Re: My half arsed F400 nc30
Posted: Mon Dec 02, 2013 2:43 pm
Ah so I was correct for 2013 but rules have changed for 2014
http://www.400greybike.com/forum/
My half arsed F400 nc30
Page 12 of 32
Re: My half arsed F400 nc30
Posted: Mon Dec 02, 2013 3:51 pm
Re: My half arsed F400 nc30
Posted: Mon Dec 02, 2013 9:18 pm
Are you planning on coming on Sunday to the open day Benny?
Re: My half arsed F400 nc30
Posted: Mon Dec 02, 2013 9:42 pm
I'm not unfortunately. If it was at Cadwell or Donny I would but I've already done the CTC and I'm going to do another school like California or Ron Haslam for my on track side. Brands is a bit too far for me this weekendZippy wrote:Are you planning on coming on Sunday to the open day Benny?
Re: My half arsed F400 nc30
Posted: Wed Feb 12, 2014 7:00 pm
Race one was at 2.15pm, I was gridded up on row 9 in 25th spot, over on the right up against the pit wall, not great really, if anything happens you have a limited number of options to escape into. I again, as I did in the last race at Donington, try to go quite quick on the warm up lap and really hammer the big braking areas at the end of park straight and into Mansfield to get some heat into the tyres and brakes, conscious that I am a bigger loser on the first lap than I am on the other laps.
Race start goes badly, these seemed really good with wirral100 at Oulton and also with Bemsee at Oulton but they seem to have gotten worse since then. This is the worst one yet, and I get left by the row I am on and the row behind get up the inside of me, as a result I get shoved wide round turn one.
Annoyed I duck under Dan Hardy going into Charlies 1, run wide over the blind crest right out to the white line for a big sweep into Charlies 2 and get great drive out onto park passing one other in the early part of the straight before the compression and rise back up to park corner. I slot in behind Beanerno1 who was a few spot behind me on the grid but must have gotten a good start.
I brake too early for park and don’t seem that quick round Chris curve and into the Gooseneck, this is all because I am taking my time and not pushing as I am nervous of cold tyres, even more so once out of the gooseneck as there are 2 or 3 riders picking themselves up after losing it outta the gooseneck. On cold tyres I guess, but possibly on a little bit of lingering oil (again in no way am I having a dig at the marshalls, they have done a great job to get the track back into a state that allows us any racing today at all)
There are some quick riders behind me due to the dodgy conditions in qualifying, as these come through I try to stick on to them, in vain, to say the least, heading into the chicane at Mansfield I decide that I’ll try and follow Emma Jarman through as she makes her way forward to her normal position in the pack. As we head into the chicane I suddenly discover that her brakes are a lot better than mine! Or more likely, she’s a lot better on the brakes than I am!! Bit of swerving and some deep apex’s later, I manage not to take her and myself out, which is a good thing seeing as her dad is the class rep and I’m next to him in the F400 Gazebo.
I seem pretty quick into the left right and then up over the mountain, I manage to get past 2 on the left as we go up and over the mountain and in the run down to drop into hall bends. The pack has been spread out a bit I’m sat in behind nr38 on a ZXR400, I get a good run out of the final corner despite wanting to back off on the cement and get half a wheel on him on the start finish, but then the ZXR gets into its stride and gaps me, I manage to make quite a bit back up into turn one stick with him round Charlies and then loose out again and more along park straight.
From here round Chris curve the gooseneck and down to Mansfield I can gain all the time back, I’m a bit poor into the chicane but again real good and quick in the left right and then up over the mountain, and I’m back on him, but I can’t pass him in hall bends as it is one lined and pretty impossible.
The only passing spot is into the hairpin before the final corner but, as it is a hard braking zone I am a bit shit, like I was at Donington into Foggy’s the Melbourne loop and Redgate, Here I seem to be a bit shoddy into Park the chicane after Mansfield and the hairpin at the end of hall bends. I am good from the last corner to Mansfield apart from park corner this is a strong section of track for me, and considering Mansfield is downhill and hard braking I actually seem good through here.
