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Race Report: July 28 - 29, 2001

A great weekend of racing, the return to racing of a few team members, and an incredible show of support for two of our fellow racers!  This was the first weekend back for Scott and Dane for almost a year, on both accounts!  Both made the transition back to the track in flying colors!

There was also a benefit foot and bicycle race, as well as a benefit auction held this weekend, that Paul was heavily involved with.  The races and auction raised over $10,000.00 for injured riders Rob Dages and Rick Currier!

Enough, from here, check out the race reports, and don't forget the photos!
 

Find all of the weekends race results at the LRRS website here.

Race 9a: LW Sportsman (MuZ) - 3/17 entries (11 pts)
A mediocre start finds me surrounded by some EXs and Eric D. on yet another YZF.  Matt L. is one of the EXs and makes a few strong attempts to get by.  Ted N. is also in the mix and he's the one I most need to finish ahead of as he's right behind me in fourth in the championship standings.  On lap 3 I finally break free of the pack and find that Bart and Dean are still within sight.  I turn 1:22s for the remaining laps with by new best being 1:22.065 (previous best being a 1:22.9).  I don't make any ground on them but finish a very strong third.  I'm now 7 points ahead of Ted.
 

Sunday practice goes fairly well but after coming in from my last practice of the morning on the Ducati my right side is hurting.  I must have pulled a muscle on my right side.  I don't remember anything unusual in practice that might have caused it but it's definitely bothering me.
 

Race 4a: SuperTwins (Ducati) - 13/14 entries (0 pts)
It hurts to ride.  I don't think I turn better than a 1:25.  I try to hold off a pesky SV but just don't have it in me.  Mercifully I'm lapped by the leaders and only have to ride 7 laps.  I finish ahead of Nick so I'm not quite last.
 

Race 9: SuperSingles (MuZ) - 4/9 entries (9 pts)
I need to beat Doug but at this point I'm just hoping to finish as close to him as possible.  My side is killing me and again I'm turning slow laps.  Thankfully I get lapped by the Formula 40 leader and complete 7 laps coming home 4th, one position behind Doug who gave up 2nd to Eric D.  Doug is now in 2nd in the championship standings by 2 points.

Well, this is a sort of non-race report.  I took this weekend off racing for a few reasons, but the major 2 were: I needed to make sure everything was set, and set up for the benefit auction. And second, my little "mishaps" at the AMA National this year rang up a pretty good repair bill, so speaking frankly, I didn't have the money to race.

Anyway, I took Friday off work as per usual and made my way up to the track.  When I got there, I unpacked, and recovered my bike from Peter Kates garage, who had brought it up for me, since he already had it from the national, having just taken with him to fix it after I broke it.   Multiple times.  Ooops.

Anyway, I get the bike back to my garage, and spend about an hour getting it all put back together, re-wiring, putting all the bodywork back on, and generally making sure the thing s ready to go.  After making sure I was all set, I made my way over to the Penguin garage to see how they were for instructors.  Turned out they had a small class and plenty of instructors already, so I took my time getting all squared away, and instead went out to work a corner instead.

I spent the early afternoon just running the flags in turn 2 as the Penguin classes went through.  I think I had only one downed bike, which was good.  In the afternoon, I signed up for practice, so I was going straight from my corner out to practice, then back to the corner.  A little busy, but is felt good to be out on the track.  Bike felt good, and I felt good.

Once practice was over, I had to head home.  Had some more stuff to pick up for the auction, and had to do some work.  So, back in the car, back home, get all the errands done, pack up, and try to get a good nights sleep.

The alarm went off at "O God thirty".  I made an executive decision that since I wasn't racing, there really was no need for me to get at the track bright and early, so I rolled over and got a bit more sleep.  I eventually got up, got myself together, gathered up the dog, and headed out.  I was back at the track by 9am.  If I had been racing, I would have made my practice.   :)

I spent the rest of the day running around, making sure I had everything for the auction, and working with Jerry and Dee Wood to inventory everything and set up an auction order.  I never realized there was so much to putting an auction together!  I can't thank Dee and Betty enough for all their help setting up and organizing!  It was a lot of work!  I think we finally got everything ready to go by late afternoon, so I spent the rest of the day just taking in the racing, taking photos, and helping out where I could.

