Team Metalform Racing - AMCC Rnd 2

[nicko]

Team Metalform Racing 16 November 2003 – AMCC Round 2

Before we go into our report it’s worth mentioning the Ruapuna Formula Thunder meeting the team raced at featured on Sky Sport recently. As well as some great coverage of the bike racing both Nick and Mike got mentions in the commentary, good to see our sport getting the coverage it deserves and even better that we featured! Back in the North Island…..you wouldn’t believe it – a fine race meeting at Pukekohe! Team Metalform Racing competed at the 2^nd round of the Auckland Club Champs and along with all the other riders we were pleasantly surprised to find a dry track. The track had been in use the weekend before for the New Zealand round of the V8 Supercars, luckily there had been rain during the week to wash off the track but there were still some slippery spots over the hill and rubber marbles at every corner if you ventured off the racing line.

Nick Odermatt

The nationals starts in just a few weeks so this meeting was a great opportunity to get some track time and try to get my lap times down. Everyone else thought so as well and we saw some big fields out on the day. My previous best at Pukekohe on my 98 machine was a 1.05 and this would be the first dry meeting I’d had on the K1 bike. I ended up with a best time of a 1.03, good for the day but I need to drop off another couple of seconds to get right into national pace – where I’m going to find those two seconds I’m not sure but fresh rubber and some more practice should help.

Qualifying went well for me, I qualified 7^th in Formula 1 and 2^nd in Formula 2. The races were only 5 laps so it was quite important to get good starts. Formula 1 was tough with the big bikes taking advantage of the dry and their extra horsepower. I ended up with a 9^th, 9^th and 7^th and had some good dices with Peter Vile on the big Thunderace.

Formula 2 saw all sorts of 600’s come out of the woodwork.  Johan Bruns was up from Wellington and Jarod Love up from Hamilton getting ready for the nationals. These guys got ahead of me at the start and kept ahead in the first race, I started 3^rd and stayed there for the whole race. The second race Jarod started from the back of the grid to practice his passing, I lead the first lap but Johan got past me and stayed in front. Jarod didn’t quite catch up by the end of the race so I finished up in 2^nd place – good to have on the record that I bet Jarod Love, even if he was playing silly buggers! The third F2 race was great, Jarod sat this one out and Johan got away from me on the start line, I spent the whole race holding off Martin Dunn on his CBR and I managed to stay ahead till the finish line to place 2nd. My Metzelers were giving their best but the rear was wearing near the end of the last race, testimony to the Rennsports lifespan considering these tyres have done over 60 laps of Ruapuna and 50 laps of Puke (over 330kms at race pace).

The meeting should have me placed well on points so far but the next club report will have to wait until 2004 when we’ve got the next round in April. I’d like to take this chance to thank new support from Carters Building Supplies who are assisting me with getting to the Nationals this summer - Check out www.carters.co.nz.

Mike Smith

This report will be short like my race day.

After practice / qualifying I really needed to change my gearing but could not get the front sprocket undone, even using an air rattle gun it would not budge. I had managed 2nd on the grid but I just could not ride the section of track after the hairpin properly with the gearing I had, also I was hitting the limiter down the back straight for far too long. Anyway nothing could be done so I started with what I had. Slotting in to 4th after a not so good start I soon got into 3rd and started chasing down Lance on the Suzuki 1000. I managed to pass on the next lap and stay in front until the last time over the hill when Lance came by putting me back into 3rd for that race. As I ran into the pits I could hear a knocking noise which I thought was a big end problem so that was it for me. As it turned out I had just blown the clutch (must of done that perfecting my not so good starts) so not as bad as I had thought. Tim at Haldane Motorcycles will soon have the machine back together ready for the nationals so we will see how we go there very soon.

 

Big thanks as always to our sponsor without their help I would not be writing me little report. Good luck to all you racers out there (as long as you are behind me) Mike Smith.

Team Metalform Racing would like to thank the following for their support.

Metalforming Technologies, Il Woo Industries, Pacific Direct Lines, Carters, Corporate Design, Haldane Motorcycles, Pacific Freight Management, Waikato Sandblasting Services, Armour Linings, Fredco Motors, Metzeler Tyres, FFM Helmets, GP Star Leathers, Nazran Gloves, Maxima Oils, Izumi Race Chains, Forma Boots

[LB]

Hi Guys - this is Lynda from Wgtn!! I'm new at this site, pleased to read your report - I couldn't make it to Pukekohe. Congrats Nick, you're going well. Sorry to hear about your clutch Mike.

