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Track conditions were the talk of the paddock this weekend at the Indianapolis GP, as riders battled the changing tarmac surfaces, and undulating bumps of the Indy infield. Perhaps most vocal of his displeasure with the course was Ducati rider Casey Stoner, who called the Indianapolis Motor Speedway not a world class track, and specifically complained about plastic drains that would catch riders as the ventured in towards the edge of the track (Rossi also complained of these drains).

Teammate Nicky Hayden was less critical before Sunday’s race though, saying that Stoner’s comments could be applied to many of the courses on the MotoGP calendar. However after losing a knee puck to one of the drainage grates that Stoner criticized earlier, Hayden may be re-thinking his tune.

The loss of his left-side knee puck meant that Hayden could not drag a knee for many of the course’s turns, which favors left-handers heavily. Obviously dragging his leathers despite the loss of the puck, Hayden says he could have made a better showing if it wasn’t for the knee puck becoming detached from his suit. Warning: If you don’t like seeing road rash, avoid the picts after the jump.

Motorcycle safety technology has clearly entered a new phase of development with airbag systems being pursued by a variety of apparel manufacturers. The latest company to enhance it’s riding suits with the technology is Alpinestars, purveyor of fine jackets, gloves, boots, etc. Alpinestars’ airbag system, dubbed the Tech Air Race, the system easily integrates into what the company calls the Electronic Airbag Protection Suit. The two components combined create a leather racing suit that can calculate in eight milliseconds whether a rider is crashing, and if so, deploy a pair of airbags that protects the rider’s body.

colin-edwards-motogp-tech3-yamaha

The Texas Tornado is putting up his leathers on eBay to benefit Yamaha’s charity fundraising. The auction runs until May 28th, and includes his leathers, helmet, boots, and gloves. The winning bidder also receives a pair of tickets and a hotel room for the duration of the Red Bull U.S. Grand Prix held July 3rd-5th.

Edwards will personally hand over the race items in a Saturday ceremony at the Mazda Raceway Laguna Seca. All funds raised will go to Feed the Children.

Source: MotoGP

Puma, maker of shoes and soccer balls, has released a new site debuting its offerings for motorsports. So you may not be able to score a girl as nice as Mrs. Stoner, but at least you can try and fill his boots.

The new range of products will expand Puma’s current boot only offerings. All items have been designed in-house by Puma with Dainese doing the grunt work of constructing them.