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Friday Practice
I had set up some extra time on the track before the race weekend to try to reacquaint myself with the track and my bike. It was cloudy and very cold but at least the previous days rain was rapidly drying. There were many crashes due to conditions so I opted to skip the morning sessions to allow the track surface to warm up as the sun occasionally was peeking through the cloud cover.
I did manage to get 4 practice sessions in which started off shaky and slow but by the end I was feeling more confident although still very far off of my race pace. I decided to skip the last two sessions of the day as once again the clouds rolled in and it quickly got back to being bitter cold.
Throughout the day and most of the evening I was also doing tons of bike repairs. Thankfully my own bike remained bulletproof, in no small part due to the still-awesome Spears racing motor but there were others in need around the paddock. I diagnosed and repaired more issues than I can remember, bled at least 4 brake systems, and finished the day doing some fairing and fiberglass repair work.
Saturday Practice
Cold, cold, cold. 33 degrees and completely cloudy at the time of writing however weather reports claim that we will see a balmy 47 by the time I have to race. I was not looking forward to another freezing cold session on the track and skipped the first session.
My laps were smooth and slow as I spent most of my time focusing on remembering and locating reference points. It remained cold and the wind had kicked up to very high gusts which was enough to push me from side to side.
GTL
It was very cold and incredibly windy for my first race of 2012. The race officials had decided to shorten the normal 20 minute endurance race to 15 as it was so cold that tires were actually losing heat as the races progressed which meant that traction actually worsened as the race progressed.
By far the most exciting part of the race for me was the start and outlap. I got a tremendous start from 2C (2nd row-3rd position) and ended up going into turn 1 on the rear tire of super-fast guy Scott Mullin (#24) in 2nd place. I was utterly shocked when I stuck with him all the way until turn 3 where he slowly pulled away from me. It was on the way up into 4 when I got passed by Bill Tansey Jr. (#60) and NHMS legend Rick Doucette (#6).
I surprised myself by keeping them in sight for a bit as both these riders normally would pull quickly away from me however the track conditions leveled the playing field somewhat. I turned my fastest lap of the race (1:20:902) trying to catch them but even with my best effort they were slowly gapping me by about half a second per lap.
After the front runners continued to pull away I looked to my teammates and our pit board where I saw that I was steadily putting a healthy gap between myself and the next closest rider, David Dayon (#611) who I knew was having mechanical issues and was down on power. When I saw “+18 (seconds) ass hole” on the board (thanks RSP racing, you guys know how to take care of a guy) I dialed it back a bit to conserve my energy and my tires as well as reducing the risk of crashing. I spent the rest of the race in a very lonely 4th place where I clicked off a steady stream of 1:21’s while trying to focus on being smooth and consistent.
Finish: 4th out of 11
Best Lap: 1:20.902 (2.2 seconds off of my personal best)
Lightweight Grand Prix
It was still windy but it had warmed up a bit by the time I took my 3C grid (3rd row, 3rd position) for the GP. This was traditionally one of my favorite races and today was no exception. I got a mediocre start but passed two riders on the outside of turn 1 to fall into 7th place directly behind Doug Fogg (#65) and Chris Cucinotta (#88) where we immediately began dicing it up. I was a bit surprised to see that I was right with Chris as he is normally a much faster rider and I later discovered that he had an earlier crash and was still trying to regain his confidence. I showed him a wheel 3 or 4 times over the first few laps but I couldn’t make anything stick until lap 4 where I took him on the outside of turn 6.
I set my sights on Doug and immediately recognized the issues that Chris was having getting past him. As with Chris I was showing Doug a wheel every couple of corners but any time we got on the gas that big Buell would reclaim the distance. I knew I was running out of time as I tried to rattle him with constant pressure but he wasn’t having it. I realized the areas of the track where I was faster and made a desperate gamble as I was out of time. I knew I was faster through the final corner of the track so I let Doug get a small gap so that I wouldn’t have to slow down to navigate this area.
On the final lap in the last corner I made my bid and carried more speed through the chicane. I slingshot past Doug on the outside and tucked as far as I could behind the wind screen. I kept hearing the roar of his bike and knew he was right there and watched with dismay as the raw power of that bike pulled him just ahead of me about 50’ before the finish line.
Even though I only got 6th place this was one of the most fun races I have had as I was constantly being challenged throughout the entire race.
Finish: 6th out of 18
Best lap: 1:21.541
Sunday Practice
I awoke sometime way before I was ready thanks to someone playing very loud music nearby. I had spent the prior evening hanging out with my teammates and then my friends in the T1A crew and stayed out later than I should have. It is always rough catching up with so many people after being away for 6 months!
I was tired but determined and at least the sun was out today. The weather promised to be cold again but at least it was less windy. I skipped the first practice session as it was simply too cold and I didn’t want to risk a crash in the slippery conditions. The second practice I went out with a vengeance as it had warmed a bit and turned some 1:21’s which felt very smooth.
Lightweight Superbike
I was very excited for this race as it was a large grid and promised to be full of fun. I was in the 3D grid position which was fine with me as I was on the outside. I got a pretty good start considering I was in the 3rd row and once again took two riders on the outside of Turn 1 to slot into 7th place directly behind Sean Byrnes (#111). I stayed right on the tail of the pack ahead of me throughout the entire race where eventually I came behind Chris Cucinotta (#88) once again. As in the GP I showed him a wheel a few times and on the 2nd to last lap I got by him on the inside of T6 but put myself into a bad position where I knew I was going to have to run wide and put us both at risk. I pulled back on the throttle and Chris regained his position.
On the final lap I decided to try to be a little crafty and as we began our climb up 4-5 I drifted to the inside again right as I saw Chris look over his shoulder. The moment he turned his head back around I moved to the outside and sure enough, Chris took the defensive inner line. I shot past him on the outside of T6 and made it stick all the way to the finish line where I took my second 6th place of the weekend.
I was very pleased as my times were consistently in the 1:20s with only two laps being 1:21s.
Finish: 6th out of 18
Best Lap: 1:20.846
In Closing
While my lap times were well off of where I would like them to be I am pleased to have regained some consistency. I have no doubt that my times will improve with the track conditions.
A huge thanks to my teammates of RSP racing who braved the cold and slippery conditions with me, to my wife Erin who froze her butt off to support me, and to all of my sponsors who helped to make this weekend possible.
Also special thanks to Eric for taking video for us, to the LRRS officials who are really pushing hard to improve the track for us both in safety and enjoyability, and finally to the dedicated corner workers who sat out in whipping winds and freezing cold for two days to keep us crazy people safe. THANK YOU!
Some shots from the weekend:
Adams first race start.
Christian setting up for his first grind on the swanky new R6 while Bill "the prettiest man alive" Coolahan takes advantage of the way the wind tosses his hair.
Our newest LRRS Novices taking the time to pose for the camera
The elusive Euginicus Berrionicus spotted in his natural habitat.
Keith showing off the new Duc
Yours truly coming out of T2
I have no idea who this little girl is but she is quite possibly the cutest little thing out there. Just keep her away from Chuck and his creeper trailer.
Lots more pics to be found here
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Originally Posted by PainfullySlow
