| 2007 News |
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| 7/26/06 |
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Write-up of Rounds 3 and 4 at Miller Motorsports Park in Tooele, Utah
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| The third and fourth rounds of the 2006 MRA season took place 2 weekends ago (July 8th & 9th) at Miller Motorsports
Park in Tooele, Utah. This was a double header event, with the Sunday sprint race schedule being run on both Saturday
(round 3) and Sunday (round 4). As a result, there were no endurance races run in conjunction with either of these
rounds.
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| With Gene’s accident a week before these events, Joe LoGalbo decided to skip this race weekend so he could be
there to help Gene’s parents. 4 Horsemen Racing was represented by Dave "Hoopty" VanDeWeert, Bob "Spiderman"
Hasenhundl, and, Joe Lott, who was attending his first race event of the season. Joe Lott was the star of the weekend,
taking home 2 of the teams 3 podium finishes. 4 Horsemen Racing also came home with 2 top-5 and 3 top-10 finishes.
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| Friday evening and Saturday morning were spent figuring out which way Miller’s technical West track went (since a
couple of the left-hand turns looked very similar as you entered them), and which gearing to use.
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| An incident in Saturday morning practice almost ended Hoopty’s race weekend before it started, when another rider
swerved into him as they were both braking for a turn. The other rider’s footpeg hit Hoopty’s foot and broke the
footpeg on Hoopty's bike (technically, the mounting tabs on the frame that hold the rearset). Their bars got tangled up
as well, but miraculously, neither rider went down. The team got to work on Hoopty's bike immediately, and thanks to
Jason Smith of Johnny Law Welding, we were able to get it back together just in time for the races.
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| When the racing started, Joe Lott got off to a great start in Supertwins GTO, running in 2nd place for a while,
but ultimately finished that race in 3rd place. Not bad considering he hadn’t raced since Labor Day Weekend last year!
No practice, no sport-specific training routine - just show up and race... and do well - just like his favorite
professional racer, Anthony "The Go Show" Gobert. Maybe we‘ll start calling Joe: "The Joe Show".
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| Middleweight Superbike was the first race of the day for Hoopty and Bob, who both fell victim to mechanical
issues. Hoopty’s motor blew halfway through the first lap. Fortunately, he was able to get off the track without
spewing any oil onto the track or the riders behind him. Mid-corner on the last lap, the chain jumped off the rear
sprocket of Bob's bike and got bound up between the smaller front sprocket and the engine. This caused: a) the
bike to coast like it’s in neutral, and; b) the engine to stall.
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| Further inspection of Bob’s bike revealed that the binding of the chain ripped the sprocket cover and one of its
mounts, right out of the engine, leaving a hole in its absence. Hoopty’s engine had a piston rod sticking out of the
engine case, so both motors were now garbage.
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| Bob managed to find a bike to ride in Amateur GTU, the Ducati 1000SS of #73 Eric Borch. Having never ridden a
V-twin at speed on the track before, Bob’s goal was simply to finish on 2 wheels. Despite starting from the 2nd row,
the combination of inexperience on a V-twin, not wanting to crash a borrowed bike, and a 20 horsepower deficit, Bob
finished in 20th place. Hoopty wasn’t able to find a bike for this race, which is a shame, because he started the
season out with a win in this class.
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| Hoopty did manage, however, to secure a bike for Middleweight Supersport and Amateur GTO - James Tittle, #212,
agreed to loan him his Kawasaki ZX-6RR. Hoopty used Middleweight Supersport to get acclimated to the bike. Getting to
the grid late, Hoopty started from the back of the grid, and finished in 17th place.
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| Heavyweight Superbike found Joe cold - it had been too long between races for him and he had trouble finding his
rhythm in the relatively short race. He ended up finishing 8th.
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| Amateur GTO saw Hoopty get a great start, being 2nd or 3rd into the first turn, but he didn’t feel comfortable
pushing it hard on the borrowed bike and lost touch with the leaders. On the last lap, Dion Eads, #225, got past him
in turn 3, but Hoopty passed him right back. Dion kept showing Hoopty a wheel, and it all came down to the last turn.
Hoopty braked really late, and had the inside line, but it was a drag-race to the finish. Hoopty beat him to the line
by a fraction of a second to take 5th place. Joe started on the 10th row, and finished 15th, which is impressive
enough on its own, but what’s even more impressive, is that he was fighting greasy tires the whole race - the result
of his tire warmers being on too long.
