ROUND 5 - Thunderhill Raceway
Thursday
We get out of town at a decent time on thursday (around 6pm). We arrive at the track that night and start scoping out a spot to pit with room for Jason who was joining us in our pit... As we are creeping past the double tree at turn 1, we see Chris (smash allen) all set up and say Hi. We end up starting to setup pit right next to him. Shortly after Mike Dronet arrives and pits next to us. Starting to look like a good weekend ahead! We Setup canopy and head to the motel to get some rest.
FRIDAY
We arrive bright and early so I can unload bikes, get registered and tech'd with K@TT. I get that done, start my stretching, eat some breakfast and have some coffee. Shortly after Jason shows up and joins us in the pit. Mike Dronet's G5 Zx-10r brakes are shot and he has no lever, so I spend a little time here and there helping him out with swapping his brake pads and flushing/bleeding his system. Mike's wife makes me one of the best breakfast burrito's I've ever had as a thank you. I skip the first session, tossing tennis balls around per Ken Hill to get my eyes working for the day.
I manage to hit all but the first two sessions, and I really struggled to pickup the pace. Bike was feeling pretty bouncy and was fighting me all over the place. So I go talk to JPH and we decide to add a few clicks of rebound. This instantly helps and I work my way down to the 2:05s. Since I was in A group and Crhis was in A+ I got to watch him go by every session. When he comes in after the first session I harrass him about his Apexes and we come up with a plan for fixing that. After lunch Jason decides to head back into town to spend the rest of the day with his wife, so we quickly go over when to show up and what to expect saturday for his first AFM weekend.
At the very end of the day we chat with some friends, I quickly swap a new front on for the weekend of racing and practice and then take the wife to grab some food before settling in for the night at the motel.
SATURDAY
Show up early morning to find Jason already there getting settled in. We go to the clubhouse to grab our tech sheets, etc, and head back to pits.
Run back to pit and get ready for in pit tech. I do my ritual, stretch/coffee/breakfast/eye drills. Tech shows up, I pass no problems, and we slip 'em a $20 so we don't have to haul all Jason's gear and bike around the paddock and they agree to tech him in pit. A few goobers of RTV later and he's passed tech and ready to rock and roll.
I struggle to get below 2:05s all day in practice but console myself with the fact that I'm running a pretty toasted rear.
We rest up while the experts qualify and enjoy the sounds of racing and prepare for our upcomming races however we must, I install my fresh rear tire. I try and give Jason the same pep talk I got for my first race. Ride your ride, you're racing yourself, focus on finishing, trust the bike and most importantly have fun.
youtu.be/9BjQv6ch1Oo
Clubman Heavyweight
We watch the lightweights start, and keep track of Jason when we can, until its time to focus... First call comes, I do a quick pre-flight check. Tires hot? Pressures OK? Full tank? Hydrated? 2nd Call. OK FOCUS. RELAX. gear up. At Final call I roll out.
I roll up next to chris in hot pit. We exchange fist bumps and head out. We grid up, I'm gridded to the right of chris on the front row... Flag drops... Not the best start, but I maintain my 4th position in the wave. My mission? Catch Chris and pass him if I can. A few laps in I get hung up in 14 passing a F40 rider. I should have braked a little deeper and held the inside line, oh well, pass him on the front straight and work on closing that gap that the riders ahead of me picked up. Another lap and I'm on Chris' tail looking for an opportunity to strike. Finally in T2 he takes a wide exit and I smash the throttle and slide in right past him before T3. I am able to hold this position, minus getting chopped up by a bunch of fast Club Mid guys, for the rest of the race. I took third place with a new PB of 2:02.2. On the way thru the pits Chris sneaks by and hits my killswitch... Living R4 Open GP all over again!
We get back into the pits, everyone is super elated. We talk about our first races of the weekend. Jason had a rough launch but managed to get a pass off on 2 riders. Beaming with a huge smile, he headed off to spend the evening in town with his wife. We continued to gab and as the excitement wore down we wrapped it up for the evening and headed back to the motel.
youtu.be/DXVfuWIhOA0
SUNDAY
We arrived early to complete the ritual. Go out for first practice to get warmed up and turn some slow ass laps.
