Ducati Sporting Club UK - End of 1st (part) season report

I don't want this to turn into an arse kissing thread but I just have to say a big thank you to each and all of you involved in DD. The help, info, support, advice and loan of spares I've received since I first spoke to Cleggy at Snet has far outweighed the box of Jaffa Cakes I brought for a raffle prize.

A week before Anglesea I'd never been near a race track but a chance meeting with Chris Norris (this year's SOT champ) at a school reunion got me interested. Anglesea was the same weekend I'd planned to watch a workmate race his off-shore powerboat at Pwllheli so I decided to spend a day each at both events. I should've ditched the Sunday with the boats, although it was a rare chance to be involved in a sport more expensive per minute than F1.

After a beer or 2 the following week I agreed to go and spanner for Chris at the bank holiday 3 dayer at Snet with his race chums. Just before the final session of the Saturday track day something happened that changed my life, one of Chris's mates (Phil Corless, SOT rider) offered me the loan of his bike (as it was the only one in road shift) to do the afternoon sessions if I could get on as he'd seen me drooling each time the others went out. I went to the office, someone had broken down therefore a space was there for me, £40 and a brief later I was booked in with the novices. Game on!

So on a borrowed bike, in borrowed leathers, helmet, gloves, boots I was ready for the track. It was at this point that Chris told me about the bike, I was on £27,000 worth of race prepped 1098R and my arse nearly fell out! My first ever painfully slow session was a buzz beyond belief and as I straddled the beast of a bike for the 2nd time Phil said "give it a thrash, the traction control will sort the corners and it runs better when ridden hard". 20 minutes later I'd gone past an R1 on the back wheel at 128mph down the back straight, virtually stood it on it's nose at the left hander, flipped it round the sharp right and I'm sure I got air coming out of the bombhole. New underpants required for session 3, what a machine! I had a smile as big as the one I had after my first rude encounter with a real live girl. The bug had bitten me and I considered getting a Hornet, then I had a good chat with Cleggy that weekend about how, where, when and the inside details of a cat's arse about DD. I was very tempted.

A couple of weeks later I'd booked on a track day at Cadwell as Chris was instructing for Hottrax there, the same guys from Snet attended and 1 loaned me a 748 for the day. 11 sessions and my first knee down later I wanted to have a go at this for real, as soon as I got home I went on ebay and sold my RSV Mille which I was in love with but only had for 9 and a half weeks (uncanny eh?). 2 weeks later I'd done my ACU course, had the Badger in my garage, signed up for New Era, Desmo Due, got my number, paid for my first race at Oulton and was wondering what the hell I'd done.

The right thing is the answer.

I lost my Dad who was a bike lover all his life last year and one of his favourite sayings was "in life there are sayers and there are doers". I can now say I'm a racer decause I've done it, not the best and I've not got trophies yet to dedicate but the fun and good times I've had in the past 5 months with DD I can.

Not mentioned individual race days as it'll turn into that arse kissing essay I wanted to avoid but you're probably bored by now if you've got this far.

Thanks DD and see you all next year!