In this section...

• New BeemerShop Online Store

• Michelin Tire Recall

• Jim Robertson and Ned Marandino take 1-2 in the Alcan 5000

• The BeemerShop WiFi HotSpot!

New BeemerShop Online Store

The BeemerShop introduces its online web store. Click here to begin shopping!

Michelin Tire Recall — Effective June 28, 2007

Michelin has recalled Pilot Power and Pilot Power 2CT front tires in 120/70 x17 size only. Only tires stamped "Made in France" are affected. If the tire is made in Spain, it is not part of this recall.

If you have a 120/70 ZR 17 Michelin Pilot Power, or Pilot Power 2CT that was made in France and it has the following DOT codes, contact your tire dealer for a no charge replacement.

DOT 6UCW 980 T MICHELIN PILOT POWER 2CT
DOT 6UCW 979T MICHELIN PILOT POWER

Jim Robertson and Ned Marandino take 1-2 in the Alcan 5000

Congratulations to Jim Robertson and Ned Marandino for their first and second place finishes respectively in the motorcycle class of the Alcan 5000 race in Alaska. Jim and Ned both rode F650 models serviced by the BeemerShop. We are proud to announce their bikes performed flawlessly.

Our hats are off to Ned for competing in the race despite a badly swollen foot from a previous encounter with an automobile on the backroads near his home. The last time I saw him he was on crutches but determined to compete in the race anyway.

See a few photos below, or see them all.

Local Riders Sweep Alcan5000 Motorcycle Rally

Veteran Santa Cruz County motorcycle racers Jim Robertson, 59, of Aptos and Ned Marandino, 69, of Larkin Valley swept the top two places among twenty-two motorcycle rally competitors from all around the United States in the 2006 Alcan5000 Rally. This nine day, 4400 mile rally proceeded from the Seattle area on August 14, went through British Columbia, the Yukon, to the Arctic Circle, the Northwest Territories and Alaska, finishing in Anchorage on August 22. The event website is www.alcan5000.com.

Both Robertson and Marandino earned Iron Man awards for successfully completing all parts of the 4400 mile course, mounted on their BMW F650GS's. Numerical scoring was based on gaining minimum penalty points for each second of early or late passage through the many hidden checkpoints in the timed sections of the course. Robertson bettered all motorcyclists in the scoring and Marandino was a close second.

A large portion of the rally was routed on remote dirt and gravel roads, with rocks, mud, freezing rain and hailstorms adding to the difficulty. Highlights of the ride included an early morning 150 mile round trip from Dease Lake, BC, on a winding, deserted, muddy, cliffside road to Telegraph Creek, a remote Indian fishing village. There was an all day 365 mile ride from Whitehorse up the Canol Road in the Yukon till the seldom used dirt road simply vanished into the arctic tundra wilderness of the Northwest Territories, camping out overnight at road's end and returning the next day. From Dawson City in the Yukon there was a 600 mile round trip up the muddy Dempster "Highway" to the Arctic Circle and back. The "Top of the World Highway" from Dawson to Tok, Alaska, followed and then a 166 mile round trip into the beautifully scenic Denali Pass.

Map of the Course

Jim Robertson, at the Arctic Circle in the Yukon, fresh as a daisy.

Ned Marandino, too tired to get off the bike and smile for the camera.

Ned and Jim at the finish tent in Anchorage, after all day ride in the rain had washed the mud off Ned's bike.

The BeemerShop WiFi HotSpot!

Ted has installed a WiFi base station. Now, if you come by for some quick, while-you-wait service, you can stay in touch with the office and read your e-mail or browse the web on your laptop.