Sonoma Raceway was the setting for the 5th AFM
race round of 2015. One of the most technical tracks on our circuit, it is the
one track we race on that used to host AMA racing as well as club level races.
Historically this particular track has been my worst track that we ride, and
even more so on my current bike. I hadn’t been here since our last round at
Sonoma earlier in the year when I had finally broken my previous personal best
by just a bit.
I came into this weekend fairly hopeful, however, partially
due to a few things happening over the summer break that I knew would help me
improve in various ways. I had received some coaching at one of the PTT track
days from one of our faster racers, and there were several take away pieces of
information that I knew I could apply to any track I was on. Over the few weeks
in between that track day and our races I sat down with a notebook, some
videos, and a track map and tried to really apply some of the things we had
gone over, and give myself very specific things to clean up and do differently
as soon as I hit the track.
We had a Friday trackday with Pacific Track Time, although I
spent the majority of the day coaching, it still gave me an opportunity to ride
the adjusted lines I wanted to work on at a slower pace and really establish a
few more reference points. A couple faster sessions later in the day and I felt
prepared to tackle our Saturday practices with the AFemme race taking place in
the afternoon.
Practices on Saturday went well, with little excitement. I
was working to get used to my new Motion Pro Rev 2 Throttle, where I had gone
up one reel size from what was previously on the bike. I was noticing an
immediate difference – I would twist the throttle and the bike would actually
go somewhere! Gotta love that feeling J.
I knew I’d rapidly move up another reel size, but wanted to go through the weekend
on this one to ensure I didn’t get myself into trouble with it. Over lunch I
swapped my take offs for some new shiny Dunlop Race tires and got ready for the
afternoon races. A short practice session to scrub the tires a bit and I was
ready for AFemme.
Our AFemme grid was small this time, but I knew I still had Paige
to contend with – she’s been a bit faster than me right along, but I wanted to
give her a run for her money! My start was bad, with a wheelie forcing me to
roll off a bit I lost some ground at the launch, but set it back down and
charged up the hill, making a pass on Daniella on the way to turn two.
Valentine Welch was in front of me, and I was doing my best to keep up as I
knew her corner speed was good and she was getting into the times I hoped to
reach. Paige managed a pass on me going into Turn 7, and she and Valentine
started to give a bit of a gap. We then started to hit lap traffic, with
clusters of 250s providing many “opportunities” to pass. Paige and Valentine
were too far to reach so I held back a bit on aggressive passes allowing the
250s to complete their race with minimal interruption.
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| Photo by Bill Schaffer |
I ended the AFemme Nv race in 2nd place, coming
out with another personal best by shaving another second off the time I had
managed at the last round. The additional speed was affecting my bike set up,
however, so I headed over to Catalyst Reaction Suspension to tweak things more
for the new pace. Saturday night there were a few gatherings and parties
happening around the pits, so I hung out with my fellow riders and racers,
enjoying the social evening as we all talked, laughed, and shared war stories.
Eventually the evening ended and I tucked in for a good sleep before my Sunday
races.
My first race on Sunday was 750 Production Nv – this is a
class I’ve only been racing every other round due to where my Legacy class was
gridded. Due to this, I’m at the back of the pack. My start wasn’t too bad, and
we charged around the track. I had a few riders I passed at the start who made
their way back around me. For the most part the race was pretty quiet for me,
while I had a few riders I was chasing, this race usually ends up being my
proverbial “warm up” race to get my head in the game for Legacy Middle which
was my second race of the day. I finished 750 in 19th place. I
walked away with yet another personal best, however, so I knew I was headed in the
right direction for my own riding.
Legacy Middle I had a great start, putting a couple of
riders behind me. I knew they would fight for that place back, and I knew they
were both a little faster than me at this track, so I was doing my best to keep
them back there. I held them off for a while, but they eventually managed to
get around. I kept them in sight, however, working on closing that gap back up.
I finished the race in 7th place, setting yet another PB for the
weekend, now down 3 seconds off my previous personal best.
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| Photo by Bill Schaffer |
Going into this weekend I had secretly hoped to see my times
down into a 1:54.XXX. I knew that was unlikely to happen at this point in my
riding, since most of my progress this year has been a second here and there,
maybe a couple seconds over the course of a weekend, but not the leaps and
bounds I had experienced last year. But, I was hopeful that the coaching I had received
would be the key for this leap, and I was starting to see the difference. I
knew if I could consistently apply the changes I had been working on all
weekend in my final race that maybe – just maybe – I could see that secret goal
happen. I wasn’t that far off of it, I had found some very specific areas to
make up time, and I knew that if I could consistently hit them that secret goal
may just become reality.
My final race of the day was Formula 1 Nv, a race that I’ve
ran all year, but have been a consistent back marker in it. This is also the one
race I consistently can run with my teammate, and I knew that he may be the
carrot I needed to get my times down. We headed out to the grid and got ready
to go. My launch was good, but the rider in front and to my right drifted into
my path blocking my forward momentum, so I didn’t make up quite as much ground
on the start as I had hoped. Despite that I charged up the hill trying to pick
off as many bikes as possible in the first few corners. Due to converging lines
and some swooping lines a few riders had to check and up and dodge around, and
ended up pushing me wide through 2. Okay, we’re all still up, and we continue
on. I was able to pick off a few other riders around the track, but I knew my
teammate was right behind me, and I wanted to keep him back there. I focused on
hitting the things I had been working on all weekend, and on keeping the riders
behind me, well, behind me! The race went well, I felt comfortable and relaxed,
and was way more consistent with my changes, only missing the marks once or
twice, but with no big mistakes. It was a great race with some fun battles and
I rolled in knowing I wasn’t last, but unsure how many riders were behind me at
the end.
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| Photo by Bill Schaffer |
Eventually results were posted and I finished the race in 15th
, solidly in the middle of the pack instead of the back. Additionally, my super-secret
personal goal was accomplished, with a personal best into the 1:54s with lap times
consistently close to that.
I left the weekend knowing I had made some huge
improvements. The assistance of my amazing sponsors can’t be over emphasized as
this weekend simply would not have happened without them. The support of
RiderzLaw allowed me to get to the races and made sure I had some great Dunlop
Race Tires on my bike to give me the grip I needed. Catalyst Reaction made sure
the bike wasn’t getting out of sorts as I pushed it harder than I previously
had, and Skratch Labs kept me hydrated and energized in the heat and activity.
Moto Guild helped me get the stuff I needed to have the bike ready to go, and
the others have all helped me throughout the year to make this kind of
progress. All of the support has been amazing, and the products and services my
sponsors provide are top notch!
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| Photo by Bill Schaffer |
Overall, the weekend went extremely well. While I had hoped
to give a better battle in AFemme, my times by the end of the weekend were
putting me much closer to making that happen. The next two rounds will be
interesting as I have the opportunity to continue to apply these changes to my
riding at the other tracks. Making a 5 second improvement over the course of a
weekend at this point is rather huge, which means the changes were, quite
literally, game changing for me. I’m excited to carry this into the final two
rounds and see if I can maybe squeak out finally getting that first place
trophy!
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