Qualified great. bike is ripping the mince. I was ripping the mince.
12 on a grid of 24?
Beats the crap out of being at the back every other round.
Trouble starts this morning, race day for 6 hundies and supers.
I awake at 2 am, to the altogether too familiar taste and feel of snot running down the back of my nose, past my throat and into my lungs.
A feeling every asthmatic has felt at some stage, and some of you people with gooderer lungs may have even felt at times.
This spells chest infection. The devastating effects include general lethargy, giving over of oneself to vulgar habits such as spitting, inability to breath, and consequent cramps and inability of muscles (and brain) to get enough oxygen to work. Oh yeah, and heart rate goes up, because it has to pump more blood to keep body somewhere near oxygenated.
I feel like a bag of shit at the start of the day, and it never got any better.
Went out in scrub in, (thanks Andrew for suspension help, saved my life) just cruised cause I wanted to keep the bike relatively prim and proper, and not kill the tires before the end of two 20 lappers.
Come the start of the race I am busy hating the world. I could hardly breath, and had taken way too much ventolin to try and open the airways a bit. Net result, heart rate of well over 120 bpm. Caffiene, also reputed to open airways, and cold tablets, to try and stop the snot. Didn't work.
Head out slowly on the warmup laps, try and pull a few wheelies to bring up the adrenalin. Onto the grid, slide past all the keen as guys into my position, end of the third row, 12th. Start comes, and I focus in, ignore the jumpers around me, and get a mean start, jumping 2 places, putting me 9th into turn one. Held it on, and on the second? lap, scott wood throws it away into turn one. I pull up close to Geoffrey Booth, and hang on for the ride, gapping people pretty easily. Come lap 5 or so, my lack of O2 catches up with me, the arms give out, the legs don't hardly work, and I am struggling for breath. slowly the mid pack guys slip past, till I am sitting 13th.
Hanging on for dear life, feeling uncomfortably close to passing out, I continue to slow, and Jason gets past me. The race seems to be dragging on forever. The race ends, I am not last, but I am not where I felt I could have been all being well. I race to the pits, and then face the indignity of hardly being able to hold the bike up. I have NEVER been so exhausted. Thanks go to Daniel, Nicksta and Jill, for holding the bike, and helping me get off the jolly thing, and collapse in a chair.
I was coughing with every fibre in my being, and nearly flaked again.
Nicky forces me to drink, for which I am grateful.
Cleve, did really well. A 20 lapper is no walk in the park, but he pulled some good times, and stayed behind meHe was pretty shagged. I think he was encouraged when I said the second race is easier, funnily enough.
I was really hoping that they would run out of time, and cut the laps on the second race.
But they didn't
Up on the grid, same damn problem, shagged as anything, dosed up on every frikken (legal) stimulant I can lay my hands on. They only work for so long though. Normally I don't have anything during a race day except tons of powerade.
Up to the start, and It is a literal repeat, got Chris off the line, held him and all the others off for quite some time, 4 laps maybe? then Chris comes past, I repass him, hold them off for another lap then the mid pack of Andy Evans, Kevin, john ross, and one other come past. I try and hang on, but strength and concentration are fading again. Jason eventually tries a pass, I repass him, then hold him off for a few more laps, before missing a gear out of turn one, and he gets me. My front is well past second hand, and I decide to focus on the wise advice of Graham Cole and Nicky, and just try working on placing the bike in the right place on the track, so when the speed ups, it is natural.
Finish the race, try a few wheelies, but I am too damn knackered. Get in, they check our tyres, and we sit on the grid as they remove transponders. Damn engine overheats. Fan isn't working. WTF??? Damn and pissed off.
I hate the world.
Could have made top 10, and 1:13s today, if only the body was right up to it.
All in all, a respectable performance, mitigating circumstances accounted for, but I could have done better. Confidence is still high, and I know damn well now that given a bit of time (and cash), I will run with the front runners.
It is just going to have to happen as it happens.
Thanks heaps to all the guys who helped out, MikeyG for packup, Daniel, My Dad for coming along, Jill, Cleve, Nicky (you are a real gem, appreciate you heaps as a caring person!) Gav, bro that crash sucks! You have the potential, just needs nursing! Sudeep and Poos, thanks for encouraging words.
I will come back with a vengeance!!
21st of 29 on the points board.
Also big thanks to Cleve and Nicky for bringing down the k2!! Thanks tons!
Same goes to Jason, for taking it home for me!
And of course Paul, for being a good mate, and of course, a bike that can go way faster than I can!
Reply With Quote
would have curlled up and died but you stuck it out on a hot day with no breath. Your a machine and deserve the glory youll get for a hard day's work. Well done.
Looked like you had worked a 20 hour day when you got off the bike.
Originally Posted by Dean
, I too kinda have a curvy figure which makes it worse beacuse im a guy. Well the waist kinda goes in and the bum pushes out. When I was in college the girls in my year would slap me on the arse and squeeze because apparently it is firm, tight...
I wear jeans
Bookmarks