Sipp Claims Round 3 Michelin Team Challenge in Carolina for Thrashed Bike Racing
Kershaw, SC
April 15, 2012
Reliability and pace kept Buell rider Walt Sipp in position to take the overall and GTO class victory in Round 3 of the Michelin
Team Challenge at Carolina Motorsports Park. In the GTU class RnR Repsol riders Rick Beggs and Terry Taylor took their
#4 Kawasaki to the GTU class win. In GT Lights Clayton Fisk and Max Grant rode the GMB Now Suzuki to the win over G-
Baby Racing's Jim Doyle and Nicole Ayers. This was the first win for GMB Now and the first time this year G-Baby has not won
the GT Lights class.
It is no secret that improvised teams with a local hot shoe can steal a round from the series regulars. In 2012 it looks like
several of the more seasoned teams have built stability into their formula for winning. There are still teams thrown together
for a couple rounds of fun, which is a great idea in itself. But several more serious teams have settled on a similar rider
pairing formula for the entire 2012 season.
Tim Ivanoff and Walt Sipp at Thrashed Bike are one example of combining a reliable team owner/rider with one fast privateer
for the entire season. Another example is Kawasaki equipped Martinez/Ferrell Performance. They pair two reliable riders,
Ferrell being a very fast privateer, with perennial Team Challenge owner and champion Calvin Martinez for a run at the
championship.
Bucking that formula and each taking different approaches are RnR Repsol and Chester Auto Repair. At RnR Repsol Rick
Beggs runs two bikes sharing riding with Terry Taylor, Jason Gibbens and Rachel Sasse. The lineup makes for a known
quantity in planning the team's year. But multiple Team Challenge Champion Eric Helmbach goes it alone on the Chester
Auto Repair BMW. Then there is another fairly new team owner in the series, Christian Meekma, who formed XRay with well-
known ASRA champion Ray Hofman, Hofman playing the role of the fast rider. There are more teams and more formulas.
These are just a few worth noting.
All this might suggest that on any given weekend you have a recipe for racing drama. and Round 3 was no exception.
Beautiful weather, a few clouds and moderate temps welcomed 110 riders to Carolina Motorsports Park this weekend. A total
of 594 entries peppered classes in CCS and the Michelin Team Challenge.
Overall & GTO
In this event Walt Sipp rode the Thrashed Bike Buell 1125 to victory while teammate/owner Ivanoff managed the pit operation
for the team. Having finished fourth and third in the first and second rounds respectively the win was a welcome result for the
team's preparation as they work to make their two Buell's more reliable.
Leading early in the race, and perhaps the favorite to win the Overall and GTO after taking the first two rounds at Roebling
and Heartland Park, was the Martinez/Ferrell Performance Kawasaki 1000. But a late-race miscalculation contributed to the
team's runner up finish. After a blazing start and holding the lead for 43 laps Jason Ferrell pitted for fuel and a rider change
relinquishing the lead to Helmbach's BMW. Helmbach pitted four laps later handing the lead to Sipp's Buell. Martinez now on
board the Kawasaki took the lead again as Sipp pitted on lap 57. On lap 62 Sipp re-assumed the lead as Martinez pitted to
hand the ZX10R back to Ferrell.
Ferrell, thinking Sipp's Buell to be a lap down, upon re-entry made no attempt to re-pass Walt Sipp. Sipp assumed Ferrell
would be coming and was managing the fasted pace he dared on a tire that was becoming more of a challenge with each
passing lap.
As the pair of riders saw the white flag Ferrell realized that Sipp received it first and that he (Ferrell) would need to make a
pass on Sipp on the last lap for the win. Ferrell made up no time on Sipp through the turn 4-5-6-7-8 complex and could not
catch Sipp on the back straight leaving no real opportunity to make up the 3-second gap.
Sipp commented on the podium that he had the Flu and that tire management on a bike without traction control was a chore.
But anyone could see his pride in having overcome those challenges, bringing the burly Buell home for the win. Eric
Helmbach, also sick from a bad cold, finished third in GTO and overall.
3/12
Sipp, Farrell, Miller Take Michelin PRO Series Openers
Bloomingdale, GA Temperatures in the mid-seventies set the stage for potentially record-breaking lap times as the paddock
prepared to compete in Round One of the 2012 Michelin PRO Series. A number of past champions were on hand and the
action got started with Michelin Pro SportBike.
