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Yavapai Mile, prescott, Arizona, May 1st, 2010 GNC round Three>
It has been a while since our last Grand National race which was down in Daytona, Florida, but I had kept myself pretty busy with some indoor concrete races, and lots of dirt bike riding. Plus the kids seem to keep us pretty busy at home too! I had also tested the new Ducati twin some more just recently at a friend Ryan Stuarts track in the Denver, CO area. We had Davey Durelle of Durelle Suspension come out and help us out with some suspension stuff, and the bike really seemed to be getting better each time out. That test went pretty good for us, except for the fact we got snowed out on the second day of testing, but we pretty much got what we really needed to get figured out the first day, but you can always use more testing, especially on a new bike like this Ducati. All the testing we have done has been on 1/2 mile tracks, which are harder to get a bike to work on, so I was pretty confident that this new bike was gonna work pretty good on a mile track, well depending on the conditions of the track too.
So here we were, the Arizona Mile, my first big race on the Duck, www.LloydBrothersMotorsports.net Was I excited to be here, yes. Was I nervous to see what this bike was gonna try and do to me at some much higher speeds, ooh yah! When we arrived at the track, I could see that it was probably going to groove up, as it seemed like a very abrasive and hard surface. During our first time out on the track, my bike felt pretty dang good on one end of the track in turn three and four where it was grooved up, but I was really having a hard time on the other end in turns one and two as the track had really came apart in places, which made for a really inconsistent surface, and it was just really hard for me to grab very much throttle on this new bike, as it made its power much quicker than my good ole' Latus Harley XR750's www.Latus-HD.com . I am so use to racing a XR750, that I am always telling myself when I ride this new Ducati, " You would have grabbed a handful of throttle right here Joe" but it just seems harder at times to commit to picking up the throttle on the Duck, as just not enough seat time on the new bike always leaves me with that unknown thinking of what will it try and do if I try this? But thats part of the fun of developing a new bike too.
I ended up third fastest on our very first time out on the track, but I knew there was more there, as turn one and two just were a handful for me so far. The track seemed to keep coming apart more and more in places down in turn one and two in the next few sessions, so things were getting tougher each time out it felt. Each time I would come in between sessions, we tried something different. I mean I had my mechanics Kevin Atherton, yah "Cupcake", Rob Kopp and Davey Durelle all helping out. I'm not into making too many changes on race day, but with a new bike, you kind of have too at times, as we made more changes than I usually would on a race day, but they were all pretty calculated and well thought out changes too. I ended up being 6th fast at the end of practice, which I was happy with.
I would be in heat race one with Sam Halbert on pole. The start line was dry and slick here, so I knew this would be another challange for me and the new bike to try and get off the line good. I got off the start like in 5th or 6th, not good at all, and the dust was terrible behind a pack like this. I mean its hard enough to twist the throttle hard on this bike when I can see what I am going over, but when I couldn't see very good at all, it madde it much, much harder and maybe a little scarier too. hahaha Sam got to the lead pretty quick, but it took me a few laps to get buy a few guys here and there, and Sam had kind of checked out on me by the time I got into second place. Sam had a better pace than me I could tell, but I also knew the starts here were getting more and more important as it was just so hard to see the track good when you were following a bike or two in the dust. Sam ended up winning our heat race with me in the second spot. This would put us both in the Dash for Cash and on the front row for the main event. I liked that!
I watched a couple of the other heat races and seen the trouble some of the other riders were having in the dust and changing track conditions. Some riders were starting to use some cushion way up high in turn one and two, but it looked pretty dry up there too, so it looked like it would work for some riders, and not for others. I knew I needed to work on my starts, as I had the Dash and the Main still to go. When we lined up for the Dash, I was fourth off pole, with Halbert, Coolbeth, Johnson, Mees and Wiles all here too. Off the line I was probably third going into turn one, and I told myself that I was going to try out the cushion in this first turn. Well once I got to the cushion off the start, there were a couple of guys right in front of me throwing some good roost, and this kind of made me back out of it a little bit, as I just was not sure what this bike was going to do in the cushion, as I had never ran it on a cushion type surface before. But I think that thinking like that is why I am 40 years old and still having a good healthy career in racing, as I am not going to make a stupid call if it is not totally necessary. hahaha, but then I race bikes, so I guess I'm not the sharpest pencil in the bunch huh! hahaha
Anyway, once we got out of turn two, I was towards the back of the pack, and the dust was just terrible. I could not see nothing going into turn three, but I knew there was a narrow groove there, but just how narrow was it since the last time I was on the track an hour or so ago? I knew they paid points in the dash for finishing in the top 5, but to me, it was more important to learn how to ride this bike in the cushion, and try what ever else I wanted to try. So I let the pack get away from me so I could see with no dust, and I went to work figuring out the cushion and just how to ride it and where it was. Heck, I knew they were all racing around turn three and four on the bottom of the track, but I went up high twice down there in this Dash just to see if anything was maybe possible later on in the day, but it seemed way too dry up there, so I ruled that line out. I did figure out how to get it through tunr one and two pretty good up high in the cushion though, and I knew if they watered it up there before the main, that I could make it work. So I ended up last in the Dash with Sammy winning it I guess, but I knew I learned more about the track than those guys did in front of me, and I felt I was ready for the Final.
