AGV Ashley Fiolek on CBS Sports "Courage in Sports Awards" - Amazing.

This is an actually really good feature on Ashley. Very humbling, very rewarding, what a great person! Thanks Ash for your always positive attitude and great outlook on life!

Ashley Fiolek - More Motocross Videos

AGV's Ashley Fiolek Featured in Pittsburgh Newspaper

Motocross champion is an inspiration to deaf people

Friday, September 17, 2010

By Eleanor Chute, Pittsburgh Post-Gazette

Pam Panchak/Post-Gazette

Students from the Western Pennsylvania School for the Deaf get their photo taken with Ashley Fiolek, 19, a motocross athlete who was born deaf. They visited the X Games gold medalist at the Steel City Raceway in Export.

It should be no surprise that 19-year-old Ashley Fiolek is a champion motocross racer.
When she was just 2 years old, she loved riding through the Michigan woods -- hours at a time -- with a parent on a motorcycle. She cried whenever they stopped.
At the age of 3, she got her first motorcycle, a 50-cc bike, but she didn't like the training wheels and continued riding with her parents. At age 7, the training wheels came off, and she was rolling.
She has gone on to win the women's outdoor motocross championship in her rookie year as a pro in 2008 and again in 2009, coming in second this year. She also won a gold medal in the 2009 and 2010 X Games Women's Moto-X.
Brianna Storino of Brookline watched an X Games win but didn't realize until the race was over that Ashley, just like Brianna, is deaf.
"I've been supporting her ever since," said Brianna, a senior at the Western Pennsylvania School for the Deaf.
Brianna and about 35 other students from the school Thursday met Ms. Fiolek and watched her practice at the Steel City Raceway in Delmont.
As for any students, role models help provide inspiration for the deaf students.
"Deaf role models show our kids they can be successful and they can do anything they set their minds to," assistant principal Kevin McDonough said.
Douglas Persling, a senior from Mansfield, Tioga County, said Ms. Fiolek also has another role as well: proving to people who can hear that people who are deaf are successful.
Emily Bach, an 11th-grader from DuBois, Clearfield County, put it simply: "I'd say she rocks."
Ms. Fiolek has been able to attract variety of sponsors, including Red Bull and Honda, which has made her a factory-supported athlete who gets the best equipment.
Ms. Fiolek, of St. Augustine, Fla., uses sign language, and her father, Jim, interprets.
But she needed no interpreter to communicate with the deaf students gathered around her and her 250-cc practice bike.
The students signed questions about her races, her deafness (she was diagnosed at age 3) and even her favorite color, pink. That showed in her hot-pink-and-black racing clothes, not to mention the soft pink color at the ends of her long blonde hair.
The students watched her take the bike to the track and then tackle the rugged, hilly and bumpy dirt course. The course was so muddy that adults at the track said it was the motocross drivers' version of ice. It was too muddy for Ms. Fiolek to perform her usual double jumps. The bike, and Ms. Fiolek, returned, covered in mud.
There was time left for questions and then autographs.
Biking runs in Ms. Fiolek's family. Her dad, who used to race as an amateur, and her mom, Roni, both ride motorcycles. So does her 6-year-old brother, Kicker.
Motocross is her love. And she has had the determination to stick with it, despite six other broken bones.
"It's fun. It's so different than any other sport. I'm very competitive. I like the challenge. It's just me and 40 other women just competing to try to go the fastest," she said.
Of the students who visited her, she said, "I just want them to know if you dream about something, work hard, put the right people around you, anything is possible.
"But you have to do the work. You can never give up. You just have to keep going."

Education writer Eleanor Chute: echute@post-gazette.com 

Read more: http://www.post-gazette.com/pg/10260/1088130-298.stm#ixzz0zndrjiPX

Transworld Motocross Shadow with AGV's Ashley Fiolek at X Games 16

Fun!

Travis Pastrana & Ashley Fiolek bring 3 Gold Medals to AGV at X Games 16

X Games 16 was a success for AGV helmets who scored 3 gold medal thanks to mega stars TP199 and Ashley Fiolek.

For his return to Freestyle competition TP199 dominated the field throughout and offering the crowd a double-backflip on his 3rd run. Gold Medal.

