Hi All, We're at Pembrey this weekend racing with BMCRC (BEMSEE). We're hoping for a bit more luck this weekend than we've had in the last two rounds. Big thanks to Andy at Essex Performance and Si at Triumph Race Support for helping us make this meeting after our little engine mishap at Snetterton. Cheers Chris
The weather forecast for the weekends racing at Pembrey looked to be dry, sunny but windy. We showed up Thursday lunchtime sat outside the gates for three hours talking crap and throwing abuse at anyone within earshot. Whilst waiting to go in I got Johnny off the back of the trailer and proceeded to swap out my Robby Moto throttle cables which we did with out to many hassles. Lots of swearing etc trying to get the cables in place on the throttle bodies but we got there in the end. I don't know if it was just pure bloody mindedness or what but I refused to take the Throttle Bodies off to do this simple little job!!!! We were finally let in and we set up camp. It wasn't long before the generators were firing up all over the paddock and the hum of our temporary city was in full swing. Once set up we got on with sorting out Johnny for Friday's test day and climbed in to our sleeping bags for a restless night sleep. Up bright an early the next morning and we set about testing throughout the day. I'd forgotten my notes from last year so had to once again go through the gearing options we had available and settle on 15/45 for Saturday's races. In the morning I showed Scott Hudson around the circuit (Rookie 600 rider) and felt quite smug with him having to work hard to keep up. Well he did have the last laugh because by the end of the racing on Saturday he was lapping 1 second a lap quicker than me!!! The only section we were having real trouble with was through the only left handers on the circuit Dibeni Bend which is actually two corners. With the wind gusts and the lack of grip Dibeni proved to be a bit of a challenge and is key to putting in a fast lap time. 1st Qualifying Saturday morning we were out for first qualifying and something I was really looking forward to it since as this is the first time I've really spent any time on the bike since our first round at Brands. Out we went and the wind through Dibeni Bend was gusting and very unpredictable. A few times I was blown off course mid corner with one dramatic case of grass tracking. I managed a first qualifying position of 8th overall, 6th class with a time of 1:03.399s. I was quite disappointed really and we were struggling with grip through Dibeni Bend with the rear constantly spinning up on the way out an all the way down through to the Esses. 2nd Qualifying We adjusted out tyre pressures in an attempt to sort out the grip issues and although things were better we were still spinning up the rear coming out of Dibeni Bend. Wind gusts not so much of an issue however the odd gust still through us off line. In 2nd qualifying I managed to again finish in 8th overall, 6th in class with a time of 1.03:.258. This gave me an overall qualifying time of 9th overall 7th in class. This puts me on the outside of the third row on the grid. If you know Pembrey and it’s first corner you’ll know this is not ideal!! Race 1 – 8 laps I managed a good start off the line and went in to the first corner in 5th but I was on the outside going in. Coming out I was pushed wide on to the grass and slipped all the way back to 12th. On the third lap Matt Cleaver crashed out right in front of me going in to Dibeni Bend which unsettled me a bit and took me a two laps to get my rhythm back. It ended up being a lonely race for me finishing in 10th 7 seconds behind 9th and 8 seconds ahead of 11th. Disappointed with my performance was an understatement. Race 2 – 12 laps This time on the grid I lined up angled towards the inside of the circuit and when the lights went out I was off. I managed to go in to the first corner in 6th and this time I was on the inside. I had to cut across the red curbing on the inside of the corner to avoid another rider which reduced the amount of drive I had and dropped two places. I was again struggling with rear end grip and even though I was catching up on to the riders in front of me through Dibeni I just couldn’t get the drive and spin spin spin was all I was getting. I managed to hold on to 8th overall for the entire race and was gifted 7th on the last lap when Gavin Little crashed out in front of me. That was a fourth in class with a fastest lap time of 1.02:395 being a full second a lap faster than in qualifying and race one. I was pleased despite the lack of grip. Race 3 – 12 Laps Again I lined myself up on the grid angled towards the inside of the circuit and off we went. I got a good start and was on the inside through the first and second corners. I was being held up by one of the Supersport guys who I really needed to get past as my Clubman competitors were breaking away from me. I was running in 9th overall and 6th in class and on lap 8 I put in a beautiful (if I do say so myself) block pass going in to the hairpin (first corner). Now I needed to get my head down and start working towards the front runners who were by this stage about 1 second ahead of me. I knew I was pushing in when going through Woodlands I scraped my inside foot and peg. Woodlands is a flat out fourth gear kink along the back straight and not a place you want to come off. I started to slowly catch on to the back of Martin Turner as we came up the start finish straight and I braked a little later than normal and had the back end hopping in the air as I was coming in to the hairpin. They were now within reach with 3 laps to go. Drive through turn 2 and flicked Johnny over on to his left side for Dibeni. I was right on line and closing down Martin as I was just driving off the first part of the corner when I went back to positive throttle for the second apex. Now I’m within a bike length of Martin. At the second Apex right on target and started to pick up Johnny and drive down towards the Esses, except this time the rear end came right around on me. I remember glancing down at the headstock and swearing in to my helmet when all of a sudden I was air born. I flew through the air thinking this is going to hurt and came down on the left hand side of my back. As soon as I hit the deck I felt pain and I was sure I’d broken something. According to witnesses I went approximately 10 feet in the air before coming down and bounced after 3 feet before rolling to a stop. Needless to say I just laid there and waited for help to arrive which it did in record time. The race was red flagged and called a result. I fortunately got away with severe bruising and a cracked rib and all I can say is thank god for great safety equipment and superb medical staff. Dr Rosie, the BEMSEE Doctor is a legend and she saw to it along with the Pembrey medical team I was seen to quickly and efficiently. Johnny on the other hand did not get off so lightly. He suffered a twisted head stock, bent forks, bent front disc, smashed generator case, broken sub frame, broken suspension linkage, smashed air intake and destroyed fairings. I pleased to say Johnny is now straight and true thanks to Motoliner in Kent. I had enough spares in my garage to out Johnny back together and we’re going to be racing at the Brands GP Meeting 22/23 May. Now the cheeky, I mean real cheeky bit . I am now excepting donations to help fund the rest of our season so if any kind souls wish to sponsor us in return for your own name or company name on the bike please do get in touch. £20 pays for two races worth of fuel . Cheers Chris
Chris that was a great post !! Sorry to hear about your misfortune, hopefully next time out at Brands you'll keep Johnny on the straight and narrow I would happily chuck £20 your way towards some racing needs. PM me how i go about this dude. Good Luck
+1 here Chris - great post !! I was there on the bike with you the whole way through the race and the med centre too, busted ribs are bl**dy painful - I know that from personal experience... PM me buddy, I'll put £20 in the hat no problem. Dave G.
