Ytry2
09-22-2003, 02:22 PM
Race report SMRI #6
After loosing the motor in my 2001 GSXR600 at the SMRI #5 event in La Junta Colorado, I was eager to get on the track once more. For 3 nights prior to this past weekend’s events, I completed a motor swap with the help of a few friends.
Saturday 7:30 am – roll out the bike with the new motor, add some oil, hit tech and then onto the track to break the motor in. 3 hours and 80 miles later, I change the oil, and prepped for the 30-min Novice GTU Endurance race
New “lighted” starting system is being used, light goes off and we are off. Not too much of a hole shot, as this motor wanted to lift the front into the sky. A little feathering action to settle the front down and I bend it into turn 1. I head into the hairpin and hit the throttle hard. At that moment I feel it, the rear tire spun up on my way out. I think to my self, is the air pressure right? Yep, I think to my self as the rear grabs traction and hurdles me into turn 4.
Next up the double apex, where it is key to obtain a good drive to fly through the long sweeper of turn 6. Coming out of the double apex, the tire searches for traction as I twist the throttle open once more. Again I thing to my self, did the track become hotter? Does this motor have more torque then my old tired motor that I blew up 6 weeks ago?
No time to think anymore, I am leaned all the way to the right, knee dragging, starting to top out in fourth gear. Hit my break marker, click in a down shift flick it at my normal turn in point, the bike drifts to the out side of the turn…. waiting for it to hook up, wait those orange cones are getting closer, push harder on the bars…. still sliding…. Wow I have never slid up the track this far before? Well the first orange cone hits my foot, then the next…. then finally the bike stops sliding and propels down the front strait. I hear the sound of the new motor echo off the concrete walls… deeper in tone then the old motor… Into Turn one a tad faster then I am used to… Boy, I picked up some speed somewhere? Hit the exit of turn one, and rear spins up again… Wow this is going to be a LONG 30 minute Endurance race.
At the half way mark of the race, the tires have become my own personal ice skating rink. They are hot and tired of the blistering pace this race has maintained. But my tires are not the only things that fatigue has consumed. Ahead of me is Alex #169 in first place and with each lap I inch closer and closer to him.
The 5-minute signal is given and I know it is time to put my head down and challenge for the lead with 3 laps left I push the bike faster into turn 7, sliding up the track to dance with the cones. Well this was the last dace for me, as I side up and over and off the track into the parking lot. On the brakes before I become one with the port-o-let, I slowdown and get turned around, I look up just as Phil * now in 2nd place * shoots down the front straight. Back on the track in 3rd, I push to catch Phil in order to challenge and with any luck regain the 2nd position I once held… However this was to no avail, we get the checked with Alex in first, Phil in Second, and me in third.
Sunday
Novice GTU Heat #1 Out of turn 1 into turn 2 Alex #169 passes me in his normal place, as he has all season, putting me into 2nd place. And to know one’s surprise it ends up Alex 1st, me in 2nd.
Novice GTO Heat #1 No Alex, but Phil is there who is just as capable and determined to win. Into turn 1 and I shift right into Neutral, man oh man, then a down shit into first almost locking the rear tire. This allowed the rest of the field to bunch up and get around me. Shift it into 2nd, head into turn 2 with Phil and a Yamaha R1 3 wide, Phil takes the high road, I take the low road trying to reach the apex first. Then from the middle comes the R1 and slams the door on me. These goes Phil, OHHHH Nooo he is getting away, I try to go inside the R1 in the next turn, show a wheel, but this guy stays in it and the power of the 600 is no match for the liter bike.
Every move I tried was countered, and out of no where on the 4th lap Randy goes around me on the outside and late breaks the R1 into the double apex corner. Well there goes Randy and I cannot get around this guy… I can’t let Phil and Randy get a large lead on me or I will not see them again till the cool down lap. I think, well I will try passing on the out side of turn 1 taking more speed then the R1 getting a better drive into turn 2… I pull up along side of him at the apex….yea I am going to do it… then he cracks open the throttle and the ponies are off to the races, with me behind him once more. At lap 6 I know I HAVE to get around this liter bike and into turn 7 * my personal fastest corner * I go up the inside, late brake the R1and tip toe through the turn the slowest I had since the first morning warm up lap… Well that R1 battle allowed Phil and Randy to check out. So the finish is Phil 1st, Randy 2nd, Me 3rd.
