Cadwell Race Report 12 & 13 Aug

Well this weekend was a weekend of bad decisions and interesting racing ;) for those that know me, know I HATE Cadwell so I wasn't looking forwad to this at all!!!

Arrived on Friday afternoon for the evening session to pooring rain and strong winds, I managed one and a half sessions before they shut the track due to the weather, bloody expensive track day [ch61516]

Saturday Race 1
Started 19th – Finish 23rd

Woke on Saturday morning to the biggest rain storm I’ve ever seen! The wets stay on, half way through the morning the sun comes out and we change the tyres (I’m a dab hand at this now) to the drys. Half and hour before the race is pisses down again so we then change them back to the wets. Phew OK we’re sat in the holding area, it’s been dry for 15 minutes but everyone is still on wets, the practice lap show’s everyone how wrong we were with the tyre choice, it’s bone dry!! The lights go out and we’re off, I think I must have been tired or trying to move the throttle on the wrong handlebar as everything was going from bad to worse. I seemed to be going backwards and only managed a 1:55 best lap.

Saturday Race 2
Started 23rd – Finish 10th

Back in the pits we change to dry tyres as the blue skys were appearing so it seemed a fair bet that it would stay dry. Sat in the holding area everyone, bar one novice, is on drys – then the heavens opened. I can honestly say I’ve never seen rain like it, at this point I thought they’d stop the race, nope I was wrong. The lights went out, I had a fantastic start and set about not falling off. There were streams of water all across the track and we could hardly see where we were going due to all the spray and rain. I seemed to be picking a few people off at a time, the back end stepping out on me on almost every corner. I then saw the number 2 runner in the championship (someone I only ever saw in the paddock or when he lapped me) caught him up, overtook, I then saw number 1, overtook (at this point I’m getting a little giddy) I finished 10th from 23rd :D with a lap time of 2:05 in the wet with SuperCorsa’s on lol, I chuckled all the way back to the pits.

Sod the BBQ (who wants soggy sausages anyway) we’re off for a curry!

Sunday Race 1
Started 10th – Finish 32nd

OK, this time we’re not getting caught with the wrong tyres on – hmm maybe race 4 we’ll get it right, yup, out on wets, track was bone dry again (god I hate Cadwell), as you can see I didn’t fair too well.. Starting in front of the fast boys was a learning curve in itself, I now know that being lent on, shoved and generally beaten up on track is OK. This really knocked my confidence and I don’t think I recovered it that race. My lap times were appalling due to the fact I’d shagged my wet tyres the first race on Saturday and having the **** scared out of me on the first few laps :-/

Sunday Race 2
Started 32nd – Finish 23rd

WOO HOO we were out on dry tyres on a dry track!!! I’m exhausted just typing this but this race really took it out of me! I was determined to claw back a few spaces and banish my hatred of Cadwell. I was concentrating on being smooth and not braking too hard too soon. I really need to stop being so polite too as it seemed to take me an age to get past anyone. I had a good tussle with a 250 and outbraked him into the hairpin. I took a couple more around Coppice (the only decent corner at Cadwell) but there were just not enough laps to finish any higher than 23rd but I was a happy, but shattered, bunny!

Sounds like you gained some more experience there hun:)
Is that the season over now or more races to come?

Well done Foo for hanging in there! :)

3 race day's left

02nd September Oulton Park
23rd September Cadwell Park
24th September Cadwell Park

Bloody Cadwell Park, mutter mutter moan moan!

Sounds like hard work but good fun. Well done

BB

Hi Foo

I was at Cadwell on the Friday for the track day (before the evening session) and was chatting to a couple of guys who were up for the race meeting at the weekend (is that Derby Pheonix?) I guess we were lucky as we had 3 dry sessions in the morning before the heavens opened in the afternoon. Sounds like despite the weather you had a good time and well done for the second race in the wet. Unfortunately I was on a bog standard road bike (cant justify a track bike at the mo :'() and also as I have been away for the last 2 years and not ridden in that time I went in the inters where I found a couple of guys lapping reasonably quickly but generally the pace quite slow.

Poped out in the afternoon when there was only light drizzle but forgot how slippery it can be without wets on, quite enjoyed it though as there were only 2 of us on the track!.

Why dont you like Cadwell? I really love it although never managed particulary quick times. I had a 1993 CBR600FP track bike about 8 years ago and was lapping in 1.45s but never really got under this (always struggled from the mountain around to barn). Was quite pleased that on my big bus of a Falco and with all the traffic, my friend who was in the fast group timed me at 1.51 in the last session before lunch. The track I've always really struggled with is Donnington.

Anyway if any of my friends want to to track days all always tag along with them. Well past the days of trying to be quick (gave up after crashing racing Supermotos!) but enjoy being an old man on a big slow bike and seeing how I can hustle it around the track.

Anyway hope to catch up with you at a track or on a WB ride out, well done for you races