Round 2. 5/29/2005
I spent the weekend at the track, helping Keith out again.
The place is becoming much more glamourous, with professional pit bitches making their appearance.
The girls were courtesy of one of the racing teams. I was approached, on an informal basis, the year before, to run this team. Things didn’t work out, but they’ve obviously decided to go into it in a big way. This game of gentlemen racers is no longer a game. People are spending real money now, and I can see our local race series becoming very serious, probably shoving out the smaller guys racing on a shoestring. Which is sad, because racing, in the previous 2 years, was ex[ensive enough as it was. Now you have to start playing with the big boys.
The prettiest bike in the paddock yesterday was this one. The Eurocopter/Schenker Logistics 749R. It’s running in the Supersports series for 600s. Not fast, but lovely doing it. I’ll have to try and score a ride on it one of these days, just for the taste. A limited edition model, for homologation purposes, it comes with a slipper clutch, and race bodywork, with some titanium internals and other different parts.
Very much down on power compared to Japanese machines, but you’ll never find anything this sexy with “Made in Japan” stamped on it. One of the reasons I like this particular Italian make. Like sex on wheels.
I was in conversation with Keith after Race 2, and he told me that he was thinking of giving up the game. He’s not getting podium finishes, because the level of committment by some of the other riders and teams has increased. He’s got to find a way of reaching the bar, or give up trying. It’s not that he’s slow, he regularly posts 1:10s. Unfortunately, the R1s are dipping into the 1:08s. That means Keith is 2 full seconds off the pace, which is a lifetime in racing terms. Good enough for fifth, but not good enough.
He confided in me that he’s not confident of the bike’s braking prowess, and he’s a little gun shy of whacking the throttle open in turns 4 and 7. I don’t blame him. He was taken out by Armand in the previous round, and in this round, #90 ran straight into his exhaust, almost toppling him at the end of the straight. The racing this year is becoming even more cut throat. Assuming he turns up for the next track day session, I think I’ll go out with him on the spare bike. I think he just needs to build his confidence a little, and giving him an easy target to gun for, i.e. me, might be the restoration he needs. He’s definitely disheartened.
And here’s another reason why racers like titanium so much, aside from it being light.
- Posted in : Road rash
- Author : thesnark
Comments»
Yeah…sorry I didn’t tell anyone. It was basically a 24 hour trip…but your right….I should’ve let people know!!! Aaarrrgggh!