Novice Open Heat #1
Light goes off and I seem to get a better launch. Hummmm I keep tight to the apron of the track because I know Alex #169 ALWAYS, that is just the way it is, gets a better drive through here and goes up under me into turn 2… Here comes turn 2 where is Alex? Ahh my first clean lead, but I hear Alex right behind me. Into the hairpin, oops a little to hot… left the door open… Oh no, Alex will pounce all over it, ahhh nope * thanks Alex, that could have been messy * come around for the first lap, hold Alex at bay… into turn 7…a little to hot …drift wide…ahhh calm down, just be calm… head around for lap 2, I feel the pressure from Alex ….run a tight line, make him work for the out side pass… into turn 7 once more….Oh nooooo tooooo hot again…back out of the throttle or I will have a repeat of Saturday endurance race, and Alex passes me.
Down the front straight into turn 1 side by side, trying to regain the lead spot, and just as snow is cold, Alex gets a better drive off of turn 1 into turn 2 and takes a 3 bike lead into the hairpin. Around lap 5 we get into lap traffic, this slows Alex down a bit, and well me to… Into the hairpin, here comes Phil waiting for his chance to use the traffic to his advantage. We take our own preferred lines and Phil comes out first. I set him up in turn 4 taking a line that would allow me to attempt to pass Phil in the double apex by running up the inside… I wait… stay wide…ok now head to the apex, he is starting his turn. Coming from the outside to the inside our lines will cross with my front just inches away from Phil’s rear tire… Wait a second he is slowing, did he sucker me into this, and he going to block me?
Oh boy, here comes the sparks, Phil tucked the front… Now we have a problem, Phil’s extreme bike bobsled has changed the line and now my front tire will greet Phil’s rear wheel and swing arm….trail brake…trail brake well the bike is out of my path…but here come Phil on his asphalt slip and slid, press my knee harder into the ground, look way through the corner… wheeeee cleared that one, but I am shaken… Alex gets the win with me in 2nd and randy taking 3rd. Sorry Phil, but no matter what you say, the asphalt slip and slid will not be a popular item…
Lunch and some time to gather my thoughts…
Novice GTU Heat #2 – did you know that if you looked up the word redundant in the dictionary, it would read: See the SMRI Novice GTU Alex OWENS Troy into turn 2 thus far this season…
Finish: Alex 1st, Me 2nd, and Randy 3rd
Novice GTO, well Alex does not race this one, Phil is looking for a patent for his new game, so it is up to Randy and I to battle it out… I am drained… no energy… what to sleep…. hot out…bump up 1 pound of air in the front and rear tire and head to grid up… Light goes off …into turn one with a huge wheelie…head into the hairpin; miss a shift… settle down, breath through your nose…then it happened.
It all came together, I am not fighting the bike, and the track is flowing for me. I zip around for the checker flag at a relaxed but confidant pace… The next race is going to be fun.
Novice open, we line up, barrel into turn one, hummm Alex will come on the inside again, lets see if I can block it…Hey Alex how come your on the out side? Well Just as he always does, Alex head’s into turn 2, but this time I could touch his rear tire with my shoulder.. Do I late back and pass to the inside of the hairpin? Not he closes that door, so I take a wider exit and we are nose to tail heading into turn 4. Alex looks behind to see me waving at him, he shakes his head and we fly into the double apex… lets see what line does he run? Ahhh ok, around the long, triple digit right hand sweeper, humm brake, flick to the apex, ahhh he takes the middle lane…. Into turn one on the brakes, let me show a wheel on the outside… around to the hair pin once more, nose to tail once more, Alex looks back * hi Alex, this is fun huh * shakes his head as he tries to brake away from me… into the double apex, his tires spins up, so I check up. And then back nose to tail… we repeat the next 7 laps just like the first two. Playing, toying with each other, making moves and counter moves. White flag lap, we stay with in touching distance, 2 wide into the corner resting our heads on our competitor’s race bodywork
…Ahhh Turn 7 my best corner and where I plan to pass Alex for the lead and race him to the finish line.. I drop back a little, Alex feeling the pressure give the bike one last push on the clip on, I come up on Alex with speed to burn, I am going to sling shot around him on the out side….err wait he is drifting wide, he is not taking is “normal: line, he drifts wider to the point we could trade paint colors, I have to scrub off some speed cause I am heading for the air fence… well I did not pass him like I planned lets see if I can motor past him down the straight… ahh the speed I scrubbed.. Guess I needed that about right now, neither him nor I are pulling on each other. I just need 3 feet, I need 3 feet…well I needed 3 feet… the dust settles with Alex in 1st and me in 2nd, and Randy in 3rd. However, THIS had to be BY FAR the best race of the year between both Alex and I, Man I can not wait till the next race weekend, cause it is going to be exciting http://www.gixxer.com/forums/images/graemlins/wink.gif
….
