Race Report for Week 2: May 20-21, 2000
The weekend from hell! This was a combined weekend with the vintage guys. That, combined with lousey weather, numerous delays, many red flags made for a very trying weekend. However, the fearless racers of TDR triumphed, for the mostpart. :) Paul came away from the weekend with a 7th and a 4th, his best finish yet as an expert! Bruce finished every race despite a slight get-off, and came away with a 4th in Super Singles. Kevin. Well Kevin had some problems with the EX, but still managed a 10th place finish!
We would like to that everyone who came to help in the pits, take pictures,
and spectate. It really makes racing *that* much better when you are surrounded
by friends! We would also like to thanks all our sponsors
who make it all possible, and finally the USMarshalls
Risk and Track Safety Management Crew, who worked long hours, in
the cold and rain, and kept us all safe!
Find all of the weekends race results at the LRRS website here.
What a weekend. This was certainly the "weekend from Hell" at Loudon. Luckily our team was spared much (but not all) of Hell's fury but riders were dropping like flies all weekend. Corner workers *always* earn their meager compensation but this weekend they really, really, really earned it. Besides being short handed all weekend they had to deal with rain, cool temperatures, numerous oil spills, and many crashes all weekend. A HUGE thanks to all the corner workers!!
Another big thanks goes to Modern World Ventures and their Fog City face shield! The cool temperatures and on again, off again rain all weekend made for perfect face shield fogging conditions. The Fog City shield performed flawlessly again and I had zero problems with fogging! I saw more than a few racers with various bits of duct tape on their helmets trying to keep their shields open a crack to prevent fogging.
I was hoping to get to the track on Thursday for open practice. Galen had ordered a new black box for me that did away with the stock 7200 rpm rev-limiter. With the engine work he did over the winter my motor was good to at least 8000 rpm. Last race weekend there were a few spots around the track where I was bouncing off the rev-limiter and grabbing an upshift only meant having to downshift a second later. With the extra room on top I should now be able to stay on the throttle. Well, the weather was looking like rain so I decided to skip Thursday and shoot for Friday practice instead.
Friday morning I get up and decide that now would be a good time to put on the Woodcraft clip-ons I had picked up my rookie year and never got around to installing. The stock clip-ons are a one-piece design and because I have them mounted below the triple clamp they take a a bit of time to replace. Not to mention they run something like $45 a piece. I was hitting the ground, uh, more often than I would have liked my rookie year and replacing the clip-ons was adding up. The beauty of the Woodcraft clip-ons is that the mounts are two piece and don't require removal of the top triple clamp and the individual bars are replaceable and considerably less than $45. Well, as luck would have it, as soon as I bought the clip-ons I stopped hitting the ground! I had a couple minor spills my second year but neither of those required replacing anything. So the clip-ons stayed in my spares box until now.
After installing the clip-ons and new black box I attempt to start the bike. Nothing. Argh! I check all the connections up front thinking I may have worked something loose. Put the stock box back. Pull the kill switch/start button assembly apart and check it. Put the new black box back. Replace the whole switch assembly (spares are good). Still nothing. I decide to load everything up and swing by Bikeworx on my way up to the track. By the time I drop the kids at my sister's, pick up Paul's rain tires that he forgot, and get everything loaded it's already after 5p. To end a long story it turns out to be a blown main fuse. Doh! Iamadoofus. Galen is too tired to laugh at me too hard and sends me on my way. I get to the track a little before 9p. Turns out it was a miserable, wet day and I wouldn't have bothered to practice even if I had made it to the track on time.
Cooch is the only one in the garage when I get there and supervises as I get everything unloaded. I see various bits of wet clothing hanging in the garage as well as a white VFR and realize that Kevin rode up from NYC. Certainly makes me appreciate having a truck, (open) trailer, and living less than 100 miles from the track. Scott shows up a short time later and I help him unload his engine-less bike that he brought up to have optimized by Peter at GMD Computrack. Info sheets at track sign-in mention that transponders should be moved inside fairings instead of on the outside front portion. They still need a clear view to the track. I find a suitable spot and move the bracket there. The rest of the gang returns from dinner and while Scott helps Kevin put the wheels back on his EX I decide to set up my cot in the garage and spend the night there in front of my heater. I'm sound asleep before they're done.
