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Announcement from Johnny Murphree

October 24, 2007
Johnny Murphree, #20

Hey there...

I have been running up and down the road for the better part of my life, chasing the dream of winning the Grand National Dirt Track Championship. For a few years there, we did all but reach that goal. My best efforts were reached by living the definition of dedication. I feel that I gave all I had while I had it! Time has changed my path, however, and I will no longer be chasing that dream.

I have a bunch of other things coming at me right now, but I am taking my time to figure out what it is that I can believe in and work at with all my heart, the way I raced motorcycles. This isn't an easy decision to make, but I feel that the time is right, and I am excited for the next challenge.

Thank you for your support of my program, and I hope to be in touch some time down the road.

Thanks again for your support. Take care,
Johnny

Johnny -- We enjoyed working with you and were inspired by your dedication and persistance. We wish you the best of luck and the greatest success in your future.
-- The National Cycle Racing Crew

Race Report: Greenville, OH

August 17 , 2007
Johnny Murphree, #20

Hey There...

It has been three weeks now since the Greenville Half-Mile, so it's a little late to call it a report. If you haven't noticed, I've been out of action since then. Here's how it went down; Fourth lap, first practice, I slid out like is so common, but this time my foot twisted back at a weird angle, and when the bike came down it snapped my lower leg. I knew before I stopped sliding that it was over, and I looked up, only to see my foot facing a north/south direction even though my leg was still at more of an east/west angle!

Cutting my boot off was a rather intense part of the deal, as were the next few days. You know what, though? I think it's a good thing to go through every now and again! Not so much the breaking of bones, but experiencing a deal like that really makes you feel alive! Anyway, the people at the hospital in Greenville were nice enough to wrap my leg up in a splint and pump me full of pain medication so I could start my journey home. I headed back to the track to watch some racing, as my flight didn't leave until Monday. Lucky for me, I hooked up with Chris Hart who, back in May, had a tumble of his own, and is still recovering from multiple injuries. Chris and his team owner Craig Rogers hooked me up to fly home with them Sunday morning, so by Monday at 9AM I was sitting in the doctors office. They wanted to wait a week to do surgery so the swelling would go down, so the following Monday I went back and got some hardware installed.

We're not sure on the recovery time of this deal, as the break was rather low and had to be dealt with different than a standard tib/fib fracture. It is a real shame to miss this time of the season, as things were just getting rolling for us, I thought. I'm not sure which races, if any, I will get back this season. I am, however, going to be around for most of the races.

I've worked out a deal with the Live-I Sports guys to help with commentary on a few of their shows this season. If you are a regular viewer of the Live-I, let me know how I do at Peoria this Sunday. If you haven't watched any of the races on Live-I, you're in for a treat. Check out www.liveIsports.com, then you purchase the days event for a few bucks, then get a bowl of popcorn and your beverage of choice, and watch the race LIVE! It should be a good time, and it gives me an excuse to get back out to the track.

Another point of interest this weekend for us will be our fill-in rider. National number 45, Jesse Janisch, is a very promising up and coming rider, and will be riding our Jones Racing KX450F out of the National Cycle pit this weekend. Our mechanic, James Hart, is happy to be headed back to the track and we're looking for good things out of our new rider! It should be and exciting deal, so keep an eye out for the green number 45! I hope to hear from you soon.

Happy Trails, Johnny

Race Report: Saluda, KS

July 16, 2007
Johnny Murphree, #20

Hey there...

This weekend we were at the Virginia Motor Speedway. This was the second time that the AMA Flat rack series had been there, and it is a beautiful facility. We qualified 6th, and after a poor start in my heat, finally pulled it together and got the gas on. I went from 5th place by half a straight, and in three laps got into 3rd place and got a direct transfer to the final. It wasn't great, as I would have to start on the second row, but we had plenty of speed late in the race, and were hoping to move forward in the final.

We made a few changes before the 25 lap main event, and at the flash of the green light I could tell they had helped. I got up into 6th place right away, and was all over the guys in front of me, but the track was real single lined, and it was a tall order to make a pass. I made contact with a few different guys' inside number plate, and all but crashed a couple times. There was one fast line, and getting around or under someone was about like performing surgery! I lost a few spots by being impatient, and ended up 8th, but I couldn't jut sit there and do NOTHING!! We were fast enough to run up front, and had a good time throughout the night, and I think the results we want are within our reach.

