We often get asked to build and run the bikes for some 'heavy hitters' from the American race scene.
I often know the guys, from my time over stateside. They get some familiarity with who is building the bike for them to come and race so they're more comfortable from the get-go.
It was no difference for when we got the call to supply a Kawasaki KX 500 for John Dowd to use at the VMXDN at Farleigh. I have known John since we first met in Florida in 1993 and battled against him in the 1998 American Nationals series. He's a super cool down to earth guy who is blue collar and super respectful.
We got bikes from the UK as we didn't have any lined up from the States. We did our usual strip to a bare frame/bare crankcase rebuild on it. We ran John for 3 years in total winning the event overall on the first try. So, needless to say he was more than happy with the results and the bike we provided. The bikes built were sold to collectors after the event.
http://docwob.com/41-dowd-s-kx500#sigProIdb887f28428