AFM Round 2 at Sears Pt - A Ding Dong Battle!

When I first started watching racing back in the late 90's the very colorful announcers would refer when two riders were swapping positions back and forth as a "ding-dong battle" It made me laugh, and stuck in my head. This past Sunday it was very much a din-dong battle.

Before we get into the heat of the racing action let's take a look at what brought us to this weekend. I had every intention of  having a fresh hot rod engine in my bike for this round, but the best laid plans of mice and men did not allow that to come to fruition. It's my fault. I was supposed to pull the Web cams out of my current engine, and get them to KC at BRG, and I didn't do it with enough time to finish. I didn't want him to take any chances while trying to rush so instead we ran our same tired old engine, minus our high performance cam-shafts. So not only did we not have a new engine, we had a slower version to boot!

On Friday we practiced with Pacific Track Time, and got 7 sessions of much needed practice. My suspension tuner Dave Moss of Catalyst Reaction was there but wasn't allowed to work. The politics of track days are getting stupid. Come on people it's the Friday before a race weekend at least let Dave work with his sponsored riders. So Dave wasn't allowed to touch the bike, but by communicating through the old school format of talking I began making adjustments. As I said last month I'm using Michelin tires now, and the rear tire was tearing up badly. I'm using the C compound which is the hardest and should last me 2-3 days of track abuse, and I barely got a single day of my first tire at Buttonwillow. I ran a couple of sessions in the morning to get my head cleared, and then started in on Dave. We tried more spring pre-load, less spring pre-load, but the tire was still overheating. Dave then suggested we need to get some weight off of the rear of the bike. At his suggestion we added 2 full turns of ride height. Non-motorcycle folks, that's a lot. I ran a couple of sessions, and the tire started cleaning up. We continued to add ride height 1/3 turn at a time until we felt like the tire stopped overheating. Interestingly once it did stop overheating it began to tear up in another way. We both agreed it was a rebound tear, and made the choice to slow down the rebound by adding some clicks on the adjuster.  As Friday's track time came to an end the paddock livened up as more racers began pulling in to set up. Since most AFM racers are bay area based the Sears round usually has more participants, and none more than the first round. It was Friday night and the circus had definitely come to town. I tell you this circus might have 3 rings, but all the acts are filled with clowns. Friday night Kate drove up straight from work, and we settled in for a cold windy dinner before climbing into the back of the truck for a much needed rest.
 
We awoke Saturday morning to the bayying of sheep on the hillside, and generators starting up. There are few better places to wake up than at the race track. With the roust-abouts having set up all the tents the paddock was much more full than the previous track day. There are only 4 sessions of practice on Saturday and I needed to make the most of every lap. The tearing was better but could be improved. Sears Pt has some hard braking zones so front end feel is crucial, and  I was having a hard time getting the bike to turn in while trail braking so more work needed to be done. The morning session is almost a throw one because the track is a little damp from the overnight dew, and the sun hasn't warmed up the asphalt. The best thing to do in the morning is get some heat in the suspension, the bike, and yourself, and not try to win practice. I was feeling good about the track, even with all the traffic I had to fight my way through, but I was still struggling to get the bike turned in Turns 7, 9, 11 which are all the hard braking zones. We started by adding some front preload which also helped keep the forks from bottoming out on heaving braking. Still trying to clean up the rear tire we took some high speed compression out which also seemed to help. One little adjustment at a time all trying to make the bike more comfortable, more stable, more precise, and not wear out the tires. After the last session we made some more small changes, and called it a day. Kate and I watched some of the novice races, drank some beer, and caused general mayhem around the paddock. OK maybe Kate didn't cause any mayhem. That was probably me and my buddy Robin. Well fed, well beered we went to sleep early to try and rest up for the following day.

Sunday morning, and I put on a fresh tire I went out for my 1 and only practice session. I tried to push as hard as I could to test the few changes we made after our last session on Saturday afternoon. It felt like the bike had a chatter transitioning from 3 to 3a, and I thought maybe we had overdone the front pre-load so after the session was over Dave took 3/4 of turn out. A tiny adjustment but we're getting there. The rear tire looked great, but after one cool morning session it's hard to say for sure.

Race 1 Open Twins. I decided to run OT because I wanted a race before the lunch break as my main races were after lunch. OT is mainly for the big bikes but it's fun to go chasing motorcycles that make much more horsepower. At the start of the race I got a good launch and stayed with the main pack until we came out of the carousel, and that was pretty much it. They were gone. I ran around by myself for a while trying as hard as I could. That is exactly what the problem was. When you "try" hard is when you really start making mistakes. The harder you try usually the slower you go. I had counted all the 650's in the grid, and the really fast guys were gone so I decided to stop trying so hard, relax, focus on hitting my marks and make the most of the race by being smooth and improving my laptimes. Then Fredrik went by me. "Where the hell did he come from" I screamed in my helmet. When I looked around on the grid I didn't not see Fredrik, another 650 racer. Now it was game on. Fredrik, myself, and Bill Brown riding a Ducatti 749 had a 3 way battle for 2 laps. Fredrik and myself would make brave passes on the brakes, or through creative lines and Bill would motor us on the straightaway.  It was excellent racing. Fredrik and I kept trying to find ways to put Bill in the middle in hopes of screwing up the other guy. Poor Bill got to be a rolling chicane. It was damn fun, even though Fredrik motored by me on the straight to take the position it was great. I'm really glad I did that race. I made some bad mistakes and really needed to get my head out of my ass for the afternoon.

Race 2 650 Twins My case of cerebral rectum-itis cured I got a great start made a few passes (mostly on Robin hehe) and rolled around by myself for 7 laps. It wasn't a boring race though. I kept it interesting by losing focus, running wide, overbraking and generally  trying to take myself out. I got tired, had no one to chase, and lost focus. All bad things. The worst part of the race was that Robin crashed out at the bottom of the Carousel, and luckily wasn't hurt. My next race started in about 30 minutes, and I needed to get some energy in my body quickly. When your body needs a short burst of energy what's the best thing for it? Sugar. I began scouring the paddock for a can of Redbull. I'm not a big fan of energy drinks because I think they are overloaded with sugar and caffeine that we just don't need in our daily lives. But if there was ever a time I needed some wings this was it. Again fortune smiled on my as Scott Reavey another 650 racer pitted right next to me had one to spare.

Race 3 Formula IV. Another great start. I was focused, determined, and wired. I quickly made my way through the people I knew I could pass, and lost touch with the people I wish I could race with. That left me and Evan #898. We spent 6 laps fighting each other tooth and nail. Inside pass, outside pass, on the brakes, on the gas even as we got into the back markers of the wave that started behind us we kept at it. Once again I felt bad for the poor guys and girls riding the 250 ninjas. There was no way I was letting Evan get away so if he passed a back marker so did I, and a couple of times I came so close to one of those little green bikes I thought I heard them scream as I went by. I talked to some other racers who were behind us, and they thought for sure Evan, and I were going to take each other out, but I never felt I was out of control. On the edge pushing the limit, yes, but not out of control. In the end Evan got a better drive out of 11 and beat me, but not without me giving it everything I had. It was a ding-dong battle from flag to flag.

I ended the weekend with a 7th in 650 Twins, an 8th in Formula IV, my best finishes ever, and a personal best lap record of 1:50.4. The rear tire is almost perfectly smooth even after 3 hard races. Next month we'll have the new engine sharply tuned by KC at BRG Let's see if 1:49 or better is possible.

New banner for long time sponsor 

I don't know what I just said to Scott to cause this face palm

Always better to be the sittor rather than the sittee

Thanks to the people that help me go faster.

