veejay
04-05-2005, 01:49 PM
easier to read and has pics at: http://www.vjmoto.com/reports/4buttonwillow/racereport.htm
below is just text... and its pretty LONG!
--
The AFM season opener was held this past weekend at Buttonwillow Raceway a few miles north of Bakersfield, CA. This would be my first event with Northern California based organization. For 2005, I opted for the reciprocity license which allows me to race with AFM, but not accumulate any season points. This was better for me since I probably won't attend most of the other AFM events because they are held at Northern California tracks like Infineon and Thunderhill. Maybe someday, but those tracks are just too far to work into my schedule!
Registration and tech inspection didn't take as long I had expected and with just about 500 participants the AFM staff handled everything efficiently. I was surprised with the amount of workers they had, from the amount of corner stations, the registration staff, and tech inspectors. It was apparent that the AFM is also really concerned about the safety of everyone out there, not only having the usual ambulance, but also EMT’s at different corner stations. Saturday was scheduled as a practice day with 5 different groups. Riders were grouped according to lap times, which worked really well. I was in group 2 and used Saturday to re-familiarize myself with the track. I improved each session, but wasn’t at the pace I really wanted to be at. There were quite a few crashes on Saturday, but fortunately nothing too major and track time didn’t suffer too much. We managed to get in 5 sessions! Not bad for a 5 group rotation. It was pretty warm on Saturday, and the heat really got to me at the end of the day. Despite drinking tons of water and Gatorade, I still felt dehydrated! My remedy for the night was a cold shower, some delicious Indian food from Taste of India, and to finish it off a chocolate shake!
Sunday morning came an hour sooner thanks to daylight savings time. It didn’t really affect us too much because I registered and tech’d Saturday before leaving the track. For race day, all I had to do was get the pit set up, and wait for my session. I was bumped up to group 3 for the only morning practice session before the races. I entered in 3 races that day, and my two main goals were to not crash and to not finish dead last! I had an unfriendly encounter with a mud pit back here in November so I was determined to not let history repeat itself!
My first race of the day was 600 Production. The AFM runs both expert and amateurs in their races unlike CCS, so the single wave race had about 70 bikes on the starting grid! I was on the 9th row, took a deep breath and waited on the green flag. The flag drops and I get a good start passing about 6 bikes on our way into turn 1. We start to bottleneck and I’m elbow to elbow in the left hander, barely even leaned over. Into turn 2 the field starts to separate a bit, the more experienced and aggressive racers make their way through. I keep focused on my 1st goal and let a few experts get by. Waving yellow entering turn 3 and I can see at least 2 bikes down and in the dirt. I get by safely and I’m off to finish the rest of the remaining 5 ¾ laps! The field continues to filter… I get passed by a few guys, and also do a few passing of my own, mostly through the fast right handed sweeper called Riverside. I make it to the checkered flag safely and the bike is running a little hot, but ok. 600 Production calls for stock exhaust canisters and my bike was not mapped for it. I’ll be able to change them out for my next race… which should give me a bit more speed on the straights and keep the engine cooler. I was just happy to get through my first AFM race without incident!!!
Results:
- 32 of 72 [26 DNS/DNF] (expert & amateur)
- 19 of 38 [9 DNS/DNF] (amateurs only)
Next on my race schedule was Open Twins. In this class, I’ll be running with other V-twin configurations which consisted of Suzuki TL1000Rs, Aprilia 1000’s, Honda RC51’s and my bike’s bigger brothers the 749, 996/998, and 999’s! The grid this time wasn’t as full as my first race, but still larger than the CCS races I’ve raced in before. The Termignoni exhaust is back on the bike and I can hear its sweet song once again! The twins are roaring, waiting for the green flag to drop. Off to another good start I make up around 3 spots into turn 1. Soon after, I was passed by a couple of experts who were gridded behind me. I hold my lines and just work to get around the track as fast as possible. I get to riverside, in a smooth transition from the bus stop and something smacks my face shield. The left side of my shield is covered in bug guts and it sort of put a mental block on my riding for the rest of the race. I was off my pace for the remaining laps, but I still finished within my goals!
