A Look Over the Shoulder at 2013

The number 13 really does get a bad rap, doesn’t it?

For me personally, the past year alone did have a lot dark times spread about throughout it, in and out of motorcycling. My motorcycling world was rocked by two personal street accidents on my bike – the most I’ve had to date on public streets in a single year – mixed with tragedies striking personal riding idols from the local scene, right up to the international level that in some fashion have affected me as a rider. But you know what, I refuse to think of 2013 as a bad year for motorcycling – I just can’t be all mad when the bad was simply packaged with the good. I feel as if I was simply being tested in every level, to see if I still had the resolve to continue in something that has always consumed me.

What 2013 became for me then, is pivotal.

I saw respected riders I know at a personal level and even icons I admire as a fan, be severely marred or lose their life from the very sport that we all have been so equally passionate about. Twice I found myself suffering the consequences of mistakes that may or may not be my doing, from something as little as an ill-placed rock on a road I frequent, or a car that failed to see me in one of my many morning commutes to work I do on my bike.

But all of these were simply lessons for me to learn, which if learned then makes them invaluable lessons. To be reminded of my mortality and fragility in a sport that otherwise makes me feel like nothing can trouble me is what ensures longevity. And I’ve long realized that I am in this for the long run.

I took this photo because it dawned on me that on that very day,

the 31st of December, I was riding home for the final time in 2013.

Despite the hardest year of my riding career to date,

I was bringing it home.

 

I probably could’ve done without these trials – these tribulations that as a sport rider saw me hit the deck more than once, both emotionally and physically speaking, yet all equally taxing to my spirit. But the way I see it, I went toe-to-toe with 2013 for twelve full rounds, and while the year dealt some direct and heavy blows, I’m still standing, still here. Meanwhile, the year 2013 had to bow out, and exit the ring. Therefore, I win.

So as we should do on the road when changing lanes, a look over the shoulder is what I am giving the year of 2013. Because though it’s now passed, I need to be mindful of what I am moving on from to make sure nothing surprises me from behind, before I turn my head forward to focus on what’s laying ahead of me.

Bring it, Twenty Fourteen.

Oh, Behave!

This past Thanksgiving Day, I dropped off Belle and Stella to the airport so they can fly over to the in-laws in New Jersey for an early holidays celebration with them. Belle and I agreed that we would fly to the East Coast to be with her family for the holidays every other year, and since we did for last year's holidays, we're not due to do so again until next year's. But Belle being Belle, she decided to take Stella to the in-laws for 10-days this year, and me being myself, decided to stay behind with my first-born Rusty.

I dubbed that period of time my 10-day Hall Pass, free to do anything I want without the girls!

Halfway into my 10-day Hall Pass, and my buddy Trung and I exchanged the following texts:

Trung: "Your 10 day hall pass, any good?"
Me: "Go figure; I can do anything,
but I don't want to do anything!
Stupid irony!"
The house was quiet, but it was too quiet. Since winter is upon us, the temperatures have dropped, and it was hard for me to keep the house warm with just myself and Rusty, so the house heater saw frequent use when it otherwise wouldn't. I didn't have to go home right away every night after work, but I did. I didn't have to go to sleep as early as I would, but I did. And apart from after-work drinks with a co-worker one one weeknight, I didn't exactly capitalize on my hall pass.

I think this little one's got me whipped!

No babes I would encounter can hold a candle to this one!

Wrapping it Up

This past weekend Z2 Trackdays’ held our annual Thanksgiving weekend event at Thunderhill Raceway, which typically doubles as our final event of the season. For a November/December event, you could’ve been fooled into thinking it was just the start of the season with the unseasonably present and warm California sun basking us in golden glory.

What a way to close out one of the most exciting years of my life!

2013, you weren't such a bad year after all!



This season marked my first full season working as Grid and Recovery rew for Z2 Trackdays, a gig that I felt to be a natural progression for me as a trackday enthusiast, having been a participant for well over half a decade now. The day Z2 Trackdays asked me to join their crew was the day a new chapter in my motorcycling life started, a chapter I desperately needed to keep the passion I have for sport riding continue on for many more seasons. I felt like I was given the opportunity to create another level of enjoyment in something that I already have been enjoying.

