Project Supermoto - Outtomunch comes out of retirement

[Uinneag]

I want it back

 

[Deleted account 211025001]

Oh yeah, and the other thing I've done tonight is drop the yokes, hopefully to speed up the steering and I've dropped the tyre pressures to 24 F and R and wound up the damping a bit. Trouble is I won't get a chance to ride the thing 'till Saturday morning before setting off to Curborough so fingers crossed it works!

Stop Press - Bored at work so nipped home to 'get some files' and had a quick 30min blat

Pleased to say that just dropping the yokes 10mm and lower pressures has made the DRZ a different bike - much more like it now. Much less inclined to understeer and tips in much (very ) quicker

Starting to feel quite positive aboth the weekend now (in a sort of, 'I might actually stay on the bike' kind of way )

Andres

 

[Deleted account 211025001]

Well, I'm sat here at the gym with a coffee in hand having just completed a gruling hour and a half work out - pre race fitness is something that I take very seriously and this is the culmination of a rigorous and intensive three month training programme.





Actually, that's bollox (really ).

I hardly slept last night (and that's not even the night before the race!). So was up at 6, had some snap and off down to the gym as there was no point just lying in bed worrying. I'm really getting quite scared now

Off home now, via the trailer shop to get some new tie downs for the bike. Then it's get the race numbers on the bike (I like that bit ), pack and set off late afternoon to meet my mates (2 DRZs and a 'Berg) who are travelling up from darkest Hampshire.

Andres

 

[Hustler]

............Starting to feel quite positive aboth the weekend now (in a sort of, 'I might actually stay on the bike' kind of way )

Andres

Have fun and enjoy.
And yes, do try and stay on the bike if at all possible.

 

[Deleted account 211025001]

Have fun and enjoy.
And yes, do try and stay on the bike if at all possible.

Thank you

Packed and ready to go now, just having a quick Pot Noodle and I'm off

Nervous, who's nervous Not me

Andres

 

[Rushy]

I hope you sort out the strap on that front wheel before you go

Have a great time and good luck

 

[ovenpaa]

Race report?

 

[Deleted account 211025001]

Race report?

I won and am still celebrating, currently sitting in a hot tub with half a dozen lovelies, several bottles of 'Bolly' and half the annual output of Colombia......

















Not really

I'll do a full write up this evening when I've had a chance to sort the piccies etc but I did have a good day thanks, put in times that I was pleased with and managed to stay on the bike - absolutley shattered though, waaaaay too hot to be racing bikes in full leathers!

Andres

 

[Deleted account 211025001]

Back down to earth now having spent a day at work, here's how it went on Sunday.....................


Having sorted out the bikes straps on the trailer I was on the road, an hour later and I arrive at Curborough, just on the outskirts of Lichfield. Amazingly, my mate Nick has arrived all the way from Hampshire just 5 minutes before me

Nick has a Berg 450 and with him is Rob on his DRZ400E and Simon, also on a DRZ. We are soon nicknamed Team Bannana as we are the only yellow bikes there as well as being the only DRZ's

By the time we set up in the paddock the sun is setting so we go for a quick walk around the track.

It's only now that it really dawns on me that this is a Sprint track, not strictly a Hill Climb. That is, it is flat (not a hill) and it is fast, very fast. So, horsepower rules here as do big cajones. I don't do speed; tight, technical, up hill and twisty is fun; open and fast is not, my cajones are smaller than peanuts and I really do start to get scared, really good old fashioned scared.

We go in search of grub but due to good old British hospitality find that all the local pubs have stopped serving food by 9pm - what was the point of late opening and the so called continental cafe culture

So a curry is eaten too fast and too late and we retire to our tents around 1ish.

6am and somebody has turned the lights on. I awake with a rumbling stomach and already it's too hot so out of my sleeping bag I get, take some piccies of the sleeping bikes and get a brew on.

Bikes are fettled and last minute tweaks made (like Rob pumping up his tyres due to discovering his rear tyre only had 10psi in it ).

8am and scruitineering is open - off I trundle with the DRZ and into the hands of the scruites it goes.

"Are your sump plugs wired up?" Er no................