Saturday morning and the conditions are overcast but dry. I get in line for registration about 6:30a and make it through quickly once they open up at 7a. Get back to the garage and run my bike over to tech, waking up Kevin and Scott (who also decided to skip setting up their tents) in the process. Sorry guys! (OK, not really, it was time to get up anyway. :-P) Practice gets going a little late and my first session is *crowded*. I get some practice passing and get used to the slightly different position of the new clip-ons. Back in the garage I make some minor adjustments. Second practice doesn't feel as crowded but there are still a lot of riders out there. At the riders' meeting they tell us there are already over 1000 entries for the weekend. The new black box really helps and I don't have to be quite so busy on the shift lever.
Various folks show up through out the day including our west coast affiliate Adam who just can't stay away from the lovely east coast and my mother, sister, and two nephews.
Crashes, oil spills, etc. keep adding to the delays and it is clear
fairly early on that this is going to be a very long day. It doesn't
help that the vintage guys are here this weekend and two extra races have
to be squeezed into our already tight schedule.
Saturday, Race 3, GTL - 25th
http://www.lrrsracing.com/images/pdf/2000/may20-21/sat3.pdf
I get a decent start and I think I'm roughly mid-pack through the
first set of turns. Things settle out after a couple laps and I see
B.J. Worsham not too far ahead. I know he usually runs a couple seconds
faster than me and I put my head down to stick with him and maybe even
make up some ground. A few laps later B.J. goes down in T9 and he
tumbles off the outside of the turn. Next time around I see that
he is up and moving around. About four laps later I drag my pipe
in T9 and my rear wheel takes a little hop. Eeek! I'm also
touching a peg in T2 and T6 on occasion. Time for some suspension
adjustments. Some time past the half way point I'm going through
T1 and suddenly (or so it seems) find my self pointing at the outside of
T1a instead of bending right. I quickly flick it over for T1a.
It's almost as if my rear wheel had slid as I came through T1 but I'm fairly
sure it was just a mental lapse on my part. Near the end of the race
I see Shandra up ahead on her SV and try to close the gap but I run out
of time. I really need to work on my consistency. And do more
squats.
Race 6, GP Singles - 13th
http://www.lrrsracing.com/images/pdf/2000/may20-21/sat6.pdf
I'm gridded in 1B and get pinched off going in to T1. I almost
run off the inside but stay on the track. An RS125 swings across
my line heading for 1a and clips my front wheel. A little wobble
but I'm in no danger of losing it. Good thing those bikes are so
tiny! I'm running by myself for most of the race with an occasional
RS125 getting by. Last year most of the expert RS125s would come by in
the first couple laps but I'm able to keep more of them behind me for more
laps this year. On the white flag lap I come up on an amateur 125
for the second time this race. I know who it is and know it's her
first weekend and possibly first race (it was). We're heading into
T1-1a and I decide to back out rather than pass. It's the last lap
and I know I'm already out of the points. It seems that Brian Meyette
was right on my tail and he goes around both of us in T1a! Doh!
I give chase but can't catch him before the checkered.
Race 9, LW Sportsman - 7th
http://www.lrrsracing.com/images/pdf/2000/may20-21/sat9.pdf
This was truly the Race From Hell. The fact that we didn't get started until after 6p was only the start. I'm gridded in 3D. Although 1D is better I'm happy to be on the outside. Matt Lai is right next to me and teammate Kevin is right behind in row 4. I get a decent launch and then see contact between Jesse Sandoz and Doug Scheer. Doug was in 2C and I see him wobble and then hit the ground. His bike starts sliding into my path and I go for the outside wall, hoping that nobody is coming up on the outside. I hope that Kevin is behind me. He was but Matt was not so lucky. With nowhere to go and having to choose between nailing Doug or his bike he T-bones the downed bike and, from what I hear, he went about 15 ft in the air and his bike did about four cartwheels. Looking at the bike afterwards I can believe it. Red flags are flying before we reach T1. Matt took a trip to the hospital but, all things considered, came through pretty well with two sprained ankles and a knee in an air cast. Doug came through basically unscathed. I later hear that Doug's left clip-on got hooked in Jesse's right elbow. Jesse had to let go of his handlebars to avoid going down himself. We're sent back to our pits while everything is taken care of.