Results:
- 24 of 36 [7 DNS/DNF] (expert & amateur)
- 6 of 14 [3 DNS/DNF] (amateurs only)
600 Superbike was my last race of the day. I know there were over 70 bikes on the grid because I was gridded 58th and my friend, #677, was a few rows behind me. I could barely see the 3, 2, 1 cards when the starter turned them! Another good start brings me closer to the front, but not really close to the front! Another bottleneck in turn 1, similar to the 600 Production race and I see my friend #677 push his way through to the front. I see the rear of his bike as it passes mine and I just laugh inside my helmet! I knew he was going to pass me, I just didn’t expect it to be so soon! He managed to squirm his way through and used every inch of the open track to nudge his way up the pack. It was pretty cool to see. Reminded me of the sex education videos in high school where they show all the little sperm trying to get into the egg and 1 breaks through. Well, #677 was that lucky guy in this case!
I make a few passes myself just before the Bus Stop, Riverside and also before Lost Hill. There were some crashes and get offs during this race since I came across a few waving yellows. The only one that really caught my attention was the crash just after Lost Hill where a bike was on its side just at the bottom on the outside edge. You couldn’t see the bike before you got to the crest of the hill, but the corner workers did a great job of informing us to stay away from that line. It was the funnest race of the day for me because I actually diced it up with a couple of other amateurs. A few passes here and there, more noticeably with #441. I believe I passed him first, he then passed me on the straight into turn 1, but I was able to re-pass him at Cotton Corners. I had a little moment after the wheelie hump at Club Corner, cutting the right hand kink a little too tight and going over the rumble strip close to full lean!!! I caught a bit of sideways air and the bike landed, shook itself for a bit, but I managed to keep her steady. I just told myself to relax and ease the bike upright and over into the next left. It was an awesome feeling to be able to save it especially after the hard pass that I just made. My Ohlins steering damper worked perfectly in this situation and I was amazed that my Michelins Power Race tires stuck like they did! I pushed harder and the gap grew between me and the gentleman chasing me. I crossed the checkered and I knew for sure that my goals have been met!
Results:
- 50 of 70+ [29 DNS/DNF] (expert & amateur)
- 22 of 39 [11 DNS/DNF] (amateurs only)
I didn’t do as well as I hoped I would this weekend, but I did gain a lot of confidence in my bike! My own mentality is what’s holding me back from going a lot faster and now after finishing my races with AFM I’m ready to continue my push forward. After this race weekend my bike was telling me that I could brake later and throttle on earlier! I’m ready for the next level, but first the real fun. Cleaning these damn highway bugs off the front of my truck and bike! CCS Vegas at the end of the month!!!
below is just text... and its pretty LONG!
--
The AFM season opener was held this past weekend at Buttonwillow Raceway a few miles north of Bakersfield, CA. This would be my first event with Northern California based organization. For 2005, I opted for the reciprocity license which allows me to race with AFM, but not accumulate any season points. This was better for me since I probably won't attend most of the other AFM events because they are held at Northern California tracks like Infineon and Thunderhill. Maybe someday, but those tracks are just too far to work into my schedule!
Registration and tech inspection didn't take as long I had expected and with just about 500 participants the AFM staff handled everything efficiently. I was surprised with the amount of workers they had, from the amount of corner stations, the registration staff, and tech inspectors. It was apparent that the AFM is also really concerned about the safety of everyone out there, not only having the usual ambulance, but also EMT’s at different corner stations. Saturday was scheduled as a practice day with 5 different groups. Riders were grouped according to lap times, which worked really well. I was in group 2 and used Saturday to re-familiarize myself with the track. I improved each session, but wasn’t at the pace I really wanted to be at. There were quite a few crashes on Saturday, but fortunately nothing too major and track time didn’t suffer too much. We managed to get in 5 sessions! Not bad for a 5 group rotation. It was pretty warm on Saturday, and the heat really got to me at the end of the day. Despite drinking tons of water and Gatorade, I still felt dehydrated! My remedy for the night was a cold shower, some delicious Indian food from Taste of India, and to finish it off a chocolate shake!
Sunday morning came an hour sooner thanks to daylight savings time. It didn’t really affect us too much because I registered and tech’d Saturday before leaving the track. For race day, all I had to do was get the pit set up, and wait for my session. I was bumped up to group 3 for the only morning practice session before the races. I entered in 3 races that day, and my two main goals were to not crash and to not finish dead last! I had an unfriendly encounter with a mud pit back here in November so I was determined to not let history repeat itself!
