Members racing thread
Discussion
patchb said:
I’m doing my ACU licence on 24th Feb at brands. Is it likely that they will have a scrutineer there that could have a look over my bike just in case I’ve missed anything required for racing when building it?
Yeah, more than likely. The ACU instructors that will make the presentation, and also stage the test, should be able to help you with all the various bits required for Scrutineering. If I remember rightly, the bits you need to modify for racing are covered in the presentation that you're then tested on
):
Back home now from NLR Donington, and had a great weekend.
It started off really cold on both mornings, but the sun was out today and it reached a scorching 12deg this afternoon
First race weekend for me on my new R1, and besides not being able to get it cleanly off the line, I'm made up with the bike.
Race 1 and 2 were ok ish, and I qualified for race one in 14th out of a grid of 40, and finished 11th. Race two was based off the lap times from race one, so I started 9th. I had a better start, but still went into the first turn in about 15th, and took me a few laps to get back to where I was, and I think I finished 8th, so a slight improvement.
Race three was based off 2's lap times, so I got to start on the 2nd row in 6th. Had a much better start, and went onto the 2nd lap in 4th, and picked my way up to 3rd by the 4th lap, where I stayed until the end, so a first podium for me in the Club1000 class, and a great result for me. I had a good couple of seconds on 4th place for the whole race, and it was actually quite lonely as the 1/2 riders were a few seconds up the road and around a second a lap quicker than me, so although I could see them trading places, it'd take a big mistake for them for me to bring them back into sight. I did try though, and put my fastest lap in on lap 10 as soon as I saw that final lap flag come out.
Race 4 was not meant to be when I pulled put on lap 9 from 4th place as my steering damper came loose and caused my front end to nearly lock up solid, so I called it a day
Anyway, good weekend's riding for me, and I think my next race is going to the Anglesey round, so I'll have a god go at improving on a best of 3rd.
I've not seen any riding pics yet, so you'll have to put up with a trophy holding mug shot and some results
It started off really cold on both mornings, but the sun was out today and it reached a scorching 12deg this afternoon
First race weekend for me on my new R1, and besides not being able to get it cleanly off the line, I'm made up with the bike.
Race 1 and 2 were ok ish, and I qualified for race one in 14th out of a grid of 40, and finished 11th. Race two was based off the lap times from race one, so I started 9th. I had a better start, but still went into the first turn in about 15th, and took me a few laps to get back to where I was, and I think I finished 8th, so a slight improvement.
Race three was based off 2's lap times, so I got to start on the 2nd row in 6th. Had a much better start, and went onto the 2nd lap in 4th, and picked my way up to 3rd by the 4th lap, where I stayed until the end, so a first podium for me in the Club1000 class, and a great result for me. I had a good couple of seconds on 4th place for the whole race, and it was actually quite lonely as the 1/2 riders were a few seconds up the road and around a second a lap quicker than me, so although I could see them trading places, it'd take a big mistake for them for me to bring them back into sight. I did try though, and put my fastest lap in on lap 10 as soon as I saw that final lap flag come out.
Race 4 was not meant to be when I pulled put on lap 9 from 4th place as my steering damper came loose and caused my front end to nearly lock up solid, so I called it a day
Anyway, good weekend's riding for me, and I think my next race is going to the Anglesey round, so I'll have a god go at improving on a best of 3rd.
I've not seen any riding pics yet, so you'll have to put up with a trophy holding mug shot and some results
hopefully see you at the Donington NG round
George29 said:
Also I noticed a few Ducati V4s racing on Saturday, I don’t understand how they’re being allowed to race an 1100cc 4 cylinder bike in the 1000 class? Seems a bit unfair to me. Is it only NoLimits that allow this?