Jennifer at Werkstatt Motorcycle Repair
Dave Moss of Catalyst Reaction
Michelin and Alex of AFMotorsports
Julio from Tommy's
Paul Fine of Fine Design

AFM Round 1 2011

What a crazy build up to round 1. It all started way back in October when I crashed and did some serious damage to my race bike. In December I came across a good deal on a theft recovery Kawasaki EX650. I decided to buy it with the idea of turning it into a production race bike. Lots of people had suggested I should race production, instead of the Formula classes. For my non racing readers the Formula classes allow unlimited modifications to the motorcycle as long as it stays in it's displacement category which for me is 650cc, while the Production classes severely limit modifications to make it cheaper racing. The idea being that it's a more even playing field. Since I've never been able to afford a rocket ship engine it made sense. So I pushed this bike around my garage for a couple of months before I came to the conclusion that I didn't want to race production. Even though it made sense, and really would be in my best interest I just didn't want to race such a limpy wimpy bike. I like fiddling with my bike. I like looking for ways to make it better. I like being a bit of a David up against a field of Goliaths. So with about 30 days before the first round I made the decision to fix up the old crashed race bike, and get thee to Buttonwillow. First the bike went to Gerry Piazza to straighten out whatever had been bent, and the list was not short. Both inner and outer fork tubes on both forks were bent, as well as both wheels, the upper and lower triple clamps, and the front axle. When it was done I picked the bike up and took it to KC at BRG to have a new sub-frame made, mine looking like a crushed aluminum can. Once I got the bike home off came the forks and shock to get refreshed by my long time sponsors Dave Moss of Catalyst Reaction. When I had the bike reassembled I began the dance of fitting the new freshly painted bodywork (Thanks to all the contributed). I have to say if anyone is considering getting into racing I highly recommend buying a used prepped race bike, and not building one from scratch just to avoid the lengthy and annoying process of trying to fit race bodywork. Getting all the last minute parts ordered and delivered to me in time goes to the credit of Gina at Werkstatt, who fit my urgent parts requests into her busy schedule, including adding new dealerships just so I could get a special part I wanted. As a typical racer I put the finishing touches on the bike the afternoon it was to be loaded onto the truck. When my trusty racing partner Kate got home from work off we went to the fabulous resort of Buttonwillow Raceway Park.

Here's a pic of the new sub-frame all mounted up, and waiting for the bodywork

Here's the bike all freshly painted, and ready to race

Friday morning was busier than normal. I needed fresh tires as I was switching tire vendors this year. That's a big change for me as I have been riding on Dunlops for 6 seasons. Alex Florea representing Michelin had courted me last year, but I was nervous about switching and Terry from Sport Tire had always given me a deal and taken care of me, but when things changed at Dunlop and Terry wouldn't be doing tires anymore it was time to give Michelin a try. Tires fitted, warmers on, and suited up it was time to hit the track for the first time in 6 months. I spent the first couple of sessions trying to recover from Cerebral Rectumitis, otherwise known as getting my head out of my ass. I was trying to remember which way the track went, what gear to be in, even how to sit on the damn bike. In the afternoon I finally started to get my rhythm back and feel like I knew what I was doing. I was still desperately slow, but at least I knew where to go, and what I wanted to do. Friday night kinda sucked. Usually the race paddock is a vibrant place filled with colorful characters eating, drinking, and making merry, but on this Friday the place was eerily silent as a storm was approaching. Many, like myself, had packed up their pit spaces tight and found shelter in motor homes, backs of pick up trucks, or hotels. Kate and I spent a lovely evening with my parents who had brought their camping trailer. It was nice and warm, and cozy in there.

Saturday morning we arose to a cool overcast day. The weather forecast was not good, and I wanted to get as much track time as possible in case of the eventual cancellation. After a few more sessions I was starting to feel like a racer again. At lunch Barbara, the race director, made the announcement that we would  be running select races on Saturday afternoon because the weather forecast for Sunday was so bleak. This was unusual and a bold move something different for the AFM. I would get both of my races on Saturday. This news energized the paddock like nothing else. Where there was before a sort of lull that went along with the cool overcast sky was now replaced with the frantic race preparations as people had to quickly decided what their afternoon strategy would be. This news caught many off guard. Tires had to be swapped, fuel tanks filled, and so on. I was very glad to have made the choice to practice on Saturday as some had not, and would no be racing with only the warm up lap to get their heads around racing.

Race 1 650 Twins. I was gridded in an excellent position on the 2nd row, and I had a good plan on where I wanted to put my bike when the flag flew. I executed that plan flawlessly driving even with the front runners as we left the line. Then my plan failed. Racing is about pushing the limit. It's about finding your comfort zone, and going past it. That's why we race. As we got close to turn 1 I grabbed the brakes at the point I felt comfortable, and about 8 guys went past me. That's what 6 months off the bike does. Cursing at myself I knew I had my work cut out for me if I was going to have at least a respectable finish. I knew I would be strong on the back section so I allowed myself to just relax knowing they would come back to me. Over a couple of laps I made some passes on the outside of Riverside trying to be brave on the throttle, setting up for an inside pass on the brakes into Lost Hills. I think I was running as high as 8th when I tried a pass in Sunset. I had the pass, but the rider took either a brave, or stupid move and completely sawed off my front wheel forcing me to tighten up my line, and stand the bike up. I hit the dip on the inside of the corner and that bounced me off track. Next time I'm going to hold my line, and bounce him off track, but again lacking seat time there was no confidence for a move like that. Out into the dirt I went, but unlike normal Buttonwillow the dirt was nice and firm, and I easily got the bike under control, turned and while still in the dirt back on the gas. I took a long look over my left shoulder and merged back on the track determined to make up a place or two. I managed to make up 1 spot and finish a disappointing although fun and exciting 10th.

FIV I was gridded a little further back, and when I entered T1 there was a waving yellow flag so I slowed up a little and several riders went past. Naughty Naughty riders, no passing under any flag conditions. I made note of the riders with the intention of protesting them at the end of the race, but it didn't matter because as we rounded Riverside #211 Everett "Ducky Fresh" lost the front end in a dramatic fashion crashing big time bike tumbling through the air. I was 2 bikes back, with Dave Sapsis in front of me. Dave stood his bike up and ran wide trying to miss Ducky. I think if Dave had held his line like I did he might have not gotten caught up in Ducky's crash. As we came around the final corner the black flag came out, and we all pulled off track. When the race restarted I was determined not to blow the start again, and I managed to suck a little less, but still far from spectacular. This race was a lot less fun. The 250 super bike race which is made up of little 250cc ninja 250's started in front of us, and it took us all of the first lap to get into them. So my race became a game of who was willing to take the biggest chance, and stuff the most Ninjette's at a time. At first I was bound and determined to stay with my competitors using the little 250's as rolling berms. I can tell you some of those guys and girls could smell my BO I passed them so close. I lost a couple of spots because I just wasn't willing to torpedo someone. At one point I had a great battle with Evan #898 with him coming out on top. This Time.

We packed up said out goodbyes on Saturday night, and began the long wet drive back to SF. It was great to be back on the race track. 6 months is too long to stay away from some of the weirdest, and greatest people on the planet. Motorcycle Racers.


Thanks to the people that help me go faster.

Jennifer at Werkstatt Motorcycle Repair
Dave Moss of Catalyst Reaction
Michelin and Alex of AFMotorsports
Julio from Tommy's
Paul Fine of Fine Design


Beware. Ugly dolls are wathcing

Back on track

It's been a long time since I've written anything. I sort of lost the momentum. I was doing so good writing about racing, and life, but as life does sometimes get in the way I stopped. At the last race meeting back in October I had a big crash that pretty much destroyed my bike, and then I got really busy with work, but I'm back now. I'm ready to get back into the racing game. The season starts in just 30 days, and I've got a lot to do.



My bike was damaged badly, and is in the process of being put back together, and you can help.
I'm going to put my social media to use and try to raise a little money to help get me back out there.











