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Round 3 ... The Classic! I've always heard of it, but never actually attended or raced during this event. Needless to say it's a big deal and an awesome place to be. I only had two races on the list for the weekend (AM GTO on Fri, and AM Heavyweight GP on Sat) since my race budget has been getting a bit slim.
I came down on Thursday morning to practice in the afternoon but only managed one session before it started raining. Just that one session made me finally fall in love with this AAAAARRRRR 6. I made some rather major changes to the bike from the last round of racing and it made a world of difference, especially under braking. I felt supremely comfortable which shot my confidence skyward in anticipation for the races! This was THE weekend to finally get my laptimes back in shape and make all this fun again!
Friday
GTO Race 3:
I'm gridded on the front row, position B. I get a decent start and funnel into T1 in 5th. I take it "easy" the first few laps, and then start pushing a bit. I passed a couple riders from the wave prior to ours, and manage to keep the frontrunners in sight. (FWIW, the last few races I would fall back and lose sight of my faster competitors) I'm pumped! FINALLY, everything seems to be coming together where I might be able to get in the mix at the front!!!
We only get about 5 laps in when I see a rider 2 bikes in front of me lock up his brakes and lawndart into the airfence on the outside of T3. We continue for another lap before we get a red flag and come back in to pregrid. It seemed like forever before we get out again, so we're all baking in the sun, sweating. When we get back out on the grid, I'm back one row, on the inside. I don't get as good a start this time and get shuffled a few positions going into 1A. That pooched my entry/exit in T2 and then subsequently going into T3. I got passed on the inside going into T3 so I figure I could square up the corner and outdrive him going up through T4. It starts well but I can feel the rear break loose. I tried to hold the throttle constant and let it right itself, but it's no good. I get spit off the bike and take in a scenic flight on the hill. Damn. I just caused the second red flag of the race. (sorry fellas)
I'm OK with just a few bumps and bruises, and the bike faired MUCH better than my first crash in T4, LOL. I rode it back to the pits and we immediately started working on it, hoping to get it in shape for the following day. Thanks to Joel and Pete for helping get the bike sorted, but at the end of the day there were a few things rendering it unrideable, and my knee was telling me to call it quits. Once again, I'm compelled to praise Woodcraft on the quality of their parts. Both rearsets, bars, frame sliders, and engine covers got put to the test, and they all faired much better than I could imagine. Some parts were irreparable, but they all served in a protective capacity by absorbing the energy of the crash and not transferring it to the more integral parts of the bike.
I've included a pictorial version of my race, courtesy of Arcy at Ontrack Media. Some great shots, even when there's a debris field!!
At first I was like:
And then I was like:
While the bike was:
That last picture is particularly poignant, since I had worked so hard to get past Shane, L.O.L.
Although I'm pissed at myself for throwing away the weekend so quickly, I have to see the good in it. My laptimes were in the consistent :21's and I was definitely on the road to :20's and maybe even a :19. Stay tuned for next time!
Now if you'll excuse me, I have to go get my busted ride fixed.
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Originally Posted by wiggeywackyo
