Trackday
Yesterday's trackday marked my first since July last year. I purposely booked an Open Pit Lane day as I didn't want to be constrained by time or groups. The point was to get back on the S1000RR and up to speed quickly. I had some good company in pit lane which always makes for a pleasant day and as with any Open Pit Lane event the atmosphere is generally a lot more relaxed which I prefer. A few riders (Josh Brookes, Sylvain Barrier and Gino Rea) from the BSB Paddock were also present in preparation for the IOM TT and the next BSB round at Snetterton in June. Frankly their race pace was staggering and it's rather awe-inspiring watching them fly past you in a braking zone sideways with the rear wheel in the air...
Thankfully the weather was superb which meant for a hot track. I had the option of Metzeler Racetec RR slicks or treaded tyres both in K1 compound fronts and K2 compound rears. I opted for the treaded Racetecs as they were already mounted to my BST wheels and I had only used them for 8 laps previously at the end of my last trackday. It also meant that I didn't have to make any suspension changes to take into account the taller profile of the rear slick tyre so I could concentrate purely on riding and not having to worry about setup. I really like Metzeler race tyres and even when down to the front and rear wear limits the performance and grip levels do not drop off significantly. Tyre choice is a deeply personal one but for me, on this particular bike, they just work.
As for the electronics, they remained in SLICK throughout the day with the DTC set at -4 which just offered a good compromise between forward momentum and stability. Apart from turning on my 2D laptrigger I didn't bother changing anything else or using the HP datalogger.
The first few laps were a little tentative to say the least having not ridden a bike for 10 months. After blowing away the cobwebs, remembering which way the circuit went and generally how to ride a bike quickly again(!), the only time I came into pit lane was for fuel and the compulsory lunch time break. Apart from out and in laps my lap times were consistently around the 2:02-05 mark and on occasion dropping into the high 1:59s when pushing during clear periods and towards the end of the day when the track was much quieter.
249 track miles and 83 laps later the day was over. I've gone through two sets of knee sliders, 40 litres of fuel and one pair of Metzeler Racetec RR tyres. Surprisingly my Brembo Z04 front brake pads show minimal wear despite some hard use. An expensive day in terms of consumables but my main effort was to spend as much time out on track as possible which I managed to achieve. Importantly I stayed upright throughout with the only off-track excursion being a trip down the run off area before T8 having out braked myself at the end of the back straight. Overall I'm really content with my progress despite feeling rather exhausted by days end.