I'm reaching out to my blog readers, and friends on Facebook to help me buy new bodywork for my race bike. A new sets is about $500. This is just a piece of what I need to get the bike back on the road, but an important one. Any amount will help. $1, $5, or $10. When you click the "ChipIn" link you'll be redirected to PayPal where you can make your contribution. Thanks for taking the time to read this whether you can contribute or not.
-Mickey

AFM Round 5 - Participant or Competitor

Another race weekend come and gone. I spent a lot of time working on the bike the couple of days prior to packing up for the weekend. Last month I had issues with over heating, or at least the radiator pushing water into the overflow bottle. So I took the bike up to KC @ BRG Racing. KC did the subframe, and rearsets as well as tune the fuel injection last year. I wanted him to test if we had blown a head gasket which could pressurize the cooling system hence cause the overflow issues. It was determined that everything was OK, but the valves were out of adjustment. So after adjusting the valves the bike was run on the dynomometer to see if it was running lean, or having too much air and not enough fuel, which could also cause the bike to run hot. The results where everything looked OK, except we are now making less torque in the middle of the rev range than we did a year ago. What does that mean? The engine is tired. On it's 5th racing season the motor is due for a vacation. Once I got the bike home I installed my new Motion Pro Revolver throttle,, which allows adjustable throttle openings. The main goal is to be able to open the throttle to full with less rotational movement. This addresses one of the issues I've been having which is not opening the throttle fully, and not opening the throttle soon enough all with the intention of exiting corners faster. It took some finessing but the installation went well. I got the truck all packed up, groceries bought, and Kate came over around 6pm, and off we went.
  When we got to the track around 9:30pm it was still in the 80's. ouch! It was going to be a burner this weekend. We quickly got everything set up, had a beer, and went to sleep. It had been a restful week with no major work projects, and I wanted to get at least 5 hours of sleep before the weekend really got going.
  Attempting to address another issue from the previous month first thing in the morning was a trip to Dave Moss. The main suspension issue has been adding gas while exiting corners that have bumps. The problem being that as I travel over the bumps the rear shock is reaching the end of it's travel, and when I add gas there's nothing left to absorb the new energy, and the rear tire starts to chatter, and eventually slide. We sat in the morning sun poking at it, pushing on it, and came to the conclusion that the shock was not in fact reaching the end of it's travel, but instead was not using all the travel. That means there is too much tension on the rear spring. So more poking, bouncing, measuring, and we backed off 2 full turns of preload.
  Saturday practice went well. I needed to get my head into race mode right away. With only 4 practice sessions on Saturday I couldn't waste any time. The first session saw me into the 2:05's. Good. Last time here my best time on Saturday was a 2:05. Back to Dave for some little adjustments. Next session we're into the 4's. Good a couple more little tweaks, and we go out and do more 4's but there's more traffic, and getting a clean lap is hard. A couple more little adjustments and in the last session we break into the 3's. Good my best lap from the races last month was in the 3's so the pace is good, I'm  getting the throttle open sooner, and getting it all the way to full. The big  change in the rear pre-load is allowing me to get on the gas sooner, and it's showing in the lap times. I have to admit that as much as the physical adjustments we're making to the bike help the mental adjustments might be a bigger help. Getting good sleep in the week prior, as well as getting a decent amount of sleep the night before, and a little nap at lunch allowed me to have much more mental presence. It's hard to push past your limits when your tired. I also was very focused on hydration. The ambient air temperature was over 100. The track temp was 144. In order to stay hydrated, and be able to focus I had to drink about a liter of fluid every hour. I use a mixture of mostly water, Gatorade, and a dash of Redbull which makes for a nasty, but a functional cocktail.
  Saturday night we had a nice BBQ and spent lot's of time cruising around the pits, and hanging out with our extended AFM family. Dave Sapsis always brings delicious home brewed beer, and this time there was chocolate cake! There's always the Twinworks crew to visit, as well as the Feel Like a Pro group. There are many friends to try to catch up with, and see how their day was going. Who was feeling fast, who was feeling slow, who had fallen, and would they make Sunday's races. I limited my beer intake as again I didn't want to dehydrate myself. I slept solidly that night, and was well refreshed for Sunday.
  Sunday morning had the warm up practice session, and I was into the 4's which is good for a traffic filled morning session.
  Race 1 was 650 Twins. I was gridded on the inside of the 3rd row all the way to the left which is a terrible grid spot. I had done a few practice starts to get used to the new throttle, and when the green flag flew I blew the start badly. I was so focused on the new throttle I didn't let the clutch out enough and pulled a wheelie, and had to chop the throttle to get the front wheel down. Damn. Composure regained I got on the gas and as I started to accelerate away I had to make a quick maneuver to not run into pole sitter Dan Sewell. I could see his shifter dangling off his bike, bummer for him he was having a rough weekend. So I went into T1 in something like 20th place. Not the start I was looking for, but I was determined to fight to the last lap. On the gas had out of 1 I charged around the outside of T2 as everyone bunched up fighting to get to the inside. Accelerating hard out of 2 I crossed the track to take an outside line around T3 again while everyone bunched up fighting for the inside line, exiting T3 I again crossed the track for yet another outside entry into T4 and up the little hill into T5. I decided to stop pushing my luck and didn't take the inside pass into T5. A mistake there with everyone bunched up usually means a pile of bikes. The pack settles in after 5 and starts to single file through 6, and 7. My pit buddy Robin is just in front of me, and my arch nemesis John Forman in front of him. I'm thinking I'll get a run on them into 8, and make a pass up the hill on the brakes into 9, but John slows a little more for 8 than expected, and Robin goes for an outside pass, and I wasn't going to be left behind so I go for the inside pass. I don't think John was too happy to get sandwiched passed on the fastest part of the track! I know I'm not going to get any passes done in between 10-13. That is my weakest part of the track so I give Robin a little room so I can get a good run out of 13 and down the back straight where one of my strongest places is on the brakes into 14. I'm gaining on him as we go under the bridge and I say to myself I'm not even touching the brakes until I'm past him. Hard on the brakes rear end wagging around like a happy dog I'm I'm starting to question my strategy, and then I realize there's a rider a few bike lengths in front of Robin, 61 Spencer Smith. Shit. So I did the only thing I could. I Let go of the brakes, and dive for the apex. With the front tire chattering badly under the load of the bad line I manage to squeak through, and get on the gas for the entry to 15 and up the front straight. Half a lap later I get passed Brad Woods by taking a wide entry into6  and gassing past him into 7 (yeah new throttle). That leaves only 1 bike in front of me within visible range. I pushed hard, and after a couple of laps reeled him in. I used my new found drive out of T2, over the bumps on the gas which gave me good momentum on him into T3. One of my favorite places to pass is around the outside of 3. It's bumpy and the bike bounces and flails around, but if you can  come up parallel to the rider then you own the inside of 4 and that's what I did cleanly taking away the spot. Once passed 71 I could see a powder blue bike up ahead. Oh shit that's #69 Scott Liesnewki. I never see him on the track. Oh come to me blue carrot. I'm thinking Scott's riding by himself. He's lost the lead group and isn't motivated. Maybe I can sneak up on him, and take him on the brakes into 14 on the last lap.
Ah delusions of grandeur. At this point we're on lap 5 of the 3 mile Thunderhill course in 90 degree heat, and in my pursuit of Scott I start making mistakes. After blowing T9 I give up my pursuit, and focus on finishing cleanly. I over brake for 14, and get a bad drive onto the front straight, and sure enough into T1 comes #71. OK I'll get it back in T3 just like before, but all for not as there is a waving yellow flag in T3, and no passing under any flag. OK my last chance will be in 14. But I blow T9 again, and entering T10 #555 Scott Reavy goes around my outside. OK I'll get Scott into 14, but I got too close to Scott as we went through the 11, 12, combo meaning I couldn't get a run on him out of 13. I'm a little bummed that I let that happen, but later I find out I finished 9th with a best of 2:01.8 by far my best time ever, and I made up a huge amount of ground, and never gave up.
  My next race later in the day was Formula IV. I typically don't do as well in FIV as there are other fast guys on different kinds of bikes in this race. This time I was gridded on the outside of row 3, a much better place even if further back, to my left is Robin, and to his left Forman. The green flag flies, and I manage not to flub the start. Not a rocket start, but no wheelies. I take the outside line in T2 again, but as we enter T3 we're already single file. My first thought is that is strange, and as we round T4 I realize I'm with the lead pack. Much like at Sears Pt a couple of months ago I realize I'm in rare company. I know it won't last but it sure looks cool for now. As we round the mid section which is the fastest part  the front 3-4 guys check out. Sv650's making just under 100hp don't wait around for Kawasaki's making just over 70hp. I find myself in a battle with 898, a very fast guy. I'm so excited to be here. I follow for a couple of laps looking for an opportunity, seeing where I'm better. As we go down the front straight I pull up right behind him, and stay in his draft, and right as we cross the start line I move to his inside tickle the front brake, and take the inside line.
I make yet another mistake into 9, and he comes by me into 10. No surprise there. As we cross start finish the white flag comes out, and I've got one lap to go. I take a look in 1, no. I try the outside of 3. Maybe up into 5, no. OK I've got one more chance. T14. As we go down the hill into 10 I give him a little room, this is a big risk because if anyone was behind me I could lose a place just like I did in the first race, so I can get a run on him through 11, 12, 13. As we come out of 13 he's got like 5 bike lengths on me, and I don't think I can get it done. Fuck it I'm going for it. The worst thing that will happen is that I'll run off track, there's no one else I'm going to hit. So as we cross under the bridge I brake stupidly late shooting past him. My first thought is there's no way I'm making it, but I started my turn in, gently letting off the front brake taking it all the way to the apex. Now that's trail braking! I've got no drive, and at this point I make a strategical choice, rather than accelerate out of the corner thus opening up the underneath for a pass back in T15 I cruise the exit of 14, drop down a gear then accelerate hard INTO 15 thus giving my opponent no chance to out drive me down the front straight. I take the checkers by a bike length or 2. I finished 8th with a best time of 2:01.085. So close to breaking into the 0's.
  It was an exciting and successful weekend of racing. My experiences have taught me this year that if I want to run up front I have to be well rested, and have a plan. KC said it best when he asked me if I "was a participant or a competitor". That will give you perspective.
  I have to give a special thanks to Marie at Werkstatt Motorcycle Repair, for working with MotionPro to get me that revolver throttle. It really made a difference. Also to Dave Moss of Catalyst Reaction, for taking that extra time in the morning to work with me. I know he was under the gun, and not feeling the best, but still has time for a mid pack 650 guy. Also to my girlfriend Kate, who's help has been tremendous.
Sadly I have to miss the next race at Sears Pt because I have to travel for work, but I'll be back for the last round in October. Can anyone say 2:00 flat?

