Race report #91 vmccrd1 2006
Started on wets, ended on wets, but never got to race on wets!
Put wets on the bike the night before, we were so clever. The Weather forecast was dirtier than a porn flic - nasty southerlies and rain. We were all finished and packed by 11pm. The day dawned more like "praise be" than a porn movie (fine and clear), but I was confident the weather was going to pack up. I Softened off the suspension abit, all I needed was the forecast rain. At least the track was damp while I waited to go out for a couple of laps in the scrub session, unfortuanetly I roughly knew how long it took us to change the tyres. When the guy said the ambo was delayed I decided to pull the pin and engage in a sweaty rubber wrestling spectical, trying to change back to dry tyres. One of the guys riding one of Shauns bikes gave us a bit of a hand, which was a big help to us - Thanks for that. Got it all together for the first practice (late and on cold tyres). Bounced aroud the track cause I hadn't firmed up the suspension. I Still managed to qualify 10th (F2) and 12 (F1).
Race 1 F2. Got a good start, got passed by a few guys, passed a couple back, I just about binned it after pushing the front while passing coming out of the esses. Nearly pooed my pants. I decided to pull my head in and finish the race, but got passed on the last corner after I missed a gear change. 10th, cool.
Race 1 F1. Got another reasonable start before getting passed by a couple of guys. Did a few laps as fast as I can, then it started to rain, I slowed and I slowed, it was getting skiddy. Geoff Booth passed me, like it wasn't raining! I rolled around coco-cola, and got passed by another couple of bikes, "shit I must be going slow" I was thinking! Then one of the bikes that passed me went down going into the esses, and the other one went down in the middle of the esses. I didn't get too excited about going faster, finnished 12th phew.
Race 2 F2. We didn't have time for more tyre wrestling, so it was out into the (heavy) rain on dry tyres. I thought I must be completely mad, but I did spot a couple of other bikes on dry tyres, so I wasn't the only one with the maddness! My start was ok considering. I got passed by everybody in the first lap, coming out of the last corner I spun up the rear on the front straight (pesky white lines) and nearly pooed my pants - again. I was wondering how I was going to get around a few more times without falling, then the red flag came out and that was the race. 17th (last, but beats a DNF!). I was highly motivated to change to wets, as it was raining buckets (dirty ol porn movie weather!). We changed the tyres with help from the guys with the tyre changer (thanks to Gordon Pullen and Co.). BUT
No more racing, it was too wet, pretty understandable really, but a little dissapointing all the same.
Thanks to
D.A.F.T. Contractors (earthmoving) Wellington
Foot Engineering (general + onsite) Napier
Hewitts Motorcycles Dannevirke.
Big thanks to the marshals and organisers, can't have been nice standing in all that rain.
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