About ten minutes later we're called back out. I get a decent start and I'm roughly mid-pack through the first set of turns. The lead pack pulls out slightly but are well within sight. I'm in the second cluster as a couple of the fast SV650s from the second wave (LW Supersport) come through. I'm held up slightly in T9-10 and Brian Meyette comes by both of us heading into T11. I get a good drive out of T12 and motor by both of them on the straight. Brian takes me back going into T3. The lead pack has pulled about a turn and a half lead and I'm now toward the tail of the second group. Coming out of T10 I see the lead pack making its way through T11. Suddenly a couple bikes go down and slide off into the grass. It had just started to sprinkle a bit and certain patches on the track get slippery very quickly. T11 is one of them. The bikes are off the track and though I back off slightly I don't slow down too much (in hindsight this was a mistake). It appears that the guys right in front of me didn't either. Two more go down and one is right in the middle of the track. I apply a little rear brake and the back end breaks loose. Quick decision time. The chance of me tightening up my line without losing it is slim to none. I see a small gap between the scattered bikes and riders and aim for it. I'm in the grass, standing on the pegs, and hoping I make it across to the NASCAR oval. I'm heading straight for a depression filled with water but there's no way I'm going to try to turn on the wet grass. My front wheel hits the water and I'm sliding on my left side, stopping just short of the T12 pavement.
Well, it was certainly a soft, if not soggy, landing. I pick up the bike and note that my clutch lever has snapped off. I take a look around at the carnage and see Brian standing with his bike in the grass at the apex of T11. He sees me and waves. I wave back and shrug and he shrugs back. What a touching moment. :) So my bike is in gear, I have no clutch lever, and I'm standing on wet grass. Eventually a corner worker gets freed up and comes over to help. He helps me push the bike a bit so I can shift into neutral. As I'm pushing the bike through T12 to pit-in a medic comes up to see if I'm OK. I assure her that I am and she says to stop by the med center if I feel anything after the adrenaline wears off. She takes a look at my helmet, I thank her, and start pushing again. Corner workers and medics rock! I get about another 10 yards and Paul shows up on the go-ped. He gives me the go-ped to ride back while he takes my bike. Teammates rock!
Because the race was red-flagged the results are scored back to the last complete lap. As long as you weren't the initial cause of the red flag it doesn't matter if you've crashed on the last lap. I get to keep my 7th position.
I get back to the pits and Paul brings my bike a short time later. My and the bike's left side are covered in grass. A little hose down and all is well. Other than the clutch lever and a bent bar there's no other damage. I'm very glad I decided to put on my new clip-ons as the replacement takes just a few minutes and only costs about $10.
Sitting around the garage, John tells his wife I've offered to let him race my bike next year. I think she just stared at him without saying anything. :) We quickly assured her we were joking. And she quickly assured him that, with the baby on the way, he best not even consider the idea. We still don't know how Tim convinced Dawn to let him race!
According to the weather forecasts Sunday was supposed to be the better day. Ha! It was worse. Three races from Saturday were held over until today and that meant that we were only getting one practice session in order to have enough time to complete all the races. It was cold, it was raining... I decided to skip practice. I only had one race today, race 9, and at yesterday's pace a whole new weather system could move in before race time.
Well, as my race drew near it hadn't rained for a while and a dry line had formed on the track. I had already put my rain tires on earlier in the day and now I was trying to decide whether I should swap back. I love the Michelin Pilots in the dry but I have no confidence in them when there's the slightest bit of water on the track. I decide to stick with the rains. They're close to two years old and if I burn them up on a dry track it really wouldn't be a big deal. Besides, Jack said he called in a favor and it was going to rain. :) That only partially reassures me as I still have this mental handicap when it comes to rain races. During my rookie year we had as many wet weekends as dry and I managed to crash out of every wet race I started. I finally bought spare wheels and rains and it stopped raining. During my second year we only had one wet weekend and I tip-toed around on my rains and was just happy to finish.
