Race Reports


	Race Reports Anglesey Took Friday off to finish putting the KR together - as usual all plans of preparing before hand have gone out of the window. Head off about 2 pm with Rock and caravan in tow and get to Anglesey around 7pm. Meet Rich at the circuit which is a pleasant suprise as I didn't think he got his entry in in time. Set up shop alongside Rich then retire to the Malleog Lake for beer (would say food but the chef was having a turn again and what turned up left a bit to be desired). KR is as per Cadwell but with a new airbox check out the bit on tuning the KR for some piccies. Its some bits I made up last year but never got round to finishing. The weekend looks like it is going to be a scorcher weather wise and I am realy phsyced up for the racing. With Rob Mawbey not doing the GP 250 I reckon I am in with a good chance of some top three results and Anglesey is the one circuit where the KR can beat the 400's so I am hoping for a win. I have set my self the task of taking home 72 points in each class over this weekend and the August meeting.
5/5/01	First GP125 - Right old mix for this race 250 LC, 125, single cylinder, Formula Phoenix and 500 Production. The grid consists of GS1000's P&M Kwacks, looks like a reverse cylinder TZ, 125 , LC's X&'s, CB500's a little TZR125 and a Moto Morini 350. I have a front row start with Dave Page behind me on row 2. I haven't used the warmers as my little geny (bought 2nd hand from Brown Power in Rugby) isn't big enougth to handle two sets of warmers and today the KR takes priority. I get a reasonable start then bog down after 25 yards (you have to slip the clutch on the RS for ages before you can select 2nd. Dave nips past as I get the bike moving again.. I follow him into school about 5 yards a drift. Some big blue thing flashes past then loses the back-end and goes down. Dave has to go off the track to avoid the bike. I have to lift a bit but get round school without losing to many places. Pass a few bikes on the climb up to Radar then a couple more at the hairpin. I am up to second overall and am behind an old but very tidy GPz750 and it takes me the best part of a lap to get past. The bike is being ridden far faster than I thought possible by Glynn Williams 'hat of to the guy'. I carry more corner speed but get blocked then get blitzed down the straights. Finally got him at the hairpin. Now leading the race. Last lap and a GS1000 comes past going into Abbots and lays a great long darkie on the exit. Follow him down to the hairpin where he lays another on teh exit. Finish 2nd overall and 1st in class. Dave got going again about 1/2 a lap down and managed to work his way up to 9th overall and 3rd in class. As I said Hats off to Glynn Williams and Rob Eley on the Kwack and GS - I really didn't think they could hustle those bikes that quickly. Made sure I belted round on the slowing down lap as the next race is the F400... First F400 - Got back from the 125 race and dumped the bike against the holding area fence. Staggered over to the KR and dropped onto my knees - I was knackered after the 125 race. Rock had already taken the KR down to the holding area and had the bike warmed up. Got a 30 second greater then it was out on to the grid. After the 125 the KR feels like a chopper, feet forward and handle bars like ape hangers. Got a row 3 start. Nearly everybody else that with more points tahn me after Cadwell is on rows 1 and 2. Phil Astbury, abit of a loacl specialist is back on 6. Mark Brown and Paul Mumby-Croft (RGV) are alongside me and the rest of the KRs are behind right back to row 7. After the warm up lap I line up on the left behind a FZR. Get a blinding start and by Abbots I am upto 4th. I think I dispatched Dave Marsh + one other on the run upto Radar and then down to the hairpin. That moved me up to second just behind Pete Whiteside. Easily follow Pete round but he keeps the door closed so I