Open SuperBike
youtu.be/7_DNDGjtp9A
Rest and relax until first call. I hit my pre-flight checks and prepare to go out.
We grid up for open superbike and I'm 4th on the front row again. When the green flag drops the Novice on the 2nd grid spot tries to send it. Luckily he gets it under control and we all drive out hard. I make it out of the novices in 3rd and also pull a position or two on a couple experts. I manage to hold this position the entire race. Aside from being chopped up by fast 750 superbike guys, this race is rather uneventful but I manage my best laptime of the weekend with a 2:01.315. At the end of the race we pull into the pits and check the timing results. Chris and I start celebrating as it shows me in 2nd and him in 3rd. As we start to watch the lightweights race still elated from our own, which Jason was racing, a red flag is called. Like everyone we got a little curious, a little nervous, and anxious, while still hoping for the best.
Barb makes a call for pit or family to come to grid... Since Jason's wife wasn't here I head down...
Open GP
We fast forward a little... eventually racing starts again... I don't really know what we did in between, some tears, some shock some frustration, lots of hugs and kisses for my wife and son, some somber discussion about making sure we had proper emergency contacts and things, but we eventually made it to Open GP Race 5. I talked to chris and mike and we all agree'd we'd go out for Jason. I get my sobbing shit back together and focus, determined to run this race in solidarity.
We head out to grid. I grid up 2nd row of novices 3rd position, one away from chris. Green flag drops and I get a decent start and run up the inside to T1 where I make it past a few experts and hold this position through T2. On the 2nd lap as we are coming through T2 a bike catches fire in the infield, 4 riders are nose to tail, with AJ Jacobsen #302 in front who sends it thru a nice big oil slick. Her rear tire dramatically steps out while the 2 riders immediately behind her give her plenty of room to keep it under control and as we are all exiting T2 we catch a waving red and head back in.
Open GP #2
They call an early lunch so we get a break before our restart. It has been a long emotional day, it was getting hot, and Chris called it. Can't blame him, Mike and I talked about following his lead but we decided to stick it out.
We get ready to regrid for OGP#2. Mike and I are still apprehensive about going back out, so we are a bit late but we make it just in time for a warmup lap.
We regrid, same positions, but this time without chris by my side. I get a good start, making 2 passes on 2 novices in the front row and take an inside line into T1 and T2. I work my way up and end up pretty much right behind AJ Jacobsen #302 for a good bit of the race. After tailing her for a few laps and figuring out where I'm better on the brakes or a little faster in turns (because she's so light and that Zx10r is a BEAST I can't pass her on the straights), I finally slip an inside pass on the brakes into T14 on the 2nd or 3rd lap. I hold this position for the rest of the race, and finish strong. Another 3rd place. Nobody I talk to set any PBs. It wasn't that type of race. We just went out and did what we do, and we brought it home.
youtu.be/FJx6HNCUQ2Y
My favorite pic of O SBK
Open GP photo chasing the experts:
Bringing home some bling for the first time ever!
Hung out for the rest of the day and helped Mike head out for his final race, Open Superstock. Watched him race and then we packed it all up and went home.
All in all, it was a very emotional weekend. Its been a lot to process still, only 11 days later.
Can't wait until round 6 at Sonoma, and I hope to see some familiar faces there.
Thanks to my Wife, who despite my own near death riding experiences, and her first hand experience continues to support me. And my son for being awesome and the light of our lives.
Thanks to AFM, Cornerworkers, and crew. They went above and beyond this weekend.
Thanks to the barf family for the encouragement to keep riding.
Thanks to Daredevil Motorsports for all my parts, and safety gear, racing, suspension and tuning advice, pit signals and in pit support. I wouldn't ride at all if it weren't for the airbag system I have now.
Thanks to JPH all the suspension advice and helping me understand the bike a little better.
Thanks PitPosse for the gear and tools to stay organized.
Thanks Amsoil for keeping my bike running.