On Sunday Travis entered the Speed & Style competition and once again laid the rules by taking gold in a dominating way.

TP199's outstanding X Games record now totals 17 medals including 11 gold!!! What a champ!

In the Super X Women competition our champ Ashley Fiolek went for a repeat and won her second gold medal in a row, after a repeat of her 2009 battle with Jessica Patterson.

Honda Red Bull Ashley Fiolek wins WMXRed Bud round

For the July 4th AMA Motocross Nationals weekend at Red Bud, Michigan, Ashley received her new AGV MT-X helmets, right on time for what turned out to be a great weekend.

For the great crowd of Michigan, Ashley went 1-1 on the day after grabbing the holeshot in both motos and battling all the way with Jessica Patterson.
This is the 1st overall win of the season for AF67 who is still holding 2nd in the 2010 AMA Nationals WMX points standing.

AGV's AMA National Motocross riders

Honda Red Bull Racing and AGV riders Ashley Fiolek (#1) and Davi Millsaps shot here practicing before the Hangtown National. Photos by Guyb atVitalMX

Dallas SX: Davi Millsaps and AGV on the podium again

COSTA MESA, Calif., Feb. 24, 2010 – AGV’s Davi Millsaps had a pretty successful first race in the new Dallas Cowboy stadium this past weekend in Arlington, TX

Despite a big crash at the Toronto SX and not riding during the week in order to recover for Dallas, it was a good day in Texas for a very sore Millsaps. After being 2^nd fastest in the timed practice sessions on the technical track, Davi easily scored the win in Heat 1. On a track that saw a lot of riders going down earlier in the night, Davi came out almost mid-pack at the start of the Main Event and charged towards the front, passing Josh Hill for 2^nd very early. Despite making time on Ryan Dungey during the first stage of the race, Davi could not get close enough to battle Ryan Dungey for the win and finished 2^nd.

“Davi is having a good SX season with 4 podiums and a win and we are very proud of his results at mid-season” said AGV Dainese USA’s Roberto Sadowsky “Furthermore he has continued, with the other AGV riders, to help us develop our motocross helmets and has been a very valuable source of advices”.

Millsaps’ podium in Dallas is his 4^th of the 2010 AMA Supercross season after a 3^rd in San Francisco and Atlanta and a win in San Diego. Davi now sits in 4^th in points standing.

Part of the Dainese group, AGV helmets are the results of 63 years of hard work in finding the best solution in terms of safety and design. A tradition carried on by some of the most important riders of all times who helped AGV make motorcycling history. Among them Giacomo Agostini, Angel Nieto, Barry Sheene, Kenny Roberts, Gennady Moiseev, Randy Mamola, Ezra Lusk, as well as Formula 1 racing legends such as Niki Lauda and Emerson Fittipaldi.

 Today the legend is carried on by the 9 times MotoGP World Champion Valentino Rossi, who is wearing an AGV helmet since the beginning of his thrilling career, 2008 250cc World Champion Marco Simoncelli and motocross freestyle legend Travis Pastrana and Women Motocross star Ashley Fiolek.

AGV helmets are distributed by Parts Unlimited in the USA and by Steen Hansen in Canada.

www.agv.com

AGV's Davi Millsaps gets on the box at Atlanta SX

(very late update - busy week :-) )

Honda Red Bull Racing Davi Millsaps had another succesful weekend in Atlanta last weekend when he took his AGV helmet to a 3rd spot finish in the Main event.

Davi, who won the Atlanta SX in 2008, had won his Heat race earlier in the night, fending off attacks from a fast Ryan Dungey.

After his 3rd podium finish of the year Davi is still 4th in the standings, 13 pts behind Ryan Villopoto.

Photos by GuyB @ www.Vitalmx.com

Riding with Davi Millsaps by Swap

Don Maeda went to the Honda SX test track for another session with Davi Millsaps. Enjoy!

San Diego Supercross - Davi Wins!

