lefty
Well-known member
This guy is 70 y/o and still going strong!!!
http://www.reno-fernleyraceway.com/news.php?ID=47
Carson City retiree finds new passion at the raceway
ROBERT PEREA
RENO GAZETTE-JOURNAL
Posted: 2/15/2008
Sporting his helmet and leathers, Ron Sutton looks like just any other rider zipping around the motorcycle track during test-and-tune sessions at Reno-Fernley Raceway.
It's only when he takes off his helmet that the 70-year-old Sutton is likely to draw a double take.
"I'm about the oldest guy out there," he said.
After he retired and sold his welding shop in 2001, Sutton was looking for a hobby when he decided to look into buying a motorcycle.
From there, a passion was born.
"I missed being in business, so I tried to go looking for something to occupy my time," Sutton said. "It's a thrill. I used to fly experimental aircraft, it's replaced that."
Sutton said he rode motorcycles in the mid '50s as a mode of transportation when he lived in Toronto, but hadn't been on a bike since then.
Over the objections of his wife, Sutton bought a Suzuki 650 SV in 2004 and immersed himself in learning everything he could.
"I took all the Motorcycle Safety Foundation schools, both basic and advanced rider courses that were available through Harley Davidson and Western Nevada College before I bought the bike," Sutton said. "I wanted to know myself if I was able to handle and enjoy riding again."
That, Sutton said, was easier than he thought.
The challenge
"It's amazing," he said. "I picked it up right now. A couple laps, and there I was."
Sutton, who has lived in Carson City since 1968, took a two-day rider course on the track at Willow Springs Raceway in Redmond, Calif.
When he got home, he went to Reno-Fernley Raceway.
At that point, he decided to buy a racing bike and leave his street bike for commuting and weekend riding.
To pay for his new hobby, Sutton took a part-time job welding and teaching welding.
Since he started riding again, Sutton has advanced from a novice in class C to the amateur class B.
"My bike will do about 135 (miles per hour) down the straightaway," he said. "I'm just starting to get to the point I'm able to hold it wide open down the straightaway, maybe 110."
One thing Sutton hasn't done -- and doesn't plan to -- is race.
He's happy just getting on the track during test-and-tune sessions, satisfying his need for speed at his own pace.
And although speeding around a track at 110 miles per hour may not sound like the safest hobby around, Sutton says it is.
"There's a certain amount of insanity out there, but I haven't done anything dumb. I'm very cautious," he said. "When you're young, you fall down and bend, but at my age you fall down and break."
Sutton says he feels just like other riders half or a third of his age, and even younger.
"I'm just having fun for right now," he said. "I'm in perfect health. I don't feel a day over 35."
http://www.reno-fernleyraceway.com/news.php?ID=47
Carson City retiree finds new passion at the raceway
ROBERT PEREA
RENO GAZETTE-JOURNAL
Posted: 2/15/2008
Sporting his helmet and leathers, Ron Sutton looks like just any other rider zipping around the motorcycle track during test-and-tune sessions at Reno-Fernley Raceway.
It's only when he takes off his helmet that the 70-year-old Sutton is likely to draw a double take.
"I'm about the oldest guy out there," he said.
After he retired and sold his welding shop in 2001, Sutton was looking for a hobby when he decided to look into buying a motorcycle.
From there, a passion was born.
"I missed being in business, so I tried to go looking for something to occupy my time," Sutton said. "It's a thrill. I used to fly experimental aircraft, it's replaced that."
Sutton said he rode motorcycles in the mid '50s as a mode of transportation when he lived in Toronto, but hadn't been on a bike since then.
Over the objections of his wife, Sutton bought a Suzuki 650 SV in 2004 and immersed himself in learning everything he could.
"I took all the Motorcycle Safety Foundation schools, both basic and advanced rider courses that were available through Harley Davidson and Western Nevada College before I bought the bike," Sutton said. "I wanted to know myself if I was able to handle and enjoy riding again."
That, Sutton said, was easier than he thought.
The challenge
"It's amazing," he said. "I picked it up right now. A couple laps, and there I was."
Sutton, who has lived in Carson City since 1968, took a two-day rider course on the track at Willow Springs Raceway in Redmond, Calif.
When he got home, he went to Reno-Fernley Raceway.
At that point, he decided to buy a racing bike and leave his street bike for commuting and weekend riding.
To pay for his new hobby, Sutton took a part-time job welding and teaching welding.
Since he started riding again, Sutton has advanced from a novice in class C to the amateur class B.
"My bike will do about 135 (miles per hour) down the straightaway," he said. "I'm just starting to get to the point I'm able to hold it wide open down the straightaway, maybe 110."
One thing Sutton hasn't done -- and doesn't plan to -- is race.
He's happy just getting on the track during test-and-tune sessions, satisfying his need for speed at his own pace.
And although speeding around a track at 110 miles per hour may not sound like the safest hobby around, Sutton says it is.
"There's a certain amount of insanity out there, but I haven't done anything dumb. I'm very cautious," he said. "When you're young, you fall down and bend, but at my age you fall down and break."
Sutton says he feels just like other riders half or a third of his age, and even younger.
"I'm just having fun for right now," he said. "I'm in perfect health. I don't feel a day over 35."
