Speed Channel's 2 Wheel Tuesday Host Spending Spring Break Scootin' across USA; St. Patrick's Day Kickoff Sends Pair Traveling Cross-Country in Style -- on 50cc Yamaha Zuma Scooters.Entertainment Editors/Sports Editors CHARLOTTE, N.C.--(BUSINESS WIRE)--March 15, 2004 Leprechauns. Four-leaf clovers. Pints of green beer. Cross-country scooter rides? As cities across the U.S. hold the usual St. Patrick's St. Patrick's or Saint Patrick's may refer to:
"Dan came to me a while back and said, 'I have this great idea!'" said White, who finished 18th in last weekend's BMW BMW in full Bayerische Motoren Werke AG German automaker. Founded as an aircraft engine manufacturer in 1916, the company assumed the name Bayerische Motoren Werke and became known for its high-speed motorcycles in the 1920s. Boxer Cup race in Daytona. "Well, his great idea was crossing the United States United States, officially United States of America, republic (2005 est. pop. 295,734,000), 3,539,227 sq mi (9,166,598 sq km), North America. The United States is the world's third largest country in population and the fourth largest country in area. on 50cc scooters. I was all for it -- well, back then I was anyway. Now that Bike Week 2004 is over, reality is setting in. Riding a scooter with an engine the size of a hefty chainsaw cross country -- what have I gotten myself into? "Well, it should be fun and I'm really looking forward to meeting fans of 2 Wheel Tuesday," White added. "I know, however, that in three weeks, when we roll into California Speedway The California Speedway is a two-mile, low-banked, D-shaped oval superspeedway in Fontana, California, similar to that of "sister track" Michigan International Speedway. It is located approximately 40 miles east of Los Angeles on the site of the former Kaiser Steel mill. , I am going to be one happy guy." The adventure begins March 17 in Concord, N.C., when White, Parisi and the camera crew, take the green flag at Lowe's Motor Speedway Lowe's Motor Speedway (formerly Charlotte Motor Speedway) is a speedway in Concord, North Carolina, north of Charlotte. It features a 1.5 mile long quad-oval track that seats 167,000 people, with room for 50,000 more spectators in the infield. . The route, which uses no interstate highways, will take them over local highways and through several major cities along the way. Their final destination (hopefully) is Fontana, Calif. on April 1, just in time for White's pit reporting duties at the California Speedway for the 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). series April 2-4. Footage from this cross-country journey debuts April 6 at 8 p.m. ET (9 p.m. PT) on 2 Wheel Tuesday. "I always wanted to travel cross country on a motorcycle but, so many people have already done that," Parisi said. "After seeing a guy riding around town on a scooter, I started thinking about how funny it would be to travel cross country that way. I really think that it started as a joke amongst friends." The Yamaha Zuma Scooter (photo available) has a 50cc, two-stroke engine -- 49cc to be exact. It rides on 10-inch tires, holds 1.5 gallons of fuel and weighs all of 185 pounds. The pros have some advice for White and Parisi. "Get some pillows for your butt," said Yamaha racer Jamie Hacking, the reigning AMA Supersport AMA Supersport is the 600cc class for AMA motorcycle racing, held from 1988. The current Champion is the British motorcycle rider Jamie Hacking. External links
For 2 Wheel Tuesday fans hoping to see White in person as he travels across the country, look for him in the following cities (subject to change): Wednesday, March 17 Charlotte, N.C. Asheville, N.C. Knoxville, Tenn. Thursday, March 18 Jackson, Tenn. Memphis, Tenn. Friday, March 19 Little Rock, Ark. Saturday, March 20 Conway, Ark. Fort Smith, Ark. Oklahoma City Wednesday, March 24 Amarillo, Texas Thursday, March 25 Santa Rosa, N.M. Albuquerque, N.M. Friday, March 26 Flagstaff, Ariz. Saturday, March 27 Kingman, Ariz. Las Vegas Thursday, April 1 Fontana, Calif. "When they first came to me, I thought they were out of their minds," said Rick Miner, SPEED Channel's Sr. VP Programming/Production and Executive Producer. "But they were insistent. I made them jump through hoops, check and re-check the budget and really sell us on the idea of this adventure. Once they convinced their coordinating producer, I realized this just might work. I mean, how much damage could they do on 50cc motorcycles?" Fans wanting to follow the adventure live can visit SPEEDTV.com for maps, daily updates and correspondence from the road. In 2004, SPEED Channel is the exclusive U.S. cable home for many of the top motor sports series in the world. In addition, SPEED's weekly programming schedule brings car enthusiast television to Prime Time Monday through Thursday. Now available in more the 65 million homes in North America, SPEED Channel is among the fastest growing sports cable networks in the country and the home to NASCAR NASCAR (National Association for Stock Car Auto Racing), organization that sanctions American stock-car races, est. 1948. It held its first race in Daytona Beach, Fla. TV. |
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