"OK, just wrap some wire around them so they look like they are" Er, OK.........

"Have you got a sprocket cover?" Er no...................

"Make one and bung it on - pass " ER, OK .................

So, one scrounged old mudguard and one cable tie later I have a sprocket cover

The riders meeting is called and it's explained that the first rider to crash cleans the bogs and safety issues such as only one rider on the track at a time are explained

The it's off to the pits, get kitted up and it's not long that I'm in the queue for the start line, it's only 10am and I am really hot (not a cloud in the sky) and really scared. What the hell am I doing here, why, why, why

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Then it's my go. Get the front wheel positioned so that an amber light comes on but not too far forward so that the red light comes on. The starter places a chock behind your back wheel and once the track is clear a green light comes on and you are free to go when ready.


I'll finish off tomorrow 'cos I knackerd and bed beckons - night, night.

Andres

 

[ovenpaa]

Bed? BED??? Waaahhhhhhh! I have waited in all night for this!!!

OK I was not exactly going for a run tonight but all the same....

 

[Deleted account 211025001]

Just realised I'd better explain how the whole thing works - I've done the bit about the start lights ................

Basicaly you get 2 practice runs and 3 timed runs, the best timed run being the time you enter. And, well, that's it There is a run off for the top ten fastest but that doesn't really concern me

The track is something like this:

Start - long straight leading into a decresing radius left hander that then tightens left. Then into a right , a short straight, a right/left switch back, a short straight and then a constant radius right that leads onto a long straight and the finish line.

Here it is, taped to my bars in case I get lost

And here's one of those 4 wheeled things doing it so you can get an idea of the layout

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Any way, back to the start line for my first practice.

I'm sat there with the orange light on watching for the previous rider to return, which he does and my light goes green.
With Nicks wise words ringing in my ears "treat the first run as a bimble in the Derbyshire lanes" I scream off the line in what I thought was quite a good start, the left hander looms and like the big woos that I am I back off and the bike drops in, so I accelerate and it picks up...........a couple of thrupney bits later and I'm into the bends proper.....that's more like it, more 'supermoto tight and knarly', I decide I like that bit. Then before I know it I'm into the right hander that seems to go on forever before I hit the finish straight.
It is at this point that I discovere that I can scrape the pegs and not fall off and that the DRZ does not have a rev limiter when I screw up an up change

45 seconds after crossing the start line I'm done

Then it's back to the pits and the four of us rant at each other about where we went wrong, where we went right and what we were gonna do better on the next run - all babbling like mad things in that sort of relieved, adrenelin fired excited sort of way that you do when you've just survived something scarey

I actually decided that I enjoyed that run and made plans for how and where I could improve, on the second run.

 

[Deleted account 211025001]

The second run goes much better and I manage to get down to 43 seconds.

Rob and Simon are doing similar times and Nick, who's easily the best rider in our group is in the high 30's

Then it's lunch and we try to a) get out of our leathers. Not easy when it's so, so hot and humid

and b) try to relax during the wait for the proper runs.

The next three runs seemed to go in a blur. We all gradually improved on our times, the three'DRZ boys' aiming for sub 40's but ending up with 41's and 42's and Nick hitting, IIRC 37.

To give you an indication of how we did, the fastest time posted was around 34 seconds and he flew, really flew round the track. Awsome to watch

I had a great time and have decided to get back into Hill Climbing proper

I'm going to try and do at least one more this year, probably Wiscombe in Devon in Sept and then next year try and contest as many rounds as possible. I also want to use the GS at a couple of rounds, in fact I reckon it'd be good for Curborough next year so that could be a plan

To finish off, here's me off the start on my first timed run


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and here's me about to colapse into a cool shaded area after my last run

I thank you

Andres

 

[ovenpaa]

Well done that man

Do you need a competition licence for this?

 

[Deleted account 211025001]

Well done that man

Do you need a competition licence for this?

Yes, but it's easily obtained;

Route 1) - Take advantage of the NHCA's 'Give it a go' scheme (see their web site for details) which basically means turn up and get entry into the race together with a day ACU licience for £30

or

Route 2) - Apply to the ACU for a Sprint/Hill climb liceince which is probably the simplest one to obtain (ie least amount of paperwork).


