Tales from a female racer's perspective...

September 29, 2001

Well, it has been several weeks since our last race which was held during Labor Day weekend at Roebling Road. We are a little behind in our re-caps due to some changes in my place of employment, and not to mention, the events of September 11th. Very fortunately, our family was not affected directly, however we feel as most Americans do, a deep sadness for our country and we want those who caused these tragedies to suffer the consequences of their actions.

Boy, where do I even start? First, I can't believe that this was the last regular race of my first season. The weekends just seem to fly by when you go racing! This time I decided to enter as many races as I thought I could handle...ugh hum, afford. I entered four different classes, unfortunately on Saturday morning. I think I mentioned before, the later you enter, the worse your grid position. Welcome to the back row Nicole. I think I also mentioned that my starts are, well, lacking. Taking into consideration the number of entries that weekend because of the holiday, the last row was about 20 positions back. Great.

Off to my first race, GT Lights. I line up for the start, nervous about the possibility of finishing something like 19th...boy, that is going to KILL my points standings. Green flag and great start!

pushed my way up from last place to third! My best finish in GT Lights ever. What a great feeling.

The weather on Saturday was hot, about 90 degrees. Racing in the blazing sun, in thick leathers for 30 minutes with another race in three races from now was a lot. Hey, come on, this is my first season and I am still getting in shape. The next race was middleweight sportsman, a combined race of amateurs and experts. Again, last place grid position, but I only earned a fifth place finish. Pretty uneventful race and obviously, pretty uneventful in my head. I just wasn't into that race mentally and I have learned that racing is 80% mental and 20% physical, for me anyway.

Sunday brought partly cloudy skies, a perfect day for racing. I competed in two races, lightweight supersport and lightweight superbike. I was excited that day and so ready to earn a top 5 spot. The races that weekend were double points, so I had a chance to move up a few places in each of my classes. So I come in second in both races...ya hoo! Now mind you, in the superbike class, you can run slicks, which I do not, but others do. So does it makes a difference? I'm sure. The way I look at it, if I can be fast with fewer technical advantages, just think of the results on a faster bike, better tires, etc.

As I try and dig back into my memory of the events of that weekend, I remember very little details of the actual races. Sorry. However, I always remember the great friends we have made and the conversations that take place. The guys (there are no "gals" in my classes) are so cool. They, specifically Andras and Allen, who also ride Aprilias are very helpful and provide a lot of feedback to me. Hopefully Allen will be at Daytona, I know Andras will.

Since my "she said" portion focuses on the female racer's perspective, I have this to add: I have been selected to participate in Ducati Donne (see my press release for details) in October. It is an all-female one day race school with Ben Bostrom and Troy Bayliss. Ducati is trying to pave the way for more females in racing...bravo. We can use additional outlets, such as the media, to obtain sponsors. Sponsors are key to success, period. If I want to be fast, I have to work hard, but I also need the right equipment. So why should I get the chance to participate in this activity rather than any other racer, be it male or female? My thought is this. Women need events such as this to encourage them to get out there. I got involved because Jeff supported and encouraged me 100%. There are a number of women/girls/females who would love to race, but they may not know how to get started. It is going to take the support from someone they know to help them get there. Chances are, they won't just go buy a bike themselves and put themselves on the track. I have found that being a female racer can open some doors, i.e., media attention. The challenge, however is what you do with it all, once someone opens that door.

Lucky for me, Mark Wesley from Full Throttle Sportbike has asked me to write a monthly article. One door open and a chance to prove myself.

Tales from a male racer's perspective...

September 29, 2001

As usual we arrived the Friday evening before the races in order to set up "camp". Unfortunatley a severe rainstorm came through 30 mintues in to the set-up and blew the canopy off of its supports and across the infield. Did I mention rain?...it was raining so hard that we sought refuge in the trailer and tried to sleep but any rest was virtually impossible due to the pounding the trailer was taking... By morning the rain subsided and I completed setting up our "race headquarters". Teching both bikes was uneventfull due to the fact that I completely prep the bikes before they are even loaded into the trailer. It makes for a less hectic Saturday morning. The track was drying out quite nicely during the morning first practice sessions. My friend Jeff Bankston #49 was pitted next to us. This was Jeff's first race since that horrific crash from the month before. He was very battered and bruised and was still suffering the after effects of a broken collarbone and severly bruised kidney... being in the true racer spirit , Jeff donned his new Vanson leathers and went out for the practice sessions with little complaint. My morning's session was limited to approximately 15 practice laps primary aimed at bedding in my new EBC HH Brake Pads. Funny thing about the "new " brake pads was the fact that the 5 year old pads had much more braking material remaining but the "new" pads had a greater contact area..hmmmm? Nonetheless all went well.