can't make a move on lap 2. Lap 3 he leaves a bit of a gap in the run upto the hairpin. Go for it and slip past. After that I just get my head down pull away and win by a couple of seconds. The KR is flying and nobody really troubles me, so it all seems rather easy. Pete seemed a bit slow and that shows in his lap times a best of 52 (he can drop into th 49s) Phil Astbury worked his way up and clocked a best of 51.8 and Dave Marsh was 52.7. I clocked 50.9 so it looks like everybody else was still warming up. Race time 4' 25.4". First GP250 - Row 3 start again I am the first 250 and am surrounded by GSXR750s and R1s. The rest of the 250s are a row or two back. Get a good launch and bet to school in about 8th. Spend about 2 laps trying to get past an R1 and a ZXR750 manage that but lose a couple of places to a GSXR and another R1 so still in 8th. Problem is I corner a lot faster but they pull a mile out on the straights. They are so slow and wide round corners you tend to lose corner speed. Still 1st 250 home and 8th overall. 5 TZs behind me though I must say I did have the advantage of grid position. Still 3 wins out of 3 races. Second GP125 - Row 1 start with Dave Page, the Kwack 750 and GS1000. Get a good start but end up 7th into school just behind Dave. A Suzi 1000 and P&M Kwack outdragged us to the first corner. As we struggle to get past them Virgil Stevenson (RS125) whistles past and disappears. Both of us finally get past the 1000s and I spend the race chasing Dave. Come in 6th overall 3rd in class. Dave 2nd and Virgil first still can't complain. Second F400 - Again F400 immediately after 125, barely dropped the bike off and got to the KR before they were letting us out. I have a front row start - but can't remember a lot about this race. Must have got a flier as I don't remember passing anybody and I won the race so must have lead start to finish. Dave the Fish videoed this race and Phil Astbury (finished 2nd)shadowed me for the whole race. Phil set the fastest lap at 50.5, I did 51 as did Pete Whiteside (finished 3rd). Race timewas 4' 21.6" so getting abit quicker. Thats 4 wins and a 3rd, k new I would do well at Anglesey but this is cookin'.
	Summary - Because of hold ups the 250 race was cancelled to be run on Sunday. Still I am on a high. In the KR cup Race 1 the Team T3 lads - John Buchan took 2nd, Mark Brown 3rd and Brian Mattock 4th. John Badger came in 5th with Rich Davis struggling in in 6th Mark Bickerton in only his 2nd race meeting came home 7th. In Race 2 with prizes and money at stake John again got 2nd but Brian upped his game to claim 3rd. Rich who was slowly getting used to the circuit moved upto 4th with Mark Brown slipping back to 5th. John Badger and Mark Bickerton came in 6th and 7th. Team T3 re-jetted mid way through the day and it paid dividends in terms of performance. Mark Bickerton struggled with a sticking KIPs valve. Can't really say a lot about my races other than the KR ran really well. I could have gone to 138 main jets - actually ran 140s but bike and team ran faultlessly. Rock did a cracking job getting the bikes ready. Rick and Jason kept time for me. Their attempts at holding out a pit board for the first two races were a flop as I forgot it was there and never looked over. After that they gave up. Dave the Fish and Paul Porter videoed the meeting. Fishes commentry and fascination with female rearends is hilarious. After the last race lined up all the KRs (except Mark Bickertons which was in bits having KIPs valves sorted and had a photo session) then out with the beer wine, cider and BBQ. The rest of the crew got legless. By the end of the evening Rock couldn't talk let alone walk - got him half way up the stairs in the hotel when he keeled over backwards. Never forget the look on his face as he grabbed at air to try and stop himself falling. Luckly no damage done. Not sure how I am going to match todays results on Sunday.