Thanks to my other sponsors
Dunlop, and Terry at Sport Tire Services
Paul Fine of Fine Design
Julio from Tommy's

Pictures to come when Joe from 4 the riders  puts them up.

AFM Round 4 - A Hot Wind Blows

Friday later afternoon we headed up to Thunderhill to meet up with Robin, and Kaitlin. T-hill is only 130 miles from my home, but I didn't get it together and out of my driveway soon enough so we got caught in traffic outbound on Highway 37. Stupid me so the normally 21/2 drive now took 3 1/2. Once clear of the bay area traffic and north bound on 505 I feel the wind knocking the truck around. Not a good sign. Once we got to the track, and started to set up the pit area I knew we were going to be in for a long weekend of sun and wind.
Here's a pic of the pit set up on Saturday. Note tent with the lack of the canvas top. The wind was blowing so hard it would have taken the tent away, but we need places to hang things like the leather suits, the clock, ect.

Saturday practice went OK. I hadn't been to T-hill since November and it showed. I really expected to have more speed, but I wasn't getting it done. I hadn't slept well the night before, and the heat and the wind were beating me up. I really wanted to be close to 2 minute laps, but I was no where near running more like 2:05's. The good thing was that my rear tire was wearing really well so at least the suspension was in the correct range. We got 5 practice sessions in before the new Tag Team race.

The Tag Team race is a cool concept and it's a mini endurance. It's run like a 2 man relay race. 2 riders each with his own bike, The first rider does 30mins then comes in the pits, and exchanges an armband with rider 2, and off he goes. But the really silly part is the Le Mans style start. Click the link for details, but essentially your partner holds the bike, you start across the track, and when the green flag drops you run across the track, jump on the bike, and go. It's crazy, stupid, and a lot of fun.

Here's us practicing the start in the pits. 

Here's some pictures of the actual start.

I got to start the race, and you can see me way in the back. We raced in the lightweight class and started 1 spot from last. I got a good run, and jumped on bike quickly, and took off possibly in the lead in our class, but getting a good start meant that I was heading down the track as the slower runners in front of me were just launching their bikes right at me! So I slowed a little, and 2 guys went bye me, Damn. I got through turns 1 and 2 cleanly, and trying to keep #36 Tom Dorsey in site. My bike had been running hot all day, and I was worried about it lasting the length of the race. We had done 5 practice sessions earlier in the day, and now I'm here riding a 30 minute stint. I was already tired, and dehydrated before the race started, and I knew both me and my bike were going to have a tough time lasting the 30 minutes. I pushed hard to stay with Tom in the first few laps but I conceded that I needed to slow down a bit and stay focused. That would turn out to be harder than at first thought. About 8 laps in I started making mistakes, turning in too early, missing apexes, braking too early. I was getting tired, and it showed. I had to shake the cobwebs out. My mind was wandering. That's a trick to endurance racing. Staying focused. There I was railing into T8 at 110mph thinking what we are going to do for dinner. Yeah it's like that. I started to smell some oil burning, and I couldn't tell if it was coming from my bike or someone else's, and I started to worry, and then I really started blowing corners, time to come in. I rode down the front straight patting my head in an exaggerated way letting Robin, and Kate know to get ready I was coming in on the next lap. We'd practiced the exchange in our pit, and had a good plan. When I came in I put my front wheel to the right of Robin in line with his rear wheel, stuck my right arm out that had the arm band on it, and Kate grabbed it off me, and slid it onto Robins outstretched waiting arm. He already had the bike in gear with the engine running, and was off in a split second. It was a flawless exchange, and we quickly became the talk of the pit area with nods of approval from other teams. I even overheard someone say "that's how we're doing it next time" Well done team. Robin had to do 2 more laps than me, and rode fast and smooth. Thanks to the misfortune of another team we'd been gifted 2nd place, and Robin brought it home maintaining that position.

For Sunday's races I had high hopes. After finishing so well I Saturday I wanted to turn it up a notch, and take advantage of my good starting positions.

First up was FIV, I was gridded way to the left on the inside and when the flag dropped I got a bad start, and lost even more positions as we went into T1 getting pinched off from the outside. I rode hard and I quickly formed into the 2nd pack, the lead group long gone. In front of me where 2 bikes I knew I could pass, but I couldn't get it together. I now know I have good entry speed, but I'm not getting off the corner and on the gas soon enough. Many times I'd have to roll off the gas mid corner to not hit the bike in front of me, then they'd gap me big on the exit, and I'd make up all that lost ground on the entry again. I got spooked several times when people would make a pass on me that was so sketchy my only options where to stand the bike up, almost run off track or they'd crash into me. That kind of do or die block pass is perfectly fine in proffesional racing, but to do that in club racing is one asking a lot of the skill of the people your're around, and two just plain dumb. So I lost a couple of spots, and couldn't get them back because of my bad drives.
I finished way down the order.

650 twins would turn out to be a repeat of FIV. a bad start, bad drives, sketchy passes by other racers, and another bad finish.

So I know what I need to work on. I think I need some suspension adjustments to help me gas out because in a couple of corners as soon as I add gas the rear want to let go, and that's no fun. I'm also having trouble getting the throttle all the way open, and I have to double clutch it. I'll be ordering a new throttle set up to help with that. So another weekend down, and some lessons learned. I'll get 'em next time.

Thanks to the people that help me go faster.
Dave Moss of Catalyst Reaction
Jennifer at Werkstatt Motorcycle Repair
Dunlop, and Terry at Sport Tire Services
Paul Fine of Fine Design
Julio from Tommy's

Some more pics of the weekend.

Dream Wedding in Carmel

The first week of June I spent 7 days in Pebble Beach / Monterey working on a wedding. Now for those of you that really only know me through my motorcycle antics you may remember that I work in the Event / Entertainment industry doing theatrical lighting. Part of that business on occasions includes weddings. The compnay I work for does weddings all the time, but I don't usually do them unless they are on the high end, and have money to spend. This is one of those occasions.
 The bride and groom were not anybody of note, nobody famous just lucky to be apart of some successful familes that can afford the best. When I say the best they started by hiring the world most famous wedding designer Preston Bailey. It all goes down hill from there. Hartmann Studios built a small tent with clear walls and ceilings, and covered the tent floor with an amazing wood panelling. It was my job to make the place look magical. We had many meetings and hundreds of emails, and still it was a death march to pull it off.
 The design had two sections. Inside the tent, and outside. The trick was that the designers wanted it to be a seamless transition from inside to out, and since the walls were clear what you could see outside was apart of what you could see inside. the original concept was to cover the outside of the clear tent with mini light strand nets, the kind you see at christmas covering peoples hedges in front of their house. After 2 days of struggling with making that work I made the call that it wasn't going to give us the look we wanted. So on Friday I ordered white mini light strands from Colorado and had them overnighted to Monterey, as well as cleaning out the stock that Hartmann had in their warehouse. I'm really glad I made that decision, and wish I would have made it a day earlier. The rest of our lighting consisted of making the foliage, trees, ect .. around the garden area as pretty as possible. Preston's crew hung candles in lanterns around the trees (I can't believe they pulled that off in California) and the end result was a very pretty event. So those of you I know in the motorcycle world might find it hard to believe that I do "pretty" pretty damn good.
 It was a tough event as working in a clear tent is like working in a green house, and the logistics of the jobsite were challenging as well, but working with all the different teams was a fun challenge and the end product was exceptional.

