5
Every weekend just keeps getting better n better at the track.
This time was incredible for sure!
Got there early Wednesday. All week i have been feeling off, i was not in the mood to do anything and was very down, so I made it up to the track to change the environment. I had picked up the Hawk from GMD tuesday and I had some work to do it in order to put it together.
So i get there I saw Kurtz (first of course) and Tony at the infamous Pirelli Garage. Unload everything and we catch up a little bit.
School/Practice is over and it is time for the first drinks and work on the bike.
More people start arriving at the track and stopping by to say hi.
Bike is finally done and we are all just relaxing having some drinks.
Thursday seems cloudy, I am haning out with Kurtz and Tony helping as much as I can or bother them as much as I can in some cases.
around 12pm Mike and I check the weather and we see that it is not supposed to rain until 230pm.
SO i decide to go do practice. go pay my $120 as a good boy and as I am walking back to the garage it starts raining.
BUMMER!
Now this is the first time I am riding the bike with a refreshed front end and a brand new suspension, compltely changed geometry, so it feels like a whole different bike.
I dont want to go ride in the rain, but Mike convinces me its a good practice, I am going to learn a lot and I will eventually have to deal with at some point anyways. so we put rains on my bike and out I go... well not for too long as from Pit Out into T6 I am already on the ground sliding towards the gravel. I am fine, bike is scratched up. I ride it back to the pits with a broken clutch lever. I am pretty bumped but happy I am not hurt and the bike isnt pretty but functional. Mike gives me his spare clutch lever and again convicnes me its a good idea to go out again. I go out much more careful. I complete a lap getting a bit more comfortable, trying to be smoother, compelte a second lap and I want to see if I can keep doing this. well T9 had different plans for me. I tip in early, start going wide and try to tip in again, yeah right... My ass is on the ground the bike is sliding towards the airfence which I tested and it works fine. Corner workers help me get to the 3-10 split and check on me. Bike is a bit rougher than last time and mike's clutch lever is somewere in the grass. AWESOME! NOT!
back at the garage, relaxing, getting out of the gear and breathing. at this point I am seriously upset, I dont even want to race any more. I am about to pack and go home. Mike and Tony are being incredibly supportive, Christian and Jen as well via texts. I am convicned to at least stay the night and if I still want to leave in the morning then so be it.
Mike W pulls in some time soon and his bike was a bit worse than mine and that was the bike we were planning on racing for the endurance race on friday. So what the hell let's start working on some bikes and get ready for racing. TONY was amazing. I learn a lot next to him every weekend and he has great advice for me all the time. we put my bike together, bleed brakes, change brake fluid and some other minor stuff and the bike seems 100%. NOT ONE CHANCE this would be possible without Tony, Josh, Eric, Mike K, Mike W, pretty much G1-G2 guys.
at some point late at night both the Hawk and the SV are good to go and now we are discussing strategy for the endurance race, which of course we got a team together the very last minute, because thats how we do things!
Friday:
I got up a bit later than i wanted and of course missed first practice. 2nd practice I take Mike W's SV out since I will be riding it for the endurance race and not only I havent ridden his bike before, I have never ridden an SV before. His bike is way different than i expected and his brakes are UNREAL. I am excited though because it is very forgiving and gives great feedback. I sign up for the GTL race (taking Kurtz's advice once again). So here we are. My first AM race, my first long race (GTL), on my first time on my bike which doesnt feel like my bike. this is going to be fun.
I am gridded DEAD LAST out of 15 riders.. First AM race and I registered right before rider's meeting so theres no surprise part there.
we start I wheelie the fuck out of the hawk, put it back down and go into 1 horrible. I make my way through some people and red flag.
Back at the pit and they tell me now I am starting 7th! Alright lets try this one more time then. we go back out, wave one goes we are about to start and another red flag. they sent us back in! my awesome pit crew comes with umrella, water, wet towels and back out we go
start #2 1/2 took off as good as a hawk can launch pretty much - i look to my left and John (trouble) didnt have a good start, at this point in my head I need to stay ahead of him as much as I can and maybe get a tow from him which would be a podium. I go into 1 first, bikes are all over the place, I am holding my spot for John to come around in 3 and pass and another bike spooked me as I was tipping in so I ran wide. By T9 I cant even see John any more. I am turning decent laps but I am getting tired. Start dropping spots and the last 3 laps I am battling with Doug back and fourth, I usually pass him in 3 and 9 and he repasses me in 6 and 1. I guess he had it in him more than I did he passes me into the bowl on the last lap, I almost had him back in 9 but ran to wide and I settle for 5th. Come back to a new PB. of 1.24.90x
Endurance Race! thats the shit we were all waiting for. I am still upset that our team name wasnt FSU (fuck shit up) but according to mike I fucked enough shit up so we did not need the name any more. So RSP Mike K + Mike W + ECK Chuck + Olympus Racing Me. here we go in the class that had the most entries. for the record I did suggest to run P89 or UL so we can guarantee first LOL.