Sunday, Race 9, Super Singles - 4th
http://www.lrrsracing.com/images/pdf/2000/may20-21/sun9.pdf
Pre-grid and it's still pretty dry. Brian lines up next to me and he has his slicks on. The sprint races have been shortened to 6 laps to keep the schedule on track so it's starting to look like rains were not the right choice. There's a mixtures of slicks, DOTs, and rains on the grid. We get under way and I take it easy getting a feel for the rains on a dry track. Entering T3 I see Galen sliding toward the tires. I remind myself to look up the hill and not watch the pretty sparks. Second time around I get a little slide in T1. I back off a bit. It starts to sprinkle. Next time around I see Brian off in T11. I guess he didn't get enough of the bog yesterday. I back off some more. A bike down in T2. The rain is sticking to my visor and it's hard to see. I'm really taking it easy now. A Sunday ride at the track. Coming out of T2 I let the bike drift out toward the wall. Next thing I know Galen is squeezing by. Oops, sorry about that Galen! I had no reason to be out that far and should have left a lot more room. Another bike down in T2. I take the checkered still on two wheels.
Whew. The weekend is over and, other than my minor crash, the team is unscathed. Two of the garages next to us have riders with their arms in slings. It's still raining as we pack up and put the weekend from Hell behind.
So far I'm fairly pleased with my performance in my first year as an Expert (I ran a single race as an Expert at the end of last year). In the two classes where I can expect to be competitive (LW Sportsman and Super Singles) I'm holding my own. Two solid 7ths in LW Sportsman that puts me 5th in points (with definite room for improvement) and a 4th and 6th in Super Singles that puts me 4th in points. Considering the three guys in front of me in Super Singles, Galen, Jim Brown and Bob Robbins, I'm doing pretty well! Bob is regularly a multiple class champion at Loudon and Galen and Jim have each been racing about twice as long as I have and are *fast*! It won't get any easier as Jack Aksel is biding his time until he gets a proper bike and Brian Meyette has his Ascot running well and is no slouch of a rider. But I'm also getting faster each weekend and have only begun to tap the potential of my bike. It's going to be a fun year!
I had every intention of practicing on Thursday and Friday before the race weekend, but mother nature had other ideas. I woke Thursday to see that is was pouring, so I opted not to waste a vacation day and stayed home. Fridays forecast was also questionable, but still, I packed my bags and headed up to the track. When I got there, it was pouring, so after unloading, I decided not to practice, and instead worked turn 12 for the afternoon.
Kevin showed up later in the afternoon, having ridden up in the rain on the VFR. I spent the early evening setting up, getting the bike teched, and changing the oil and the air filter on the F4. Later, Kevin, Kit, and myself headed out for diner. When we got back, we found Scott and Bruce had arrived and set up. When we all turned in for the night, the wimps all slept in the garage, while I went out to my tent, like a real man. :)
Saturday:
We got to a late start on Saturday because there was an oil spill
in turn 10 from Fridays practice. It took about an hour to get that
all sorted out. I had opted to go out in yellow (medium) practice since
I was still a bit rusty from the winter, that proved to be a mistake.
I was much faster than most of the other bikes out there, and was constantly
being held up. I did, however, get to practice my passing. Other than that,
both my practices went well. The bike ran well, I felt good, and the track
was dry.