I had the same 4th pick on the front row for the final as I had in the Dash, but I was determined to make it work better this time, as I knew if I wanted to challenge for a win here, I needed to start this race up front with as little dust as possible. I felt my bike was working good, but not perfect, as it was still just a handful down in turn one and two, but I was hoping that the recently watered cushion was going to be my answer in that turn. It seemed when I got the nerve up it would get through there ok at times in the Dash,but other times it was pretty sketchy feeling. I think that told me it was hammer down time!
The light goes green and my bike jumps out pretty good, as I think I was about third going into turn one behind Sammy and someone else down lower. I went right to the top of the cushion and grabbed a handful and came out of turn two in second right behind Sam. Now down the back stretch I ran it into turn three pretty hard, still following Sam, but I wanted to see how he could get through the grooved corner down here compared to me, and it seemed I could hold my own with him down there, so that got me a little more fired up too. Then we come off turn four and down the stretch I pulled out to draft Sam and when I pulled out of the line, I must have hit some sandy spot when I pulled off the groove, because my bike just spun up and I was not able to draft pass him. So I ran it into one hard and went right up in the cushion, (probably said a little prayer) and grabbed a handful. This Ducati just took off, and I knew I had to keep her tapped once I got in it, just as I would on any cushion track, but like I said earlier, it is was easier to keep my Harley tapped than this Ducati at times like this. So I just flew through turn one and passed Sam going high wide and hadsome. Oooo good fun, and I am thinkin' "What ya think of that Sammy?" hahaha I came out of turn two with the lead now and just as we enter the next turn, the red lights come on. Stop the race? I just get the lead and the red lights come on? Dang, I was bummed! So we come back around and stop and the AMA says they stopped it because there was terrible dust and they needed to water the track. AMEN! I am glad that they are not afraid to stop a race nowdays for the safety factor. I'm not sure who made that call, but after running in the dust in the Dash earleir, I know what they mean when they said it was too dusty.
My hats off to the AMA crew of Steve Morehead, Mike Kidd and everyone else involved for taking safety up another notch this year obviously. So now we have to restart the main, a complete restart all lined up again, but let me tell ya. I had about 100% more confidence in what I was capable of right now, as I had just grabbed a handful of throttle in the cushion for the last two laps, and just railed through the other grooved up turn both laps too, so in my mind, me and my bike were ready to rock! I remember yelling to myself right before the light went green again, "Bring it Boys". The light flashes and I get about the same start this time, like third again going into turn one. But I grab some throttle a little earlier this time and start hammering through the cushion. Sammy had the lead going into the turn, but I pass him on the outside this time coming off turn two and the lead is mine. Going down the back stretch I remember thinking "I know exactly what I had to do now, so do it. " "Nuttin to it, but to do it", as Davey Camlin used to say! I put in a few good laps and never saw anyone, so I knew the lines I were taking felt good, but that turn one and two cushion was getting a little rough in spots, and at times it would suck me in a little deeper than I wanted to it seemed. If you have ever drove a car in the snowy/slushy roads, and they you get over on the shoulder too much and the slush just kind of pulls ya thataway? Well that is exactly what the cushion can do to you at times on the bike too when it gets too deep or rough. But those of us that like cushion tracks know how to usually take care of that problem. Drop the hammer!
