Mallory 31th Jan

[Simon_Ed]

no i think my other bike has had more engine work, i think the big difference is the exhaust system, the carbs on the new one has had a jet kit, and it was rebuilt not long back, it just fires out of the corners and pulls like a train through the gears, that could be that i've not ridden for a while but the new one is pulling through the gears quicker, it was running a tooth less on the rear than my other bike. I also think the weight of this one is maybe 4 or 5 kilos lighter than my other rvf and it definitely shows.

[mattley87]

Stuck this on another forum i'm on, thought someone might be vaguely interested on my take of the day.

Up at 4:15 and sorted the puppy out with food and toys and ran out of the house before he realised I was gone. I loaded the van up the night before, so just a case of getting in and driving. Uneventful drive on the way up and arrived at 7 to a nice dry but bloody freezing track. As I was fairly prompt on arrival, I thought I’d see what the pits situation was, chaos in simple terms. Being a novice to these things, I buggered off back to the infield muttering something about not needing shelter anyway…bought up on a farm…hmmph.
After a coffee and buttie from the café, more people started turning up and eventually I signed on. It was bloody freezing..
Bike out of the van and briefing set for 8am, it started snowing, not hard, but constant. The briefing started at 8 and was amusing to say the least, have not been with NL yet, but apparently were not ALL GOING TO DIE if we do over 30mph like my last FE brief. A lot more useful and to the point with NL. It was decided that there would be a delayed start, but the sun was due to come out and lunch break would be reduced according to how long the delay would be. It was bloody freezing.
Following the briefing, all the novices (me included) had a short separate brief, just telling us it’s not a race, general track etiquette etc etc. Due to the conditions (freezing), we were to have 4 sighting laps to be on the safe side and then a further 2 after lunch.
Briefings over and back to the bike to sort fuel, tyre pressures and banter with my newly acquired neighbours. It just so happened that Simon_Ed parked up next to me with his very shiny racer. It looks sooooo nice. Glad it started eventually mate. My poor gsxr looked very shabby next to it, but in a way I was glad not to be riding it for fear of falling off!
I’ll skip all the waiting around as it was boring, frustrating and bloody freezing but apparently the hairpin was icy, so it wasn’t untill 11 that the fast boys went out and it was announced that there would be no lunch break to try and catch up.
First session was rubbish, four sighting laps was too much, I was patient but was overtaken by several on the third lap, anyway I managed 3 laps after the sighting laps and had to come in to clear my visor of fog both inside and out and to defrost my fingers. (btw, the lovely ladies in the café are used to people stealing washing up liquid and napkins). Visor sorted and amazingly, nothing fell off the bike apart from half a sticker, of which the other half was removed by myself.
Second session was also rubbish. The inters had done one lap and were red flagged, they restarted and did a further 2 laps and were red flagged and sent back to the paddock, someone had an off at gerrards that stopped riding for around half an hour, hope the rider wasn’t badly injured. This, added to the fact that there was a motocross meet on the same day meant there wasn’t enough ambulances on track for us to proceed. So we had to wait in pit lane for 10 mins after some confusion between marshals and NL crew as to whether we could go or not. Not that the above was the reason it was a rubbish session. Why do people feel the need to go in a group that is far too slow for them? I swear there were at least three racers in our NOVICE group and some of the overtaking that was happening was just plain stupid. Three times I had to sit the bike up going into edwinas due to some tosser block passing me, so much so I had a spectator come up to me saying they expected I didn’t like that particular corner much any more. If I’d been in a race, I’d expect it, but a forking n-o-v-i-c-e group at a t-r-a-c-k-d-a-y.
Third session, much of the same, came in early pissed off and with some dodgy fuelling issue.
Forth session, I decided to stop pratting about and just enjoy myself. All the dicks that had earlier swamped the track had now disappeared, either NL had moved them or I was riding a lot faster…I like to think the latter!!! The fuel problem miraculously sorted itself out having put some unleaded in the tank, and I really got into the session, sorting out some lines and braking points and overtaking more than were coming past me. By the end of the session I was going around gerrards at speed (for me) and only rolling off the throttle and dropping to 5th past pit exit not touching the brakes (does that sound right???). At this point, I thought I am probably a bit fast for the novices as many of them where on the brakes whilst I was still on the throttle into most corners, but with it looking like there would be only one more session, I left it as it was. Also the fact that it’s only my third track day (second at Mallory), made me think it could be too much too soon?!? Even so, I chose my passing places so as not to make people feel threatened, my favourite being hanging it wide around gerrards (can anyone say tramline affect!) and came back in feeling very pleased with myself.
So pleased in fact, for the last session, I tried for the front of the queue at pit lane and ended up about 5th in line. I despatched these around gerrards and went into edwinas only slightly slower than I would have on warm tyres, the front slid, although felt very controllable and I backed off slightly feeling very godlike, then promptly shat myself when the back squirmed all the way out of the corner (probably not even a noticeable squirm from trackside). I warmed my tyres up properly for the next two laps, had one fast lap and it started snowing. I always remember from riding on the road that it looks like it’s snowing a lot when you’re riding, but hardly at all when you’re stopped. With this in mind, I pushed on for a further two laps, came around devils elbow to see a white start/finish straight. No longer feeling like god, I wobbled back to the pits chuckling to myself seeing all the other riders coming in looking like frosty himself, then I saw my reflection in the van window and pissed myself. Sadly everyone with cameras had left by this point, so I pulled myself together and went home. What a good do. Did I mention, it was bloody freezing!

[Taggyd]

kind of glad i didnt make this one! 5th through gerrards, nail it out make 6th before edwinas braking, tilt in at end of opening to paddock as you approach edwinas seems to be the one people go for, sounds like you were doing ok! have done gerrards in 6th but was crap out of it! any idea of your times?
Least you didnt drop it at edwinas like i did! no cameras there to see me roll a few times and slide like a good un into the straight bit insted of go left! i like to think it was because i was pushing hard and going fast, but i think i just messed up! bloody marshal waited to see if i got up, waved and let me get on with picking the bike up! guess i was far enough into the run off to be out of the way!