Nicksta
25th June 2008, 22:05
Nicksta’s VMCC 08 Round 2
After a not so good start to the season in F3 and warming up in Postys Post Classic JNR I was very much looking forward to getting back on the Mine Field. Goal for this round was simple; finish all my races in F3 (yes Dave, I’ll get some points) and improve my standing in Postys. Time to bring some consistency to the series.
Test day Friday and I’m still under the weather after being knocked for 6 on Monday and Tuesday. I help Frenchy and the Bikestore/KTL crew in the pits itching all day to get out on the track. I give in and use the excuse of scrubbing tyres, I head out for one session in the afternoon, scrub my tyres, learned how far I can slide and still make it round the corner and come in to put some new stickers on Tweety. Ready to race now and amped for Saturday, now all I need is to find my lost energy!
Race Day and I’m happy to see the format reversed, Postys first so I can give as much energy as I can muster and then decide if I can race F3 as a secondary as I was still jaded. An apology for the brief report as the day was a bit of a blur for me, but here’s what I can remember!
Post Classic Jnr Practice/Qualifying:
Rolling out on the ShowerbuddyCBR for my 2nd only race meet I’m looking forward to seeing what I can do on a more familiar track. Calm and relaxed I circulated focusing on my entry into T3, managing to not find my good line through the hairpin and trying to play chicken with my braking on Dunlop. Staying out the whole time I think my last 2 laps were fast and smooth. I qualify with a 1:24.5 only half a second off my PB from nationals and 18th on the grid. Not bad, but I’m tired and rush to replace fluids and rest before F3 qualifying with only the supersport class between my classes.
F3 Practice/Qualifying:
Always a quick reminder that this class is serious, the big boys on the SV’s roll out around us 400’s. Hanging to the back, I struggle behind Chris for a few laps loosing all my corner speed through Dunlop thanks to his interesting lines, knowing I haven’t put in a hot lap I want to pull in but stay out for 2 more. Sam Love passes me and plays for a lap, we get some clear track and I speed up, last lap and he blasts me on the back straight only to sit up before the braking mark, I’m going for a hot lap so keep it nailed, I guess he wanted to play and nailed it past me entering Dunlop and leaves me for dead past the line, dam that’s a fast SV! Turns out our play in the last 2 laps qualifies me with a 1:24.8 three hundredths of a second slower than the CBR and I’m 23rd on the grid. I was expecting worse so I’m quietly happy.
Post Classic JNR Race 1, 6 laps:
Stoked they were running sprint races at 6 laps each I’m happy lining up on the grid close to Chris and lots of bikes in front. I decided not to hold back on the start as last round I did and got blitzed into T1. I lean low over the tank with one foot on the peg (Paul’s instructions to help hold on in case it wheelies) Lights go out and I nail the throttle hard riding the clutch, I take off but the front end rears up, lands and comes up again, I see bikes all around and I’m freaking out, whoa boy I hear myself saying as it comes up for a third time. It settles down again and I leave my braking late but I get caught up on the inside of T1. The rest is a bit of a blur, dicing with a kawaski from memory, young Wagener and Steve. I think better of making moves and I miss the white flag, they both get me under braking into Dunlop and I chase them down the start straight only to see the Checkered out, bummer! Result: 11th place, not bad. Most surprising of all I check my times Sunday night to see a 1:22.6 in the 5th lap, a new PB!! Stoked to drop my time by 1.4 seconds :)
F3 Race 1, 6 laps:
Tweety and I agreed to take it easy. Goal was to just circulate and get some points :) Lights go out and it’s not a good start, caught up with lots of bikes in T1 I take it easy. Not long into it Clive takes a slide in the hairpin and I watch his bike cartwheel in front of me, damn. Not long after and Stevie goes for a huge slide and tumble in T1, shit that looked like it hurt, I look back through splash to see him up and I calm down, round the hairpin I see him up, next thing I see is a red flag. Word is a total restart, there is oil after Higgins so they send the motards out on the club circuit while it gets cleaned up.
F3 restart and I get another so-so start. Down to a 4-lap race it’s a sprint. Not wanting to dice too much, I get in front of young Wagener and Chris and make it stick, there’s a black bike in front but I just cant quite catch it. Turns out it was Mat Rennie, man he has a fast VFR! Result: 10th place and a new PB on Tweety of 1:23.8 I’m happy and getting pretty tired!
Post Classic JNR Race 2, 10 laps:
With time running short the 2 sprint races are shortened to one 10-lap race. I’m tired and plan to take it easy and conserve energy. Lights go out, front goes up twice and settles, I’m getting used to this wheelie thing J better entry into T1 I dice with the 400’s, not wanting to risk too much I settle behind Chris and young Wagener watching them fight it out, they get a little gap on me and I settle into riding as smooth as possible and conserve energy. I totally mucked up my down shift and hit 2 false neutrals in T1 and Higgins, for the rest of the race I heard Paul’s voice saying “Positive changes”, I kept saying it to myself and it worked, no more stuff ups changing down. 10 laps seemed forever so I was quietly happy to be lapped and know I had one less lap to do. Crossed the line in 10th place, fastest lap was a 1:24.0 but my best surprise was my consistency, I was very pleased to see from lap 2 I did 1:25’s (5 laps) and the last 3 laps were all 1:24’s the last being my fastest and here I was thinking I had slowed up!
