Race Report

Round 5 of the WMRC series had us show up on a lovely hot “BC Day” long weekend. Given the fact I’d ridden 3 of the previous 4 days, then spent the fourth driving between Portland and Vancouver (after several celebratory beers the night before of course), I was feeling pretty knackered. The heat and lack of sleep were almost certainly going to play a role today.

Then to compound things my buddy Wayne (my trusted WMRC wrench) let me know he was only good for moral support as he tore the ligaments out of his knee in a dirtbike wreck. OK, looks like I’ll be doing most of the work too! Thankfully Wayne was good for a few tasks, and my fiancé Christi also stepped up to the plate – a true team effort!

Maybe the heat, maybe the travels, maybe the hangover from the day before, not sure why – but I just couldn’t get my groove on almost the entire day. After a short warm-up we headed out for a 4 lap qualifier. I guess I forgot to pre-enter for the races this weekend, so I was gridded last for all my events. This is problematic at Mission due to the short run from the start line to the first turn, which is a slow 180 degree hairpin. I didn’t get that great of a start, took a while finding my pace, then tried a pass at the line for first, but fell short by an inch or so. At least that secured me a front row start for that main event – the others I would have to start from last.

The first main event of the day was the Pro Superbike race #1. Since there are no qualifiers for this event I was forced to start from last place again. I got a decent start though, and was into second by the third turn. It was maybe the end of the first lap when I took the lead, and held that position for most of the event. At one point I went outside of a lapper (actually, my friend Jackie), while my competitor right on my heels went inside. I lost the lead, but regained it two turns later and held the position to the flag, securing the win.

The Pro Open Supersport race was the only race of the day I got to start from the front row. I took the lead straight away, and held it for the duration of the event. Two for two so far, but feeling a little tired.

Lastly on the day is the Pro Superbike race #2. The two superbike races are scored separately, but combined results determine any trophies or monies, with the results of the second race used to break a tie. Although I won the first race, my main competitor finished second, which meant I had to win this race as well to secure the overall win on the day. To make matters even worse, I hadn’t received shipment of the much needed brake pads I was counting on. My brakes were wafer thin and there was no way I could go another 12 laps on them. We threw in the OEM brake pads, which are sintered compared to the carbon pads I’m used to. The feel of them would be dramatically different. They weren’t even bedded in! I did my best to drag them as much as I could on the warm-up lap.

I got an atrocious start, and could do no better than 5th place into the first turn. I tried to go around the outside of two riders in the long left hand turn 2, but had the nose of my bike cut off on the exit, forcing me to shut the throttle. Into turn 3, still on the first lap, and one of the bikes in front of me goes down…. I went inside for a pass into turn 4 and now I’m into third place. This should be a good sign, but it’s also where things went from bad to worse. I don’t know why but my riding was just sheer crap. I was running a little wide in almost every turn, and not hitting my marks. It might have been the new brakes, but I just can’t say. On about lap 3 I completely missed my brake marker coming off the back straight. It was obscured by the rider in front of me, and the shadows from the trees made things hard to see, but in the end I completely messed up the turn. I had to almost completely stop the bike to keep it on the track, and then I was worried about bikes behind me so I had to pretty much accelerate on top of the curbing to keep from causing an accident. All the while the two bikes in front of me are completely taking off. They have a massive lead on me now, and I’m pissed.

I forced myself to calm down and just try to put a couple clean laps together to see what my pace was if I left a little safety margin compared to the leaders. There were still 9 laps to go, so I could conceivably close up a pretty good gap. Sure enough, I started bringing them back, and was soon into second place – but still far behind the leader. My bike was really loose on the brakes, especially into turn 1. On the run into there on one lap I just couldn’t turn it in, it was too out of shape. I was forced to run wide, and again thought the race might be over. I got things under control though in the next couple laps and started bringing in the leader hand over fist now, breaking and resetting my own track record (now at 1:07.0) in the process. Within two laps I was nearly on his back wheel, and at this rate would be by in a matter of turns. Just when I was getting excited about the impending battle there was a puff of blue smoke off of his front tire, he went down, and I was handed the race. I had a massive lead on second now, so just spent the last couple laps doing wheelies around the track for the fans.

It’s not the way I wanted to win it, but a win is a win I suppose, and three for three on a day when the odds were stacked against me is pretty good. Combine those results with the race day I had two days previously and I went 6 for 7, with the only loss being second place and only 0.1 seconds behind the leader. Considering that I personally feel it was my worst riding weekend of the year so far, that’s pretty darn good I guess.

The guys at Orca Bay Suzuki, Pirelli Tires, and Maxima Racing Lubricants were huge factors in my success this past weekend. All three brands are of such high quality that they could rest on their existing products and still continue to win, but continually improving product lines for all three companies ensure they remain at the top, and keep their customers head and shoulders above the competition. It’s nice to have such quality support to make my job just that little bit easier. Thanks guys.