I hope to build on this, having always wanted to be a trackday instructor. See, I’ve yet to actually race motorcycles; as big of a road racing fan as I am, from club racing to the world level of motorcycle competition, the urge was never strong enough in me to try and race a motorcycle. However, the desire to pass along whatever riding wisdom I’ve gained to newcomers of the sport, now that is a calling that I have been trying to meet, and I feel that being part of Z2 Trackdays’ family leads me that much closer to attaining that goal. And for that alone and the wonderful experience it has been this past season to work their trackdays, I cannot wait for the 2014 track season to begin.

Fortunately, the wait isn’t really that long. California winter really only puts our track riding off-season in December through January, before we can more or less start again some time in February. Still, that leaves quite a few long days and nights to wait it out.

It’s a good thing I have captured memories to get me through it all.

Moto Blogger

I've upkept this blog for over half a decade now, though I've been blogging for longer than that. Like I always have, I do this mainly for me, because I am the nostalgic type to want to read about my previous adventures from time to time. Like I wrote on a previous entry, it's always good to look back (or down) as you move forward (and up) to not forget where you came from and how you got to where you are. This will always remain the purpose for why I blog. So I remain to be the first and foremost audience for everything I write. In fact, I don't even know if anybody, or how many even gander at this blog.

Regardless, I wouldn't at all mind to be getting paid while doing it.

Riderzlaw.com recently added me to their roster of Northern California motorcycle bloggers; a collection of moto writers who submit their entries to Riderzlaw.com's website and their motorcycle blog section. I am effectively being paid to write about what I love to do, which is to ride. It was never my intention or dream to be able to say that, but I don't fail to recognize how this isn't something that everyone can lay claim to, especially with bloggers. The ratio of bloggers who get paid to do so against bloggers who want to be paid to do so must be so disproportionate, that I am appreciative to have been allowed this opportunity even if it only so casually happened.

I guess the power of the pen when pushed by one's passion can sometimes work wonders. :)

The Brass Knuckle

In 2008, I bought my dream bike - a 2000 Aprilia RSV Mille. I had never seen a bike look the way it does, and to my surprise, it rode and sounded every bit like the dream that I thought it would.

When I lost the bike in late-2008 following an on-track collision with another rider, I ended up replacing it with my 2002 Yamaha R1, a bike that I myself wrote I would NOT be in love with.

"I'm not saying I don't like the R1 nor think it's a fantastic machine, all I'm saying is that I don't think I'll be running to the garage at random times of the day just to ogle at it anymore…it will be liberating to just ride the machine and enjoy it." - Me, September 2008 

 

So much for that; I ended up building the R1 into my rolling homage to today's Superbikes. It's become the bike that I am eyeing to retire in my living room. 

 

So I've owned my dream bike, and I've built the bike of my dreams.
So what about this late-90's British street fighter?

My first chance at owning one came by finding a Craigslist ad for it that was well-below what its private party value should've been. It turned out to have substantial DMV back fees to go along with it. I ate the costs, as I was able to recoup a lot of it back from selling the ton of spare parts that came with the sale anyway, so it ended up being one of those steal-of-a-deals for me in the end!

But the bike, oh, let me tell you. It quickly became a favorite of mine to ride. I even wrote a mini-review about it; I had never done that for ANY of my bikes!

"I'm thoroughly convinced that there is no more perfect real-world engine than a triple. (It) is a real gem. The whole gearbox feels like ONE gear in how consistent each gear's characteristic and torque output is…and because of its flat torque curve, the bike thinks it's in a drag race in any gear every time you shift - you feel all that torque, no matter where you are in the powerband. It's omnipresent." - Me, May 2011

The core of any good brass knuckle.

If my RSV Mille and R1 are my diamonds in all the bikes I've owned, then the Speed Triple is the brass knuckle;  just as nice to get your hands on, but ultimately more useful in urban assaults.

 

I ended up trading in the Speed Triple for premium parts for my R1 that I NEVER thought I'd be able to get my hands on. I have no regrets about having done that, but I'm not going to lie - I really liked that Speed Triple and enjoyed the heck out of riding it.

Well, wouldn't you know it; lightning struck twice.

Last week, I picked up another one for $500, after the owner said that on his way to work that morning, the transmission just gave out. After racking up over 40,000 miles in his ownership, he didn’t want to bother having to sort it out, hence his price. I just happened to be the lucky one to respond to his ad first, so that very night, I picked it up.

