| Date: 26 June 2008 Location: Misano Adriatico, San Marino |
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CHAMPIONS CHALLENGE YAMAHA: THE MARCO EXPERIENCE |
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I've been really lucky! I bought Motosprint and I noticed a sentence in the section dedicated to the WSB Misano round: "Are you a bike and golf fan? Send an e-mail with a text or a photo or a video, and if you will be selected, you will challenge the WSB and WSS Champions of the Yamaha Team in a golf competition" I decided to send the e-mail with the challenge sentence "Dai de gas o dai de golf?". I was not so hopeful, but after a few days I received an e-mail in my mail box: I was going to play against Haga, Corser, David Checa, Foret and Nakatomi... PANIC! I am not such a good player (HCP 33), I am better on the track... I searched some informations about the racers and I found that Corser and Haga are really good players. I took two intensive training days in the Golf Club and the Challenge Thursday arrived in a hurry. The appointment was 3:00 p.m. in the Yamaha box on the track. On Thursday there's the open paddock: when I arrived, there were "200000 people" walking around between trucks and stands. It's a little bit strange seeing the Misano paddock so full of people and so rigged: usually it's a desert square, with some vans and 20 euro gazebos when I go there for riding! After a short turn, I found myself in front of the Yamaha box, I introduced myself and met Roberta and Luigi, organizers of the Yamaha Champions Challenge. They started to treat me very well, like a guest of honour and accompanied me to the Yamaha hospitality. They offered me something to drink and I found myself speaking in English with Gavin Matheson, Yamaha Racing press responsible, and with Mark Spratt, an English journalist for an English web site and a professional golf player. He seemed to be 20 years old! Then, they introduce me some important people: Massimo Meregalli, Team Manager of the YMIT WSB Team, and Leon Oosterhof, Racing Communications Manager of Yamaha Motor Europe, a really agreeable and nice guy! The starting time arrived in a hurry: I entered the Yamaha box with the other 7 lucky winners, and I found it covered by synthetic grass green, as far as the middle of the pit lane, with a hole (and the flag-hold girl!). Then, the racers arrived: Foret, Haga, Nakatomi, David Checa and TROY CORSER! After a short event presentation to the journalists, the racers improvised a "nearest to the pin" and Fabien Foret was the winner! I talked a little bit to Haga, who speaks a perfect Italian and who told me that he would have accompanied us during the golf play because of the shoulder-ache... It's better to relax before the next race. He's really nice and kind. After that, we moved to the Vallugola Golf Club, where we found a welcome drink, the Corser's YZF-R1 and the Foret YZF-R6. I've talked a little bit to the racers before the golf play started, expecially to David Checa, who seemed to me the most available, and who speaks a very good Italian. I tried to discover some secrets from the conversarion, but I did not have time enough! I would like to ask a lot of questions!! They inform us about the constitution of the teams: Haga starts with 3 people, then Corser with other 3 people, then Foret, and I am in the last group with Nakatomi and Checa! And they were very niceand available to us! Then the golf play starts, the golf field is quite small with 9 holes, it's not true golf, it's named pitch&putt: short shots of about 60 metres, more or less! Unfortunately, the greens are synthetic and it's not like the true ones...but...IT'S NOT IMPORTANT!! I am there with people that I knew only in my dreams! Holes passes quickly and Checa amuses us: he goes with the golf car in a descent and then puts on the handbrake! Nakatomi tells me that it's the second time he plays golf, so David gives him some advices, but it's not so easy! Also Leon Oosterhof accompanies us and makes us amused playing with Checa! The golf play ends and we find a very generous party in the Clubhouse, where everybody eats and drinks! Unfortunately I discovery that Haga could not stay very long because of his injury, but all the other racers are there with us! There also a group that plays soft music! Then there's the prize-giving: the second position is for Foret, but the first and third positions are for 2 fans. They did not makes us know the other table positions, but I suppose I was in the middle, more or less! Before going away I try to take some photos with the racers. What a wonderful day, boys! I really thank Yamaha so much for the amazing opportunity, it was an unforgettable day! I hope I will have another day like that! Whether they want they could give me the opportunity to use the Corser's R1: I will surely be better than I have been like a golf player! EHEHEHEHEHEH! Some points that I absolutely have to underline: - first of all, Corser, a very polite man! Before going away he has gone around the tables to say goodbye to all the fans and shake hands with everybody! Then he loaded HIS moto in the van PERSONALLY! Troy is a really polite person! - David Checa and Nakatomi: really nice and polite: they treated me like I was one of them, 2 common boys who want to have fun! They have earned one more fan and David said hello to me saying "Bye Marco, see you!" - organizers and responsibles of Yamaha Racing: everybody has been so kind, so available and ready to make all our request satisfied! Leon Oosterhof, probably the most "graduated" of the Yamaha employee I've seen there, did not have any problem to talk with fans and to try some shots, only to give a laugh! Thank to everybody, especially to Roberta and Luigi: I've really made them crazy because of the pass! MARCO GRAMIACCI |
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