I guess they have special allowances for it. They weren't exactly fast thoughGeorge29 said:
graeme4130 said:
I guess they have special allowances for it. They weren't exactly fast though
I guess so but if I rocked up on a GSXR 750 and asked to race in the 600s I don’t think it would be allowed, it’s no different reallyThe 600 class is 400-749cc and the 1000 class is 750-1300cc with no stipulations on cylinder count
A few pics I found at https://draycottphotography.pixieset.com/donington... and on RLphotography facebook page
I'll get some riding pics up when they trickle through, but just got home from the Snetterton 200 round with NGRRC
I've been to Snetterton once before, but did roughly 8-10 laps before my gearbox went pop on my old ZX10R, so I really had no idea where it went.
The test day was Friday, and like the rest of the weekend was bloody freezing with the occasional drizzle, hail and even show. Learnt roughly which way the track went though between shivering away in the caravan trying to get warm.
Saturday's qualifying was equally as cold and we had quite a few little snow showers, which luckily never settled. Mid morning, a bike went bang on the start finish straight and dumped oil all over the track along the racing line from about the finish line right round to turn 3 onto the back straight, so that meant you had to go either left of right of it, which wasn't ideal
Anyway, qualified for the Powerbikes in 4th, which I was really happy with
Race one on Saturday, and I did the jumpstart of the gods. I'm not talking a Crutchlow creep, but a full on 'go 2 seconds early' and I was past Josh day on Pole before the lights went out
I rolled off a lot and hesitated, but didn't want to stop in case I stalled, and then when the lights did go out, I got swamped and went into turn one in about 12th. I knew I was going to get a massive penalty, so just used the race to get a feel for the class and track time. In the end, the Clerk of the course was pretty lenient on me (which was surprising) as it was the last race of the day, and with the stoppages we weren't starting until 18:15, so I pleaded that the sun was very low behind the lights and i got a 10second penalty added to my race time, which put me in 7th. I was most bummed as that put me outside the % rule for a National License Signature.
I got ribbed pretty much the whole night in the bar from my mates, but if it had been the other way around, i'd have been taking the piss too, so I deserved it
Sunday's race was much better. It was on off drizzle and around 7deg, bit still just about ok for slicks. As per Saturday, the race was delayed as someone spunked Oil all over the end of the back straight and into the left right before the bomb hole, which made braking from your top speed (probably 170ish down there?) a bit scary.
I got a mega start from 7th (on the lights this time) and hit the first corner in 3rd, got up to second by the end of the first lap, and still just about had Josh Day in Sight for about 4 corners before he dropped me and was gone. He was lapping a good couple of seconds per lap faster than anyone else on the grid and I knew I had no chance of reeling him in, so just kept an eye on my pltboard and maintained a 0.8-1 second gap to third place
The race then get red flagged one lap from the end, so they called it a result and I got 2nd, which is my best result for 2019 and a good step in the right direction on my new R1.
Got myself a Trophy for the shelf and a bright red Snetterton Podium cap
I've been to Snetterton once before, but did roughly 8-10 laps before my gearbox went pop on my old ZX10R, so I really had no idea where it went.
The test day was Friday, and like the rest of the weekend was bloody freezing with the occasional drizzle, hail and even show. Learnt roughly which way the track went though between shivering away in the caravan trying to get warm.
Saturday's qualifying was equally as cold and we had quite a few little snow showers, which luckily never settled. Mid morning, a bike went bang on the start finish straight and dumped oil all over the track along the racing line from about the finish line right round to turn 3 onto the back straight, so that meant you had to go either left of right of it, which wasn't ideal
Anyway, qualified for the Powerbikes in 4th, which I was really happy with
Race one on Saturday, and I did the jumpstart of the gods. I'm not talking a Crutchlow creep, but a full on 'go 2 seconds early' and I was past Josh day on Pole before the lights went out
I rolled off a lot and hesitated, but didn't want to stop in case I stalled, and then when the lights did go out, I got swamped and went into turn one in about 12th. I knew I was going to get a massive penalty, so just used the race to get a feel for the class and track time. In the end, the Clerk of the course was pretty lenient on me (which was surprising) as it was the last race of the day, and with the stoppages we weren't starting until 18:15, so I pleaded that the sun was very low behind the lights and i got a 10second penalty added to my race time, which put me in 7th. I was most bummed as that put me outside the % rule for a National License Signature.
