<img src="http://www.nitromater.com/gallery/files/5/540PeggyGators071.jpg" alt="540PeggyGators071" align="right"borders="0"/>
"We practiced all day Monday with Peggy at the shop on reaction times," said George Bryce, who shares tuning and crew chiefing duties with Shane Maloney, but also acts as driving coach and teacher to Llewellyn. "We have a real practice tree plugged into our school bike. Hector Arana was here with his daughter and two boys, and they raced Peggy on the practice tree yesterday 'til her hand was sore."
"They beat up on the old woman and made me try harder," laughed Llewellyn. "Youth had its advantage, but it was a lot of fun. Then Hector and I bet $10 and he took it by three wins. But George won it back for me."
The team went to Valdosta for more practice on Tuesday. "We developed a routine with Peggy," Bryce said about the session. "We'd worked on her driving before, but not her routine."
"I got back on the school bike, and like Christina Aguilera, went Back to Basics," said Llewellyn. "It's a learning experience."
"She did really good. She was consistent and did everything the same way each time, except rolling over my hand while I was lining her up!" laughed Maloney. "She was so focused on her target that she rolled right over it. But that's OK, I was really happy. She made two laps on the school bike and two laps on the Buell.
"I'm looking forward to Houston. I think we have a lot to prove, and I'm excited yet optimistic. I think we have a bike that can qualify up front with the Army guys and Vance & Hines, we just have to put it all together and prove it."
"We feel really good," said Bryce. "About half the field left their bikes loaded up hoping that they would magically improve between Gainesville and Houston. That's not the way we race. This is not hobby stock, this is Pro Stock, and we've been working on our equipment. We're looking forward to a more successful trip in Houston than we had in Gainesville."
"A lot of my family and friends are gonna be in Houston, so that will be a thrill," said Llewellyn. "They were excited to see me on TV, so they'll be really excited when they join me in the winners circle!"
Joining the team in Houston is new crewmember Garrett Whaley from Denver, Colorado, who graduated from Wyotech. The S&S powered Buell will feature a special tail section wrapped with an Eric Medlin memorial. "I grew up in an era when John Meyers was my idol," said Maloney, and Llewellyn's website proudly displays a photo of her with Myers, the late Pro Stock Motorcycle champion. "John Myers always smiled and laughed and everybody liked him. Eric Medlin was the same way. It'll look realty neat on the bike and will honor someone who was very important to our sport."
Llewellyn Sharpens Skills for Texas Homecoming
Texas native Peggy Llewellyn has been working hard on her starting line routine in anticipation of her Texas debut with the Karl Klement NHRA Pro Stock Motorcycle racing team. Houston Raceway Park's O'Reilly Spring Nationals event is the closest stop on the POWERade tour to Llewellyn's San Antonio home, and Peggy is looking for a better result in front of her family and friends than her round 1 ouster two weeks ago at the Gatornationals. "After the Gators, they were all so proud of me and told me to stay positive," said Llewellyn."We practiced all day Monday with Peggy at the shop on reaction times," said George Bryce, who shares tuning and crew chiefing duties with Shane Maloney, but also acts as driving coach and teacher to Llewellyn. "We have a real practice tree plugged into our school bike. Hector Arana was here with his daughter and two boys, and they raced Peggy on the practice tree yesterday 'til her hand was sore."
"They beat up on the old woman and made me try harder," laughed Llewellyn. "Youth had its advantage, but it was a lot of fun. Then Hector and I bet $10 and he took it by three wins. But George won it back for me."
The team went to Valdosta for more practice on Tuesday. "We developed a routine with Peggy," Bryce said about the session. "We'd worked on her driving before, but not her routine."
"I got back on the school bike, and like Christina Aguilera, went Back to Basics," said Llewellyn. "It's a learning experience."
"She did really good. She was consistent and did everything the same way each time, except rolling over my hand while I was lining her up!" laughed Maloney. "She was so focused on her target that she rolled right over it. But that's OK, I was really happy. She made two laps on the school bike and two laps on the Buell.
"I'm looking forward to Houston. I think we have a lot to prove, and I'm excited yet optimistic. I think we have a bike that can qualify up front with the Army guys and Vance & Hines, we just have to put it all together and prove it."
"We feel really good," said Bryce. "About half the field left their bikes loaded up hoping that they would magically improve between Gainesville and Houston. That's not the way we race. This is not hobby stock, this is Pro Stock, and we've been working on our equipment. We're looking forward to a more successful trip in Houston than we had in Gainesville."
"A lot of my family and friends are gonna be in Houston, so that will be a thrill," said Llewellyn. "They were excited to see me on TV, so they'll be really excited when they join me in the winners circle!"
Joining the team in Houston is new crewmember Garrett Whaley from Denver, Colorado, who graduated from Wyotech. The S&S powered Buell will feature a special tail section wrapped with an Eric Medlin memorial. "I grew up in an era when John Meyers was my idol," said Maloney, and Llewellyn's website proudly displays a photo of her with Myers, the late Pro Stock Motorcycle champion. "John Myers always smiled and laughed and everybody liked him. Eric Medlin was the same way. It'll look realty neat on the bike and will honor someone who was very important to our sport."