After loosing the motor in my 2001 GSXR600 at the SMRI #5 event in La Junta Colorado, I was eager to get on the track once more. For 3 nights prior to this past weekend’s events, I completed a motor swap with the help of a few friends.
Saturday 7:30 am – roll out the bike with the new motor, add some oil, hit tech and then onto the track to break the motor in. 3 hours and 80 miles later, I change the oil, and prepped for the 30-min Novice GTU Endurance race
New “lighted” starting system is being used, light goes off and we are off. Not too much of a hole shot, as this motor wanted to lift the front into the sky. A little feathering action to settle the front down and I bend it into turn 1. I head into the hairpin and hit the throttle hard. At that moment I feel it, the rear tire spun up on my way out. I think to my self, is the air pressure right? Yep, I think to my self as the rear grabs traction and hurdles me into turn 4.
Next up the double apex, where it is key to obtain a good drive to fly through the long sweeper of turn 6. Coming out of the double apex, the tire searches for traction as I twist the throttle open once more. Again I thing to my self, did the track become hotter? Does this motor have more torque then my old tired motor that I blew up 6 weeks ago?
No time to think anymore, I am leaned all the way to the right, knee dragging, starting to top out in fourth gear. Hit my break marker, click in a down shift flick it at my normal turn in point, the bike drifts to the out side of the turn…. waiting for it to hook up, wait those orange cones are getting closer, push harder on the bars…. still sliding…. Wow I have never slid up the track this far before? Well the first orange cone hits my foot, then the next…. then finally the bike stops sliding and propels down the front strait. I hear the sound of the new motor echo off the concrete walls… deeper in tone then the old motor… Into Turn one a tad faster then I am used to… Boy, I picked up some speed somewhere? Hit the exit of turn one, and rear spins up again… Wow this is going to be a LONG 30 minute Endurance race.
At the half way mark of the race, the tires have become my own personal ice skating rink. They are hot and tired of the blistering pace this race has maintained. But my tires are not the only things that fatigue has consumed. Ahead of me is Alex #169 in first place and with each lap I inch closer and closer to him.
The 5-minute signal is given and I know it is time to put my head down and challenge for the lead with 3 laps left I push the bike faster into turn 7, sliding up the track to dance with the cones. Well this was the last dace for me, as I side up and over and off the track into the parking lot. On the brakes before I become one with the port-o-let, I slowdown and get turned around, I look up just as Phil * now in 2nd place * shoots down the front straight. Back on the track in 3rd, I push to catch Phil in order to challenge and with any luck regain the 2nd position I once held… However this was to no avail, we get the checked with Alex in first, Phil in Second, and me in third.
Sunday
Novice GTU Heat #1 Out of turn 1 into turn 2 Alex #169 passes me in his normal place, as he has all season, putting me into 2nd place. And to know one’s surprise it ends up Alex 1st, me in 2nd.
Novice GTO Heat #1 No Alex, but Phil is there who is just as capable and determined to win. Into turn 1 and I shift right into Neutral, man oh man, then a down shit into first almost locking the rear tire. This allowed the rest of the field to bunch up and get around me. Shift it into 2nd, head into turn 2 with Phil and a Yamaha R1 3 wide, Phil takes the high road, I take the low road trying to reach the apex first. Then from the middle comes the R1 and slams the door on me. These goes Phil, OHHHH Nooo he is getting away, I try to go inside the R1 in the next turn, show a wheel, but this guy stays in it and the power of the 600 is no match for the liter bike.
Every move I tried was countered, and out of no where on the 4th lap Randy goes around me on the outside and late breaks the R1 into the double apex corner. Well there goes Randy and I cannot get around this guy… I can’t let Phil and Randy get a large lead on me or I will not see them again till the cool down lap. I think, well I will try passing on the out side of turn 1 taking more speed then the R1 getting a better drive into turn 2… I pull up along side of him at the apex….yea I am going to do it… then he cracks open the throttle and the ponies are off to the races, with me behind him once more. At lap 6 I know I HAVE to get around this liter bike and into turn 7 * my personal fastest corner * I go up the inside, late brake the R1and tip toe through the turn the slowest I had since the first morning warm up lap… Well that R1 battle allowed Phil and Randy to check out. So the finish is Phil 1st, Randy 2nd, Me 3rd.
