April 2006

Mike Edwards, 21/04/06 - 22/04/06
European SuperStock 600 Championship
Round 1

Summary

After a couple of days testing thanks to Gerry Bryce at Racedays.net and Jeremy McWilliams the two MIST Suzuki riders were able to take some time to learn the Valencia circuit and ride their 2006 Suzuki GSXR600K6 bikes for the first time. The riders would be contesting the European SuperStock 600 series, a support class at all European rounds of the World SuperBike Championship.

For Matt Bond, the 2005 MRO MiniTwins Champion, this was his first time on a 600 after moving up from the 72 hp SV650 he rode last year. Chris Northover, started 2005 in the MRO MiniTwins before gaining a wildcard ride in the SuperStock class on an R6.

Having made some good improvements learning both the circuit and the bikes both riders made some significant improvements in terms of both their riding and their ability to think about what they are doing whilst on the circuit.

With only one half hour practice and two half hour qualifying sessions before the race it was going to be a gamble as to when to use the three sets of tyres we had available (the series limits us to just 3 sets of tyres with no choice on compound or model, in our case Pirelli Diablo Corsa tyres).

After a very hot first practice on Friday lunch time (Matt in 27th with 1’47.113 and Chris in 29th with 1’47.308, both in front of some experienced and very fast guys who rode in the series last year) both riders struggled with their tyres overheating so we took the gamble of using a fresh set for first qualifying in the late afternoon as the cooler conditions should help get the most from them.

Both riders improved over their previous testing times having started to get used to the new tyres (a combination of the profile from the Diablo tyre combined with a dual compound rear to give greater grip). Matt took advantage of a tow from one of the faster riders to post a 1’45.620 and qualify in 20th place. Chris had a few problems and was trying to override the bike yet still managed to lap in 1’47.373, putting him in 33rd place overall.

Whilst Chris concentrated on getting his head together I walked the track with Matt and suggested some different lines and potential reference points to help him improve for the following day.

For a short while on Saturday morning it looked like our tyre strategy had paid off as it rained first thing and the track was very wet. Just our luck that it dried out just in time for second qualifying and was much cooler than the previous day. Everyone was bound to go faster and we were only left with the half worn tyres from the previous day if we were to save a new set for the race.

The long conversation with Chris the previous evening about his riding position and some suggestions on how to smooth out his approach to the circuit helped and he declared the session as probaby the best riding he had done since he started racing. He beat his previous best with a 1’47.089 which was encouraging as he was on very worn tyres and felt very relaxed and happy that he could improve in the race. Dropping to 35th position after qualifying wasn’t a problem as his new found consistency, and positive approach, meant he should be able to make up quite a few places come the race.

Matt had his session shortened dramatically when he lost the front after going off line in to turn 4. He was unhurt but the bike would need some work before the race later in the afternoon. Prior to jumping off Matt had posted his fastest ever time of 1’45.604 - All without the benefit of a tow, in fact his top speed was down 5 km an hour down the straight over the previous session so he was obviously getting to grips with the bike and making up the time in the corners.

The race was a bit of a last minute rush as having confirmed that 5:40 pm was the time we needed to be on the grid it turned out that 5:40 pm was the time for the race start and we needed to be on the grid at least 15 minutes before then. We weren’t the last on the grid though and both riders had time to settle themselves before the warm up lap and the start.

Chris complained of a slipping clutch after warm up and with only time to adjust the lever before the grid was cleared he made a great start to overtake the row in front. Unfortunately by the time he got in to third gear the bike was revving freely but not going anywhere. He toured round behind the safety car and had to retire at the end of the lap with a very burnt out clutch.

Matt also made a good start from 26th place, positioned on the outside being preferable to the inside position from the 20th place he held after first quaifying. He made up a several places around the outside of the first corner and was ideally positioned to make up another three in to turn two. As he turned the corner several riders went down in front of him as another rider collected a couple of others on the way out of the turn.

Having survived the drama, passing another couple in to the next corner to find himself in 14th place, he soon caught a group ahead posting his best lap of 1’45.112 in the process. These guys were clearly holding him up as his lap times dropped. It was only after another rider made an unhelpful block pass under a yellow flag that Matt lost the tow and his overheating front tyre made another challenge unlikely.

Matt was caught towards the end of the race by a much more experienced rider who pushed him back another place to 16th. With enough of a gap to the guys behind Matt rode well to maintain his position and was rewarded when the rider who had overtaken under the yellow flag ran wide on the last lap and Matt was able to retake the place putting him back in a points scoring position.

At the same time one of the front runners had a minor gravel excursion and, although he rejoined, Matt was able to catch and pass him in the last sector to move up to 14th at the flag.

Points from our first race? A top twenty was more than we could possiby hope for from our first meeting but despite just 1.5 days testing since moving up from his 72 hp MiniTwins bike we had exceeded all expectations.

More importantly both riders had improved dramatically in their approach and maturity in their riding which has everybody excited for Monza in two weeks time.

Mike Edwards
Team Manager - MIST Suzuki

Would like to thank main sponsors www.givemethekeys.com and Steve Jordan Motorcycles for their never ending support and the help given to the team from B & C Express, Dyna Pro, RaceDays.net, S&B Commercials and Silkolene.

