On Monday and Thursday of this week, Team RidersDiscount.com and Jake Holden Racing tested the RidersDiscount.com-built Yamaha YZF-R1 and BMW S1000RR superbikes at Grattan Raceway Park and Gingerman Raceway, respectively. The team got together after the AMA event at Mid-Ohio to help Jake determine which bike would be best suited for his return to the AMA American SuperBike class at the upcoming Red Bull U.S. Grand Prix weekend in Laguna Seca. The two tracks offer a sharp contrast from each other, which is ideal for testing the strengths and weaknesses of each machine. Grattan Raceway features a fast, flowing layout with many blind corners along with a few drops and rises. Gingerman, on the other hand, while mostly flat, demands a very precise line to get the fastest lap and so, puts stability under braking at a premium.
Jake remarked that the Yamaha YZF-R1 features a smooth power delivery on corner exits and a fantastic growl from the crossplane crank motor. For the BMW S1000RR, Jake’s favorite aspect was the bike’s top-end power and the unobtrusive electronics package. The positives of each bike will lend themselves well to Laguna Seca’s undulating layout and now that he’s had a chance to ride both bikes on two completely different tracks, Jake has a limited amount of time to decide which bike will work best at the California track.
Jake Holden – “I was excited to ride the RidersDiscount.com superbikes. After Mid-Ohio, which was just a devastating race for my season, I was looking forward to going riding and having fun with the RidersDiscount.com crew. And that’s exactly what we did – I got to ride a couple of kick ass superbikes that they built; the BMW S1000RR and Yamaha R1. It got my mind off of some of the things I’d been stressing about lately. Now I’m looking forward to getting on the superbike at Laguna Seca because that’s where I had my first AMA career win and I’ve always been pretty successful there.
I’d like to thank everyone at Riders Discount for supporting me this week during testing. It was a lot of fun and it was good to go back to where I started at the club level just doing trackdays with friends and people who enjoy riding and racing. It was a lot of fun to get out there and learn some new tracks. Now I just have to pick the bike I want to ride!”
Brian Gibson, owner RidersDiscount.com – “It was very satisfying to watch Jake ride the bikes we built and listen to his feedback on each one. It was clear after his first session on each bike Monday at Grattan Raceway that he knew exactly what he wanted from each machine. Now all he has to do is decide which bike he wants to take to the grid at Laguna Seca! The whole team is really excited for Jake’s return to the AMA’s main event, especially since we built these bikes ourselves using the very same parts we sell!”
In addition to his first 2011 appearance in the AMA Pro American SuperBike class at Laguna Seca, Jake will continue to compete aboard the Ducati 848 EVO in Daytona SportBike. Jake Holden Racing and Team RidersDiscount.com have only a small amount of time for Jake to decide which bike he wants to take to the line at the Laguna Seca weekend and an announcement will be made shortly. For race updates, videos and other news, check out facebook.com/ridersdiscount and facebook.com/jakeholdenracing
Jake Holden would like to thank RidersDiscount.com, FMF Exhaust, Motul, Shoei Helmets, Cortech Apparel, Sidi, Held, Motion-Pro, Liquid Performance, Vortex Racing, Bazzaz Performance Design, SharkSkinz Bodywork, Zero Gravity Windscreens, Vicci, Goodridge Brake Lines, Speedy Moto, K & N Engineering and Penske Shocks.
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