Next weekend we are in Greenville, Ohio. I am looking forward to the challenge of the cushion track, and you can watch it live next Saturday night, at www.liveisports.com.

Thanks again for your support. Take care,
Johnny

Race Report: Joliet, IL

July 9, 2007
Johnny Murphree, #20

Hey there...

I just wanted to get you a real quick note about our weekend in Joliet. Everything went pretty smooth, just not quite as fast as we had hoped. Qualifying wasn't anything too exciting for us, but I did get the holeshot in my heat race, only to be passed by Kenny Coolbeth. The track was real nice, and if you were faster than someone, you could pass. We lined up in the second row for the final, and got a decent start, but got tangled up on the first lap and got shuffled toward the back. It took me almost half the race to get back into my groove, and by that point everyone was so spread out it was hard to make up any positions.

By the last lap I had caught back up to Chris Carr and AJ Eslick, who were battling for 8th spot, and I got by AJ going into turn 1. We ended up 9th, but were moving forward, and that feels good. It just seemed to take all day to get up to full speed, and that was costly. No worries, though, as we are off to Saluda, VA next weekend, and this time I'm going to try to remember to go fast all day!

Thanks for the support, and talk to you soon.
Johnny

Race Report: Lima, OH

July 2, 2007
Johnny Murphree, #20

Hey there...

The series took us to Lima, Ohio this past weekend, and this is how it went. It is normally a tough race for us, and this weekend was no different. The thing that was different this time was the fun level. It's always more fun when you finish up front, but I enjoyed the the process this time. Lima is a typical Ohio pea-gravel cushion track, which isn't my favorite, but from the first practice on I felt racey as heck! We ended up with 15th place in qualifying, being good enough for a front row start in my heat. I felt a lot faster than that, and knew that I would race better than I qualified. Sure enough, after coming through from a poor start I was able to work my way into 3rd place, then Kenny Coolbeth had a mechanical and I ended up 2nd! That was a bit of a gift, but up to that point I felt like I could go as fast as anyone if I just got a better start. Kenny's bad fortune was our good, as our heat was fastest and that put me on the front row for the final. I thought for sure that my personal best Lima finish, being a 6th, was going down this time.

We rolled out onto the track for the final and it was quite evident that things had changed for us. Through our heat race, there was a nice deep cushion on the track and our bike was digging in and getting a bite. By main event time the dirt had all been blown off and there was just a little gravel left to skid around on. I just didn't adapt to the track as quick as most, and from the start I just felt like I was going backwards. It wasn't all bad, but I felt a lot better early on, and finishing 9th just didn't feel as good as the rest of the night. Jared Mees didn't seem to have a problem with it, as he walked away with his 2nd National win in a row, and Coolbeth came through from the 3rd row and got second. It was a typical Lima when all was said and done, but we did make progress this week.

Now we're back up to Joliet, IL. It will be a rain make-up for June 23rd, and it should be a fast, fun track. So until then, take care.
Johnny

Race Report: Plymouth, WI

June 6, 2007
Johnny Murphree, #20

Howdy all...

Just wanted to get with you for an update on our race weekend. It was a busy one, and I'm going to be quick, so sit down and hang on!!

We started out by heading up to Plymouth, WI for the Jim Sumner Memorial short track on Friday afternoon, went fast in the first practice, but only slowed down from there so we made a bunch of changes only to get dirty and tired but not much faster. So we ended up 8th in the main event, which was not that good, but we learned quite a bit about the Kawasaki and should be able to make it better. But we did end up finishing the Dash-for-Cash with a 2nd so we made a little $$ then jumped in the truck and headed back south for Tennesse.

Once we got to the track things were a bit slow for us as we had been on the road all night and after the first practice I thought that we were in trouble, because I felt like crap. So James Hart and I put our heads together and dialed the motorcycle in as much as we could so by heat race time we were up to race speed and actually got a win which put us on the front row for the 25-lap Main Event. I got the holesot but got passed right away by Shaun Russell and then by Jared Mees. I got back by Shaun in a couple laps but by that time Jared had checked out and he got his first win of the season and I ended up second, which was pretty good considering how it all started.

I got up Sunday morning and we had just about arrived back at James' place, where I got in my pick-up and headed back to my place in Mt. Zion and maintained a few projects that I have going on there. I then drove over toward my buddy's place close to Indy so I could get back up at 4AM to get on a plane and get back out here to Cali to get ready for the Peoria TT hotshoe event next Sunday!

