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(Manager/Rider) |
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(Manager/Rider) |
My name is Tony Iannarelli (pronounced "ya-na-rel-e", if you're wondering), and I am the General Manager for SAMnet Internet Services.
SAMnet is a local internet service provider in the Springfield, Massachusetts area. We also create Websites, E-Commerce Applications, LAN and WAN installation and maintenance, as well database programming.
My job is to build awareness of the company. In addition to the normal advertising methods, my love for motorcycles and racing drives me to combine work and play.
With this in mind, I decided to start a motorcycle roadracing team, and name it after the company. SAMnet gives me time off to go racing, and encourages me to include motorcycles in our promotional events.
If you are a motorcyclist, and live in the Western Massachusetts Area, please consider using SAMnet for your Internet Service, Web Site Design, or Computer needs. This will help the company, and in turn, will help me to continue creating positive publicity for motorcyclists.
(OK, enough of that PR stuff)
I am 36 years old, and I have been riding motorcycles since I was 10. Like many riders, I began on dirt bikes, and proceeded to get a street bike when I moved out on my own.
I actually began riding on the street with the Kawasaki 125cc on/off that I had been riding on the trails around my house. I remember my first legal ride on the street very well. I was on my way to school, around 7:30 on a cold April morning. I got about 1/2 of a mile from my house, and I dumped it!!
It seems that while the sun dried the morning dew everywhere else, under this little bridge near my house, what looked like water was actually black ice. I was only going about 15 mph, but I scraped my elbow and cracked my very cheap helmet. As I lay beside the road, an old lady in a car came around the corner, slowed down to take a good look at me laying against the banking, and kept going without so much as an, “are you OK?”
This was my first introduction to the world of street riding. Thankfully, that was my only accident on the street. Since then I have owned several street bikes:
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How I got started in RoadRacing:
I ended up meeting some riders around my house that raced up in New Hampshire, and we became pretty good friends. Around this same time, I realized that I had begun to ride much faster on the street, and I was having a lot more close calls. I kept telling my friends that I would never race, but one day I decided to go ahead and take the school - just to see how it felt to not have to worry about cops, bad drivers, etc. This was in 1995.
Since then, I have raced in over 200 races. In rain,
sleet, snow, and even some sunshine. If you’ve ever been to
New Hampshire in April, you’ll understand how we might have
to race in the snow.
My first year was spent as an Amateur, where I spent most of my time in the middle of the pack. My second year I moved up to Junior Expert, and won my very first race! In fact, of the 12 dry races I entered that year, I had all podium finishes (1st, 2nd or 3rd), and one 4th place. In 1997, I moved up to Expert, and did very well considering it was my first year running with the big dogs :-). I was hoping for Top 20 finishes, and I got mostly Top 10.
In the 1998 season, I ran a 1997 Honda F3 and competed in 3 classes. I was in 2nd in one class, 3rd in another, and 6th in the last one. With 2 races left in the season, I crashed hard - breaking 6 ribs (one of them twice!) and ending my season. I was unable to race in the last 2 races, but I was able to hold on to one podium position. Click HERE to see the season's final results.
In 1999, I switched to 2 Strokes! Specifically a 1993 Yamaha TZ250. I never wanted one prior because my only perception of them was that they were maintenance intensive. Now that I have one, I see that it is a give and take situation. You give it extra care and attention and it will take you on the ride of your life! These things are serious fun - outhandling anything else I've ridden to date. The power-to-weight ratio is on par with a modern 600cc 4 stroker, and often times those are the bikes that I run against. (A 600cc bike has about 105 HP to 400 lbs while the TZ250 has about 80 HP to 230 lbs.). The 4stroke bikes have the advantage coming out of the corners, but the TZ250 has the advantage on the brakes and through the middle of the corner.
For the 2000 season, I picked up a "brand new" TZ. Well, actually, the bike was BRAND NEW, but it's a 1994 model year. I found it sitting in a crate and got it for a very good price. It is probably no better or faster than my 1993, but there is something to be said for NEW! :-)
In 2000, I took 3rd place overall in the Lightweight Gran Prix class and 6th place overall in the Middleweight Endurance class. For the 2001 season, I added a powershifter and BOLD NEW GRAPHICS. :-)
During the 2001 season, it finally happened. I broke my collarbone. Instead of fighting for 2nd place overall for the year, I got pushed back to 5th place and missed out on a TOP 3 overall by just 1 point. Hopefully, 2002 will have me back in the TOP 3!
Well, as you've probably seen elsewhere on the site, 2002 was better than I could have imagined. No DNF's or crashes all year, and I finally won a CHAMPIONSHIP!!
I guess that’s enough about me. If you really want to know something else, you can email me.
For information on my Road Racing Career, check out the RESUME section.
