ready for the last couple of race weekends of the year.

Well today was my first track day of the season.  I missed the first round of WMRRA due to me still recovering from my wrist I fractured in January.  So today I finally got out to the track with my superbiked SV650.  I had a new front end (2006 gsx-r600 with the ohlins 25mm kit), a new rear shock ( switched from the Penske triple to an Ohlins), wider rear tire (5.5" rim off a bandit 1200) and new tire brand (pirelli's versus michelin).  So I plan to go to the opening round of OMRRA this weekend so I needed to get out there and get the bike setup and see how well I can perform with my still recovering wrist.

After a wet track in the morning with something funky slippery stuff at the apex of turn 7, I will have to say my day with 2-Fast at Pacific Raceways was a success.  My suspension done by Dan Kyle was essentially spot on.  I did have to remove some ride height from the rear but the bike has had its initial dialing in done. 

So this weekend I head off to Portland International Raceways.  The track has changed from last year due to a complete repave.  From what I have heard the pavement is awesome!  Zero bumps and the surface wears well on your tires.  So this will be an interesting experience going from the goat trail called Pacific Raceways to the more like a real race track, Portland Internation Raceways.

Stay tuned for my impressions of the upcoming weekend along with my results in the two classes I'm running, Middleweight Twins and 450 Superbike.

Race 1: Lightweight Superbike

Well round 1 of WMRRA’s 2007 race sure ran up on me fast. Before I knew it I was sitting on the Lightweight Superbike starting line for my first race on the SV650. Since I registered first (sometimes it pays to be the registrar’s Husband) I had pole. Great I could go nowhere but backwards. The first thing I notice was that the starting light was way over there and I had to turn my head basically completely to the right to see it. Even then it was difficult to see the light. Ah damn the boards up already. Crap the light went out. Apparently everyone else was like “Huh?” because I had enough time to think, “Why isn’t everyone going?” before we took off.

So I tried my best for a good start and it really didn’t work out. I just didn’t get hard enough on the gas soon enough. Oh well time to settle in and start running the race. During that race I had nobody in front of me which was in any sort of range to catch. But every once in awhile I could hear someone behind me but not all the time. Um…so I continued to push on. 

Around 2/3^rd’s of the way through the race my left ankle (it’s a left turning track mostly) started to get sore and stiff so I started to miss downshifts here and there. Eventually I missed the wrong one on the last lap and lost my place in turn 9. Damn! I did my best to get through the bus stop cleanly to try to pull him down the front straight to the line but he was just on the gas much earlier than I in the bus stop.  Oh well…one race for the weekend down, 3 to go. 

Finished: 8^th of 12

Fastest Time: 1:45.601

Race 2: Middleweight GP Twins

Since I had a race not only an hour ago I was ready to go. Again pole position due to my registration time, but this time I was ready for the quick start. I got a better start this time. Well somehow I dropped another 1.3 seconds off my lap time. Which is good as my tires went off around lap 6 in the race. Funny thing, if you look at my lap times I started to get faster after my tires started to cause my bike to slide around.

Finished: 10^th of 17

Fastest Time: 1:44.296

Race 3: Formula Thunder

Well this race happened on Sunday so it was the first one for the day. My super sported SV650 is out gunned in this class against Ducati 748 and 749 Superbikes. So I do this class mostly for track time and with another one or two SV’s out there maybe there can be a race out of it. The most notable part of this race is gridding up next to Darren Murrey of DMD Racing. He has run several AMA rounds and is one fast racer. When the light went out I felt great that I was side by side him until sometime until I was in 2^nd gear. This is about the time the Ducati power takes over.

Finished: 9^th of 11

Fastest Time: 1:44.742

Race 4: 650 SS Twins

Well this race is what my bike is setup for. Too bad it started to hail right before our race. Luckly I had my rain tires on. But I hadn’t had any time with them on my SV and I totally forgot to change my suspension settings to cope. I could never get comfortable on the bike so I slowed down and decided to get some points.

Finished: 6^th of 8

Fastest Time: 2:00.442

Overall Impressions

Overall I am pleased with my performance over the weekend being the first time out on the SV650 in a race with a completely different set of people to race against. It looks like those classes are going to be great to participate in and much better than the I-4 600cc classes I would have been in if I continued to run my CBR600F4i. At the same time I’m learning more about corner speed which is my major goal to running the SV650.

The only blemish to the weekend is my performance I the 650 SS Twins wet race. I really wish I could have at least challenged someone but sometimes finishing and getting points is more important than crashing out.

I am looking forward to the next round which is again at Pacific Raceways.

