Ben Spies. F%^K YEAH! and maybe some spoilers

[mdgore]

Just call Neil Hodgson for clarity.

Don't remind me.  Hodgy was one of my favorite riders.  I have his WSBK Bulldog Suomy Spec 1-R replica, and his Laguna Seca monochrome replica as well (which I still wear). 

Yeah, I was a fan.

I would have liked to see Ben on the Suzuki MotoGP bike in 2015.

Hell yeah. that would have been great............

[koko64]

+2.
There's something natural and right about him being back on a Suzuki. Even if he misses out on a factory ride, a Yoshimura satelight ride would be cool. I got it all planned, a year of rehab first then relaunch his Moto GP career, back at "home" with Suzuki.
I better call Ben's manager.. 

[zooom]

i seriously doubt there will be an AMA series 2 years from now.

a dumb man might bet against you on that...

Not to mention you can't perform at a winning level unless you ride one of 4 available bikes anyway.  Now with Stoner as their test mule, Honda might be THE only bike capable of winning in another year or two.  You can't beat having someone of his ability giving input on machines tuned to the razor edge. 

except when you compare in direct competition to those other machines as they are all being pushed to the razors edge....a racer who just does testing probably gets to a desensitized point where a piece of that is missing and they may not put as fine an edge on it as they may have in anger against another rider....

example: Bayliss was a god on the bike when he was racing, but after his 1st year of being a non-racer/tester, there seemed to be a sheen that wasn't exactly there in what he was doing in the level of progression from the reports from his development riding...

[ccm900]

As for up and coming talent in the USA, people are trying, but due to the shitshow that DMG has turned this national series into, it is going to be increasingly harder for any American to do or penetrate any of the world level racing series from America. It will have to be through a series outside, like the Spanish CEV, or BSB, or World Supersport for then to get the attention and recognition to be even considered for some of these rides.

Isn't Herrin making the move to Moto2? Still not straight to MotoGP but as far as American talent we'll see what happens there. Wish all the luck to Spies...met him briefly at Laguna Seca, he seemed stoked to get back on the bike for Indy...it's too bad.

[gm2]

yep, herrin is going to moto2 next year.  which is great news; long gone are the days of going straight into GP.  i doubt we'll ever see that again from a regional series.  the bench in moto2 and moto3 is way too deep, which was exactly the point.

[OT]

Not to mention you can't perform at a winning level unless you ride one of 4 available bikes anyway.  Now with Stoner as their test mule, Honda might be THE only bike capable of winning in another year or two.  You can't beat having someone of his ability giving input on machines tuned to the razor edge. 

I agree, in theory, but look how little his input 'helped' Ducati improve the GPs...

[Triple J]

I agree, in theory, but look how little his input 'helped' Ducati improve the GPs...

I doubt he had much actual input, other than settings changes. He (and Rossi & Hayden) already said the bike they got at the beginning of the season was basically the same one they finished the season with. The frameless idea surely wasn't his, and that's when the problems really got bad.

[Spidey]

Not to mention, any input he had didn't mean shit cuz they didn't listen to him.  Jeebus, they sent Melandri to a shrink b/c they figgered his brain was the problem rather than the bike. 

[triangleforge]

One other great reason to love TheBen is his Dr. Who-like ability to bend space and time to his will. According to Superbikeplanet:

"Spies has first-hand knowlege of Valencia and what it's like to race a MotoGP bike there. He very nearly won the 2010 Valencia Grand Prix in 2011. "

http://www.superbikeplanet.com/2013/Nov/131109-11.htm

Either that, or it was, like, the longest endurance race EVER...

[fastwin]

I better call Ben's manager.. 

His mom Mary is too busy to take your call. She's trying to figure what to do after her "money pit" retired and left her hanging.

[mdgore]

Ducati announces FACTORY WSBK Team for 2014......Maybe in another year if Ben is feeling healed and restless?

[fastwin]

^

[derby]

His mom Mary is too busy to take your call. She's trying to figure what to do after her "money pit" retired and left her hanging.

i seem to remember that mary didn't need ben's money to start with.

[nickshelby500kr]

His mom Mary is too busy to take your call. She's trying to figure what to do after her "money pit" retired and left her hanging.

Nah. I do know Ben and his mom have plenty of investment income coming in. I doubt it will be an issue.

[fastwin]

It was just a smart ass post. I know his Stackhouse burger joint by Baylor Hospital here is Dallas is doing well... by that I mean it's always crowded whenever I go there. Don't know anything about his Mom (other than her rep on the AMA roadrace circuit) or Ben's cycling team. But I think the cycling team was done more out of the love of that sport than $$. He seems like an intelligent guy and I'm sure he's well advised regarding both his finances and his current health situation. He'll come out on top one way or the other... Mom's help or not. I'd just like to see him back sooner than later in WSBK.