I'm almost glad I wasn't racing.  It was another crazy race day.  More red flags than you can imagine!  The day just went on and on and on.  Which wasn't good, since there was the foot and bicycle race to run after the last race of the day, and then the auction!  I think racing finally got done around 7pm(!!), and the foot and bicycle race got off to a start around 7:30pm.  It was quite something seeing the everyone lined up at start finish, either on foot or on a bike!

Once the races were done, i was announced that the auction would start about a 1/2 hour later. It was already getting dark!  Jerry did a great job running the auction, and I can't thank the contributors or those that bought items at the auction enough.  The generosity was just outstanding!  When all was said and done, we raised over $10,000.00 for Rob and Rick!

By the time we got everything done and wrapped up, it was about 10:30pm!!  Those of us still left, left on a quest for some much needed food!  Kit decided she was too tired for even that, and stayed behind.  I think I eventually climbed into my tent at around 1am.  Long day.

The original plan had been to sleep in, and then maybe corner work in the afternoon.  Well, I was awoken by the announcement over the PA that the practices were not going to start, because there were not enough workers.  It was 8am.  Damn.  I crawled out of my tent, walked/fed Cooch, fed myself, then made my way out to a corner.  I ended up working turn 12 all day.  We had a few incidents, but the one that really pissed me off was during a race when a bike went down on the exit.  Simple low side, but the bike was in the middle of the track.  Rider ok, waving yellow, no reason to stop the race.  HOWEVER, the riders were still going trough turn 12 at 10/10's and racing.  It really pissed me off, and I am now seriously reconsidering if I want to corner work again.  We got the bike out of the way, and the race went on with further incident, but it still irked me. I finished up the day, but did leave before the last race to go pack up.  Glad I did, as the race was red flagged a few times and dragged on.

I would like to once again thank everyone for all their support, bu it by running or riding in the foot/bike race, contributing items/services for the auction, or bidding at the auction.  It is nights like that that make me proud to be a member of the LRRS community.  I would especially like to thank Kit and Shandra! for putting their bodies up on the auction block.  Still waiting for reports on how the dates went.   :)

Well, hopefully I'll be back out there next race weekend, and be able to get right back into the swing of things after missing a few weekend.  I still have 16's to get!  See you then.
 

Prologue:
It's been 11 months since I last raced the NSR600 - August 2000 when the rod bearing let go 1/2 lap from finish of the (Junior) LW Sportsman race. It's been 9 months since I was last on the track to race. The updates that happened over the winter: The engine was rebuilt, also with larger intake valves; the rear wheel had been widened for proper tire seating (more rounded profile); the front tire is now a /60 profile which also changes the handling; A belly pan for exploded engine oil as was deemed by the rule book; A new custom offset front sprocket moves the chain away from the tire. It was this last item that prevented me from racing this spring; HMP was just straight-out with work to fit in the sprocket job, so I was ready to race for June - went to start the completed bike in early June and there was a horrible grinding sound. Removed the engine, took it to HMP, they found nothing wrong. Reinstalled back into the frame, same thing!! Short Story: the oil pump had to be primed to pump oil through the motor!! the noise was the clutch throw-out bearing!! no damage done (!). Reassembled everything (again), and got it running correctly for a dyno day for carb jetting. This went well and showed 50HP (Factory Dyno). Cool. Ready finally for July 7-8 weekend...

Except for this nagging pain in my right elbow ... every time I gripped a wrench and pull, or twist a ratchet etc. It proceeded to get worse, I didn't know what it was and by July 5th I couldn't move my right arm without severe burning pain in the elbow. Short Story #2: Tennis (or mechanics, or) elbow, caused by repetitive motion and force, a form of tendentious or possibly bursitis. I couldn't race, couldn't ride at all. 3 weeks later I have now had acupuncture, Naproxin, and a cortisone shot to reduce the swelling and start healing the joint. So being able to race at all was fortunate.