This makes my life hard work as I’m poor into the main passing places if I want to do anything on the brakes, which is an easier pass to pull off. My options of passing are harder fast moves on the quick flowing sections of track, so risky and potentially painful if I get them wrong.
We make good progress through and move forward as a pair on lap 2 to get onto the back of the next two in front, we have taken a couple seconds out of them in a little over a lap. Nr38 gets a great run round Charlies and gets Nr77 Ray Petty into park on the brakes, I on the other hand get dropped but make good time round Chris curve but have a bit of a panic as I tip into the top of gooseneck. I am a lot faster than Ray here and nearly tail end him, which stuffs me up on the left out of the gooseneck so have no opportunity to get a look at Ray into Mansfield, whereas nr38 slips up the inside of Nr52 our class rep Gary Jarman.
This is annoying I’m exactly where I was but nr 38 is two places further up and gotten away from me, I’m as quick as him but can’t make a move.
Lap 3 I get onto the back of Ray and he in turn ups his pace and moves up onto the back of Gary, but it’s still a frustrating lap, I get gapped down the start finish I make this time back and get held up a bit through the first corner and Charlies 1&2, this then gets wiped out and I am gapped again down park straight, this time I make back through Chris Curve but get held up through Gooseneck and this limits my opportunity for a look into Mansfield, Ray is also covering his line pretty well here. I’m not confident enough or close enough really to try a pass on the brakes into the chicane, and to be fair Ray is good through here.
After the mountain and into hall bends and there is no opportunity to pass, I hang back a little so I can get round the last corner and onto the start finish as best as I can to try and limit how much I get dropped here.
Lap 4 and I am determined to get past both and off and away after number 38. I don’t lose as much down the start finish but again try to stay back so I can get a good run round Charlies 1&2 so that I limit how much I get dropped down park straight, which works out ok and I’m closer than I have been on the previous 2 laps, but not quite close enough, and the lap plays out the same as the previous 2 up till we get out of the goose neck and see waved red flags.
I think there was a crasher on the mountain, nothing serious but the bike was possibly on the line and not safely recoverable whilst racing is ongoing.
With that the race is over, and I’m a bit annoyed, I should have done better but was too timid in the early laps and then couldn’t engineer some passes when I got behind people who I caught quite quickly. The lap charts show this, my first lap was a 2.08 to their 2.05’s and then I did a 1.55, 1.56, 1.55, they in comparision did 1.56, 1.57, 1.55. gotta get faster in the early laps.
After the race I nip the bike back into the f400 awning then head back to the van and my awning to get changed, grab some fodder and beers before heading back to the bike to give it a check over, fuel it up and wang the battery on charge. I can’t remember a whole lot else what I did that evening, I write notes after the races (old habit from racing mx, helps me to try not to make the same mistakes over and over, it’s also what I use to write these reports) but my notes don’t cover my evening activities. One thing I don’t need notes to remind me off is how cold it was in the van overnight.
I slept in my mountain bike lycra leggings and thermal top plus a hoody and I still woke cold in the night. It’s not like my sleeping bag is a cheap rubbish old thing, it cost me over £100 4 years ago for some week long bivvy bag hiking I did with my mates.
Race start goes badly, these seemed really good with wirral100 at Oulton and also with Bemsee at Oulton but they seem to have gotten worse since then. This is the worst one yet, and I get left by the row I am on and the row behind get up the inside of me, as a result I get shoved wide round turn one.
Annoyed I duck under Dan Hardy going into Charlies 1, run wide over the blind crest right out to the white line for a big sweep into Charlies 2 and get great drive out onto park passing one other in the early part of the straight before the compression and rise back up to park corner. I slot in behind Beanerno1 who was a few spot behind me on the grid but must have gotten a good start.