San Diego Supercross - Race Report - MxLarge

AGV's Pastrana & Millsaps Bring Podium Spots Home

http://blogs.dirtrider.com/6619013/industry-buzz/agvs-pastrana-and-millsaps-bring-podium-spots-home/index.html

 

Photos by Transworld Motocross, VitalMX and Stephane Roncada at Ronronmx

AMA 2010 Supercross - Anaheim 2

For the second time of the season, the AMA 2010 Supercross series returned to Angel Stadium in Anaheim, Ca, where despite a very wet week, the race took place on an actually pretty dry track which turned out to be technical and fun for the spectators.

It was the third and last US Supercross in 2010 for Star Yamaha/Yamaha Rinaldi's Gautier Paulin. GP is leaving the US with a very positive experience, having shown his potential and speed, while adapting to the challenging US SX scene.
On Saturday night, Gautier had good starts and was on his way to a direct transfer to the Main until a wild crash in the difficult whoops threw him hard on the ground. The AGV AX-8 did a good job and GP went to the LCQ where he fought back from 6 to qualify in second.
In the Main, GP had a great start and rode in 4th for a good amount of the 15 laps race before being passed by Factory Connection Geico Honda's Trey Canard and then making a small mistake towards the end, that resulted in a 6th place finish. A very positive result for someone who hadn't race Supercross at that level just 3 races ago.
As much as we would have loved to see Gautier race the full West Coast series, he has to return to Europe and get ready for the 2010 FIM MX2 World Championship. Good luck in Europe GP321 and see you next year in the USA!

Our favorite AMA SX/MX Honda rider, Davi Millsaps had an up-and-down night in Anaheim, showing flashes of great speed most of the night but tiring towards the end of the Main as he looked to be struggling with the bike.
In his Heat, Davi was got in a 1st-turn crash, starting last and climbing back up to 6th for a direct shot into the Main.
In the final race of the night, DM18 started around the 8th place, making his way back to 5th, after passing other big names, where he stayed most of the night, before starting to struggle with the bike and dropping down to 7th at the checkered flag.

Overall, it was a positive night for the AGV riders who showed their potential. GP should have a great 2010 season and DM is working things out and should be fighting more consistently with the Top 5, where he belongs.

Photos from Transworld Motocross and VitalMX

AGV riders at Phoenix Supercross - photos by Stephane Roncada

Very cool photos by Stephane Roncada (Ronronmx) from the Phoenix Supercross (for more, go check his gallery here: http://sr21photography.smugmug.com/2010-Supercross-Series

2.5 SX Laps with Davi Millsaps

Another video by Don Maeda (Transworld Motocross) of Davi Millsaps practicing at the Honda SX test track earlier in the week.

Riding with Davi Millsaps

Swap and Transworld Motocross shot this very raw video of Davi Millsaps practicing at the Honda track.
Enjoy!

First AMA SX Anaheim 1 tit-bits

The first AMA Supercross of the 2010 season, at Anaheim, Ca started pretty good for the 2 AGV riders. Both Honda Red Bull Racing's Davi Millsaps and Yamaha Star Racing Gautier Paulin looked good in timed practice, Gautier clocking a 4th time in the first session of the Lites class and Davi doing the same in the 450.

The night continued in the right direction for the very motivated and confident DM18 and Paulin when the French kid finished 4th in his Heat race, after a solid race - the first one in the US for him - while Millsaps went on to win his 450 Heat, fending off Ryan Dungey in the last laps. Davi''s win is the first SX/MX race win for AGV in a good few years, going back to 1999 and Ezra Lusk back then.

Unfortunately the Main events and the night show didn't go as good. Despite a great start and 2 laps in 3rd of the Lites Main event, Gautier crashed when Trey Canard took him over a berm, made another mistake right after and tightened up, finishing 15th. Gautier was very disappointed and a bit upset with himself for the results. Nonetheless, he has grabbed a few people's attention.
In the 450 class, Davi who had 1st gate pick got a bad start and got arm-pump very early into the race, trying to pass Justin Brayton. Even though he got up to 6th during mid-race, he lost steam towards the end of the race and finished in 9th. After the race Davi was extremely upset with his final results but it's a long season, 16 more races to go and there is no question that he has the raw speed and the talent needed to fight for podium.

Congratulation to James Stewart for his first 2010 win.

Photos credit to www.twmx.com