Thundersport GB. Pre nat 600cc racing

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Trackday at cadwell park, try and get some laps in and we are starting to head in the right direction.

Lapping in the 43s and feeling in control for the 1st time.

Still room for improvement but started to spin the rear up and it quickly degraded so couldn't push on as the track emptyed.

Great photo. Bike is looking good.

Few of my mates been down at cadwell recently said its a great track!

Great photo. Bike is looking good.

Few of my mates been down at cadwell recently said its a great track!

Best track in the uk mate.

1 of them didnt think so as he ditched it at 100mph Not his best day lol.

Ive just met a guy up here who has moved from down south, used to race in a no limits series so when we arrange a ride im going to pick his brains on the process and maybes get involved next year along with another mate. I can't think of anything id rather be doing tbh and wish i could get started now.

Pick a club and join it.

You can't apply for a acu licence unless you are part of a club.

Book a course.

Ride around slowly, you only fail if you fall off.

Then go racing.

Pick a decent club.

I went with thundersport because you get what you pay for, they don't cut things short.

I went with thundersport because you get what you pay for, they don't cut things short.

What sort of money are we talking for membership and race days? Excluding consumables and stuff...

I went with thundersport because you get what you pay for, they don't cut things short.

What sort of money are we talking for membership and race days? Excluding consumables and stuff...

Ive just paid the fees for the next round.

Racing and half a days testing is £325.

Membership is £30

When its all added up its £1000+ a weekend.

Roughly comparable with a trackday weekend then.

How much track time do you get roughly?

Not alot compared to trackdays.

4 races (around 20miles a race)

Qualifying

And a 10min warm up.

Test day is 6 sessions.

A bit more then a track weekend.

You will use 2 rears and a front for racing and a scrub for the test day.

Start getting the overtime in.

Thats on a budget and no crash damage.

Arriving at cadwell park on Friday in glorious sunshine we got set up ready for testing Saturday afternoon.

Testing went well, it's a track I know so I was feeling confident but I was only lapping in the 1:42s and that's 4 seconds from where I was expecting to be.

Went into qualifying on the sunday and there was a lot of traffic but I managed a couple of clear laps and again lapped in the 1:42s Qualified 6th in class and 23rd on the grid.

Got talking to rushers racing who runs a couple of R6s and the suggested running a smaller rear sprocket so I did and went out for race 1.

Race 1 was going pretty well. I was stuck behind another freshman who had some really crazy lines and braking points, we come into coppice with a couple of laps to go and I went around the outside of him and he run wide forcing me onto the grass at speed, no idea how I kept it upright but I did and lost about 7 places. I started to chase down the couple of freshman who was now in front of me, last lap and hoping to pass both into park corner I put the power down earlier exiting charlies 2 and high sided. Luckily I stayed on the bike and only trailing a foot on the floor but lost the drive I was hoping for down the straight. I finished in 8th in class lapping in the 42s again.

Race 2, no dramas in this, im loosing places at the start and first corner, then having to make them up. Wrong compound tyre for the heat so lacking abit of grip and again lapping in the 42s. Finished 7th in class.

Monday

Woke up to rain, so a change of wheels to full wets for warm up. Went to watch the classes before me and it was drying but damp so swapped the rear to a dry tyre. Missed the warm up due to needing another wheel swap and never had time.

Race 1

Racing was postponed until after dinner due to fog. Out on full drys we lined up on the grid I was way back in 28th, it was dry ish but still damp. I lost a few places at the start but made them back up to finish 17th and 6th in class, lapping slightly faster in the 1:41s.

Race 2

Lined up on the grid on drys and it started spitting. I completed the warm up lap and lined back up. We all set off and for some reason the bike in front slowed down and the guy behind run into him and went down. All is I saw was a black bike coming towards me. Luckily it missed me but collected bikes behind me. We was red flagged and then it started raining. We got held and then sent back to the paddock while they cleared the incident from the start line.

This give me a chance to get full wets on. The guy opposite rushed over and fitted my wet front wheel but I couldn't get the rear to fit in time and we was called to the grid. I missed the race, devastated because im strong in the wet at cadwell.

Not the best weekend, I should be faster around cadwell by 3 or 4 seconds but scored enough points to move from 8th to 5th in the championship.

I would like to thank the people who support me.

Rachel, she puts up with alot and had a full weekend in the paddock helping out.

Back and white bikes for spending time with me and the bike getting it to do what I want it to do

Club 30 members, massively appreciated.

Rushers racing, thank you for your input this weekend and the lend of a sprocket.

Jon wright, i really appreciated your efforts to get me out in race 2 on sunday.

And the guys and girls who come to watch and cheer me on.

The start line crash.

My bikes got to go to the dyno, suspected fueling problem.

Bloody hell the guy that went off to the right took a hell of a hit.

Hope they all heal soon.

Sent from my SM-G935F using Tapatalk

I'd just seen that on Facebook and came here to ask if you were ok!

holy shit that was nasty for everyone involved hope everyone was mainly ok

I'd just seen that on Facebook and came here to ask if you were ok!

Most of them got up and walked away, not heard anymore since.

The bloke who hit the tyres dosn't seem to be on facebook and i don't know anyone who knows him to get a update.

Mallory park.

I wasn't really looking forward to mallory park.

Thundersport is a big club and mallory park has a small paddock located inside the track.

Also due to noise the circuit can not run race engines on three consecutive days.

This ment testing was on a Thursday, followed by nothing on the Friday then racing Saturday and Sunday.

Due to this i was unable to attend the testing and would arrive late to an already full paddock.

I arrived on the friday at 4:30, i had a quick ride around but there was nowhere to set up on the tarmac.

I settled on a gravel patch next to the track and close to the holding area.

Qualifying was dry, id been to mallory before.

