Pirate Racing

HMRC Junior Tag Endurance # 81

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HMRC Cadwell July 2009Martin's ReportI arrived at Cadwell on Thursday evening to find Trev and Gems all set up. Our new Gazebo was up and it is a really good bit of kit (cheers Fatbloke). Fish and chips and a couple of beers later and then crash in the back of the car, coz I’m hardcore now

The morning was foggy to start with and trying to drizzle but we were very lucky as the rain stayed away all day. The trackday went fairly well, I felt comfortable on the circuit but as my laptimer wasn’t working, I don’t know what laptimes I was doing. The guy next to us had a highside at the chicane (start of things to come) and went off with a broken collarbone. It was really, really hot and humid and I was soaked after each session. My shoulder was getting a bit sore so I sat out two of the 7 sessions.

I walked the track with John Chambers and at his suggestion we walked it backwards – getting loads of comments about how it would be fun if I rode it that way in the race. In the evening, Trev had his new haircut dyed blue which looked pretty good and raised a few comments at the bar!

Race day arrived and the sky was blue – surely this was too good to be true? Practice went fine and I felt good. It took me a while to get used to the bollards not being there. Although you know not to use them on the track day, it is really hard not to! Out for qualifying – Trev and I had agreed to do 15 minutes each. I’m feeling pretty good although back to being a bit of a pussy over the mountain for some reason.

I’m on my last lap when the pace car flag comes out – I slow down a touch and a couple of riders come steaming past me, tut tut. I think this is where Big Nige’s mate came off at the chicane. I come in and give the transponder to Trev. He goes out but gets no fast laps in as the session is red flagged. The timing sheets come out and I see I’ve done 1.51.1 which is 2.5 seconds better than my previous PB. Even so, we start 28th of 30.

It is a long time to wait until our race now and I’m sure that helped in tiring people (certainly I felt it).

Lunchtime brings the chaos of setting up – everyone is sweating in the sun, but we’re all ready to go on time. I start and get a reasonable getaway and have a bit of a dice with a couple of guys which is fun, but didn’t help my times I think. I am getting nackered and will the pitboard to tell me to come in. Finally it does and I melt into my seat. Trev goes out and just gets on the back of the pace car – there had been a few bins in this session, including the chicane a couple of times!

I drink about 12 litres of water and the 30 minutes passes soon. I get back out and there is another pace car, which we stay behind for about 10 minutes. I’m getting parts of the track right but unfortunately it is different parts each lap.

One more changeover each and I’m out on my last session. I leave braking a bit late at Park and approach it much faster than ever before – I lean it hard and get around okay – but my poor technique shows itself here, as my toes are grinding well before my knee and it inhibits my lean a touch.

My shoulder is getting bad and I can hardly hold the left handlebar. I was taking my left arm off as I went around Chris Curve – which at least shows I am hooked in okay

I’ll be interested to see my laptimes because I think they will have tailed off badly in the last 10 minutes of that session.

We finish and I think we got 12th in class and 18th overall – so another finish, some more points and a new PB.

Big GWS to all the fallers of which there were quite a few – especially Keith in his first ever race.

Big thanks to Emma and Paul for Pit Bitching, Gemma for pit boarding, Simon for Marshalling and Jill and Roger for feed and watering us.

Roll on Pembrey. Trev's Report
Me and Gems Arrived at the track around 4pm on Thursday walked into the top paddock to find Bongo's bike in bits but the boys were out so wandered down to the cafe to watch some action over the mountain, Festa came down we had a chat then we walked back up to find Bongo and Tootall found out his problem and after all that had happened they seemed well upbeat.

The paddock cleared and we got the van down and set up the Pirate racing HQ with Festa's help thanks mate

We went down to the cafe for a bite to eat and they had just stopped serving

Panic set in no food for me and Gems

Suddenly a brain wave and I was on the phone to Martin who duly stopped and a chippie and got us Fish and chips (Thanks allot mate you saved our lives) Emma, Roger and Mum arrived with Mum on her Trike, Mum never had time to take her lid off before Gems was begging for a spin around the paddock on the back they went off with huge grins and giggling so loud you could hear them over the exhausts, when they had got set up Mum made a salad which we tucked into even after our Fish and chips,We then had a couple of beers some good banter with fellow monkey and racers then got our head down for the night.