I’m even luckier to have a friend who is a master motorcycle mechanic at his own shop (Evolution Motorcycles), where the bike now sits so that I can get myself back to urban assaulting with it.

I can't wait to rock the brass knuckle again.

Mitigation

What is the most effective method of mitigating riding risk?

Not riding at all.

But if you're like me, that's not an option. Not when you've found no other visceral vice and soulful salvation like twisting the throttle on a two-wheeled machine. So we accept that this is of a dangerous sport, of a lifestyle on borrowed time that stretches and thins out as dictated by our very own decisions. We could completely shun the risk - it is what it is and its price is what we pay to play. Or we accept that it's there, but we mitigate it, to wrestle some control over its chaos even if just on our side of the battle out in the world.

When I started riding over seven years ago, I rode year round for at least a couple of years through all four California seasons; through the long days of summer, through the early nights of fall and winter. I rode the bike as much as I could to and from work, and as a weekend recreational rider. If it was raining, I was that guy that wrapped my socked feet in plastic bags before slipping them in my boots (until I bought proper rain boots) to and from my work commute. I was that guy that packed a clear and smoked visor, to swap as needed when the night set earlier (smoked visor said “daylight use only” – it said!). When it got really cold to ride, it simply meant I didn't need coffee to wake up in the morning, thanks to the wind chill. California has year-long riding seasons; all four climates are perfectly fine for riding because its extreme temperatures, be it cold or warm, are hardly extreme compared to other parts of the world.

So I rode year round, all for the sake of riding year round. Then I stopped. Just like that.

When your morning commute looks like your evening commute,
the odds are stacking up against you.

I stopped riding to and from work late fall and through winter, when daylight was shorter and rain was more prevalent. I didn’t stop because I had an incident during these times of the year, or because it made for an extremely uncomfortable riding experience.  I just realized that it made riding riskier. It stacked the odds even more when it was already stacked to begin with; it was already hard enough for other motorists to see us in broad daylight, let alone in the dark. Then when you throw in the rain, well, all bets are off.

I didn’t mind moto-commuting year round, but I wanted to ride for many years to come, and so I felt that if I didn’t NEED to stack the odds against me, that maybe I shouldn’t. Mitigate, I figured. I do my time in my car commuting to work a quarter of the year – the riskier quarter of the year – and I ensure longevity in this lifestyle I practically devote my life to.

My battery tender does double time 'round this time of year.

When Daylight Savings Time ends, that's when my yearly self-preservation begins. This is about that time of the year when I put the bike(s) on a battery-tender. This is when I start to think more about riding than I do actual riding (also when I fire up the PS2 to play Tourist Trophy!). This is the time of the year when there is some absence that starts in me. But you know what they say about absence, right?

It simply makes the heart grow fonder.
And I am very fond of riding.

So I mitigate.

Take a Breath

 As often as I do/work trackdays, fact is, it can be a few weeks in between trackdays. What this usually means for me is that it takes me a number of laps, maybe a couple of sessions or so to get up to speed out on the track, picking up where I last left off. As much street riding I do, whether commuting or weekend jaunts, it doesn't really help hold me over in between trackdays, since my street riding is a far cry from my track riding; I don't ride the street like the track, and vice versa.

No matter. I don't mind the first few laps or sessions to get back up to speed. It's a necessary evil. When I finally do get up to speed though, it usually creeps up on me in the sense that it just happens.

There is usually a giveaway though, and that's my knee dragging.

There isn't a right or wrong way to position your body on the bike (for the most part). The first and foremost rule is that you be comfortable on top of your bike, and moving on and off it. My body position (BP) on my bike doesn't usually find me dragging knee through corners; I can go through a whole day of track riding without dragging my knees. When my knees do touch the pavement though, then I know I've started to go faster, picking up the pace, and getting that much closer to my limit. This is the main purpose of my BP - to actually utilize my knees as a gauge for my pace, and thus the limit. Dragging knee through a corner or two isn't usually a sign that I've picked up the pace, only perhaps through those corners. But during a session when I find myself dragging knee corner after corner, then that's when I know.

I've upped my pace.

So I pull into the paddock immediately.

Why do I do that?

