and it was a very steep - and painful - learning curve. I'd been out on the bike a couple of times with a few people from the team without incident, but then I decided it was time to try attacking the jumps rather than rolling them and that's where it all went wrong. To cut a long story short, I had a bit of a crash and ended up with a fractured collarbone, much to the amusement of my extremely sympathetic teammates! It hasn't put my off though, but it has made me a little more cautious.
Q: What do you enjoy most about your job?
A: To be honest, the best part of my job is definitely the people I work with. We have one of the most professional teams in the MotoGP Paddock, and it's always a pleasure to work with people who are experts in the respective fields.
Q: What is your ambition for the future?
A: Eventually I'd like to go back to Canada and maybe run my own team. I've certainly got the experience, after working with some of the best people in the MotoGP paddock, and I think running my own team is something I'd like to do in the future.
Q: What, in your opinion is the most important attribute a rider needs if he is to be a World Champion?
A: I think it's important that a rider, if he is to be a World Champion, must have the ability to work with other people. Although it's the riders who everyone sees on track, this is definitely a team sport. Without the crew chief, the mechanics and the technical people - not to mention the engineers in Japan - even the best rider in the world will struggle to win races. I guess they must be able to get the best out of everyone they work with to give themselves the best possible chance of winning races.
Q: Who do you think is the greatest Grand Prix rider of all time, and why?
A: It has to be Valentino Rossi; the guy wins on every bike he throws a leg over, and that takes some talent in such a competitive arena as Grand Prix racing. You look at his history and when he first gets on a bike he crashes it, but then he very quickly finds the limit and, from that moment on, he's a real threat regardless of the competition.
Q: Who is the man to beat in this year's MotoGP World Championship?
A: Again, I'd have to say Valentino, despite the fact that his season didn't get off to quite such a good start at Jerez, where he could only finish 14th after being knocked off in the first turn.
Q: You race all over the world, but can you name the capital city of Turkey?
A: Is it Istanbul? No, hold on, I remember now, it's Ankara!
Interesting read that!
Some pressure on that guy huh!