Novice Open Heat #1
Light goes off and I seem to get a better launch. Hummmm I keep tight to the apron of the track because I know Alex #169 ALWAYS, that is just the way it is, gets a better drive through here and goes up under me into turn 2… Here comes turn 2 where is Alex? Ahh my first clean lead, but I hear Alex right behind me. Into the hairpin, oops a little to hot… left the door open… Oh no, Alex will pounce all over it, ahhh nope * thanks Alex, that could have been messy * come around for the first lap, hold Alex at bay… into turn 7…a little to hot …drift wide…ahhh calm down, just be calm… head around for lap 2, I feel the pressure from Alex ….run a tight line, make him work for the out side pass… into turn 7 once more….Oh nooooo tooooo hot again…back out of the throttle or I will have a repeat of Saturday endurance race, and Alex passes me.
Down the front straight into turn 1 side by side, trying to regain the lead spot, and just as snow is cold, Alex gets a better drive off of turn 1 into turn 2 and takes a 3 bike lead into the hairpin. Around lap 5 we get into lap traffic, this slows Alex down a bit, and well me to… Into the hairpin, here comes Phil waiting for his chance to use the traffic to his advantage. We take our own preferred lines and Phil comes out first. I set him up in turn 4 taking a line that would allow me to attempt to pass Phil in the double apex by running up the inside… I wait… stay wide…ok now head to the apex, he is starting his turn. Coming from the outside to the inside our lines will cross with my front just inches away from Phil’s rear tire… Wait a second he is slowing, did he sucker me into this, and he going to block me?
Oh boy, here comes the sparks, Phil tucked the front… Now we have a problem, Phil’s extreme bike bobsled has changed the line and now my front tire will greet Phil’s rear wheel and swing arm….trail brake…trail brake well the bike is out of my path…but here come Phil on his asphalt slip and slid, press my knee harder into the ground, look way through the corner… wheeeee cleared that one, but I am shaken… Alex gets the win with me in 2nd and randy taking 3rd. Sorry Phil, but no matter what you say, the asphalt slip and slid will not be a popular item…
Lunch and some time to gather my thoughts…
Novice GTU Heat #2 – did you know that if you looked up the word redundant in the dictionary, it would read: See the SMRI Novice GTU Alex OWENS Troy into turn 2 thus far this season…
Finish: Alex 1st, Me 2nd, and Randy 3rd
Novice GTO, well Alex does not race this one, Phil is looking for a patent for his new game, so it is up to Randy and I to battle it out… I am drained… no energy… what to sleep…. hot out…bump up 1 pound of air in the front and rear tire and head to grid up… Light goes off …into turn one with a huge wheelie…head into the hairpin; miss a shift… settle down, breath through your nose…then it happened.
It all came together, I am not fighting the bike, and the track is flowing for me. I zip around for the checker flag at a relaxed but confidant pace… The next race is going to be fun.
Novice open, we line up, barrel into turn one, hummm Alex will come on the inside again, lets see if I can block it…Hey Alex how come your on the out side? Well Just as he always does, Alex head’s into turn 2, but this time I could touch his rear tire with my shoulder.. Do I late back and pass to the inside of the hairpin? Not he closes that door, so I take a wider exit and we are nose to tail heading into turn 4. Alex looks behind to see me waving at him, he shakes his head and we fly into the double apex… lets see what line does he run? Ahhh ok, around the long, triple digit right hand sweeper, humm brake, flick to the apex, ahhh he takes the middle lane…. Into turn one on the brakes, let me show a wheel on the outside… around to the hair pin once more, nose to tail once more, Alex looks back * hi Alex, this is fun huh * shakes his head as he tries to brake away from me… into the double apex, his tires spins up, so I check up. And then back nose to tail… we repeat the next 7 laps just like the first two. Playing, toying with each other, making moves and counter moves. White flag lap, we stay with in touching distance, 2 wide into the corner resting our heads on our competitor’s race bodywork
…Ahhh Turn 7 my best corner and where I plan to pass Alex for the lead and race him to the finish line.. I drop back a little, Alex feeling the pressure give the bike one last push on the clip on, I come up on Alex with speed to burn, I am going to sling shot around him on the out side….err wait he is drifting wide, he is not taking is “normal: line, he drifts wider to the point we could trade paint colors, I have to scrub off some speed cause I am heading for the air fence… well I did not pass him like I planned lets see if I can motor past him down the straight… ahh the speed I scrubbed.. Guess I needed that about right now, neither him nor I are pulling on each other. I just need 3 feet, I need 3 feet…well I needed 3 feet… the dust settles with Alex in 1st and me in 2nd, and Randy in 3rd. However, THIS had to be BY FAR the best race of the year between both Alex and I, Man I can not wait till the next race weekend, cause it is going to be exciting http://www.gixxer.com/forums/images/graemlins/wink.gif
….