Michelin Pro ThunderBikes
In Michelin PRO Thunderbike Walt Sipp intended to use pole position to full advantage, but a less-than-perfect start opened
the door for Ducati rider Ray Hofman to control the pace for the first three laps. Sipp, riding a Buell, and Bob Robbins, also a
Ducati, trailed Hofman. Russell Masecar was fourth.
Hofman and Sipp's duel opened a gap to the field as the pair ran laps in the low 1:16's. By lap four, Sipp pushing ever harder
and made his way past Hofman in Turn One. With Hofman behind, Sipp shifted his focus to pushed his Buell XB12R to a new
ASRA PRO Thunderbike race lap record for Roebling Road at 1:15.872 on lap seven, eclipsing former record-holder Trey
Yonces' mark from 2011.
Said Sipp, "Ray was riding really well. I didn't want to make a mistake and look over the wrong shoulder like I did yesterday
and let him come around me. This allowed me to start off the season well and thanks to everybody for helping me out
Hofman added, "I started drifting back towards the end of the race. There was one lapper that held me up in Turn Three, but
I didn't have what it took today to catch Walt. He had a good race. The Michelin tires were working great. Indy Ducati is
helping me out on this bike, so I'm real thankful for those guys.
Bob Robbins rode a nice race hanging in ahead of Masecar's Suzuki at the end. Bob added, "Third place is good. These
guys were in another zip code, but that's okay. I I was out there and held onto it. Russell Masecar was chasing me down.
Good pace. The bike is working beautiful."
Gino Angella placed his Ducati fifth behind Masecar.
3/12
Jason Farrell Scores Round One Win - Michelin Team Challenge at Roebling Road
Bloomingdale, GA – March 10, 2012
Calvin Martinez and Jason Farrell teamed up for the Round One overall victory and GTO top spot on their Martinez Farrell
Motorsports Kawaski ZX10R. Martinez and Farrell fielded two entries, one with Calvin Martinez and Dustin Young sharing
duties, but it was Farrell riding solo who out-paced 2011 Overall Champion Eric Helmbach's Chester Auto Repair BMW and
the BEI/Vesrah Endurance GSXR entry of Billy Etheridge and Tim Bemisderfer.
Farrell started from the third row behind Bemisderfer and BMW-mounted Nate Kern on the outside of row one. At the drop of
the green flag Walt Sipp on the Thrashed Bike Racing Buell 1125 edged out Kern down the front straight. But by the entry to
turn one Jimmy Cohrs muscled his way past the duo for the lead. By the middle of lap two Cohrs opened a two-second gap
from Bemisderfer, Kern and Sipp. Farrell was missing from the lead pack as on the first lap a shifter bolt backed out forcing
him to pit for a quick repair. As Cohrs and the field came around, Farrell rejoined a lap down but even with the leaders.
By lap four Helmbach had moved up to second behind Cohrs with Bemisderfer trailing. Dan Heverly on the Angry Peaches
GTU entry secured the GTU lead from the #62 RNR Repsol Kawasaki by lap four. RNR's #4 Repsol entry was third in class.
In GT Lights the GMB Now Racing Suzuki 650 of Clayton Fisk led from the start. Mark Gage on the DaytonaSportbikes.com
SV ran second and G-Baby Racing's Jim Doyle was third on another Suzuki 650.
Bemisderfer passed Cohrs on lap eight for the lead. Helmbach, Kern & Sipp trailed the pair. Cohrs got back past
Bemisderfer on lap nine but on lap 11 Cohrs pulled his GSXR behind the wall. On the following lap the order in GTO was
Bemisderfer from Kern with Sipp turning one of his best laps a 1:14.747. Helmbach was fourth and Justin Neyra was fifth on a
ZX10R. RNR's #62 machine led GTU just ahead of Dan Heverly riding the Angry Peaches entry. Ray Hofman lay third in GTU
on Christian Meekma's XJR Racing. Fisk led from Doyle in GT Lights with Gage was third.
On lap 48 Tim Bemisderfer pitted for his rider change and Jason Farrell had the chance he was looking for to take the lead.
Said Farrell, "A bolt backed out on the first lap. I came in. We fixed it and when the field came around I was a lap down. The
bike was good and we did the whole race on the same tires."
Farrell scored the win with Helmbach second and Bemisderfer and Etheridge rounding out the podium for the Overall and
GTO.
After the race Billy Etheridge said, "Tim started and went to lap 50 where the team took on a rear tire and fuel and then I took
over and brought home." Etheridge managed a third with Eric Helmbach taking the second slot for Chester Auto Repair. Walt
Sipp finished fourth. Sipp said, "When the ignition problem went away we were doing some good times. Only the rear tire
degradation kept us from bring it to the other guys today."
