Carl Stevens
Making life hard for himself at Snetterton!
So, after pretty much a century and a half with absolutely no racing whatsoever (maybe a slight exaggeration) we finally rejoined the British Superbike circus and got under way with round four of the Ducati Performance Tri-Options Cup at a deceptively sunny Snetterton on the old Panigale 899.
Firstly, I just want to send my love to Bugsy (the lovely chap who lends me his pride and joy) who found out his mum has passed away and didn’t race. Stay strong big guy. He always helps out and this weekend was no different, as heading out fairly rusty for our free practice I really struggled with any grip or feeling from the Mupo suspension, and at the end of the session it was really not reassuring to know the thing was leaking oil over the back of the bike. Being far from ideal and not having the race support to fix the problem meant I was basically fooked for the weekend, until Bugsy gave me his beautiful Ohlins shock before leaving. What a guy.
In all honestly the difference is noticeable from the very off; okay I had a new set of boots for qualifying but with just a random base setting we managed to knock a couple of seconds of our previous pace. Mad. As with every round though my qualifying really is atrocious, meaning I gave myself a load of work to do from row seven…
If I would’ve started from there. Sitting on the grid with the three minute board (where everyone clears the grid) just seconds away my crew chief spotted loose bolts on the yoke around the front forks from when we softened the suspension. Bullocks. In a frantic rush we tried to get them tightened there and then, but as the klaxon sounded hope faded; meaning I was pushed from the grid. Literally lifting the bars over the gap in the wall and dragging the bike through we got into pit lane, tightened everything up and I was ready to go, even if I did have to start from pit exit. FML.
It honestly feels like forever until they let you go, feeling like hours before I had the tap. With 41 riders on track, the first few laps were bloody hard work with traffic everywhere; like the first session on a trackday. Any sort of rhythm is impossible, and before we even got half way through my brakes where adjusted all the way out and still coming back to the bar; meaning a measly 19th was the only thing salvageable. Alas, at least we went quicker.
So after making a few more changes to the bike for some support on the front, we lined up on row 7 for race two (with some binoculars to see the lights of course). Fair play to the guys, the bike felt absolutely mint, or did for the first three laps before the dreaded brake fade crept up again. There was nothing we could do this weekend but it will be sorted for Brands next time out, and in all honestly I’m feeling better than ever. Here’s to some more wins in the next blog, and a very exciting announcement for the rest of the year…