Mid-Ohio VIP Magazine by 541 Marketing

E X P E R I E N C E

Slicer’s Corner

Mid-Ohio was great. Perhaps even better than great. With great racing, great special guest speakers, a great viewing area, great paddock accessibility, great weather, and, of course, some of the greatest VIP Superfans that motorsports has to offer, which made for a truly special weekend. How could one not enjoy MotoAmerica Superbikes at Mid-Ohio?

No doubt, being entertained by some of the fastest road racers and industry representatives, and from the cozy vantage point of the MidOhio Tower Suite, makes for a thoroughly enjoyable experience. Then, add in the opportunity to cruise around the paddock, meet some of the teams’ crewmembers, get up-close and check out their machines, take a look inside a team’s race transporter, or learn about Dunlop’s commitment to supporting the MotoAmerica paddock is special for just about anyone. Meeting Troy Herfoss was a highlight—and when he invited the VIPs to sit on Tyler O’Hara’s factory Indian Bagger, it was a moment that only happens when you’re a VIP.

One may consider enjoying the pre-race grid access for Saturday’s Mission King Of The Baggers, the thunderous front straight experience, and the post-race podium celebration with Hayden, Troy, and Kyle their highlights of a perfect day!

Sunday brought the Superbikes and a history-making Race 2, as Cameron Beaubier notched his 90th career win, surpassing Josh Hayes on the AMA all-time wins list. Standing on the grid, the front straight, and the podium with Cameron, Jake, and Bobby? Absolutely unforgettable. We hope your time at Mid-Ohio was as memorable for you as it was for us. Many of the weekend’s highlights are captured in this VIP Superfan E-Magazine—please enjoy it and feel free to share it with friends.

Next up: Circuit of The Americas in Austin, Texas, September 12 through 14. Catch all the action on MotoAmerica Live+ or streaming on Peacock.

Best Regards, Ron “Slicer”Heben

GUEST SPEAKERS

Jake Zemke, Larry Pegram, Phillip Tonn, Andrew Lee, Josh Hayes, Max Flinders, Jason Moses, Jason Kehl, Michael Martin and Hylton Beattie

Saturday and Sunday were ﬁlled with all kinds of fun for our VIPs.

From in-suite rider engagements, to meet-and-greets with teams and riders in the paddock, to enjoying some samples from Deﬁant Spirits, who sponsor the ARCH Racing team!

First of the pre-race grid activities was Saturday’s Mission King Of The Baggers Race 1. Our MotoAmerica racers are just the BEST, and they certainly appreciated the words of encouragement you gave them just before their lowered their faceshields and got down to business.

This moment had all the makings of a MotoAmerica classic—Hayden Gillim and Troy Herfoss trading blows in a ﬁerce King Of The Baggers showdown, Terry Vance stepping in to honor Hayden’s grit, and the VIPs braving the heat just to be part of the electric podium scene with Hayden, Troy, and Kyle Wyman. Pure adrenaline, pure celebration.

Two unforgettable days in the Tower Suite delivered stunning views of the circuit, exclusive access to MotoAmerica Race Control, and vibrant guest energy that made the experience truly exceptional.

What a fantastic way to wrap up the weekend. Sunday’s Superbike Race 2 provided the perfect opportunity to gather for a group photo, followed by personal snapshots with the Superbike stars. It’s those little touches that turn a thrilling race into a lasting memory.

This was a moment etched in MotoAmerica history. Our VIPs stood shoulder-to-shoulder with legends like Cameron Beaubier, fresh off his record-breaking 90th win, alongside Jake Gagne and Bobby Fong. It made the podium not just a celebration, but a rare, up-close connection to greatness.

Duly Noted

Random notes, comments, statistics, musings, and bits of trivia from MotoAmerica Superbikes at Mid-Ohio:

On A Wing And A Flinder

Thrashed Racing Superbike rider Max Flinders doesn’t give up. After he was rather unceremoniously punted off the track in Saturday’s Superbike race one at Mid-Ohio, during the red-flag stoppage following the incident, he, his father Martin, and the rest of his hard-working, enthusiastic crew diligently went to work transforming his “decidedly second-hand” Yamaha YZF-R1 back into into a (mostly) race-ready motorcycle again.

