Jul
20
Nick Matthews: Pembrey, the Home of Club Racing!
Only a few days now and we will be in Pembrey, South Wales – the home of club racing!
After another up and down weekend at Snetterton and a mechanical DNF it was back to the workshop for Adam and back on track for me.
Whilst Adam worked on the oil leak that muted our charge for a podium finish at Snetterton and finally took the plunge to switched from a rather worn out standard shock to a sexy little Ohlins number, cutting the completion a little fine, well not so much fine, the bikes not complete and tools are going in the van with favours already being called in for Thursday night !!!
I took to a new exhaust from MHP, remapping and a Dyno run at RJS found the little R6l kicking out another 5 bhp at 15,000 rpm. Off to Cadwell Park (a pre race run at Pembrey is not on the cards) for an open pit lane day and I hook up with Mike (http://www.getfaster.co.uk) Dickinson to find a line and to build on the learnings from Mallory, first sessions are for sighting and finding a line, which I fail to do. In steps Mike and with some words of advice I’m hitting the apex’s consistently, we work on two corners, I get to pick two (hmm the wrong two?) Mike picks two (yup you got it, the right two!)
Fastest lap around Cadders last October in the race was a 45.9 and my average over the ten fastest laps was 46.6 so consistent 44’s with a 44.1 was 2.5 seconds faster; getfaster gets me faster, again.
I struggle over the mountain and Mike gives me loads of advise but I just keep rolling off, even when in my head I don’t my right wrist does, it’s at least a second a lap so I need to sort it out, fortunately Pembrey has no mountain so this weekend I can push on and a return to Cadwell is on the cards ahead of the meeting in August.
Pembrey is a long haul and this weekend I intend to bag some points and push myself up the leader board, nil points from Brands and Mallory and now hurting and it’s time to push on and show what I can do, as for the Endurance race, anything short of a win is robbery.
Forecast is wet and fast with points to be had, see you there…
Nick