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Race Report – Rd4– 7/21-7/22
AKA The good and the bad AKA “if it weren’t for bad luck I wouldn’t have any luck at all”
As always this will be quite long. Look for results in BOLD.
Arrival
I flew in from Montana at Midnight of Wednesday, woke early Thursday to begin work on the SV. I had blown up my SuperBike race engine at the last event and had relied on my friend and sponsor Gregg Spears of Spears Enterprises to put a package together for me. So in preparation I began removing the engine. Right on time the motor arrived and I got it installed. True to his word and extreme professionalism the engine fired right up and I was immediately impressed with the crisp throttle response and the speed at which it spooled up.
I tossed the plastics back on it, got the trailer hitched and my wife and I headed up to the track Thursday night. It was 2AM by the time I got our trailer set up and hit the rack.
Friday Practice
I woke up at 6AM to get a head start on the remaining work before I could get out to break the motor in and turn a few practice laps. I had to replace tires on the GSXR and swap tires to a set that only had 1 race on them for the SV, change the oil in the GSXR, and re-safety wire the entire SV as everything had been removed.
I went out for one session on the GSXR in the late morning and was instantly reminded that I had very little idea of how to ride this bike. It is still very awkward for me to ride at pace and I am constantly fighting the bike. Still I managed to click off some low :18’s which I didn’t feel was too bad for being so new to the bike.
Back in the garage I finished buttoning up the SV, got it running, and rolled through tech. I was very excited to get back on my SV and out in the game as I really feel so much more comfortable on this bike. I took it pretty easy for my outlap as the motor is still fresh but wicked it up just a tad for lap two but as I entered T1 under hard braking the front end just dropped solid on me.
I braked as best I could and managed to navigate the 1-2 stretch but when I looked down it appears that my right fork tube ruptured and fork oil was dumping all over my rotor. I limped back to the pits, completely disbelieving my luck, and quickly got my fork off the bike and over to Pete Kates of GMD Computrack Boston.
Rather than wait for the fork I knew that if I was ever going to get competent riding the GSXR I needed more seat time so I went out for another practice session. Thankfully nothing exploded but I was amazed to find when I got back that Pete was already done with my fork! HUGE THANKS to Pete Kates of GMD for getting me back in the game so quickly!!!!
Renewed I quickly reassembled the SV. There was only two practice sessions left in the day but I was determined to make them. I got out for both and was very impressed with the new motor. It ran like a champ and pulled strong everywhere. I found myself hitting the rev limiter in places I had never before and my overall pace was up. Out of both sessions I managed to turn a best time of 1:18.8 which is tied with my personal best on the SV.
Saturday Practice
I was excited to get back out on the SV after some quick maintenance to the bikes (fluids changed in both) and ran both sessions on the SV, one on the GSXR. Nothing special to report except that I once again hit a 1:18.8 on the SV, tying my PB for the 3rd time but knowing that I had a lot more left to go.
GTL
This is the race I was most looking forward to. I started from 1B next to Rick Doucette (#6) on my left and David Dayon (#611) on my right. I got a very good launch and had the holeshot until ultra-fast Glenn Coolbeth (#95) came around me on the outside of T1 and took the lead. I knew that I had Rick right behind me and that Scott Mullen (#24) and Seth Hahn (#91) must be there as well as they are both faster than me so I really put my head down and began to push hard. I was shocked that I was able to stay with Glenn the entire first lap and also that I hadn’t yet been passed. Thanks to Arcy of OTM for capturing my 1:21 outlap of fame :-p
I crossed the line in 2nd place for the first time since bumping to EX but I was struggling with rear tire grip as I had opted to stick with my slicks that I had been running rather than going with new (dumb dumb dumb). At some point throughout the next 2-3 laps I ended up getting passed by Rick and Scott but the race was red-flagged at the 5 lap mark when AM powerhouse Lou Peck (#212) had an unfortunate crash at the exit of T12.
After a brief wait on hot-pit we went back out to re-start. I didn’t get as good of a start this time and lined up for T1 right behind Rick Doucette who seemed to check up as a line of traffic went around us both and I was pushed back to 5th. Rick and Scott quickly separated themselves from the pack and left me to battle with Seth and Glenn for the remainder of the race. Sadly my traction issues coupled with Glenns masterful use of Amateur traffic kept me from mounting an attack although I did cross the line a scant .3 behind him. I think if I had another lap I might have been able to do something but cest la vie.
I did manage to get a new personal best as well as a new best outlap on the SV and also held onto my 2nd place in the points standing for GTL.
Outlap: 1:21.753 (new PB)
Best Lap: 1.18.581 (new PB)
Finish: 5th out of 13
Lightweight Grand Prix
I put a new sticky Pirelli on the back courtesy of MTAG Pirelli and dropped half a pound of pressure from my norm under the reasoning that my slightly quicker pace and fresh motor required a bit more rear traction. The combination was magic. I could tell from my warm-up lap that things were working perfectly and my spirits were high.