Kern and Alfredo Braca teamed on the BMW. Kern started the race from the front row and they switched riders on lap 38.
Braca commented, "I took the bike from Nate. Everything was good, but I started to lose rear traction towards the end of the
race. I pulled in to check the pressure, but there was nothing wrong so I continued. We had zero issues on the BMW."
In GTU Premier Racing's Daniel Dougherty snagged the top step and finished sixth overall. Second in GTU went to Angry
Peaches' riders Dan Heverly and Allison Fournier. Said Allison, "Dan started the race and with about 25 to go he handed off
to me. The bike was good but the tire was starting to go off a little toward the end." Third in GTU were Rick Beggs and Jason
Ebbens on the #62 RNR Cycles Repsol Kawasaki.
Nicole Ayers teamed up with Jim Doyle on the G-Baby SV. Nicole started the race and did 25 laps, her first time at Roebling.
And they won GT Lights. The G-Baby team is going try and do at least five rounds in 2012 in their hunt for the GT Lights
Michelin Team Challenge title.
Bill Wissinger and Mark Gage ran the DaytonaSportbikes.com entry with Mark starting and handing off to Bill just over
halfway. Other than Bill reporting he was 12" taller than an SV rider should be there were no problems and they came home
second in GT Lights behind G-Baby. Third in GT Lights, Clayton Fisk and Brad Faas shared the GMB Now SV650. Clayton
started the race and handed of to Brad. When Brad put it into gear to leave the pits the clutch basket had failed. The engine
stalled and they could not re-enter the race. The failure put them third.
3/12
Walt Sipp and Thrashed Bike Racing Announce 2012 Racing Plans
Breaux Bridge, LA – Thrashed Bike Racing/Bison Racing rider Walt Sipp announced today that He will make a return to the
AMA Daytona Sportbike Series as well ASRA Team Challenge and ASRA Thunderbike riding for Tim Ivanoff’s Thrashed Bike
Racing and the late Dick Fish’s Bison Racing.
With the AMA, the team will participate in the Road Atlanta, Barber and New Orleans rounds of Daytona Sportbike on a Buell
1125R. The team also plans a full championship assault on the ASRA Team Challenge Series riding the Buell 1125RR as well
as the ASRA Thunderbike Series riding a Buell XB12R.
Sipp said, “I’m really happy with what we have put together for 2012. Last year Tim and I came close to a couple
championships with the ASRA in our first season working together. We learned a lot and really think we can improve for this
season.” He continued, “Thunderbike should be fun as well. Last year I did only two races, but was able to win them both. I’m
hoping for more success in the class this year and hopefully win a championship for my late friend. Dick may not be around
anymore, but his memory lives on and I know he’d be happy with what we’re doing. Bison Racing is backing our return to the
AMA.”
Tim added, “We had an exciting year in the 2011 ASRA Team Challenge series and expect to bring our A game to the series
again this year. The ASRA series has been great preparation to step into a limited appearance with AMA Pro Racing. Walt
has been an excellent partner and we are looking forward to the start of the season. A big thank you to the volunteer pit crew
all last year and Thanks especially to my partners Cyril and David Guidry at Arrow Aviation for helping me realize the Team’s
potential.
Walt would like to thank personal sponsors, Bison Racing, KBC Helmets, Arlen Ness, Vortex, Zero Gravity, EBC Brakes and
EC3D Compression.
The team would like to thank Arrow Aviation Company, Erik Buell Racing, and Avcal Decals for their continued support!
Interested parties may contact Tim Ivanoff at tim@arrowaviationco.com
7/11
Hall, Ortega and Sipp Take Michelin Pro Series Wins at Blackhawk Farms Raceway
Brian Hall took a solid win in Michelin Pro Series SuperStock but it was Joel Spalding who increased is point lead in the class
for 2011. Spalding, by his third place finish, moved to a 29-point lead over Tim Bemisderfer and a 36-point lead over Hall in
his quest for a second straight title in the class.
Dan Ortega took advantage of the rain that dampened the track during the Michelin Pro SportBike race and took his first win
in ASRA competition over Dave Ebben. Ebben took off from the field in the dry but the change to rain tires was just enough to
allow Ortega to pullout the victory. Joel Spalding finished third but Ortega's performance narrowed his point lead to just 14
points over Ortega and 16 over Scotty Ryan in the 2011 Michelin Pro SportBike title chase.