6/5/01	Second GP250 - Row 2 start with John Lewis on the first of the TZs just behind me. Get a good start, but again get blocked by the bigger bikes on the bends and they just blast away when we get to the straights. John comes past on about lap 3 and as I don't seem to be able to live with him take it easy. A few bigger machines get past but no more 250s. 11th overall and 2nd 250. First GP125 - Grid positions as per the first race on Saturday. Get a good start and settle into 3rd place just behind Dave Page. The Kwack 750 is just ahead of us. We spend a couple of laps trying to get past each other and the Kwack manage to get past Dave a couple of times but then he gets past me so the position stay static. On lap 3 the Kwack runs slightly wide at Abbots leaving a gap on the inside. Being just behind Dave I can make the gap and Dave can't. Manage to take both Dave and the Kwack and hold the position in the run up to Radar. Don't know where Dave is and don't care. Just get my head dwon and go for it. About lap 5 Rob Eley comes past on his GS1000 down the back straight and I follow him into the hairpin. I ride carefully round Syd Kelly's TZR125 and Howard Friend on the Morini 350 and get stuck behind John Waltons 250LC losing drive onto the main straight. Get to the finish line just as Dave Page flashes past travelling about 20 mph faster. I think Dave has pipped me by 6" and Dave reckons he got the drop on me. Find out later that the result went my way. Poor old Dave is gutted. Still Dave gets the fastest lap 52 seconds against my pedestrian 53.3, but I win the class with Dave second. First F400 - Drop the 125 off and then out we go. I am back to the 3rd row for this race. The start isn't as clever and I only get upto 7th. Take a couple into Abbots and upto Radar. As I can see Peter Whiteside pulling away in desperation do a Banzai breaking move at the Hairpin and pass 3 people moving upto second. I get my head down and set off in pursuit of Pete who has pulled a couple of seconds on me. Lap 2 and I am gaining a little but the race is red flagged as we come on to the start finish straight for the start of lap 3. Rich Davis has gone down big time at School. Reform on the grid and after about 5 minutes they re-start the race. Get a similar start and get blocked at school and Abbots. Manage to get past everybody at the hairpin and move into second but Peter Whiteside has already disappeared. Toodle around keeping Dave Marsh a safe distance behind me. My best lap was 51.7, Pete got quickest lap at 51.2. race time was 4'26.2" with me abot 5 seconds behind Pete. Still 2nd place and a front row start for the next race. First GP250 - 3rd row start again and not a lot to report. had a bit of fun out braking R1s at the hairpin I can take 20-25 yards out of them. The R1s tke 25 - 50 yards out of me down the straights so I can't always get them back. Still finished 9th overall and first 250. John lewis was just behind me so I will be starting in the next race from the same row. Johns best times are low 51s so I know if I keep my head down and get a good start I can beat him. Second GP125 - Get a good start with Dave and as usual fall into formation behind Glynn Williams yellow Kwack. On about lap 2 Dave manages to sneak past and I can't get through. Watch Dave slowly pull away as I struggle to get past. Finally on lap 4 manage to get through at the hairpin but Dave is long gone. Finish 4th overall and second in class. My best lap was 52.5 Dave 52.2. race time was a slow 4'31" Dave did 4'23". Second F400 - Get a reasonable start and am third going into Abbots. Phil Astbury has the lead followed by Steve Henegan, then me, Pete Whiteside and Dave Marsh. Coming out of Abbots get brilliant drive out and fly up to Steve, who promptly misses a gear and goes into reverse (releatively speaking) I have to throttle off and brake as I take avoiding action. Pete has to do like wise to avoid me, but gets back on the power quicker getting past me and Steve. I manage to get past Steve on the run out of Radar but am to far behind Pete to try outbraking him. Would have been difficult as he is defending the inside line and just to make sure sticks his knee out (obviously taking lessons from Max Biaggi as to how to make yourself as wide as possible) to make himself even wider. Mean time because of the little slow down at Abbots Phil Astbury is disappearing into the distance. next lap round am close enougth to have a go. The shape of the corner means that a gap appears on the inside a few yards before you tip in. I go for the gap but run a little wide on the exit allowing Pete to get back in front on the way out of the hairpin. Next lap round Pete leaves me a 6" gap on the run up to the hairpin and I don't need a second invitation. This time I make the pass stick. Simple physics - ZXR400 + 13 stone rider can't out break a KR1 with