The flattened exhaust silencer was removed in favor of a new one that would more efficiently extract spent combustibles from the engine. The screaming yellow zonker also lost one of its aerodynamic wings, and the handlebar controls were pretty much FUBAR, including the front brake master cylinder and the buttons used to actuate and control various electronic controls and devices.

At one point, while the various components on the bike were being hastily jury-rigged with color-coordinated duct tape, Flinders, while sitting on his bike, reached down with his racer-gloved right hand and picked up something that was laying on the tarmac. He gave the small object to one of his crew, who appeared to place it into the switch housing on the right handlebar, then proceed to wrap yellow tape around the housing. But, what did Flinders pick up from the track surface and hand to his technician?

By definition, a “flinder” is a “small fragment, bit, or splinter.” I found out while talking to his crew on Saturday night after the race day was done that Max found a small pebble on the ground in his pit box next to his bike, and it was just the right size to fit into the empty cavity in his switch housing to replace the “on” button that was lost when he crashed. His technician placed the pebble into the housing and wrapped tape over it to keep it place. That pebble gave him just enough of a “button” to enable him to switch the bike back on and get him back in the race.

Alas, while back on track and circulating, the front brake line, which had become entangled in the front fairing and handlebars during the crash, got pulled loose. Flinders saw brake fluid on his visor, which forced him to call it a day. But the old “flinder-in-the-switch-housing” trick did do its job and enabled him to race the bike if not for the compromised brake hydraulics.

That’s proof positive that you can’t keep a flinder from serving a purpose, or a Flinders from his appointed race.

For The Records

Favorable weather and improvements to the road course at Mid-Ohio yielded a bevy of broken lap records.

Stock 1000 was competing for the first time during the MotoAmerica era at Mid-Ohio, and in Friday afternoon’s Qualifying 1, Real Steel Honda’s JD Beach did the fastest lap of the weekend for the dealer showroom-spec literbikes with a 1:26.078. In Sunday afternoon’s Stock 1000 race two, OrangeCat Racing’s Andrew Lee set a new race lap record of 1:26.312 while on his way to winning the race and increasing his points lead in the 2025 class standings.

Motovation Supersport rider PJ Jacobsen repeatedly lowered the class lap record during pretty much every session in which he was aboard his Rahal Ducati Moto w/EXPEL Panigale V2. Saturday was a banner day for the New Yorker as he set a new lap record of 1:26.715 in the morning’s Qualifying 2 session. Then, in the afternoon, he did a fastest lap of 1:26.898 during Supersport race one, which was a new race lap record for MotoAmerica’s middleweight maulers.

At the final round of the season for the Mission Super Hooligan National Championship Powered By Harley-Davidson, KWR rider James Rispoli had an incredible weekend in the Buckeye State. Not only did he win both races and clinch the 2025 Super Hooligan title by just four points over Jake Lewis in a dramatic, come-from-behind performance, but he rode his Harley-Davidson Pan America to a new class lap record and race lap record of 1:28.932 during Saturday’s race one.

Take this broken wing, and learn to fly again. Photo by Brian J. Nelson.

No wing on the right side of the fairing, a flinder held in the switch housing with yellow duct tape, and a determined Max Flinders in the saddle. Nothing stops Thrashed Racing from competing in MotoAmerica. Photo by Brian J. Nelson.

Rahal Ducati Moto w/XPEL rider PJ Jacobsen was ripping fastest laps throughout most of the weekend at Mid-Ohio. Photo by Brian J. Nelson

Mid-Ohio Beach

James Rispoli wasn’t the only one who had a memorable weekend at Mid-Ohio Sports Car Course. Along with setting a new lap record in Stock 1000, JD Beach was the victor in Stock 1000 race one. The Kentuckian then followed that up by finishing third in Superbike race one aboard his Stock-1000-spec Real Steel Honda CBR1000RR-R Fireblade SP. That’s right, the Jiggy Dog finished on the podium in a Superbike race despite his Honda literbike being in stock trim and without all the cool, go-fast parts that Superbikes are known for.

Incidentally, that was the first time in more than 16 years that a Honda rider finished on the podium in an AMA-sanctioned Superbike race. The last time it happened was on March 6, 2009, when Corona Honda rider Neil Hodgson finished second in Superbike at Daytona International Speedway.

