Philip Island 125 Support Races - Short report

**k14** · 11th October 2007, 21:50

Well, where do I start, too many things to talk about.

I'm totally stuffed so this will be brief. The day was sunny at first and then a bit of high cloud rolled in, this was ok. There was a decent wind blowing straight down the front straight too.

First practice didn't go the best, I had my front sprocket come off after 7 laps!! Argh, just felt the chain wrap around my leg coming into siberia and coasted to a halt off the circuit. This wasn't a major setback but I did loose 10 mins of track time. I finished the session with a 2.00.3. Pretty slow but ok I guess, it left me 34/38 starters.

We got the bike fixed and ready for the next session which was qualifying. This went a lot better. After about 10 laps the session was red flagged and I was sitting in 22nd place with a 1.57 lap. We had 7 mins remaining so went back out. I saw the 1 min board and knew this was my last lap. I did the first half of the lap really well, nicking sixth on the back straight proving a good run out of the southern loop. I got honda hairpin ok and then a better run through siberia and hayshed than previous laps. Then tipping into lukey heights (the coolest corner ever!!) I missed getting it into third gear before I tipped over. So the bike bogged on the top of the crest and I just coasted down into MG hairpin. I got a good run through the long series of left handers onto the front straight and stole a kph or two from the slipstream of a guy going a bit slower.

We got back to the pits and I was pretty happy to see myself 17th on the grid with a 1.53.4. Still slow but not too bad for only 20 laps. The wind was unsettling the bike on quite a few corners so that wasn't the most confidence inspiring.

So thats it over for the first day P17 on the grid. Semi ok, lets hope the races go better. Maybe sneak into the top 10. The weather forecast looks a bit dodgy (hail and gale force winds) so it might be a bit of a jackpot for tomorrow's race.

Highlight today, sneaking into pit lane and standing next to the bikes of stoner, pedrosa, checa, guintoli, edwards, talmacsi, lorenzo, barros, pesek and probably a few others. Man those ducati's are LOUD!!!!

Race report tomorrow night. Off to bed now (its only 8pm here, hehe).

Seeya

**James Deuce** · 11th October 2007, 22:03

Freaking good work!

Get some rest and keep us as up to date as you can.

**HDTboy** · 11th October 2007, 22:05

Good Shit bro, I'm Jealous. Have a ball

**sAsLEX** · 11th October 2007, 22:23

Well done mate! I hope you gave the midget shit!

**R6_kid:Me** · 11th October 2007, 22:25

Thats a bloody brilliant effort for your first time at that track mate! I'm guessin they front runners have some pretty serious gear compared to what you guys are using - go the under dog!

You're closer to the dream than I am so enjoy every second of it!

**gav** · 11th October 2007, 22:26

Hey good stuff, so Philip Island is just like the Playstation game then?

**cowpoos** · 11th October 2007, 22:27

wicked shit kirk!!!

**Kickaha** · 12th October 2007, 05:53

Awesome look forward to further reports

**flame** · 12th October 2007, 06:11

That is fantastic K14! awsome work getting grid position 17

I wish you the very bestest of best luck for your racing

**boostin** · 12th October 2007, 07:36

That is awsome, sounds like you are having a great time.

**Ivan** · 12th October 2007, 08:09

Wicked Kirk awsome for you,

Great to hear your enjoying yourself....

**MSTRS:Me** · 12th October 2007, 08:11

Great to hear you are doing well. Hopefully today you will find out that those decals are made of the special go-fast material....

**k14** · 12th October 2007, 08:18

Originally Posted by sAsLEX

Well done mate! I hope you gave the midget shit!

Nah he didn't even look at me when I said hi. Not surprising. I said hi to Tomoyoshi Koyama (from the KTM 125 team) but he denied me too. The yamaha engineers that were warming up the tornados bike were good guys. I got some photos, will try work out how to get them from my phone to computer sometime.

Originally Posted by gav

Hey good stuff, so Philip Island is just like the Playstation game then?

Yeah....
The first corner is scary as, sixth gear flat out doing 210ish. Also with the tailwind yesterday the front was a bit fidgety. I was being a bit of a pussy there, I think I could take it flat in sixth but I was chickening out and dropping down two gears. The next corner (southern loop) is nothing like I've ever experienced before. I never seemed to get my entry right, I wasn't using the brakes at all, just changing to third and pretty much opening the throttle on entry. The exit is really decieving, it is blind and then the track drops away and is off camber. I would always hesitate right at that moment and then a second later wonder why I was going so slow. If I got a real good run out of there I was able to just hit sixth before the back straight kink and then haul on the brakes at about the 120m mark for honda. This is a pretty straight forward hairpin just go in wide and apex late, run out towards the rumble strip, still too scared to go onto them lol. Then siberia is another one of those corners. I was braking later and later as I went faster and keeping it in second gear. Then as the southern loop I was always coming out too slow, its another blind exit as there is a slight crest. Then its hold it flat hitting fifth just as you tip into the hayshed. Then its the best corner of them all, lukey heights. Again, bigger balls required but I was braking and chopping it into third and holding a tight line. Then braking for MG hairpin at the 50m board. Tip it in again and get on the gas and into second quick smart. I can make up some time here by going through MG a bit faster and taking the first of the series of three left handers in third. But I was into third and then fourth as I hit the last corner onto the straight. Again its so open and a 125 can be held flat through all these corners. A small mistake is magnified on the long straight. Then I was just hitting sixth as I crossed the start finish line.

Looks like it may be wet this afternoon. But weather is very changable at the moment.

Will update with today's results tonight.