Hey Everyone!
Great news! I am back racing again! After 7 weeks of recovering from a nasty concussion and not being able to ride or undertake much physical activity, I was finally able to board my Kawasaki ZX-6R again in time for the RACE Regional Round #4 at Shannonville, Motorsports Park on July 20-22. A whole lot has happened since that time, including RACE Regional Round #5 and the Parts Canada Superbike Championship Round #6 in Shubenacadie, Nova Scotia. I am happy to be back racing again and want to say a word or two about the last month before I get any further distracted!
THANK YOU KAHUNA KAWASAKI, CANADIAN KAWASAKI MOTOR CORPORATION and KAWASAKI MOTORS USA!
First and foremost I really must take a moment to express my sincerest thanks to Kahuna Kawasaki, Canadian Kawasaki Motor Corporation and Kawasaki Motors USA! When I fell at Tremblant I had no idea that my injuries would have me out of the running for seven weeks—during that time I missed 2 Parts Canada Superbike rounds and one RACE regional. I was worried about missing so much racing, and I was worried about getting my rather mangled ZX-6R back together again.
With some AMAZING help and support from the folks at Kahuna Kawasaki, CKM and Kawasaki USA I was reminded that first and foremost my priority should be to get healthy again and not to rush back out to the racetrack until I was 100%. Meanwhile, everyone worked really hard to ensure that I had all of the necessary parts to rebuild my ZX-6R as soon as possible! I am really blessed to be surrounded by some incredible and knowledgeable sponsors who really understand this sport and are there for me every step of the way! Everyone has worked so hard for me and I hope for the remainder of the season I can work equally as hard for them!
July 20-22: RACE Regional Round #4- My First Race Back!
By the time July 20 had rolled around doctors had cleared me to ride again and I was starting to feel pretty good. I had been training on my mountain bike and was able to sustain some relatively vigorous activity. It was time to test my metal on the racetrack again and I was itching to get back!
Friday morning practice brought about a rather rainy and cold day. Not very many riders were taking advantage of the practice time and I opted to wait for sunnier times for my first return to the track. Instead, Friday was spent with Brad Clarke and John Sharrard sorting out the suspension on my B bike, since we were still awaiting a few parts to come in for the A bike. I was going to be in for an interesting weekend—first weekend back in 7 weeks….not sure how my brain would react…. on a “new” bike in the sense that I was now riding the back-up bike….and everyone else had been racing while I was off with injuries.
By Saturday morning the B bike was sorted, the skies had cleared and it was time to go out and have some fun! Unfortunately, fun was nowhere to be had on Saturday. The suspension on the B bike was far from sorted, and while I had all the confidence in the world in my ZX-6R, things simply were not clicking. My laptimes were 3-4 seconds slower than where they should have been, nothing felt right and I was getting increasingly frustrated. Brad and John worked with me all day Saturday, getting my suspension dialed to perfection, and working on my ego. John was good to remind me that even top Pro riders are never fast immediately upon return from a big injury. I was reminded that 2 days ago we didn’t even know if I could ride that weekend. I needed to simply suck it up and start having some fun and turning some laps, not worrying so much about my times and position. The pep talked must have worked! By Saturday afternoon my laptimes were coming down, and while I was still at the back of the field, I was starting to have some fun!
Sunday was race day. My laptimes still were not where I wanted them to be but at this point I was treating this round as a test weekend—testing out my bike and my body to see how all would fair after my injury. In both the AM600 and the Women’s races I did not fare nearly as well as I had wanted…riders who do not normally pass me were blowing the doors off me…what was happening! I took a deep breath, reminded myself that this was a test weekend and that I needed to just be happy I was riding. With that in mind, I finished two races on Sunday in one piece and was happy to know that I had returned to racing once again!
August 3-5: RACE Regional Round #5
With Round #4 out of the way and with the back-up bike dialed in, I was ready to take on Regional Round #5 at Shannonville!
It was entered into AM600, AMSuperbike and the Women’s Open for the weekend-- a pretty hefty race card for anyone, but especially for someone who has been out of commission for so long. I qualified well in all three events and was ready to take on Sunday’s racing!
The first race of the day was AMSuperbike. I had a great start and rode my tail off for the better part of the race, eventually getting caught behind some traffic but still having fun and bringing down my laptimes. In fact, my fastest laptime was a whole 4 second improvement over my fastest time on the same circuit in 2006! I came home with a 15th place finish in AMSuperbike and was quite pleased with my results. The next race up was the Women’s Open. This race did not go as well. My start was not as good as I would have liked, traffic got a little crazy and then things got really spread out. There was also only one race separating AMSuperbike and the Women’s Open so my body was reminding me I may have been a little tired (it’s amazing what 7 weeks of no exercise will do to a person!). Despite everything, I came home with a 4th place finish and managed to hold onto my 4th place overall in the points standings in Expert women.