I need to take a breath. I need to collect myself even during the times when I'm at my best, when I've got it going good. I want to make sure that I take the upward trend that I find myself in, take that momentum and build from it rather than crash and burn (so to speak).

Another of my survival instincts?
Most definitely.



Even when ascending, don't lose sight of where you've been.





I've been riding on a wave of highs lately in and out of motorcycling, and it's been awhile since I've had a windfall that's blown for this long. So much so, that I'm sometimes left not knowing  what to do with this good fortune, where to go from here, or simply where to begin to continue with this momentum.

So I feel it apt to take a breather, to remember where I've been before getting here, to help me best figure out where to go moving forward. Figure out how to build from here.

The thing with feeling like you're on top of the world is that the stakes are higher. If you lose focus and get caught up in the fun of it all, you could be looking at a very long way down from where you are.

Felicisima Cunanan

Hi Grandma.

I want you to know that I did not, and that I am not grieving after you decided to remain in slumber. Mom told me that the last time she saw you, you told her how tired you are. I can't imagine how tired you must have been, but I can believe it.

The things you must have seen and experienced in your 93 years of living, after numerous children, grandchildren, great-grandchildren and so forth that you looked over as one of our family tree's deepest roots. Even when Grandpa took his rest you remained with us. Oh how much you must have missed the love of your life in the proceeding days, the strength and fortitude you must have had to muster in the decades to stay with us so that my generation and those that came after would know the living history that begotten us all.

You deserve your rest. You have spent your whole life enduring enough for us, and so I cannot mourn that which you have rightfully earned.

But I do want to thank you, with all of my heart, for staying long enough for me to see my own daughter lay her eyes upon you, for her to have felt your touch, to have heard your voice and laughter sharing one afternoon together. I don't know if you would have remembered that, or if my daughter will remember it, but I want you to know that I will never forget it. I want you to know that I am eternally grateful that you have allowed me to have the memory of seeing where I came from, come face to face with where my future lies.

Thank you for enduring long enough to let me have this.

Love,

"Tarat"

I Must Be Solar-Powered...

...because my best just isn't there unless the sun is.

I was back at Sonoma Raceway on the 21st, for Z2 Trackday's last Sonoma event for the 2013. I've had over a week of rest since the Laguna Seca double-header on the 12th and 13th, and I was really looking forward to a more low-key trackday to work as Grid and Recovery. Then again, you just never know what can happen in any given trackday, so I was, as usual, prepared for the worst.

Fortunately, forecast for the day showed highs up in the high-70's, knocking on 80 degrees. Unfortunately, the first half of the day was spent under heavy fog that took its time to burn off. The fog was so heavy in the first session of the day, that I was genuinely surprised that riders still went out to do their sessions when I could barely see the end of the back straight where I normally could. Brave souls, I tell you. The sun did break through well before the lunch hour, and only continued to burn off the fog to reveal clear skies for the rest of the day without one presence of a cloud. Better late than never! And as a welcome reprieve from the eventful Laguna Seca weekend, I only went out ONCE to pick up a bike and move it out of the track's impact zone, despite the handful or so of track incidents.

What's with the entry title though?

Well, in the fog-laden morning, I did go out and ride the track, cautious and conservatively as I tried to gauge the grip available from the pavement. Despite appearances, the track actually had good grip in spite of the heavy fog hanging low over it. There were at least a couple of riders out on track that flew past me like it was nothing, pushing their tires a lot harder than I was willing to given the conditions, yet their tires stuck like glue and their machines went through corners as if on rails. That's scenery I'm used to in dry, clear, and sunny days, but not in that morning. Now typically, after seeing that I might just have been overly cautious and conservative, I would've just said to myself, "Well there you go, you can push it after all!" That morning however, I couldn't.

Then I've come to realize what hindered me out on track; I didn't have the mental fortitude to see past appearances despite first-hand experience.

he darker the gray pavement, the less grip I attribute to it despite actual grip available, and therefore I could not get myself to run the pace I would otherwise be able to. If it's foggy or overcast, or just generally lacking the presence of the sun, it's not dry to me, therefore - yet again - less grip. Truth be told, my tires didn't even slide or provide any feedback that would make me think there was no grip, but I still could not get over my mental block, which I think is a lot harder to get over than a physical limitation. It’s your survival instinct. Have you ever tried rewiring it?

