After leaving Keevil feeling I had been a little unprepared, this meeting was going to be different; for one thing, at least I knew the track was going to be the same layout as always! With Chris just out of hospital and recovering from an operation on his back, Pete was under oath that his craziness would take a back seat for the weekend and he would do his best to help me do my best as the crew consisted of just us two. I had my doubts, I have to say! We loaded up and headed down Friday morning to get in on the practice day they usually run, (but I’ve never previously done) as I had to play the same game as everyone else this time. We were in good spirits, the sun was shining, the traffic was light and, when we arrived, the paddock was only half full! It was a pleasure to pull up where we wanted to park (alongside ‘Jumpin’ Geoff and Adam Tempest’s plot) and set ourselves up. I signed on as Pete fuelled up the bike and put on the tyre warmers and when I got back to the bike I was shocked to see Pete had put up the gazebo on his own too; there was definitely a sense of positivity in the air!
The only thing I’d changed on the bike since Keevil was the throttle bodies which had been replaced with larger bore items, but as I had got them last minute I was keen to make sure the bike ran ok with them on. The track was open for 45 minutes at a time so I went out to do a few laps to bed myself in. Everything felt pretty much ok so I went out again, this time to find a bit of a rhythm. I noticed the bike was a bit snatchy when trying to be precise with the throttle, especially on the transition from being off the power to feeding the power back on as I started to drive out corners, obviously a fuelling problem. The forks (which had been re-valved prior to Keevil) felt squishy and vague when braking for the hairpin, and I was having the rear wheel chattering a fair bit at the same time. It’s amazing what you notice when you haven’t got to concentrate on finding your way round a new circuit! We changed the throttle bodies back to the originals in the 15 minutes that the sidecars were out and I increased the compression damping a couple of clicks on the forks. Just statically bouncing the forks in the paddock suggested they probably needed a couple of clicks more but the adjusters were already one click away from the maximum setting! This time, the bike pulled as smoothly as it should and the forks were giving me much more confidence on the brakes. I think previously, they had been diving so much when I pulled on the anchors that it made the rear wheel go real light making it feel like the bike was at it’s braking limit; no wonder I was getting out braked at Keevil. The rear wheel chatter was still there but now I was sure it was something to do with the quickshifter. I turned it off and the chatter stopped. Hey, Spidey was starting to feel like my bike again! The problem with the shifter was that it cuts the ignition for a split second on the down change as well as the up change (a bit of a design flaw which I will point out to the manufacturer later!). This would be ok but the Mille’s slipper clutch only works well when you give the throttle a big blip on the down change and the momentary lack of a spark was preventing this. It did make me wonder why I ever touched the bike in search of improvements! I was happy I’d done enough to be up to speed for the next day, so parked up.
We set up the rest of our plot, and put the new tyres and brake pads on before Pete took the bike to be scrutineered to save the queues first thing in the morning. I rang Chris to update him on the day and we had a pretty quiet evening in front of the portable tv we’d brought and enjoyed a couple of beers whilst Pete burnt sausages on the barbeque; oh well, practice makes perfect and we had brought a big pack after all!