Mid-morning, Reto, Anna, and Adam (we are convinced Adam hasn't really moved to California) show up to spectate and help out. Around lunch, John and Kathy Falvey also make an appearance. John is now the official TDR photographer. :)
Race #1, GTU (solo endurance)
http://www.lrrsracing.com/images/pdf/2000/may20-21/sat1.pdf
I'm gridded on the 3rd row, on the inside. I get a crappy
start and end up going into turn 1 mid pack. I put my head down, and start
passing bikes going through turns 1, 1a, 2 and 3. I see Tony Iannarelli
ahead of me, and I'm closing on him fast. On lap 2 or 3, entering
the front straight, Tony got held up, and a got by him easily. Next
is #202, Lynda Innocenzi, on an R6. She is slow through turn 8 and
I easily get by her on the inside. I hold her for a lap, but she
gets me on the inside of turn 3. I try to get the position back on
the exit, but she holds her line. I stay on her tail until turn 11,
where I get by her on the outside. From there, it was clear sailing.
I see the gap listed on my pit board, +1, +3, +5, +10. I know I'm
in the clear. I don't see the next bike in front of me, so I back
it off a notch, not wanting to throw away a good finish with a stupid crash,
and cruise to the end of the race. On the white flag lap, the leader
lapped me, damn.
I finish 7th! 6 more points! I'm 3 for 3 in top 10 finishes for
the 2000 season!
The rest of the day was spent helping out Bruce and Kevin get ready for their races, and helping out on the track whenever needed. For whatever reason (*cough*vintage bikes*cough*), there seemed to be an unusually high number of red flags. Every race it seemed. On top of that, with the vintage and sidecars, there were 16 scheduled races! We raced until about 7:30pm, when the day was finally called. As it stood, we still had 3 races that were not run, and would have to be run on Sunday.
I also took some time to strip the F4 down and roll it over to Peter Kates to get it measured. Over the winter I had him rebuilt the forks and shock. One of the forks was slightly bent, so he wanted to check out the rest of the bike. What he found was surprising. Read on.
We all headed out for dinner, and met up with the whole SRNE crowd at May King. We got the mother/daughter waitress team, who immediately figured out that we (TDR) were the nice guys and that the SRNE crowd were the bad guys. :)
Sunday:
Woke to a dry morning, however, that soon changed. It started
raining early, and the track got nice and wet. I recovered my bike
from Peter and went about setting it up for the day. Talking to Peter,
I discovered that my bike was "a pretzel". Nothing on it was straight.
Apparently one or both of my crashes last year did more damaged that I
thought. I've been racing on a bent bike this whole time. :)
Even though the rain stopped, I opted not to practice, since I was gambling that the track would be dry before my race, and I didn't want to swap to rains for the practice, then back to slicks for the race. I really need a second set of wheels. The rain held off throughout the whole morning, looked like I made the right choice. But as lunch starts, so does the rain. DOH! Scott and Kevin (thanks guys!) go to work pulling the wheels from the F4 and getting the rains mounted.
#1 Sponsor Jodi and friend Andy show up around lunch to spectate and offer moral support! A very pleasant surprise, since the weather was so lousy.
Race #2, MWGP
http://www.lrrsracing.com/images/pdf/2000/may20-21/sun2.pdf
It stopped raining, but the track was wet. Once again, I was gridded on the inside of row 3. I got an OK start, and got to the job of passing folks in turns 1, 1a, 2, and 3. After lap 1, I think I was in 7th, and I get to the task of improving my position. Fred Stucky (#51 on a 748) and Pete Douvris (#505 on a GSXR600) were about 3 seconds ahead of me, but I was closing fast. I really like riding in the wet. it is the great equalizer. You have to be smooth. Power really doesn't help you. After about 2 laps, I was right on Fred's tail. Coming up the hill out of turn 3, Fred got on the gas a bit too hard and lost the rear end. He recovered, but that was all I needed to get by him. Now on to Pete. I closed in on Pete, but an incident in turn 12 brought out an ambulance and a waving yellow, throwing me off my pace, then another waving yellow in turn 1. I was right on Petes tail, but just couldn't get by him. On the white flag lap, I go for an inside pass in turn 9, but don't quite have enough to make a safe pass, and I don't want to risk myself or the other rider for just one position. We end up drag racing to the line, and he just beat me, with Fred right on my tail. If I had another lap, I would have had 3rd, but I had to settle for a 4th. My first trophy as an expert!
