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OK so I was #448 as an AM, and ended up changing to #72. New number, same Burnham.
I had not had any track time since I raced last September. I bought a new bike, and bumped to expert over the winter, so I figured I'd get some laps under my belt. I did the Fishtail day on Monday, Penguin School Wednesday, and practice on Thursday. I got a feel for the bike and knocked some rust off. I felt OK but kinda wished I stayed an AM for one or two rounds this year. Thursday night I signed up for two races, GTO and Supertwins, and went to get some new Dunlop DOTs mounted.
Friday practice I went out for one session to feel the new tires out. Things didn't feel that quick, but when I came in I learned I did a 1:18 flat and I felt pretty optimistic. I went out for the GTO and got a shit start. I always do, but I learned pretty quick that you shouldn't do that in an expert race. When we came out of T2 the pack was trying to run away from me, while I was in dead last. It took a lap for me to catch someone. I had a pretty low feeling in the beginning of the race but was able to pass a couple of people and finish 6th out of 8, and turn a new personal best of 1:16.six something I think. I wasn't very happy with that but I've known I should work on my starts for a while, and haven't.
Saturday. My bike didn't fit into any races Saturday, so I really didn't do shit all day. I had some Dunlop slicks mounted, watched some racing, and got a sunburn. It was our eleven year anniversary, so Mrs Burnham and I went out to dinner with some friends. It was a really good day, and I'm pretty glad I didn't race or do much else. I got her a lap timer from Miles for our anniversary. I talked with a couple guys from the Penguin School Saturday night about my riding, they had some pointers and were really positive in general. That kind of got me pumped up for Sunday.
Sunday. I talked with Pete from Computrack about the way my bike felt, and had him give it a bounce. We ended up putting a couple of turns of pre-load in the rear spring. I went out for practice and the bike felt really good. I ended up turning a 1:16.424 (new PB) and felt pretty good doing it. The bike would hold a line better and it was easier to finish a turn with the spring cranked up. Supertwins. I lined up on the outside rear of a group of 8 bikes. The flag dropped and I got an OK start. I was able to get around a couple guys and was about 4th into T1. I made my way up to 3rd pretty quick and turned a lap or two behind the leaders. The leader was starting to pull away and I knew I could carry some speed into T1 so I made the pass for 2nd place there. I did the rest of the race in second place, worked my way through some traffic and tried to ride quick enough to not lose my place. Everything felt great, the pointers I got the night before and the bike set-up really made a difference. I was able to finish second out of eight, and when I checked my lap times I found four of my laps were in the 15's, with my new PB being a 1:15.336.
So it was a great week. My new bike is a rocket. I got a lot of help and left the track feeling really thankful to be able to hang out with so many good people. I have some bad habits to shake in terms of body position, and will be getting back on the road bike to build some strength in my legs. I will also be taking all the overtime I can get and putting a kidney up on ebay.
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