Here's a picture in the tent.

Here's a close up of the tent top

A view from the stage

A view of the garden

New look for the site

I have spent now way to much of a nice day inside working on this layout. For certain I'm no HTML guru, but I got it figured out enough that I like the layout. I hop it's easier to read for everyone.

AFM Round 3 - Testicular Fortitude

It's Monday morning my hands are blistered, my muscles are sore, I have bruises on my chest from pressing against my gas tank, and I couldn't be happier.

Friday
I made my way to Sears Point (Infineon Raceway) for the ZoomZoom Trackday event. After last months disappointment I wanted to really focus on a few small things to try to bring my confidence up, smooth out some areas, and of course go faster. Unfortunately the weather was not going to make it easy as it was cold, and the wind was blowing. No matter there was work to be done. ZZ has their own suspension technician so Dave Moss of Catalyst Reaction can't set up his own shop, but he can work with his sponsored racers like me. My biggest issue to work on suspension wise was the rear tire was hot tearing on the right side. Hot tearing is when the tire gets hotter than it can handle and the rubber peels off and and looks like little worms at the edge of the tire. The down side to hot tearing, other than the tire wearing out early is as a race goes on the tire loses grip as it gets too hot, and then starts to slide, or spin when you should be accelerating. So even though it was cold and windy after a couple of track sessions you could see the hot tearing starting. Dave and I worked on some small changes trying to solve the problem. Other than that the bike was handling well. As this is a trackday and not a race practice ZoomZoom offers instruction so I grabbed AFM mentor coordinator, and 650 fast guy Dan Sewell for some pointers. We did one session of follow the leader. I led first so he could observe my lines, and I made sure to ride at full pace. Dan is fast and I didn't want to him just pass we at will when it was my turn to follow. Well I guess I made it a little harder than I meant to as braking into T9 Dan tries to come around the outside of me and we collide. Being skilled riders no one goes down, but I was like "damn, that's some personal instruction" His advice later on was about taking the entrance to T3 without using the brakes, and exiting T11 wider would prove to be hugely beneficial throughout the rest of the weekend. I continued to work on the things Dan pointed out to me the rest of the day. Friday evening Kate showed up to help get the camping stuff set up, as did by buddy Robin. It was damn cold.

Saturday
I wasn't originally planning on riding Saturday, but I'd made the deal with myself if it was sunny in the morning I'd ride. Well sure enough the sun was bright and shining, but it was still cold. Up early I got reg'd and the bike all tech'd. I'm in practice group 3 so I have plenty of time to get the tire warmers on, and generator going. I was pitted near my buddy Nick Haymen, co-owner of Munroe Motors, and his Ducatti gaggle of friends. Chatting with those guys about racing big bikes the phrase of the weekend came out. Even though we all rode pretty well we lacked the "testicular fortitude" to take it to the next level. What we needed was more balls. I continued working on the same things as before while working with Dave to get that hot tearing to stop. First we tried increasing tire pressure, but that wasn't doing it. Then we tried reducing rear shock rebound but that wasn't fixing it either. Eventually we added some preload on the shock, and that helped. I got 4 sessions in and had some good laps with 650 fast guy Scott Leisnewski, and 650 rival John Forman. Robin has picked his speed up and was in my practice group so we got to do some laps together. Unlike other Saturday nights there were no off track antics. Partly with some of our riders missing do to a competing series in Utah and partly because it was so damn cold. There were no slow bike races, or other debauchery which is all the better for Sunday's races.

Sunday
Robin and I were up early. He wanted to jog a lap around the track and I borrowed his bicycle to join him. It was a nice way to start the day as the sun was shinning, and the temperature wasn't as cold as the day before. It was going to be a great day for racing. I was assigned to practice group 4, a first for me.

Forumla IV was my first race of the day and it was Race 1. I was feeling confident, but not cocky. I've been working on my starts, and felt I was getting better at my initial launches. I had skipped the FIV race last weekend as I wasn't feeling it so I was gridded a little further back. Robin was gridded a row in front of me as was rival Forman. The goals of the race were pretty simple, ride fast, beat Forman, and Robin. It's good to have goals. Green flag dropped and I got a good launch easily moving forward a row, but what I need to work on is carrying the success of the initial launch further up the field. Instead I got hung up by slower riders in front of me giving up my launch and slotting into the pack. The pack bobbles and weaves it's way through turns 2,3,4 before starting to single file as we head into T5,6 then down the back straight where everyone will try to out brake each other. I prefer to stay out of the that fray as I think it will eventually wind up as a big pile of bikes. I know if I am going to get a decent finish I need to get a move on, and start passing people. I make my way past a bike or 2, and on Lap 2 I out brake Robin into T1. Not a common place to pass, but you take 'em where you can get 'em. At that point I was with Forman, Spencer, and Elrod, all fast guys. Spencer is in the lead of this group and holding us up. We are deep into the pack of the previous wave, and using the poor slower riders like speed bumps. It's a very dangerous thing that the slower bikes start in front of us, but so be it. As we battle with each other we make some scary close passes on the slower riders. This is an area that I used to be a lot nicer not wanting to do anything too risky, but if you want to finish close to the front you need to develop some testicular fortitude and take some chances. There was no way I was going to let someone put a back marker between us. By the time we sifted through the traffic Forman and myself had dispensed of Spencer, but Elrod was gone. Fine the battle would be between me and #65. I had good speed through 3, and 3a, as well as 8, 8a, and would suck right up on the back, but not in a place I could really use it. John rides smooth, and doesn't make a lot of mistakes so I had to try to use my advantages where I could. I knew I wasn't going to get it done out braking him into T9 so I'd have to risk a pass into T6 "The Carousel" John has always been better than me through that turn, but I had much more speed over the top of the hill. So I let a little gap grow between us as we made our way up from T1 so I could build a good speed advantage as we came down through 4. I rocketed past him in the very fast turn 5 as we headed into T6 and as we rose to the top of the hill there was a standing yellow flag. NOOOOOOO Danm it. No passing allowed under any flag so I had to slow down, and let my yellow nemesis back by. I tried to pull up to him through 7, but I knew by the way we had been riding that my best chance was behind me, unless John made an uncharacteristic mistake I was stuck behind him. We crossed the checkers 10th and 11th. Not too bad of a finish, and a damn good time.

Race 6 of the day was Open Twins, which is a fund kinda throw away race for me. I like to run with the big Ducatti's. When the green flag dropped I got a great launch, and carried good speed up the hill into T2, just as the yellow bike of Panaforce racing started to tuck the front. He managed to save it but just like last weekend he pushed me wide, almost into the dirt. That guy seriously needs to stop focusing on how cool he is off the track and learn to ride within his limits. He's going to cause someone to get seriously hurt. I gathered myself back up, and took off after the pack that was leaving me behind. As we dipped into T4 once again yellow bike guy blows the turn and goes wide. I had a good drive and stuffed it underneath him as we entered 5. By the way he stood his bike up I don't think he was expecting someone to make a pass on the inside of him. I chased some Duc's for awhile then I had a moment in T11, and exited the track. I felt like my bike was not dropping the rev's when I rolled off the throttle, and not wanting to be a risk to my fellow racers I left the race. I went back to my pit, and pulled my tank looking for the problem. In hind site I don't think anything was wrong. Sometimes the problem is in your head.

Race 9 was 650 Twins. I was gridded 7th, and was determined to finish well. The green flag dropped and I got a great initial launch, and being so far up front there wasn't anyone slow me down. I drove up the hill in 5th place and then made an amateur mistake. There was a standing yellow flag, and I slowed down. The 4 guys in front me did not. dumb. I gathered my thoughts, and pushed hard, but Rob Campbell, and Drew Patterson went by me. At the top of 3A it looked like Ricky Ford either had a moment or wasn't moving as fast as Drew thought so Drew checked up just as Rob went to pass him, and the 2 of them slowed each way down to outside giving me the opportunity to dive underneath them. I pushed hard, and had to grow out of my comfort zone if I was going to stay with the lead pack. As I rounded T7 I couldn't believe I was in a train of riders I usually only read about. Dan Sewell, Dave Raff, Scot Leisnewski, Ricky Ford and me. I knew it wouldn't last with Dave and Drew behind me, but it was damn good to be there. I'm pretty sure Drew got me going into 9, and Rob came around me going into 11. I tried my damnedest to keep their pace but in racing when you "try" hard you usually make mistakes, and so I did. Then I made more mistakes trying to make up for my mistakes. I had lost touch with the lead pack, and I settled down and focused on hitting my marks, and riding clean laps. I took a moment to look back on the last lap and I could see Tom Dorsey catching up. No problem. Don't do anything stupid, ride clean, and he'll stay back there. I finished 8th. Finally curing my case of Cranial Rectumitis, and leaving room for some Testicular Fortitude.
ie: Once I got my head out of my ass I had some balls to ride fast and take chances.

Despite the wind, and the cold it was a great weekend. There were great people we were pitted around, Robin and his family are fun, Kate my girlfriend is a great pit partner, and hanging out with all the people I've come to know over the years is always a blast.

Thanks to the people that help me go faster.
Dave Moss of Catalyst Reaction
Jennifer at Werkstatt Motorcycle Repair
Dunlop, and Terry at Sport Tire Services
Paul Fine of Fine Design
Julio from Tommy's

UPDATED PICS:
A special thanks to 4 The Riders for giving us a few pics.

Electric Motorcycle Racing - Way to go Werkstatt

The very first electric motorcycle race in the US took place this past weekend. Although my own personal schedule didn't allow me to attend my racing sponsor was there in force. Jennifer Bromme of Werkstatt Racing and Repair took 4th place in the inaugural race.
This article over at Gas 2.0 has some nice things to say about Jennifer, and my club The SFMC.

Werkstatt Electric Racing

AFM Round 2 - The best laid plans of mice and men

After the success of Buttonwillow last month, and my usual tendency to go well at Sears Pt I had the expectation of doing well at this round. Alas that would not be the case.

To really be successful at the track you need to be totally focused on the task at hand, and this time that was not the case. I had a very busy work week, and was not prepared like I should have been. And for sure last weekends Coachella adventure did not help. I wanted to do the trackday on Friday to get some extra practice in, but again because of work commitments I just couldn't do it. On top of that I hadn't had much time in the gym, and to little rest before the strenuous riding began. Needless to say I was behind the 8-ball before I had even turned a lap on the track.

Friday evening late I got to the track and got my pit set up with my new old girlfriend Kate. (that's a long story) My good buddy Robin had saved a spot for myself and fellow SFMC racer Cary. I got my area all set up, had a couple of beers, and went to sleep. Unfortunately it was ass cold, and I slept like crap which would work against me all weekend.

Saturday morning up early got the bike all tech'd and the warmers on, and was ready to go. I'd had a chat with my suspension people about where to take my settings based on what we had left off with at Buttonwillow. I did my first session, and the bike felt terrible. Back to Catalyst for some major changes. We spent the entire day playing this game. And by the end of the day the bike still didn't handle how I wanted it to. I was really having trouble getting off the corners. I could get into a turn OK but when I would add gas it just felt like the rear wasn't hooking up. Now my bike makes less than 80hp so it's not like it just spins up the rear at will. this was definitely a suspension geometry issue, and we just ran out of sessions to test it with. Part of the problem was me being tired. I just couldn't focus the way I wanted to. Session after session I would fight through traffic finally get some clear track then not have the focus to really take advantage of it.

With all the riding for the day done it was time to settle in for some serious Saturday evening fun. My good friend and sponsor Julio of Tommy's Mexican Restaurant had once again hooked me up with some Tommy's Mix and a couple of bottles of Arete Tequila to give out as part of our promotional work. But better than that Julio had made some shirts for our racing team. It was exciting and so much fun to give out some shirts, and drinks to my friends in the racing paddock. We had a blast, and helped promote the Tommy's brand.






















And just for the fun and embarrassment here's a pic of a poor fool who lost a bet about who'd finish in front of whom during the novice race. he lost.














Following the margarita bash was the slow bike races. Once again I was not up the task, or maybe it was the margaritas.



























Following the slow bike races were the live interviews over at the Feel Like A Pro pit. Brian Bartelow has done a superior job of elevating amateur racing. His business of renting race bikes, and his pit set up are nothing short of professional level. On Saturday night the folks from On The Throttle TV hosted live webcast interviews. They had an excellent mini TV studio, but I need to talk to them about their lighting, and did interviews with some fast guys, as well as the race director. It was very cool stuff.


Sunday morning and I'm better rested but still not as much sleep as I'd like, and just a little fuzzy. I'm going to need to limit my margarita intake on Saturday nights. I made anther big change to the suspension for the 1 morning session but I wasn't feeling much better.

Race 1 was Open Twins. Not my normal race as my bike is out classed by as much as 100 horsepower, but it can be fun to go out and run with the big bikes, and try to chase people down. At the start of the race I got a great launch but almost ran into the back of the guy 2 rows in front of me so I had to roll off, and so much for my great start. I settled in and started chasing people down. I was keeping a decent pace, but still having problems accelerating out of the corners. My buddy Mark came roaring past me on his big Ducatti, and I happily passed him back breaking for T7. That's my favorite, stuffing the Duc's on the brakes. I think I finished 12th in Open Twins, but I'd felt really tired at the end of the race, and that didn't bode well for the 2 more races I had later in the afternoon.




The next race was 650 Twins. This is the one I finished 10th in last round, and I was hoping to at least stay with the front guys for a bit. At the start I got a decent launch but was held up badly going into T1, and I lost a few spots, then going into T2 a novice on a yellow bike almost highsided which caused all kinds of mayhem. He hit someone who moved over and hit me which caused me to slow way down, and there went some more people. That whole first lap was chaos, Eventually it settled down and I started getting some spots back. I was battling with my buddy John Forman. I have consistently sucked at getting through T6 The Carousel and John would get a run on me down the short back straight going into T7. He'd show me a wheel while breaking and I'd turn right across him sawing off his front. It was good fun. Unfortunately because I was tired I started making mistakes, then I would try harder to make up for the mistakes. I came up on a slower rider from another class, and instead of taking an inside pass on her, and cutting her off I waited which allowed a couple people by me. That sucked. As I desperately tried to make those spots back up I turned into T11 trailing to much brake pressure and completely tucked the front. It was a full on front wheel slide. My handle bars went all the way to the steering lock. Amazingly I saved it and stood the bike up and ran off track. I got back on losing another couple of spots. I managed to finish the race without any other incidents in a lowly 19th position. Not the results we were looking for.

I was done at that point. I had no interest in trying again in my next race. I was tired, I did nothing but make mistakes, I couldn't get the bike to do what I wanted, and I was totally dejected. So I had a beer. If you've been around racing long enough you learn that there are times when you just don't race. Call it intuition, or luck, but sometimes you just call it a day, and put the bike back on the trailer. So that was it for Round 2. Fun was had, no one in my circle of friends got hurt, and we put the bike back on the truck in one piece. We'll do better next time.









As always Thanks to the people that help me go faster.
Jennifer at Werkstatt Motorcycle Repair
Dave Moss of Catalyst Reaction
Dunlop, and Terry at Sport Tire Services
Paul Fine of Fine Design
Julio from Tommy's

So one time this volcano erupted ...

Here in the land of Mick-E I mostly write about my motorcycle racing adventures, but sometimes I am motivated by events so write about other parts of my life. This past weekend was one of those events that is worth writing about.

On Friday afternoon late in the day I got a call on my cell from my co-worker Walter. A buddy of his from Felix lighting in LA was looking for someone to fill in for a missing LD who could not get here from volcanically challenged Europe. They needed a GrandMA programmer, and Wally was trying to help a buddy out by finding one. OK fine. I said. I was supposed to have the weekend off, but I could use the money for racing so I said why not. With no information other than to show up at the Catalyst nightclub in Santa Cruz at 11am, and meet the tour manager Matt for a band called Phoenix I was in. I spent some time Friday evening watching Youtube videos of the band from their recent show at the Warfield to get an idea of what their show was supposed to look like. I very much had the idea that I was going to try to recreate as much of the original show as possible. I put their newest album on my ipod, and on the trip down to the club in the morning I put my headphones under my helmet with the album on repeat, and listened away. That's about where my expectations ended and the story really begins.

The Catalyst is a little club in Santa Cruz so the first order of business was to locate the tractor trailer that was coming up from LA which wasn't hard as there was only 1 tractor trailer trying to navigate the tiny streets of downtown Santa Cruz, the next order of business was to figure out how the hell I was going to get this thing unloaded. Part of the comedy of this adventure was I only knew what some of the fixtures were going to be. I really had no clue what was in the truck. Eventually I did the get the truck unloaded with the help of another truck to cross load from the big semi into a smaller bobtail with a lift gate. OK got it. Gear on the ground next task is to open the cases and see what Santa brought us! At this point the bands full size tour bus towing a trailer shows up. So now we have 1 tractor trailer, 1 tour bus with a trailer, and 3 bobtails trucks all trying to unload into this little parking lot. Oh the comedy. Once we had everything unpacked, and the 2 instrument technicians ,Cedric and "Mini Mouse" with the band were working on setting the stage I finally had a chance to sit down with the band and talk about the show, and was I ever in for a surprise. I had studied their video's and I had a pretty good ime dea of what it was supposed to look like, but instead the lead singer Thomas tells "our show is complicated, you'll never get" "let's do something totally different" and they show me some you tube clips from an old Talking Heads concert. I look and I knew exactly what they were going for. Their normal show is very high tech, lot's of video, and LED's and strobes. Instead they wanted to go low tech, and they loved that old Talking Heads concert. I know that concert well because it was lit by a theater designer in a very non rock and roll style. It had lot's of shadows, and was super stark without any flashing lights, just subtle cue changes. I immediately knew what the band was looking for, and I reassured them I could create that look with the gear I had. At this point they asked me since I was doing this show I should do the next show which was Coachella. It was simple really. I get on the tour bus with the band, do the show, and fly back to SF on Monday. Sure easy peasy. All I have to do is find a place to stash my motorcycle (Thank you Jason), figure out how to get it on Monday, and get some clothes to wear for the next 2 days. How could I say no. It's Coachella for crying out loud.

OK it was settled that I was going so on to creating that look onstage. With the gear I had it was no easy task. We had to rent a generator. I let the kid in charge of the club hook up the dimmers, and he blew the fuse on my rack because the generator was set to 480v. He had to scramble to find me a tiny control fuse that protects the dimmers brain, but luckily he found on. The stage was tiny. There was almost no room for any lights on the stage. So I had to get really creative about where I could even place a lighting fixture, then figure out a way to use it. Necessity is the mother of all invention and with 15 minutes before the band took the stage for a rehearsal I had my meager lighting system consisting of 2 2k fresnels, 4 Par64's on the dance floor uplighting the band, and 4 Par64's as high side light. Add a handful of house par cans, all with no color and that was my lighting rig.

During the rehearsal I got my footing for some of the songs, practiced the important Q's for Love Like a Sunset, and 1901, and wrote my notes furiously so as to have some sense of what I was going to do for each song. It was a packed house when the band took the stage, and I tried mightily to create some visual drama with my tiny lighting rig. I would do a whole song with just 1 of th 2k fresnels on, and then add something like the uplights, or a side par. Really subtle changes. I was nervous as all hell. I've punted many shows, but I usually have a large arsenal of lights to create some razzle dazzle, but here this was raw. The band played hard, and the crowd went wild, and after the show the front of house audio engineer who is also the production touring manager told me it was one of the best shows he's ever seen the band play. He was really impressed by all the subtle changes, and thought it was a great looking show. I took a big breath, and could just smile.

OK next monumental task: fitting all the lights, monitors, and band gear into the trailer towed behind the bus. It was almost comical, but Cedric was determined to make it fit, and fit we made it, barely. We ended up putting some guitars in the belly of the bus with the suitcase, and some guitars in the stand up shower inside the bus. Barely fit. About 2am we got on the road outbound for Palm Springs. On my bunk inside the bus was a 3 pack of socks, shirts, and undies, along with a toothbrush. We stopped in Ontario around 10am for fuel, and I bought a terrible looking straw hat, and some redbull.

When we got to Coachella we lined our bus up with all the other tour buses, and began unloaded our trailer to cross load it onto a flatbed truck that will shuttle our gear to our stage. Once at the stage the local lighting stage hands took my console into the production trailer and set it up for me so I could get to programming. Word was out that I was a fill in LD, and people were going out of their way to accommodate me and try and help. It was an awesome feeling. I now had to come up with another basic lighting rig, and figure out how to utilize the gear. Roger from Felix had sourced me some 2 light mole-fays I wanted to use as uplights. When it came our turn to change over we had 25 minutes to set the stage, get my lights set up and program from FOH. Brutal. It was not even close to enough time. If I hadn't had the time in the production office I would have totally crashed and burned. As it turns out I had just enough time to get a couple of things programmed, and I had all my handles set. I took a pause to look up from my console, and turned around to see the crowd. That was a mistake. By this time we were the only band playing on one of the 2 large outdoor stages so lots of people came to see our band. I was later told 55,000 of them came. I didn't panic, but I didn't need to see that. If I was nervous the night before than now I was on edge. Luckily I didn't have any time to think about it because a moment later the band took the stage. I had my notes from the night before, and a new set list so I had to look at my notes, and see what song was coming next. Once again I was trying to create some different looks with a very basic rig. It was not a very exciting light show, but the band looked great on the big video screen on either side of the stage. It was exciting like no other lighting show I've ever done. I now have a new appreciation for rock lighting designers. This stuff is addictive.

When the show was over we loaded up the flat bed as Thom Yorke took the stage. We loaded up the trailer, a little better this time, and got back on the bus bound for LA. When the band got on the bus every member gave me a high 5, and a hug. They had loved it. It was their best show ever, and they explained why. Their normal lighting show is complex and has a lot light behind the band. They explained to me that the way I lit them they couldn't hide anywhere on stage. They couldn't be lazy. They had to play, and play hard. They loved it. They connected more with the audience, and it was a lot of fun for them. They asked if I'd talk to their LD when he made it form Europe and explain to him what I had done. Now that is a compliment.

When we got to LA at 3am to check into our hotel again every band member gave me a hug and thanked me. The crew all shook my hand, and off to bed. They had to get up early for a taping of the Jay Leno show. Me I had a plane to catch, and go fetch my motorcycle.

And this is what can happen when a volcano erupts. If you've read this far please do a search on Youtube for Phoenix Coachell 2010, and you'll see lots of videos. The guys in the band were so friendly and awesome to work with. The crew guys english monitor engineer Adam, French guys, Cedric, and Mini Mouse, and Ausie tour manager Matt were so supportive, and cool. I hope to meet up with again sometime.
Now let's go race some motorcycles.

Training

About 5 months ago I started actively going to the gym again. I had fallen out of the rhythm and got lazy, and as such I was running out of energy when I rode on the track. I guess starting in November I picked it back up with a much more serious intensity. I've been trying to go every other day, or at least every third day. At first it was hard just finding the motivation, but once into a rhythm it's not that bad. I have a program I do based loosely on some personal training I had a few years ago. I spend 30 minutes on a stationary bike trying to hit a target heart rate for 4 minutes, then a higher rate for 1 minute, and back down again. Training your heart to speed up, and more importantly slow back down is vital to not getting tired when pushing yourself during physical challenges which in my case is racing. After the cardio work out I do a series of core floor exercises, then move on to some strength training stuff using free weights or machines. It's been great. I've added resistance and additional weight to all my routines. At the first AFM round I rode for 3 days in a row which would usually leave me feeling extremely sore Monday morning, but not this time around. On Monday I was tired but not sore at all. Not only that but I've added a lot of muscle mass to my upper body. Suffice it to say other than the arthritis in my right shoulder I'm in the best shape I've ever been in. Now let's see if I can keep at it all year.