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| Saturday evening, Bob had a stroke of good luck when he found that Jeff Brown, #277, had a spare Yamaha R6, and
agreed to let him ride it on Sunday. The next morning was spent swapping out bodywork and wheels from Bob’s bike to
Jeff’s, and a quick practice session to test things out.
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| Supertwins GTO saw Joe Lott get the holeshot and lead the race for 3 laps until Patrick Lansu, #77, and
eventually Michael McFeron, #357, got passed him. Joe crossed the finish line in 3rd place again, but proved that he
has what it takes to run up front.
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| In Middleweight Superbike, Bob battled for position with Glenn Carlson, #62, trading places a couple of times,
but Bob got the better of him going into the last turn to finish the race in 12th place, his best finish in that class.
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| In Amateur GTU, Bob had a great start from the 3rd row and was 5th going into turn 1. Jeff Brown, #277, (the owner
of the bike that Bob was riding) was battling for a podium position when his engine blew before the end of the first
lap. There must have been another casualty, as Bob was running in 3rd place for a while. Michael Heilhecker, #708, did
pass Bob to take over 3rd place, and Jason Madama, #213, got past as well, but Bob stayed with Madama, and made a
beautiful pass on him in the last turn, crossing the line in 4th place, his best expert finish to date.
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| Hoopty rode James Tittle’s bike again for Middleweight Supersport, and finished in 15th place despite starting
from the back of the grid again, and bogging on the start.
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| In Heavyweight Superbike, Joe got a good start, but suffered the same fate as yesterday - too much time between
races. He was cold and couldn’t get into the groove, finishing the race in 9th place.
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| The last race of the weekend was Amateur GTO, and once again, Hoopty was riding James Tittle’s bike. After a
horrible start (Hoopty’s own words) from the 2nd row, he was 11th or so going into turn 1 .He put his head down and
started picking off riders one by one. On the last lap, he late-braked past MRA Track Marshal Tim Young, #46, and was
able to make the pass stick, taking the checkered flag in 3rd place. Joe Lott had a great start from the 6th row, and
was in 4th into turn 1, but his tires started fading almost immediately, and he had to slow his pace, crossing the
line in 9th place.
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| All in all, it was an emotional weekend for the 4 Horsemen team - with Gene being on the forefront of everybody’s
mind, coupled with: bikes breaking; scrambling to find bikes to race, and; trying to go fast without crashing borrowed
bikes. Fortunately, getting some decent results allowed us to leave Miller Motorsports Park in with our heads held high.
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| In the days following our return home, the unfortunate turn of events in Gene’s condition, put the writing of
this race summary on the back-burner (understandably, we hope). Gene will always be a part of 4 Horsemen Racing. He
was an incredible individual, a great friend, teammate, and mentor. He will be sorely missed. Rest in peace, Gene.
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| With the first Hastings round cancelled, the next round is in Pueblo, on August 12th and 13th, where the team
will be participating in a 4-hour endurance race on Saturday that was recently named in Gene’s honor. We are planning
on running as number 502 as a tribute to him, and will be joined by Jenny Locicero - #246 (Gene's friend and protege),
and Josh "Bertha" Newton - #979 (Jenny's boyfriend and long-time friend of the team). There will be a parade lap
in memory of Gene at lunchtime on Sunday, open to anybody with a helmet and a bike. One of the other things 4 Horsemen
Racing will be doing in memory of Gene, is participate in the Sportsman class, riding together at the back of the pack,
so they can cross the finish line together as a team.
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Points standings have been updated with the results from rounds 3 & 4 at Miller Motorsports Park.
See the menu on the left for the link or click here.
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Joe LoGalbo has a new bike - a 2001 GSX-R750 - and will now be competing in Heavyweight Superbike and Amateur GTO.
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Race 5 at Motorsport Partk Hastings has officially been rescheduled for the weekend of October 7th & 8th.
The schedule has been updated. See the menu on the left for the link or click here.
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| 7/13/06 |
4 Horsemen Racing mourns the loss of one of their own.
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| On Friday July 7th, Gene's lungs stopped pumping oxygen through his blood stream normally. It was some time before
doctors could get his oxygen back up to a safe level, and, although he had improved over the weekend, the lack of
oxygen circulating for a significant amount of time had likely affected his brain and caused irreparable damage.
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| Tests performed yesterday (7/12) confirmed those suspicions.
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| Gene was an organ donor and will be kept on life support for today while recipients are found and his organs are
harvested.
