I bowl on up to F3 practise thinking I’ve got jetting and everything sorted… but after 1 lap it showed it wouldn’t pull passed 6,500 in any gear over 3rd. I pull in, we wiggle some stuff around and pretend to know what we are doing and I go out again… same issue… I jumped off the race bike handing into thee old man to fix, and jump on the street bike to at least catch the last 2 races of the only practise F3 was getting... and I must quickly say now – the NC30 powered street bike is MUCH more powerful in road trim and faster then the race prepped NC35 power VFR (what gives?!:spudwhat: ). Anyway, I manage to get another 3 practise laps with Clubman’s after much begging, I had changed fuel taps, homemade air box blocker, and disconnected my extra tacho. Sweet! She certainly wasn’t running as sweet as the street bike just had but there was usable power from say 8,500 to 14,000 (below 8 was a total mess!). In no time I was on the grid in last place (17th) by myself with 4 rows of bikes ahead. The flag dropped, the start was an all right one and saw me somewhere around 7th place after the first lap. This is where it all goes wrong… I’m too excited heading in towards castrol and can hear the chirping of a 125GP bike on the left rear, and slowly gaining… instead of short shifting and bogging through castrol as usual I kept her in 2nd? (Cant remember numbers!) at around 11,500 and make the decision as the 125 comes around the outside of me to keep the throttle pinned in the lower gear and hope she takes it!.. As you can already tell it didn’t. I’m used to movement in the rear exiting corners but I found myself apexing castrol with the rear end already loose and drifting fast. Next mistake was being too cocky in my own mind to do enough about it, I though I had it under control with my knee on the deck, but I didn’t feather off the throttle enough I feel and just held it too far pinned, the equation of things equalled my back end continuing to slide further away and I couldn’t keep it propped on my knee, I heard the race rear set grind the deck along with my boot, with some vague hope of it all swinging back together… No sir, it was my turn to go!:spudwave: It was all pretty calm and came down gracefully, I next heard the fairing grinding on the ground still attached to the bike and was now facing the infield a fair bit too much (possibly stupid enough to still be thinking it might all come back together). Second to last thing I felt was the leather on my elbow against the ground, and just as quickly as that had come down my bar end too hit the deck as the bike pivoted on the fairing, and I was now perpendicular to the back straight and still spinning… ended up sliding off facing back the way I came to see Bruno’s bike go passed. Well the bike went down so nicely it would have been fine until it hit the ripple strip exiting the track, the noise is hard to explain but I knew what it meant, she took a bit of a punch from it and suffered a broken handle bar, brake lever, and later to be discovered engine case.
So its time for the second race and in the in-between everybody has pitched in a hand to get her ready in time (thanks guys!). Jason Hulme then pointed out to me it looked like I had a hairline fracture across the bottom of my engine casing *doh!*, pity I was on the dummy grid and ready to roll! his advice was to roll with it as it would probably be fine!.. so I did and it was, for about 3 laps, then exiting the hairpin my right foot slid straight off the peg!, I attempted to put it back and it was kicked off again, and again, and again. Now being the mentally challenged man that I appear here to be I couldn’t work out between then and coming over the hill onto the front straight what this meant… until again the back end was loose and wild as it had oil covered over the right hand edge… I realised that was what it had to be and so I couldn’t move up and take any more places for this race, instead get by with what I've got and do my best not to loose any!... Phew! It worked, held the buggers off for the remaining laps (sorry Tony!). and Yay for a 7th place still!
So here we go 3rd race! This time I’ve put duct tape over the fracture in casing and a rag to absorb any that should get passed the magic seal!... well it kept it off my tyre and despite the hold-up on the line the race went okay and I just managed this time to get passed svs – unfortunately the poor guy got a mist of oil over his bike on the pass too! (sorry mate!) It was still leaking, but hey I was happy with my finish this time in 5th place with much time to grab yet (when I slowly gained my confidence after coming off on castrol)
4th race, and this time I wanted to make sure svs couldn’t give me any excuses as to be covered by oil, so I jam a second rag in-between the fairing and the engine casing… and now I'm starting on the front row of the grid, on the outer side (5th). Bang the flags down and its party time boys! I find myself in 3rd place going down the back straight only to loose a place, then another to Wiggles. So I’m behind wiggles and for a lap I’m certainly loosing the small gap between us, only to pick up the pace for the next lap and settle in better with confidence there wasn’t any oil on my tyre at all this time. 4th lap and I’m on Wiggles tail entering the hairpin thinking this is going to be one wicked fight for 4th and I’m keen on throwing it all at him over the hill on the last lap if I can read his line in the next few… when coming over the line that lap some wolly is holding a chequered flag as well as a black one with orange, funny enough he’s also pointing at ME!, I’m thinking now that maybe I should have read the rulebook as to what the pretty colours mean but id already got the impression by the way he was frantically waving at me it meant id done something wrong. So I continue the lap very slowly to nurse her into the pits when coming into the hairpin the flag marshals are frantically pointing at me, I look down thinking hey, it is a little hot down there only to see that THERE ARE DAMN FLAMES COMING OUT OF MY BIKE!I was pissing myself thinking what the hell how am I going to put this fire out, all I have is a whole load of oil in my motor, and hey, maybe that’s what’s on fire!, so as I get into the pits with some wicked as flames burning under my motor ( I watched them as I went down pit lane) I pull over near the Armco where hopefully not many can see me as I didn’t want them all realising my work of art had caught fire, and I ripped out the 2nd rag id shoved in there which had happened to have gotten oil on it and possibly petrol from cleaning the oil off earlier and then been touching the exhaust… ahhh, so I ditched the flaming rag and rode into the pits nicely and snuck my bike around to where I was pitted… only to later get the question from svs wondering if id have anything to do with a burning rag on pit lane.
So that was pretty much it! First race DNF, last race DNF, and the in-betweens some poor riding expressed by me, The day was a bit of a nightmare as I was too excited and even when I things started going my way I was riding the bike far too aggressively lifting and sliding the rear coming into the hairpin and exiting and missing shifts etc, the list goes on! The poor girl took all the punishment I could throw and the final act of arson and still survived! She may not be quick, but she is semi-reliable (well, kind of) so I guess she takes after me!
Would like to say the BIGGEST thanks to Hoon, without you there co-ordinating the repairs mate my stressed out self would not have been able to even make another race. Next thanks are to the family and friends that turned up to the event, your support was certainly noticed. Finally Team-mates! Dad, another learning experience by your side, Mike – cheers mate you do everything your told and don’t even complain then I yell at you in my usual arrogant tone, Nick – You were late but your thoughts and future support regarding the race bikes broken bits is much appreciated, and Sarah, we didn’t get you out there with the team umbrella this time but your time as an umbrella girl will come, just as soon as the team gets one of these faster learning riders on a race bike. (C’mon shadey!)
You want even more thanking? Gary @ GP Trading for the rear tyre that spat me off on castrol, and all the other bits you’ve helped us with. And SpankMe for supporting us with our currently still-in-building-stage website – Also for the push on the dummy grid in the 2nd race or so (cheers dude!).
Finally I’d like to apologise to all those I came across as arrogant and demanding, although on race days I do turn this way a *touch* I really lost the plot with all the problems in the day, it was an experience to learn from and I certainly will try to do exactly that.
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Oil pissing out, 
and then for the finaley, Onboard fires!!!!! 
Originally Posted by Kwaka-Kid
(now whose happy?)
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