With a good nights sleep had we‘re off to go head first with a foreign track. Me not having been on a bike for a while, as this lil’ idiot sold her cbr600rr5 a few weeks previous and not having attended a track day since late January I get to ride a foreign bike as well. Chas’s 1996 model Suzuki RGV250 track bike with race pattern I’ve never used that we spent 2 days re painting as she was a beautiful array of 5 or so colors from a few different incidents Wooo Hooo for Gen.
Their running 3 groups today and I’m going in the SLOW group, coz I am and as usual it’s first group on track so I suit up in Chas’s oversized 1 piece and AGV lid (mine are still in transit from QLD) and my boots and gloves that were express posted to me Thursday. I had to have something that fit me right plus we knew no one that would have my size any way.
Session One goal: suss out this bike!!!!!!! Between gearing and her rev range I was a full novice. Okay so not as easy as thought but I made it back to the pits after the flag.
I thought I should have a closer look at this track, so after watching Chas and the faster boys play I had a better idea of it, off to 2nd session I go with my ride bouncing off the limiter and me not finding the power band till I need to start braking it wasn’t going too smooth but again no big mistakes and back in.
Session 3 pretty much the same but I was managing to pass some of the punters on bigger bikes through turns 7-9, then getting smoked out of 9 to 1 then taking them round the outside again through the double apex of 2 and repeating this at 3 hehe.
After lunch Chas and the boys were once again out going for it trying to better them selves every lap getting closer to the lap records, Super stock record held here by one Ian Andrews a 1.12.
My next session I decided and with Chas’s ok I took the R6 out for a spin, and had a awesome session. Amazingly I was up with and passing most of the pack, trying to stay away from the scary all over the show ones, is always easier said than done. I’ve decided a prefer 4stoke bikes, that’s a definite. Might put a for sale sign on the RGV at Phillip Island tomorrow if we make it!!
I jump back on the RGV for the 4th session of the day, this time determine to make peace with her and smoke some people and not bounce it off the limiter!!! I managed to find the power band this time and every time I found it, I had to jump on the anchors to make a corner. By the end of the my last session which was the next one I was feeling pretty smooth on her. Being able to cut up the inside of bigger bikes into the S’s full throttle felt real good, but as all good things must come to an end it was time to start the long process of packing up and driving back to Melbourne and straight on to Phillip Island for round 2 of the Victorian Interclub series.
We made it back on the road by 4.30pm and after a fair few fuel stops pulled into the Arthur Phillip motel at Cowes at a mere 2am bed is looking good about now. See you all again at the crack of dawn at 6.30am for a day of club racing excitement.
Genevieve.