BLEED FOR SPEED; SUPERBIKE IS SUPER FAST, AND SUPER COOL, FOR BOSTROM BROTHERS.Byline: Gerry Gittelson Staff Writer Zooming through turns at 180 mph and jockeying for position against 30 other motorcycle racers, AMA Superbike The AMA Superbike is the premiere superbike racing series in the United States. It is part of the AMA Pro Racing series, and it is managed by the American Motorcyclist Association (AMA). competitors Ben and Eric Bostrom Eric Bostrom (born November 19, 1976 in San Francisco, California) is an American professional motorcycle racer and brother of Ben Bostrom, who also races motorcycles professionally. of Granada Hills never worry about risks. They're too busy having fun. ``I wouldn't trade what I do for anything in the world. I couldn't imagine a better life,'' said Ben, 25, the defending AMA Superbike champion who along with brother Eric will compete in the World Superbike The term Superbike is used to describe sport bikes with displacement of around 1000cc. Superbikes have have lightweight frames and are powered by high performance engines. Their design is more focused on race track performance than rider comfort. Championship at Laguna Seca Raceway near Monterey at 11 a.m. Sunday. ``As far as fun goes, it's super cool,'' said Eric, 22. Ben was sidelined for three months after tearing a tendon in his hand during a 170-mph crash in December. Eric, who broke his leg in March, said injuries ``are all part of the challenge.'' ``I think an injury like Ben suffered might have been career ending or at least career limiting,'' crew chief Jim Leonard James R. Leonard, Sr. (February 14, 1910 - December 2, 1993) was a two sport star at Notre Dame University during the 1930's, both as a pitcher in baseball and a fullback in football. said. ``Ben's a tough little guy. The doctors hadn't yet scheduled him for a skin graft skin graft Autologous, donated, or surrogate skin removed from one site to cover surfaces on another region with 3rd-degree burns or traumatic tissue loss. See Split-thickness graft. Cf Artificial skin, 'Spray-on' skin. and he was talking about getting back on the bike to test. That's guts.'' Surprisingly, Ben said he usually doesn't realize how fast he's really going. ``Yes, we're going 185 miles per hour, but it's all relative It's All Relative is an ABC sitcom about a man who dates the adoptive daughter of a gay couple, which forces their very different families to learn to coexist. Overview ,'' he said. ``It's hard to describe, but in some ways it feels the same way being in a car on the freeway going 65 because we're all going the same speed.'' Eric also downplays the physical challenge of controlling a two-wheeled vehicle with a ratio of almost one horsepower per pound. ``Racing is very mental,'' Eric said. ``You have to be on. If you're just a little bit off, you're going going to be in a lot of trouble.'' Eric competes for team Ducati and Eric for Honda. The brothers have raced head-to-head 12 times, and Eric, now in his first full-time season, has beaten his older brother twice. Eric said the 100-kilometer Laguna Seca race will be the most competitive he's faced in his career because every contestant is considered world class. ``There's more fast guys in this race than I've ever seen before,'' Eric said. ``The field has more depth.'' The brothers have been competing since they were 4 and 6 years old. The difference now is that the top racers in the world can make seven figures, and the motorcycles cost nearly half a million dollars. ``The good thing about racing against each other is that there's always been a real rivalry between us for as long as I can remember,'' Eric said. ``Now no matter who wins, we're just happy for each other because there's so many good racers. We have to worry about all 30 guys, not just each other. But going against each other and training together still raises our performance levels.'' Ben, the AMA (Automatic Message Accounting) The recording and reporting of telephone calls within a telephone system. It includes the calling and called parties and start and stop times of the call. Rookie of the Year Rookie of the Year may refer to:
Eric turned professional at 16 and captured the AMA Formula Xtreme Championship in his third year, when he won nine of 11 races. He reached the elite Superbike level late last season and won two-of-four races and finished in the top five in the other two. A CLOSER LOOK Who: Ben and Eric Bostrom What: World Superbike Championship Where: Laguna Seca Raceway, near Monterey When: Sunday, 11 a.m. Fast facts: The Bostrom brothers, who live in Granada Hills, have been competing in motorcycle races since they were in kindergarten. The Superbike class is motorcycle racing's elite division. Ben, 25, was the AMA Rookie of the Year in 1992 and won the Superbike Series championship in 1998. Eric, 22, turned pro at age 16 and won two of four races last season. The two have gone head-to-head 12 times in their careers, with Ben winning 10 of the meetings. CAPTION(S): 3 Photos, Box PHOTO (1) Speed demons Demons See also devil; evil; ghosts; hell; spirits and spiritualism. ademonist one who denies the existence of the devil or demons. bogyism, bogeyism recognition of the existence of demons and goblins. and adrenaline adrenaline (ədrĕn`əlĭn, –lēn): see epinephrine. junkies like Granada Hills residents Eric, left, and Ben Bostrom Ben Bostrom (born May 7, 1974) is an American motorcycle racer. The son of Dave and nephew of Paul Bostrom, both successful dirt-track racer, Bostrom began his career in the same fashion, winning the AMA National 600 Dirt Track Championship in 1993. will compete in the AMA World Superbike Championship. Hans Gutknecht/Daily News (2--3) Ben and Eric Bostrom BOX: A CLOSER LOOK (see text) |
|
||||||||||||||
Printer friendly
Cite/link
Email
Feedback
Reader Opinion