The irony in doing it is you just have to be pragmatic about it, and take that leap of faith. Easier said than done.

Eventually, the sun did come out to bask us for the rest (and most) of the day, and just like that, I was back to full form, riding the bike around the track like know how.

My survival instinct simply likes it sunny.

3rd Annual Yamaha Owner's Appreciation Days

In 2012, practically to the month and date, was when Z2 Trackdays asked me to join their crew. In 2011, the event was my makeshift bachelor party, as I married my wife three days later. This marks my 3rd year in attendance, but my first time working the event instead of attending as a customer.

I wasn't sure how this year could be more memorable than the first two, but you know what, I decided that if it couldn't, that maybe it would be for the best. :)

The event didn't go without trying to make an impression on me though.

This event was so popular, that as soon as registration opened up, it sold out within the hour, each of the four groups available racking up their own waitlist for both days. What this meant that people signed up for any group they could find an opening in, whether or not it was the appropriate group for them.

Net result?

A good amount of speed and skill deficit out on the track.

Fortunately, the track ambulance parked by us at the grid never left their spot throughout the weekend, meaning that despite the number of incidents, every rider was able to drive themselves home like they arrived.

The physical toll on me though was unprecedented - I am TIRED. With all the crashes, mechanicals, running out of fuel, etc. that occurred, the rest of the grid crew and myself were tested in making sure we kept the track downtime to a minimum, as we planned out every rider and bike recovery out on the track.

Z2 Trackdays is due back in Sonoma in a week's time, and this will be a much-needed week's of rest I intend to use up.

All the Yamaha Owners who attended the event better have been appreciative alright!

You Will Never Find a Man as Happy as I Was After Being Hit by a Car

Last Thursday, the 3rd, on the way to work on my motorcycle like I always do for the past seven years or so, a carpool lane violator I was attempting to lane-share past did not see me in their blind spot, knocking me and the bike over to the ground at at least 60 miles per hour, causing the bike and I to slide across two lanes to our right, right in front of dense traffic heading into the toll gate of the San Mateo Bridge.

As I slid, I just kept thinking to myself, "Shit! I'm going to get run over! I've going to get run over!"

I didn't, and when I had stopped sliding, I popped myself back up to my feet and ran to my bike to pick it up, and push it out of traffic's way. The driver that hit me was also able to (and thankfully!) pull over, and rushed over to me to help me pick up my bike, as I was still lacking strength from being so winded. We managed to get out of traffic's way, and I tried to calm myself down to better assess my physical and mental state, all the while telling the driver to also calm down as he was REALLY shaken up over what happened. Apologetic, catatonic, and extremely remorseful, even so far admitting that he neglected to look over his shoulder when he wanted to get out of the carpool lane. Had he done so, he would have no doubt seen me attempting to pass him, and none of this would have happened.

I took stock of myself, then took stock of my bike. As he pleaded for me to allow him to pay me directly for damages he caused, citing his suspended drivers license he had been paying towards and was due to be released in a few weeks, as well as having no insurance for the car he had just recently bought, I tried to make an informed decision as best I can, to either file a police report and claim through my Uninsured Motorist coverage policy for the bike, or let the driver pay me directly. At the time, it was still before operating hours for my insurance agent, so I asked him to follow me back to my house as I was going to ride my bike home, and he complied. He proceeded to stay with me for 2-3 hours after the incident.

In my line of work as an analyst, it's my job to take account of every information from all parties involved to come up with the most reasonable and fair order out of a disagreement. While the driver stayed with me, I proceeded to ask him all there was to know about his current circumstances and his household. He's a legal resident, but his license is suspended from amassing unpaid petty tickets when he was younger, for which he has been paying on ever since. Unmarried, but lives with his partner and their three biological children, the 2nd child handicapped from being deaf. His partner also works full-time like he, but their combined disposable income is about as much as what mine alone is. They rent an apartment, and in fact lives not too far from me in the neighboring city. He had $1000 in cash he could withdraw that day to give me to start with, but if I filed a claim with my insurance, they will need all of the drivers identifying information that I had so they can go after him, no doubt contacting all related agencies for the driver's multiple violations (driving with a suspended license, no insurance, carpool violation, etc.).