Thursday
We get out of town at a decent time on thursday (around 6pm). We arrive at the track that night and start scoping out a spot to pit with room for Jason who was joining us in our pit... As we are creeping past the double tree at turn 1, we see Chris (smash allen) all set up and say Hi. We end up starting to setup pit right next to him. Shortly after Mike Dronet arrives and pits next to us. Starting to look like a good weekend ahead! We Setup canopy and head to the motel to get some rest.
FRIDAY
We arrive bright and early so I can unload bikes, get registered and tech'd with K@TT. I get that done, start my stretching, eat some breakfast and have some coffee. Shortly after Jason shows up and joins us in the pit. Mike Dronet's G5 Zx-10r brakes are shot and he has no lever, so I spend a little time here and there helping him out with swapping his brake pads and flushing/bleeding his system. Mike's wife makes me one of the best breakfast burrito's I've ever had as a thank you. I skip the first session, tossing tennis balls around per Ken Hill to get my eyes working for the day.
I manage to hit all but the first two sessions, and I really struggled to pickup the pace. Bike was feeling pretty bouncy and was fighting me all over the place. So I go talk to JPH and we decide to add a few clicks of rebound. This instantly helps and I work my way down to the 2:05s. Since I was in A group and Crhis was in A+ I got to watch him go by every session. When he comes in after the first session I harrass him about his Apexes and we come up with a plan for fixing that. After lunch Jason decides to head back into town to spend the rest of the day with his wife, so we quickly go over when to show up and what to expect saturday for his first AFM weekend.
At the very end of the day we chat with some friends, I quickly swap a new front on for the weekend of racing and practice and then take the wife to grab some food before settling in for the night at the motel.
SATURDAY
Show up early morning to find Jason already there getting settled in. We go to the clubhouse to grab our tech sheets, etc, and head back to pits.
Run back to pit and get ready for in pit tech. I do my ritual, stretch/coffee/breakfast/eye drills. Tech shows up, I pass no problems, and we slip 'em a $20 so we don't have to haul all Jason's gear and bike around the paddock and they agree to tech him in pit. A few goobers of RTV later and he's passed tech and ready to rock and roll.
I struggle to get below 2:05s all day in practice but console myself with the fact that I'm running a pretty toasted rear.
We rest up while the experts qualify and enjoy the sounds of racing and prepare for our upcomming races however we must, I install my fresh rear tire. I try and give Jason the same pep talk I got for my first race. Ride your ride, you're racing yourself, focus on finishing, trust the bike and most importantly have fun.
youtu.be/9BjQv6ch1Oo
Clubman Heavyweight
We watch the lightweights start, and keep track of Jason when we can, until its time to focus... First call comes, I do a quick pre-flight check. Tires hot? Pressures OK? Full tank? Hydrated? 2nd Call. OK FOCUS. RELAX. gear up. At Final call I roll out.
I roll up next to chris in hot pit. We exchange fist bumps and head out. We grid up, I'm gridded to the right of chris on the front row... Flag drops... Not the best start, but I maintain my 4th position in the wave. My mission? Catch Chris and pass him if I can. A few laps in I get hung up in 14 passing a F40 rider. I should have braked a little deeper and held the inside line, oh well, pass him on the front straight and work on closing that gap that the riders ahead of me picked up. Another lap and I'm on Chris' tail looking for an opportunity to strike. Finally in T2 he takes a wide exit and I smash the throttle and slide in right past him before T3. I am able to hold this position, minus getting chopped up by a bunch of fast Club Mid guys, for the rest of the race. I took third place with a new PB of 2:02.2. On the way thru the pits Chris sneaks by and hits my killswitch... Living R4 Open GP all over again!
We get back into the pits, everyone is super elated. We talk about our first races of the weekend. Jason had a rough launch but managed to get a pass off on 2 riders. Beaming with a huge smile, he headed off to spend the evening in town with his wife. We continued to gab and as the excitement wore down we wrapped it up for the evening and headed back to the motel.
youtu.be/DXVfuWIhOA0
SUNDAY
We arrived early to complete the ritual. Go out for first practice to get warmed up and turn some slow ass laps.
