Muzzy Racing News

Schnitz Breaks in Round 2

04/02/06

Race day at Houston started out promising for Ryan Schnitz and the Trim Tex/Rob Muzzy Racing Buell with a round 1 win over Joe DeSantis.
(W) Ryan Schnitz .070 7.135 at 186.61 mph
Joe DeSantis .577 7.241 at 186.33 mph
The first 60 feet of round 2 looked pretty good too, with Schnitz nailing an .008 bulb on former teammate Chip Ellis. But as soon as Schnitz punched second gear, his race was done.
(W) Chip Ellis .028 7.205 at 186.38 mph
Ryan Schnitz .008 22.519 at 31.07 mph
" We had a cam failure," reported Schnitz. "It happened just about the top of first gear. I shifted into second and the bike started running on one cylinder.
" I think we broke three cams last year, so it's something we really need to address. It can be catastrophic, but luckily it didn't do much damage this time.
" Because of the complexity of it, it's something that S&S will have to do. We'll work with them to try and make it stronger. The cam is driven from the crankshaft, and this one particular camshaft drives all the others. The gear is welded on to the camshaft, and that's where it's breaking. So we'll either have to make that weld stronger or use more material or something.
" We weren't fully prepared for this event as we were in Gainesville," added Schnitz, who qualified no. 1 at the Florida race. The Buell he rides for Rob Muzzy was on it's way back to Muzzy's shop in Bend, Oregon following the Gators. With no sponsorship, the bike was being parked. But then Trim-Tex Drywall Products stepped in with sponsorship, and Muzzy's truck turned around and headed to Houston. "We came to this race on short notice for points, but that won't be the same for Atlanta. At Atlanta, we'll do better."
Ryan Schnitz and the Trim Tex/Rob Muzzy Racing Buell race next at Atlanta Dragway May 4-7.
Schnitz thanked Trim-Tex Drywall Products, Muzzy's, Schnitz Racing and NGK.

Find out more about Trim-Tex at http://www.trim-tex.com
Find out more about Muzzys at http://www.muzzys.com
Find out more about Schnitz Racing at http://www.schnitzracing.com
Find out more about the NHRA at http://www.nhra.com
This team report was prepared by Tim Hailey, www.eatmyink.com

Photo by Matt Polito, http://www.dragbikephotos.com

Schnitz Leaps to 6th

04/01/06

Ryan Schnitz pushed Rob Muzzy's Trim-Tex Buell back into the 7.0's today with a 7.063 in round 3 that moved him up to sixth in the qualifying order. The team broke in a new tire in the final round and, like many, failed to improve.

qualifying round 3
6th Ryan Schnitz right lane 7.063 at 190.14 mph

qualifying round 4
6th Ryan Schnitz left lane 7.134 at 187.73 mph

"We kind of got a handle on the track and weather conditions," said Schnitz, who wasn't so confident with where they were yesterday. "We're now comparable with everybody else and I'm comfortable for tomorrow. We should do fairly well."

Breaking in the new tire in the final round was a race day strategy move that also gave the team a ready excuse for not improving. But a number of teams had a lot of trouble getting down the track that round. "I think a lot of teams broke some transmissions," said Schnitz. "Gary Scelzi, the Funny Car champion, didn't even qualify, so that gives you an idea about how difficult it was to tune to this track this weekend. It's gonna be a tuner's race, and whoever doesn't make a mistake is gonna win."

Schnitz will face Joey DeSantis in the first round of eliminations. "He has a Vance & Hines motor, so he'll be tough. We were looking at the ladder and there's no easy side of the ladder at all. This field is so tough."

Schnitz thanked Trim-Tex Drywall Products, Muzzy's, Schnitz Racing and NGK.

Photo by Matt Polito, http://www.dragbikephotos.com

Ninth Not Good Enough for Schnitz

03/31/06

Ryan Schnitz and Rob Muzzy put their new Trim-Tex sponsorship to use for the first time in the NHRA event at Houston Raceway Park, finishing the first day of qualifying ninth best in Baytown's humid conditions.

qualifying round 1
7th Ryan Schnitz right lane 7.186 at 183.84 mph

qualifying round 2
9th Ryan Schnitz left lane 7.187 at 182.58 mph

"We freshened up our Gainesville motor and ran it today," said Schnitz, who qualified No. 1 at the Gators. "But we're trying to get a handle on the weather. It's a lot different from Gainesville, that's for sure. Hopefully, we'll improve tomorrow."

One thing the Rob Muzzy Racing Buell had going for it on Friday was consistency, with only 1/1000th of a second separating the two passes. "It's consistent," agreed Schnitz. "Just consistently slow for what we should be running. The humidity has a lot to do with that.

"The conditions are probably similar to Indy during the U.S. Nationals. We're going back to look at our notes and determine what we need to do to go fast. But so far we haven't been really successful. We're probably gonna play with the gearing, or we might try a different motor, we don't know yet. But right now the bike isn't really accelerating. We're not sure yet whether it's the motor, or the gearing isn't right yet for this motor.

"But I'm just happy to be here. A week ago, we weren't going to be. But thanks to Joe Koenig and Trim-Tex, we're gonna be running the entire year and I'm really appreciative of his support."

Schnitz thanked Trim-Tex Drywall Products, Muzzy's, Schnitz Racing and NGK.

