Frequently Asked Questions about John Kocinski Home

Please click the keyword of your question to get to the answer.
	When is John's birthday, where does he live, etc.?
	Where can I find information about ... on the fan page?
	What is the relation between John and this fan page (or its author)?
	How can I contact John?
	What went wrong in the 1999 season?
	What will John do this season?
	What is still missing in the fan page that I could contribute?
	Where can I get John Kocinski merchandise (t-shirts, photos, signatures, ...)?

 

When is John's birthday, where does he live, etc.?

Full name: John Marvin Kocinski Born: March 20, 1968, Little Rock, Arkansas, USA. Current address: Sacramento, California, USA Hobbies: Dirt bike riding, water-skiing, remote controlled cars, snow skiing Favorite racetrack: Laguna Seca (USA) Favorite racers: Eddie Lawson Giacomo Agostini Freddie Spencer Nicknames: The Kid, Little John Favorite food: Salads, pasta Favorite drink: Iced lemon tea

Where can I find information about ... on the fan page?

Short answer: Via this input field and search button: Long answer: Fill in any word or phrase you're looking for, push the Search button, et voila, you're presented a list of the pages that contain the word/phrase. Handy when you know you've read something in the fan page, but can't remember on which page. Picosearch is the name of the firm that offers this free service.

What is the relation between John and this fan page (or its author)?

Short answer: First contact has been made. Long answer: There is no official relation between John and this fan page. The fan page is the initiative of the author alone. However, John is aware of the fan page and he appreciates it.

How can I contact John?

Answer: You can send him a mail: info@john-kocinski.com.

What went wrong in the 1999 season?

Short answer: "We needed more testing." Long answer: (according to Erv Kanemoto, John's team manager that season) "I have enormous respect for John and his ability, but learning to ride an NSR500 quick and consistently takes a lot of work. In the first few tests we did for the 1999 season, John could turn some quick laps, but not consistently. But just before the season started, in the final test, John was really starting to understand the bike and got real consistent. I knew he was getting a feel for the bike." "After Motegi, it seemed like we didn't go anywhere. It's hard to make changes mid-season and due to our budget, we couldn't put together any tests." "The NSR and John weren't a good match. The Honda has its strengths and weaknesses, and to be successful, you need to utilize the strengths. The way I see it, the Honda accelerates well. A rider needs to get into the corner hard, stop the bike, lean it over and then stand it up as he accelerates out. It accelerates hard. John's style was to carry lots of entrance speed, and to trail brake deep into the corner, carrying lots of speed right down to the apex. The bike's not suited for that, for carrying lots of mid-corner speed. "I'm not saying any of this to put John down, but if he had more time on the bike before the season started, it would have made all the difference. People don't understand how much pressure is on the riders once the season starts. You need to ride the bike without the pressure of lap times, qualifying and racing. We needed more time in the off-season. The NSR is a different animal than anything John had ridden. There are only so many available adjustments on the bike to suit it to the rider, and you have to learn to work within those adjustments. John needs another year or two to deal with how the bike works when it's full of fuel or when the tires go off."

What will John do this season?

Short answer: Testing a Yamaha. Long answer: John will be testing the new 4 stroke 4 cilinder Yamaha Grand Prix bike, to be used in the 2002 season. It is not known whether John himself will be racing it in 2002.

What is still missing in the fan page that I could contribute?

Short answer: Anything you'd like. Long answer: Of course all the places where you see questionmarks. Pictures of John waterskiing. A recent (2000?) portrait picture of John. If you have any, please send them. If you don't have a scanner to your availability, contact me, and we'll see what we can do. Any other pictures that you have and that do not appear on the pictures page.

Where can you get John Kocinski merchandise (t-shirts, photos, signatures, ...)?

Answer: I refer to the official JK web site.