Elbow down! Meen Yamaha-mounted Joe Roberts now has six national wins to his credit.
Lap after lap on Saturday afternoon at Road Atlanta, MotoAmerica Superstock 600 race-one winner Joe Roberts wheelied over the rise at turn 11 on his Wheels In Motion/MotoSport.com/Meen Yamaha YZF-R6.
As the front tire returned to the pavement, Roberts squeezed the front brake lever, the fork compressed, and he leaned into the final corner, right elbow kissing the curbing at the apex. The entire sequence was one smooth, fluid motion.
After the post-race press conference, I asked Roberts, who was credited with leading every lap of the race, about what I had seen. �Every time I go to a track,� he said, �the first thing I do is find points that I want to hit. I�ve already had a few laps around here, so you start to get a little more consistent.
�I have a point where I want to go, exactly how much throttle I want, and once it steps up, I know when to let it down and turn it. You�re right, it is just one motion, but there are different points that I�m looking for.�
Roberts says the experience is half science, half feel. �I have things I see on the track�cracks, bumps. I memorize those, and I know the feeling when I hit them.�
What if something doesn�t go as planned? �If the bike wheelies a little bit more,� Roberts replied, �it doesn�t completely mess up the flow. I still have my braking marker, and I still have an area where I�m turning. If there�s traffic, you always improvise.�
Rain has been on everyone�s radar all weekend. �We�re on DOTs,� he said, �so a couple of drops are no big deal. On Friday, when we qualified, I was scared. It was raining, and you could see spots on your visor, but you�re pushing. Sometimes it works out, and sometimes it doesn�t.
�In this game,� the California teen added with a laugh, �you just have to go for it.�
