26 June 2006
Summit Point ‘Shenandoah’
Team Pro-Motion
Weather: AM rain (67°), PM sun (76°)
Tires: Pirelli SC’s 120/70 Soft front & 190/55 Medium rear (31psi F&R)
FI calibration: +5, + 10, +5 @ 11:00
Gearing: 17/41
I had an impromptu overnight trip to Wintergreen over the weekend. The driving left me a little tired and combined with the constant rain we’ve been having my enthusiasm for this track day was a little low. The morning started off bad as I only made a few miles from the house before being pulled over; my state inspection sticker on the trailer is out of date. The officer was very nice though and let me off with a warning. It rained the entire drive to the track which didn’t help the spirits. At the track I managed to slip on the diamond plating that covers the rear door of the trailer and drop the bike while unloading! No damage, but it didn’t help with the overall feeling with what was going on. Next on the buy list is some grip tape so it doesn’t happen again.
Needless to say I got my act together and got ready for the day. I pitted with Ryan (TLZ member RyanNJ) and his brother Mat. Ryan and I are in the same Red (Intermediate) group and run fairly well together which would help the day a long. The rain had subsided and amazingly enough was holding off! Even the sun was trying to make an appearance.
This was my first time riding the Shenandoah circuit...
Session 1: Wow! The tracks elevation changes and tight technical turns make for an interesting ride. The track was very wet starting out so speeds were down; not that I’m complaining since I’m still trying to remember the proper ride lines. I hit a wet tar strip going through one of the multiple apex lefts which upset the bike quite a bit but nothing overly scary. That spot would be the cause of another rider going down a few laps later (the guy doing the wheelie on the 50 in the pic above).
Session 2: The pace has picked up quite a bit as the sun is starting to dry the track out. Left turns are quite abundant on Shenandoah which is quite a contrast to ‘Main’ which is predominantly right hangers. The legs a burning a bit but it’s not stopping me from throwing the bike around.
At the end of session 2 an announcement was made that Red (intermediate) and Blue (advance) groups would be combined. The sessions were also bumped to 30minutes each. Since this meant going back out sooner than expected I opted to sit out a session.
Session 3: The track is 90% dry with only a few wet spots but they’re in key areas. It seems that the water maybe coming up through the track since it continuously wet when surrounding areas are not. There is a small lake on one part of the track but it’s not an issue. I like the more technical nature of this track I’m finding my knee puck are getting torn up rather quickly. With the longer sessions fatigue was a factor. I came in half way through, caught my breath and headed back out a couple of minutes later. Seems hydration was a factor here also. How ironic, so much rain over the last few days and I’m having hydration issues.
Session 4: This was the best run of the day. Until now I had not been able to run with Ryan either due to traffic or some other factor. This time we headed out together and run an awesome pace. We were able to make it through traffic areas with little issue and just take off. We had quickly been able to pick up on some tricks to pass in areas where people would slow down too early or just take at a slower than needed speed. Ryan runs the same corner speed I do so going into turn I never needed to make an adjustment to my riding as I had done with others I had been stuck behind.
Session 5: I headed out with Ryan again but traffic was too much of an issue. It wasn’t the amount of riders on the track; it was dealing with how other riders were taking the technical parts of the track at a much slower pace. Since it was so technical passing was a lot harder.
Session 6 (final): This time I led Ryan out of the pits. I was feeling good and rode as hard as I could until I was toast, just 5 or 6 laps later. Ryan said I kept up a hell of a pace but got caught in traffic I was managed to get around.
At the end of the day all those troubles from the morning had just faded away. I had such a great time. The walls surrounding the track which are a concern for those that have seen the track without riding it don’t seem to be an issue when you’re riding. The pace is down from ‘Main’ due to the technicality of the track so not as much run off is needed. Granted, more is always better.
BTW gottaducati, have you ever met a TL rider that wasn't a little 'off'
Track Squid - Summit Shenandoah
Linear Mode