Friday morning and we get out on track and its like I have never been there before trying too hard and going slow making loads of mistakes and generally scaring myself, Last session before lunch and I get Bones to give me some tuition he points out what I'm doing wrong and how to correct it which meant backing off a bit so I drop down a group and after lunch go out and try to put what Bones had said into practice for two sessions, then on the third after lunch I follow Emma for a session and we have a fantastic time and I even get my fastest lap of the day, Not a fantastic lap but I am getting faster which can only be a good thing ( Thanks Ems I love riding on track with you it always seems like fun )

Mums doing the food for us over the weekend and what a Dam Fantastic job she does of it the pasta bake we have in the evening is soooo GOOD I have 3 helpings ( So a BIG Thank You to Mum and Roger for Feeding us we owe you big time )

Sat morning and its Race Day

We get up at 6.40 having already done tech inspection and signed on Friday night we can take it easy first practice soon comes around and I go out following Martin who soon leaves me for dead

and I soon feel knackered legs still ache from Fridays riding so not looking good for the race.

We have a hour between practice and qualifying but it soon comes around Martin goes out first and after 15 mins I go to holding area we swap over transponder and I go out with the pace car on track I get around to the end of Park and catch the car we do about 3 laps behind the car and then they stop us on park straight then red flag the session so I get no flying laps and am feeling a bit down as I am still not up to race pace

After the Morning race we get set up in pit lane and its hot we are all dripping with sweat, Martin qualified us with a 1.51 so he's starting for us as there's no way I could have beat that He get a good start having what looks like a great battle with at least two other bikes and leaving one team way behind as we call martin in the pace car come out and we get a sweet change over so I am out with out losing time I get at least 4 laps behind the pace car which helps me out no end what with the heat and Cadwell being so demanding pace car pulls in and I get going with the pack in front of me and do a lap before anybody comes by and the pack in front are still in sight so some how I am on the pace ( Where the hell did that come from ?) as far as I know I put in a good stint and feel good then the pace car is back out and I am near the front just behind the car when I get my pit signal to come in so that’s what I do, I get in and Martin gets out straight away so we done lose any laps, Time Safety car is working in our favour for once , Loads of teams getting stuck in pit lane some losing a lap some 2laps its so frustrating as we have had this happen to us in the past, Martin does some great times and puts in a fantastic stint, My next stint and I get around to Park straight and spot a rider having a strange moment in Park corner so I catch him and tag on to him he's a bit quicker than me but I manage to stay with him for a couple of laps then he starts to pull a bit of a gap I get my head down and try to reel him in I can see I am quicker around copse and Charlies 1 & 2 and manage to pull myself right back on to him and ion doing this get my fastest time around Cadwell ever I am over the moon while all this is happening no one overtakes/laps us then as we get close to the end of the stint the race leaders come by its great to see Bongo/Ryan and Festa/Ryan having such close racing, Along with these boys is Rat Race who gets past me in Hall bends, I take it he was closing me in real quick and thought he could get through at the second right hander but I got to the apex before him so he took to the inside curb to avoid me which made the bike buck a bit and run wide so I had to lift and run wide myself to avoid him and ran my bike right to the edge of the left just over the crest almost grass tracking but not quite ( RatRace Apologised in the pits but He was running in the top 3 of Super sport race so I can fully understand his need to get by me as quick as possible so no hard feelings mate)I can only dream of being as fast as these guys,
We have another sweet change over and Martins out I find the guy on the R6 we have a chat then I go and look at the timing screen Bloody hell we are 12 in class and 18th overall with 17 1000 and 30 on the grid I am well chuffed with that, When I start my last stint those positions have not changed I go out and have a lonely stint and this makes it even more tiring my left hand is hurting and I am having trouble pushing on the inside bar into Copse and the hard left at Goose neck but I still manage to equal my fastest lap from the previous stint and I bring it home for another finish

Also a big Thanks to all the freindly Monkeys/Racers who make the Hottrax Paddock a very nice place to be

PS A real Bigh thanks to Ems,Gems,Paul (Gems Brother) for being the Best pit crew

Disappointing Performance at AngleseyMartin's BlogIt took me 5 hours to get to Anglesey on Thursday afternoon due to accidents which was a pain. Trev had got us a space in the cowshed which was just as well because I planned to sleep in my car, and it needed emptying first.

