Sheepdog-Racing

Racing Ahead... Watching the Flock

Welcome to Sheepdog Racing.com. My friends and I started getting together every year for a trip to Deals Gap. And out of that, Sheepdog Racing was formed. I have to credit my best friend for the name. All of us have a passion for sport bike riding and a deep commitment to our country. I am very fortunate to be able to call these men my friends. So, if you share our passion for riding and you are a fellow Sheepdog, welcome, stay a while and enjoy the ride.

Paul
aka Slick

Oakhill Raceway T1

JenningsGp Dec 4th

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Another night around the fire.

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40 years old!

Nov 5, 2011 - I have been a bit busy with military obligations. I going to try to put together a group to attend a track day at VIR. It is only a 3hr drive from Ft. Bragg. We'll see how it goes. It has been a busy summer and fall for me so my track time has suffered. Next year should be better. I am also trying to find a place to store the bike up at Bragg so I can get her out for the occasional afternoon ride. Fayetville isn't the greatest town for riding, but if you go out west of Bragg the roads get better. Anyway, I hope all you Sheepdogs out there are well. Remember we stand between the wolves and the sheep. Be safe.

Paul

July 9, 2011 - We had a great 4th! Some bike riding on the beach in St. Augustine. Rollercoaster riding at Islands of Adventure and a visit to Magic City Cycle in Orlando. I had the itch to visit a Ducati dealership. Any sportbike rider worth his salt understands what I am talking about. Dripped in Italian red and begging to be ridden hard. Needed to get the itch scratched. One day one of these beautiful machines will sit in my garage. I want to thank Dave and Pablo for their time. It is always good to get around other motorcycle enthusiasts and just talk about riding. Magic City Cycle also has a full line of Triumphs and BMWs. If you are in the Orlando area drop in and say hi. 8901 Futures Drive, Orlando, FL 32819.

June 20, 2011 - Yep, it has been a helluva long time since I have added anything. A lot has been going on, unfurtunately not much riding. Mike and I finally got together for our 40th birthdays. We celebrated by spending an extended weekend riding the best roads in the country and running/climbing mountains. Elizabeth bought me a guitar. I was shocked. Guess I will have to start taking lessons. I made myself a promise that I would learn how to play when I turned 40. I love it. One of the best gifts ever. So far 40 is good.

I missed riding. I miss it a lot. Hopefully, next year time and money won't be as much of an issue. I know I am not the only one that has had to put their passions on hold. I have spent more time running half marathons, cycling, and doing other extreme events.

It is my goal to add more to the site and keep it updated with current information. I am looking forward to taking this site from a hobby to a professional web designer. Please be patient, tell your friends and keep coming back.

Thanks for visiting,
Paul

December 12, 2010 - Wow! What an awesome weekend of motorcycling! Troy invited me to attend a weekend of track time at Jennings. Of course there isn't anything better than spending a full weekend at the track exploring the limits of these fantastic machines, but to add to it the hospitality of Ricky's family was incredible. Ricky's Mom brought lunch on Saturday, gave us a place to sleep on Saturday night and lunch on Sunday. Ricky's family bbq'd a pork roast and all the sides you can imagine for dinner on Saturday night. They even had a large camp fire going to enjoy and have a few drinks. Ricky and Lee ran the beginners group. Ricky on his 2007 ZX10R and Lee on a GSXR. Zack started in the beginners group and bumped up to the intermediate group with Troy and Eric. All three on GSXRs. And I ran the expert group. All of us had a great time and with the exception of Eric, who had a get off in turn 9, none of us had any major incidents. Eric is none the worse for wear other than a swollen ankle, some scrapes, bumps and bruises. His bike was back in order fairly quickly. Say what you will about GSXRs, everyone has one and parts are plenty. All of these guys are good men. I enjoyed spending time with them and their significant others. I want to thank Troy for his overwhelming generosity. I want to thank all of these guys for their service and sacrifice for this great country. Thank you!

November 8, 2010 - Not much going on these days. Currently on the unemployed list. The good news is that I have been able to pick up some construction work to fill the void. Troy has returned from Afghanistan safe and sound. We are hoping to attend Selection together. Timing would have to be perfect. Next track event looks like it will be in December. I will update pictures as well as let you know how it went as soon as possible. I have loaded a couple of pictures from my last Deals Gap trip. I have to say, I missed the track this season with only one race, but getting up to the mountains 3 times was great!

September 10, 2010 - New pictures from the endurance race have been posted on the race page. Not a whole lot happening these days. I hope to get up to the mountains for some fall riding next month.

Enjoy the pics.

Paul

July 11, 2010 - Great weekend out in Texas with the CMRA. BK and I took on the 6hr Big Bike Endurance. Yes, just two riders. Two old riders at that! The weather looked like it was going to be the biggest challenge. Scattered thunderstorms plagued the area and threaded to rain us out completely. Friday practice was and exercise in timing. Fortunately I was able to get some laps in and knock the rust off. By 4pm the rain was coming down and flooding the pit area! It was time to lock up and go to the hotel. After a real nice dinner with Brian and Jennifer we headed to bed for some shut eye. Hoping like crazy that the rain would hold off for some good racing. By noon on Saturday the skies were clearing and the racing was on. I took the reigns for the start. Not thinking about the time and distance a head of me I start to rip off some laps working on getting down to some 1:27s and hoping for some 1:26s. Then it occurred to me that the energy I was exerting would come back to haunt me if tried to keep this pace up. That is when I settled into some low 1:30s for the rest of the day. I did run about 6 laps at a 1:35ish pace to catch a break. BK took the reigns and was a real trooper. He did an awesome job, rode a great race. I can't thank him enough for his generosity and friendship. We had about 2hr30mins to go when I went out for my stint. I figure I was about 30mins into it when I got passed up the inside of boot hill. Left hand off camber up hill turn. The guy lowsided right in front of me and I had no where and he became a human speed bump! Not good. I actually faired pretty well. I flipped, the bike flipped. We landed in the mud. I did what I was supposed to do.. I "tried" to relax and keep my arms in. I didn't try and stand up until I was certain I had come to a stop. I did a body check and then looked to see if the other guy was ok. He was still laying on the track. He ended up with 3 broken ribs. Not sure why.......... Turns out that team had put the bike in the weeds several times. I have to say this, you are competing in a 6 HOUR club level ENDURANCE race. If you are laying it down that many times maybe you ought to rethink your HOBBY. All in all we had a great time! The bike is back in race shape and I finally have battle scars on my leathers. I love racing!