I got ribbed pretty much the whole night in the bar from my mates, but if it had been the other way around, i'd have been taking the piss too, so I deserved it
Sunday's race was much better. It was on off drizzle and around 7deg, bit still just about ok for slicks. As per Saturday, the race was delayed as someone spunked Oil all over the end of the back straight and into the left right before the bomb hole, which made braking from your top speed (probably 170ish down there?) a bit scary.
I got a mega start from 7th (on the lights this time) and hit the first corner in 3rd, got up to second by the end of the first lap, and still just about had Josh Day in Sight for about 4 corners before he dropped me and was gone. He was lapping a good couple of seconds per lap faster than anyone else on the grid and I knew I had no chance of reeling him in, so just kept an eye on my pltboard and maintained a 0.8-1 second gap to third place
The race then get red flagged one lap from the end, so they called it a result and I got 2nd, which is my best result for 2019 and a good step in the right direction on my new R1.
Got myself a Trophy for the shelf and a bright red Snetterton Podium cap
Yeah, the 200 layout sucks when it's cold. We had the same with NGRRC a few weeks back, and you literally had to tiptoe around the two lefts onto the front and back straight or you'd be down. You couldn't even carry the brakes into the last one after the long right as the back end would just try to come around on you. The left at the end of the back straight wasn't so bad as you'd get some heat in the front tyre hammering the brakes from something like 165 into it
200 crashes over a weekend is a nightmare though
Hopefully, the UK summer will turn up properly soon
200 crashes over a weekend is a nightmare though
Hopefully, the UK summer will turn up properly soon
Just home from a weekend of racing in Snetterton with NLR in the Cup1000
Good to see a few PH'ers out there too
Not a great weekend in terms of results for me with 2 4ths and a 5th.
I'm really struggling to get my R1 off the line cleanly, and it means I'm going into Turn 1 in about 8th or 9th despite starting on the front row due to lap times, so are having to fight my way up over the first 2-3 laps, and then by that point, the front 3 are 10 seconds down the road. Nevermind, had fun anyway and came home in 1 piece
Seeing as I've never raced at Snetterton 300 before, I've got a new race PB of 1:57.3 too, which is a good positive to take away
Next up is the 10hr at Anglesey
I used Andy and Ash at Track prep racing this weekend, as my usual mates that do my pit board etc were away, and it was the best £200 I've ever spent racing. They do everything, from taking your bike to sound testing, setting your suspension and gearing on the test day, right through to measure fuel in and out after each session so you have just the right amount to race and do your tyre changes, pit board etc. Really really good guys, and well worth using if you're going racing without a support crew.
Good to see a few PH'ers out there too
Not a great weekend in terms of results for me with 2 4ths and a 5th.
I'm really struggling to get my R1 off the line cleanly, and it means I'm going into Turn 1 in about 8th or 9th despite starting on the front row due to lap times, so are having to fight my way up over the first 2-3 laps, and then by that point, the front 3 are 10 seconds down the road. Nevermind, had fun anyway and came home in 1 piece
Seeing as I've never raced at Snetterton 300 before, I've got a new race PB of 1:57.3 too, which is a good positive to take away
Next up is the 10hr at Anglesey
I used Andy and Ash at Track prep racing this weekend, as my usual mates that do my pit board etc were away, and it was the best £200 I've ever spent racing. They do everything, from taking your bike to sound testing, setting your suspension and gearing on the test day, right through to measure fuel in and out after each session so you have just the right amount to race and do your tyre changes, pit board etc. Really really good guys, and well worth using if you're going racing without a support crew.
stew-STR160 said:
Looking forward to seeing some reports from Graeme and anyone else who did the 10hr.
Mine from Donington...well, it was wet! Very wet.
Four races over the two days, three of which were truly wet. Qualy was dry on Saturday morning, until the last few minutes when the rain started. The second race on Saturday was a drying track. Races one, three, and four...see the picture below of Coppice...
I came away with my best race weekend yet, and some of the best battles I've ever had. Reinforcing my love for this racing stuff.
