Cadwell Park By Chris Northover

Coming from the highs of Knockhill, I was hoping to carry on that good form onto a track which has always been special to me. Cadwell Park was the venue for my first ever road race on a 125 Aprilia in 2003 and, last year, it was the round at which I sealed the MRO Minitwins Championship so it’s easy to see why I love the place! Unfortunately, following a crash over the infamous “mountain” (the only part of any road race circuit I’ve ever seen which has a jump!) earlier this year, I was somewhat nervous about attacking the track with my usual zest!

In the first session out on track, my mission was to get my mojo back when it came to navigating the jump at the mountain! The problem is, to get over the mountain cleanly, you need to either hit it really slowly (not an option in this game!) or be aiming straight as you take off and be committed with the throttle. Not so easy when it comes straight off a sharp bend and when your brain keeps reminding you of what happened last time when it didn’t go quite right! That said, I managed to finish the session much happier about jumping a sports bike on a bend and, although I wasn’t particularly high up in the rankings, I had proved an important point to myself that I wasn’t going to crash every lap!

All set for Saturday afternoon’s qualifying session, with a few tweaks to setup and gearing, we thought it was all going swimmingly, and would have carried on thinking this too, had it not been for the fact that a stopwatch never lies! Both Johnny and Myself had felt that we’d been pushing hard and I seemed to be faster than the other bikes around me on circuit, so when my pit board kept showing me as not even being in the top 30, I felt a bit cheated! I felt even more cheated when, seeing the 2 minutes remaining board, I held back from the bike in front to get a good run for one final all out push, knowing that a lap only takes around 1min 40seconds. I came round ready to give it everything, only to be swatted away by the chequered flag like an unwanted wasp at a picnic. It turns out, the “2 minutes remaining” board can mean anything from 2 minutes remaining, to 1 minute 1 second remaining, which isn’t confusing in the slightest! Needless to say, it was a glum debrief after that session, but as someone very clever once said (probably) it is in the face of defeat that we are given our chance to shine brightest and triumph over evil. In the absence of any such evil, we went for the next best thing, which seemed to be qualifying somewhere at least in sight of the front row! It has to be said that the whole team really pulled together and gave Johnny and myself a leg over the proverbial wall which stood between us and some sort of racing-based success! Heads (amongst other things) were scratched, data was consulted, brains were racked, tea was consumed and finally a plan was wrestled onto the table. It jumped back off the table a couple of times, but luckily before the metaphor got too complex, it was pinned down! Step 1 – completely new gearing to use just 5 gears giving greater ranges in each gear. Step 2 – some cunning tweaks to suspension to dial out chatter (not mine, the bikes’). Step 3 – eat more Weetabix before the second qualifying session. The plan was put into action and Johnny and I were sent away to chill out ready for the big push the following day. I duly relaxed myself all the way to a local classy seaside resort (Skegness for those who are familiar!) and left a much happier person when I discovered you could buy a “99” ice cream for just 60p, which is personally what I attribute my improved performance to!

With the new gearing, a top secret qualifying strategy and a mid session trip to a nearby toilet, we were back on the case on Sunday, finishing a triumphant 4^th fastest in the session and securing myself 8^th on the grid for the race. The work never ends thought, and it was straight back to the awning to analyse the changes we’d made and consider what changes we’d like to make (if any) to try in the warm-up session before the race.

Lining up on the third row of the particularly narrow grid, I knew I was up against it, having only been running the hot pace for one qualifying session, so would have work to do to keep up with the leading pack. With a good start, I sneaked my way up to 6^th place and set about picking my way up the order. Once I’d made it up to 5^th, the safety car was deployed, bringing the advantage of closing up the pack in front of me, but the downside was the 30-odd bikes now breathing down the back of my Ixons! After a nice gentle couple of laps cruising around behind some poser in a sports car (sound like the ride home anyone!?), it was back to business and on with operation: get some champagne! Once in 4^th place I was in an ideal position to observe a superb display of musical podium positions put on by Hill, Hunt and Brown, with the 3 of them swapping places like shuffled cards! I managed to nip past Robbie into Park bend and then was busy chasing down Mr Hunt when disaster struck. Luckily not for me, but the unfortunate Leon, who lost it

going through Hall bends and kick-started his new hobby of surprise chicane creating! Thankfully Leon walked away from the crash and we managed to safely navigate round the stricken bike, by which time young Mr Hill had scarpered. Crossing the line in second, greeted by the very same chequered flag that I’d been cursing in the first qualifying session, I was dumbfounded to have landed a podium position after the way the weekend had started!

