(April 27, 2008) The No. 7 Richie Morris Racing/Hal’s Harley-Davidson/Buell XB12R ridden by Mike Smith and Clint Brotz won the BMW Motorcycles GrandSport Twins class at the VIR SunTrust MOTO-ST 500K at Virginia International Raceway April 27 over the Rights for Bikers Ducati 1000. The No. 70 James Gang/Hoban Brothers Racing Buell XB12R, sponsored by H-D/Buell of Appleton and ridden by Paul James and Jeff Johnson finished in third place.

Damp pre-race conditions and a threat of rain caused several teams to gamble on tire choice early on, but the entire race distance was completed in dry conditions that favored the Buell teams that started on Pirelli Diablo Supercorsa DOT tires.

“The Buell was a pleasure to ride,” said RMR’s Mike Smith of Canton, Ga., who flew in early Saturday morning just in time to qualify the No. 7 in the third position on the grid. “It’s been a long time since I’ve ridden at VIR especially in the rain. But the team gave us a great bike.”

“We were a little cautious early on in the damp conditions, but solid pit stops and consistent riding got us back on the box again,” said James Gang/Hoban Brothers Racing’s Paul James.

After two rounds, the RMR Buell team leads the GST class championship with 65 points, followed by the James Gang/Hoban Brothers Racing Buell team in second with 62 points and the Wagner Motorsports Ducati in third with 60 points.

In the Buell Motorcycle Company SuperSport Twins (SST) class, the Bruce Rossmeyer’s Daytona Racing Buell 1125R ridden by Shawn Higbee and Dan Bilansky qualified second and led the race for several laps, but was sidelined with suspected clutch problems after the first pit stop. The SST class win and overall victory went to the No. 1 Aprilia USA Aprilia Tuono 1000R.

The next stop on the MOTO-ST schedule is at Road America in Elkhart Lake, Wis., on June 7 during the AMA Suzuki Superbike Doubleheader weekend.

Sipp Wins ASRA Pro Thunderbike Race at Topeka
Walt Sipp made a last-lap pass stick and rode his Buell XB12R Firebolt to win the second round of the 2008 American Sportbike Racing Association (ASRA) Pro Thunderbike National series at Heartland Park Topeka raceway April 27. It was the first pro-level win for the 31-year-old racer from Kansas City.

Sipp qualified second for the Pro Thunderbike National behind BMW rider Nate Kern, who posted a lap of 1:49.619. Defending ASRA Pro Thunderbike champion Dave Estok posted a faster lap in qualifying but was bumped to the back of the grid when his Deeley H-D/Buell Canada/Ruthless Racing Buell XB12R would not start for a post-qualifying dyno test.

Estok was not set back for long, as the rider from New Smyrna Beach, Fla. moved up to second position behind Kern on the first lap of the 12-lap national and took the lead on lap two. Sipp had slipped back to fifth position after a bad start.

“I wanted to get a good start because I know Kern is always fast on cold tires, and I didn’t want him to get away,” said Sipp. “But I missed my shift to second gear on the start and fell behind.”

Estok opened a gap on Kern, as Sipp worked through traffic. Sipp passed Kern on lap eight and then suddenly found himself in the lead when Estok’s motorcycle stopped running and he left the track.

“I had really used up my tires catching those guys, and I had a good lead on Kern so I went into tire-conservation mode,” said Sipp. Sipp’s slower pace allowed Kern to catch him, and he passed to take the lead on the first turn of the final lap.

“I was not going to let him take this win away from me,” said Sipp. “I ran as hard as I could and got past him and held him off at the line. It was really exciting to get my first pro win here at my home track in front of my family.”

Both Sipp and Kern rode their fastest laps on the final circuit of the race, and both were under the previous track record for the Pro Thunderbike class. Sipp led by less than a bike length at the finish.

Third place went to Hal’s H-D/Buell/Hal’s Speed Shop rider Dean Hagemann on a Buell XB12R. Hagemann, who is usually the team mechanic for Pro Thunderbike regular Dan Bilansky, rode Bilansky’s XB12R at Topeka as Bilansky was racing at the MOTO-ST event in Virginia.

After two ASRA events, Kern holds the lead in Pro Thunderbike points with 66. Sipp is second with 58 points, followed by Estok with 42.

The next stop on the eight-race ASRA Pro Thunderbike schedule is the Summit Point Festival of Speed, May 24-26, at Summit Point Motorsports Park, Summit Point, W.V.

Spaulding Rides Buell to Eight CCS Wins
In a double-header weekend of MotoSport.com Championship Cup Series (CCS) sprint racing at Topeka, Joel Spaulding of Huntley, Ill. rode his Hal’s Speed Shop Buell XB12R to wins in eight of 10 classes he entered, including double wins in Amateur Lightweight Superbike, Amateur Lightweight Grand Prix, and Amateur Thunderbike, and single wins in Amateur SuperTwins and Amateur GT Lights. Kegel H-D/Buell rider Jay Smith of Machesney Park, Ill., rode his Buell XB12R to two wins in Amateur Lightweight SuperSport. Estok won Expert Thunderbike on Sunday.

To learn more about Buell motorcycles, visit your local Buell dealer today and experience the pure streetfighter attitude, style and performance only found on board a Buell. For the Buell dealer nearest you, pull into www.buell.com.