I awoke to the patter of rain, which then stayed put all day. I usually like riding in the wet but I couldn’t gel with it this time and had a really bad morning’s riding. I sat out the first session after lunch and then rode a bit better for the final 2 sessions. I don’t know Anglesey very well and had hoped to get the track sorted on the trackday, which never really happened unfortunately.

Race Day arrived and practice went okay. We went out for qualifying and as I hit the start finish straight, my rear just came round on me and I was out of control. My mind had accepted that I had crashed but somehow the bike recovered and I managed to stay on. The bike felt wrong at the next couple of corners and I decided to come in to see if my tyre had gone flat – because that happened to me in Alcarras and the bike felt the same. As I came towards pit entrance I saw TooTall and Joan's bikes on the deck at the same corner – of course we soon found out about the oil spilled all around the track.

When we went back out for qualifying, I still had the wet Friday and the near bin in my head and I rode like a right pussy – putting in an awful qualifying time.

I started the race and got away okay – my first session was very pedestrian and I came in very disappointed with myself. Trev went out and did his stint and the half hour as always went quickly. Back out and I felt a bit quicker but still not great. It went very dark and a couple of rain spots hit my visor. I thought this will be fun, but the rain stayed away.

Out for the final session and a couple of laps feel a bit more like it – I see that I got to within half a second of my last year’s best – but I had hoped and expected to beat it comfortably. Trev went out and brought the team home, so at least we had finished but we were both very disappointed with our performance. We don’t expect to be challenging at the front, but we set personal challenges and this weekend we didn’t meet them.

So, back to the thinking room and work out what went wrong. I think I am riding a bit too comfortably now and need to get more aggressive and push a bit harder. Hopefully Cadders will be better for us.

On the plus side, it was good to chat with all the usual suspects and have a good craic. Trev's BlogI got to Anglesey on Thursday in glorious sun shine Met up with loads of Monkeys and set up in the cow shed,Friday and its Raining so on go the wets I am pleased it rained as I do like riding in the wet Just hate changing wheels.

Trackday

First session and we get a few riders between me and Martin and after the 3 laps I cant see Martin he's that far infront because the riders inbetween us cant keep up on the sighting laps

I get my head down and pass them feel slow but enjoy the session we pull in and Martin is just pulling up to the cow shed so we must have been prety equal so basicly happy

Session 2 and this time I'm sat on Martins rear tyre in pit lane and we go out together some faster riders come by me and Martin get a gap on me when they get past Martin I close the gap this happens several times in this session and each time I close the gap so am well pleased as most of the year I have not been able to stay with him

Session 3 and we are out together this time I manage to get past Martin and pull a slight gap, I seem to be getting used to the wet conditions quicker than Martin

Basicly in the afternoon I just go out and really enjoy the sessions, We miss the last one of the day and get Tech inspection out of the way and signed on to give us a more relaxed start to the race day.

Race Day

Our mechanic Dangerous Dave is a no show again he's attended 3 rounds out of 10 basicly thats his last chance. Emma and Mum stand in for Dave and do a Bloody fantastic job

Thank you very much Girls you have the Mechanics job for the rest of the season if you want it

Its dry so dry wheels go in We go out in first practice and try to get our heads around a dry Anglesey and seem to be doing OK

Quallifying 1

Martin has the transponder on his bike we plan to do half then we pit to give me a go with it but after a couple of laps I tip into Peel and as I get on the Gas lose the rear I stay on but only with a bit of luck down through the corkscrew ok onto start finnish and bang I lose the rear again with even more luck I stay on but by noiw my head is Fooked so decide I'm coming in as I get to Peel I see a rider slide off then at the Corkscrew see TT and GG are off I pull in and the session is red flaged

Quallifying 2

we only get 10 mins so Martin keeps the transponder as he normally quallifies better than me ( Our first mistake) As I go out and get my head around the oil problem quicker than Martin and manage to gap him

Martin starts us and he gets a good start as loads mess up their start, He does a good solid first stint and the half hour soon passes then its time for me to go out I get up to what I think is a good pace and start gettin my knee down all over the place which is normally a good sign for me as to the pace I'm running Each session I manage to tag onto the faster riders for a bit and really enjoy myself, One session GG gets by me and I tag on to her then at the top of Rocket I'm on the same line as GG and I lose the front But manage to stay on but lose the tow from GG as I hold back on the aggression for a couple of laps

The good bits

We finnish the race in 13th so score points which we have done at all the rounds this year, I get my 10th sig so lose my Novice bib

Bad bits

We finnshed last in class and overall I was something like 4 secs slower tham my PB from last year

and feel I have let Martin and the team down

What I dont get is I am a lot more relaxed than the start of the year and I'm really enjoying my riding but WHY are my lap times so Bloody slow ?

