Scout Fletcher report- Barry Sheene Festival of Speed Australia.
Kia Ora everyone!
Just recently I had the opportunity to race at the 2014 Barry Sheene Festival of Speed at Eastern Creek Raceway (Sydney Motorsport Park) , Australia. My weapons of choice were a gorgeous wee Honda RS125gp bike and a Bimota frame TZ400 (750 top end , 350 bottom)
I thought I�d share a wee sum up of the experience for those of you who are keen for a catch up on how it went.
The Barry Sheene fest was run at Sydney Motorsport Park on the Full Length GP track on 21/22/23 March with Friday for practice, qualifying and race 1, and Saturday and Sunday race 2,3,4,5. So plenty of track time!
Being on two bikes made for a very busy weekend (I was meant to be on three originally). First impressions of the track were just� wow! . I was in absolute awe of the fast flowing, smooth track with a tonne of run off! With 11 corners and some nice camber and slopes, I definitely had my work cut out for me with the one practice session to learn it!
We were pitted in Garage 4 with true royalty! (and TZ heaven *drools* ) Sharing pits with two seriously fast and absolutely wonderful women� the legendary Maria Costello (IOMTT competitor and podium placer) and very quick and super talented Leanne Nelson. We also had the legendary multiple world champion Phil Read� and what a top bloke, he was a real laugh. Also in the garage there were 4 other great racers who were awesome company and ever so helpful.
The first bike I was lucky enough to ride was a beautifully prepared stock 1989 Honda RS125gp bike, kindly lent by Ken of the PCRA�. And what a gorgeous machine. Now when I say gorgeous, I�m not talking the fancy paint job (which mind you was absolutely mint!). I am talking the perfectly tuned engine, clunk (and false neutral!) free gear box and just the general perfect preparation of the bike.
The second ride was a 1990s Bimota framed TZ400�.. TZ750 top end with a 350 bottom end (I think it is) kindly lent by Marcus De Caux. Also a wicked bike! Had the great two stroke braaaaaap power, but still with a bit of low end torque to get you out of trouble in a hurry.
The third bike I was meant to be riding was a 1970s Yamaha TD3, but unfortunately the bike was not ready in time� I must admit I did already have my hands full though!
The 125 GP bike�
The class which the 125 ran in was a very big field of about 40 bikes. It was a real mixed bag, full of very modern TZ250s, 350s and plenty of 4 stroke 400s and so on. There were about 10 125s within that class, which is a fairly reasonable field for those bikes. Having recently ridden in a 125 season, I was fairly confident jumping onto the bike as it gave some sense of familiarity! The practice and qualifying sessions went better than expected. It didn�t take long to memorize the circuit and set up all the important braking markers and gearing� especially with the help of the more than experienced fellow pit friends! I qualified well, in 6th position overall and 3rd 125.
Over the five races, I finished with 3x 6th places, a 5th and a 4th overall� and 2nd than 4x 3rd places in the 125 class. Personally, my best achievement was the consistently decreasing laptimes. I managed to get down to a 1.46 flat by race 5 on Sunday, not far off the leaders high 1.45 times. Absolutely thrilled. It was really great having such a variety of bikes to race with in the class, as it really encouraged me to focus and utilise all the benefits the 125 had to offer. I found the track well suited to the wee GP bike as all the corners flowed so nicely from one another, which made it quite easy to pick up.
Onto the Bimota TZ400�..
I am a bit gutted that the TZ was out of order for so much of the weekend, as the time I did have on it was some of the most fun I have had on a bike! The TZ was also in a very large field of 40 or so bikes. The field was full of variety, with tz250s, 500s and everything in between.
I managed to have a few laps practice on the TZ on the Friday before it began to play up again.
One of my most memorable �clap outs� was in pit lane before going out to race 2. The bike and I were happily sitting on the grid when suddenly the Taco cut out. Not too worried, I put the bike into gear and slowly began to take off�. Much to my dismay the bike began to go BACKWARDS! I couldn�t believe it! So I came to a stop and tried again�. Once again backwards! Surely not�.
When I wheeled the bike back to the pits, I was so confused by what had just happened I simply said to Marcus �aaah the bike wouldn�t�go forwards�. His reply; �Was it going backwards?�
��Sigh of relief, I�m not going crazy!
So I learnt something new about the quirky temperaments of two stroke GP bikes!
Finally on Sunday morning we got the bike going again for race 4. Unfortunately because I had no qualified or raced, I was gridded on position 45. After a fairly quick launch of a start the TZ carved its way through the field. The bike handled like it was on rails! Light like a 125, but with a few more horses to carry it along ... it was fab! By the end of the race, we made it up to 6th place overall and second (with fastest lap) in my class. A pleasing result!
Once again unfortunately we had an issue for the last race with the bike overheating on the grid and we had to call it a day.
One of the most out standing things about the meeting is the hospitality of the PCRA and all the fellow competitors. As we do for the Aussies when they come over for the Barry Sheene in Hampton, we were taken care of extremely well and shown a bloody great time! (even got bought a few drinks at the end!!) The atmosphere around the meeting was so laid back and friendly, which made for a really stress free meeting.
To anyone who has ever thought about going over to the Barry Sheene Fest in Aus, I HIGHLY recommend it. It truly is one of the best racing experiences I have had, both on and off track! I have made many lifelong friends and met some of my heroes and true legends of the sport.
This awesome experience could not have been possible without the help of so many amazing people. I'd like to say a huge thank you to; Marcus De Caux, Ken, Sue, Jan and Peter from the PCRA, PCRA, Lachie McDonald (for getting me in contact with Marcus), Maka LeLei Brick Block and Stone, Dad, Walsh Construction, M/Canty, Racesupplies NZ, Lynda and Norm Maddock, Ned and Belinda Kelly , Peter Jones , Jayne Smith and Lincoln Uni Recreation Centre , John Clegg, The crew from Smash Palace, CAMS club, M/Canty, and everyone from the NZ & Australian racing community for making this trip possible and so memorable.
This is me for now, not sure what is on the cards next... but whatever it is, itll be on two wheels!
Cheers for reading!
www.facebook.com/scoutfletcherracing for updates and some pictures 
<<Going to church doesn't make you anymore christian than standing in garage makes you a car>>
Reply With Quote
Originally Posted by scracha
Bookmarks