Photo by Matt Polito, http://www.dragbikephotos.com

Trim-Tex Supports Schnitz and Muzzy

03/28/06

Rob Muzzy Racing owner/tuner Rob Muzzy and rider Ryan Schnitz thought they were finished for the year despite qualifying No. 1 at the Gatornationals. With no funding to race further, the red Muzzys.com Pro Stock Motorcycle Buell was on it's way back to Muzzy's shop in Oregon. But Joe Koenig, himself a former AMA/Prostar Pro Stock championship contender, had a better idea. Koenig's company, Trim-Tex Drywall Products, will sponsor Muzzy and Schnitz for the entire 2006 NHRA Pro Stock Motorcycle season.
" I was watching the Gatornationals coverage on ESPN2 and saw that they were in dire need of help," said Koenig, a bona-fide motorcycle drag racing fanatic who also sponsors Top Fuel legend Larry "Spiderman" McBride in the AMA/Prostar series. "I thought I was out of Pro Stock Motorcycles for the year, but I love the sport and I just couldn't help myself.
" I called Rob at the track and told him that if he didn't get a sponsor to call me on Monday. Rob did call on Monday, and I didn't get the message until Tuesday morning. By that time, Rob said it was almost too late to turn the truck around."
But of course, the truck did turn around and the team will be racing in Houston. "Joe's adamant about the championship," said Schnitz, a multi-time AMA/Prostar champ. "I'm real excited and glad to see him on board 'cause I know how great a person he is and what a great competitor he is. I told Joe 'If you were sitting here when I heard about the sponsorship deal, I would have given you a big hug and a kiss on the cheek!'"
" I raced against Ryan in Top Gas when he was a 16 year-old phenomenon," said Koenig. "He was even showing me how to ride back then! I've always been a Ryan Schnitz fan since day one. Not only is he one of the most talented riders out there, he's also a very humble young man. He's my kind of guy.
" And Rob and I have had a very nice friendship at the track since the late '90s at Prostar races. He's a legend, but he's always very approachable. Last year, he and Ryan and the team always went out of their way to make me feel welcome even at their trailer, and I was their competitor."
" Joe is a great guy and a fierce competitor," said Muzzy. "I'm looking forward to him being part of our team."
" As a motorcycle enthusiast since the age of 4, I'm extremely excited to be working with Rob Muzzy," added Koenig. "I've admired him for most of my life, and it's great to be a part of a championship contending team with him and Ryan. I have great memories of winning a championship and I would like to do it again!"
" I'm so happy to stay involved in Pro Stock Motorcycle racing," added Schnitz. "I'm also proud to represent Trim-Tex, Muzzy's, Schnitz Racing and NGK. I just want to race, and I thought I'd lost that opportunity."
Trim-Tex, the world leader in rigid vinyl dry wall beads, innovated the industry and continuously comes up with new products to enhance homes with drywall art. Based in Lincolnwood, Illinois, Trim-Tex manufactures and distributes to over 1800 dealers worldwide.
" I'm excited about having Trim-Tex as our primary sponsor," added Muzzy. "Trim-Tex is a leader in their field, and I would insist that Trim-Tex products be used in the construction of my own home."


Rob Muzzy with the S&S V-twin

Muzzy Prostock Buell Chassis pics.

Muzzy Prostock Buell complete!
click to enlarge

News from Rob Muzzy Racing

01/07/05

Rob Muzzy Racing is pleased to announce the re-signing of Ryan Schnitz for the 2005 racing season. Ryan has ridden for RMR since 2002 and in that time has won three AMA Prostar Drag Racing Championships, two in 600 Supersport and one this year in the new 1000 Supersport class. Ryan has also been an invaluable asset in the development of the Kawasaki ZX-12R NHRA Prostock motorcycle. Unfortunately, Kawasaki Motors Corp. has not chosen to continue their support of the ZX-12R Prostock Drag Racing program and therefore a further change is in order.

Rob Muzzy Racing is also excited to be able to announce that, starting in 2005 Team Muzzy with Ryan Schnitz will run the full NHRA Pro Stock Motorcycle series with an S&S V-twin powered Buell Pro Stock Motorcycle. Rob Muzzy is no stranger to V-Twins, having been instrumental in the development of the Honda 750 Dirt Track Twin that won four Grand National Championships for Honda with Rickey Graham and Bubba Shobert aboard in the 1980’s.

Testing for the new Pro Stock team will commence in January and the first race for the team will be at the Mac Tools NHRA Gatornationals, in Gainesville Florida, March 20, 2005.
Muzzys Performance Products will of course continue their thriving performance products business with continuing emphasis on components for Kawasaki, Honda Suzuki, and Yamaha sport and cruiser motorcycles. Also, Team Muzzy will continue to participate in selected drag racing events in 2005 with Ryan Schnitz aboard a Muzzy built turbocharged street bike.

Rob Muzzy and Team Muzzy would like to sincerely thank Kawasaki Motors Corp. in addition to all their current and past sponsors for their loyalty and support over the past 16 years, hundreds of races, and multiple championships. Racing is a sport of constant change and evolution and this move is significant in that process. Team Muzzy is actively seeking marketing partners to share this exciting new chapter in the Rob Muzzy Racing story.