For no particular reason, I laid awake all night. Guess I had a lot going on in my head but I felt I didn’t get a wink of sleep. Still, I got up early and swapped the forks over with the non re-valved items that were in the bike last time I was here and modified the quickshifter sensor with a carefully placed strip of insulation tape to prevent the inner contacting the outer on the down change; one of those ‘middle of the night’ pieces of inspiration! The track was wet for practice, but was slowly drying out so I scrubbed in my fresh slicks, much to everyone’s horror as everyone else was either on intermediates or full wets! Well, it wasn’t raining so there was no standing water for a tread pattern to have to disperse (that was how I figured it anyway!). Because of the conditions, I couldn’t really gauge how the bike felt but it seemed ok. By the time the Open qualifier came around, the track was dry albeit with a bit of mist coming in off the sea. As usual, I decided to just use this race as a bit of extra practice so held back off the line, then did a proper practice start when the grid was clear. I’d still caught up with the pack by the hairpin as someone had shunted someone else who was now laid in the middle of the track; the word ‘loonies’ crossed my mind. Surprisingly, I soon caught up with Damien on his SP1 and I looked across at him to make sure he was ok seeing as he was well off his normal pace. He gave me a thumbs up and I soon realised he was just taking it safe and watching some of the lines of the riders ahead I knew it was the best plan; they were all over the place! Three times in a row we saw riders touch each other sending one of each of them onto the grass and a number of times Damien and I just looked at each other in disbelief, shaking our heads at the poor riding standards. We finished the race in what had to be our slowest ever times and went back to the pits to explain our performances! The strange thing is, even though we were riding so much off our usual pace we both had moved far enough up the grid for front row starts in the B final!
The Sound of Thunder qualifier was going to be a different story and we lined up on the grid fully focussed this time. Deano showed he meant business with a lightening getaway for the warm up lap and we reformed ready for the off. The lights went red, then off and away we went. I had probably my best start of the season, perfectly timed and with front wheel just hovering a couple of inches above the tarmac as I accelerated away. I expected Deano or Damien to be up the inside of me at the hairpin but I got around first and held it for the first lap; a good feeling! As I passed the line for the first time the black Ducati of Mark Baldock came passed like he’d hit some special boost button, boy that bike is quick! A lap later I was passed by Damien who was flying but a glance behind showed I was pulling a gap on Geoff so was happy to hold my position as all I needed from this race was a front row position in the final. That’s when it went wrong; I tipped it into the hairpin and the bike kept tipping. The front wheel tucked and I was on the tarmac. It was a real slow fall and I was on my feet and picking my bike up before the rest of the pack arrived. I pushed the bike out of harm’s way and sat on the tyre wall watching my race, gutted. Two laps later and Damien did exactly the same thing in front of me! There had to be something on the track for us both to fall and I signalled to the marshals to put an oil flag out to slow the others down until the track could be checked and cleared. So there we sat, both watching our front row starts disappear. An awful feeling.
Luckily, the damage was fairly minimal and I replaced the broken footrest and did some straightening while Pete patched the fairing with gaffer tape and he managed to borrow a windscreen to get me back on the road. We got it done in time for the Open B final so I used it as a shakedown test of the bike and myself. I finished 4th so everything must have been good enough!
Just as I was about to go out for the SoT final, Adam came over to me and said “for the start, use the concrete on the left. Don’t back off!”. I didn’t know what he meant until I formed up on the grid. I was just looking at all the people in my way, six rows of them ahead of me and then I noticed what Adam had been talking about. To the left of the track was a concrete strip, only a couple of feet wide and right next to the grass but it ran for most of the length of the first straight. That was going to be my route??!! I knew that if I got blocked into the hairpin, as so easily happens, then the leaders would gain half a lap on me by the time I got round and I wouldn’t stand any chance of grabbing vital points. I decided to give it a try as it was really my only option. The flag dropped for the warm up lap and I took to the ‘path’; boy, it was bumpy but usable! We re-formed and the lights came on, then out. I got a brilliant start again and headed down the strip. I held on real tight and kept the throttle pinned and was getting blurred vision as the speed increased! As usual, the pack held each other up as they all tried to apex the hairpin on the inside and as soon as I got back on the tarmac I hit the brakes hard and went in deep, riding around the outside of loads of people in the process! Things got a bit tight on the exit as people drifted wide but I wasn’t in the mood to be bullied and I held my line forcing them to back off and let me through. Having done so much already I was going to make it count; I overtook, undertook, outbraked and out accelerated for all I was worth. The usual front runners had made a bit of a gap by having clear air in front of them, but I was in pursuit. Damien, also starting last, had followed me through and then made a move on me. He was, once again, flying and hanging on the back of him helped me close the gap on the leaders. Ricky got a bit of a wake up call when Damien passed him and he started riding real defensively trying to make himself as wide as he could to block me from getting past; he clearly didn’t feel I had any right to be up with him considering we started at opposite ends of the grid! It took me about a lap and a half to get past and although I closed the gap on Deano and Geoff, 7 laps just wasn’t enough. Full respect to Damien though as the boy took 2nd! I was well pleased at grabbing 5th seeing as it could have been so different. I beat my personal best lap time too with a 1.02.56; good result!
