A sequence shot of Robbie Maddison’s New Year’s Eve flight over the football field at the Rio in Las Vegas.

utfitted in Moose gear, Robbie Maddison of Australia figuratively leapt into the pages of the Guinness Book of World Records with a New Year’s Eve motorcycle jump of 322 feet 7 inches at the Rio All-Suite Hotel & Casino in Las Vegas. The jump was the first-ever Red Bull Experiment, which involves world-class athletes attempting world-class athletic achievements. His jump shattered the previous distance record of 277 feet.
     Telecast live on ESPN’s New Year, No Limits program shortly after the ball dropped in Times Square signifying 2008, Maddison hit the take-off ramp at 94 miles per hour on his Honda CR 500, reaching a height of more than 60 feet, and soared into history.
     "I came here to jump a football field,” said Maddison. “Conditions weren’t perfect, but I’m happy with the result. Yesterday in rehearsal, I went 350 feet and I knew 360 feet was achievable. We did all we could, but the winds played a bigger factor than we planned. But this is called the Red Bull Experiment, and we didn’t know what the outcome would be. I just want to thank everyone that made this jump possible and a big thanks to all the fans who came out to support me. This is just the beginning.”
     A who’s-who of action and motorsports superstars cheered Maddo on, including Olympic gold medalist Shaun White, 2006 MotoGP World Champion Nicky Hayden, Olympic gold medalist Amanda Beard and the family of the late Evel Knievel, to whom Maddison dedicated his world record-breaking feat.
     Maddison, who hails from the town of Kiama, two hours south of Sydney, Australia, has achieved tremendous success in the freestyle motocross world. He is also the holder of two additional world records for the longest jump on a 125cc motorcycle (221 feet) and the longest jump with a trick (246 feet).
     For additional information on Robbie Maddison and the Red Bull Experiment, please visit www.redbullexperiment.com.


The new distance champ, Robbie Maddison

hen it comes to motorcycle parts and racing in the Great White North, Parts Canada leads the way. 2007 was a great year for Parts Canada, with involvement in some great racing series and marketing opportunities. We caught up to Parts Canada’s Marketing Coordinator Shauna Szewczuk at the Toronto International Motorcycle Show Dec 7 to get an overview.
     On the pavement the Parts Canada Superbike Championship was once again a great success, with great publicity resulting from sponsoring the 16-year-old phenom of road racing, Kawasaki Canada’s Brett McCormick. Parts Canada also sponsored the BMW-Motorrad Canada’s race team to contest the Canadian Thunder twins class. Szewczuk proudly says, “We’ve been involved with the Superbike series as the title sponsor and in 2007 we added the BMW-Motorrad Canadian Thunder team to our sponsorship bill. Brett McCormick did wonders for us and our female rider Catharine Nadeau had an outstanding year, crossing the finish line wearing the women’s-specific Alpinestars Julie riding suit.” Outstanding may be an understatement. Nadeau dominated the Woman’s Cup series and Michael Taylor put his BMW R1200S at the top of the twins, winning the #1 plate for Parts Canada in the Thunder Class with teammate Michael Ferreira taking sixth.
     Only 16 and in his rookie year as a pro, McCormick shocked the Canadian Superbike elite by nearly beating multi-time champion and Kawasaki teammate Jordan Szoke. “I’m pretty happy,” says McCormick modestly. “I don’t know how much better it could have gone. The results just kept getting better toward the end of the year. I was nervous going in, but the support from Kawasaki and Parts Canada…well that’s all a guy can ask for. Parts Canada’s backing me was unreal. Shauna came out to all the races to help me out, and they put me in the best equipment out there. It made my job twice as easy.”
     Just how close did the rookie come to the top of the Parts Canada Superbike series? “The qualifying at the last round in Shannonville was the highlight for me,” he says. “In Superbike qualifying I pulled down some good laps, got pole position for awhile, and actually got second place only five hundredths of a second behind Jordan (Szoke). That was really awesome! I knew at that point that I had really made it as a racer.” His steadily improving results netted McCormick fifth overall in the series, and made him the man to watch in 2008.
     In the dirt, Parts Canada was title sponsor of the biggest Supercross race in Canada, in Montreal, Quebec. Over 50,000 fans jammed the historic city’s Olympic Stadium, and Szewczuk says “In 2007 Parts Canada signed a three year deal as the Industry Sponsor for the Montreal Supercross. We felt that this was a great opportunity to expose the Montreal Supercross to all of Canada, while showing the public our commitment to the sport." Montreal Supercross promoter Pierre Corbiel adds “The Montreal Supercross is very proud of our association with Parts Canada. To be associated with a sponsor of this magnitude brought a new level of awareness and visibility to our event.” Parts Canada is aiming to step up their motocross involvement at Round 12 of the Monster Energy AMA Supercross Series March 29 in Toronto, Ontario. “The Toronto Supercross will once again be a really big event for Parts Canada,” Szewczuk states. “Having over 650 dealers and guests in attendance in our Parts Canada Hospitality Area…we plan on going all out! As Toronto is the only Canadian round on the AMA tour in 2008, we have teamed up with Thor and Pirelli for great promotional giveaways for our dealers and guests. We have lots of things up our sleeves, including possible appearances from some of the sponsored Thor riders.” She also reports that Parts Canada is busy working on plans to step up their involvement in Canada’s outdoor National Motocross Series.
     Big plans to be sure, but Parts Canada has more in store for 2008. Szewczuk explains: “Right now for 2008 we are back on board for the Parts Canada Superbike Championship, the Blackfoot Suzuki Race Team, Brett McCormick, Catharine Nadeau, and the BMW-Motorrad team. They have full gear sponsorship. We’re looking forward to another great Montreal Supercross, and are re-signed on to ‘Motorcycle Experience’ with David Hatch.”

16-year-old sensation Brett McCormick challenged established veterans during 2007 and hopes to be the rider to beat in 2008.

Catharine Nadeau had a great year in the Canadian Women’s Cup series in 2007.

Following the introductory ride, new Suzuki teammates Woods (left) and Davis looked very happy about their prospects for 2008.

Ty Davis (left) and Nathan Woods broke cover on the all-new, fuel-injected Suzuki RM-Z450 at a recent press introduction at Perris Raceway in Southern California.

otocross is about to enter a new era. Introducing the all-new 2008 RM-Z450 Suzuki with fuel injection,” is how the promotion for the RM-Z450 reads and they are correct in their pride in this machine. Suzuki engineers developed the RM-Z450 using experience gained developing fuel-injection systems for Suzuki’s legendary GSX-R roadrace bikes and the championship-winning LT-R450 QuadRacer ATV. The result is the world’s only mass-produced, fuel-injected motocross bike.
     The 2008 RM-Z450 is also completely restyled, with new aerodynamic bodywork that’s both sleek and functional. But the big news is the fuel-injection, which works flawlessly delivering power to the rear wheel.
Parts Unlimited dealers can look forward to seeing Team Suzuki Off-Road campaign the new RM-Z450 in the able hands of several Moose Off-Road team riders. Nathan Woods will campaign the WORCS series in 2008, Jimmy Jarrett will defend his OMA Series Championship, and Ty Davis has made the switch to ride the new Suzuki with his team in 2008.