On Sunday, Beach had a technical issue with his bike on the warmup lap for Stock 1000 race one, and all eyes were on JD and his crew as they tried to correct the problem and get him to the starting grid. A redflag stoppage due to a separate incident gave his crew and him another chance to exorcise the demons from his recalcitrant Fireblade.

He made it out for the sighting lap, but the bike was still not cooperating, so he was unable to make the restart.

Undaunted, Beach and his squad were able to get the bike race ready for Sunday’s Superbike race two, and they were rewarded for their efforts with Beach recording a top-five result. It was the 14th Superbike race this season in which he finished as the highest-ranked Superbike Cup rider.

On-The-Tire Training

Carmel, Indiana’s Solly Mervis is really getting the most from his MotoAmerica experience. The Ice Barn Racing Talent Cup rider was in attendance at Mid-Ohio even though he wasn’t racing. Instead, the Rose-Hulman Institite of Technology engineering and physics student did a weekend internship with Dunlop. Mervis joined Dunlop’s tire crew and helped balance tires for the teams and riders while getting an insider’s perspective on everything that goes on under the big, yellow-and-black paddock awning.

Also taking a busman’s holiday at Mid-Ohio was fellow Talent Cup rider and newly crowned, two-time SC-Project Twins Cup Champion Alessandro Di Mario, who served as crew chief for his good friend Andres Jaramillo, who raced in Super Hooligan.

Wounds That Need To Be Unwound

We had a number of unfortunate crashes at Mid-Ohio, and it is something that we never like to see. And, even beyond that, we absolutely never like to see any of our riders get injured.

Among those riders who crashed at Mid-Ohio and are currently on the mend are Harley-Davidson x Dynojet Factory Racing’s Bradley Smith and Warhorse HSBK Racing Ducati’s Josh Herrin.

The Lemming father-and-son duo were invited up to the starter’s tower overlooking start-finish at Mid-Ohio where they resumed their former flag-waving duties during Sunday’s final Super Hooligan race of the 2025 season.

Smith’s incident occurred during Friday afternoon’s Mission King Of The Baggers Qualifying 1 when he was highsided from his #38 Harley-Davidson Road Glide. Unfortunately, his bike stayed upright longer than he did, and it followed him off the race course. He sustained the impact and weight of his 600+-pound motorcycle, which left him with fractured ribs and a bruised liver. The ever-likeable Brit managed to get back on his feet, and he ended up going to nearby OhioHealth Mansfield Hospital where he spent the night under observation to ensure that he didn’t develop a pneumothorax (punctured lung) from his broken ribs.

I checked in with Smith this past Friday, and he said, “All OK, thank you. I’m in one piece and back home in Monaco. Seems I have cracks in six ribs, but I’m pretty sure we are going to be all OK for Austin (Circuit of The Americas in Texas) and New Jersey (Motorsports Park, the final two rounds of the 2025 Mission King Of The Baggers Championship). Mansfield hospital looked after me good and thoroughly checked me through with a CT scan and 2 MRIs. So, all set.”

Herrin’s crash happened with just five laps to go in Sunday’s Superbike race two when he got tangled up with another rider, and they both went down in unison. The red flag was thrown, which ended the race, and Herrin was in obvious pain. The defending class champion sustained a massive hematoma in the upper part of his right leg, but thankfully, he had no broken bones or injuries to his knee and thigh beyond severe bruising and some abrasions.

When I checked on Herrin last week, he said, “I’m good. Just pissed. I need time for my leg to heal. Nothing else I can do for it. A lot of people don’t know what happened, and some are assuming I caused the accident, which I didn’t.”

As with Bradley Smith, Josh Herrin is also expecting to be good to go for the final two rounds of the 2025 MotoAmerica Championship, which will take place at Circuit of The Americas on September 12 through 14 and New Jersey Motorsports Park on September 26 through 28.

Is there any doubt that motorcycle road racers are some of the toughest athletes on the planet?

It’s been 16 years since a Honda rider stood on the podium after an AMA Superbike race. And JD Beach did it on a Stock 1000 bike. Photo by Brian J. Nelson.