So I need to get out and do a Trackday before my next race and practice-practice -practice

Hopefully get TP to see if she can see where I'm going wrong and point me in the right direction.

Another Point at SnettertonTrev's ReportMe and Gems roll up at around 1.30 Friday dinner time. I had decided to do half the Moto Grande instead of the Friday trackday. Meet up with Brian and Martin in Garage 15/16 have a natter then pop into cafe for a bite to eat, Then grab Gems camera out of the van and head out to the track to get some pics of the guys/gals in action and will post up some pics when I have more time, Friday night we get the bike Tech inspected but then run out of time so have to get kit done in the morning, I do a BBQ for me,Gems,Brian and Martin which was good but real slow The disposable bbq I got from the local COOP was crap

Martin supplied the beer and we toasted my 44 Birthday

We woke at 7am to find martin had got his Kit through Tech inspection already so I got mine done (my new Arlen Ness leathers) which I tried to wear at Mallory but they were just too tight so I have lost a bit of weight

I go out for Moto Grande practices and the bike feels alien and unstable into most of the corners

I go out in 3hour practice and still have no confidence in the tyres or the bike and am feeling very tense

Moto Grande Qualifying and I am not last but still slow

3 hour Qualifying and I get faster but not by enough I am about 9 secs slower than last year so not a happy chappy I decide a new set of tyres and after a chat to Jim at Biketek I go for the new Michelin power 1s

As Martin got the quickest time in so He starts for us and after his bike wont start he gets going and puts in a fantastic first stint for us (Cheers Buddy

)

I go out for my stint on brand new rubber I have a slight slide on the first corner but soon get them scrubbed in and am felling allot happier with the new rubber and my times start to drop

In my second stint things start to fall into place and when I get lapped by TP about 3/4 into the stint I manage to stay with her and get towed to my quickest time of the weekend during this time I get passed by FriedRy and he is using all of the track and some kicking up dust as the back end drops of the rumble strip onto the dirt great to see from so close I feel I am going well now and am much more relaxed and loving it so much I don¡¦t want the stint to end but the pit board comes out and I pull in ( With a smile on my face )

Third and final stint I get in a battle with Roundall racing I am in front of him for most of the stint but he comes past around 3/4 of the way through it and he brakes me and gets about a 20sec gap at the flag He's a great sports man and we shake hands and have a good natter in Parc Ferme

We finished 21st overall and 15th in class If I could have started better the result could have been soo much better but I will have to learn from my mistakes ( First mistake not doing the Friday )

We go for a pint with our Marshall then its off to bed at 10 as I am knackered as I doze off I start to dream about racing around Snett I dive through the esses following a guy into the bomb hole he goes down in front of me engine breaks and I hit his oil and lose the front I instantly try to correct the bars and wake myself up

Sunday Moto Grande

I over sleep and get up at 8.30 and am on tack at 9 so get kitted up tyres warmed and fuel in the tank and get out on time ( Just ) and find I am still up to speed and get a fairly good time for this time of day and have 3 guys behind me on the timing screen

Go and get Breakfast find out we are on track at 10.40 so get back to the van and get kitted up and straight back out there after 1 warm up lap I put myself in the middle of the back row and off we go My clutch grabs and the front wheel comes up I manage to hold the beast and get her under control and head for the outside of the track I get past 3 on the run to the first corner then another 2 or three as they seem to line up to stay on the racing line sod that I just nail it around the outside into Sear's and I am right up behind the pack, Down the famous Revett straight and what a buzz with so many bikes in close company and my thou is a rocket ship so I am still there with them

