Race Report: AFM Round 4, 2016 Thunderhill Raceway

I was coming into this weekend on the tail end of a whirlwind month. I had managed some valuable track time and instruction over the course of the month, and I was hoping to see some measurable results from all of it. While I had hoped for slightly cooler temperatures in order to see my best possible results, that was not to be the case, and we were looking at temps that would soar into the 100’s on Sunday. Well, lots more practice on sliding the bike, something I had only recently begun to get comfortable with doing on purpose (as opposed to just dealing with it if it happened).

Earlier in the month at some of the track days I had gotten some very valuable feedback from Ken Hill, and some one-on-one coaching from our current #2 plate holder, Cory Call. A few trackdays followed all of that where I had chances to practice some of what I had been working on. I was looking forward to actually putting it all to use. There was a week off of bikes when I was in Tennessee for a work trip which I extended a couple days so I could visit family, although I did manage a little test ride on the new ZX10R while I was out there.

I returned from TN late Monday, and spent Tuesday after work getting my bike ready for the weekend. Wednesday night was packing and getting everything else ready to go, and Thursday found me heading to work super early so I could get home, load up, and head to Thunderhill for the Pacific Track Time trackday on Friday.

Friday went well enough, although I did manage to boil the brake fluid in my GSXR (which I was using for coaching), so I was hoping the upgraded and fresh fluid in the 675 would hold up a little better over the weekend! I went out for a couple faster laps in the afternoon on the 675, and just worked on making sure my eyes were moving enough and I was hitting my markers. I didn’t want to wear myself out in the heat, so I called it an early day. Hung out with the crew for a bit in the evening, then headed over to where I was camping for the weekend to hang out with those guys.

Saturday morning dawned cool and bright, and led me to hope that maybe things wouldn’t get too crazy hot. Thankfully I was in practice group 3, which at least meant I wouldn’t be playing “dodge the 250’s” all day. I got some good quality practice in the morning, then when lunch hit decided to work on getting my Dunlop Race Tires swapped out for some fresh ones. I gave those some time on the warmers, then went out for a couple laps to scrub them in before my Clubman Middleweight class.

Eventually the races started, and since Clubman got moved to the fourth race of the day, I got to watch my teammate, Paul’s race where he finished on the podium in 3^rd place, making a good run at a championship spot in that class. It was then time to start getting myself and my bike ready, and we headed out for the first race of the weekend.

Clubman is usually an interesting race, and since I’m gridding further up in all of my classes, I’m finding that “clear track” is pretty much a thing of the past, and in all of my races I will be fighting to keep my position. This race followed that in grand fashion, especially since my start was rather “meh” I had lots of opportunities to fight it out with a few other bikes. Eventually I finished the race in 7^th place of 20 with a best lap of 2:01.90, right near my previous personal best from the previous round.

That concluded Saturday, and we thankfully finished our race so I would only have 5 on Sunday in the heat. Things didn’t cool off very well over the evening, thankfully where I was sleeping we had AC and fans, so I actually got some pretty good sleep. Sunday dawned warm and bright, and it was promising to potentially get hot as the day progressed.

I completed the Sunday practice and was happy enough with that, and then had a bit of a break until my first race of the day, 600 Superbike. This was the race I had added after the first round, so my grid spot was a bit further back than in some of my other classes, but close enough where I didn’t have to worry about too much slower traffic. I had an okay start, and battled it out until the end. I was definitely doing better than in the past, and was finding that running with the faster bikes kept pushing me just that little bit more. I finished in 8^th of 21 with a best lap of 2:00.45. That was putting my goal of seeing sub-2’s on this bike so close I could taste it, but the track was getting warmer, and we were going to be experiencing more slides and dealing with the heat physically as well.

My next race before lunch was Formula 1. Again racing many of the same bikes, we battled through the race and I  finished with in 9^th of 19, with another 2:00.98 lap time. I was consistently getting into the 2 flats…and was itching for a little bit more. This lead to the lunch break and rear tire swap for me, and once that was done took some time to relax and try to stay properly hydrated with my Skratch Labs hydration mixes.

After lunch my first race up was Legacy Middleweight where I’m in a championship contention, so I wanted to see a good performance out of myself. I knew that the current 2^nd place holder, Sam, wouldn’t make it easy for me, and that was most definitely the case. Since this class is gridded behind Formula 4, we are often hitting wave traffic, and this was no different. The same expert that was holding us up in the last round was there, but both of us had picked up enough time where we were able to get around him a little easier. Unfortunately Sam got around before I did and it took me several more corners to make a pass, and by then he had put a good gap between us. While I took the next lap and a half to try to reel him in, I couldn’t quite close it before the checkered, and finished in 3^rd of 7, with a best of 2:00.61 and securing my spot at this point in the championship run.

I really, REALLY wanted that extra ½ second off my times though (actually, I was secretly hoping for a bit more than that, but at a minimum, I wanted that sub-2 minute time). One of my friends, Rory, had commented on my Facebook post with a tip, and it made sense, so I decided to give it a go in the next race, 600 Production, one of the largest grids of the weekend.

I’m gridding a little closer to the front here, which meant I knew I could be up front if I got a good start – so I focused on making sure I nailed my start, and that paid off with allowing me to run in 2^nd place for a bit. While I couldn’t maintain that position, I enjoyed the view up front, and loved the fights and battles going on with the front runners. That little FB tip paid off on one of my biggest struggles on the track and basically eliminating my frustration there. I finished the race in 5^th of 22 – and I FINALLY broke that 2 minute barrier with a best lap of 1:59.89 – barely, but I broke it!

I still had one race left, 750 Production, again with most of the same guys with a few 750s tossed into the mix. This is a slightly smaller grid, and I had some fun battles yet again, finishing again in 5^th of 8 with a best lap of 2:01.26. I was starting to experience a fair bit of sliding in this class as the heat was climbing, so I wasn’t too upset with the lap times or finish.

Overall, it was great weekend. Now that my times have started to drop where they have, progress is going to be coming in smaller chunks and I need to be prepared for that. I’m still chasing some major set up issues on the bike (dropping all the time I have is not helping make that task any easier for Jim over at Catalyst Reaction Suspension), so hopefully sorting that out combined with cleaning up the things I’m working on will have me into my ultimate goal range on this bike!

My sponsors have been amazing in helping me continue this growth trend, and helping me finish in the top 10 in every race this weekend, and top 5 in half of them! Huge shout outs to RiderzLaw for their continued support; Dainese D-Store in San Francisco for high quality gear that I love to wear; Dunlop Race Tires for keeping the shiny side up and confidence in the tires; Catalyst Reaction for helping me constantly chase set up this year; Moto Guild SF for parts and access to tools I don’t have; Skratch Labs for keeping me hydrated even in 100+ degree heat; Pacific Track Time for the motivation and track time; Woodcraft for parts and spares so I’m always ready just-in-case; Motion Pro for outstanding tools; Erich Steigler Insurance for the support; and Cycle Gear for those daily use products. I can’t thank all of you enough for everything, and I’m stoked to see us getting closer to those podiums with each race! There’s some tough competition, and we’re nipping a their heels now!