Saturday evening came with a feeling of relief after having turned disaster into a bag of points so a couple of beers were called for. Pete was let loose with the bbq again and did better this time, while he told me the story how he nearly burnt his house down once and that they had to call the fire brigade. I didn’t surprise me to discover he’d been a former pyromaniac! It has to be said that there was definitely something missing without Chris in the paddock, it was all just a bit too quiet. We popped up to see Damien’s crew for a bit, where I got beaten at a board game by the under 9 contingent. Next we called in on Ricky for a slice of his birthday cake, and then decided on a quick drink in the bar. On the way we to rang Chris and had him on speakerphone to join in the evening’s banter; Poor old boy, his frustration at not being there was very evident and although he wanted to be part of it and kept updated it just seemed cruel. Oh well, off to the bar!
Once again, I hardly slept. I got up to a clear blue sky and the promise of a hot day ahead and with no scrutineering or practice I gave the bike a check-over, put the fresh tyres on and cooked breakfast. Chris rang to deliver a little motivational speech he’d prepared and we just waited for the Open race for my first warm up ride. Not that I needed much warming up; as the morning progressed the temperature soared (I’m told it was the hottest day there on record, phew!), just the kind of conditions to make you want to put a set of leathers on, not! The sun must have gone to the heads of the riders because in contrast to the previous day, races were being stopped and re-started and things were dragging on; it was well past midday when the race was finally called. I got suited up and got Pete to (reluctantly) come up to the holding area with an umbrella for a bit of shade. Maybe he didn’t like the idea of being my brolly dolly but I told him that Chris would have done it so he humoured me. It was mentioned by one of the other riders (no names…) who also grabbing shade under same umbrella that Chris would probably have done it in a swimsuit after what he got up to at Thruxton! We finally got out on track and assembled for the warm up lap. I was right at the back and waited for the pack to go a bit before casually moving off. I could see that someone was stopped in the middle of the grid but was horrified to realise that someone behind him hadn’t seen. The rider behind hit the stopped bike’s rear tyre and catapulted the poor guy high into the air; pieces of the two bikes kind of exploded in all directions across the track. I was going slow enough to avoid hitting the rider that landed a short way ahead of me but what a mess. The marshalls stopped the pack at the back of the circuit in front of the warm up area while the riders were attended to and so they could set about clearing the oil and debris. I knew we were in for a wait so took off my helmet and gloves and hoped Pete would walk back from the pit wall up to where we were being held, hopefully picking up some water and the umbrella on the way! Five minutes or so passed and still we waited in the direct sun. I looked across to see if Pete had made it up yet and guess who I saw? Chris, large as life and in his team T-shirt! I couldn’t believe it, in fact I thought the heat had got to me! I signalled to Pete to come over the tyre wall to me and I got him to hold the bike while I went over to see the big fella. And crikey, he was big; the back operation had allowed him to stand up straight and he towered above me! Apparently he couldn’t stand being at home anymore and had got Graham to put a mattress in the back of the MPV drive him down while he led flat all the way down! Clearly in pain and not able to stay standing for long but there were smiles all round. The organisers eventually decided to let us come back in and they had a lunch break while the track dried. We kept in the shade of the gazebo, fan blowing and as the MotoGP race was on the tv we’d brought, we had a little crowd joining us! Chris showed off his scars and we filled him in with events so far before he had a short lie down in the back of the van. Pete, relieved that the pressure of having to look after me on his own was off, lapsed into his usual crazy self but nothing seemed to matter; today was a good day.