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| Gene will leave behind his parents, sister and countless friends. He was able to leave this world while doing the
thing he loved most in life and in the presence of friends. Those of us that are left behind will sorely miss Gene, but
are much better people for having known him and will never forget the joyful memories he has given us.
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| We would like to thank all the people that offered their support to Gene, his family and all of us during this
time. It really proves that the motorcycling community is made up of great people who are second to none.
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| Rest In Peace, Gene... Rest In Peace
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| 7/12/06 |
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Race 5 at Hastings Motorsports Park has been cancelled. Paving of the track is too far behind schedule for it to be
ready in time for the dates set for race 5 (July 29th & 30th). This race has tentatively been rescheduled for the weekend of
October 7th and 8th, but these dates will not be added to the schedule until they are confirmed.
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Results from races 3 & 4 at Miller Motorsports Park have been posted.
See the menu on the left for the Results link or click here for Race 3,
or here for Race 4.
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| 7/05/06 |
Gene Bazyl Seriously Injured In A Track-Day Crash That Leaves Another Rider Dead
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| On Sunday July 2nd, Gene collided with another rider on the front straight at La Junta Raceway. Gene is currently in
critical condition. The other rider, 25-year old Aaron Aiken of Thorton, CO, died at the hospital as a result of his
injuries.
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| Initial reports indicate this was Aiken's first time on a racetrack. It's unclear if he missed the normal track
exit, but he appeared to be pulling a U-turn (presumably to exit the track via the entrance), putting him
perpendicular to the flow of traffic at the time of the collision.
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| Gene is in the Intensive Care Unit at the St. Mary-Corwin Medical Center in Pueblo. His injuries include swelling
around his brain, two fractured vertebra, broken ribs, a broken wrist, and both lungs were initially collapsed. He is
on a respirator, in a medically induced coma, with neurologists working constantly to keep the swelling around his
brain to a minimum. Initial prognosis was pretty grim, giving him a 50/50 chance of survival, and expectations for
permanent brain injury if he pulls through.
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| This is truly a tragedy. 4 Horsemen Racing extends their sympathies to the family and friends of Aaron Aiken, and
is hoping and praying for Gene to pull through this.
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| Up-to-date information on Gene's condition is being maintained on both the MRA and CSC forums at the following
links:
http://forums.mra-racing.org/viewtopic.php?t=2347
http://www.cosportbikeclub.org/forums/showthread.php?t=7150
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| Please keep Gene in your thoughts and prayers.
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| 6/15/06 |
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4 Horsemen Racing - winners again at the second round of the 2006 MRA season
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| The second round of the 2006 MRA season took place June 3rd and 4th in La Junta, CO. This was a mixed-emotion
weekend for the team for several reasons: Joe Lott had to cancel at the last minute due to a death in the family;
Dave "Hoopty" VanDeWeert’s bike kept breaking in the middle of his sprint races, and; we were all wondering if
Gene Bazyl could finally beat the "La Junta Curse". Gene was a hero for the team in more ways than one, taking home
the only podium finish for the team, and lending his 2005 Yamaha R6 to not one, but two teammates. The end result?
7 top-10 finishes, including 5 top-5’s, and one race win.
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| For those of you not familiar with the "La Junta Curse", we’re referring to Gene’s knack of leaving a race
weekend in La Junta with a nearly totaled bike and/or broken bones, as has been the case for 3 years running now.
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| During the break between races, Joe LoGalbo came to the realization that his riding style is more suited to
inline-4’s than it is to V-twins. At a practice day in Pueblo with Gene, Joe wasn’t making any progress on the
Aprilia. He turned a few laps on Gene’s R6 and was almost immediately faster. Gene agreed to let Joe ride his R6 in
the Amateur GTU race at La Junta.
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| Saturday was typical La Junta "hot", with the 4 Horsemen Racing thermometer showing 113 degrees in the shaded
"comfort" of our pits. Being the points leader for Saturday’s first race, Solo Endurance Middleweight, Gene started in
pole position, with Frank Harney (#22) and Jason Trabert (#117) completing the front row. Trabert got the holeshot,
but Gene was right behind him and took over the lead by turn 2. While Trabert and Harney battled for position, Gene
began to open up a gap on them. Trabert lost the battle for second and fell off the pace. Gene had about a 4 second
lead over Harney until his tires started going off about halfway through the 30-minute race. Harney started closing
the gap, and was less than a second behind Gene when the race was red-flagged with about 5 minutes left. The race was
called, and Gene was awarded the victory. Hoopty started from the 2nd row, and ran in 5th place for most of the race,
trading for 4th with Matt Dunn (#65) for a short period of time, but finally finishing the race in 5th.