Friday 7/27:
Between the start of kitchen remodeling, and work, I had little time to pull stuff together to leave midday. So I arrived at the track around 5:30 and scrambled to sign up, get a transponder, get the bike unpacked and to tech before they closed at 7pm, which gave me more time in the morning. The rest  of the evening was given to Dane to replace the seals on the CB1.

Saturday 7/28:
First practice - Expert Red - Let's see how this thing goes - yup - it goes, real quick, real smooth, but the handling feels like it's not planted. I go thru T6, to the top of the hill, T9 down and flip it into T10 BAMM! I slide down the rest of the  hill into no man's land in T10, I roll to a stop, look back up, there's no bikes coming at me so I stand up, get the bike up and roll it out the T10 gate (thanks to the CW who assisted me!). A quick look over the bike shows everything intact - I bump-start it and go back out, more careful than before and realize the belly pan is scraping thru T10 ... which probably lifted my rear wheel up, and me down.

I spoke with Chuck Briganti in the next garage about him not having a belly pan. "Not required for LRRS, or at least not enforced" Cool - it was off in 5  minutes, problem solved.  The second practice went better but the handling was not confidence building at all, the front tire felt like it wanted to  walk away. My best times were ~1:36 - amateur.

LW Sportsman:
My start was strong as anyone else, but I didn't have the confidence to  maintain the drive as they did, I tried to push harder but the front just scared me. I finished last (17th) with a best lap of 1:33, and no points.

Sunday 7/29:
Practices went better, I felt smoother and more relaxed, I pushed my times down to 1:31's and then to 1:30's by the second practice. The front end still didn't feel good, but I was just "finding the edge". The motor was running really well.

SuperSingles:
Again, I got a strong start but didn't hang with the pack. I realized that running with experts usually means that they know what lines they, and everyone around them are taking, so they tend to crash less, or, said in a better way, they have greater confidence in themselves and those around them. Paul Conley went by on my inside smoothly and I attempted to keep with him, but I just wasn't ready to push as hard, so I treated it as "racing practice" and forced myself to go faster and smoother. By race end I was riding  consistent 1:30's and 1:31's, again finishing last (7th) but I got 6 points!

Epilogue:
It really felt great to be back and feel confident in the motor and power. The chassis, on the other hand, needs to be optimized for the different tire profiles, and is at Computrack now, will be ready for Aug. 18-19. Looking forward to that!!

A big thanks to all our sponsors, friends, and followers who support us in so many ways, we really appreciate having you there! John Falvey and his brother Steve, taking (really good) photos, Cate for cornerworking and good vibes, Reto for general overall handyman and sounding board, Kit for ... for being Kit. Also great to have Dane back and on the track! Tim Atwood and Nils Menten also enjoyed great success this weekend, congrats to them!

Prologue:

It's been almost exactly a year since I crashed at Loudon and started my recovery.  It's also been almost exactly a year since I really rode ANY motorcycle.  It's also the first time I ever rode my new race bike, the CB1.
 

I had planned to take the weekend easy to get re-aclimated to racing and not to go bonzai and crash my first weekend out.

Friday 7/27:
Get to the track around 2pm and start doing some maintenance on the new race bike.  New chain, new set of Michelin Pilots, and then Scott stayed up late helping me put on new fork seals and set up the suspension on the motorcycle.  In bed and ready to practice in the AM!!!

Saturday 7/28:
First practice - Amateur Red
The new bike feels good.  Nice power and the initial suspension set up is good.  Practice red flagged after 2.1 laps - barely scrubbed in the new tires.

Second Practice - Amateur Red
Get out for a full practice this time.  I feel like I am riding on the street so I spend the practice session concentrating on remembering my lines and getting smooth.