Id done my first race there at the back end of last year.

There was alot of riders on the track, getting a clear lap in was difficult.

Id pushed through some traffic and come

Over the line with no one infront.

Got my head down and pushed to make the most of it.

I got to the hairpin a the change of conditons flag was out.

I saw a bike lent up on the edge of the track and couldn't see anything else.

I lent the bike over into the hairpin and there was a screen on the floor. The front wheel went over it and i nearly parted company with the bike. That was the lap ruined, the next clear lap i got someone pulled out of pit lane and sat dawdling on the racing line slowing my pace.

I qualified 7th in class and 33rd on the grid with a 59.3

Race 1

Ive finally figured out how to use the launch control to its full capabilities and got a lightening start.

After 5 or 6 laps i started to suffer brake fade and started loosing places.

I started 27th and 7th in class and finished 23rd and 7th in class.

Race 2

I changed the brake fluid to get rid of the brake fade.

I also made a couple of suspension changes for this race.

Again i made a great start, compared to previous starts letting me down i now found myself threading my way through riders on the startline.

I started 13th and 3rd in class and finished 11th and 3rd in class.

The suspension changes had a negative effect on the bike.

Sunday i went out for warm up, id made another suspension change and wanted to try it out for a few laps.

It was fine everywhere but the fastest corner of the track where it really struggled to hold a line.

I reduced the change by 50% and got ready for race 1.

Race 1

I lined up on the grid in 27th, got a great start with the front wheel in the air and was powering down the straight, another rider moved across and i thorght i was going to mount him. I slipped down the side and was off.

The bike felt better with the change and i finished 21st and 4th in class.

Race 2

I set off in 13th and finished 10th and another 3rd in class.

Overall it was a good meeting.

Better then i was expecting.

The bikes booked in for its fueling adjusting before the next round.

Hopefully that will be the issue with the bike.

Its not using much fuel so there is deffinetly something wrong.

Ive got a trackday at rockingham after so i can test it out.

Rockingham is next and ive never been before but im really looking forward to it.

Sounds good matey.

You seem to suffer a lot with your brakes - can you upgrade the fluid to give you a bit more time before fade kicks is?

I do it every pad change but there was still some left on the pads so i didn't bother.

Ended up doing it track side between races.

Im using motul 660 and thats about the best you can get.

Is that DOT 5.1?

Dot 4 but it exceeds dot 5 and 5.1

Rockingham.

Between the last round at mallory park and this round ive had my bike remaped and it has made a huge difference.

Set of to Rockingham on thursday night to a packed paddock, after setting up in the worse place possible on the grass and in the wind things was looking bleak.

Struggling alone with everything just makes the racing that much harder and stressful.

Helped another racer set up his awning on his big truck and asked if i could set up in it with him and he was more then happy to help me.

Testing was friday afternoon, id already done a trackday a couple of weeks previous so id sorted out my gearing and settings.

That took some pressure off and ment i could just concentrate on riding around and getting some laps in.

Qualifying.

The weather was good and i quite like Rockingham, its a Marmite track some love it and some hate it. 

I got my head down and got some laps in

This is where the remap has worked wonders.

I didn't loose everyone on corner exit like normal so it put me in a better position to pass on the brakes.

That ment i wasn't getting held up by slower riders and i was sticking with riders that would normally leave me.

I qualified 16th,  only 3 seconds from 1st place and 5th in class.

Looking back at the last rounds ive jumped up the grid along way.

Brands hatch 42nd

Donington park 42nd

Snetterton 35th

Cadwell park 23rd

Mallory park 33rd

The difference the remap has made is huge

Race 1 

I finished 4th in class and 18th on the grid, id gone backwards.

I loose out on the 1st corner trying not to get knocked off.

42 bikes all fighting for 2ft of tarmac and it gets hetic

Race 2 

I was going well, passed another bike coming into a chicane up the inside,  had to scrub all my speed off to make the corner and he passed me on the exit.

The next lap he left a huge gap on the outside and i knew he would brake early then me.

I went for the gap on the outside and just as i got along side he moved over and my bars rode up his fairing, that sent the bike into a small tank slapper and i couldn't make the corner.

Ended up stuck in the gravel, took a while to push it out and i dropped back to 33rd and 9th in class.

Race 1 sunday

Woke up to a damp but drying track.

Set of for race one but at the 2nd corner a couple of bikes collided and we was red flagged and held for a while.

I turned the bike off because the temp was getting high.

We was sent to the grid and stopped again.

The temp was reaching 100°c so i turned the bike off again.

We got the signal to start engines and the bike wouldn't start.

I tried for aslong as i could, saw the lights come on so stuck my hands in the air.

After everyone had set off for the warm up lap i got bump started of the line.

Lined up on the grid again but my head had gone.

I couldn't string a lap together, never got near an apex.

bought it home in 33rd, 5th in class but 6th was only .4 of a second behind.

Race 2

Just as we got to the holding area the heavens opened, everyone was sent back for 10min to change to wet tyres.

Lucky i had a friend to help and he got them swapped in time.

Lined up on the grid and off we went, i like the wet and quickly realised that most people didn't

Quickly picked of riders and got in front of the freshman who had beat me in the 3 previous races.

We got a bike between us and i tried to open a gap.

Come into a corner and just lost the front.

In hindsight the tyres could of done with another lap to come up to full temp but i got carried away.

The bike hit the grass and flipped.

Despite that i had a good meeting.

The bikes better, i had bags of confidence over the weekend.

I wont be at round 7, i just can't afford the tyre bill so il be racing at darley moor on the 13th of august and then back to thundersport for round 8.

Id like to thank a few people.

Alex laurys for letting me set up with him

Nick pryke for helping and getting me out in the 2nd race.

Paul @ Black&White bikes

And my club 30 members and supporters

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