As a side note I broke down and had Russell at Personal Cycle Service in Daytona perform the bike's first valve adjustment after 5 years of racing and then make a Dyno run. He advised the valves were "slightly" tight and after reviewing the Dyno chart, which revealed 112.9 RWP (rear wheel horsepower)..down 8 since new...I couldn't complain considering that I only change the oil every now and then. I'm still a solid 20 horsepower down as compared to the latest generation of Suzukis.

Again, it always pays to pre-enter your races at least 1 month in advance virtually ensuring a front row grid position. I did and was gridded on the front row in both the Formula 40 and Heavyweight Supersport. What I did notice was that the grids were very large considering that Labor Day weekend has been historically avoided by racers. As I looked over the grid sheets I saw the usual suspects as well as many new faces from the Mid- Atlantic Region. Steve Genter my main rival was in attendance but I was determined to make this my weekend and finish the regular season "on top of the box" (first place).

As the green flag was dropped signaling the start of the Formula 40 race, I was rewarded with the "holeshot" going into Turn 1 in the lead. My lead lasted for 3 laps when a Mid-Atlantic rider on a Suzuki TL 1000 (who shall be nameless in the face of shame) got a incredible drive coming out of Turn 9 on to the front stretch and handily passed me. "No sweat" I thought to myself as we headed onto the fastest portion of the track, but much to my disbelief this ass*ole began swerving back and forth in front of me and nearly took out my front end which would have easily ruined my weekend. Ladies and Gentlemen, this was not a "Daytona Swerve" trying to break the draft but a full fledged side to side motion which I believe was a deliberate act of incredible stupidity, coupled with a death wish. I let off the throttle to avoid a crash thus allowing Steve Genter to pass me as well. I had visions of last month's race and the resulting crash so I opted to watch this Bozo on the TL. Apparently Steve Genter did so as well shaking his head in utter disbelief. So, there Steve and I were keeping a very safe distance from the TL awaiting his imminent and well deserved crash. The laps were counting down and on the 6th lap I passed both Steve and the TL as we headed down the front stretch. It was a calculated risk due to the fact that the TL rider was unpredictable but I made it stick going into Turn 1, and so did Steve. As we went into Turn 2 , I knew that I was in the lead and that Steve was right behind me. I kept thinking to myself that Steve's only chance to pass me was going into Turn 4 and that I needed to stay on the gas and not hit the brakes. I did just that...I was safe.....or so I thought.

As we hit Turn 5, I could hear Steve behind me and knew that I must take a wider line going into Turn 6 in order to get a better drive into Turns 7 and 8. I did just that to the tune of going 6 inches outside of my regular racing line in Turn 6. As I entered Turn 6, I saw Steve's front wheel in the corner of my left eye. That was the last I saw of Steve until the final lap when I his Honda RS 250 impaled into the tire wall outside of Turn 6. As I rounded the turn I knew the race was mine. I then saw Steve walking from the Corner Workers Station and he gave me a thumbs up. I then began thinking to myself "concentrate, don't look back"..." hit the apex of Turn 9"..." get a killer drive on to the front stretch and this baby is mine".......I looked down the front stretch and I saw it.... the checkered flag. I began yelling "go....go...go" . I had done it !

It took me 5 years of struggling to win a race and only 10 minutes to achieve it. As I was circling the track on my victory lap, I had a lump in my throat the size of a grapefruit. Yea, it was only a club race victory but it was MY club race victory. I thought about my Dad at my high school football games with that goofy 8mm movie camera on his head "catching" all the action, rain of shine. God I wish he was here.... for a brief moment I went back to high school and "The Wonder Years".

WOW what a weekend, can't get much higher, can't get much sleepy-er. Next month there will be a ton of activity going on at Draganee Racing, Nicole and I will be attending Ducati Revs America and Ducati Donne' in Las Vegas, Nevada, with our personal friends Ben Bostrom, Troy Bayliss and Fast Freddie Spencer. And then the Race of Champions at Daytona International Speedway where I will be vying for a National Championship and premiering my new "look".....see all of you soon.