This weekend really showed how well the team have grown together, and it was everyone’s hard work and support even when I was doing pants that made the weekend for me! So Cadwell remains special to me, even though that win I want so badly still evades me, like the last polo dropped down the side of the chair, but there’s still 4 more races to go and I’m not one for giving up, be it stricken confectionary or wins!

That’s all for now, roll on Croft!

Croft by Chris Northover

Croft, an eerily flat circuit in the rolling Yorkshire countryside, was to be the scene of this weekends racing exploits and the background for a drama that makes Hollyoaks look believable! The first session of the weekend went as planned and we refined the bike setup we’d reached when we tested here some weeks ago. So far, so good but in between free practice and first qualifying we must have done something to upset the powers of karma. The exact cause is yet to be identified, although my theory is that we must have set up the awning on an ancient Indian burial ground and not blessed the turf beforehand with generous quantities of Haribo. For first qualifying it rained and we headed out to make the most of the conditions in case of more severe weather for the second qualifying session the following day. Again, all was going well with minor adjustments to the suspension helping to improve lap times bit by bit until, braking for the sharp right hander onto the back straight things went all a bit Bowlplex, with Josh Day’s bike scoring an impressive strike on me and the Haribo Yamaha sending us rattling into the gutter! Recovering from my skittle-based moment, I picked up the bike and limped it back to pitlane where the team worked flat out to change the wet tyres onto the spare bike to get me back out on circuit. I managed to get out and put in a few more laps to secure 15^th fastest in the session, not too disastrous considering the circumstances. We later discovered that the force of the crash had damaged the rear wheel, which explained the rear grip problems which had hampered me after the crash. The second qualifying session was equally wet, but with no errant bikes flying at me, I was able to spend the session building up my pace in the slippery conditions to secure 7^th place on the grid.

Come race time, a special mention has to go out to mechanic uncles Clive and Richard, who valiantly sprinted across the paddock to the grid and wished me luck before being turned straight back round as the officials cleared the grid, and they didn’t even break a sweat, well, not that I saw anyway!

When the lights went out it was the usual mass bundle at the first bend, like getting onto a London commuter train. Only with more bikes and less suits. Robbie Brown, Jimmy Hill and myself began the traditional scrap over who got the highest step from which to pour champagne over people, as seems to be the purpose of this racing malarkey. Nikki Coates soon joined in, relegating me to 4^th as I patiently pressed to find a way past which didn’t involve wacky races-esque trickery. Coming into the hairpin a few laps into the race, Nikki and Jimmy got a little too cosy together and ran out wide, allowing me to slide up into 2^nd, although not for very long. Cutting back online onto the start finish straight, Nikki hadn’t seen me and my intentions to start chasing after race leader Robbie Brown were cut short as Nikki clipped the side of my bike, catching my handlebars and gifting me a fine opportunity to make a closer study of the Yorkshire turf. Although I managed (again!) to get the bike back up and running, every man and his dog had gone past by this point and I rejoined in 34^th place. Determined to get my money’s worth, I stuck it out to the end of the race, finishing 25^th at the end of play. Battered and bruised, with a nice big, crash damage-shaped dent in my pocket, we wondered what else fate could possibly bestow upon us! Luckily, there were no other comedy mishaps and I at least managed to make a smiley face out of the footpeg-shaped hole in my left leg! Not much more to say on Croft really, lovely track, great race for the first 3 laps and beware of ancient curses when setting up your race awning! Silverstone’s up next and I’ll be taking lucky charms aplenty to help in our quest for another champagne fight!

OCTOBER CALENDAR

SAT OCT 4^TH WORKING PARTY STONEGATE 9 45AM

SUN OCT 5^TH CLUB TRIAL STONEGATE 10AM

Drive down the A21, turn right traffic lights at Flimwell onto B2087, at T junction turn right onto B2099. Then take first left by Londis supermarket, follow this winding lane for approx two miles farm entrance is on right.

SUN OCT 12^TH NKTC KENT & SUSSEX TRIAL CROWBOROUGH

SUN OCT 26^TH SIDCUP WOBBLER CANADA HEIGHTS SWANLEY

NOVEMBER CALENDAR

SUN NOV 2^ND NKTC SIDCUP TRIAL CANADA HEIGHTS SWANLEY

SAT NOV 15^TH WORKING PARTY ASH 9 30AM

SUN NOV 16^TH CLUB TRIAL ASH 10AM

TROPHIES

It is the time of the year for you to return annual trophies to Rob at Stonegate to enable us to have them engraved for this years winners.

PRESSURE WASHERS

Reminder Pressure washers are not allowed to be used at events as per ACU handbook

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