WMRRA Round 1 Report – 3/31-4/1

Race 1: Lightweight Superbike

Well round 1 of WMRRA’s 2007 race sure ran up on me fast. Before I knew it I was sitting on the Lightweight Superbike starting line for my first race on the SV650. Since I registered first (sometimes it pays to be the registrar’s Husband) I had pole. Great I could go nowhere but backwards. The first thing I notice was that the starting light was way over there and I had to turn my head basically completely to the right to see it. Even then it was difficult to see the light. Ah damn the boards up already. Crap the light went out. Apparently everyone else was like “Huh?” because I had enough time to think, “Why isn’t everyone going?” before we took off.

So I tried my best for a good start and it really didn’t work out. I just didn’t get hard enough on the gas soon enough. Oh well time to settle in and start running the race. During that race I had nobody in front of me which was in any sort of range to catch. But every once in awhile I could hear someone behind me but not all the time. Um…so I continued to push on. 

Around 2/3^rd’s of the way through the race my left ankle (it’s a left turning track mostly) started to get sore and stiff so I started to miss downshifts here and there. Eventually I missed the wrong one on the last lap and lost my place in turn 9. Damn! I did my best to get through the bus stop cleanly to try to pull him down the front straight to the line but he was just on the gas much earlier than I in the bus stop.  Oh well…one race for the weekend down, 3 to go. 

Finished: 8^th of 12

Fastest Time: 1:45.601

Race 2: Middleweight GP Twins

Since I had a race not only an hour ago I was ready to go. Again pole position due to my registration time, but this time I was ready for the quick start. I got a better start this time. Well somehow I dropped another 1.3 seconds off my lap time. Which is good as my tires went off around lap 6 in the race. Funny thing, if you look at my lap times I started to get faster after my tires started to cause my bike to slide around.

Finished: 10^th of 17

Fastest Time: 1:44.296

Race 3: Formula Thunder

Well this race happened on Sunday so it was the first one for the day. My super sported SV650 is out gunned in this class against Ducati 748 and 749 Superbikes. So I do this class mostly for track time and with another one or two SV’s out there maybe there can be a race out of it. The most notable part of this race is gridding up next to Darren Murrey of DMD Racing. He has run several AMA rounds and is one fast racer. When the light went out I felt great that I was side by side him until sometime until I was in 2^nd gear. This is about the time the Ducati power takes over.

Finished: 9^th of 11

Fastest Time: 1:44.742

Race 4: 650 SS Twins

Well this race is what my bike is setup for. Too bad it started to hail right before our race. Luckly I had my rain tires on. But I hadn’t had any time with them on my SV and I totally forgot to change my suspension settings to cope. I could never get comfortable on the bike so I slowed down and decided to get some points.

Finished: 6^th of 8

Fastest Time: 2:00.442

Overall Impressions

Overall I am pleased with my performance over the weekend being the first time out on the SV650 in a race with a completely different set of people to race against. It looks like those classes are going to be great to participate in and much better than the I-4 600cc classes I would have been in if I continued to run my CBR600F4i. At the same time I’m learning more about corner speed which is my major goal to running the SV650.

The only blemish to the weekend is my performance I the 650 SS Twins wet race. I really wish I could have at least challenged someone but sometimes finishing and getting points is more important than crashing out.

I am looking forward to the next round which is again at Pacific Raceways.

Well the time is getting near and I can't wait!!

I'm heading down to Thunder Hill to do two track days on Feb 24th and 25th.  This will give me a chance to start working on my new bike for this season, a 2003 SV650.  It shall be fun and educational.

Check out my racing site at http://www.burgiracing.com.  There I have a new blog entry about the off season happenings of myself.

http://blog.burgiracing.com

Enjoy!

Please go to http://blog.burgiracing.com for my offical up to date blog.

I have started up a website for my racing team, Burgi Racing.  The URL is http://www.burgiracing.com.  As we get closer to racing season I will be spending sometime to get the site to be full featured. So stay tuned!

This past race weekend in Spokane (Labor Day weekend) I finally
graduated out of Novice. This means for the rest of the year I am a
Graduated Novice and next year I get to get my Expert license. I get
to run in my specific class which for the last weekend will be 600
Supersport and 600 Superbike. I`m considering running 750 Supersport
too (alot of 600`s run in that class too) but it all depends on how
much racing I think I can handle. :)

Now I was WAY past due graduating if you looked the requirements to
graduate. Mainly you have to run 6 heats and complete them safely.
Well I ended up doing 14 heats. So what was the hold up? Lap times.

There was no reason for me to graduate and be 20 seconds off the pace
of the leaders. That means they would lap be twice in a race. Lame.
So I staied in Novice until I was able to bring them down.

During the last race weekend in the first race my Wife (who is working
at Registration) went down to turn 2 with the Race Director and the
head registra (you can only get there via him cause there is no
specating place there at this track) to watch me run my first heat of
the weekend.

