Thursday 3rd November 2011
Sat here with mixed feelings as I write this first entry. I'm excited about collecting my first race/track bike tomorrow. Excited, nervous, scared I'm making a big mistake... will I embarrass myself, can I be fast enough to not finish last every race... only time will tell. Added to this, I found out half an hour ago that an old school friend, albeit one I haven't seen for probably 10 years, died in a bike accident today. Bikes are dangerous, should I really be starting racing? Should I live life to the max as you never know when your time is up? RIP Kev.
The bike is a race prepared Ducati Monster 600 which finished 5th in the Ducati Desmodue (DD) series, which is effectively a "low cost" series based either around the 583cc carbed Monster/SS (Class B) or the 620 injected Ducatis (Class A). More info available on the series, rules and regs etc are here http://www.ducatisportingclub.com. The rules are such that you should be able to race without fear of someone throwing 10k+ at their bike and blowing everyone away. A full season can be had for around £3k depending on how many races you attend (lots don't attend all races), practice days, sleeping/camping arrangement and of course... how much damage you do to the bike! Power is limited to 53bhp, a minimum weight of 154kg means no super light composites are allowed, forms must have no external adjustment (but springs, fork oil etc can be tailored to the rider) etc. The aim is that you don't need silly money to have a competitive bike, and the racing should be close.
My goal for the season is a top 10 finish (or top half in a smaller field), to improve my riding, and mostly just have fun. I've only ever done 3 trackdays, all in novice groups, but why should that stop me? I WAS going to wait until I moved into a house, with a garage, bought a road bike and converted it by way of a project etc... then I thought... f*** it... rented a garage, put a deposit on a bike I've never seen (except photos)... and dove straight in race boots first
Next... the bike...
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