Derby Phoenix results??

[DoodleBug]

A nice domino effect of events prevented me from making it to Brands this sunday just gone. Really peeved as the weather was cracking.

How was the racing? Mr Polden?????

:grin2

[Perilous]

Excuse the typing I'm really busy so its rattled off a bit quick in bits.

Well Karl I'm afraid to say, as far as general socialising and racing goes you probably missed what may well turn out to be the best day this year.:(


We started out with me, Collin and Dan entering the Open 400 on 400s and Pat (Mad Eyes) Mills and Lee Finney entering on GP 250 bikes then just Steve Palmer out in the F400.

However me and Mad Eyes decided to just enter anything we were elligable for so he entered the open 1300 on his 250 and I entered F400.

Entering Formula 400 made things abit tricky (hectic) for me as although they actually have less restrictive rules than our SB 400 class they aren't allowed slicks so I had to change wheels in between each race, which isn't a tall order but quite hard going between races in leathers on a seriously hot day.
It also means I have to bed my brakes in during the first lap of the race (Derby Pheonix's sighting lap [ as opposed to a warm up lap] isn't quick enough when you're gridded at the back) and remember to alter my lines from lightweight wheels to the heavy ones.

First out was Mad Eyes in the open 1300 from the back of the grid.
Watching Mad Eyes just ride round 1000s and the like every lap at Clearways was awesome and every time he came through Surtees there was a big crowd behind the fence jumping up and down singing, "Millsey goes round the out side, round the outside." (As in the song):grin2
Can't remember where he got up to but he made the A final.

My first was the Open 400.

I was on grid 13 but in my best start ever I went under all thirteen bikes at Paddock and was first into Druids.:)
I led for ages and didn't feel I was pushing hard at all. Inevitably though Lee came by on his GP bike and then eventually Pat on his but there never went anywhere but a couiple of well set up GP250 bikes can carry more corner speed on a defensive line than a ZXR400 can on a fast one , so that was me stuffed.
At the relaxed way I was riding I was expecting to have been running around high 52 maybe 53 second laps so I was gobsmacked to find my fastest lap was in the 51s, the first time I've done it without going to hospital:grin2 and more important to me it was in lap when I was leading and not getting a tow of the GP bikes.

3rd from grid 13.

While I was running around like a headless chicken in a mass panic to change wheels as I'd lost a spacer Lenny mentioned that maybe I should calm down as it was dinner time.:rolleyes:

For the Formula 400 race I was on grid 27 with a big carrot of Steve Palmer gridded on 17. There'd been a big petrol spillage on the exit of Druids so we did one lap following a pace car and then a warm up lap.
This was great for me because the other wheels had a rather dished set of discs on so it gave me a chance to get the pads to scurf themselves to shape so the lever came off the handlebar.:eek:

I got run out at Paddock and the petrol caused me a bit of trouble because the best way to get to the front from the back row is to go round the outside but everyone else wanted to be in the three foot space I needed so my first lap was abit sluggish.
I finally got through to second behind Steve and started to pull him in but by then I was lapping people so although I closed him right down it didn't catch up to him.
Lap times were down due to the oil but I set fastest lap of the race and by the rather odd looking Mexican wave a whole bunch of people did as I came up to Druids on the cool down lap and the amount of complete strangers coming to the garage I must have put up a reasonable show.

2nd from grid 27 plus fastest lap.

Panic panic change the wheels and battery, mend the rev counter and I just made the holding bay as they left for the grid.

This time it was row three and I lead from the start. (GP bikes never get off the line well)

Lee finally passed me but I was surprised how long it took him and when he had he couldn't shake me off. he looked round a couple of times and each time he did I gave him a little "I'm still here wave"
At Paddock I though I'd get him but the footpeg decked so hard it flicked my toes off the peg so I missed that chance. Made me grin though.:)
Just before the last lap Pat got me and demoted me to third.

Once again I was in the 51s but both GP bikes saying how hard they'd had to work to keep up with me on corner speed meant far more than any lap time or race result. (Corner speed is something I've lost a bit since giving up two strokes.)

Another frantic wheel change but done in a minute off my 4 minute record for changing wheels,:) then a bit of a crisis where i got one of the multitude of battery wires on the wrong pole (loads of sparks).:grin2

Last F 400 race was off grid 2. I beat Steve off the line then in the second lap I ran into Surtees, forgot to turn earlier to allow for the heavier wheels and ran wide up onto the rumble only to find Steve was on the outside trying to get past, so with fairings touching we did a bit of dirt tracking but both stayed on.
Steve stuffed me a bit later and gradually pulled away. I was getting a bit tired by then (Steve only did two races) and was a bit disgruntled that I couldn't hold Steve as he run out onto every curb, right on the dust at Clearways without crashing and pursued his mission to break all the 400 circuit records.
In the end though tired or not I'd never have caught him, he absolutley rode the tits off his bike and the 51.2 he ran whilst lapping backmarkers is not bad going at all on a hot day on shagged treaded tyres.

So 2nd again.