Open SuperBike
youtu.be/7_DNDGjtp9A
Rest and relax until first call. I hit my pre-flight checks and prepare to go out.
We grid up for open superbike and I'm 4th on the front row again. When the green flag drops the Novice on the 2nd grid spot tries to send it. Luckily he gets it under control and we all drive out hard. I make it out of the novices in 3rd and also pull a position or two on a couple experts. I manage to hold this position the entire race. Aside from being chopped up by fast 750 superbike guys, this race is rather uneventful but I manage my best laptime of the weekend with a 2:01.315. At the end of the race we pull into the pits and check the timing results. Chris and I start celebrating as it shows me in 2nd and him in 3rd. As we start to watch the lightweights race still elated from our own, which Jason was racing, a red flag is called. Like everyone we got a little curious, a little nervous, and anxious, while still hoping for the best.
Barb makes a call for pit or family to come to grid... Since Jason's wife wasn't here I head down...
Open GP
We fast forward a little... eventually racing starts again... I don't really know what we did in between, some tears, some shock some frustration, lots of hugs and kisses for my wife and son, some somber discussion about making sure we had proper emergency contacts and things, but we eventually made it to Open GP Race 5. I talked to chris and mike and we all agree'd we'd go out for Jason. I get my sobbing shit back together and focus, determined to run this race in solidarity.
We head out to grid. I grid up 2nd row of novices 3rd position, one away from chris. Green flag drops and I get a decent start and run up the inside to T1 where I make it past a few experts and hold this position through T2. On the 2nd lap as we are coming through T2 a bike catches fire in the infield, 4 riders are nose to tail, with AJ Jacobsen #302 in front who sends it thru a nice big oil slick. Her rear tire dramatically steps out while the 2 riders immediately behind her give her plenty of room to keep it under control and as we are all exiting T2 we catch a waving red and head back in.
Open GP #2
They call an early lunch so we get a break before our restart. It has been a long emotional day, it was getting hot, and Chris called it. Can't blame him, Mike and I talked about following his lead but we decided to stick it out.
We get ready to regrid for OGP#2. Mike and I are still apprehensive about going back out, so we are a bit late but we make it just in time for a warmup lap.
We regrid, same positions, but this time without chris by my side. I get a good start, making 2 passes on 2 novices in the front row and take an inside line into T1 and T2. I work my way up and end up pretty much right behind AJ Jacobsen #302 for a good bit of the race. After tailing her for a few laps and figuring out where I'm better on the brakes or a little faster in turns (because she's so light and that Zx10r is a BEAST I can't pass her on the straights), I finally slip an inside pass on the brakes into T14 on the 2nd or 3rd lap. I hold this position for the rest of the race, and finish strong. Another 3rd place. Nobody I talk to set any PBs. It wasn't that type of race. We just went out and did what we do, and we brought it home.
youtu.be/FJx6HNCUQ2Y
My favorite pic of O SBK
Open GP photo chasing the experts:
Bringing home some bling for the first time ever!
Hung out for the rest of the day and helped Mike head out for his final race, Open Superstock. Watched him race and then we packed it all up and went home.
All in all, it was a very emotional weekend. Its been a lot to process still, only 11 days later.
Can't wait until round 6 at Sonoma, and I hope to see some familiar faces there.
Thanks to my Wife, who despite my own near death riding experiences, and her first hand experience continues to support me. And my son for being awesome and the light of our lives.
Thanks to AFM, Cornerworkers, and crew. They went above and beyond this weekend.
Thanks to the barf family for the encouragement to keep riding.
Thanks to Daredevil Motorsports for all my parts, and safety gear, racing, suspension and tuning advice, pit signals and in pit support. I wouldn't ride at all if it weren't for the airbag system I have now.
Thanks to JPH all the suspension advice and helping me understand the bike a little better.
Thanks PitPosse for the gear and tools to stay organized.
Thanks Amsoil for keeping my bike running.
Last edited:
