Originally Posted by
Matt Bleck
After the last round being canceled due to flooding on the track we where very keen to go racing. Saturday morning rolls around and it's wet from the early morning rain but the sky is blue in places with a brisk wind. Could it be the last round was to be a dry one with no need for the brand new Metzler wets? Fat chance!!
We arrived at Manfeild Motor Park unloaded the bikes and set about changing over to slicks! This would be the first of many tyre changes through out the day!
Tyres changed, signed in and ready to go, I thought I'd go out in F2 Qualifying to get some time on the GSXR as it had been a couple of months since I'd ridden it. Came in and it starts raining rather heavily! Panic sets in and we start changing both bikes over to wets. With help from a few from the neighboring pit shed I made it out for Qualifying in F1 with about 5 mins left. We managed to qualify 7th.
As F1 and F3 are back to back again this round it was straight back out on the SV. Things got very interesting on my first timed lap when the bike started coughing and splattering and then completely dying on the back straight. I was able to get her going again and crawl back to the pits. After some humming and harring we decided that there must of been water in the fuel tank. So as I didn't get a timed lap in I qualified 29th! All i could think was bye bye 3rd place in the series!
Peter and I pull the tank off drain it and find alot of water. We added about 300mls of meths and then filled her back up with gas. We start her up and she runs fine, sweet, sorted.
By now I'm one race away from my first F1 race and the track begins to dry! As we only have spare back rims for the bikes I had no chance of changing the front over so I swapped the rear for the dunlop slick and left the metzler wet front and crossed my fingers. We get a good start but I slowly lose touch with the first 5 and just try to settle into a good pace. The bike was very unstable and give a gentle head shake once she hit 200. After a few very scary moments I decided to peg it back and not crash on the straights! Marcus came by not long after on his new bike and I started hoping the race would finish soon. I lost another place to John Baker but crossed the line in 7th.
I come in from F1 and head back out for the first F3 of the day. Unfortunately we where unable to get the front changed over to a slick so it was wet front and slick rear for this race too!
The lights go out and I get a good start, I head up the inside and go for as many places as I could before turn one. By turn 3 I can see Leigh Tidman ahead. Leigh was leading F3 at the start of this round and I new that if I could beat him it would go along towards my chances for 3rd in the championship. We catch a back marker just after Splash and I stuff it up the inside of both of them going into the hair-pin! Last lap and I catch a back marker about 200m's from Dunlop and low and behold bloody Leigh shows his front wheel up the inside! We squeeze past the back marker exiting the final turn and I just pip him at the line, YES!! 29th to 4th (2nd in F3) in 20 mins!
The track is fully dry now and I take the punt to change the GSXR front back to slick to match the rear. Although it drizzled a few times before the last F1 race of the series the track was dry for the start.
So on the grid and the lights go out, I get a good start and stay in 6th for the race. Ashley Payne was head of me and at times I thought I might of been catching him but the gap never really changed. I finished 6th in this race which put me into 4th for the series on my 03 GSXR 1000!
On to the final F3 race and we have slicks on front and rear, I get another good start and go as hard as I could. Managed to catch Dean Bentley and we had awesome battle for the last 3 laps all the way to line. What a great way to finish the series and I cross the line 4th again (2nd for F3). Unfortunately for Leigh Tidman and Nick Longstaff they didn't finish the race which was great for my final series placing, which I'm very happy to say was 3rd!!!!
I'm wrapped with the results of my first championship despite missing round 1 and a DNF in each class!
Now for the thank you's.
To the Victoria Motorcycle Club, a huge thank you for the the time and effort you all put into running the series, you're all tu meke bro!
And the man who made his all possible for me, Peter Harkess, thank you so very, very much, I would not being doing this with out your huge amount of support.
Another person in the same category is Steve Saunders, he is the driving force that keeps the GSXR rubber side down.
Forbes and Davies for the Dunlop tyres.
Moto TT trackdays, these guys are the ones who have given me the need for speed and consequently the addiction known as motorcycle racing!
To Qmoto, thanks to your top quality rider protection I came out unscathed after each of my all to many offs!
Expand a Sign NZ for making the bikes look so good, Chris Mitchell and Promoto for keeping the bike running smooth and Kerry Dukic.
And last but certainly not the least all the people I raced against, befriended and came up supported me along the way, Thank you for a great time, Cheers!
Matt Bleck's final 2010 Actrix Round
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