Season's First Round
The first race weekend of the 09/10 season is complete, all the work carried out in the off season, the new bikes, leathers, clothing, Sponsors, website, pit area, paint job etc all comes to fruition. The pressure of getting everything sorted in time is suddenly forgotten and the focus shifts back to racing, podiums and championship points. Surprisingly there was alot of last minute entries into the championship which made for a 25 bike grid which always makes good racing but with 14 entries in the 600 class it looks like its going to be a very tough season for us.
All in all it was a good weekend where we learned alot with the bikes and has given us confidence going into the next round. The results weren't what we had hoped for but acceptable when all things are considered. Thursday practice was the first time the bikes have really been pushed since we set-up the suspension and gearing but as the final testing was done on the GP circuit and using different tyres it was all a bit back to square 1 on Thursday test day and we were still fiddling suspension settings in between races. We are still not settled for the final gearing either but hopefully the next round will finalise that. We are finding that setup is crucial with these triple's and little tweaks make a huge difference...Japanese line fours these Triumphs aint!
Qualifying was tough. With morning practice now removed from the programme and only 30 minutes to set-up different tyres and get a decent time, the pressure was on. 8th and 9th place was not the best but with 25 bikes all joshing for the same place in turn 1 we weren't too worried, places can be made up in the first lap.
Race 1
Mahmoud's bike ran into a problem at the start which instantly took him out of the running. typically it was fine right up until the flag dropped then wouldn't rev pass 4000 rpm. He got the bike back to the pits and the Pro-bike crew traced it down to a lose plug on the ECU which had triggered the bike to run in a 'safe mode' hence the minimum revs. Very annoying but nothing terminal and a working bike for race 2.
Meanwhile Alan had found a rhythm and was lapping round consistently, not able to catch the front runners but fast enough to keep ahead of the rest of the pack finishing 5th. an 'out of sorts' race for us.
Race 2
This was a much more exciting race with both the Vendetta boys swapping positions with some of the 1000 class boys, Andrea from A&C racing (harking back to last season) and themselves!
Alan's start was back to the way it should be and had swapped positions with Andrea twice before the first lap was complete! Mahmoud was on a charge too and it wasn't long before he had caught up with the battling pair, passing Andrea then his team mate going into turn one. It was a close race between Andrea and Moody who were swapping positions which seemed like every lap along with John in the 1000 class stuck in the middle of the battle. Moody managed to clinch the 4th spot with Andrea snipping at his heels in 5th, Alan in 6th.
Mahmoud ~10
Race 1 was a non starter for me but thanks to the Probike crew for resolving the problem in time for race 2.
Race two had a great start from the back of the grid, and was almost Alan and Andrea by the second lap. After passing John in the bowl, I caught Alan on the slip stream and went for Andrea which i got passed too. After a couple of laps he got me back on the straight but overbroke himself, so I took the advantage as did Alan and went head down to finish 4th. Great result.
We've still some work to do on the bikes, but from what we have seen the trumpets have loads to offer, all we need is the proper set up.
Alan ~76
Race 1 wasn't all that great for me. I couldn't hold with the faster guys in my class and by lap 5 I was pretty much running by myself. I used the time to explore the bike a bit more but keep the speed so not to loose a position. look forward to race 2!
Race 2 was better, right in the thick of it by turn 1, battling for positions with Andrea. Almost where we left off last season! I kept him behind me and settled into a pace where I knew he was behind me but all I hgad to do was keep him there. About midway through the race I heard his bike come alongside my coming into turn 1 so I was instantly ready to take the position back but I was so happily surprised to see it was my team mate! Andrea got passed me too eventually but it was great to see the both of them battling it out for the 4th spot. Well done Moody!
A good first weekend I guess, I'm now looking forward to the next one as there is so much more to come from these bikes.
Thanks to our new sponsors for the season. Pro-bike for having all 3 mechanics helping us out on the first race weekend and sorting Moody's Triumph for race 2. Performance Motorsport for the new boots and Helmet and finally Stuff Magazine, good to see you guys down there supporting us too!