Are you tempted then..............................?

Andres

 

[ovenpaa]

Yes I have always been tempted but always put off by the locations as well as they seem to be at the four corners of the country.

I will check the site out

 

[Deleted account 211025001]

Yes I have always been tempted but always put off by the locations as well as they seem to be at the four corners of the country.

I will check the site out

Cool

I know what you mean about the locations (most are deep into the west country) and it makes it impossible for anybody other than the truly dedicated (or west country locals) to contend a full series but there are a some more local runs.

It does seem mad though, to travel all that way for less than 5 minutes of racing............

Andres

 

[Deleted account 211025001]

The results are out...........

............and I didn't come last, 16th out of 17 in the 500cc class and 50th overall in the National championship

Clearly I have some way to go but hey, it's a start

Full results here

Andres

 

[Hustler]

............and I didn't come last, 16th out of 17 in the 500cc class and 50th overall in the National championship

Clearly I have some way to go but hey, it's a start

Andres

Well done indeed.
You obviously enjoyed it immensely so the 16th. bit is pretty irrelevant in my book.
And can you doctor the results bit next time as seeing proper names is just wrong somehow ?

 

[Deleted account 211025001]

I had a great time and have decided to get back into Hill Climbing proper

I'm going to try and do at least one more this year, probably Wiscombe in Devon in Sept and then next year try and contest as many rounds as possible.

.............and here, somewhat late, is a wee write up on the Wiscombe Hill Climb held on Sptember 14th

Wicombe Park is just inland of Exeter and is a beautiful venue having special significance to me as it was the venue for my first hill climb back when I had my CCM.

This time I was accompanied by the lovely Amanda and we camped up on the Saturday afternoon with the rest of Team Banana travelling down very early on the Sunday morning.

The day dawned dry and bright, which was a good thing as it had been raining pretty much constantly during the week leading up to the race.

With the experiance of one race this season under our belts, Team Banana was operating like a well oiled machine and come scrutineering we were ready to rock'n'roll. Me with wired up drain plugs fitted this time, as well as a sprocket guard (my 'lucky' guard bodged up at Curborough ).

The same guy that scrtineered me at Curborough remembered me and was very impressed that Id wired my plugs and sorted out the sprocket guard - I felt good and smug

However, the rest of team banana still got through with no wired up plugs

Did I mention how beautiful the venue is? Well here's a couple of shots of the house the grounds are in.

The pits are just out of shot to the right of the house and the track starts just below it.

It wasn't long 'till we were called to the riders meeting and then off to find some shade to wait under whilst the first of our 2 practice runs was called

Andres

 

[Deleted account 211025001]

Now Wiscombe is a very technical hill with some very tight corners and some quite steep gradients (1 in 6 on the last hairpin)

This is what it looks like

and this is the track description from the NHCA

The Hill is 1100 yards long of excellent machine laid tarmac and is situated in the grounds of a Manor House. The Hill starts with a short straight to a 90 left, followed by a long straight to "The gate", a right hander, followed by the "Esses", a left, right, left, followed by a straight to the "Sawbench" a 90 right, a long straight then leads to "Martini" a 110 degree left hander to the finish.

The track is in the open all the way to the right hander (The Gate) where upon it carries on through some very dense woods all the way to the finish.

What with all the rain during the week this meant that the open section (in the sun) had dried out but the wooded section was, not only damp (very) but actually had moss growing on some sctions of it

Any way, first practice run and I'm on the start line, ready to go.

Good start, hit the first l/h bend in second (mental note to try 3rd gear next time) and I'm off up the long wriggly straight, nearly airborne on the yump and it's brake from flat out into the right hand 'gate'.

Then I'm into the trees, it all goes dark and I can't remember, let alone see for an instant, where the esses go. I can also feel the back moving more than I'd like as it hits the damp and moss.

This is one section of the track I never got right all weekend (nor did I when I raced here before).

At the top of the esses is a r/h hairpin, this is a good racing line around it showng how it should be done

and this is a cr@p Outtomunch line around it showing how it shouldn't be done

Andres