Before I had the fairings on the bike custom-painted for TAAF, I simply ran the street fairings on for my trackdays; all I would swap out were the wheels and the mirrors. After I had it painted, I planned on saving the painted fairings from any possible incidents at the track, at least for a good year or so, just out of respect for all the kind and generous people who helped make the project possible.
Well, it's been about two years now, and though my slightly damaged track fairings are still structurally useable with no problems, I think I'm going to go ahead and just run my custom-painted fairings on and off the track as initially planned.
Trully full-time representing!
Two years after I had the street fairings painted, I've finally taken them out to the track.
All things considered, it has not been a good week. Ironically, this week was supposed to be an epically good week, with an open trackday at Thunderhill Raceway on the 2nd, and two days in Laguna Seca this weekend on the 6th and 7th. Before the week even started, I had cut one my pinky open with a tuna can lid, and slightly injured my right metatarsal about 48 hours prior to Thunderhill. It wasn't boding well, but nevertheless, I wasn't fazed. I was only planning run Thunderhill two days ago to warm me up for Laguna Seca this weekend. Instead...
Well, it warmed me up alright. Or more accurately, banged me up. Now all things considered, I was pretty lucky yet again. While the bike was cosmetically damaged and bend the frame slider, fairing stay, and left footpeg, the whole bike was still structurally whole and was rideable. The incident happened within four laps of my first outing of the day, and after taking a break to make sure my headache from hitting my head on the ground wasn't going to get any worse, I was able to ride the rest of the day with my friends, albeit a slightly marred bike.
Ironic that I was just going to warm up for two days in Laguna, and now I'm feeling banged up two days before the two days I'm about to do in Laguna.
Oh, and the crash?
I basically was coming upon a much slower rider, which was not a big deal. Going into Turn 5 of Thunderhill, I've passed many a slow riders out of it and into the transition to 5A by swinging to their outside and giving them room. That was my plan, as usual, but the rider ahead of me had other plans as he described to me post-collision; he said that going into and through Turn 5 he "saw (my) shadow" coming up on him fast, so he decided to swing wide out of Turn 5 to give me room to pass him on the inside into 5A. In doing that, he basically swung into my planned trajectory to safely pass him. Long story short, his rear wheel and my front wheel cross, and as has been proved time and time before - in a battle of rear wheels and front wheels on a motorcycle, the rear wheels always win.
I ran into the back of the other rider BECAUSE he was trying to get out of my way.
Like I've been saying - ironic.
Nearly four years since my last track incident, and my no-crash streak at Thunderhill has now been broken.
P.S. While I maintain this blog for me to personally read every now and then, I don't know if anybody else reads this, and more importantly, if any riders read this. But in the case that some do, please take note of this same advice I gave the rider I collided with:
Do not ever worry about what's going on behind you. Maintain your line and pace, and those behind you will find a way to safely pass you.
That is all.
P.P.S Punished or not, I'll keep doing good deeds! Here's me giving a friend of mine a tow 'round the track, trying to show him some slightly quicker lines he could take. I keep looking back just to make sure I wasn't going too fast for him. :)
"Without passion, man is a mere latent force and possibility, like the flint which awaits the shock of the iron before it can give forth its spark." - Henri Frederic Amiel
Remember to live a life you would die for.
If you survive it, you won.
If it kills you, you didn't lose.
