2008 WMRRA Round 3 - PNW282

WMRRA Rnd 3 - PNW282

The weekend began a bit chaotic. After hosting a barbeque/graduation party the night before for my daughter, I awoke at 3:30AM Sat to begin prepping and packing. This would be the first time on a race track for me since my high side at PIR in April, first time at PR since Rnd 1 snow fest, and first time ever on the new 750 I had been building from the frame up over the winter. The butterflies were abundant and the 4 hr nap the night before wasn’t helping.

I arrived at the track a bit behind schedule but Chris, Kevin, and Erics2 helped me put the final touches on everything and ready for first practice. Group 3 practice went well but slow. I realized that it would take a bit to shake off the 8 week layoff. Group 4 practice was an adventure to say the least. The new bike was running well but sooooo different and the suspension was way off. I still wasn’t sure if it was me or the bike, so I decided to wait for second practice before starting to tweak. While the first two practice sessions were very uncomfortable, at least I was loosening up and feeling confident I could get things sorted before races started after lunch.

In second practice group 4 I decided to push the new bike a bit to see what was going on and evaluate what kind of race pace I might be able to generate. The bike was very unstable in the bumps and under acceleration, the rear was bottoming. This was presenting some pretty interesting corner exits and in fact darn near bucked me off going through the whoops at T2 exit. I stopped by Barry’s pad for an adjustment after practice and hoped for the best in 750 SS. Second practice in group 3 really helped my confidence as the SV was running pretty good, predictable, and having something familiar underneath me was a welcome change after two practices on the 750.

650SS Twins. I had a great grid slot in 2nd row 1st position for this race and hoped I could get off the line cleanly and give a run at top 5. At the light I got a good start but it was pretty clear that the Pinkstaff’s, Draycott, and Finken were a bit faster off the line. We went into T2 in a tight line. By the exit of T4, the front 3 had a small gap on Finken, and Finken had a small gap on me. I tried pushing a bit harder in the back section and closed the gap only to lose it again on the straight. I realized that the speed differential was not going to be made up in corner speed so I settled in to 5th trying to maintain decent, consistent laps and take the position. Barry provided some gap indication during the race and so holding the pace was easier. Other than a bit of a slide in T4, the race went pretty smooth and I was feeling pretty solid with a 5th place finish.

750SS was next and would be the first race on the new bike coming back to back with 650SS twins. Deep breath and away we go. I had a great grid position for this race as well, being slotted 2nd row 3rd position. The start was a push as I neither gained nor lost much getting off the line. The pack was tight going through 1 and into 2 but uneventful as we all made it through. I tried to stay competitive with the lead group but I was not working well with the new bike and started going backwards at an alarming rate. At this point, the rational side of me would have said to settle in, try to get smooth, and take what place you get. The adrenaline freak in me said to go for it. On lap 4 I came through 1,2, and 3 pretty clean. Now I’m starting to feel good. I tipped into 4 a bit harder than prior laps and had to correct my line mid corner unsettling the chassis in the process. Before letting things settle, I cracked the throttle to save my drive out and the backend started coming around. I tried to hold it but the Bridgestone’s wouldn’t stay sliding for long and hooked back up before I could get the bike completely picked up. The ensuing high side put me on the track looking to avoid oncoming racers as I waited for my momentum to bring me to a stop. The result was a DNF in the race, partially separated clavicle, sprained knee, softball size lump on hip, a severely swollen hand, the usual bumps and bruises, bent frame slider bolt, broken rear-set, bent bar, and the usual scratches and cracks.

Fortunately, the bike is not too damaged, the body is not broken, and we’ll be back in Aug and look to get the new bike sorted before next race.

Special thanks to WMRRA staff, my teammates, PNWRidersRacing.com, PNWRiders.com, Bridgestone Tires, Power Stands Racing, Adrenaline Freaks Track Days, MotorexUSA, Vortex, More Power Racing, RaceTech, VHoldR, Junior Monkey Design.

2008 OMRRA Round 1 #282 Race Report

PNWRiders Racing #282 Race Report OMRRA Round 1
Race Report – OMRRA Round 1

Crib Notes
750SS(Senior) 1st, 18th overall
750SBK(Senior) DNF; highside in T4 lap 8
Middleweight SS, 11th
650 Twins, 11th
Lap time goals: 1:16 on 750 and 1:22 on SV
Best lap time actual: 1:12:2 on 750 and 1:19 on SV.