F3 Race 2, 12 laps:
Talking with Tony in the pits he commented that 12 laps was long and he didn’t know how we did 2 classes, to be honest I thought to myself after that, I don’t know how I’m going to do 12 laps after just finishing 10, but shrugged it off and made the decision to race Tweety. Lining up my goal was to just finish and keep out of the mess. Lights go out and I’m cautious into T1, I try to keep up with Chris but am pretty tired and my leg is arguing about shifting down under braking. I get lazy and stop shifting into 6th, my Nicki logic arguing its just one more gear to shift at the end of the straight. The field spreads out and I find myself dropping back from Chris, goal now to be smooth, consistent and finish. A mix of yellow and blue flags are out and I hear SV’s, they pass me like I’m standing still, I try to remain focused on my lines and not watch them. Checkered flag and I’m stoked. Roll in to see 7 of 11 laps were all 1:26’s, not a fast time but very consistent. 12th place and I’m very happy the long day of racing has finished, I race into the pits, put Tweety on her stand and run out to the dummy grid to wish Frenchy luck and warn him about the sunstrike at Dunlop.
Overall I finished Postys in 9th place and F3 in 10th. Totally stoked to crack the top 10 in both classes and get a new PB on the CBR of 1:22.6. I’m now 11th for the series in Postys and 14th for F3. A good place to start making some progress.
I do want to say a big thank you to all of you who kept encouraging me throughout the day, keeping me positive and energized. The Vic Club members and workers running the show did an awesome job, you guys rock, thank you for making it possible for us nutters to race!!
Big thank you to Paul, Dianne and Team Showerbuddy – the CBR was mint to ride as always. Dave and Donna at Kiwibike Insurance - great to see you guys there :) thank you for the ongoing support and encouragement. Big ups to Dunlop Tyres, Bikestore.co.nz and Future Grafix :)
Last but definitely not least least, my biggest thanks and appreciation to my man Frenchy for supporting me in my racing, Making Tweety look pretty again after her lie down at Taupo (no more I promise) and just being you and sharing my passion with me; you did awesome in F1!!, thanks hun.
Round 3 is going to be a new ball game with many stepping up their game…. :) cant wait!!
After a not so good start to the season in F3 and warming up in Postys Post Classic JNR I was very much looking forward to getting back on the Mine Field. Goal for this round was simple; finish all my races in F3 (yes Dave, I’ll get some points) and improve my standing in Postys. Time to bring some consistency to the series.
Test day Friday and I’m still under the weather after being knocked for 6 on Monday and Tuesday. I help Frenchy and the Bikestore/KTL crew in the pits itching all day to get out on the track. I give in and use the excuse of scrubbing tyres, I head out for one session in the afternoon, scrub my tyres, learned how far I can slide and still make it round the corner and come in to put some new stickers on Tweety. Ready to race now and amped for Saturday, now all I need is to find my lost energy!
Race Day and I’m happy to see the format reversed, Postys first so I can give as much energy as I can muster and then decide if I can race F3 as a secondary as I was still jaded. An apology for the brief report as the day was a bit of a blur for me, but here’s what I can remember!
Post Classic Jnr Practice/Qualifying:
Rolling out on the ShowerbuddyCBR for my 2nd only race meet I’m looking forward to seeing what I can do on a more familiar track. Calm and relaxed I circulated focusing on my entry into T3, managing to not find my good line through the hairpin and trying to play chicken with my braking on Dunlop. Staying out the whole time I think my last 2 laps were fast and smooth. I qualify with a 1:24.5 only half a second off my PB from nationals and 18th on the grid. Not bad, but I’m tired and rush to replace fluids and rest before F3 qualifying with only the supersport class between my classes.
F3 Practice/Qualifying:
Always a quick reminder that this class is serious, the big boys on the SV’s roll out around us 400’s. Hanging to the back, I struggle behind Chris for a few laps loosing all my corner speed through Dunlop thanks to his interesting lines, knowing I haven’t put in a hot lap I want to pull in but stay out for 2 more. Sam Love passes me and plays for a lap, we get some clear track and I speed up, last lap and he blasts me on the back straight only to sit up before the braking mark, I’m going for a hot lap so keep it nailed, I guess he wanted to play and nailed it past me entering Dunlop and leaves me for dead past the line, dam that’s a fast SV! Turns out our play in the last 2 laps qualifies me with a 1:24.8 three hundredths of a second slower than the CBR and I’m 23rd on the grid. I was expecting worse so I’m quietly happy.
