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February 13-15 WSMC |
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| We miss the entire first half of Friday
practice due to red flags and
lunch breaks. But we still get plenty of track time most of which I
spent setting up the suspension on my 250. It went from pogo sticking
in the front to feeling pretty decent, despite the crappy stock shock. Saturday my 125 is delivered along with the bill. Incidentally, the pocketbook is still tender. I commence back to back practice sessions the entire day, but only after forgetting to turn the petcock back on on the 250, closely making me a candidate for heart replacement surgery. Two friendly novice fellows try to help me out when JM comes out of the van and mentions I just may have the petcock turned off. Now, you'd think I would have learned by now to check things like this, however I don't have a fool proof routine with this NEW BIKE (for me) like I do with the 125, thank you very much. So after I laugh heartily with the two nice fellows about my stupidity, I vow to blow by the both of them doing mach 12 dragging my elbow in turn two. This mission is accomplished (ok not the elbow bit), proving nothing except making me feel a little better for some reason. We practically spend the night at the track while JM installs new shiny bits on his bike and I change my tires to a different size Pirelli, that are supposed to make the bike turn in faster. Oh what foreshadowing begins in this tale...! Then we go wait for 45 minutes to have a V Day meal, which we wolf down and then go pass out in the hotel. |
 Why do I look like a big-headed alien on
a toy when I ride this thing? |
| Race
Day: Two short practice sessions each bike. My 125 is ready, the
250 is ... well, not. Seems that tire change affected my suspension
something fierce. I have one session to set it up before my Aprilia Cup
race that is first of the day, and it doesn't feel good at all.... I'm something like 10th on a grid of 12. I'm not used to these short first gears so one second after I start I already have to shift into second. I have to get used to that, I didn't do very well this first time. I pass a few people into one and then a couple more around two. Turn two is my favorite turn and I usually can catch most anyone there, but the front end is pushing on this bike, I feel like I am going to tuck the front end so I have to keep backing off. This costs me at least two seconds a lap since it isn't only turn two I have to back off in. I want to podium in this race and I know I can do it, but the bike feels unstable! I get to fifth place by lap four, and then....at the top of the Omega, turn four, you go up a hill and then you can double or single apex a right hand corner at the top, then start downhill. I single apex this corner and I am leaned way over right at the apex, ready to make a straight shot down the hill...and I lose the front. I go skidding with the bike into the dirt, hop up and stomp around, steaming mad, kicking rocks and wait for the crash truck. My bike isn't too bad thankfully and my new Dianese leathers held up perfect (men's size 44..did you know they even made them that small?) so I am ok to go for the rest of the day. My next race is race number three:125 GP. There are 9 bikes on the grid and I am on the third row. Amazingly, I get a great start and am third into turn one. In turn nine, the lead rider seizes his engine and I pass second place and lead the race for a lap. Then Kevin Murray passes me on the straight. I'm second for the next lap, and then some smokin' fast guy passes both Kevin and I when we hit the 250 race traffic. The race is total complete chaos after this. Someone lowsides out of turn nine and slide 100 yards up the straightaway. I watch the bike in front of me come 1 inch front smashing this guys head in! It's a little freaky and I get passed into turn one after this. I pass back into third entering turn three and we have just about one more lap where I get passed again, then the red flag comes out. The race is called and I get third. I am still a little shaken from my crash so my riding could have been better. I still have two more races on my 250 so I have to tech it again. I have broken the end third of my brake lever off, so I make it look like it is still there with duct tape, putting a little ball at the end. The tech guy felt it and kind of gave me a look but let it slide. Thanks tech guy. Everything else checks out ok so I run two more races: 500 Super Stock and 500 Mod Prod. I honestly don't even remember these races. I was struggling with the bike so much I don't remember the starts, any passes, nothing. I placed 4th and 6th in races I could have won with the bike feeling like it was on Friday, but it doesn't much matter because I find out my bike isn't even legal for these classes! I had received a personal phone call from WSMC to tell me my Aprilia 250 is legal for 500 Mod Prod and SuperStock after calling a month prior and leaving a message. After paying for these races (not to mention changing my slicks for some DOTs in order to be legal for Super Stock), racing in them and not getting protested, the race director finds me near the end of the day and says he is really sorry but he made a mistake, my bike is NOT legal for those classes. I can keep the points but I can't race these classes again. So, a class championship isn't lookin good for WSMC right now. Good thing WERA starts next month! Thanks JM, for once again (and only slightly begrudgingly) being my mechanic. |
 Turn
4a, where the 250 threw in the towel.
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