What a trip, huh? Take it easy!
Johnny

Race Report: Springfield, IL

May 29, 2007
Johnny Murphree, #20

Hey there...

We are just getting done with a busy weekend of racing at the Springfield, Illinois State fairgrounds. It was scheduled to run the TT event on Saturday and the Mile Sunday, but the weather was had other plans. We got through qualifying for the TT before the rain blew in and washed us out of there. Lucky for us, we had Monday as a rain date and could come back after we got the Mile in on Sunday.

With all the rain, the Mile track was way over saturated, and it took all day Sunday to get it ready. The IMDA and the Springfield Fairgrounds crew worked their butts off and got us a track that was fast and safe to race. I felt good right away, and although we were only 14th or so on the clock, I felt racy. We had waited so long to get the track in racing condition that we had almost run out of daylight, plus the weather man was claiming a 2 hour window of no rain, so the AMA decided to run the RUSH format. This means heat races only, no semis, and a 20 rider main event. I liked the changed format and we were set to make something good happen. Unfortunately, a few laps into my heat race our motor started to tie up. I wasn't sure what was going wrong, but I ended up having to pull off, ending our day at the Mile. It was an unfortunate deal, as we were looking forward to a good result for the newly structured team, but there are a bunch more races coming up.

The make-up for the TT on Sunday looked to be a good race. Once again, the track was wet and fast from the storms, but we were just a click off. I finished second in my heat race behind Henry Wiles, but it was a distant second, so we made some adjustments before the final to get the bike a bit more comfortable so I could ride harder.

The main event got underway and I felt fast. By the end of the first lap I got into 4th place, and was right on last years winner JR Schnabel. I wasn't able to put a pass on him, but he wasn't getting away, either. The race went almost half way before the track slicked off, and when it did we went backwards. I gave up one spot to Joe Kopp when I went wide in the right hander, and that was it. We qualified 13th, lined up 6th, and finished 5th. It was a good day, overall, and I am looking forward to next weekend.

So until then, take it easy.
Johnny

Race Report: Daytona, FL

March 15 , 2007
Johnny Murphree, #20

Hey there! It's been a while, so let me get caught up. I have been spending most of my time out here in California getting healthy for the new season. I had a little knee surgery back in October, so I didn't spend much time on the bike this winter. I did, however, adapt my lifestyle into something a bit different. I now have a dog, a part time job, a full time girl, and a race team to manage! It was a busy winter, to say the least, but quite enjoyable. Despite the new challenges, or maybe due to them, I felt more relaxed than ever about the actual riding aspect. Once James Hart (1992 AMA Junior National Champion, multi-time Sportster Performance race winner, and one hell of a nice guy) and I were on I-95 headed into Florida, I was confident in the work we had done to prepare. Over the last few years I had gotten in the habit of pressurizing the situation to motivate myself. The effects of that ended up more negative than motivating, so we're running a little different program this time around. If this first race is an indication of how the year will go, it's all good!

While most everyone else was out racing the Hot Shoe half-mile events that kick off bike week, we were tightening up our short track program. The first part of the plan seemed to pay off pretty well, as we qualified 3rd fastest and won our heat race the first night out on new bikes with a new team! The first night at the short track National in Daytona was a rough track and a somewhat physical race. I was pleased with my fitness after only minimal time on the bike since last season. I actually made a last lap pass to go from 6th to 4th place, and only missed a podium finish by 5 bike lengths or so.

The second night, things were a little tougher for us. We qualified 11th, finished second in our heat race, and 11th in the main event. We had hoped to move forward after the quick success the first night, but when it was all over, we were all pretty happy. It was only two weeks earlier that James received the pieces to build the bikes, only a month or so before that when we decided to make the switch to the Kawasaki KX450F from the Hondas we had come used to, and only another month or so before that, I was undergoing rehab from the ACL replacement in my left knee! The progress we made was more impressive than anything else. The signage on the truck and around our pit area was in place right out of the box. James and Woody Kyle had the bikes looking and running like a million bucks. Everyone in our pit the entire week had a smile on their face, especially me! I am feeling a bit of accomplishment that I have never felt before. I hope that everyone involved with the program can feel a bit of that with me, because it's all about the people around you!

Thanks again and see you at the track!
Johnny