In ThunderBike Walt Sipp continues to chip away at Ray Hofman's lead by taking his second win of 2011 and narrowing the
point lead to 59 in the Championship. Todd Evans helped fellow Buell rider Sipp by finishing second and pushing Hofman
back to third on his Suzuki 650.
Iowa's Craig Davis took his second win of 2011 in Amateur SuperStock and now leads Austin Burkett from Virginia by 22-
points with three rounds remaining in the series.
Michelin Team Challenge Series
South Beloit, ILIn the early part of the Michelin Team Challenge sanctioned by ASRA at Blackhawk Farms Raceway it looked
like the Martinez Motorsports Team was headed for disaster as they found themselves slipping further back in the field with
each passing lap. By the 25th lap the D2 Cycles team of Michael Garner and Ricardo Valdez had put former National
Champions a full lap down and mechanical woes threatened to sideline Calvin Martinez and Martinez Motorsports teammate
Jason Farrell. It was that point of the event the defending National Champion Chester Auto Repair with Eric Helmbach and
Alex Shaw who took the lead when D2 Cycles stopped for the first time.
With a pit stop at lap 34, Martinez Motorsports swapped riders and completed repairs to bring their machine back to life but
left the pits a full 3-laps down to Chester Auto Repair. To add insult to injury, one of the Martinez crew was not dressed
appropriately to work on the machine during the stop so Farrell was black flagged for a stop and go penalty the next lap. As
Martinez Motorsports was exiting the pits from the penalty, Chester Auto came down pit road and handed the lead to
Thrashed Bike Racing with Walt Sipp and Joel Spalding on lap 40 and allowing Martinez Motorsports to regain the first of the
three laps they needed to challenge for the win. At this point The D2 Cycles machine developed an oil leak that ended their
day, leaving only Thrashed Bike Racing and Chester Auto Repair as the only two machines on the lead lap and Stiles Racing,
the current Overall Championship leader, one lap behind and Martinez Motorsports two laps down.
Things got interesting from lap 40 on as Farrell dropped into the 1:10 range while the race leaders continued their consistent
1:15 pace trying to complete the 75 laps before the Martinez Motorsports machine could recover. On lap 47, Thrashed Bike
stopped for their rider change and fuel, putting Chester Auto back into the lead for the final time and allowing Martinez
Motorsports to gain the second lap they need to get to the front. Now only one lap down with 27 laps to the finish it became a
race of speed versus team strategy between Chester Auto Repair and Martinez Motorsports. On lap 57, Martinez Motorsports
passed Chester Auto to move to the tail end of the lead lap and set sail trying to make up the nearly 2-miles they were behind
before the checkered flag.
While everyone was watching the progress of Martinez Motorsports, Stiles Racing had quietly gotten themselves back on the
lead lap too, so now the top four overall were on the same lap looking for the win. On lap 59, Stiles Racing with husband and
wife team Scotty and Meghan Ryan, were the first to fall to the 1:10 pace Martinez Racing continued to run. On lap 67 it was
the Thrashed Bike Racing team that watched Martinez Motorsports move past and set sail after the race leader, Chester Auto
Repair who was 9 seconds ahead with 8 laps to go. While Shaw tried to up the pace on the BMW of Chester Auto, the
Martinez Motorsports juggernaut made short work of the lead and made the pass for first place on lap 71 then cruised to the
victory, first Overall and first in GTO. Chester Auto Repair finished second Overall and second in GTO while Stiles Racing
took third Overall and the class win in GTU. Thrashed Bike Racing held on for fourth Overall and third in GTO.
With the solid performance of Stiles Racing, they continue to lead the 2011 Michelin Team Challenge Overall Championship
by 8 points over Chester Auto Repair, 167 to 159, with Thrashed Bike Racing in third with 151points and two rounds to go to
decide the Overall championship.
The Old Glory Speed Shop team captured its first National Championship in the GTL class with another win and a 93 point
lead over runner up Saddlebaum Racing with only 70 possible points remaining.
For the GTU Championship, Stiles Racing opened up a 27 point lead over 2010 Champion RnR Repsol Racing and a 69
point lead over third place Premier Racing.
The battle for the GTO Championship is going down to the wire as Thrashed Bike Racing is now tied with defending
champions Chester Auto Repair with 182 points each, while Martinez Motorsport moves into third at 93 points with 2 rounds
remaining. The 89 point lead insures that either a BMW or a Buell will be the 2011 Michelin Team Challenge GTO Champion.
For complete results click here. For updated Michelin Team Challenge points click here.
Walt Sipp.com
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