this was the best race i've been in so far. my little bike out-performed my expectations, and i know it was a big surprise for all the people who thought it wasn't gonna be a competitor. speed-wise, it was only slightly (very slightly) slower than the full-built, reed valved, custom machined Jim Rust motors, and the well-tuned Piston Bikes Motors.
on the straights, it was wheel to wheel matching all the bikes twice it's size.
the main even was amazing.
i pulled the hole-shot, and was passed by Kevin from Piston, the previous race winner. he's a phenomenal rider, and i stuck to his back wheel, waiting for my time to pass him back.
the second lap, i was setting him up coming out of the sweeper, and passed him at the same time he was developing chain problems, right before he dropped out of the race.
i'm not sure when Jim over-powered me to run away for the win, but the real race was for 2nd.
Ryan snuck around me, and i chased him for 3-4 laps, knowing Mag was eating up the small lead i had on him. he finally took me, and we all battled wheel to wheel for the rest of the race, with me almost rubbing tires with them both.
there was a bunch of passes and re-passes and it was a fight the whole time. probably never less than a coupla bike lengths apart for the last 8 or so laps.
about the 9th lap, the 3 wide down the straight was awesome. Mag and Ryan were barely ahead of me in the last corner, and i snuck up on the outside. we ran the length of the straight almost completely even.
i was braking a lot later than most in the first corner, but got shut out of my line and ended up following for the rest of the race, with my little bike nipping at their wheels.
the last corner on the last lap, we were all just a few feet apart, and i gave it everything i got and my front wheel washed out, and i barely saved it, took a little dirt ride to stay on, and ended up losing enough time to put me in 4th.
(when i got my bike home the front tire was flat. it's hard to notice with the pirellis since they're so stiff anyway, and i gotta wonder if it was flat or going flat in the final?)
my throttle/brake hand was numb during most of the final, had a huge side cramp, and my knees were killing me from pedaling to keep my speed up. but none of those are excuses, just sayin' what i was pushing myself through to stay in the race. i wasn't giving up for nothin'...
seriously, best race ever.
once again, i gotta thank Dennis (dmb) for his generousity and hospitality, for the ride, the toy hauler, and for being an all-around good guy.
other thanks go to Rob at Piston for the chain, and everyone else for the good times...