Post Classic JNR Race 1, 6 laps:
Stoked they were running sprint races at 6 laps each I’m happy lining up on the grid close to Chris and lots of bikes in front. I decided not to hold back on the start as last round I did and got blitzed into T1. I lean low over the tank with one foot on the peg (Paul’s instructions to help hold on in case it wheelies) Lights go out and I nail the throttle hard riding the clutch, I take off but the front end rears up, lands and comes up again, I see bikes all around and I’m freaking out, whoa boy I hear myself saying as it comes up for a third time. It settles down again and I leave my braking late but I get caught up on the inside of T1. The rest is a bit of a blur, dicing with a kawaski from memory, young Wagener and Steve. I think better of making moves and I miss the white flag, they both get me under braking into Dunlop and I chase them down the start straight only to see the Checkered out, bummer! Result: 11th place, not bad. Most surprising of all I check my times Sunday night to see a 1:22.6 in the 5th lap, a new PB!! Stoked to drop my time by 1.4 seconds :)
F3 Race 1, 6 laps:
Tweety and I agreed to take it easy. Goal was to just circulate and get some points :) Lights go out and it’s not a good start, caught up with lots of bikes in T1 I take it easy. Not long into it Clive takes a slide in the hairpin and I watch his bike cartwheel in front of me, damn. Not long after and Stevie goes for a huge slide and tumble in T1, shit that looked like it hurt, I look back through splash to see him up and I calm down, round the hairpin I see him up, next thing I see is a red flag. Word is a total restart, there is oil after Higgins so they send the motards out on the club circuit while it gets cleaned up.
F3 restart and I get another so-so start. Down to a 4-lap race it’s a sprint. Not wanting to dice too much, I get in front of young Wagener and Chris and make it stick, there’s a black bike in front but I just cant quite catch it. Turns out it was Mat Rennie, man he has a fast VFR! Result: 10th place and a new PB on Tweety of 1:23.8 I’m happy and getting pretty tired!
Post Classic JNR Race 2, 10 laps:
With time running short the 2 sprint races are shortened to one 10-lap race. I’m tired and plan to take it easy and conserve energy. Lights go out, front goes up twice and settles, I’m getting used to this wheelie thing J better entry into T1 I dice with the 400’s, not wanting to risk too much I settle behind Chris and young Wagener watching them fight it out, they get a little gap on me and I settle into riding as smooth as possible and conserve energy. I totally mucked up my down shift and hit 2 false neutrals in T1 and Higgins, for the rest of the race I heard Paul’s voice saying “Positive changes”, I kept saying it to myself and it worked, no more stuff ups changing down. 10 laps seemed forever so I was quietly happy to be lapped and know I had one less lap to do. Crossed the line in 10th place, fastest lap was a 1:24.0 but my best surprise was my consistency, I was very pleased to see from lap 2 I did 1:25’s (5 laps) and the last 3 laps were all 1:24’s the last being my fastest and here I was thinking I had slowed up!
F3 Race 2, 12 laps:
Talking with Tony in the pits he commented that 12 laps was long and he didn’t know how we did 2 classes, to be honest I thought to myself after that, I don’t know how I’m going to do 12 laps after just finishing 10, but shrugged it off and made the decision to race Tweety. Lining up my goal was to just finish and keep out of the mess. Lights go out and I’m cautious into T1, I try to keep up with Chris but am pretty tired and my leg is arguing about shifting down under braking. I get lazy and stop shifting into 6th, my Nicki logic arguing its just one more gear to shift at the end of the straight. The field spreads out and I find myself dropping back from Chris, goal now to be smooth, consistent and finish. A mix of yellow and blue flags are out and I hear SV’s, they pass me like I’m standing still, I try to remain focused on my lines and not watch them. Checkered flag and I’m stoked. Roll in to see 7 of 11 laps were all 1:26’s, not a fast time but very consistent. 12th place and I’m very happy the long day of racing has finished, I race into the pits, put Tweety on her stand and run out to the dummy grid to wish Frenchy luck and warn him about the sunstrike at Dunlop.
Overall I finished Postys in 9th place and F3 in 10th. Totally stoked to crack the top 10 in both classes and get a new PB on the CBR of 1:22.6. I’m now 11th for the series in Postys and 14th for F3. A good place to start making some progress.
I do want to say a big thank you to all of you who kept encouraging me throughout the day, keeping me positive and energized. The Vic Club members and workers running the show did an awesome job, you guys rock, thank you for making it possible for us nutters to race!!
Big thank you to Paul, Dianne and Team Showerbuddy – the CBR was mint to ride as always. Dave and Donna at Kiwibike Insurance - great to see you guys there :) thank you for the ongoing support and encouragement. Big ups to Dunlop Tyres, Bikestore.co.nz and Future Grafix :)
Last but definitely not least least, my biggest thanks and appreciation to my man Frenchy for supporting me in my racing, Making Tweety look pretty again after her lie down at Taupo (no more I promise) and just being you and sharing my passion with me; you did awesome in F1!!, thanks hun.
Round 3 is going to be a new ball game with many stepping up their game…. :) cant wait!!