My first race of the day was 600 Production. The AFM runs both expert and amateurs in their races unlike CCS, so the single wave race had about 70 bikes on the starting grid! I was on the 9th row, took a deep breath and waited on the green flag. The flag drops and I get a good start passing about 6 bikes on our way into turn 1. We start to bottleneck and I’m elbow to elbow in the left hander, barely even leaned over. Into turn 2 the field starts to separate a bit, the more experienced and aggressive racers make their way through. I keep focused on my 1st goal and let a few experts get by. Waving yellow entering turn 3 and I can see at least 2 bikes down and in the dirt. I get by safely and I’m off to finish the rest of the remaining 5 ¾ laps! The field continues to filter… I get passed by a few guys, and also do a few passing of my own, mostly through the fast right handed sweeper called Riverside. I make it to the checkered flag safely and the bike is running a little hot, but ok. 600 Production calls for stock exhaust canisters and my bike was not mapped for it. I’ll be able to change them out for my next race… which should give me a bit more speed on the straights and keep the engine cooler. I was just happy to get through my first AFM race without incident!!!
Results:
- 32 of 72 [26 DNS/DNF] (expert & amateur)
- 19 of 38 [9 DNS/DNF] (amateurs only)
Next on my race schedule was Open Twins. In this class, I’ll be running with other V-twin configurations which consisted of Suzuki TL1000Rs, Aprilia 1000’s, Honda RC51’s and my bike’s bigger brothers the 749, 996/998, and 999’s! The grid this time wasn’t as full as my first race, but still larger than the CCS races I’ve raced in before. The Termignoni exhaust is back on the bike and I can hear its sweet song once again! The twins are roaring, waiting for the green flag to drop. Off to another good start I make up around 3 spots into turn 1. Soon after, I was passed by a couple of experts who were gridded behind me. I hold my lines and just work to get around the track as fast as possible. I get to riverside, in a smooth transition from the bus stop and something smacks my face shield. The left side of my shield is covered in bug guts and it sort of put a mental block on my riding for the rest of the race. I was off my pace for the remaining laps, but I still finished within my goals!
Results:
- 24 of 36 [7 DNS/DNF] (expert & amateur)
- 6 of 14 [3 DNS/DNF] (amateurs only)
600 Superbike was my last race of the day. I know there were over 70 bikes on the grid because I was gridded 58th and my friend, #677, was a few rows behind me. I could barely see the 3, 2, 1 cards when the starter turned them! Another good start brings me closer to the front, but not really close to the front! Another bottleneck in turn 1, similar to the 600 Production race and I see my friend #677 push his way through to the front. I see the rear of his bike as it passes mine and I just laugh inside my helmet! I knew he was going to pass me, I just didn’t expect it to be so soon! He managed to squirm his way through and used every inch of the open track to nudge his way up the pack. It was pretty cool to see. Reminded me of the sex education videos in high school where they show all the little sperm trying to get into the egg and 1 breaks through. Well, #677 was that lucky guy in this case!
I make a few passes myself just before the Bus Stop, Riverside and also before Lost Hill. There were some crashes and get offs during this race since I came across a few waving yellows. The only one that really caught my attention was the crash just after Lost Hill where a bike was on its side just at the bottom on the outside edge. You couldn’t see the bike before you got to the crest of the hill, but the corner workers did a great job of informing us to stay away from that line. It was the funnest race of the day for me because I actually diced it up with a couple of other amateurs. A few passes here and there, more noticeably with #441. I believe I passed him first, he then passed me on the straight into turn 1, but I was able to re-pass him at Cotton Corners. I had a little moment after the wheelie hump at Club Corner, cutting the right hand kink a little too tight and going over the rumble strip close to full lean!!! I caught a bit of sideways air and the bike landed, shook itself for a bit, but I managed to keep her steady. I just told myself to relax and ease the bike upright and over into the next left. It was an awesome feeling to be able to save it especially after the hard pass that I just made. My Ohlins steering damper worked perfectly in this situation and I was amazed that my Michelins Power Race tires stuck like they did! I pushed harder and the gap grew between me and the gentleman chasing me. I crossed the checkered and I knew for sure that my goals have been met!
Results:
- 50 of 70+ [29 DNS/DNF] (expert & amateur)
- 22 of 39 [11 DNS/DNF] (amateurs only)
I didn’t do as well as I hoped I would this weekend, but I did gain a lot of confidence in my bike! My own mentality is what’s holding me back from going a lot faster and now after finishing my races with AFM I’m ready to continue my push forward. After this race weekend my bike was telling me that I could brake later and throttle on earlier! I’m ready for the next level, but first the real fun. Cleaning these damn highway bugs off the front of my truck and bike! CCS Vegas at the end of the month!!!