handsome very talented 11 stone rider. Set about catching Phil but though I close the gap a little I am still two seconds behind at the line. Still set the fastest lap at 50.3 which equals my best time around Anglesey. Second GP250 - 3rd row start with John Lewis alongside so it is an even match. I am determined to beat him as I know I can lap as quickly. Problem is I suffer more than he does trying to get past the bigger machines as I am slower in a straight line. Still the KR is easier to get of the line than the TZ. Get a very good start and slot into 6th. Up at Radar Steve Wong (R1) and another bike go down and I get upto 4th. Get passed on the start finish straight by a GSXR 750 so I am back to 5th. manage to hold that position until lap 4 when a 750 gets me on the back straight. I get him back at the hairpin but he then regains the place on the start finish straight. Keep my head down and cross the line in 6th and first 250. John is just behind me so another lap or so and he probably would have got me. Good job the races were shortened to 5 laps from 7. John wheelied off the line and lost places at the start. No lap time but race time was 4' 24.3"
	Summary - Not a bad day 3 wins and 3 second places (4 if you include the carried over race) and I have equalled my best time. Move up to 2nd in the F400 4 pts behind Pete Whiteside but well clear of third. Lead the GP250 by 18 points (52) from John Lewis. John didn't get any points at Cadwell as he took a fall in practice and Rob Mawbey wasn't at Anglesey. GP250 was't a hollow a victory as there were 12 250s on track and seven of them were TZs. Take second place in the 125 15 points behind Dave (but he did Cadwell and I didn't bother racing). I am two points ahead of Virgil Stevenson and we have both missed two races so there is some satisfaction in that position. Dave isn't due to due Anglesey in August as he will be doing the Manx. Only downer is I have agreed to him taking both 125s over to the Manx so I won't have a ride either!. KR Cup KR Cup Bit- Seven bikes again which is a good turn out for Anglesey given the distance. Nick and Al Tomkin have missed this round, it must be the best part of a 7 hour drive for them. We have two new riders, Mark Bickerton on a tidy KR1 running KR1-S pipes and bodywork and John Badger on a fully prepped File tuned KR1-S. I am hoping Rich Davis will add his version of events to his site, and hopefully some of the other lads will contribute words as to their efforts. Rich has posted some nice piccies of the circuit. Click here for the results for Saturday and Sunday. The Team T3 lads have been to Anglesey before and it showed in the results. The T3 lads filled the next 3 places followed by John (John used to race a TZ a few years back so though he doesn't know the circuit he is quick and smooth) then Rich and Mark. In the second race Rich improved and managed to get infront of Mark Brown but still well behind John Buchan and Brian Mattock. Between the races the T3 bikes rejetted dropping from 145 RD jets down to 140 RD, Mark Brown went onto 138 Kehin jets (reckon I should have been on 138s but the bike was running happily on 140 kehins so I decided to leave it). Rich said he was struggling to stay with the T3 bikes and decided to swop the jets Sunday morning (he was on 145 RD). At the end of the day Rich is still in second place but the T3 guys have closed the gap. Sunday change the jets in Rich's bike and setup his power valves as they were a bit out of line. Rich trys it in the 250 race and is a lot happier. Bike is running much better and is now as quick as the T3 bikes (difficult to tell as the shorts are straight and speed out of a corner is everything). In the first F400 race on the start of lap 2 Rich touched Paul Daley's ZXR400 on the entry into school. Rich bounced off and went onto the grass. Result a bit of damage to the bike a bashed head and broken collar bone - Paul carried on round. This has put a bit of a dent into Rich's hopes in the KR Cup as it is unlikely the bone will be strong enougth to race at Cadwell. Still it is only one race and there is a big gap until Mallory on 15 July. Mark Bickerton struggled on Sunday with a problem with a power valve making the grid for a few races but not finishing any - sounds like a valve is bent or the head is a bit out of line? My Bike setup - 140 kehin main jets, 29psi front (KR364 115/50 GP125 rear on the front) 30 psi rear (160/60 KR364 584 compound), 350 ml fork oil front 10sae, forks dropped 5mm so 15mm of chrome showing above the top yoke. Running a different intake for the airbox this time which seemed to work ok. Advantage is it is a lot quieter than the open box so you can now hear the other bikes around you.
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This document maintained by mark@teamsparrow.fsnet.co.uk. Material Copyright © 2001 Mark Jordan