A truly brilliant day and its so nice to just go and thrash the nuts off the bike without everyone adding up points and the like each time you get in. :)


Scariest moment of the day was when I was running down hill pushing our friend Jen in her wheelchair (broke her pelvis instructing on a trackday at Cadwell) and I realised I couldn't stop before we hit the fence.:eek: Fortunately Jen's good with the brakes.:grin2

Best moment was when the 400 wheelied (not very high mind) exiting the second part of Surtees just before the juicy tankslapper as it landed just intime to turn in for Clearways. I'd have never thought that possible on a 400 if I hadn't been sat on it.

[harriebird]

sounds awesome, what a fabulous weekend :clap :clap :clap jealous, me, not much.....:grin2 (i was sweating my butt off on the back roads near newbury!)

2nd from 27th on the grid is amazing, let alone the fastest lap too. graeme got a 3rd after starting from the back at mallory and to the best of my knowledge i don't think he's stopped grinning yet so can't imagine how second felt!

i'd heard about jen on the bikegirl website, youuuuuch :eek:

[DoodleBug]

Sounds like I missed a fantastic day, bugger it.

Well done that man :)

[Perilous]

2nd from 27th on the grid is amazing

To be fair the depth of field was no where near as strong as Bemsee and its our home circuit, so it's not that impressive really.

13th first in the first corner and the results in the Open 400 I was much more chuffed with.:)

Oh yes and although I'm not normally interested in all this who's better than who bull sh1t, after certain things were said on one of the other forums a while back, beating the DP championship leader by 30 seconds after starting 6 rows behind was quite nice.:grin2

Jen said the worst thing about her crash, once she'd realised the brake lever had fallen off, was just waiting for it to happen.:eek:

She's only got a week left in the chair so I didn't really want to be crashing it.:grin2 Mind it's no worse than the journey in the Palmers's van.:grin2

Apparently there's talk of a Bemsee, DP competition next year. One at Brands and one at Cadwell.
Should be good. I've been a bit premenstrual at Cadwell lately so I'd love to do a meeting there on the same "yeehah don't give a toss, banzai death knackers" basis as this one. Days like that don't come round often enough.

H'mm looks like retirement might be put off yet another year.:grin2

[Tark]

Can I have a short short report as I cant get caught on PC for too long. Like:

Race one: Result
Race two: Result

and so on...

Thanks.

[Perilous]

Can't Northerners skip read then!

Open 400. 3rd from grid 13

F400 2nd from grid 27

Open 400 3rd

F 400 2nd.

Happy.:)

[Tark]

Much better. Not interested in the Excuses and stories. Just results.. LOL

[Tark]

Oh and Well done! Sounds like a good show. Showed some Northern Monkeys what you Southern Faires are all about.

[NinjaMad]

sounds wicked im looking into it 10fold at mo lol i am so ega to race

[Jetski]

Sounds like it was an excellent day!

Fantastic results - well done :D

:clap

Lenny provides an excellent results service :grin2 Not quite the same as being there, but the best you could get nonetheless :D

Not sure we like the sound of this wheelying malarky and decking footpeg stuff though :grin2

[Perilous]

Not sure we like the sound of this wheelying malarky and decking footpeg stuff though :grin2

Maybe I'm just too fat for a 400. :grin2

[Jetski]

Maybe I'm just too fat for a 400. :grin2

Yeah that'll be it :rolleyes:

I've probably eaten pies that weigh more than you :grin2

As long as you finished in one peice and didn't break anything that's the main thing.

Oh and that you didn't either obviously, not just the bike

:D :D :D

[Perilous]

As long as you finished in one peice and didn't break anything that's the main thing.



No May and Julyare my break bones months. We're past May obviously but i believe there is already a bet running on July again.:rolleyes: :D

[The Guvnor]

Good results there that man !:clap May have to pop along and watch and watch you one weekend if I can, sounds like fun.:grin2

[DoodleBug]

http://www.racing-line-photography.com/BZ_shop.asp?event=DJ&gallery=9&image=_B2P1510.jpg


:clap :clap :clap

[Tark]

Anyway..

Clear off Perilous!

Your stealing my racing achievement lime light by coming higher up the pack than I did!! LOL

I keep thinking about going into a less competative class so I might have a better chance but it seems there are already others with the same idea in every class so its just as difficult... Bloody Trophy hunters!

[Perilous]

Bloody Trophy hunters

And very nice they were too.:grin2

I keep thinking about going into a less competative class so I might have a better chance

Thought you'd already done that.:grin2 :grin2

[Perilous]

http://www.racing-line-photography.com/BZ_shop.asp?event=DJ&gallery=9&image=_B2P1510.jpg


:clap :clap :clap

Only just had a chance to look at those.

This one I like. Not because of the photo as its pretty run of the mill but more because its so rare for a diesel shopping trolley (as #13 Lee calls them) to hold that number 13 GP bike in the corners. Couldn't get past it though.:grin2 Pretty nifty of Pat on the bike behind too as the diffrence in spec beteen the two GP bikes is vast and Pats GP bike experience is minimal to the time British Championship rider Lee has been racing them.

http://i178.photobucket.com/albums/w278/whelkface/DPRL.jpg

[rembrandt]

one of the gixxerjunkies was there had this pic of you in his folder

http://i54.photobucket.com/albums/g94/bigbikefan/polden.jpg


pic by stevethorp