Remember that feeling of bewilderment when you went to the first day of school? You didn’t know where anything was, were afraid to walk into the wrong classroom, and were generally uncomfortable for a while? That’s a little what getting my race license felt like.
Maybe it was a bad idea to take the bike I’ve never ridden to a track I’ve never been to before.
MAYBE.
Now that I think of it, I was wearing new leathers also. All shiny new stuff for the race class!!
With AHRMA, the race class is a full day and license is conditional after your performance over the weekend. Basically, don’t crash or cause someone else to crash, and you’ve got a license to race. It took the whole day, but I believe that it was also related to having to fit in track time amongst the race practice going on. It probably could have been a half day if the instructors had an open track to work with.
Race class, condensed:
- learn about flags
- learn about race lines
- go on track and follow the instructor
- learn about body positioning and starting procedure
- go on track and follow the instructor
- mock race against the classmates
I have a decent idea about race lines from having been on tracks before, and learning more about how to read corners will come with time/experience. It was actually really helpful to learn the lines at the track by following an experienced instructor-racer who considers it their home track. I’m pretty comfortable with flags as well. Body position is an ongoing issue for me, and it’s painfully obvious when I’m uncomfortable in a corner just by looking at my awkward riding style. Starting procedure is (theoretically) simple, but multiple-wave starts are confusing. Every time you go out on track, you have to wear a bright safety-orange vest so that your fellow riders know you’re new and can make fun of you be aware of your potentially erratic behavior
Here’s me getting ready to go out and follow the leader and learn some lines:
Those new race leathers were a pain in the ass. I’d forgotten how stiff they feel when they’re new! Additionally, I’m pretty sure I purchased the wrong size. I could barely move, and it felt like I was being choked even when I was in a full tuck on the bike. They were the same size and brand as my older leathers, but the model was different- I didn’t realize that sizing could vary so much within a brand, but I guess it’s that way with all clothing.
Mock Race
At least, since there were only six people, there weren’t all that many people on the grid. I was placed in the 3rd position- on the front row, to the outside edge of turn one.
YAYYYY I didn’t get last! Ok, so third out of six people isn’t great, it’s exactly middle. I probably shouldn’t have been worried about my finishing position when it’s just a mock race for a class, but my pride/ego didn’t want to be last. Once I completed the mock race, the next time I’d be on track was for morning race practice and my afternoon race.
First Race
I really should have paid more attention to where the guy with the number boards was going to be in a multi-wave start. My race class, SOS3, also grids up with the Thruxton Cup Challenge in front of us. I was staring at the wrong person/overall wrong area when my race started. I had a horrible start! During the mock race, I hadn’t had to deal with larger bikes being in front of me- I started getting more and more frustrated after my terrible start, which means I was missing apexes all over the place and not concentrating on being smooth. Smooth is fast. I wasn’t smooth at all. :/
I didn’t do all that well. I was lapped!
At least I finished the race?
Next time, more preparation. The next race is Gingerman, which I’ve been to before. I hope I do better.