Will be up for the Nationals, see you at Puke then.

Lynda

[wari]

Thats good shit nicko and mike-o ... made a good read.

btw ... where waikato sandblasters?

[nicko]

Hi Wari,

Waikato Sandblasting is based in Te Rapa Hamilton, they do sand-blasting and also Armour Linings which is the stuff you put on the decks of utes. Greg Powell & his team painted up my 98 fairings & has sprayed the 2001 and Mikes R1.  He's a good guy and right into his motorsport - he races Thundercats himself.

Check out www.waikato-sandblasting.co.nz

 

By the way, anyone going to the nationals at Pukekohe keep your ears on the Rock radio station as they are organising a ride to the track from Orewa which incorporates free entry to the TT. Not sure of the details but hopefully someone can enlighten us.

Cheers, Nicko

[gpercivl]

No Hair Racing Race Report
Auckland MC Club #2, November 16th 2003
(aka 'Warm Up for Round 1 Nationals')

It didn't seem like 5 weeks since the 1st round of the Auckland Club series, but here we (Bob & I) were again at Pukekohe..this time in perfect weather conditions, sun shining and light winds. The track had a little rubber outside the racing lines from the cars the day before but otherwise all was good. We had a good turn out of No Hair supporters too with Alex, Chris, Stella, Nevina, Haydn, Jane, Shane & Vernessa ridiculing us.

I'd just got back from 2 weeks travel for work on Saturday afternoon and had to rebuild the front end of the bike after Dave Cole had fine tuned the fork damping rates so things were a bit hectic but the bike passed scrutineering without issue.

Formula 3 practice/qualifying I thought went reasonably well for me, last time here on the 400 my best lap was 1min 15.2 secs and was 6th on the grid. This time I managed 1:14.4 so had improved almost a full second but was only 10th...everyone else had improved more including Bob (1:13's) 9th on the grid. There were also a few of the National class riders warming up for Round 1 of the National Champs at Pukekohe on Dec 7th, so I knew I'd have to work hard to stay in the top 10 this time.

Race 1, and luckily for me Ross King failed to start and his grid position was vacant in front of me. I had an excellent start off the second row and was 4th into the first corner just behind Mark Wigley (#71) who had beaten me in every race last round. His bike wasn't running well and I went round the outside of him to gain 3rd place into corners 2 & 3. I held 3rd for almost 2 laps when one of the RS-125 GP bikes went past, then another one came past and I was in 5th. Lap 4 and one of the 125's started to slow, so I was back into 4th and it was the last lap. Going down the back straight I was passed by Lindsay Ross then as we neared the hairpin I saw riders hands going up and the race was ended while the ambulance made a pick up. Positions were taken as of the 4th lap...so Lindsay finished 6th instead of the 4th place I was credited with.

Races 2 and 3 weren't so good for me, the wind came up which slowed my top speed on the back straight and I failed to get the great start that I had in Race 1...it took a little while for me to get through the traffic in both races and by the time I did get through the front pack was too far away for me to catch them before the end of the 5 lap races. I managed 8th and 7th to finish 6th for Round 2 and 5th in the series. The other positive note was that in the first race I got down to 1:12.70 lap time.

Bob's improvement was awesome as he lapped at the same time as I with a best of 1:12.77, I'll have to ask him for track tips now! Bob finished in 9th, 13th, & 14th finishing 12th for Round 2 and 9th in the series (he's got to work on his passing skills now!).

This time I focussed on getting into and out of turns 2 & 3 and late braking into turn 4 (the hairpin), but I'm losing time on turn 6 (over the hill) and turn 1 by just not holding enough speed through those high speed corners...I think I might be able to pick up another 1 to 1.5 seconds which would get me into the low 1:11's on a good day...but it's not fast enough to be a top 10 National's contender...the bike's down in top end power compared to Bob's and a whole lot down compared to the class leaders...they'll be doing 1:05's to 1:08's during the National's if it's dry. So, I'll need to see what I can do in the engine department before Dec 7th.

Thanks for taking an interest in No Hair Racing, Chris is taking a break over this summer, Bob & I are hoping to do all 4 rounds of the National Champs in December & January, and Alex is competing in the Bel Ray Cross Country series on his new YZ-125. Thanks to our sponsors too! Haldane Motorcycles - the tyre specialists, WEBDES.CO.NZ ez-Site DIY web site, and SSSLodge - for REAL Horse Power.

Cheers, Greg

No Hair Racing http://www.nohair.co.nz