So I went to work on figuring it out again, and maybe changing my lines a little bit. I knew I was probably smoking my rear tire down in turns three and four, so every now and then I would let my bike roll more through that turn with its wheels in line, instead of letting it stay stepped out with the wheel a spinnin'. So I was doing some tire management at times, as I knew I had alot of race left. Then all of a sudden, Sammy catches me and passes me up high in the cushion around lap 8. I had moved my line down lower in the cushion, as I was just having too hard a time up in the deeper stuff it seemed. I knew exactly why he had caught me, but I was needing to see where he was making the most time on me at now, as I knew I could probably pick up the pace a little, but tire wear was kind of worrying me too. After follwing him for a lap, I realized he was just hammering through the deep cushion and doing it Sammy style, one good save after another. But it seemed that he gapped me pretty big in just a lap or two, as I tried to move my line back up higher in the cushion too, but I was having a heck of a time making it work anymore up there. It seemd I could get through turn three and four just fine still, but my bike would just try and come around too far when I grabbed the throttle hard up in the deep cushion in turns one and two. After a few laps of really trying to make it work in the deep stuff, I changed my line and ran around about ten feet lower, right where the slick skiddery part of the track met the lower edge of the cushion. This seemed like it was more consistent to me, but I was not sure if I was getting enough drive out of here though? Probably with about 7 laps to go, I am trying to go around the outside of a lapper in turn two way up high in the cushion, and my bike is bucking around like carzy, and right then I see Sammy peak back at me. I mean I am to the locks, hangin' on for dear life about then just to get by this lapped rider that was right where I wanted to be down lower in the cushion. But I had to get past, so I went higher this time, and my bike did not like it this time either. But I got past the lapped rider and knew that Sammy was probably happy with what he saw. Me hangin' it out, and he had a huge gap still, of probably 30 to 40 bike lengths on me at least. But I never give up, and after another lap or so, I came out of turn four and it seemed like I had made some time up on him as he looked a little closer to me this time down the stretch. But I did not know if he had slipped the groove or not that turn a little, so we went through the next trun in the cush and when I came out of turn two I noticed I was closer once again. Ooooh yaaaaa, I smell blood!
Next lap by it was the five to go board! I flat dropped the hammer now, and made sure I didn't overcook a corner, but at the same time I also made dang sure I was hard in the throttle. Lap after lap, I was getting a little closer, but time was running short. It looked to me like he was not entering the turns very hard anymore, so I was thinking that he must have lost his brakes. Ooh, I'm a comin' dude! Coming down the straight and heading for the white flag, he still had a big gap on me, but I knew I had to charge turn one hard, even though it was the slickest part of the whole track. This was gonna be my make it or break it corner for the whole race, and I knew it. I drove it in there extra hard, bumper on the lower part of the cushion like I had been and got a killer drive off turn two. I nailed that turn perfect! Then I roll down the back stretch and catch Sammy's draft for the first time this whole second half of the race, and almost drafted past him, but it would have been a very late draft, and turn three was kind of a touchy entrance, as if you got in too hot, you could slip off the groove so easy, and I knew that would wreck my race. So I followed him into turn three, heading for the checkers, and I knew I had to stay right with him in this groove corner. I knew a Harley would probably get through this turn better than my Ducati, as a Harley just works on the groove a little better at times, but I was going to do my damndest to hang with him here. I hung right with him, but I spun it up a little bit off of turn four, and this gave him a little gap again on me, like a bike length or two. The finish line is way down the straight here, and I really thought I had messed up that last exit a little too much, but I mean I barely even slipped, but it was just enough it seemed. Then about halfway down the straight, I finally caught his draft, and I pulled out and stole the WIN right at the line. I won by .025 seconds! Wow, that was a ride! My first win on the new Ducati, my first win of the year and now in a tie for the points lead with Sammy, Jake Johnson and myself. Coolbeth got third, with Mees fourth as we had gotten away from them pretty good I guess. Of all the people I would love to steal a win from, I would have to say Sammy is at the top of my list. I knew he was shooting for his Grand Slam as he has everything except a mile win. But actually I didn't really feel too bad, I think I was laughing.  I asked Sam on the podium if he had lost his brakes, and he said no, he hadnot. I guess that "Never Give Up" will came out in me again today. You talk about a somber person on the podium, dang, Sam was bummed. How do I do my best Donny Bargeman immitation? How do you like that mile? HAHAHA
I really have to THANK my whole team for this win, and my mechanics, Kevin, Rob and Davey Durelle. They kept helping me out all day long, and it paid off big time! Springfield TT and Mile are next on the agenda, so we'll see ya there.
Right after the race the AMA officials came over and handed us some new intake manifold restrictors to run at the next race to slow my bike down I guess. It wasn't cool the way they went about it all, but as it seems, every time I win a race this last year or two, they gotta make some new rule and penalize me. I'm sure after the next race at the Springfield mile, there will be another new rule just for me, cuz I'm gonna woop their butts there too! Until next time, G'Day! Joe
Special Thanx to:
Latus HD-ENI, American AGIP-Lloyd Bros-MotoConcepts-Jones Pwrsprts-General Engineering-Maxxis-MSR-Carl Patrick-Tucker Rocky-Rod Lake-MotionPro-Durelle Racing-Arai-Utopia-Northwest Steel Fab-Micah Racing--G2-Mad Hatter-K&N-Rekluse-Works Connection-Racing Optics-Wiseco-Saddlemen-Pingel-Tsubaki-ProPlates-Royal Publishing-Light Shoe-Scotts Perf.-Gaerne-Cometic-Ryan Young Products-
Life is not a journey to the grave with the intention of arriving safely in a pretty and well preserved body, but rather to skid in broadslide, thoroughly used up, totally worn out and loudly proclaiming- WOW-WHAT A RIDE!
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