I was set up in 2D (2nd row, outside) and got a great start but apparently both Rick Doucette (#6) and Scott Mullen (#24) did as well. I slipped into T1 in 3rd place directly on the rear wheel of Scott. I knew that both of these men were incredibly fast so I pushed as hard as I could and was surprised that I actually gained about half a bike on Scott going into T3 (I later found out he was still running his SS motor :/ ). In any case I stayed on the throttle as long as possible while the bike moved under me and gave it my all.
I was rewarded by sticking with both the race leaders throughout the entire race. The bike felt perfect; fast and loose, she carved through corners without a single complaint. I found that I was able to carry more speed nearly everywhere and leveraged that for all I could and was actually scraping my toes in most corners, something I rarely do.
I was rapidly tiring as the race went on but I was too close to the front runners to give up and pushed through it.
At the white flag my friends on the front straight timed me at less than 3-4 seconds behind 2nd place runner Scott Mullen which was simply amazing to me as typically I lose sight of both of them by the 3rd or 4th lap.
So it was that on the last lap, in the last turn my luck reared up again. Well, I can’t blame luck as it was fatigue and rider error that caused me to crash out in T11, forfeiting what should have been my first EX podium. I distinctly recall the feeling of the front tire giving way as I fell to the ground and slid on my butt. I had my hands in the air while I was still sliding while shouting in my helmet “ARE YOU F#$&ING KIDDING ME??!”
Continuing my luck I found out that the SD card for all of my races to this point was corrupt so I have no footage from anything.
Still, despite the crash I am very excited for this race as it pushed me through a threshold that I thought I wouldn’t see for many years. Thank you to both Rick and Scott for the tow
I looked at my times afterwards and was VERY pleased to see that I had crushed my personal best by a huge margin in both outlap and lap times. Not one of my laps was slower than my previous personal best.
*EDIT** Also I had no idea that there were so many people rooting for me to take that third (Chipper, Wild Bill, et. al.). Sorry I let you all down
Outlap: 1:20.677 (new PB)
Best Lap: 1:17.489 (new PB by 1.4 seconds)
Finish: DNF
Middleweight GP – The “Dash for Cash”
I had a one race break in between my crash and this race so basically I tried to put it out of my head and drag my exhausted body onto a bike that I knew was more difficult for me to ride. Downed some water and with a LOT of help and encouragement from my team and Erik (ct1200) I got back out there for the 12 lap torture session.
I was (and am) still very upset at giving up my first podium which was keeping me from getting my head in the game. Consequently there isn’t much to say about this race except that I was exhausted both mentally and physically and by the halfway point I was considering taking a voluntary DNF as I felt I was a danger both to myself and my fellow riders. Instead I dialed it back a bit and waved people past and did my best to keep the race line clear.
I did manage to get a new PB on the GSXR in the initial laps before exhaustion overtook me completely.
Outlap: 1:22.036
Best Lap: 1:17.190 (new PB)
Finish: 17th out of 23
Sunday Practice
Sunday morning I began putting the SV back together after my crash only to discover that the damage was more extensive than the usual crash parts. The bike wouldn’t shift into 1st or 2nd gear. After a few hours of mechanical work I was unsuccessful and was forced to withdraw from Sunday’s lightweight races. This is very upsetting as not only is the motor brand new but I also wanted to run the race to affirm that I really was capable of running 17s.
I did a middleweight practice on the GSXR but felt out of sorts and honestly had lost any desire to be there.
Middleweight Supersport
I was going to skip this race and go home however my wife and teammates talked me into giving it a go. My head wasn’t in it and I just rolled around. On the plus side I got a very good start but after my friend Christian Smutnick ((#316) nearly crashed twice in the same lap I decided that it simply wasn’t worth it and I just dialed it back and waited for the flag, completely upset with myself and my inability to move past the funk I was in.
You can see this mediocre race here.
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Ly_TVjV7M9k
Outlap: 1:21.572
Best Lap: 1:17.454
Finish: 10th out of 14
Conclusion
After an endless string of bad luck, the only thing I have to show for it is 1:17’s on the SV. While this is no small feat the sheer amount of money, time, and effort that it took to get there is nothing short of depressing. I am trying to focus on what little positive there is, I feel that the outcome of the next race weekend will be a deciding factor in the reminder of my racing career.
I would like to thank first and foremost Gregg Spears of Spears Enterprises for the fantastic motor that he was able to build for me in record time and get it shipped to me just in time to make the race weekend. None of this would be possible without his unwavering support.
Also I would like to thank Erik (ct1200) for all of the help that he provides in our pits which is nothing short of incredible.
As always thanks to my wife, my family, my teammates, my friends, and the officials and cornerworkers who allow this to become reality.
Finally sincere thanks to my sponsors listed below for all of the encouragement and assistance you have provided, it means more to me than any of you will ever know.
Finally, a few shots from this weekend