MOTORCYCLE RACING
Despite setbacks, Sjoblom remains hopeful

AT THE mid-season mark North
Vancouver motorcycle racer Dave
Sjoblom is both hopeful and
frustrated.

By ELIZABETH COLLINGS
News Reporter

Hopeful because in his first year
as a professional racer Sjoblom
has had some promising finishes.

And frustrated because the 23-
year-old racer has yet to pull cut a
win, despite some close races.

An example of this is Sjoblom’s
race last weekend at Westwood
where he came second on his FZR
400 Superbike in the Formula 2
class qualifying race only to be put
out of competition by a fall from
his bike in the afternoon.

“I qualified very well with my
bikes in the morning. Everything
was looking up until ! fell off my
bike,’’ Sjoblom said.

He said the fall occurred while
he was climbing up the pack in the
600 production class on a new set
of tires.

““Where I fell off was the fastest
corner of the track,'’ Sjoblom
said. ‘‘The bike is pretty banged
up but we should be able to piece it
back together.’’

‘We’ includes Sjoblom’s
mechanic Tim Levell from North
Vancouver and a second mechanic
new to Sjoblom this season, Dave

_ Tait from Coquitlam.

With the tuning of Tait and
Lovell, Sjoblom is confident i:
won't be long before he’s back in
contention.

Sjoblom credits numerous spon-
sors for supporting him, among
them the North Shore News, Shell
Canada, Checkpoint Yamaha,
Westlake Construction, Kerker,

«Dynojet, NGK, Yoshimura Nor-
thwest, Avon, and, not to be
forgotten, Sjoblom’s father.

23 - Friday, July 14, 1989 - North Shore News

NEWS photo Neil Lucente

DAVE SIOBLOM, #21, rounds a hairpin turn at Westwood in Round Five of the 1989 Westcoast Challenge series. This is Sjoblom’s first year racing

in a professional class.

For the second season Sjoblom
is clothed in what has rapidly
become his trademark attire —
Original Leather Factory-made
pink leathers.

“I found them to be quite a
crowd pleaser,”’ Sjoblom said.

The racer for Sjoblom to beat
this year in the Formula 2 class is
Dave Ohitwa of Surrey.

“‘He’s definitely the competi-
tion. He’s been pretty much
unbeatable but now I'm up to his
level, he’s got someone to race
with,” Sjoblom said.

In the 600 production class
where Sjoblom races a Yamaha
FZR 600, Sjoblom is less pleased
with his performance which has
been plagued by a Series of

mechanical problems.

Daryl Fietcher of New
Westminster has won all but one
race in the 600 class this year.

“Things look most hopeful for
the Formula 2 but I’ve still got a
way to go on figuring out how to
ride a four stroke,’’ Sjoblom said.

The four race tracks Sjoblom is
concentrating on this year are

Westwoud, Caigary, Portland and
Seattle.

In September he hopes to ride in
Shannonville, Ont., at the Cana-
dian National Series in the For-
mula 2 and 600 and 750 classes.

Sjoblom’s next race at
Westwood will be July 30 for
Round Six of the Westcoast
Challenge.

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