yesterday’s World Superbike season opener was the start of another two-wheeled racing season and therefor another season of fantasy sports. some of my friends do fantasy basketball or fantasy baseball; my brother and i do fantasy racing.



it works the same way that other fantasy sports do: you have a certain number of points to spend and each rider has a set price. in fact, the only real difference is that fantasy racing can span multiple series; in our case, MotoGP, World Superbike and British Superbike.

i’ve been participating in fantasy racing for a number of years now with varying success. sometimes i haul in a massive number of points; sometimes i walk away all but empty-handed as my riders take each other out. whatever happens, though, it definitely adds yet another layer of excitement to an already insane sport.

let me know if you want to join us!

went to the Chicago Auto Show today on a whim, here are my highlights (click to enlarge):


Fiat 500 Abarth



Scion iQ



Scion FR-S (aka Subaru BR-Z)



Subaru BR-Z (aka Scion FR-S)



Kia Track’ster concept



Hyundai Veloster Turbo



Lexus LF-LC concept



four(!) Lexus LF-As

i forgot to mention this the other day but i got to meet AMA Superbike champion (1990, 1991, 1992), World Superbike champion (1993) and former 500cc Grand Prix racer (1995, 1996) Scott Russell (pictured above, doing a demo) at the International Motorcycle Show this past weekend.

the strange thing is that, despite having such a notable career, virtually nobody in the United States knows who he is. the unpopularity of motorcycle racing in the USA was painfully evident when my brother and i saw Scott wandering through the crowd at the Yamaha display by himself and were able to say hello and actually chat with him for a few minutes.

spent today volunteering for Riders For Health and hanging out at the International Motorcycle Show.

here are my highlights (click to enlarge):

one of Ben Spies’s Yamaha YZR-M1 MotoGP bikes from 2011 (in 50th anniversary colors)




autographed Ben Spies replica helmets!




Josh Hayes’s 2011 AMA Superbike Championship winning Yamaha R1




Wrightstown, WI police department’s Suzuki GSX-R600 pursuit bike




race-spec KTM 1190 RC8




Aprilia RSV4 Factory APRC Biaggi Special Edition

i went to Riders For Health‘s US office here in Chicago for a meeting today because my brother and i are volunteering for them at the International Motorcycle Show this weekend. it was great to meet the other volunteers and generally hang around with other people who share my affection for two-wheeled motorsport. i don’t really follow any of the popular sports in America so it was nice to finally be in a room where i could openly discuss things like Forward Racing’s chatter problem or Marc Marquez’s double vision with strangers.

plus, there was sushi.