I brake too early for park and don’t seem that quick round Chris curve and into the Gooseneck, this is all because I am taking my time and not pushing as I am nervous of cold tyres, even more so once out of the gooseneck as there are 2 or 3 riders picking themselves up after losing it outta the gooseneck. On cold tyres I guess, but possibly on a little bit of lingering oil (again in no way am I having a dig at the marshalls, they have done a great job to get the track back into a state that allows us any racing today at all)
There are some quick riders behind me due to the dodgy conditions in qualifying, as these come through I try to stick on to them, in vain, to say the least, heading into the chicane at Mansfield I decide that I’ll try and follow Emma Jarman through as she makes her way forward to her normal position in the pack. As we head into the chicane I suddenly discover that her brakes are a lot better than mine! Or more likely, she’s a lot better on the brakes than I am!! Bit of swerving and some deep apex’s later, I manage not to take her and myself out, which is a good thing seeing as her dad is the class rep and I’m next to him in the F400 Gazebo.
I seem pretty quick into the left right and then up over the mountain, I manage to get past 2 on the left as we go up and over the mountain and in the run down to drop into hall bends. The pack has been spread out a bit I’m sat in behind nr38 on a ZXR400, I get a good run out of the final corner despite wanting to back off on the cement and get half a wheel on him on the start finish, but then the ZXR gets into its stride and gaps me, I manage to make quite a bit back up into turn one stick with him round Charlies and then loose out again and more along park straight.
From here round Chris curve the gooseneck and down to Mansfield I can gain all the time back, I’m a bit poor into the chicane but again real good and quick in the left right and then up over the mountain, and I’m back on him, but I can’t pass him in hall bends as it is one lined and pretty impossible.
The only passing spot is into the hairpin before the final corner but, as it is a hard braking zone I am a bit shit, like I was at Donington into Foggy’s the Melbourne loop and Redgate, Here I seem to be a bit shoddy into Park the chicane after Mansfield and the hairpin at the end of hall bends. I am good from the last corner to Mansfield apart from park corner this is a strong section of track for me, and considering Mansfield is downhill and hard braking I actually seem good through here.
This makes my life hard work as I’m poor into the main passing places if I want to do anything on the brakes, which is an easier pass to pull off. My options of passing are harder fast moves on the quick flowing sections of track, so risky and potentially painful if I get them wrong.
We make good progress through and move forward as a pair on lap 2 to get onto the back of the next two in front, we have taken a couple seconds out of them in a little over a lap. Nr38 gets a great run round Charlies and gets Nr77 Ray Petty into park on the brakes, I on the other hand get dropped but make good time round Chris curve but have a bit of a panic as I tip into the top of gooseneck. I am a lot faster than Ray here and nearly tail end him, which stuffs me up on the left out of the gooseneck so have no opportunity to get a look at Ray into Mansfield, whereas nr38 slips up the inside of Nr52 our class rep Gary Jarman.
This is annoying I’m exactly where I was but nr 38 is two places further up and gotten away from me, I’m as quick as him but can’t make a move.
Lap 3 I get onto the back of Ray and he in turn ups his pace and moves up onto the back of Gary, but it’s still a frustrating lap, I get gapped down the start finish I make this time back and get held up a bit through the first corner and Charlies 1&2, this then gets wiped out and I am gapped again down park straight, this time I make back through Chris Curve but get held up through Gooseneck and this limits my opportunity for a look into Mansfield, Ray is also covering his line pretty well here. I’m not confident enough or close enough really to try a pass on the brakes into the chicane, and to be fair Ray is good through here.
After the mountain and into hall bends and there is no opportunity to pass, I hang back a little so I can get round the last corner and onto the start finish as best as I can to try and limit how much I get dropped here.
Lap 4 and I am determined to get past both and off and away after number 38. I don’t lose as much down the start finish but again try to stay back so I can get a good run round Charlies 1&2 so that I limit how much I get dropped down park straight, which works out ok and I’m closer than I have been on the previous 2 laps, but not quite close enough, and the lap plays out the same as the previous 2 up till we get out of the goose neck and see waved red flags.
I think there was a crasher on the mountain, nothing serious but the bike was possibly on the line and not safely recoverable whilst racing is ongoing.
With that the race is over, and I’m a bit annoyed, I should have done better but was too timid in the early laps and then couldn’t engineer some passes when I got behind people who I caught quite quickly. The lap charts show this, my first lap was a 2.08 to their 2.05’s and then I did a 1.55, 1.56, 1.55, they in comparision did 1.56, 1.57, 1.55. gotta get faster in the early laps.