I arrived at the newly surfaced Portland International Raceway (PIR) at 7AM excited to try out the new track with CTT on Friday, and to experience my first OMRRA event that weekend.

First time out on the track was with the SV and by the time I came out of T2 I had two thoughts. Track surface = WOW!, and SV is running better than WMRRA round 1. I had set goals for myself to get to 1:22 times on the SV and 1:16 times on the 750. Based on my first impressions of the track, the grip, and the lean angles I figured my goals were easily obtainable. Friday ended up being a good day for learning the track but did have some challenges with oil spills etc. Kudos to Tyson and staff for meeting those challenges and getting us back on the track in the afternoon. All in all, a good day. I was still a bit slower than goal, but optimistic.

Saturday practice went pretty smooth. Kevin, Chris, and I kept getting faster, the track was so grippy, and all bikes were running well. What more can a guy ask for? Other than a mild low side by Chris that ended our day chasing parts and wrenching, Sat was a good day of practice giving way to lots of optimism for Sunday’s races. Chris F walked away with best lap time of 1:14:04. A full .5 second faster than the prior fastest lap.

Sunday morning came a bit cooler than Sat, but dry and clear. First practice went off without a hitch and I took second practice off as the 750SS race was right after.

750SS(Senior). I gridded on row I-4 which was fine by me given my best time of the weekend was only a 1:14:58 so I knew there were a lot of guys on the grid much faster. The flag dropped and we were away. I had a decent start that had me with the H group by T1. Wow, lots of traffic. I held my place and let the field spread out before getting back to my lines and seeing how I might try and get a few positions. I was able to get a few passes and hung on the tail of #62. I couldn’t quite get a pace to pass him, but was able to hang at his pace. I ended up taking 1st for the senior class and I believe 18th for the overall 750SS class. A solid result with a best lap time of 1:12:991.

Middleweight SS. I gridded G-1 for this race and was excited to see how the SV would do after previous carb issues. I got off to my usual bad start and patiently waited for the field to shake out before pushing up corner speed to try and get positions. I had a good time with #43 Mark Bothe through out the race. He had a distinct advantage on the straights, we were even in 7-9, and I had an edge in 1-4. Made for great racing and allowed me to focus in on improving corner speed using Mark as my benchmark. I finished 11th in this race although I had to get the verification signatures as I left my AMB transponder on the 750. Thanks to OMRRA scoring for helping me to recover from this rookie mistake.

650 Twins. I gridded H-3 for this race and determined to get a better start. The flagged dropped and we were away. My start was better than the previous race and I even had the front wheel off the ground a bit. Not enough to handicap my start, but it felt good as I didn’t know the old girl had it in her. I again realized the SV just isn’t keeping pace with her peers on the straights. I’ll need to find some extra HP for that, or take something from own mid section if I want to be truly competitive. I was able to hang onto another 11th place finish with a best lap of 1:19:9 by carrying better corner speed then previous practice sessions.

750SBK(Senior). A huge thanks to my teammates Chris Fratini and Kevin Klemmer along with our buddy Monta (anyexcuse2ride) for all the help in having my 750 ready for this race as it was back to back with 650 Twins. I reached the hot pits in plenty of time to collect my thoughts and get ready for the race ahead. I gridded H-4 for this race and was determined to keep improving my times. I was able to get a decent start passing a row and a half at the drop of the flag. As the field sorted itself out I was able to pick a few spots as the laps ticked by. As we reached mid-point I found myself on the tail of #147 Bryan Rothenburger and #122 Matt Presting. Matt was able to get by Bryan so I knew if I wanted a chance at Matt, I’d need to get by Bryan in short order. We came out of T3 and made the decision to take him on the inside of T4. Unfortunately, I was too greedy with the throttle and the resultant highside cost me another senior class win and top 20 overall finish. Kudos to Bryan for a fantastic save, a huge thanks to the OMRRA corner workers in T4 for helping me out, and thanks to Blinky for the ride back to the pits.

Overall, a great weekend. A huge thanks to the OMRRA club, members, and staff. PIR rocks!

Thanks to our 2008 sponsors and supporters.
PNWRiders Racing Team
Power Stands Racing
Adrenaline Freaks Track Days
Vortex Racing
Motorex USA
MorePower Racing
Race Tech Suspension
Junior Monkey Design