I hit the deck hard, but I've had harder crashes than that. I knew I was going to be sore for the next couple of days, but otherwise fine. I told him that to protect myself, I'd need to speak with my insurance about my coverage, as well as my doctor for their consultation. He understood, and so I agreed to let him go to work (he doesn't work, he doesn't get paid), taking $1000 in cash from him as a deposit until I can speak with both my insurance and doctor, so that he and I can negotiate a settlement. An hour after he left, insurance called me and confirmed the amount I could be entitled to for damages to my bike. I then saw my doctor to advise her of my accident, but she allowed me to "sleep it off," and see how I feel the next coming days.

Ultimately, I agreed for him to pay me for damages to my bike. It has been a bit of a controversial decision with people who know me, as some understandably feel that I should file a police report and claim with insurance, and punish the driver at the fullest extent of the law. I cannot argue with that logic, as it is logical, and had my circumstances been more dire and serious as a result of the accident, I probably would've done just that. But all things considered when it could've been a lot worse, it wasn't, and so I feel that being as civil as possible, especially with a guilty party who's just as willing to right the wrong he did, is the best solution to come up with. I don't think I can have it in my conscience to punish a man who made mistakes at the expense of the man's entire household. I walked away from a serious accident, while the driver is not only fiscally punished, but will have the memory of seeing me sliding on the roadway with oncoming traffic bearing down on me burned to his memory. It is my hope that that memory will serve him to no longer make the mistakes he made that day, and I am content with that.



Now, what does this have to do about being the happiest I can ever be?

Well, on that same unfortunate morning, as the driver had me in his car while we went to his bank to withdraw his cash deposit, I got the final word from my real estate agent that we have officially closed escrow in a regular saw of the house I owned with my sisters.

This is the house that I have owned with my sisters for almost ten years. It hasn't been easy keeping it afloat, especially in the last few years. I haven't even lived in it in over three years now. We gave up on it, ready to short sale.

As of that same morning, we closed escrow on it's regular sale, even netting us a few pennies. More importantly though, it's a huge monkey off our shoulders, the world's weight gone, King Kong off our backs. I finally feel like I can be the husband and father to my wife and daughter respectively, COMPLETELY.

I lost a battle to a car that morning, but I finally won years of war. Not only did I, once again, get a new lease on life, but I do so with the cleanest slate possible.

A man in my position cannot afford to be anything but appreciative of it all.

Familiarity is a Dangerous Territory

I have this electric edge trimmer that I use when doing yardwork. It has a sticker on it that effectively says something like, don't let familiarity with the equipment lead to mishandling, to always wear proper protection when using.

Whoever wrote that is damn genius.

Over half a decade now of doing trackdays, from temperatures ranging to really cold, to really hot, and all the pleasantness in between. Yesterday's trackday at Thunderhill was triple-digit hot (ambient temperature), but I've ridden during hotter days. However, maybe it was my familiarity with it all that led me to be so careless, finding myself with growing nausea throughout the day as my core ended up overheating. Once recognized, I practically ended each session I rode dousing myself with water to cool me back down. When the ambient temperatures are that high, the wind isn't much help as it's not cool enough, and coupled with riding a motorcycle with operating temperatures in excess of 200 degrees fahrenheit, and I guess it would be easy to get caught out and be at the cusp of heat-stroke, even for a "seasoned" participant.

On the upside, nearly a year after I picked up the 07 R1 for track use, and I feel that I've finally come to grips with it, able to ride it with as much confidence and comfort as I had on my 02 R1, despite being polar opposites.

And here I was almost ready to sell it.

       

Something's Afoot

While it still hasn't escaped me how lucky I am as a motorcyclist and a father of a 1-year old to be able to continue sport riding on the weekends, something's been troubling me in my last few weekend, recreational rides.

I haven't been enjoying them like I used to.

I've been chalking it up to high-traffic days and less-than-stellar road conditions I've been used to, but even weekend rides on roads that I venture to in order to avoid traffic and such have been marred with unpleasantries (such as road work). Of course it's all coincidental, but that they've been consecutive are conspiring to even make me think about taking a hiatus from street riding - something I'd never thought would happen this soon, let alone cross my mind this early.

'Course, there is still a lot going on outside of my riding life that are probably tugging away at my attention, so maybe I just need o persevere until such time that all I can do is think about riding while I'm out riding.