After the race, I packed up, stripped the F4 back down to give to Peter to straighten, and helped Bruce where I could. Overall, a fantastic weekend. So far for the 2000 season I've finished every race in the top 10, it I can keep that up thought the season, I'll be ecstatic.
Thanks to everyone who came to watch and help out. Having fans at the track really make racing a great time. Also huge thanks to Jodi for trekking up in the rain to watch us and to all our other sponsors who make it all possible.
Did not race this weekend.
The (non)race report.
I'll get into the non-race bit in a nother report, but this weekend I was pit-wench and USM flagger.
With all the normal workload at work, *and* trying to sell my house, I couldn't leave Friday until 8pm - much later than I wanted. I had the rolling chassis for Peter Kates to measure. Now that I had widened the rear wheel and changed to an F2 front, the geometry would be noticeably different. I arrived just about 10 pm, and chatted with Bruce who also had arrived late. Yea, I sleep in the garage tonight, it was 40 deg and dropping ... Kevin, Paul and company showed up a bit later and Kevin and I put the wheels on his EX, then I crawled off to my sleeping bag for the night.
Since Adam and Reto were coming up Sat., I opted to show our team committment by cornerworking all day Sat. - waving flags for Turn 3 - and as some of you may know, that's a busy intersection. However, it was the other parts of the track that had the Red Flags during the day, so much so that we were 4 races behind by the time the day finished. I had to rush off and get a fuel filter for the truck lest I not make it home. The poor thing (well, I'm the driver) would barely make it up hills bucking and starving for fuel. AutoZone saved the day for $3.89. I met up with everyone else at May King for the TDR vs. SRNE waitress battle - we won! (hmm, maybe that needs explaining - nah). Back at the track, a hot shower and some idle chit chat sent me off to the sleeping bag again.
Sunday, I flirted with the idea of racing Daves Siple's SV650 - until I woke up to rain. It's one thing to race a friend's bike on dry pavement, another to race it in the rain on new, DOT tires. Oh well, I opted out and stayed to wrench for Paul and Bruce, Adam and Reto having left Sat. evening. Paul was running around like a canary in a coal mine - "should I change to rains? should I buy DOT's? should I run the slicks? should I go home? What's the weather gonna do?" (I was busy changing the fuel filter in the truck). Well it finally started in raining decisively about 11am, so we went with changing to rains. Kevin pulled the rear tire, I did the front, Paul went to the riders meeting. Our timing was perfect! S&C was not loaded or busy and in 20 minutes we had the rains mounted up and back to the pits, where Kevin and I put the wheels and brakes back on and saftey wired everything. Bruce decided to do the same tho' *he* invested in extra wheels with rains already mounted!! much cooler. So he and I attacked his bike and got him ready to roll. I stayed to watch Paul run a really strong MWGP race, taking a 4th, on the last lap! Way Cool!
I bid my farewells and headed home, with the pleasant discovery
that the newly installed fuel filter had solved the problem, the truck
ran great.
T'was the best of times, yeah right, t'was the worst of times. Wait didn't we do this last year? Well the measure of the weekend seemed to have been layed out on Friday. I made the mistake of passing up a nice warm (read four-wheeled) ride up to the track on thursday night in favor of one more night in my own bed, I wasn't feeling well, and Thursday night TV of course. That and the weather report called for light scattered showers.
Friday morning dawned cold and wet, no let me repeat that COLD AND !@#$%*#^@ WET. After much futzing I hoped on the bike and started my way north. You can see where this is going right? Needless to say if the showers were scattered that's because they were scattered over me. I arrived at the track six hours later, despite the best efforts of my widder vest, PVC rain jacket and Aerostich Darien pants, I was soaked and frozen to the point that I just stood shivered for 30minutes...
