Page 36!

So, now that I'm recovered from the weekend, I can share my experience with you lot! It was a really long day, with a LOT of action (mostly on the track) but heaps of fun all in all. If you haven't been keeping up to date on my posts, I was marshalling at Battle Of The Streets, one of the bigger events in New Zealand motorbike racing calendar! Held in Paeroa, it's a full on street attack, and I happened to be marshalling on the best (or worst, if you look at it that way) corner! A tight left-hander, with big hay bales on the outside and little bales on the inside, a lot of which moved a considerable amount during the course of the day! The turn probably totalled about 100 degrees, definitely more than 90 anyways, coming off a decent little downhill straight. More than a few of the bikes came in too hot and had to over-brake to negotiate the turn, of which we had a bunch of machines put into the outside bales! Suffice to say, it was a very busy day picking up broken bikes, and riders... I think I pushed a total of 8 or 9 bikes off over the course of the day, almost all from impacting the outside bales. One of the sidecars actually flipped over on top of the rider! Fortunately, he and his swinger (the mad man on the back of the bike - see the pictures below) we're okay, more just upset with the damage to their bike. However, more than a few riders we're unlucky enough to be taken away in the ambulance, after a spate of rather nasty crashes around different sections of the track. My heart really goes out to those who feel the harsher side of motorsport... I won't go on any further about that, but those who understand what I'm talking about will know I'm thinking of them and their loved ones...

Anyways, for myself personally it was a bloody good weekend - some scary moments, some awe inspiring moments too! I still can't fathom how the really quick guys can get round corners as fast as they do, it just doesn't seen physically possible to me!

Things are progressing rather nicely here at my abode, my partner Abbee has just finished her last day of work before she starts her course, which I know she is greatly excited (and more than a little nervous) about! I'm so glad she is finally out of the factory work, it was slowly eating her away... Still, one good thing came about from that job, we met each other! So I shouldn't complain too much I guess... But still, onwards and upwards, as they say, each step is merely the predecessor of the one that follows! My new (-ish) job is going great, there are already options being discussed for my future role withing Traffic Management, which is pretty cool! I've gotten the hang of it again really quickly, the simple stuff that I had forgotten since leaving the Hamilton branch is once again like second nature to me now. I'm hoping to keep rolling the hours in, keep my timesheet full, and keep things at home stable while Abbee is studying. Fortunately though, my work is hugely fun, so I'm happy to keep pulling long hours for our households sake. And I get plenty of time to keep my new found track addiction content, so really I haven't lost out at all! Come winter, and a decline in track days, I'm sure I'll go at least a little crazy, but that's almost the norm anyways with bikers, right?

Next weekend I'm off to do some aforementioned track riding, at Hampton Downs once again, for the "Big Bike Day Out". The aim is to take my time again, get used to the bike, and try to get a better feel for what's happening around the corners. I'm only gonna be in the slow group, so I won't feel bad holding anyone else up. The weather is looking like it's gonna be a mint weekend, so hopefully the next post you'll see will be full of pics of me on the track again!

Till then!

:-)