Moto GP Austin - COTA

[PJPR01]

Will be attending Sunday at Moto GP in Austin this year, possibly Saturday depending on other obligations.  Easy 150 mile ride up from Houston. 

Most likely on the Scura.  Who else is going?

Hoping the King of COTA can get some challenge this year from the other riders and we'll see lots of great passing instead of a typical 3-6 second massive lead, and of course, hoping for good weather!

[LowRyter]

Strongly considering.   Darren and perhaps his wife, Deb, are even more likely.   Depends on weather, lodging and additional riding opportunities.  We lost our fellow Guzzi rider Mike Prentice last year (RIP) who was our host in '19.  

 

Mike

[PJPR01]

Hey John...I remember Mike well from Cedar Vale...soft spoken and very decent chap.  I was afraid his medical issue may have taken a turn for the worse, I'm sorry to hear the news he passed.

Look forward to seeing you guys there if you make it down!

 

[bbolesaz]

I'll be there all 3 days.  Look for dark blue BMW K1600B Grand America, massively farkeled and darksided.  I will be doing the track lap also, should be easy to spot in that crowd.  Got Turn 15 grandstand tickets in the southernmost section.

[PJPR01]

3 hours ago, bbolesaz said:

I'll be there all 3 days.  Look for dark blue BMW K1600B Grand America, massively farkeled and darksided.  I will be doing the track lap also, should be easy to spot in that crowd.  Got Turn 15 grandstand tickets in the southernmost section.

I’d like to see that bike!  What dark side tire are you running out of curiosity?  We do usually sit in Turn 15 or 16 also…will see what’s available!

[p6x]

On 3/12/2022 at 11:59 AM, PJPR01 said:

Will be attending Sunday at Moto GP in Austin this year, possibly Saturday depending on other obligations.  Easy 150 mile ride up from Houston. 

Most likely on the Scura.  Who else is going?

Hoping the King of COTA can get some challenge this year from the other riders and we'll see lots of great passing instead of a typical 3-6 second massive lead, and of course, hoping for good weather!

The king of COTA is unlikely to be there. He is missing Argentina because of Diplopia, Stephan Bradl will be there in any case.

I am unlikely to be able to attend due to an ongoing unforeseen issue that has affected me these past week.

[PJPR01]

As long as it's a nice sunny day, the racing will be enjoyable.  Like most of the races this year, I'm guessing we'll have a surprise winner if Marquez is unable to participate. 

Regardless, it's always a nice excuse for a ride up to Austin, a little detour to Lockhart afterwards and then home.  Makes for a fun day out.

Red/black Griso is likely to be the steed of choice this year, Scura is going to go thru some tank off maintenance over the next couple of weeks, 4 new rubber intake boots/throttle body boots, rubber bumpers for the tank mount on the frame, a replacement fuel downspout that I've had on the bench for a while and it's time to put on now.

[p6x]

9 hours ago, PJPR01 said:

As long as it's a nice sunny day, the racing will be enjoyable.  Like most of the races this year, I'm guessing we'll have a surprise winner if Marquez is unable to participate.

The Indonesian race was difficult to predict, although if it had not been scaled down from 27 laps to 20, we may have had a different winner.

 

[bbolesaz]

Our seats are Section T15-25, Row 23, Seats 1-4.

My darkside tire is a Leao Lion Sport 205/50R-17. I chose it because it is symmetric and has well rounded sides.  I have 2 rear wheels and swap back to a moto tire for normal riding.  The darkside is for the 2000+ mile, Interstate-10, tire burning ride from Mesa, AZ to Austin and back.

 

[PJPR01]

That is smart!  

[p6x]

@PJPR01

Marc Marquez will be at COTA this week-end. If he is your favorite "horse", then you will have the opportunity to see him race!

Personally, I think it makes sense for him to return here. This is clearly the best place for him to come back.

Now the question that everyone has: can he dominate the way he has on this track? we will need to verify that.

