peanut, britt bohannan, britt arechiga, 125gp race, wsmc, peanutbritt, littlebig racing, little big racing
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January
15-16 WSMC The season is off to a good start. I placed 2nd in the class championship for 2004 and won the first race of the season. That being said, it didn't look like I was going to be doing so hot in my 125 race, based on events leading up to it. I brought my 250 out with a new shock spring on it that I managed to find and have JM pick up the day before practice. It was the right rate and felt great....and suddenly I could feel how bad the front felt. No one had any springs softer than stock .7kg. JM wasn't racing this weekend, so he had lots of time to work on my bike(s). He played with compression, rebound, lowered fork oil height, and took out all the rebound, but I just couldn't ride around a front that stiff. I ride like I am 90 pounds. If you will remember I tried to ride around the same problem the beginning of last year, and crashed the aprilia 250. |
 I just poured oil through my swingarm. |
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good news is...I brought my 125 with me! I was anticipating a
change in the WSMC schedule, something we have been trying to have done
for a while now...seperate the 125 and 250GP classes, so that a 125
rider can run both, or those riders with two bikes can run both. Race
director Larry Cochran came by to discuss the feasibility of it, and we
actually talked him into having the classes changed that weekend~! Not
only that, but for January, the 125 race got an 8 lap race behind
Formula 2. Saturday night was the awards banquet for 2004 season. Luckily, it was held at the Essex House where we always stay, so that we rolled a half hour late, at 7pm, rather than our usual hour. Lots of attendees and lots of drinking going on. It was entertaining and absolutely fantastic people watching: Desert people, programmer and engineer dorks, punk kids, hipsters...plus personal dramatic plots unfolding throughout the evening. The scene was strange and funny enough to warrant some kind of reality show producer's attention. JM won the Battle of the Twins Heavyweight championship and third in Formula Twins. I placed second in the 125 GP class. Dave the announcer called the 125 class up and thoroughly harassed me on the mic about correcting him regarding my gender and name over the course of 2004. I wasn't expecting it and that just made it funnier. We had waited a while for our class to be called, so it didn't help that everyone on the stage had had many drinks apiece. Sunday morning I woke up with a HUGE headache and felt horrible. I tasted a sip of coffee and ran to the bathroom because I thought I would be sick. I had to keep laying down so I wouldn't puke. JM drives me to the track and I skip the first practice session because I'm sick and it is 30 degrees on the track. I do make it to the second practice and only manage a 1:35 lap time. By the time the 250 race rolls around, I'm feeling better but I have been distracted. I am on the 6th row and get a decent start but there is no where to go. Aprilia 250 bikes everywhere. I suck in this race and never get my head into it. I don't know where I finish, mid pack somewhere. JM yells at me to get my head together before my 125 race. I get mad because I hate it when he does this, but he is right. I go and sit in our van with the doors closed so I could focus on what I am going out to do. Race 14, the 125GP and F2 race comes around. 125GP was in the second wave. Clint Solomon gets a smoking start and I am second into turn one. I pass him in turn two and have a clear track so I put my head down and try to make the biggest gap I can as soon as possible. I come around turn five and see Mark Watts from the race in front of ours laying crumpled up off the side of the track but I don't see his bike. Next flag is green so I keep going, but at turn nine the red flag comes out, and we go to our pits so the ambulance can go out to pick up Mark. He had highsided out of turn five, and his bike ghost rode across the track and finally hit a little banking and stopped. I am told later I did pretty well leaving the rest of the 125 field and that it was announced during the race that I checked out. The race is called out again, and I get and abysmal second start. I think I was 6th into turn one. I make my way past a couple riders on the first lap to catch up to Clint, Jay and Kevin. Jay is having trouble passing Clint, and I see Kevin pulling away. This pisses me off and I move to pass them both when Jay gets past Clint. I pass Clint and I am behind Jay, with Kevin leading. We catch up to Kevin and I double draft past them both into turn one. Jay gets me back somewhere, and I make a few mistakes, going wide in five and Kevin gets past me in nine. From there on out the race is an orgy of passing. At one point I make a move on Jay at the entrance to turn two and he stands me up so hard I have to brake. On the last lap I draft past Jay and don't quite make it past Kevin, I think we were three wide through turn one, bumping elbows and bikes. I get Kevin on the entrance to turn three and hold the lead. I know that they will draft me in eight so I protect my line in nine and make it to the finish line first, with Kevin just inching up in a double draft to finish about half a bike length behind me and half a bike in front of Jay. On the cool down lap I see people in the stands going nuts, jumping up and down and cheering. I come back to the pits and JM is there, jumping up and down and cheering. It was an exciting and very fun race. Apparently the announcer said he needed to have his blood pressure checked after that race. Kevin and his fiancée come over to our pits to graciously say good job on the win, and we make dinner plans with them. Until next month: Thank you Joel Manes for the parts. Thank you JM for playing pit bitch all weekend. Thank you CA Race Services - Bridgestone tires for the tires and for doubling the contingency money. |
 Kum by ya, my lord, kum by ya...everyone now!  The excitement of getting a check is palpable  You've got something in your teeth, no you  Kevin Murray is dying to get away from the
laughing lunatic squad
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