Bradley Smith’s 600+-pound King Of The Baggers bike apparently wanted a piggyback ride, and Smith wasn’t keen on it.

From the pre-race grids for Mission King Of The Baggers and Superbike to the team and rider meet-and-greets in the paddock, Mid-Ohio provided a full spectrum for our VIP’s!

The Many Faces

It’s a face only a mom… virtually everyone loves. Larry Pegram is a fan favorite.

Actually, it’s the same face, but Ohioan Larry Pegram has worn many different hats, helmets, team shirts, and even business attire over the years. He’s a flat tracker, motorcycle road racer, automobile road racer, team owner, promoter, and very successful business owner of an Ohio-based company in a burgeoning industry completely unrelated to motorsports.

On a personal note, Larry Pegram is one of the reasons why my family and I moved from New Hampshire to Ohio in 1997. We had previously lived about 45 minutes from my former home track in Loudon. We made the move to Ohio so I could live near Mid-Ohio Sports Car Course, and two of my heroes, Tom Kipp and Larry Pegram, were Ohioans. Those three beacons drew me the Buckeye State like a moth to a flame.

But I digress.

Larry Pegram was born in Baltimore… but not that Baltimore. It’s the one in central Ohio, a small farm town with lots of fields of corn, soybeans, and rolling hills. He rode motorcycles from a very young age, started out on dirt tracks, and began his professional racing career in 1988, finishing as runner-up in the 1991 AMA 600 National Dirt Track Championship.

Adding road racing to his dance card during that same time period, Pegram also quickly made a name for himself on asphalt. He competed in both Supersport and Superbike right from the start, and in 1995, he joined Erion Racing in Supersport on a Honda CBR600F3 while also continuing to also race in flat track.

From there, Pegram’s road racing career included stints with Yoshimura Suzuki, Fast By Ferracci Ducati, Competition Accessories Ducati, Hooters Suzuki, and the list goes on. In 2006, he formed his own Pegram Racing team and campaigned Hondas, Ducatis, BMWs, and Yamahas, with support from Foremost Insurance as one of his title sponsors.

Pegram even had his own reality television show called “Superbike Family,” which chronicled his racing exploits and included his wife Heather, father Jim and mother Mary, and his race crew and team personnel. The show provided a unique look into the life of an AMA Superbike racer and team owner, and it didn’t shy away from showing the difficulties of the sport, as well as the successes and light-hearted moments. Pegram was already popular for always “keeping it real” with the fans, but he continued that theme on TV (Larry is always going to be himself), and it made his popularity grow even more.

Pegram’s racing career started on dirt, but he quickly added road racing to his repertoire.

Of Larry Pegram

Racing for Erik Buell, Pegram campaigned an EBR 1190RX in AMA Pro Superbike, and then, in the FIM Superbike World Championship alongside teammate Niccolò Canepa.

In the past few years, Pegram started a company called Pure Ohio Wellness, and he was selected by the voters in Ohio (I actually voted for him) to be one of the few businesses selected to grow and process cannabis and cannabis by-products for medical use. Pure Ohio was immediately successful, and when Ohio also legalized cannabis for recreational use, Pegram and Pure Ohio was at the forefront. He employs a large workforce, works closely with the Ohio state government, and is a national leader in the industry.

And, he’s still racing. He and his daughter Riley, who is a rising talent in sports car racing, have been competing together as an endurance team in the IMSA Michelin Pilot Challenge’s TCR class.

They race a Hyundai Elantra N in the series.

Last year, aboard his Team Hammer/Pegram Racing Suzuki GSX-R750, he finished on the podium in MotoAmerica Supersport at his home track, Mid-Ohio. He’s also road raced in Stock 1000 at Road America, the Mission Super Hooligan National Championship at Laguna Seca and COTA, and he’s continued to race in American Flat Track when he has “spare” time.

He’s back at Mid-Ohio this weekend, racing in Supersport for Team Hammer once again on a Suzuki GSX-R750.

Larry Pegram will turn 52 years old next month, and he is showing no signs at all of slowing down. You can’t stop Larry Pegram, you can only hope to contain him. And, by “contain him,” it would only be in the confines of a race track, his race shop, or his businesses.