Sunday 7/29:
Practices getting better, but only run lap times of 1:38s.  I wanted to ease slowly back into racing, but not this slowly!! ;-)  I know it has been along time since I was on the track and I need to work back up., but 9 seconds a lap slower is not acceptable.  I plan on getting at least back into the low 1:31s next race weekend (as my goal), and hopefully faster!!

Lightweight GP:
First race back at Loudon.  A Little nervous.  I get through turn 1 with a pretty good start, but do not up my lap times from practice.  Work on at least being smooth and slowly recovering where my braking markers and reference points are.  GREAT to be back on the track.  Next weekend I will be pushing it more.
 

I would really like to thank everyone at the track for making my first weekend back REALLY great.  Kit, Paul, Tim, Nils, Scott, Falvio, Ryan, Dana, and everyone who was there.  Made it a really great weekend.  I would also really like to thank Dr. Mitchell for making my shoulder usable again.

Next weekend - planning on Thurs practice, Friday pro school.  Goal - drop lap times dramatically!

Hmmm... What to say what to say.

It's all coming back to me now.  left, right, left, right, left, left, right (sslliiiiidddee), left right, left, left, ri,lft....... Or something like that.  Basically various events have conspired to make this only my third event of this season so it seems that every time I get up to speed I then have a long lay off and have to start all over again.  Uhh a slightly twisted bike doesn't help either.

Tale of the tape.  Thursday eve I arrive at BJ's to help have a good look at the bike and spin a wrench for the first time since I crashed in during the June AMA warm-up event.  Simply put it was more twisted then I thought.  As you recall I had low sided in T11 on the last lap of the PT race.  A once over before loading to go home that afternoon left one with the impression that I had just knocked the front end out of alignment so I didn't worry about it, nor did I have time to, until the day we were packing and loading for the races.  After about an hour of wrenching and resetting fork height etc.. I had it "looking" pretty straight so we loaded the bikes and BJ went on his way.

Friday afternoon I headed to Barry and Ava's for a ride to the track.

Saturday Morning a ride over to Street and Comp to pick up a new windscreen and notice that the bike is still "a bit out".  I worked pretty hard to get it straight on Thursday so I wasn't sure there was much else I could do.  I figured I'd already paid my cash so...

Jr/Ex Yellow Practice #1. Prior to this weekend I had been running in the red group.  For various reasons it was suggested that I bump up to yellow.  In a word.  TRAFFIC JAM.  Unlike red I wasn't running up everyone's' backside but there still wasn't a clean line to be had.  Add that to the fact that I hadn't been here in a month and that and the bike just didn't quite feel right (Go figgah :-) ) and you had a more or less wasted practice.

After practice I decided to check with Peter Kates @ GMD Computrac to see if he had time to check out the front end. I decided to forgo the next practice (what's the point of practicing on a twisted bike) and pull the front end so PK would have time to check/fix it before this afternoons LW Sportsman race.

A half hour later PK hands the forks back with the height set properly but he tells me the tubes "are out" (read bent) enough that he can't quite get them aligned and that he doesn't have the press (for straightening) here at the track.  "Do what you will with them".  IOW pack it in and lose the funds or stick 'em back on, get it as straight as you can, and go circulate... "don't tell me you did that." I hear nussing I zee nussing... :-)

Well, after a little conversation with the media center folk I concluded that it was highly unlikely that I would get anything back so I decided to bolt 'em up and see what happened.  As it turns out they went on pretty good this time and although the bike wasn't perfect it was good enough that I felt comfortable going out to play.  I just resigned myself to the fact that I would probably be mid-pack this weekend.

Race 9a Jr/Ex LW Sportsman:
8th overall (out of 17) and third of the three production spec EX500's. Best time: 1'23.889'  Hmm basically 2/10ths off my best.  Not bad on a bent bike.  I was gridded on the last row.  After a horrible start and I basically proceeded to battle my way up from about 15th place to 8th. Despite being a generally faster rider than tow of the guys in front of me I just couldn't get my concentration down.  My RP's were ragged and I just couldn't get appropriate drive out of any of the really important corners.  Truth is I was surprised I ended up where I did but still happy with the result.   I Usually end up 4 or 5th in this class.