During that heat I was on. I mean everything was clicking, I wasn`t
making mistakes and I KNEW I could go faster. I was down 6 seconds
from my previously fastest times at the track and I was feeling good.
Well the race didn`t go so well for some fellow racers. Several
people crashed out but one notable one is a guy high sided in a part
of the track where we are going 80-110 mph (not really sure as I`m too
busy to look at the speedo :) ). When he was flying through the air
another racer slammed into him. Hard enough to crack his fairing at
one of the strongest points of the fairing.

To say the least that racer was unconciouse for several minutes, broke
numerous ribs and broke his hip (I don`t know if it was the femur or
the pevlis part). All I remember is coming around and seeing him
slumped in the impact zone not moving. That`s not good. The ended
up red flagging the race after 5 of 8 laps (yea we run short ass races
but we are all out of shape. :) ) I haven`t heard anything new about
him but I wish him the best.

Now it turned out on lap 4 I ran my fastest time of the race and guess
what? I finally got my freaking knee down...in turn 2...in front of
the wife!! w00t!

When I got back to the pits and found the wife she told me the Race
Director and other Registra was wondering why they didn`t have my form
to graduate. They thought I was doing well and was ready for the big
boys. That really boosted my confidence and with my lap times being
what they were, I decieded, what the hell. So I gave the Race
Director my paperwork for the second race (normally you would do it in
the beginning of the day but I`ve really been trying to volunteer and
help out the club alot so the staff has taken a liking towards
me...too bad I lost the running for Club Secretary but that`s another
story. :) ) so the RD had no problems looking at me for the second
heat.

So the second heat ended up on the same day as the first heat.
Normally heat 1 is on Saturday and heat 2 is on Sunday. But we had a
6 hour endurance race on Saturday so everything was compacted together
on Sunday.

I got my same normal shitty start and in the back straight I found
myself behind someone I knew. He is on a GSX-R750 and I`m a
CBR600F4i. Lets just say he has WAY more power than I do but I got
him on the straight. :) Draft to pass baby. Then I checked out until
I got stuck behind this RC-51. Oh man...he was impossible to pass.
So impossible I never got around him. Now we are running 4 seconds
slower than my morning pace. I know I could get around him but I had
to play it safe too as to graduate you have to finish. So I didn`t
try a couple of passes in the corners where I had much more corner
speed then him. But I was on his butt the entire race. I mean..right
there...so much so on the first hair pin turn of a series of 2 of them
where we end up going like 30mph I almost nailed his rear tire cause
he decieded to park it in the corner. And this was right in front of
the RD (and my Wife again). Lame.

So I almost got him on the front straight but I just didn`t have the
HP to get by the RC-51. I drafted him down the straight and I went to
pull out ot pass him into turn 1 but I couldn`t get the run I needed
to show him a wheel before turn 1. Sorry folks but at 150mph I`m not
gonna squeeze myself into a space I don`t belong. I don`t get paid
enough. :)

After the race I gave him the thumbs up and he recipicated. We both
knew it was a great race between the both of us. I ended up talking
to him after the race and it turns out I was REALLY pressuring him in
several key spots. In one of those spots he did go WAY wide but I`m
glad he kept it up. :)

So that`s it...that`s how I graduated out of novice into expert. Now
i`m gonna be a back marker but I`ll be running with people who are
several seconds faster than me so hopefully I`ll put up and get a tow.
:)


Oh so I wanted to also wanted to throw a little technical content in
here. I am not one to continually play with the setup of my bike. I
ride it until I`m like WTF? all the time and then figure out what
needs to change. So I had two days of track days before the last
round and one thing I started to really notice as I became more and
more comfortable with my bike and it should do is that in a couple of
turns at the very end of the turn Ihad to really countersteer the bike
to keep it on its line when I cracked the throttle. Its a strange
feeling but bascially your arms end up really tense. I always thought
I was just being a wussy and riding tense at the end of a fast corner.
Nope.

I got new tires before race weekend (at $360 for a set before
tax...ouch! but that`s race tires). While they were off I was talkin
to my sponser (and my tire guy...go Michelin) and based on what I said
he suggested raising the forks 5mm`s (basically drop the front end
5mm`s). So I raised the forks 3.8mm`s (it ended up at an even number
so I figured 3.8 is good). You will *not* believe how much that
little change helped when I am riding my bike at my and maybe the
bike`s limit (or near it). This is how I got my knee down. The bike
would change direction and be stable way the hell leaned over. I`m
glad I made this change.


So I hope you had a good time reading this post. If you by chance
know of anyone would like to sponser a club racer (money, discounts,
free stuff) please let me know. The more the better.

In an effort to help improve my riding by experencing more tracks, I went to Miller Motorsports Park in Tooele, UT. Lets just say that this track is the best track I have ever been to. With the great safety, next to perfect pavement and good weather I was able to work on several parts of my riding. I plan on taking these improvements and drop a couple of seconds during this weekend`s racing.

More to come...