After the race I nip the bike back into the f400 awning then head back to the van and my awning to get changed, grab some fodder and beers before heading back to the bike to give it a check over, fuel it up and wang the battery on charge. I can’t remember a whole lot else what I did that evening, I write notes after the races (old habit from racing mx, helps me to try not to make the same mistakes over and over, it’s also what I use to write these reports) but my notes don’t cover my evening activities. One thing I don’t need notes to remind me off is how cold it was in the van overnight.
I slept in my mountain bike lycra leggings and thermal top plus a hoody and I still woke cold in the night. It’s not like my sleeping bag is a cheap rubbish old thing, it cost me over £100 4 years ago for some week long bivvy bag hiking I did with my mates.
Re: My half arsed F400 nc30
Posted: Wed Feb 12, 2014 8:02 pm
Great write up!
Trick i learnt for camping in the cold is layers, i did pembrey in -2 and wore as many layers as possible, woke up stone cold through the night.
Did brands in 1-2 degrees, and only had thermals on, and was ok, trick is only have 1 layer on as your body heat can warm up the sleeping bag, which in turn keeps you warm.
Too many layers and you cant heat up the sleeping back and go cold. :)
Trick i learnt for camping in the cold is layers, i did pembrey in -2 and wore as many layers as possible, woke up stone cold through the night.
Did brands in 1-2 degrees, and only had thermals on, and was ok, trick is only have 1 layer on as your body heat can warm up the sleeping bag, which in turn keeps you warm.
Too many layers and you cant heat up the sleeping back and go cold. :)
Re: My half arsed F400 nc30
Posted: Thu Feb 13, 2014 12:09 am
Nice write up mate, i was waiting for the Cadwell one so i could actually relate to and picture the corners your talking about.
If i where you mate id get a military sleeping bag from a surplus shop, had mine ages and slept outside pretty much under the stars at -5c and never woke up cold in that, big and bulky but ive never found a bag as good as one of those.
If i where you mate id get a military sleeping bag from a surplus shop, had mine ages and slept outside pretty much under the stars at -5c and never woke up cold in that, big and bulky but ive never found a bag as good as one of those.
Re: My half arsed F400 nc30
Posted: Thu Feb 13, 2014 4:02 pm
Very realistic comment imo
Re: My half arsed F400 nc30
Posted: Thu Feb 13, 2014 8:01 pm
Dunno what it was with the cold, its never bothered me before I have sent many night through Feb March Sept Oct camping at MX meetings with it, might be getting soft now i'm heading towards 30!!
Not into that!!
Anyway, I survived the night and was up early to go grab some breakfast from the café. We are first out for warm up at 9am, but nobody else seems to be bothering with it. So I follow suit and don’t bother with it and go have a watch of the 10 bikes that do go out.
The weather is dry but cloudy and a little cold but it’s a definite supercorsa tyre choice so I swap those in and mill about waiting. We are on the grid for 9.50 ish warm up lap done again I hang back a little and try to have a faster last half lap.
I am gridded on the same spot as the Saturday race, against the wall, and get a shocker when the lights go out, the front comes up and I have to get the clutch in again, release it a bit too sharply and get it popping up again, the entire of the row behind get past me and I’m level with the row behind them (two rows behind where I started from) going into turn one where I get shunted right out, from here I manage to get up the inside of 2 going into Charlies one and despite my bad line into Charlies 1 get out, into and round Charlies 2 well and off down park straight. I’m hesitant through to the Gooseneck where there are waved yellows as 2 have gone down on the exit and are scattered between there and the entry to Mansfield. (See link)
http://youtu.be/vugHb1rNeGI
I get round the rest of the lap and start lap 2, I do a shoddy 2.09 lap whereas those on the grid in front of me who I was pushing to pass in the Saturday race all did mid 2.05’s to low 2.06’s, I’ve lost 3.5seconds in a lap by being too cautious again, and things only get worse when my visor starts misting up pretty badly mid-way round lap 2, I was right up behind Tom Saville but lose time to him and end up in a 2 second bubble on my own, I can’t see properly and its affecting my lap time, I only manage a 1.56.4 which is poor, as I come over the line to start lap 3 I decide I am going to have to do something about my visor. I can’t see and it’s stopping me committing to corners and braking markers.