Chris Northover, 14/04/06 - 15/04/06
Racedays.Net Academy

Viva L’Espagne

Wednesday morning, 9:00am. After joining up with the Bond contingent at Dover, we boarded the ferry on our mission to Valencia. In record time, they were sick of my endless chattering by approximately 9:02am! The boat was fun, we won a whole £1 on the quiz machine which I was delighted with. Then Matt pointed out we’d spent more than a tenner trying to win, dammit!

Once off the ferry and on the road the journey seemed to take forever so Matt and I passed the hours away by seeing if it was possible to talk the fastest lap of Valencia! I also indulged in the mindless pap that is sudoku and feel very ashamed to admit it!

Come Friday and we finally got the chance to ride in our first session on track, exciting enough after the winter lay off, but with the added bonus of following a certain Mr. McWilliams of GP fame. Within a few laps we were starting to get a feel for the lines around the challenging Ricardo Tormo Circuit. After the first session Matt and I were separated on fastest laps by something like 5/100ths of a second! Throughout the remaining sessions we gradually got faster with Matt getting down to a lap time of 1min 47seconds. Saturday morning gave the opportunity for some video work, with Jeremy riding round with us filming from behind then from in front. This gave us the opportunity to see not only our own riding styles, but also to see the difference between the lines we should be on and the lines we were on! It was a real eye opener leading to comments like:

“I could have sworn I was closer to the apex than that!”

and

“Nah that can’t be me riding, I didn’t brake there, summat wrong with your camera mate!”.

So determined to make a better job of meeting apexes and riding the correct lines, we continued to lap, under the watchful eye of Jeremy who was on hand at all times to give tips and pointers enabling us to get the lap times lower. We finished the day both on 1:47 lap times (although Matt was a few tenths of a second faster but I’m not going to admit that!). We spent Sunday watching the other riders, especially the Stiggy Motorsports team rider who was going into the first turn so sideways there was blue smoke from his rear tyre, mental!

Monday

Cimbed the mountain (ok, hill) behind the track in the pouring rain and named it “Mount CG”. Got very wet. And cold. And got blisters on my feet. Should have thought more carefully about that!

Tuesday

Climbed “Mount CG” again, in the sunshine this time!

Bought some “double pluggies” (that’s sandals to most people!) and did loads of revision (ahem) for uni work.

Wednesday

Gave Mount CG a miss, revised instead (hope my lecturers read this!!).

Went to find the sea/beach with Roger. Now, you’d have thought it would be just a case of driving to Valencia (which is on the coast) and then aiming for the big blue wobbly thing. Not so. Two and a half hours later after the umpteenth CG Detour tm, we gave up and headed back to the circuit.

Matt Bond, 14/04/06 - 15/04/06
Racedays.Net Academy

Summary

This was the first time I’d done any kind of race school and it really did surprise me just how much I learnt over the two days of testing. The school was really friendly and welcoming throughout and the experience was invaluable. I’d definitely book myself in for another if I could afford it!

Day One – Friday

After the quick briefing session it was onto the track for Chris and me, and the plan for us, to follow ex-MotoGP start Jeremy McWilliams! Just being in the same pit was an experience, but riding with him was something else. First session was a bit of downer as the bike just wouldn’t handle, I just couldn’t get the thing to turn, but fortunately this was solved once we got back into pit lane. Second session and the bike felt much better. It was just easier to ride and felt a lot more comfortable. Another session with Jeremy showing us the lines helped me get my mind in gear and showed me just where the time and speed can be gained. It was about now that I realised just how fast the circuit was when Mr McWilliams decided to ride round the outside of me on the sweeping final left hander, and I thought I was going fast! A new set of tyres made all the difference for the third session, and I began to pick up the pace and I even had my first proper backing it in and power sliding happenings half way through the day. Further sessions through the day helped me get my a better feel for the lines and a few words of McWilliams helped figure out some of the more technical sections on the track. Overall the day went well and being slightly quicker than Chris was a bit of a bonus too!

Day Two – Saturday

After a great first day I was hoping to get a bit more speed on the second day’s activities. First time out and it just felt so quick, I think overnight my mind forgot to tell me to brake at the last turn as I took a slight excursion onto the grass, fortunately keeping it upright. Next up was a video taping session with Jeremy McWilliams and it was great to see just what I was doing and how I could improve. It taught me a lot about getting the lines right and standing the bike up out of the corners. A quick review of the entire video helped immensely in understanding what had to be done to get on the pace. It defiantly helped put the theory into practice and helped me get a lot more comfortable at a much faster pace than I’d have expected. With the tyres on the bike beginning to deteriorate pretty dramatically we decided to call it a day and I just sat and watched the quick boys put in some ridiculously fast laps, whilst also getting ideas for the races and seeing which new lines I could try when I got back on track.

Conclusion

What an awesome experience! Can’t say just how good the academy was! I loved every second of it. Big thanks to Gerry and the Racedays.Net crew and a huge thank you to Jeremy McWilliams for all his expert advice. Another shout out and thank you to Steve Jordan for setting the suspension up for me (yet again)!