SupermotoUSA Open GP roadrace at RFR

[Yard Sale]

SupermotoUSA Open GP roadrace
Reno Fernley Raceway
August 29, 2009



Friday practice was strange, with streetbikes going through tech. I brought my WERA license to registration but wasn't asked to see it. That's because they let any schmoe with a bike into "race practice," which led to huge speed deltas and one fast racer going off-track to avoid a non-racer. Practice started late but we did get the opportunity for a lot of laps, with sessions at (approximately) 11:40, 12:50, 2:20, 3:40, and 4:40.

The organizers took the Reno-Fernley Raceway road course and made three tracks out of it. The "green" track was Configuration H, used for the Open GP, GP3, and both Superbike classes. The "orange" track was a shorter version of config H that turned left half--way up the front straight and went up the slide, like last year's Zoom Zoom race configuration. It was for the GP1 and GP2 bikes and the mini roadracers. The "blue" track was the supermoto course.

Everybody who would be racing configuration H could practice in the "green course" practice sessions. This was the premier Open GP, GP3, Lightweight Superbike, and Heavyweight Superbike. So there was everything from 125GP bikes to 450 tards to SV650s to GSXR1000s, and the rolling chicanes turning race practice into an open trackday.

Configuration H is much like configuration C, but in the middle of the peanut double-apex, the course transitions left-right over some bumps (what else) and goes up a rise then snakes down toward the bowl. It does another left-right transition to take you into the bowl, the left being a nasty, scarred piece of asphalt and the right being the configuration C turn we're all used to. Lap times are well under two minutes.

I couldn't get a handle on the transitions, especially driving out to the hill climb. I also struggled with the bowl, with first gear being too short and second too tall. It didn't help when a streetbiker crashed and oiled up the bowl. To make matters more difficult, my bike ran hot and I came in early each session. My bike is ideally supposed to run at 55-57 C but it was running at 66-68 for most of a session, then hitting 70, which is supposed to be the temperature ceiling. One session following #794 (scotinexcile) it hit 73 before I pulled in. This would be a drawback of making 269 horsepower per liter in the high desert in August.

One lap I motored by Brian Bartlow's 650 on the front straight, only to be balked by a streetbike in turn one, which Brian passed on the outside while I sat back looking like a chump.

At about 1:00 PM SupermotoUSA opened up registration for Saturday's racers to sign in and collect transponders. They were ankle bracelets from Westhold and they worked great.

Saturday we got two practice sessions without streetbikes/trackday riders so I didn't have to use the brakes in turn one. It didn't make a difference in my lap times, as I never improved upon my early 1:59 lap, running a bunch of laps at 2:00 and 2:01, way off the pace for Open GP. Good through turn one, esses, good into turn two, OK out of three, held up by tall first gear into/through/out of turn five, rear wheel skittish over the ripples in 8A, bad through the 9B/18 transition, bad drive out of 18, braking too early into 16, riding scared of the front end over the left turn 16/15A transition, need a 1.5 gear for the bowl turn, bad drive out of the bowl. Oh yeah, and I don't exactly get under the paint on the front straight.

I had pole position for the heat race but I almost went home when I found out they weren't doing warm-up laps. That's just ridiculous. But then they let the Superbike heat out for a warm-up so I figured they'd give us one. The grid manager asked me, "Do you want a warm-up lap?" I've got a 250GP bike with iron rotors, carbon-ceramic pads, and no tire warmers, so I said, "Hell yeah I want a warm-up lap!" But that meant our heat race would be cut to a mere three laps. I left the hot pit first and made a very warm warm-up lap. When nobody had passed me by the time I was entering the bowl, I realized my mistake. DOH! I pulled up into position #1 on the left of the track and watched my temperature gauge slowly rise as the rest of the grid filtered into place. When the starter finally moved off the grid it was at 71 and it was at 72 when I clicked into gear.

For those of you not familiar with my race bike, it's a 1993 Yamaha TZ250 (249 cc two-stroke v-twin). On a DynoJet 250i here at RFR (4,200 ft altitude) it made about 30 ft-lbs of torque and over 68 horsepower. Peak power was at 11,800 RPM. It doesn't make any race-useable power below 9K and then at 10K it runs like its hair is on fire. It has a very tall first gear and a dry clutch. All this means it is damned difficult to launch from a standing start. The launch procedure: pin it and slip it, torturing the clutch.

I timed the launch well enough but didn't slip the clutch enough and half the grid passed me before my bike had moved fifteen yards. Then while I was lamenting my misfortune I bogged the engine and the other half passed me. I could only laugh as I burbled toward turn one in what was surely last place from pole position. I caught a 450 MX-to-roadrace conversion and passed him under power somewhere. I caught an eleven-year-old kid on a RS125 and motored by him. I think he was fresh off minis, new to the 125 and I don't think he was opening its throttle WFO, out of fear. Other kids I've encountered on 125s, even heavier than he, proved more than a match for my fat ass on my 250. If he was WFO then that bike's main jet was six sizes too big or it had other technical problems. Faster than it takes a teapot to whistle, the race was over. I went from pole position to eighth place.

For the main event I wised up and left the hot pit lane/pre-grid area late. I warmed up my tires and brakes and pulled into the #8 spot (far right) with the temperature at 66. It was 68 when I clicked into gear. When the starter's flag arm moved I slipped the clutch mercilessly and this time the bike moved forward without lurching or bogging. That didn't prevent everbody in front of me from leaping away and a couple people behind me from passing me. Always out-launched, never out-gunned. Somebody looked a little spooked going through the esses with the pack and I passed him and wondered why he was on an R6. It must have been something else. Up ahead I spied my buddies #36 the kid on the 125 and #931 (or something-31) on the super-single. The little kid seemed to be held up by the other bike, which I think was ridden by a bigger kid. I had motor on them and planned to zap them on the front straight or the H config downhill. However, they were absolutely killing me coming out of the bowl. That RS125 might as well have been a NSR500 the way it gapped me there. I would make up a little before the final turn, make up a lot on the front straight, and catch them by turn two or three. The 125 rider was riding much better than in practice and the heat race and I couldn't go around him in the corners. Inexplicably, he slowed on the H config "straight" and I blew by him with my extra cylinder of power. I'm sure he just didn't have the throttle pinned. Well, at least I wasn't going to get beat by someone thirty years my junior. (Technically, I could have a grandchild his age!) I set my sights on the black single.

Junior had other plans and showed me a wheel exiting the bowl. Damn it, why can't you play with Legos like normal kids? Anyway, a pass never would have stuck, as I had the horsepower advantage. Back to the hated four stroke MX bike. His strength was motoring up the hill out of the C-to-H transition. He gapped me so much there I couldn't power by or even catch up on the "H straight." Then he pulled a gap again out of the bowl. I watched the accordian play out over a few laps and realized we were doing the same lap time and I wasn't going to catch him unless his four stroke MX engine dropped a valve.

On the front straight my bike wasn't pulling through the gears as quickly as it should and I realized it was because of the wind. The race started at around 4:40 PM and I should have re-geared my bike for the Fernley afternoon wind. I took the checkered flag in the same position I started, eighth. My bike made the six-lap race running at 71 or 72 C much of the time. It's time for a tear-down.

Saturday Morning practice #1 video:
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=lf0fqFKsT-g

Saturday Morning practice #2 video:
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=ADygc6sK3co

[Yard Sale]

Friday practices:

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=xBVbMOceyO8

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=h6UfSdhLdjg

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=IGK5lvQPbXs

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=kZ3_xBoZAS8

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=PWdNAn8N4yM


I have no video of the heat race or the main.

Here's the 11-year-old I was racing against:



Here's the super single I was racing against:

[zipbyu]

Eric lets see some race footage.  Look good and sounds like fernly.

[Yard Sale]

lets see some race footage

I have no video of the heat race or the main.

I think I forgot to press the record button.

[Yard Sale]

Yeah but I sure couldn't catch and pass you so I'm not in your video. In the heat race I was gridded on the front row, far left. (I didn't like that line into T1.) In the main event I was gridded on the second row, far right, behind Brian Bartlow.

Kinda surprising that supermoto racer Casey Yarrow signed up late and won the money race on a sumo bike. Was it close?

[Team Gorgonzola]

Great race summary Eric! Sounds like fun.

[Dragone]

Nice write up!  I did not know that old F'ers were allowed on the track last weekend, I may have signed up too!