Friday evening
I strolled over to Matt and BJ's garage to pick up my race-bike
which they were kind enough to haul to the track for me...behind that nice
warm van mentioned above of course. Hmmm.. looks pretty good
after having sat covered outside since August of last year. 3hours
two tires, two spark plugs, one oil filter, misc new safety wire, one jug
of water, three new sets of BLACK numbers (all provided by STREET &
COMPETITION of course), and lot's of patience waiting for it to crank some
gas into the cylinders and we have a running race bike. Yeah time
to go to sleep. SNORE......ZZZZZZZZZZZZZ
Saturday
Morning dawns cold yet dry. Can the choir give us a loud
HALLELUJAH please!!!!! I start up the racebike and run out to register.
It's 7.30am....
8.45am BACK FROM REGISTRATIION!!!! What a cluster**** I thought I had missed my first practice but it turns out the the cornerworkers were still cleaning up oil, they started at 7.30am, left from some puking POS that crashed in T10 yesterday. 9am and practice starts: with the caveat that we only get to short practices grrrrrrr. I wander out on to the racetrack feeling like I've got cobwebs covering my eyes and looking like and overweight sausage in my leathers. Hmmm one layer to many. After tiptoeing around for 10 minutes I come back in feeling better but very rusty. I shed a layer and wait for my next practice.
Jr/Ex Red practice 2
Feeling better now after having shed a layer and gotten some OJ
in me I head out on to the track with the plan of getting below 1.30..
If I don't I owe the illustrious Mr. Starter coffee for the weekend.
uhh... 1.30.3 Nuff said and not bad for the first time on a track
in 6 months but still not enough to spare me the coffee chore.
Race 9 LW Sportsman
http://www.lrrsracing.com/images/pdf/2000/may20-21/sat9.pdf
Grid 4C driectly behind Matt Laid and my team-mate Brude Leung
on the TeamDaemon Muz... Oh yeah and I've got a secret up my sleeve...
I borrowed Paul's tirewarmers for this Race... very nice go fast, not that
I did, NOW bits. This race, or rather the start thereof, saw one
of the worst accidents of the weekend. For those of you who saw it
last year; shades of Laguna Seca WSB round two. Scary and I had the
personal onboard camera view, that I don't think I'll ever forget, of Matt
Lai as he t-boned Doug Scheer's downed and sliding class leading EX500.
Truthfully, I'm not sure how I missed getting taken out by the carnage
but I was passed Doug/Matt's bikes (one of them bounced off my left foot)
while Matt was still in the air. RED FLAG!!! Back to the pits for
10mins and put the warmers back on.
Restart... I get a so-so start and I'm 7th into T1 with Bruce and all right there. I get outdriven out of T2 (boy does that MUZ go now) and I enter T3 in 9th and stay there until the exit of T6 when I promptly get outdriven/ridden by (Micky Curry #51 I think) up over the hill and I exit T10 in 10th place... I get passed by two more on the front straight geez where's the power 12th.. Boy these guys are moving and I'm feeling low. I've already watched Micky, Brian and Bruce (guys I usually run two seconds faster than) disappear into the distance. I shake my head and just try to keep going and get the feel back. I manage to make up one position in T4 and run the next lap in 11th. At this point I see the temp guage up near the "oh sh**" zone and I see spots of water on my faceshield and think RAIN now as you know I've had enough rain for one weekend so I back off a touch and take a look and of course I get passed by two bikes coming out of 4. Hmmm the "rain" seems to be coming up not down!?? I look at the water bottle and see that it is puking water, much the way it did on some very hotweekends last season yet it never steamed off, so I just wicked it back up and went ahead with the chase. T10 and the workers notice the bike starting to overheat out the back. I make it around and bend into T1, 1a..hey where'd the fog come from.. the water bottle was now blowing a steady strong stream of steam up in my face, oh well I'm done my hand goes up and I drift out to the wall and stay there until the traffic goes by and slip into the T3 workers station. I'm done. It turns out that the 4 leaders crashed in T12 on the same lap and caused a red flag. Scoring was reverted to the last lap (when I was still running) and the race was called. 10th place and 3pts. I'll take it anyway I can get it.
Sunday
I miss the LW Proddy Twins race as a result of the broken bike
and stick around to do a little corner help and team help. I'll see you
at the next event with a much improved bike and ready to kick some butt.
I need 'dem points. Thanks all