Pictures
I want to start off by saying a huge thank you to
Sonia at Achei-usa for this awesome site that she built for me.
Wow! What a wild race track.
It's like they saw a mountain and decided to build a track going
from one side of it to the other and back! I have to admit my
first impressions were not very good. Because of the 100+ feet of
elevation change, there was some serious blind corners and it
took a good while to have the balls to hold the throttle pinned.
I entered the middleweight 16 lap
solo race on the Suzuki GSXR 600 and started in 55th position.
There were 68 riders total and we were sent off in four waves. I
was in the third wave. I think I felt the best I have all year on
the 600. The race started and I just wanted to get through the
first chicane without getting run over. It's a very blind crest
and I was sure there would be some accidents there. I made it
through the first lap safely and started picking them off. One by
one. Sometimes 4 at a time on the brakes down the back straight.
I actually saw 168mph on my speedo about 100 feet before my break
marker. Maybe I hit 170mph. Who knows? I was surprised there
were no red flags. I thought too soon. With 4 laps to go, the
red flag came out and they called the race. I was in 10th place!
I was lapping consistently in the 1:37's and there were still 4
guys in front of me in the 1:39's and 1:40's. I could've caught
them had it gone the distance. Anyways, I was stoked. I even won
$75 for the 10th place finish.
Next was Heavyweight solo (16
laps) on the Ducati 998. I started in 33rd position in the second
wave. I really need to learn to pre-register so I can start up
front. To my dismay, the race went the distance. 28 laps on this
physical race track in 98 degree heat was too much. I was
exhausted. I finished the race in 6th place which awarded me
another $75. $150 total. Maybe I can do this full-time
soon…Hahaha! The cool part was that I dipped into the 1:36's for
one lap.
I wasn't sure what the Southern
boys were going to bring for the Twins races but there sure were a
lot of Twins there. I started HWT SS on Pole and had a horrible
start. Totally vertical wheelie at the line and I was in 3rd. I
quickly passed for the lead and checked out!
The skies threatened rain all day
and so thanks to Cole Howell, I had rain tires on hand! Thanks
buddy! I went and had them mounted to my spare wheels just in
case. Suddenly, the heavens poured and I started wrenching fast
as there was only 45 minutes until my race. Luckily, the races
took longer because of the rain and it gave me more time to do the
wheel swap. It was pouring. Immediately after getting on the
bike, I felt horrible vibrations from the front wheel. I went out
very apprehensively for my warm up stroll on ice and the vibration
worked it self out. I think the carcass of the tire had hardened
up since they had been sitting for so long and I loosened it up by
riding on them. That is my theory. I started on pole but quickly
went back to 3rd. The guys in front of me had way more confidence
than I did. I slowly loosened up and started to reel them in.
The tar strips/ patches/paint were so slippery. The front would
tuck on me every time I turned the bike. The back would slip up
as well. I was feeling really good about my throttle control and
would even let the thing spin up on corner exit. My laps quickly
went from 2:14 to 2:03's. The leader of the race was close and I
could see he was starting to scare himself. I saw him slide the
back in one corner, than the front on the next. I quickly passed
him on the brakes and put my head down. I looked back on the next
lap and he was about 50 yards back. I looked back on the next lap
and he was nowhere to be seen. On the back straight, I could hold
the throttle wide open even through the kink and brake very late.
I was very impressed by the rain tires. The tar patches were
already slippery in the dry but just like ice in the wet.
Terrible grip. I won and actually lapped the guy that was in 3rd
place. Awesome!
I've got a really good lead in the
championship and I almost have it locked down. Next race will be
in Kershaw, SC at CMP on 7/23 and 7/24. I want to thank all of my
sponsors BR-111, Acoustica, OM-AIR, Ducpond, MLE, tropical one
realty, Coleman Power sports, Battley Cycles, Achei-usa, Sobre
Rodas, 3 News, EBC brakes, Pirelli, and my dad. A big thanks to Acoustica
for the nice 6X12 enclosed trailer that they gave to me! Thanks
to all.
