Arrabbiata1
Blue Smoker
- Joined
- Apr 29, 2008
- Messages
- 6,925
- Location
- Out of Nowhere
In my opinion, the ten premier events of '09. Please feel free to agree, disagree and more importantly post your own!
1/ Catalunya GP: The whole race - but in particular...that pass, final lap, final turn!
2/ Assen WSB Race 1: Again - that last lap. Ben Spies on Haga between Hoge heide and Ramshoek - you simply don't do that there, which is why we'd never seen it before...but no one thought to tell Ben.
3/ British Eurosport retaining it's coverage: Ok so it wasn't live for Moto GP, and James Haydon & Carlton Kirby did their level best for half the races to make Parish and Cox look competent. But Toby, Jules and Spalders were all present and correct for the other half - and after the debacle at Qatar even got to broadcast one race live the next day when the BBC had packed up and gone home
4/ Ben Spies WSBk debut season: Inspirational, well deserved, awesome, and yeah, I admit I'm biased!
5/ Jorge coming of age: Yeah he made costly mistakes - but he's remained philosophical about it, which would figure being as he's purportedly been wrestling with a bit of Proust of late. Added to which - Eriksonian therapy, psychomorphology, the Battle of Thermopylae and repeat readings of How to Win Friends and Influence People. This year 'Por Fuera' has worked with a public- speaking specialist to understand charisma and commissioned a university professor to explain whether humility is a barrier to success. Not so long ago you will all recall, the Drogba-esque histrionics were turning people away from Lorenzo. “Since I was little I was captivated by arrogance, but it had a ceiling,” he says. “If I wanted to break through that, show people who I really am and have them like me for it, I had to make sure I wasn't too arrogant.”....Er, right:
8526:jorge_lorenzo_3.jpg]
He says that he wants to be like Gandhi and Picasso and Zidane. If there is a more self-aware motorcycle racer, he must be hiding in his study.
5/ Cal and Norge stamping their authority on WSS: Loved the way Cal rides, have done since I first saw him race in the R6 Cup. In competing in WSS he took a very measured approach to his career, and a step back to achieve a big leap forward - I was very happy for him when he won the title. Whether his decision to compete in WSBk at the expense of the Gresini Moto2 ride will pay off only time will tell. I was also delighted for Laverty having been saddled with that prehistoric 'prilia ride in 250 for '08 - and would have been equally pleased to have seen him take the title.
6/ Hiroshi Aoyama: Honda weren't telling us something. The bike that supposedly hasn't seen so much as a new rear hugger since Katoh rode it evidently has. But it still had to see off the faster straight line speed of the disc valve 'prilias. The Scott team know the thing inside out, and so did brave Hiroshi who rode a brilliant season to deliver the final 250 title back to HRC. A very, very, good career move.
7/ Valentino's Century: Only the second rider in history to notch up 100 wins, and to think Ago had an extra class to play with. It was fitting that Rossi reached his landmark at the Cathederal, his century, and 40th win for Yamaha coming 30 years after Graziano won the Dutch 250GP. The 25-metre banner that included a picture of each of his 100 wins (a replica of which is no doubt stretched out like the Bayeux Tapestry, proudly unfurled and sailing off Talpa's chimney breast) in a career that started when he was just 17 in 1996 was slightly disturbing because I remember it well, and it seems like yesterday. Will he topple Ago's 123? - of course he will, and that's precisely why he keeps racing.
8/ Casey's Comeback: So many people on here wanted him to fall flat on his arse...and he did just that during the warm up lap in Valencia...but only after stringing together the most emphatic astonishing sequence of races, and demonstrating a will of steel and an iron resolve to match. Mentally weak? - I don't think so.
9/ The Last Donington: Yeah it's only 20 miles away from me, and the parkland section is amongst one of the most glorious ribbons of asphalt in the world, but I hate the place. I've always longed to see the GP back at Silverstone. I appreciate that Doni is the spiritual home of British bike racing, and offers a superb view of the circuit, but I'm sick of the predominantly crap racing - promising races ruined by the bolt on 'car park' section. Where Silverstone may not offer the best trackside experience I've always maintained it is so fast and flowing that it is crying out for MotoGP - and although I'm loath to admit it - this current formula. Anyway, I'm sick of visiting a warzone every year. Following the last race I got a lift back from Rog and Bonnie, and I felt like I was being evacuated from my final tour of duty. With half the place under excavation, I felt lucky to get out alive. It now transpires that all they've done is dug themselves into a shitload of debt.
10/ Gino Rea: Remember folks - you heard it here first
8527:Gino_Rea_2009.jpg]
Other noteworthy events - Rossi's appearance at the IOM TT, Maladin's retirement (depending on which way you look at it), Bradley finally arriving, Julian Simon sitting up thinking he'd won the race on the penultimate lap, and Lex's house being struck by lightening.
The 10 worst/most disappointing things:
1/ JT's entire season
2/ Qatar season opener
3/ Nicky Hayden Takahashi incident
4/ Nicky Hayden De Angelis incident
5/ Nicky Hayden Lorenzo incident
6/ Those pesky 800cc minibikes
7/ Josh Brookes destroying Guinters BSB season
8/ Josh Brookes destroying half the field at Mallory
9/ Max Neukirchners accident at Monza
10/ Suzuki Moto GP effort/non-effort
Other noteworthy disappointments -That Nakano's premature retirement did not prompt SS56 to follow suit. Kawasaki pulling out of Moto GP - a relief to some. John Hopkins disastrous WSBK campaign, DMG destroying the AMA and Alvaro Bautista.