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| Sunday was somewhat cooler, with temperatures hovering around 99 degrees - still hot, but at least it didn’t feel
like we were inside an Easy-Bake oven.
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| The day started with a heat-race for Amateur GTU. This was the class that Joe LoGalbo was borrowing Gene’s bike
for, so this meant he actually got to race it twice - once in the heat race, and, if he qualified, once again in the
actual AmU race. Joe was gridded on the last row for the 3-lap heat-race, in about 20th position, and only the top-14
would advance to the AmU race. Joe got a good start, ending the first lap in 16th, and finished the race in 12th place.
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| Gene was in top form as he rode to a 4th place finish in Middleweight Superbike. Hoopty was running strong, and
continued to improve his laptimes, but his bike decided it didn’t want to rev past 9000 RPM anymore, so he pulled out
of the race before any serious damage was incurred. Bob "Spiderman" Hasenhundl didn’t have the best of starts from the
5th row, but was able to make up some positions on the first lap coming through turns 1 and 2. Bob crossed the line in
18th place.
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| Gene continued his strong showing with an outstanding performance in Race of the Rockies GTU where he took the
checkered flag in 4th place.
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| It seemed that the battery in Hoopty’s Suzuki GSX-R600 was the problem, so he replaced it, then took his position
on the front row for the Amateur GTU race. He set a new personal best lap time in that race, and was challenging Matt
Dunn for the lead when the gremlins in his bike decided to ruin his race one more time. Bob started the race from the
middle of the 3rd row and was running in 7th place for most of the race, but missed his line into turn 2 and got
passed. He finished the race in 8th place. Joe started from the last row of the grid, and was able to make up a few
positions, but was taking care to ensure that Gene’s bike didn’t fall victim to "The Curse", and finished in 31st out
of the 35 riders in the class.
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| Gene beat "The Curse" when he crossed the line at the end of his last race of the day - Heavyweight Superbike.
But he did not tip-toe through the race to ensure the mental victory, instead he pushed hard and took the checkered
flag in 4th place (again). This finish puts Gene into a tie for 3rd place in the point standings for this class.
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| Further inspection of Hoopty’s bike revealed that the carburetors were loose, so they were tightened, and he went
back out for Middleweight Supersport. 4 laps into it, the gremlins forced him out once again. Bob was running in 15th
place, but made the same mistake going into turn 2 as he did in AmU, and this time lost 2 positions, crossing the line
in 17th.
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| Determined not to let Hoopty’s day be a total loss, Gene stepped up and offered his bike to Hoopty for the last
race of the day - Amateur GTO. Considering all that had transpired leading up to that point, Hoopty accepted, even
though he had never turned a wheel on Gene’s bike (his first time on the bike would be the warm-up lap). Being on a
borrowed bike, he was hoping for a top-10 finish. Hoopty started from the 2nd row, and almost immediately found
himself in 5th place. Even though he was on a borrowed bike, he wasn’t exactly tip-toeing through the race, lapping
within half a second of his recently set personal best. He even had a scare coming into turn 2 which made him think
"The Curse" hadn’t quite been broken - while leaned over and braking for the right-hander, the front wheel locked, and
the handle-bars jerked all the way to the right. Hoopty thought for sure he was going to crash Gene’s bike, but
remained calm, let go of the brake lever, and the front tire hooked up again. He crossed the line in 5th place, which
keeps him in 3rd place in the point standings for this class.
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| All in all, another good weekend for the team. We are all looking forward to the next set of races at Miller
Motorsports Park in Tooele, Utah, on July 8 & 9.
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Results from Race 2 at La Junta Raceway have been posted,
and the points standings have been updated.
See the menu on the left for links or click here for results.
and here for points standings.
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| 5/07/06 |
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Results from Race 1 at Pueblo Motorsports Park have been posted,
and the points standings have been updated.
See the menu on the left for links or click here for results.
and here for points standings.
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4 Horsemen Racing - winners in the first round of the 2006 MRA season
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| The 2006 MRA season kicked off last weekend in Pueblo, CO, where the weather was more favorable than last year,
so being snowed-out was not an option. The team won 2 races in this opening round, and brought home 3 additional top-5
finishes and 6 more top-10 finishes.