It's just, if this means turning the page to leave a chapter for a new one, I'm thinking I shouldn't resist.

Intermission 2013 (Red Tip!)

Been a little too serious in tone up here lately, what with a lot of things going on, and a whole lot more in the immediate future (Stella's 1st Birthday!). So aptly, I felt like having an intermission, non sequitur-style, just to break the current trend.

I had picked up that pocket bike earlier this year for a measly $25; nothing wrong with it, just had been sitting outdoors for a couple of years according to the previous owner. So I figured the carbs just needed a good cleaning, and with it being a two-stroke 50cc little monster, it should make it even more simple to work on. Alas, with Stella getting dibs on every time off I have now, I had to have my buddy Rob get the little monster (hereby referred to as Red Tip!) running again. And get it running Rob did.

Even though I'd say here and there that it's for Stella when the time comes that she's big enough to ride it and actually has interest in doing so, I really just bought it as a pit bike during my trackdays. But me being me, I really couldn't just leave Red Tip alone as a pit bike, could I? No, no. Instead, I got the idea to host a hillclimb challenge among my friends, using this little beast as our hillclimb machine!

First things first, Jairo and I decided to give it a test run at Patterson Pass, where I would hold the hillclimb challenge.

Unfortunately, the little beast just couldn't handle such heavy demands! Couple our adult frames with its task to go UPHILL with just a single-piston, single-gear transmission, and it was just too much to ask for the little beast. Even the downhill ride proved worrisome; the speed that the bike would carry from the descent proved even too fast for the engine, with the rear wheel and chain drive actually turning the crank faster than it can go at full throttle! I was worried the engine would grenade right then!

Pit bike it is then, unless maybe my friends and I can find an isolated parking lot that we can set up a makeshift track where we can race Red Tip around in. Until then, I'm at least finding out the joys of how cheap parts are for this little beast, so don't be surprised when the next photo I post of it, it'll be decked out!

It Goes On and On

I really wish I could update this journal with some uplifting adventure, but all that's going on right now is once again a "tug-of-war" in my brother's head.
And that's not figuratively speaking.

A Little Something

...to remind myself every day of what I should never be waiting for.

Live life full-steam ahead, though careful as you can, without hesitation or fear of the consequences. I owe it to my brother to not be afraid of the consequences when sometimes the consequences can be unfairly dire relative to your choices anyway.

Bitter Sweet (2013 edition)

For the record, this is what bike looks as of right now following last week's incident. All parts that needed replacement were replaced by mid last week, but clearly I'm still running the rashed fairings.

Well, these are photos of the bike from this year's Annual TAAF Walk held just over two weeks ago on the 5th, courtesy of Mah Ventura Photography:

It's funny. I see this bike every damn day, and while of course I know how awesome it looks, it's amazing how really expensive and professional camera lenses can REALLY make it look good. Here I was this morning prior to seeing these photos, thinking I've decided on what I was going to do following last week's incident, and now these photos are stirring up emotions inside me making me think twice (AGAIN!) about my decision.

Among other things, this bike at times makes me the victim of my own success.

Ironic

I had put on some new frame sliders on the '02 R1 last Friday night; since being taken out on Thunderhill last year and using my previous set, I've been so worried about something happening while the bike was without them. No dout that my tank remains unscathed despite those drops because of the sliders.
 
Then the morning after, I decided to do a solo jaunt down 84, cause I hadn't done a solo ride in awhile. On the way back to STP, just past La Honda through this mild right-hander:

Photo taken from the opposing lane; I'm coming from the
background to the foreground

Next thing I know, about the middle of the corner, I get a violent reaction at the front, then down I go. I slid up to the center line, while my bike slid through the opposing lane, stopping at the shoulder in the other side of the road. There were no oncoming traffic to collide with, but there was some to stop and help me pick up my bike, so I can roll it back to my side of the road.

I don't remember seeing one, but my conclusive guess is a sizable rock that I didn't see, and happened to have ran over. I walked back through the corner, and while I didn't see one (anymore?) in the middle of the lane, there were definitely scattered rocks.

The sliders did their job alright, with the tank unscathed again, but virtually everything in the right side of the bike took damage, from the fairings to the hard parts.