1/ Catalunya GP: The whole race - but in particular...that pass, final lap, final turn!
2/ Assen WSB Race 1: Again - that last lap. Ben Spies on Haga between Hoge heide and Ramshoek - you simply don't do that there, which is why we'd never seen it before...but no one thought to tell Ben.
3/ British Eurosport retaining it's coverage: Ok so it wasn't live for Moto GP, and James Haydon & Carlton Kirby did their level best for half the races to make Parish and Cox look competent. But Toby, Jules and Spalders were all present and correct for the other half - and after the debacle at Qatar even got to broadcast one race live the next day when the BBC had packed up and gone home
4/ Ben Spies WSBk debut season: Inspirational, well deserved, awesome, and yeah, I admit I'm biased!
5/ Jorge coming of age: Yeah he made costly mistakes - but he's remained philosophical about it, which would figure being as he's purportedly been wrestling with a bit of Proust of late. Added to which - Eriksonian therapy, psychomorphology, the Battle of Thermopylae and repeat readings of How to Win Friends and Influence People. This year 'Por Fuera' has worked with a public- speaking specialist to understand charisma and commissioned a university professor to explain whether humility is a barrier to success. Not so long ago you will all recall, the Drogba-esque histrionics were turning people away from Lorenzo. “Since I was little I was captivated by arrogance, but it had a ceiling,” he says. “If I wanted to break through that, show people who I really am and have them like me for it, I had to make sure I wasn't too arrogant.”....Er, right:
8526:jorge_lorenzo_3.jpg]
He says that he wants to be like Gandhi and Picasso and Zidane. If there is a more self-aware motorcycle racer, he must be hiding in his study.
5/ Cal and Norge stamping their authority on WSS: Loved the way Cal rides, have done since I first saw him race in the R6 Cup. In competing in WSS he took a very measured approach to his career, and a step back to achieve a big leap forward - I was very happy for him when he won the title. Whether his decision to compete in WSBk at the expense of the Gresini Moto2 ride will pay off only time will tell. I was also delighted for Laverty having been saddled with that prehistoric 'prilia ride in 250 for '08 - and would have been equally pleased to have seen him take the title.
6/ Hiroshi Aoyama: Honda weren't telling us something. The bike that supposedly hasn't seen so much as a new rear hugger since Katoh rode it evidently has. But it still had to see off the faster straight line speed of the disc valve 'prilias. The Scott team know the thing inside out, and so did brave Hiroshi who rode a brilliant season to deliver the final 250 title back to HRC. A very, very, good career move.
7/ Valentino's Century: Only the second rider in history to notch up 100 wins, and to think Ago had an extra class to play with. It was fitting that Rossi reached his landmark at the Cathederal, his century, and 40th win for Yamaha coming 30 years after Graziano won the Dutch 250GP. The 25-metre banner that included a picture of each of his 100 wins (a replica of which is no doubt stretched out like the Bayeux Tapestry, proudly unfurled and sailing off Talpa's chimney breast) in a career that started when he was just 17 in 1996 was slightly disturbing because I remember it well, and it seems like yesterday. Will he topple Ago's 123? - of course he will, and that's precisely why he keeps racing.
8/ Casey's Comeback: So many people on here wanted him to fall flat on his arse...and he did just that during the warm up lap in Valencia...but only after stringing together the most emphatic astonishing sequence of races, and demonstrating a will of steel and an iron resolve to match. Mentally weak? - I don't think so.
9/ The Last Donington: Yeah it's only 20 miles away from me, and the parkland section is amongst one of the most glorious ribbons of asphalt in the world, but I hate the place. I've always longed to see the GP back at Silverstone. I appreciate that Doni is the spiritual home of British bike racing, and offers a superb view of the circuit, but I'm sick of the predominantly crap racing - promising races ruined by the bolt on 'car park' section. Where Silverstone may not offer the best trackside experience I've always maintained it is so fast and flowing that it is crying out for MotoGP - and although I'm loath to admit it - this current formula. Anyway, I'm sick of visiting a warzone every year. Following the last race I got a lift back from Rog and Bonnie, and I felt like I was being evacuated from my final tour of duty. With half the place under excavation, I felt lucky to get out alive. It now transpires that all they've done is dug themselves into a shitload of debt.
10/ Gino Rea: Remember folks - you heard it here first
8527:Gino_Rea_2009.jpg]
Other noteworthy events - Rossi's appearance at the IOM TT, Maladin's retirement (depending on which way you look at it), Bradley finally arriving, Julian Simon sitting up thinking he'd won the race on the penultimate lap, and Lex's house being struck by lightening.
The 10 worst/most disappointing things:
1/ JT's entire season
2/ Qatar season opener
3/ Nicky Hayden Takahashi incident
4/ Nicky Hayden De Angelis incident
5/ Nicky Hayden Lorenzo incident
6/ Those pesky 800cc minibikes
7/ Josh Brookes destroying Guinters BSB season
8/ Josh Brookes destroying half the field at Mallory
9/ Max Neukirchners accident at Monza
10/ Suzuki Moto GP effort/non-effort
Other noteworthy disappointments -That Nakano's premature retirement did not prompt SS56 to follow suit. Kawasaki pulling out of Moto GP - a relief to some. John Hopkins disastrous WSBK campaign, DMG destroying the AMA and Alvaro Bautista.
