Scott Speed knows he’s going to have to put up with a lot of abuse and criticism in his rookie season this year – from fans, from other drivers. And the former Formula One driver is prepared to take it.
“It’s my spot to,” Speed said. “I’m a rookie by huge standards. I’m learning a lot. These guys all have a lot more experience. They’re a lot better than me. It would be stupid to go in there and not take some stuff because some guy cut me off or put me up high. It is my time. I need to learn. When I get good and I’m fighting for championships it’s going to be a different story.”
Fighting for a title was what Speed was doing in October in the final ARCA Series race of the year at Toledo when he was taken out by the driver trailing Speed in the points, Ricky Stenhouse Jr. …Â More info
Motorcycle Champs Will Return Again For 2009 Pikes Peak International Hill Climb And So Is Super Stock Car Legend Clint Vahsholtz.
Colorado Springs, February 7, 2009—Motorcyle racing at the 87th running of the Pikes Peak International Hill Climb on July 19 in Colorado Springs is some of the legendary event’s most exciting stuff for the thousands of fans who will jam spaces along the road to the summit of the 14,000-foot peak.
And so it will be again for 2007 Champion and 2008 runnerup Mike Ell of Raymore, Missouri, who will be back again on his Yamaha Banshee in the Motorcycle Quad 500 Class to seek the top spot in the rarified air on Pikes Peak…Â More info
SAN FRANCISCO – Susan Gorin calls it a “Levi sighting.â€
The Santa Rosa mayor says she often hears reports from locals saying they had spotted professional cyclist Levi Leipheimer training on city roads.
“Levi doesn’t just live here,†Gorin says proudly. “He trains around here.â€
Another local, Gary Wysocky, first spotted the cyclist training along a stretch of Sonoma County road. Wysocky said he was able to interrupt Leipheimer for a 10-minute chat, which turned out to be a good-luck encounter: Leipheimer would eventually help him become a Santa Rosa lawmaker.
“He endorsed me for City Council,†said Wysocky. Asked if he had ever gone on a bike ride with Leipheimer, he chuckled. “In my dreams,†he said.
That Leipheimer, a 12-year Santa Rosa resident, has become a hometown hero is of little surprise. After switching from competitive Alpine skiing to cycling at age 19, the humble 35-year-old climbing specialist grew into one of the world’s best athletes, twice winning the Amgen Tour of California (tour officials are now calling him “the King of Californiaâ€), becoming the fourth American in history to finish on the podium of the Tour de France (2007) and earning an Olympic bronze medal last year in Beijing, among a long list of impressive cycling accomplishments…. More info
At first sight, Jake Ryan Munoz looks like the average 1-year-old.
SAN FRANCISCO – Susan Gorin calls it a “Levi sighting.â€