I don't know if I'll wait for winter again to repaint the fairing or do it now; apart from the upper fairing's corner, it's all just rash with no holes or breaks. I may just ride it as is after fixing the hard parts, until this year's winter.

Rebuilding. Again.

A Little Clarity Goes a Long Way

In my previous entry, I noted how I was having trouble finding my speed around the track, and I didn't know what to attribute the attrition to; doing track work, new bike, start of the season, all of the above? I wrote that the following trackdays would either confirm or debunk one or the other (or all of the above).

Well, I worked a Z2 trackday the other day again, and thankfully, it became clear to me as that day was.

It was none of the above.

What it was, was riding in a slower group. See, as part of being grid and recovery staff, myself and the rest of the crew basically confer with one another at the start of the day as to who's riding which group (A, B, or C). For the most part, we're all A-group riders, but since coming into the grid, I thought it best to be accommodating for now, and let the rest of the guys and gal ride A-group if they want, and I'll happily ride B-group. No biggie, I've jumped down a group before to ride with my friends, so no harm no foul.

Well the foul is that I am riding in an environment that though I can handle, is not conducive for me to ride the pace I typically do. B-group offers a fair amount of riders that are both too slow and too fast for the group; it's the nexus of skills from the other two groups, which can make for some unpredictable riding circumstances to negotiate. I can negotiate this, but the problem is that I cannot get myself into a rhythm of riding that taps into my full potential, which is critical in continued growth and development, in my opinion.

I realized this the other day at Thunderhill. Though I started the day riding in B-group still, I decided to go back to A-group again. In retrospect, it was probably pretty ballsy of me to do that when I've been feeling not up to par; it was one of those days with the fast A-group with AFM guys like Chris Siglin and AMA guys like Eric Bostrom signed up to do their testings. But what the hell, why not?

Immediately. IMMEDIATELY as soon as I went out there, with no rolling traffic to negotiate and fast guys passing me offering a rabbit for me to chase, I was back to my pace. Just like that, just to be back in the proper environment that offers no resistance for you to give most if not your all.



It felt so good to be myself again.

Regression with Progress

This track season will be my first full season as part of Z2 Trackday's crew, after they asked me to join them late last year. This past weekend's double-header at Sonoma Raceway kicked off my grid work, and though Saturday was only the third full-day I've done grid work and recovery, I ended up having done the most work I've ever had compared to the previous two, and therein came a surprise.

Pick up their crashed bike, then pick up the rider

It's still a welcome change to be working the trackdays now, rather than just sitting around in between sessions as a customer. The time spent working the grid and/or doing track recovery between my riding sessions really does bring a new and exciting chapter during my trackdays. But up until this past weekend, I never thought that my newfound duties would affect my riding abilities negatively. With Saturday's busy trackday, I felt like I wasn't riding as best as I could during my sessions. Understandably, one can say that it was only the first trackday of the season for me, so I'm probably just shaking off cobwebs, but historically, I've usually been able to just pick up right where I left off from the previous season, and sometimes even going quicker. I didn't feel tired out on the track per se, but in some ways, I want to say that the grid work and recovery duties does tangibly affect my riding.

This isn't really a complaint, but more of an observation rather. The next coming trackdays I work will either confirm or debunk this, but in the worst case scenario that I'm right, I'm thinking that I will need to simply better pace myself during trackdays, and/or up my exercise regimen so that I am better fit to be riding and working the track simultaneously. After all, this is a new chapter in my track adventures, so addendums should be expected.

Any new chapter requires a different approach

The other downside to working trackdays that I was afraid of was that a day would come when I would end up picking up either a friend or acquaintance following a track incident. I knew something like this could and would happen, it just wasn't something to look forward to. Well, it came too soon this past Saturday, when I found MotoLiam a victim of another rider's mistake out on the track. Fortunately, he was without any serious injuries, and though his bike sustained damage, it was nothing that Liam couldn't sort out. Not a guy that's wrenched on MotoGP machines like he has.

Taking Liam safely back to the pits



 But you know, they say you take the good with the bad, and I will forever be grateful to have been given this opportunity to have another dimension in an existing passion. Not everyone is handed something like this, and all the benefits of being in such a position far outweigh the drawbacks that every now and then may weigh you down.

So I say, the best progress tends to be those gained out of adversity.