Recent Utah Superbike race winner Jake Zemke just finished the sole Superbike session of the day and he's concerned about the track surface.

Zemke, a former dirt tracker himself, has raced on many less than stellar track surfaces dating back to his steel shoe days and is concerned about the new Laguna Seca track surface.

"Man these MotoGP guys might have thought the track was bumpy last year but they are in for a surprise when they go out," Zemke said as the MotoGP bikes warmed-up in the background. "The track is much bumpier than it was last year, and it's got bumps in places where it didn't last year. Normally you'd think that if they re-pave the surface then the existing bumps would lessen or at least stay the same. Now it's got bumps where it didn't before and the bumps are gnarly. It's like they're square-edged pot-holes now."

Reports are filtering out of the US Superbike team garages that tire problems plagued some of the teams in their practice session. That the still curing surface was destructive on Superbike tires.

Zemke seemed ambivalent about the track changes "I think they have done a good job in making Laguna safer in some areas now," Zemke said, "but they have really changed the character of the circuit, especially with the change to the entrance to the Corkscrew. It used to take some finesse to go through there, if you were good you could pass there, but now it's a situation where a lot of guys will be trying to pass others on the entrance of the Corkscrew. I'm not sure that's a good thing, frankly."

As this story hits the Soup server there are big screen TVs showing the practice session live, with excellent on-bike footage. The jostling of the bike and rider as shown to us here is quite dramatic, with riders being bounced out of the seat in places on the track. On the positive side, the more laps this track gets, theoretically--and optimistically--the surface should improve.

But if it remains a bumpy, gnarly racetrack where ability to ride through a chaotic surface becomes key, then those with dirt track experience should move to the front. Thus, Hayden, Edwards (XR100, baby, XR100), Checa (Roberts Ranch) and, dare we say it, Kenny Junior ... destiny may be calling.