madracer
29-10-2007, 10:00
Ah ha, great! The clocks go back! That will give me an extra hours sleep before setting off for Nogaro and my first real French Track day. Well I needed the sleep after flying back from Atlanta. Awake most of the night, I finally got to Bordeaux at 5pm a bomb scare in the ladies loo took another hour to resolve then home. Changing the wheels to newly shod Metezler Slicks, easy job? Not when the bloody axel bolt decides to strip the thread and requires sawing off. Lucky I had a spare axel, new brake pads in and all was done and packed by 9pm, Time for food. Oh, and take the bike out of van again and put back in garage in case it freezes!!
Set off at 7 and arrived at Nogaro for 8:15 the sun was burning off the early morning mist, the forecast was for clear blue skies ,no wind and a temperature of 16deg C. Found a place next to one of the many power outlets in the newly built pit area and started to set up the bike. First problem…….the plugs I have would not fit. I carry French domestic ones of course and an English industrial, which works at Pau down the road. Nothing worked, thankfully I had put the Genny in at the last minute so was able to brew coffee and put tyre warmers on.
So, to signing on……or not. About 50 guys were hanging about the Circuit office waiting. OK so I’m in the right place I guess. Hang around for 20 mins and eventually the No 1 garage opens and there is a mad rush inside. 4 queues, one for each class. However it takes another 30 min to sign on. 95 Euros for the day was a reasonable price I thought. However signing on took so long I missed my first session along with about 30 other guys in Serie 4, we were supposed to be out first at 9am, impossible! Ok no problem, chill the coffee is on, I’ll wait till 1040 for the next one.
Bike noise tested, limit 100dbs. Lining up for the 1040 session I thought I had got it wrong. There were 4 sidecar units at the head of the group! No ya stupid English zee sidecar go wiz zee fast group….you have got to be bloody joking!! No joke we rode with sidecars….and they are just mobile obstacles and bloody slow ones, taking wired lines at that.
The first session went well. Bedding the new brake pads and scrubbing in the slicks for a couple of laps got me back into the line of the track. I have been there many times before but always with Brit companies. I was surprised how many bikes were out on track and it was hard to get a clear lap, lots of CB 500’s and Naked Kawasaki 750 running round in packs!! So I had to take 4 or 5 bikes at once to get some free track. The tarmac seemed a bit greasy in places particularly in the breaking areas for some of the corners, I found myself backing in to corners that I thought I had lots of room for. At the end I got back safe despite the sidecars, one in particular warrants mention. A Hyabusa with a road going sidecar was just the most comical thing. Apparently he was the “Rallyes Routiers Champion de France 2007” The Race units must have been 600 as they were V slow on the straights and not very quick round the corners. In fact it was quite exciting to overtake them on a lefthander, lent over with your head passing close to the drivers!!
Best time 1m 39.6
Lunch at 12….for two hours! Yep that’s Nogaro for you. Had a wander round the pits and it was clear that this was a family outing for many of the riders, they needed 2 hours to eat all the food that was on their tables. I came across another K7 and spoke to the rider. He competed in Promo Sport and told me a few things I would need to do to mine to be able to compete. We agreed to meet in the 2nd session.
2nd Session.
Latched on to the back of the Frenchie K7 and stayed with him. He had a habit of overtaking slower riders on the straights and gapping me as I tried to pass them in the corners. But it was pleasing to catch him up every time and eventually overtake him. There seemed more free track this time and I enjoyed following someone of a similar abilty. There was also track sense learnt…. Stuffing people up the inside was a very normal thing to do apparently, .fantastic fun!! Went to see Monsieur K7 after and we were doing 1m 38’s. I was well pleased as the leaders of Promo do 1m 35 so I’m not too far off the pace.
3rd Session
Out again with the Garlic K7. Managed to get at the front of the pack and had a few laps of open tarmac before the inevtible Hyabloodybusa appeared! Pushing hard I only had one moment when the front jumped away on the left hander after the hairpin. I had to stuff my knee down and it came back, phew! Also started getting lots of movement at the back under heavy braking but nothing uncontrollable, the rear was moving a bit under acceleration, but nothing to worry about……Perhaps I need to get on the gas earlier and worry a bit!