I scored, in order, 12th, 9th, 8th, 10th. My best finish ever in Golden Era Supersport being the 8th.
Absolutely gutted about the 10th in the last race as I'm sure I could have got 7th by my tyres were shot from the drying race on Saturday afternoon. So the two wet races on Sunday were hard. I lost the back end out of Mcleans in the last race so backed off and lost a place as I decided not to risk it, just get home in the points...
Good work Stu. I heard the conditions were shocking, and Dony's not a friendly track in the wetMine from Donington...well, it was wet! Very wet.
Four races over the two days, three of which were truly wet. Qualy was dry on Saturday morning, until the last few minutes when the rain started. The second race on Saturday was a drying track. Races one, three, and four...see the picture below of Coppice...
I came away with my best race weekend yet, and some of the best battles I've ever had. Reinforcing my love for this racing stuff.
I scored, in order, 12th, 9th, 8th, 10th. My best finish ever in Golden Era Supersport being the 8th.
Absolutely gutted about the 10th in the last race as I'm sure I could have got 7th by my tyres were shot from the drying race on Saturday afternoon. So the two wet races on Sunday were hard. I lost the back end out of Mcleans in the last race so backed off and lost a place as I decided not to risk it, just get home in the points...
I'll get my endurance report up sometime this week when the photo's are up
moanthebairns said:
Surely using the international track instead of coastal would have been a better idea with that many riders.
It was on the full international track It wasn’t actually that busy as with only 42 teams, it was less riders on track than a typical trackday. The CB500’s we’re a bit of a pain as the approach speed is really high, but they were easy enough to spot as they had elbows out and upright, so you could see them a long way off
I used the new Pirelli SCX slicks (supposed to grip like sc1’s but last way longer), which were great for about 8-10 laps, but then started moving about a lot
1x45 min stint and the rear had had it down to the wear indicators
I wouldn't say it got overly busy on the circuit anyway, so the slower riders were no real issue. Like said above, it was the erratic riding that was the main issue - I had a couple of people come out of pit lane and straight onto the inside of the hairpin right hander in front of me
It's more of an issue with sprints as you're gunning it for a place, whereas in endurance, it's a bit more leisurely, so you can afford to sit up for a corner and take on the next straight
Like Lindum says, our team would've fallen outside the rules within ourself, as we had myself and James doing circa 32-34 during the race and Nathan doing 37's, but Dave was lucky to get under 40 on any of his stints
James did a 1:31 in the first stint at the start of the race and then realised he needed to chill the f
k out if he was going to do 40mins
The the thing bugs me, but I totally get why they do it
I mainly did a rear per stint, but stretched one to a 40min and then another 30minute and it was all over the place and way past the wear indicators. I think it's only a matter of time before some that's racing on a tighter budget, pushes a tyre beyond it's life and it falls apart going at high speed. After that, I think they'd have to reconsider how they do it
The standalone events they've done previously (Doni 8hr and 1000km) have both had open tyre rules, but have been outside the championship, so not sure what changed this time
It's more of an issue with sprints as you're gunning it for a place, whereas in endurance, it's a bit more leisurely, so you can afford to sit up for a corner and take on the next straight
Like Lindum says, our team would've fallen outside the rules within ourself, as we had myself and James doing circa 32-34 during the race and Nathan doing 37's, but Dave was lucky to get under 40 on any of his stints
James did a 1:31 in the first stint at the start of the race and then realised he needed to chill the f
k out if he was going to do 40mins The the thing bugs me, but I totally get why they do it
I mainly did a rear per stint, but stretched one to a 40min and then another 30minute and it was all over the place and way past the wear indicators. I think it's only a matter of time before some that's racing on a tighter budget, pushes a tyre beyond it's life and it falls apart going at high speed. After that, I think they'd have to reconsider how they do it
The standalone events they've done previously (Doni 8hr and 1000km) have both had open tyre rules, but have been outside the championship, so not sure what changed this time
Edited by graeme4130 on Tuesday 30th July 16:00
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