As I cross the line I pop my visor by a couple of mm so that I can feel a draught on my face. And pretty much instantly I can see again as my visor demists, as I come out of Charlies I pretty much have full clear vision again, so get my head down and put together an ok lap.
As I come over the Mountain, there is a group of 3 just going into the left of Hall bends, then a small gap back to Tom Saville who’s gotten away from me on lap 2 so I decide to concentrate on getting forward to them, Lap 4 just clicks together, I’ve got a target in front of Tom Saville and I’m gaining on him nicely the entire lap I use the Mountain as a reference point again, and as I get over the top of it Tom is closer to the group of 3 midway between the Mountain and the right into Hall bends, the other three are just into that right, I bang in a good lap of 1.53.118, a good second quicker than Tom and 1.8secs quicker than the group of 3.
Lap 5 feels just as good as lap 4 over the mountain again and Tom is pretty much where he was the lap before, but he is now with 2 of the others from the group that were just in front of him, however one of the group has gotten to the front and is pulling away. Lap 4 and 5 are really consistent to each other with lap 5 being a 1.53.275, Tom Saville has matched my lap 5 time but as we cross the line he is now caught up behind Ray Petty and Gary Jarmen, the two that I was sat behind when Saturdays race got red flagged. I am a second further back and 2.7 seconds off the front of the group.
Lap 6 and I am starting to run out of time a little, as we cross the line Gary and ray are separated by 0.5 secs with Tom 1.0sec behind Ray and me 1.0sec behind Tom. Lap 6 I really push on, Charlies 1 & 2 are lots of fun with the blind crest between them and considering I hated this part of track on the trackday its now fast becoming a favourite, I go hot into Park and miss the apex a little, mindful of this I really try hard round Chris Curve and over the split in the Tarmac where I am now leant over and clicking up another gear, before coming back one gear and braking as little as I dare into the Gooseneck. I’m not sure if Ray makes a mistake but he seems to have Tom all over him now and Gary has gotten away from him a little.
I gain on them both from Mansfield onwards, as we cross the line I bang in another good consistant 1.53.6 lap, a little slower than the previous 2 due to missing the apex at Park. My lap is 1.5 secs quicker than Ray & 0.7 quicker than Tom who is right behind Ray now with me less than 0.5sec back from them with Gary getting away from Ray a little as he is 1.5sec up the road at the end of lap 6 as we sail past the last lap flag.
Going into turn 1 Tom looks down the inside of Ray, but there is no way through, I use them as a braking marker and try to gain on them all the way round turn 1 and Charlies conscious that I am going to lose a little time down park straight as I am up against a ZXR and FZR which both seem to have top end legs on me. Exiting Charlies 2 and we are nose to tail, I don’t lose much in fairness down park straight, probably helped by getting a good run and carrying good speed round Charlies
I just get dropped by a couple bike lengths and I’m just a little too far back to have a legitimate shot at a pass heading into Park corner.
I wait to brake into Park at the same point Tom and Ray do, Tom is right on Ray as we enter Park corner but Ray seems to stall on the apex and doesn’t really sit up and pull away from the corner as expected, Tom nearly runs up the back of him and as he is wider exiting park than Ray was has to sit up also and turn left off the track, Thanks to lose a couple bike lengths heading down Park straight I am just far enough away from them to give me time to react and tighten my line exiting Park which allows me to get passed both of them just as Ray seems to be getting going again, I’m unsure if he missed a gear or it died momentarily, but either way I am through and away, Gary Jarman is about a second in front and I am on my best section of track with a clear track.
Round Chris curve and I know I am really pushing it, I feel fast and smooth and can see I am visibly catching Gary. Into the Gooseneck I manage to nail both apex’s and pick the throttle up hard from the middle of the left out of the Gooseneck heading for Mansfield.