Overall.
Well organised apart from the signing on fiasco. Each group had a time for entry to thr circuit and it worked like clockwork. No red flags all day.
Great weather and enough track time as I was knackered at the end of the last session….note to self do more work in the gym. Promo Sport do 20 lap races OMG!!
Set off at 7 and arrived at Nogaro for 8:15 the sun was burning off the early morning mist, the forecast was for clear blue skies ,no wind and a temperature of 16deg C. Found a place next to one of the many power outlets in the newly built pit area and started to set up the bike. First problem…….the plugs I have would not fit. I carry French domestic ones of course and an English industrial, which works at Pau down the road. Nothing worked, thankfully I had put the Genny in at the last minute so was able to brew coffee and put tyre warmers on.
So, to signing on……or not. About 50 guys were hanging about the Circuit office waiting. OK so I’m in the right place I guess. Hang around for 20 mins and eventually the No 1 garage opens and there is a mad rush inside. 4 queues, one for each class. However it takes another 30 min to sign on. 95 Euros for the day was a reasonable price I thought. However signing on took so long I missed my first session along with about 30 other guys in Serie 4, we were supposed to be out first at 9am, impossible! Ok no problem, chill the coffee is on, I’ll wait till 1040 for the next one.
Bike noise tested, limit 100dbs. Lining up for the 1040 session I thought I had got it wrong. There were 4 sidecar units at the head of the group! No ya stupid English zee sidecar go wiz zee fast group….you have got to be bloody joking!! No joke we rode with sidecars….and they are just mobile obstacles and bloody slow ones, taking wired lines at that.
The first session went well. Bedding the new brake pads and scrubbing in the slicks for a couple of laps got me back into the line of the track. I have been there many times before but always with Brit companies. I was surprised how many bikes were out on track and it was hard to get a clear lap, lots of CB 500’s and Naked Kawasaki 750 running round in packs!! So I had to take 4 or 5 bikes at once to get some free track. The tarmac seemed a bit greasy in places particularly in the breaking areas for some of the corners, I found myself backing in to corners that I thought I had lots of room for. At the end I got back safe despite the sidecars, one in particular warrants mention. A Hyabusa with a road going sidecar was just the most comical thing. Apparently he was the “Rallyes Routiers Champion de France 2007” The Race units must have been 600 as they were V slow on the straights and not very quick round the corners. In fact it was quite exciting to overtake them on a lefthander, lent over with your head passing close to the drivers!!
Best time 1m 39.6
Lunch at 12….for two hours! Yep that’s Nogaro for you. Had a wander round the pits and it was clear that this was a family outing for many of the riders, they needed 2 hours to eat all the food that was on their tables. I came across another K7 and spoke to the rider. He competed in Promo Sport and told me a few things I would need to do to mine to be able to compete. We agreed to meet in the 2nd session.
2nd Session.
Latched on to the back of the Frenchie K7 and stayed with him. He had a habit of overtaking slower riders on the straights and gapping me as I tried to pass them in the corners. But it was pleasing to catch him up every time and eventually overtake him. There seemed more free track this time and I enjoyed following someone of a similar abilty. There was also track sense learnt…. Stuffing people up the inside was a very normal thing to do apparently, .fantastic fun!! Went to see Monsieur K7 after and we were doing 1m 38’s. I was well pleased as the leaders of Promo do 1m 35 so I’m not too far off the pace.
3rd Session
Out again with the Garlic K7. Managed to get at the front of the pack and had a few laps of open tarmac before the inevtible Hyabloodybusa appeared! Pushing hard I only had one moment when the front jumped away on the left hander after the hairpin. I had to stuff my knee down and it came back, phew! Also started getting lots of movement at the back under heavy braking but nothing uncontrollable, the rear was moving a bit under acceleration, but nothing to worry about……Perhaps I need to get on the gas earlier and worry a bit!
Overall.
Well organised apart from the signing on fiasco. Each group had a time for entry to thr circuit and it worked like clockwork. No red flags all day.
Great weather and enough track time as I was knackered at the end of the last session….note to self do more work in the gym. Promo Sport do 20 lap races OMG!!