Then its through the Esses,Bomb Hole and Corum most of the pack is way faster than I so pull a gap on me I see a guy on a R6 who I normally race against in the junior tag we can have some good ding dong battles he gets by a ZX10 and it takes me about 3 laps to get by him and my mate on the R6 is gone so all I can do is get my head down and race the track a couple or all of the faster guys I got on the start and first corner get by me and disappear, Robin Hooker laps me a few times on one occasion he gets by at Sear's but I stay with him all the way down Revett straight I am so exited I miss my braking point and shit myself but I get it through the esses at this point Robin just disappears into the distance I finish the race and manage 13th in class and 21st overall with 3 finishers behind me, I also finished so get another sig on my licence that¡¦s 9 so far so 1 more and I lose my crappy novice bib

So all in all a good weekend what makes this so addictive is the friends we have in the paddock you guys and gals make the whole weekend for me and Gems with out being to soppy you all are the best

Also a BIG thanks to Martin for putting up with me even when I ride like I have never seen a bike let alone a track
Martin's ReportWell first off, I was pleased just to have got to Snetterton with a working bike. I had put my bike in for a gearbox repair (and engine refresh) after it went pop at Mallory. I checked progress on Tuesday (4 days before race day) and the parts hadn¡¦t arrived yet. So, it was time to start panicking. I nearly bought a replacement bike and also talked to Ladysnoots about hiring one.

On Wednesday I got a call saying the parts were in. I picked the bike up at 6pm on Thursday and it was half run-in as they had run out of time.

I set off early Friday morning and arrived in good time. Brian joined our garage so he had a home for the MotoGrande the following day and Trev wasn¡¦t doing the track day. I spent the morning running the bike in and it seemed fine. In the afternoon I started winding it up a bit more and Gems timed me in the 1.22¡¦s which I was reasonable pleased with.

I had a good short tussle with Brian, with a bit of toing and froing until my extra power took over ¡V he has a great style on that hairnet of his.

The day passed without incident for me although Brian had an off and damaged his thumb, preventing him doing his first ever race which was a shame.

We had planned to put my new plastics on which Trev had sprayed for me but decided that was tempting fate and left that for later ƒº

We shared a few beers and a barby and I retired to sleep in my car, having decided I should tough it out rather than b&b which I normally do. It was bloody cold and I slept in my jeans, fleece and beanie ¡V but slept reasonably well.

Up bright and early to finish scrutineering and then get out for practice and qualifying. I managed a 1.23.041 which was our best time and meant that I was starting, unfortunately at the back of the grid. My start was poor as the bike wouldn¡¦t fire ¡V it¡¦s done that before so I need to check if the ignition times itself out which is what seems to happen. So I¡¦m 10 seconds behind everyone and set off chasing. After 3-4 laps I catch the back markers and pass 4 or five people in that session.

We have a good handover although we had no assistance as our mechanic couldn¡¦t make it ¡V and Trev sets off. He¡¦s taken a while to get going but gets in a steady pace and his times start to come down. We are battling with the usual suspects and we look at the bottom of the timing screens rather than the other end!

The half hour flies by and I am back out again. I¡¦m feeling fairly good and enjoying it. Someone sits me up going into Sears so I chase and pass them on the Revett straight and don¡¦t see them for the rest of the session.

I come in and see my best time was 1.22.66. I did a 1.22.3 last year and had hoped to beat that time, so just one session to do so.

I watch Trev via the timing screen and see him times are dropping. He does a best of 1.23 something and is circulating well. The pitboard goes out and Trev does one extra lap. As I go out, the bloody pace car comes out and I am held at pitlane which costs us at least a lap and therefore a place or so. I get out and again feel fairly good. I know where I am slow but not how to get faster.

This session goes quickly and I come in to see I¡¦ve done a 1.22.046 so at least I have beaten last year¡¦s best even if only by a fraction.

I watch Trev on the screen again and he is battling with Roundall Racing. It is pretty close for a while and then Roundall pull away and beat us by 20 seconds. We finish without incident and come 15th in class and 21 of 26 overall. Another point and no incidents so all in all a good day.

I¡¦m really pleased for Dave and Karen that the series seems to be going very well and as usual, great to see everyone and have a good craic ¡V it really is a friendly grid, and some great racing ¡V and what weather ¡V brilliant.

Next stop Anglesey