The final race of the day was AM600. I had a good start to this race but soon everything fell apart. I was getting passed left , right and center. I was tired. My back was sore. My brain was sore. Clearly I may have bitten off more than I could chew. Three races after being injured is a lot. I managed to ride out the race and finish 15th but my laptimes were significantly slower and I was really happy to simply cross the line. I will be better next time.
August 10-13: Parts Canada Superbike Round #6, Shubenacadie, Nova Scotia
From the RACE Regional round in Shannonville, we immediately packed up and headed home, long enough to do a few loads of laundry, catch a few hours sleep, and hit the road for the 15 hour drive to Shubenacadie, Nova Scotia for the Parts Canada Superbike Round #6 at the Atlantic Motorsports Park (AMP). This would be my first visit to “Shubie”, as it is affectionately referred to in racing circles, and it definitely will not be my last! I have heard many great things about AMP—the organization, the fans, the track! It is a wonderful place and I highly recommend it to racers and spectators alike!
The track itself at Shubie is a rather short, bumpy, almost “motocross” style track. It is definitely a technical track and not for the faint at heart!
We rolled into Shubie mid-day on Tuesday, and spent the remainder of the day setting up our pit and getting to meet Bruce and his wife Wanda, the organizers. Tuesday night was pretty laid back and we even managed to find time to socialize with some fellow friends and racers.
On Wednesday, George Budacki from Turn 2 Sportbikes was hosting one of his Advanced Riding Courses for the day. The school was geared more towards newer riders, however there were enough of us racers there that we managed to get together our own little group of riders and we spent the day with none other than my suspension guru John Sharrard who was on hand teaching at the school. John has been around Shubie more times than most of us could ever even forget, so it was great to have him show us the lines--- even if it meant sharing his knowledge and expertise with 5 of my fellow competitors! It was a great day and I learned so much from George and his team! Definitely time well spent!
By Thursday the rain and strong winds had settled in, and while it was a test day for the Parts Canada Superbike series, few riders actually braved the conditions. I spent most of the day hanging out and trying to stay warm and hoping for some sort of sunshine miracle. By 3:00pm the weather was a little nicer, so I managed to get out on the track for a few laps…good thing I spent the whole day on track on Wednesday!
Friday was more practice and my laptimes continued to drop. I was also learning something new about Shubie…I was learning what a physically demanding racetrack it can be and what little opportunity there is to rest! I had lots of seasoned veterans remind me to take it easy and not necessarily spend every second of every practice session on the racetrack.
Saturday saw the qualifiers for both the AM600 and AMSuperbike. I managed some personal best laptimes in both qualifiers and was reasonably happy with my progress to date. I had dropped a good 3-4 seconds off my times from Wednesday and Thursday and I was still feeling relatively comfortable. By Saturday all the fans had rolled into the infield as well and it was so amazing to see everyone having such a great time cheering on all of the racers! Those people in Atlantic Canada sure do know how to put on a good time!
Sunday saw the AM600 race go off about mid-afternoon. I was gridded towards the back of the field, to be expected when the front-runners are running mid-pack Pro times and the rest of the field are skilled and experienced locals who know every bump and pavement seal in this challenging and technical racetrack! The light went green and I was off to what I was certain was a great start. I knew I needed a strong start because this track provides very little room for passing. Unfortunately the rider in front of me did not get moving too quickly, so I found myself having to brake and veer around them, or risk running over top of them. Things got a little hairy going into turn one and it took a full lap before the field finally spread out. I was certain I could pull off some faster laptimes than anything I had previously set! My ZX-6R was running like a well-oiled machine and I was ready to be on the move! But then suddenly out of nowhere one rider managed to get around me. I knew I could ride faster than him and I had to get around him pronto before the rest of the field took off. I worked and I pressed for a good 4-5 laps, figured I’d get him on the brakes going into eight…or maybe try something really big and stuff him into one. Or how about between 3-4…yes…. This is where I would catch him…or not! Frustrated, I was all over this rider for the rest of the race. He put up a strong battle and in the end I simply could not get around him. I still managed to finish 25th and while I was looking for a top 20 finish I knew I was racing against some amazing talent from the East Coast!
By Sunday evening we were packed up and ready to make the long trip home with so many other racers whom we passed on the highway. I had a lot of time to reflect on Shubie on the way home and how truly amazing all of the organizers and fans were. The entire venue has a lot of character and I will definitely be back!
I have to take a moment to say a really big thank you to all of my sponsors who have stood behind me during my injuries and did everything they could to ensure my bike and I were healthy again. Thanks so much to Kahuna Kawasaki, Canadian Kawasaki Motors, Bell Helmets, Compulsion Racing, Accelerated Technologies, Performance Under Gear, Komodo Gear, Armour Bodies and Vortex…and to Dave, Brad and John for all of your tremendous help and support and countless hours wrenching on my bikes! See everyone at the races again real soon! Next up is the Parts Canada Superbike final at Shannonville August 31-September 2. Hope to see you all there!