Mansfield, I am pushing like mad and brake really late and hard on the way in but get my line spot on and hammer the throttle again coming out, I can feel the front end floating as I power off the turn, I am right on the back of Gary, I can tell I am on a good lap as we come up and out of the mountain I drift left using as much track as I dare, I keep it pinned over the crest and get my head over the front of the screen to help get the front back on the ground without having to roll the throttle too much. I manage to half wheel Gary on the run to hall bends but I’m on the wrong side, hes on my right and there is no way I can get across the front of him (in truth i'm barely even half way alongside him so a pass is never really on) before the first right into hall bends.
I follow Gary through the right left right before the entry to the hairpin but I’m not good enough to out brake him here so have to follow round and into barn, its follow my leader through here really, (especially with my talent level)
All I can hope for is a missed gear from Gary, that and me getting my left hand off the bar again and out of the wind (don’t worry, I called myself a tw@t again for doing it!!) but I can’t get him and finish behind him, Gary is not in the sub64 class so he wouldn’t have gained me a place in that division but I would have gotten a place in the overall classification, and besides it’s not really the point I wanted to get him.
Not into that!!
Anyway, I survived the night and was up early to go grab some breakfast from the café. We are first out for warm up at 9am, but nobody else seems to be bothering with it. So I follow suit and don’t bother with it and go have a watch of the 10 bikes that do go out.
The weather is dry but cloudy and a little cold but it’s a definite supercorsa tyre choice so I swap those in and mill about waiting. We are on the grid for 9.50 ish warm up lap done again I hang back a little and try to have a faster last half lap.
I am gridded on the same spot as the Saturday race, against the wall, and get a shocker when the lights go out, the front comes up and I have to get the clutch in again, release it a bit too sharply and get it popping up again, the entire of the row behind get past me and I’m level with the row behind them (two rows behind where I started from) going into turn one where I get shunted right out, from here I manage to get up the inside of 2 going into Charlies one and despite my bad line into Charlies 1 get out, into and round Charlies 2 well and off down park straight. I’m hesitant through to the Gooseneck where there are waved yellows as 2 have gone down on the exit and are scattered between there and the entry to Mansfield. (See link)
http://youtu.be/vugHb1rNeGI
I get round the rest of the lap and start lap 2, I do a shoddy 2.09 lap whereas those on the grid in front of me who I was pushing to pass in the Saturday race all did mid 2.05’s to low 2.06’s, I’ve lost 3.5seconds in a lap by being too cautious again, and things only get worse when my visor starts misting up pretty badly mid-way round lap 2, I was right up behind Tom Saville but lose time to him and end up in a 2 second bubble on my own, I can’t see properly and its affecting my lap time, I only manage a 1.56.4 which is poor, as I come over the line to start lap 3 I decide I am going to have to do something about my visor. I can’t see and it’s stopping me committing to corners and braking markers.
As I cross the line I pop my visor by a couple of mm so that I can feel a draught on my face. And pretty much instantly I can see again as my visor demists, as I come out of Charlies I pretty much have full clear vision again, so get my head down and put together an ok lap.
As I come over the Mountain, there is a group of 3 just going into the left of Hall bends, then a small gap back to Tom Saville who’s gotten away from me on lap 2 so I decide to concentrate on getting forward to them, Lap 4 just clicks together, I’ve got a target in front of Tom Saville and I’m gaining on him nicely the entire lap I use the Mountain as a reference point again, and as I get over the top of it Tom is closer to the group of 3 midway between the Mountain and the right into Hall bends, the other three are just into that right, I bang in a good lap of 1.53.118, a good second quicker than Tom and 1.8secs quicker than the group of 3.
Lap 5 feels just as good as lap 4 over the mountain again and Tom is pretty much where he was the lap before, but he is now with 2 of the others from the group that were just in front of him, however one of the group has gotten to the front and is pulling away. Lap 4 and 5 are really consistent to each other with lap 5 being a 1.53.275, Tom Saville has matched my lap 5 time but as we cross the line he is now caught up behind Ray Petty and Gary Jarmen, the two that I was sat behind when Saturdays race got red flagged. I am a second further back and 2.7 seconds off the front of the group.
