posted on April 03, 2010 12:09
Round 2 - Snetterton 26th - 28th March
I hadn't been to Snet for over a year. Last year, MHP sponsored the MiniTwins to try and help people stay in the game and I decided not to do Snet in order to keep cash flow strong. I am not Snetterton's biggest fan. I don't mind it, but I like the other circuits in the calendar more.
So I was getting ready to go and Mark broke the news that he wouldnt be able to leave when I got home because he needed to finish some work. After a very long day/week/month/year so far at work, I decided that I needed to chill out at the circuit that night and not wait. What's more is the van failed it's MOT and I can't drive the truck, so I had nothing to take the cat to the cattery in. So I took her to the cattery in a taxi and then got on the ZX10 and went to circuit ahead of Mark (the truck was already packed, so I didn't feel bad for not helping).
Of course it was raining and there were roadworks and I was cold and a bit annoyed and tired, so it was absolutely awesome to turn up and be greeted with several happy faces. Tori, Steve, Matt, Mark (Steve's Mechanic) and Dave Hewson were already in the garage and my arrival was greeted with jokes and comments about the model of ZX10 I own. For those of you that don't know, it's the "wheelbarrow" version due to the position of the two underseat cans. Like what-ever! :D
What a relief, I could finally relax.
At about 5:30am I got a text from Mark saying that he had broken down in the truck because the fan belts failed. Not a lot I could do, but he had stopped near a parts shop that we use and so he would be able to get the bits he needed later in the morning. I was glad I'd checked all the accounts the night before and left him more than sufficient funds on the table at home. All I could do now was wait. The usual jokes about my potential participation in Powerbikes on the ZX10 or attempting to put the ten engine in the SV frame ensued. I texted the powers to be at Bemsee to let them know Mark was unlikely to be able to instruct in the morning and they made alternative arrangements.
The wait ended when Mark turned up just after lunch and we managed to get out for the last two sessions. As I hadn't been there for a year, this was helpful - a small apology to anyone following me in the penultimate (my first) session - I was all over the place but started to get it together on the last session. Before I went to scrutineering, I took the baffles that Mark had made for Simon Exton's Ducati to him. Being a funny shape, Mark had designed and made them especially. Simon seemed happy with them and we agreed to catch up later. I went to scrut and got through despite needing to tighten up a fairing bolt that had begun to obstruct my rear brake lever.
So we put the bikes to bed and organised dinner. I love the atmosphere at the circuit. In the mornings, it's always fresh and there is this sense of anticipation. Plus you get Mike Dommett's dulcit tones over the airwaves and he always has something amusing to say... During the day, it's a combination between getting to and from the track on time, working on the corners and overtakes, making sure you have all the relevant fuel, heat in tyres, correct equipment and managing to keep up with all the conversations and discussions with a hundred people. And in the evenings, it's time to relax, chat, eat and sleep and there is ALWAYS someone good to talk to.
Raceday and I work on getting myself into the groove. I like to be prepared so that there isn't too much to think about. I fuelled up and prepared myself for the Qualifying session. The weather was changeable and I decided to keep wets in rather than risk dries. In the past, I've started slow and worked up to pace but this time I decided to change my tactics. Many times in the 2009 season, I was just getting up to pace and someone binned it, curtailing the session. I have to complete three laps in order to get a place on the grid that isn't allocated as last. It was wet, so I went for alternately fast and slow laps and qualified 22nd. A bit of a difference from the North Gloucester positions. I also ended up needing a new set of wets.
Race 1 was a lesson to me in preparation. After not really being able to do a lot on the practice day and having not been at Snetterton riding for well over a year, I found I had really forgotten overtaking places and generally was very out of shape. I finished 18th, mainly due to a number of people crashing (all ok). Still, something to build on.
Race 2 was a lot better. I knocked 4 seconds off my times and had a little battle with Thunderpants and Michael Goulden. I felt a lot better and like I was getting somewhere, although I was still doing slow times. It was taking me a long time to get back into the circuit. I was also tired and still a bit frustrated from the previous day. Kept 18th.
That night, I chilled out with another BBQ. Mark had obtained a trophy and spent most of the evening in the bar with his friends. We are both very independent - even at track - and do our own thing really. I went to bed content and looking forward to the morning.
The next morning looked like it would be a good day weather-wise. I decided to go out to practice to test the new tyre pressures I was trying in the front. I took out about 1psi. It may not seem like much, but I was finding that the front was skipping a little on lack of contact patch rather than suspension and wanted to make it feel more stable. I was also finding it easier to get used to the SV again, having spent all week on the ZX10.
After practice I came back into the garage and had the usual analysis and exchange of stories with the guys. I turned to go back to the truck and as I started to cross the fire lane from the garage, I stopped for Simon Exton and Steve Jordan just going out to their Thunderbike race. I waved and I could see Simon in particular was focused on his first race on the shiny new Ducati. I went to the truck and changed and then went back out to the garage to check on my fuelling and sort the bike out ready for the race. As I was fuelling, the guys went out to watch the race. They came back in shortly after, rather shell-shocked and telling me not to go out to the pitlane. I saw Mark running up the pitlane with fire extinguishers and took a deep breath. Some time passed and the circuit was very quiet. No tannoy for what seemed like an age. I don't really remember much after that until my first race. Although I do remember that some time later, I saw an ambulance drive away, unsually with the sirens blaring, or maybe I just remember that because I knew the gravity of the situation.
Mark decided he wasn't really in the mood to race for the rest of the day and signed onto the Starline marshalling post to support them there after an horrendous morning. It turned out that Simon Exton passed away from the injuries sustained in the startline incident the guys had seen. I was trying not to think about that but it was really difficult. Simon was a friend and someone I'd spent not an inconsiderable amount of time with.
Race 3 and my mind was somewhere else completely. Every time I tried to focus I couldn't. I was trying to focus on Jason Soilleux's bike which had been turned into a missle overnight and become my target. He had had some timing issues and finally got them resolved. It was unbelievable how (71.5bhp legally) quick it was. I was doing similar times to race 2 yesterday, but felt like there was more to come. Before I knew it, the race was over but I had got down to 16th. I felt I was quicker than Jason and the guy in front of him in the corners, but at only 65bhp on the same dyno, I was at a disadvantage.
Between races, I had a good long think about things and decided that Simon would have been upset if I didn't try because of him. I decided to use that and got ready for the final race of the weekend. The lights went out and I got an ok start. I managed to keep Matt Hinnells behind me for a few laps. He then passed me and I began to battle with James White. White kept pulling this manoevre on me through Russells which was incredibly annoying. As I approached the corner he would cut my nose off at the last minute. In doing this he got in front but then had to slow down to turn the bike into the straight. I managed to get past him and got the drive on him. Unfortunately he did this a number of times and on the last lap, his smaller stature meant that he had the weight advantage on me to clear the line ahead of me. I finished 15th but amazingly I had knocked off 2 seconds from my laptimes.
Thanks, Simon! xx
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