New PBSS Continues Ramp Up!
The highly anticipated new Wiesco PBSS drag bike circuit (a sister series to Eastern Canada’s PMRA/Q32 ) continues to ramp up towards it’s inaugural season….
Satchell Boyz Racing Set for Opener
Brandon and Larry Satchell team up for new motorcycle and snowmobile racing series with Kawasaki ZX7 bike
With a father who has been immersed in local drag racing circles for several decades, it was only natural for Brandon Satchell to want to race.
Starting as an official at St. Thomas Dragway, Brandon’s father Larry Satchell was at the track every weekend, and Brandon would usually tag along, starting at an early age of four.Now he is in his sixth year of drag racing, and will compete in the Pro Bike & Sled Series presented by Wiseco Performance Products with his 2005 Kawasaki ZX7.
“Brandon has always gone to the races with me,” noted Larry. “The family always came with me. He got interested in racing himself, but took a liking to bikes more than anything.”
The ZX7 features a 1500-cc engine of 200 horsepower between its R&E Chrome Moly tube frame, and a full-throttle five-speed gearbox. The 396-pound bike runs in the high eight-second range.
“It won’t be the fastest down the track, but that doesn’t matter,” said Larry. “The bike is all set up, and Brandon is comfortable with it.”
Larry and Brandon are the main components of the team, known as Satchell Boyz Racing. The crew includes Bill Hope, Shane Yeoman, Randy Hope and Carol Satchell, who is always on hand to offer support for her son and husband.
Some of the team’s highlights over the years include a win at Grand Bend for the 2010 Show Me the Money Tour and the number one qualifying spot during the 2009 IHRA Nitro Jam Nationals held at Grand Bend.
The team is sponsored by Artcal Graphics and Track Announcing Services.
Larry said no big changes are planned for the season, which gets underway May 20-21 for the PBSS opener at the Cayuga Dragway of Toronto Motorsports Park for the Victoria Day Weekend Challenge.
“We should be ready to go for the first race at Cayuga,” he said. “We’re going with no major engine changes. We’ll be there to see if we can qualify, and we’ll step it up if need be.”
The new Pro Bike & Sled Series will feature a field of motorcycles and snowmobiles, which will qualify and compete in their respective divisions, and then the finalist from each side will race for an event championship.
“I think the PBSS is a good idea,” Larry continued. “This has not been offered to bike and sled racers before, and I think once we get the first race under our belt, the series will start to grow fast.”
Toronto Rider John Orfanidis to Race Suzuki
Suzuki rider steps up effort for 2011 with Quality Automotive team
Although he started drag racing with cars, John Orfanidis has been climbing on top of a motorcycle to race for many years, and will be competing in the new Pro Bike & Sled Series presented by Wiseco Performance Products for 2011.
“I started racing in the late 1970s with a big-block Chevelle,” said Orfanidis. “But after I took a break from racing, I thought I’d try a little bit of excitement with a bike.”And for the past 20 years he has continued to race on two wheels.
For 2011, Orfanidis will compete with a 2001 Suzuki GSXR on a Tracs full-race racing chassis. A 1500-cc Vance and Hines four-carburetor engine will power the bike, which pumps outs about 340 horsepower. The six-speed transmission is a Vance and Hines unit, set up for full-throttle shifting.
Orfanidis said the motorcycle will be capable of times in the eight-second range at about 165 mph.
The Quality Automotive team will race in the new PBSS, which will bring competitors together racing on a Sportsman ladder in ET-style drag racing. The races will consist of a Quick 16, the top eight motorcycles and top eight snowmobiles racing in their respective classes, and then a final event winner pitting the top bike against the top sled for the event champion.
Crew chief for the team is Mike Henriques. Sam Reale, Peter Cifuentes, Alex Saragosa, and Fedon Orfanidis will also be part of the team for 2011.
Sponsorship is provided by Quality Automotive, Converter Man Ltd. and Diamond Trans.
Orfanidis said they are just about ready to do battle with the Suzuki, which has received new electronics and a data logger before round one in the PBSS, which takes place May 20-22 for the Victoria Day Weekend Challenge at the Cayuga Dragstrip of Toronto Motorsports Park.
“We’re close,” he said. “We have had to step up with the data logger. Before it was a by the seat of the pants deal.”
And Orfanidis added he is looking forward to racing in the PBSS.
“This is the first series we will run in,” he said. “When we heard about it we got right on board.”
About the Pro Bike & Sled Series (PBSS):
The Pro Bike & Sled Series, www.PBSS.ca, organized early in 2011, was established for Motorcycle and Snowmobile teams to compete on a regular basis in an organized and professional racing environment.
This season, the Pro Bike & Sled Series will compete at Toronto Motorsports Park in Cayuga, Ontario and the Grand Bend Motorplex in Grand Bend, Ontario.
The Series is comprised of a Quick 16 qualified field of the eight quickest Motorcycles and the eight quickest Snowmobiles, and presents the best in ET-style, dial-in drag racing, competing on a Sportsman ladder. After eliminations in both divisions, the final Motorcycle entry and the final Snowmobile entry pair off to determine the event Champion.
Competitors in this exciting Series adhere to the technical and safety rules as outlined by the National Hot Rod Association (NHRA) and the International Hot Rod Association (IHRA). The maximum dial-in will be 9.50-seconds for the quarter-mile and competitors will race in the eight-second range at speeds of 150 mph and above.
The Series provides $1000 to win for each event and $2500 for the annual Championship Point Award Series Champion, payouts very popular with competitors and will provide large fields of race vehicles.
The Pro Bike & Sled Series is committed in providing a professional atmosphere of competition for its teams. The Series also provides solid media and logistic support, ensuring itself as one of the most popular drag race series running these types of race vehicles. Racer safety is paramount in the PBSS, and the Series provides safety and medical equipment, along with trained personnel at all events for any racing emergency.
The Pro Bike & Sled Series presented by Wiseco Performance Products competes in conjunction with the Pro Modified Racing Association (PMRA), www.PMRA.ca, and the Quick 32 Sportsman Series, www.Quick32.ca, in six weekend-long events throughout the 2011 racing season, offering race fans a solid, well-rounded performance of drag racing action.
For more information contact Bruce F. Mehlenbacher at Bruce@PBSS.ca
Posted by: Tim Miller