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| The season got off to a great start on Saturday with the first race - Solo Endurance Middleweight. Aboard his
Michelin-shod 2005 Yamaha YZF-R6, Gene Bazyl took the lead on the second lap and built up an 11-second cushion over
the competition to take the win in the 30-minute race. Dave "Hoopty" VanDeWeert, starting from the 7th row, made a
strong showing in his first running of the class in 2 years, but lapped traffic hindered his chances at a podium and
relegated him to a 6th place finish.
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| Sunday was an equally good day for the team with a strong showing from both Gene and Dave. The work that Gene put
into his bike during the off-season, converting it from Supersport-spec to a Formula Xtreme bike, albeit incomplete,
is already paying off - he finished 5th in the 7-lap Middleweight Superbike race (his best finish in 2005 was 11th).
Dave was running in 7th position with 1 lap remaining, when another rider forced him onto the curbing while exiting
Pueblo’s turn 8. He had to back off the throttle to avoid getting hit and being involved in a 2-bike crash. He lost 2
spots in the skirmish and took the checkered flag in 9th. Bob "Spiderman" Hasenhundl had a decent start from the 4th
row, but lost some ground to some of the faster Superbike-spec bikes, and finished the race in 16th.
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| Joe LoGalbo, competing for the first time in the Supertwins GTO class, aboard his new ride for this year, a 2002
Aprilia RSV Mille, finished in 8th place. Joe was hoping for a better finish, but discovered that taking most of last
season off wasn’t conducive to improving his lap times.
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| Gene got a bad start in Race of the Rockies GTU, having to back off the throttle to put the front wheel back on
the ground. This mistake put Gene back in 12th place after 1 lap, but fortunately, he had 13 more laps to do something
about it. Gene put his head down and got to work. He set a new personal best lap time of 1:36.5 and passed 3 riders in
1 lap on his way to a 7th place finish in the featured class.
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| Amateur GTU was red-flagged and restarted as a 5-lap race in the last-completed-lap running order. This put Dave
on the 1st row, and Bob on the 2nd row. Dave set a new personal best lap time of 1:37.8 as he rode his Bridgestone-
shod 2003 Suzuki GSX-R600 to take the win. Bob had a good start the second time around, and came out of turn 1 in 4th
place, but lost a couple of positions while trying alternate lines to get past a slower rider, and a couple more as a
result of a shifting problem, putting him back in 8th place at the checkered flag.
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| Gene got a better start from the 5th row in Heavyweight Superbike, and finished an impressive 5th despite being
down on horsepower to most of the bikes he was up against. This is a new class for Gene, so this finish gives him
enough points to start from the 2nd row in this class at the next race.
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| Hoopty finishing in 7th place in Middleweight Supersport, and Bob encountered some tire issues that had him take
the checkered flag in 17th place.
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| Amateur GTO, the last race of the day, saw Hoopty battle against larger displacement bikes, losing ground to them
on Pueblo’s ½ mile long straightaway, only to make it back up in the turns. He battled from 7th to get past 3 liter
bikes, and with 1 lap remaining, made a pass for 3rd place going into turn 9, but his podium hopes were dashed when a
missed shift on the exit gave the position right back. He didn’t get another chance at a pass and ended up taking the
checkered flag in 4th place. Joe LoGalbo is still getting the cobwebs out of his racing regime - he finished the race
in 27th place, and is looking forward to better results at the next round.
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| Unfortunately, Joe Lott had to cancel at the last minute and was unable to attend the race weekend. We’re
expecting the whole team to be present at round 2 in La Junta in the beginning of June.
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| 4/28/06 |
Another number change - Hoopty secured a 2-digit number at the last minute.
This year he will be number 89.
Updated 5/05/06: The Team and Photo Gallery pages of the website have been updated to reflect this change.
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| 4/01/06 |
Correction: Joe Lott's will be number 28 this year, not 20 as previously announced.
Joe was number 87 last year, and wanted a lower number for this year.
When he looked into it, he was led to believe that he would get number 20, but when his license packet arrived in the mail,
he got number 28. The Team and Photo Gallery pages of the website have been updated to reflect this change.
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| 3/01/06 |
Lots of changes have already happened during the off-season:
| For 2006, we will have a total of 5 riders (no, we won't be changing the team name
to 5 Horsemen Racing). We're proud to welcome our 2 newest members:
| Joe LoGalbo (#55), good friend and pit crew to Gene Bazyl.
Joe shared our pit space on several occasions in 2005.
Click here
to find out more.
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| Joe Lott (#20), who didn't race much in 2005 due to mechanical issues,
but is committed to a strong showing for 2006.
Click here
to find out more.
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| Sponsorship changes:
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| 2005 News |