Sunday:

Given my problems yesterday I decided to spend this morning just looking at the track again.  Ever since they put down the crack sealer I've been riding half the track on intuition because many of my RP's were gone. Today I decided to spend practice just looking at the track and trying to get myself back on line.  Though ultimately way off pace in practices I felt much better, though still a bit ragged, about where I needed to be on the racetrack.

Race #6 LW Jr/EX LW Production Twins(aka "The EX Class")
Based on this weekends practice times it appears that (after an early season of having only 3-4 fast riders in this class) a lot of other guys have finally come up to speed.  Suffice it to say that this was the closest PT race in the last two seasons and how I ended up fourth is beyond me. I was gridded on the last row and once again I got a mediocre start. There was a lot of jostling in T1 and my guess is that I was somewhere 7th or worse going into T3.  After being fast all season (well all of three events) it was disheartening to be so far back.  I really need to preregister for these races.  Being on the last row really makes it hard work.  I don't remember much of the passing except for stuffing Bob Perkins (sorry Bob) going into T3 on the third lap.  It was almost un avoidable.  T3 on the brakes is one of my best turns and as we went in like ducks in a row I stayed to the inside for the pass under several riders.  I came in quick and it appears that Bob stepped out to pass just in front of me.  I had two choices.  Stand him up and slow us all down or grab more binders and surely pitch us both into the tire wall.  Obviously, and much to Bob's chagrin, I chose the former.  No bumping but lots of hand gestures and some practically knee to knee moments.  I came out ahead but unfortunately I also slowed us both down enough that Dana, who was fairly close behind me and who I worry about more than Bob, was now right one my rear wheel.  Somewhere in the next lap he passed me and held that position until lap 6 when I got him back in the T1/1a/2 switchback.  We proceeded to dice our way up onto the tail of Micky Curry (4th) somewhere in the middle of the last lap. I took a good look in 6 and then in 9 but I just wasn't willing to run it underneath that hard at the apex of 10.  It's not a nice place to crash.  So I waited..... I knew I was faster than both Micky and Dana going into 11 and I gave it my best shot.  I got right next to Micky in 11 but again he (hat's off to ya) he defended that line like he was riding a four inch wide 15,000 foot mountain peak.  Again I managed to stay on his rear wheel but we had both lost a little drive. I don't know what it was all weekend, perhaps gearing, but I was getting into the corners good and quick but it seemed I was still either a gear too high going in or 1000Rpm to low coming out.  My drives were suffering horribly and I just hadn't be able to put a gap on Dana.  That should have come back to haunt me but for whatever reason I caught a scoring break.. Anyhow as Micky and I exited 12 driving for the checker I realized that Dana was RIGHT on our a tails.  I saw him coming up on my left (he's always had more motor than I've had) trying to pin me in Micky's draft. I drifted out anyhow hoping to bluff him into rolling off a bit.  We both kind glanced at each other wide eyed as we headed towards the line. We crossed the line pretty much three abreast.  Micky had about half a bike length (but he had apparently been called for a creep on the start so that put him back four places), and I'd swear, and so would the starter, the manual scorers and Dana, that Dana had me by about 6inches.  Apparently the electronic scoring system is the know all and <shrug> be all.  It had me ahead of Dana by .011seconds.  Without a doubt the closest finish I've ever been involved in and a fun race despite still feeling ragged.  Oh well... a good time was had by all.  One of these days I'll get on the top of the podium.  I just need to string some consistency on top of my excellent times.  Oh yeah I hit a new personal best.  All off 5/100ths better than before but I did it on a bent bike with three weekend old tires.  Soon. Very soon.

Thanks again to TDR and all of our wonderful sponsors.