| My First Race / Ramblings of a Newbie!
What a weekend! Ill try not to ramble too much but not making any promises....
Qualifying - Like a track day on edge i ventured onto the track wanting to beat my previous track day best lap time of 2:06:00. I didnt, my qualifying time was 2:07. Dom had kindly put some rearsets on my bike but the plastic on my right boot got snagged on the rear brake master cylinder as i approached the old hairpin and then with one foot stuck to the bike hit neutral and coasted around the bend. Fuming and terrified about what had happened i was constantly checking my boot was not caught on the cylinder which was very distracting. I returned to the pits and found that id qualified 14th one place behind Shane in 13th. Our first race was going to start in 5 hours, 13 months after our first track day and only 17 months after i learned to ride a bike and got a road licence! I was nervous to say the least!
Race 1 - I lined up on the grid direclty below the clock, my marker to make sure i didnt end up in the wrong place. Shane was to my left and the adrenaline was flowing fast and my heart was racing. I thought i got a great start until 2 bikes flew past either side of me scaring the life out of me. I somehow got round redgate and then the pack started to thin out. Then coming out of coppice onto the straight over on the left hand curb gaining on shane fast when another bike came right accross the front of me, the lightest of touches on my front wheel sent me left onto the grass! S#*T! i tried to take my hand off the throttle and the loose leather on the top of the palm pulled the throttle on instead of off and i was doing 80mph accross the grass! I remember saying "oh **** im going to die" inside my helmet as i desperatly tried to stabilise myself sacrificing my toes as anchors. Somehow i slowed the bike, gained control and got back onto the tarmac. I thenhad to buckle down and try and get through the pack. I thought i was last but apparently i slipped to 24th. I rode like never before and the feeling was incredible. Gaining on the rider in front and picking the overtake, just like they do on TV... Its brilliant! Running out of laps i was gaining on another bike gradually and i thought about an overtake on the foggy s's but bottled it, then tried to go round the outside at goddards, neck and neck we drag raced to my first chequered flag. The bike was to my left i finished .04 seconds behind him in 11th (class B), but didnt care the thrill was immense.
Race 2 - Shanes bike wouldnt start so myself and cleggy went to the grid by ourselves. Once the practice lap had been completed i was elated to see shane on the grid, his bike had been fixed! We had a warm up lap in which Shane thought was the race and nearly ran me and some others off the track and we got back to the grid. Id have to say i got a worse start than in race 1 and again got overtaken by a few bikes before redgate. But i went wide and redgate and regained another couple back immediatly. The race was on i caught upto Kev (skidlids) on lap 2 and had a good old tussle with him for 1 1/2 laps. I will never forget going around redgate on kev's outside leaning off the bike with my helmet getting closer and closer to kevs front tyre, i squeezed in front and kept in front down craner upto coppice where on the back striaght I tried to change up a gear on the straight but missed the lever somehow and kev went passed me again. I then tried to go down a gear for melbourne loop but couldnt reach the lever. I got onto the straight to start what i think was lap 4, looked down and saw that me gear lever wasnt attached to the link rod. F#*K! do i stay out or go in??? ********, im in a race, im still in 3rd gear... im not going into the pits. I watched every steward waiting for the black flag but i didnt come. I caned that bike around the track, and was loving every second but periodically gave the tank a punch or headbut to vent my frustration at the lack of gears! The reality of the damaged lever hit home when going round goddards and it grounded. I was hanging on to whatever position i was in, only 1 bike passed me in the remained 6 laps and that was under yellow flags at the old hairpin tut tut. I saw harriet in the gravel and it again hit home again how dangerous and expensive this sport can be. Once i returned to the pits i was stopped by another rider surprised that id managed to race with just one gear! I was more shocked than anyone id held onto 9th place (class B) and that id survived the weekend in one piece. Ask Shane and Dom i do have a habit of collecting gravel, grass and traffic cones on race tracks!
Id like to thank Dom for helping me get into racing, helping me with my bike, letting me stay in his motorhome, i could go on for a while with the things he's done.... i just wouldnt have been there without his help. So cheers mate and fantastic result for you this weekend, considering you were babysitting me and shane! Thanks to Ruth for feeding me, although i could do with skipping a few meals. Shane for twisting my arm into racing and for letting me sleep in his car saturday night! Cheers to everyone who raced and Harriet for the advice on being aggressive (within reason) on the track.
I had a fantastic weekend and cannot wait to hopefully better it at Angelsey!  | 
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