anyways. Mike W goes out first, running faster than he was in GTL (lol) and on lap 5(?) he goes down, comes back in he is fine, which is the only thing we cared about anywas. Our AMAZING pit crew gets the bike ready and Mike goes back out. He is doing amazing job closing the gap and we start making up the lost ground. Comes back in and it is my turn. I go out and I am loving the feeling I get from the bike. Lap after I lap I drop my times and the wave me in, I feel I have energy to go few more laps but I decide to give the bike to the faster riders. Back in I go and Mike jumps on the bike and off he goes. He starts turning some real good laps and the gap is getting smaller and smaller. In the mean time we hear on the radio that I have to go back out cause I did not complete 30 minutes I did 29:33.... Oh well I wanted to ride anyways. I am getting my rest on, mike comes in chuck goes out and it starts raining... Now I dont want to ride any more. We are discussing possible strategies, Maybe I go out for only one lap and Mike W will go out again, a lot of possible scenarios. Rain stops and Chuck starts dropping his times lap after a lap. We call him in and I and Mike W split the rest of the remaining time to finish 3rd in our class! what an awesome experience. I havent had so much fun before. the whole idea coming in people holding the bike, getting off, swapping riders, refueling was just amazing!
I cant thank these guys enough for being part of this. I loved every second of it!
Huge thanks to SmokeShack for the free food during Friday evening
Saturday: after cuddling in the ambulance with Christian and winning Light Weight Blackout Drinking with Mike I got up around 830-9am. Missed first practice went out for second. turned a few 25s but mostly 27s. two races planned for saturday but Now I could start feeling the crash on my right side and the exhaustion from the endurance race.
Race #5 P-89. Wheelied the start AGAIN! i think we restarted. Nothimg memorable of that race since we were only 3 bikes and we all had huge gaps from each other. John won, I came second, Alan 3rd.
I get no time to rest pretty much and off I go for race #7
Gridded dead last again. Great start and I go into T1 third. I get spooked running too wide and have every body pass me in 1A and 2. and yes I mean everybody! start making my way through traffic. passing few peeps here and there but I am getting tired already. last lap I see John and I am surprised to be thinking i caught up to him, turns out he was stuck at 5th gear. I pass him into 3 he passes me in 6 we battle it for the next few turns i almost crash into 11, we go on to the front straight, i draft and go on his left and we legit finish mili seconds apart for me to take 5th with best lap 1:25. Most upsetting part about this race was that I could have actually won it, according to lap times... oh well, thats racing right?
Trophies was a blast and then Cookouts and tons of laughts through the entire night. That was my favorite part of the weekend. realize all the great people I am blessed to have in my life. Seeing people with their wives and kids, friends, etc is just so great. so many laughs, so many stories. I cant describe in words how happy I was to be there. Around midnight we left the track and went go karting. that was just insane and an absolute BLAST! you all are amazing people and I mean it from the bottom of my heart.
Sunday: weather didnt look great and after talking to a lot of hawk guys on Saturday night I decided to stay and race. I was going to do LWSB but the weather seemed to be bad by the time this race would be up. so I signed up for Thunderbike instead. Tony told me to go out and make him proud... I tried but it didnt work out as I expected. Again though it was good to come back in the pits to a very positive atmosphere and the guys clapping and hugging me haha. i could have done much better. I wheelied the start AGAIN. passed a lot of people and battled it out with Samuel Witham - 215 until the end. I blew turn 10 and he passed me in 11 to win 3rd and me finish 4th. Great guy to battle with, we did clean passes and never spooked each other. and that was it. it was time to pack and be sad again for going back to real world.
Huge thanks to all my sponsors and the people who support me outside the track. Even bigger thanks to the people who support me @ the track even physically or over the phone. RSP guys and Tony I wouldnt be able to complete Round 1 without you guys, never mind be an AM on the podium lol. ECK guys and my cupcake Christianall the friends and people who showed up. Low Down Racing guys for watching over me and the advice, Gino for being Gino, Degsy and Chip for constantly advising and supporting me, Marco for the awesome pics. Corner workers and track stuff for helping with my bike and getting my shit back togehter. I know I am forgetting people but I am in a good amount of pain right now, you all know who you are no doubt. Thank you for another amazing weekend I will see you all in Round 4!!!
Sav
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Originally Posted by Sheppo
99 + 02 SV650 ex-race - 91 FJ1200 street - 03 KDX220R woods - 12 WR450F motard/ice
