Speedtherapy

Thursday, 11 April 2013

Ducati 1991 888RS Suzuka 8hr Endurance Racer

I have found the bike for the Classic TT...

A Duke 1991 888RS Suzuka 8hr endurance racer. I've got some details from the seller and the asking price. Claimed to weigh only 150kg... factory stuff. Trick as fuck. Apparently this bike ran 5th before a DNF.

A kazillion pics or it's most intimate parts and a youtube movie.

I don't think I'll go for it... I was put off by the DNF... it might have developed some losin habits ;-)

Sunday, 7 April 2013

Flattrack Practice

All tarted up after some winter-love

Headed out to Rye House yesterday for some Flattrack practice with the new club running the championship this year, Dirt Track Riders Association - DTRA.

Sparkly fresh paintwork - helped out by my mate Steve Mann to get that glitter-bling factor

It was good to see quite a few new faces and bikes out there... also good to see the faces that have been around for the last few years. I was testing out my fresh paint-job and cleaned-out carb. I also played around a bit with cutting tyres.

Oily Rags Rob was out there on his fantastic steam-punk Ducati SS

The weather was very kind... cold early on but warmed with sunshine to a not-seen-since-November 10 degrees. I had a slow start but got up to speed by the second session.
I just went round and round and round. Trying to do a full session non-stop and be as consistent as possible. Experimenting with little things along the way.

Dimitri Coste and a few friends journeyed over from France

Their très-cool classic flattrackers enjoyed the British sunshine

In the last two sessions there was a blue-groove - I started seeing how far I could push. I landed up sliding off on turn 1... slow-motion low-side - easily done. In the last session I just got a few inches off the groove going into super-fast turn 3. There was no saving that one. I slid out to the fence and hit it hard with me and the bike horizontal. I landed up under the bike, wedged under the fence, with the steel cables trapping me and the bike against the dirt. I needed a few marshals to help lift the fence and drag me and the bike out. Thanks guys!

Good to see some friends again after the winter break

Only damage was a mullered gear-shift lever. Been a while since I've done one of those in. I protected the shiny new pain with my body and it didn't even get a scratch!

Scraped casings, broke gear lever and bruised flesh was the only damage

The last time I rode a bike with a motor in it was the enduro in South Africa five months ago. I have really stuck to my "it's cold and shitty out there and couldn't be bothered to spend two hours cleaning the bike after a ride" training regime. I'm paying for it now - pretty sore and second-hand today.