It almost seemed a shame to have to get back out on the bike but I needed the Open as a practice so headed down. This time we all got away cleanly. Instead of doing my usual of taking it steady in this, non championship, event, I figured that if Chris could make all that effort to come down, he deserved to have something decent to watch! I got my head down and started making my way up the field. Not sure where I finished but I tried hard all the way. SoT qualifier, and 2nd on the grid again. It seems a whole lot better having no-one in front of you at the start! Into the hairpin for the first time and Damien out braked himself going in a bit deep. Unfortunately he was on the inside of me so I had to keep it upright until he turned in so we lost a fair few places. Fully determined to get a front row start for the final, I set about clawing back places. I nearly got taken out by Lance as he had gearbox problems in the first lap and got it all sideways, but I kept my head. I was telling myself to forget where the others were (a mistake I made at Keevil) and concentrate on riding the track, as I knew I had the ability to catch and pass most of the field if I rode my best. Ricky was struggling for grip and I took advantage of his near highside to get past. I was behind Damien as he passed Geoff and I made my move a few corners later. The trouble with passing Geoff (again, as I discovered at Keevil) is that he is so, so good on the brakes; I knew he’d try something back next time into the hairpin so I braced myself and left my braking as late as I possibly could, as did Damien who was still just ahead of me. I could feel my rear wheel hopping under the deceleration and felt myself regulating the amount of rear wheel lift by altering the pressure I had on the brake lever, cool! The next thing I knew was a flash of the flame paintwork of Geoff’s bike up the inside at a terrific rate, past me and past Damien, just as we were both about to turn in. He’d totally overcooked it trying one of his outbraking manoeuvres but the funniest thing was that he had his left hand in the air as if to say sorry! Ha, that’ll teach him! I finished 4th, front row start for the final, lovely.
I didn’t do the Open final, even though I’d qualified mid field in the ‘A’ race, because of the intense heat, the extra wear of the tyres and brakes and the risk of another incident, well none of those actually; race two of the World Superbikes was on the tv and it was a nail biter!
At long last, it was time for the Sot final. We lined up on the grid, Chris was on the pit wall with my pitboard and the lights went out. I got a good start, but being on the inside line I was a bit squeezed in as we went round the hairpin for the first time. I soon rectified that and normal order was resumed. That order being Mark Baldock, Damien, Deano and myself. Chris was letting me know I was stretching on whoever was behind me but I just kept my head down, concentrating fully, finding my rhythm and putting in what I felt were some quick times. I tried not to look but I could see I was closing Deano down, only a little bit at a time, but I was definitely reeling him in. Suddenly, I was right on the back of him and I saw him raise his hand, great, I thought, he’s got a problem, but my stroke of luck was short lived as I then saw the marshalls holding out red flags. Someone had crashed heavily and the race was stopped, so that was it, and I finished 4th.
For a change though, I was happy with the 4th! I knew I’d given it 100% throughout the whole race; ok it wasn’t enough to beat some of the other guys, but I was pleased with my performance and the bike felt as good as it ever has so I couldn’t have asked for much more. Chris and Pete were beaming as I came back into the pits as they could see the effort and commitment I’d put in too.
So that was Pembrey. Chris was helped back into the MPV and sent home and Pete, back in his sensible mode (yes, he has got one!), did most of the packing up. We said our goodbyes and headed home. Looking back, I think that was the most enjoyable weekend’s racing I’ve ever had and even the results seemed pretty irrelevant. Good times.
Championship wise, Baldock is away in the lead and I’m still in 2nd. Getting beaten by Damien and Deano both times however mean there’s only a few points between the three of us and I reckon the order we finish the final race at Silverstone will be the order we finish the championship. Needless to say, Spidey is off having the fuelling mapped to match the bigger throttle bodies, I’ve booked in for the practice day the day before the race and a race school there a week before and I’m going to spend every spare moment training as hard as I can. It ain’t over yet!