Lap 6 and I am starting to run out of time a little, as we cross the line Gary and ray are separated by 0.5 secs with Tom 1.0sec behind Ray and me 1.0sec behind Tom. Lap 6 I really push on, Charlies 1 & 2 are lots of fun with the blind crest between them and considering I hated this part of track on the trackday its now fast becoming a favourite, I go hot into Park and miss the apex a little, mindful of this I really try hard round Chris Curve and over the split in the Tarmac where I am now leant over and clicking up another gear, before coming back one gear and braking as little as I dare into the Gooseneck. I’m not sure if Ray makes a mistake but he seems to have Tom all over him now and Gary has gotten away from him a little.
I gain on them both from Mansfield onwards, as we cross the line I bang in another good consistant 1.53.6 lap, a little slower than the previous 2 due to missing the apex at Park. My lap is 1.5 secs quicker than Ray & 0.7 quicker than Tom who is right behind Ray now with me less than 0.5sec back from them with Gary getting away from Ray a little as he is 1.5sec up the road at the end of lap 6 as we sail past the last lap flag.
Going into turn 1 Tom looks down the inside of Ray, but there is no way through, I use them as a braking marker and try to gain on them all the way round turn 1 and Charlies conscious that I am going to lose a little time down park straight as I am up against a ZXR and FZR which both seem to have top end legs on me. Exiting Charlies 2 and we are nose to tail, I don’t lose much in fairness down park straight, probably helped by getting a good run and carrying good speed round Charlies
I just get dropped by a couple bike lengths and I’m just a little too far back to have a legitimate shot at a pass heading into Park corner.
I wait to brake into Park at the same point Tom and Ray do, Tom is right on Ray as we enter Park corner but Ray seems to stall on the apex and doesn’t really sit up and pull away from the corner as expected, Tom nearly runs up the back of him and as he is wider exiting park than Ray was has to sit up also and turn left off the track, Thanks to lose a couple bike lengths heading down Park straight I am just far enough away from them to give me time to react and tighten my line exiting Park which allows me to get passed both of them just as Ray seems to be getting going again, I’m unsure if he missed a gear or it died momentarily, but either way I am through and away, Gary Jarman is about a second in front and I am on my best section of track with a clear track.
Round Chris curve and I know I am really pushing it, I feel fast and smooth and can see I am visibly catching Gary. Into the Gooseneck I manage to nail both apex’s and pick the throttle up hard from the middle of the left out of the Gooseneck heading for Mansfield.
Mansfield, I am pushing like mad and brake really late and hard on the way in but get my line spot on and hammer the throttle again coming out, I can feel the front end floating as I power off the turn, I am right on the back of Gary, I can tell I am on a good lap as we come up and out of the mountain I drift left using as much track as I dare, I keep it pinned over the crest and get my head over the front of the screen to help get the front back on the ground without having to roll the throttle too much. I manage to half wheel Gary on the run to hall bends but I’m on the wrong side, hes on my right and there is no way I can get across the front of him (in truth i'm barely even half way alongside him so a pass is never really on) before the first right into hall bends.
I follow Gary through the right left right before the entry to the hairpin but I’m not good enough to out brake him here so have to follow round and into barn, its follow my leader through here really, (especially with my talent level)
All I can hope for is a missed gear from Gary, that and me getting my left hand off the bar again and out of the wind (don’t worry, I called myself a tw@t again for doing it!!) but I can’t get him and finish behind him, Gary is not in the sub64 class so he wouldn’t have gained me a place in that division but I would have gotten a place in the overall classification, and besides it’s not really the point I wanted to get him.
Re: My half arsed F400 nc30
Posted: Sat Mar 01, 2014 6:18 pm
Out with the old and in with the NEW!!
Winner Racing rads, a bargain at £79, I had to chop the rhd side rad fan mount off as it fouled on the hearder, I could have warmed it and bent it and gotten it to work, but as its a trackbike and wont ever had a fan I just chopped it off.
Out at Oulton on the 8th so i'll see how they get on should be ok though as when started on the stands the temp barely rose.
Winner Racing rads, a bargain at £79, I had to chop the rhd side rad fan mount off as it fouled on the hearder, I could have warmed it and bent it and gotten it to work, but as its a trackbike and wont ever had a fan I just chopped it off.
Out at Oulton on the 8th so i'll see how they get on should be ok though as when started on the stands the temp barely rose.