[GuzziMoto]

With the level the Honda is at this year (it is one of the better bikes, finally) it seems that if he can't go well at COTA he can't go well anywhere. He should do well. But Pol has been as fast or faster on this new Honda. Marc may find his biggest competition is from his teammate.

[LowRyter]

Glad to know he's fit to ride.  Still not my favorite but I can appreciate him overcoming a struggle.  

[PJPR01]

4 hours ago, p6x said:

@PJPR01

Marc Marquez will be at COTA this week-end. If he is your favorite "horse", then you will have the opportunity to see him race!

Personally, I think it makes sense for him to return here. This is clearly the best place for him to come back.

Now the question that everyone has: can he dominate the way he has on this track? we will need to verify that.

Thanks for the update p6x!  Looking forward to a good day at the races, will watch the qualifiers via the Moto GP subscription and see if the King can be competitive. I agree with the above that if he can't have a good showing at COTA, he should take time off to recover completely or he risks jeopardizing the remainder of his career.

Now I also wonder how many Rossi fans will not show up now that he's retired, and if overall attendance will be down year over year.   It was good to see him race last year and send him off in style...the crowd was very appreciative.

Griso is ready to go, Scura is on the operating table with lots of bits and bobs off at the moment...struggling a bit to get the left pork chop off to get to the shifter extender which I have been meaning to replace for several years now since buying that here on the forum!  Peeking into the throttle bodies, they'll need a cleaning too with a fine toothbrush to get rid of some of the gunk accumulation there, new rubber intake boots all around, valve adjustment and new gaskets coming up, and then a proper tune again once all the new items are in place.  Everything else looks good so far with the tank off, airbox pretty clean, just a bit of oil in the bottom to remove, air filter still in good shape.

[p6x]

1 hour ago, PJPR01 said:

Thanks for the update p6x!  Looking forward to a good day at the races, will watch the qualifiers via the Moto GP subscription and see if the King can be competitive. I agree with the above that if he can't have a good showing at COTA, he should take time off to recover completely or he risks jeopardizing the remainder of his career.

Now I also wonder how many Rossi fans will not show up now that he's retired, and if overall attendance will be down year over year.   It was good to see him race last year and send him off in style...the crowd was very appreciative.

Griso is ready to go, Scura is on the operating table with lots of bits and bobs off at the moment...struggling a bit to get the left pork chop off to get to the shifter extender which I have been meaning to replace for several years now since buying that here on the forum!  Peeking into the throttle bodies, they'll need a cleaning too with a fine toothbrush to get rid of some of the gunk accumulation there, new rubber intake boots all around, valve adjustment and new gaskets coming up, and then a proper tune again once all the new items are in place.  Everything else looks good so far with the tank off, airbox pretty clean, just a bit of oil in the bottom to remove, air filter still in good shape.

I would not be surprised if Marc Marquez is strong in COTA, at least on race day if not in practice. FP1 will be used to make an assessment and check how everything works under real stress. Even if he has been out less time than before, we all know that to remain at the top of your game, you need to practice as much as possible doing the real thing. Missing Indonesia and Argentina will have had an effect on him.

I don't think he is resuming just to say "I am back". Knowing MM93, he is coming back to win; especially here.

I have seen a lot of VR46 haberdashery at Thermas de los Hondos. The venue is extremely popular with not only Argentina, but all the surrounding countries, Uruguay, Brazil, Chile. I don't know if you remember that Rossi wore the Maradona/Messi #10 Jersey on the podium. There, it makes you a lot of friends! nevertheless, the Rossi mania is going to fade away as it is right it does. The show will go on.

Look at the current stats: three grand prix, three different winners and podium occupants.... isn't that great?

We are voting to elect the president this week-end, I usually help the consulate. I will watch FP1 and FP2 live though.

On a sad note, I got the diagnostic for my problem from Einar's this morning. It's coming from behind the bell housing; things have gotten so expensive!!! they need to drop the engine. It is going to cost more than my Guzzi...