AFM Round 1 - Sting Like a Bee

Friday practice went well. 8 sessions about 20 minutes long equals almost 3 hours of riding, and I needed every minute of it. I hadn't ridden since Thanksgiving weekend, and I knew I would need to blow off the cobwebs. I had a plan. I wanted to take the first couple of sessions really slow, and just take a look around. I hadn't been to Buttonwillow Raceway since March of 2008, and although I could remember which turn came next I had no real reference points. The first couple of session went perfect. I began to remember where to turn in, where some braking points, and visual marks are located. I stayed away from other riders I knew so as not to get sucked in, and try to run with them. That wasn't what I needed. As the day progressed I picked up the pace, and I needed to start making some adjustments to my bike. During the off season I had done a lot of work to the frame, and forks, and my suspension needed some balancing. Off to Catalyst Reaction. I worked the whole weekend with Jim. These people are invaluable. It's amazing how much better the bike handles after some time with them. Now to give myself a little credit I have to give them good feedback or I'm wasting both our time. So we make some changes, and immediately the bike feels better under braking, but I'm having trouble getting it to turn in Riverside which is the big fast sweeping corner. Races are won and lost in Riverside. Later on we would make some big changes to the rear end increasing ride height to get the bike to steer better, and I was able to hold the throttle open sooner going through Riverside. It would turn out to be the place I would make up ground on other riders. The funny thing about that is the fast sections of the racetrack were always the places I sucked. I have a fear of going fast. Now that I have a bike under me that I can trust I am pushing harder, and going faster than ever before. As the sessions clicked off I picked up the pace and started chasing down other riders. It was time to get my head into racing mode. Then I ran off track. Ooops. Totally my fault. I was gooffing off waving at my friend Shandra as I rode by her, and not paying attention to where I was. I got on the brakes, but not soon enough. There was no way I was making the corner so I stood it up, and launched myself out into the silt. I have no clue how fast I was going when I left the pavement, but let's say if I had any coal around we could have made some diamonds. On Friday my parents and best friend from Highschool Louie showed up each bringing their camping trailer. We had one hell of a compound with the 2 trailers facing each other, and my black truck in the middle. Friday night was a great little party. John and Cary from the SFMC had joined out compound on Friday as well. It would be Cary's first race weekend, and she was super excited. I love being around new racers. Speaking of new racers. This year I'm participating in the AFM Mentor Program. I'm a volunteer helping new racers get acquainted with racing and to help them get started. So Friday afternoon Dan Sewell the head of the Mentor Program asks me to work with this kid Danielle. Dan said the kid had some questions about his bike passing tech, and he was pitted near me. Well that turned out to be one hell of a project. The kid had essentially a street bike wiht the lights taped over. Only a few things were safety wired. Me and my dad would spend the next 4 hours helping him get this bike ready. In the morning he rolled right through tech with no issues.

Saturday I wasn't planning on practicing, but through the urges of my friends and family "we didn't drive all this way not to watch you ride" I ponied up the money and practiced. It was a good thing. Saturday practice is race pace. It's a way to get your head in the game, and I was on pace. I was still trying to find a line through the sweeper after lost hills, but I was feeling good. At one point I was chasing Bess Keigwin through the esses and something either came off her bike, or got kick up by her bike, and hit me in the throat. Ouch. Half a lap later that area started burning. Damn that hurts. I reached a gloved hand up to see if I was bleeding, when I wasn't I had a pretty good feeling what was happening. I pulled into the hot pits, and asked Nikki at Catalyst if she could see anything on my neck. Sure enough bee stinger. Damn. I iced it, took an anithistamine, but the damage was done. It never slowed me down, but it did hurt all weekend, still hurts if I touch it.

During one session my arch nemesis #65 John Forman got around me, and I was happy to follow him for a couple of laps. I knew he would have a usable line through that sweeper, and I ended up using that line the rest of the laps I rode. I continued working with Jim on getting the bike to turn better, and by the end of the day Saturday I had a bike that would be the best it had ever been.

Saturday night brings a whole other type of race track silliness. The slow bike races. Last year a group of racers called Soldiers Racing started hosting these Saturday night events in an attempt to get some fun back into racing. 2009 was a tough year for the AFM, and we needed to lighten things up. So of course I had to enter the races on my mini bike. After a couple of heats up against some of the best riders in the club I made the main event. I didn't win, but I did score points in what will be a 7 race series with a prize at the end of the year. I may not be the fastest, but I'm one of the slowest!

Sunday is raceday. I had put a fresh front tire on Saturday afternoon, and Sunday morning a fresh rear. Sunday practice is really a warm up session. Get heat into all the components, and your head into the game.

Race 1 650T. I was gridded 12 on the outside. An excellent spot as the inside of T1 tends to get bogged up at the start, the bad thing is that if anyone goes down the outside riders can get collected in it. The green flag waves and we're off. I got a decent start, and was pretty aggressive going into T1. That's something I've been mentally working on. Being more aggressive at the starts. and that's kinda where my memory ends. The race was a battle royal. I felt fast leaving Cotton Corners through the Grapevine, Bus Stop, Riverside, and over the top of Lost Hills. I would lose ground through the sweeper, make it up in the esses, and lost a bunch of ground through Sunset onto the front straight. The bike would wag, wobble, and weave as it would hit the bumps, but never get out of shape completely. Sometimes I'd get into a tank slapper, but I'd regain composer just in time to get stopped or turned. Sometimes the rear tire would slide while gassing it, but always come back, never chop the throttle always ride it out. Through Riverside at 90mph, knees on the ground elbow to elbow with my competitors praying that no one does anything sudden or stupid, hoping no one throws it away in front of me. There were several crashes, some near misses, some great passes. It was a hell of a race. I finished my highest ever in 650T 10th, with a best lap of 2:00.8.

Race 2 Formula FIV. I got a great start. I went through T1 in 7th place, and I knew behind me were some very pissed, very fast guys. I tried to put my head down, and ride a clean fast race. Going into T3 someone on a Code4 powder blue bike went by me rear wheel in the air and off into the dirt. Whew. half a second later that would have taken me out. Eventually the race settled in a freight train of 6-8 riders all trying to get around Ricky Ford. I was at the tail end of it, and I didn't want to do anything stupid so I only made a couple of passes, but got passed back when i made a mistake. At one point I remember the train of us all going through Riverside nose to tail, inches apart 6 bikes long. Man I wish I had video of that. That was a fun race. I was fast, I felt good, and I ran with some good company.

I'm excited for Sears Point in April. I had a good start to the season. I finished well, and will have good starting positions for the next race. I go pretty well at Sears so lets see if I can finish a little further up the field.

I have to end with another big thank you to Jim, Dave, and Nikki at Catalyst Reaction. They really did help me achieve this success.

As always Thanks to the people that help me go faster.
Jennifer at Werkstatt Motorcycle Repair
Dave Moss of Catalyst Reaction
Dunlop, and Terry at Sport Tire Services
Paul Fine of Fine Design
Julio from Tommy's

It's Racing Season!!

I'm here at Buttonwillow Raceway. Tomorrow is the unofficial practice, also known as open test day. It's 10:30pm and racers are starting to pour in. The guys across from me have a nice set up. There's a couch, and what looks like Gran Tourismo on the TV.
It's going to be a great weekend. Weather looks perfect for the whole weekend. I'm excited, and nervous. First race of the year. I've put a lot of effort into the off season to get ready, and now that the moment is here I'm a little freaked out.
One more Tecate, and it's bed time.

Minor setbacks

I had a couple minor setbacks this last week. The first was discovering my rearset mount had broken off. I had an issue with this cracking last year, and had it repaired the that didn't hold. The reason for that being the rearsets themselves weren't designed for this bike they are for. 05 ZX6R, but when my bike was first converted to a racer there were't any parts for it yet, so a adapter plate was made, and I suspect this flimsy piece is the culprit behind the broken frame tab. Nothing time and money can't fix, too bad I'm so short on both. Alas the bike has once again gone to visit KC @ BRG Racing for more upgrades. He has made for me some custom rearset plates that should be the business. The other setback is while goofing off in the city on my street bike I sprained my wrist. I've been trying really hard to keep it imbobalized, and get it healed in a weeks time. Yeah I know stupid me. Fingers crossed.