1:58.5

Whenever I write something in my newsletters, it seems like Life tries its hardest to throw me off course from what I said I will do. Maybe Life is testing me? Such as, staying in the intermediate group until I get a 1:55, from the Sept. 9th newsletter. Or the newsletter where I described how important doing an oil change on the truck was priority #1, when in fact something even more important came up out of the blue. Maybe it’s time to be more precise with my words. Or add some fine print stating, “I may not follow my words, or have any idea as to what I’m talking about.” When I arrived at the track Wednesday morning, the parking lot was less than half full and since my name is automatically registered in the Advanced group. I figured there would be plenty of space and I could bump myself down to the Intermediate group if needed.

It was a two day event, and the weather on the second day was supposed to be slightly better. But the vibe in the pits on the first day was very enthusiastic, probably due to the low head count. On the second day, it seemed like everyone was beat from having too much fun on the first day.

I took one whole second off my personal best at The Ridge on Wednesday. And I did it on street tires, not my usual slicks. I decided to mount street tires on the R1 because of the predicted cooler ambient and thus cooler track temperatures. I thought I wouldn’t be generating enough heat in the tire, for slicks to be sticky. The most important part. I know what I did, to take one second off. I got my knee down in these corners: 1, 2, 5, 6, 8, 11, 12 & 15, all in the same lap. I was able to do that twice which both resulted in a 1:58.5 and 1:58.6. In those laps toward the end of the day on the first day, it felt like I was taking forever to set up for the corners; this part felt slow. Although, preparation is good, said the lap timer. I had my body in position before the corner and I had a vast field of view while on the brakes. Looking at the exit apex, if it could be seen, the entry apex, turn-in point and back to where I was on the track; rapid and repetitively. This improved scanning was the reason my corner speed was up, also known as getting my knee down. Of course having loose arms also plays into this too.

Turn 13 has a hard braking zone. Twice, without me thinking about it, I performed a leg dangle. I guess this happens automatically if you are braking hard enough. I have never planned or practiced this. A leg dangle is where you take your inside foot (relative to the direction you’ll be turning) off the footpeg and dangle it towards the ground. Did this happen on the 1:58 laps? I don’t know, I have no data or video to prove it. However, it would seem likely.

I was a little bummed about my lap times this year because I knew I was improving however my lap times were staying the same. It could be that an improvement in one area threw me off in another area. Well, everything came together at the end of the season. Getting a personal best on street tires makes it even more special. If street tires are this good, imagine how much room there is to grow on sicks?