| 6th out
of 70 starters. Quali: 7th. ~100 spectators A full rain race day, it did not stop raining from morning to evening - save some little breaks. Offroad is not a problem in Lelystad because it has a solid ground and is rather small. I had my best qualifying this year and two very good races to finish 6th overall. Still, I felt that things didn't come all together so I decided to secure the great race positions without risking anything for little gain. But we'll return to Lelystad twice this year and see what's possible then. |
| The result of the last race in Holten was quite
motivating. Between that race and the race in Lelystad, we had our
photo shooting for Izod at a practice day in Lelystad. One, great
preparation for the race and two, amazing pictures for Izod. Soon to
come. I also found a KTM dealer that could be of great support for me
in the future, so hope this works out. Then the supply problems from
Germany come to an end. He flushed by brake systems and I could feel
the difference. Much improved response on the brakes right away,
although this more aggressive response required double
attention in wet conditions. So, only I didn't find a
replacement for the used up rear rain tire, but hoped for dry
conditions. On race day, I only found a Bridgestone tire instead of my
usual Pirelli, which was not optimal but better than the used one. It
really was not ridable anymore after Holten. |
| So, non-stop rain from the morning, track all wet and
still slightly raining during qualifying. First 10 minutes are
free practice as always and to my surprise, I clocked the 3rd best time
during the free practice, quite nice. During qualifying, I increased my
speed lap by lap and found a good rhythm. My fastest lap was recorded
in lap 4. On the following fast lap, I pushed it further bit by bit and
had a really good lap so far. But then pushed it a little too hard in
the last corner, a relatively fast left corner on new asphalt, which
was more slippery than the old track, and I lost the front wheel and
went down. The Alpinestars leather did its job and didn't even show
scratches, so only the rain jacket was gone. Bike and myself were ok,
but I was warned how fast it can go in these conditions. So no further
improvement as time ticked down, but it turned out to be a great
result: 7th starting position and therefore second row! My time was
within 0.4 sec to fifth position and another 1 sec to fourth - all
still in reach, just again the offroad, my weak spot; not a good one on
a track where it is quite difficult to pass otherwise. One thing I noticed after qualifying was that my rear tire already took a beating and I had some concerns if it will hold both remaining races. Quali result: 7th |
| We were lucky in our race, it stopped raining just
before the start and stayed dry throughout. Eventful race that started
off with a great start. I came off the grid very well and found a good
way through the first corner - always good to make it through first
corner without any incidents in such conditions. After four corners, I
was in 6th positon and I kept contact to the one in front of me. But
then I got surprised in the first offroad section and passed -
a tricky but clean move, I couldn't defend it because I
noticed too late. Second surprise in lap three, where I left the inside
open in a long right turn and another one slipped through - pissed me
off a little. First, I could keep in touch with both and we approached
another rider who had a great start from position nine. Both passed him
in lap four, but I got stuck behind and lost contact to them, In lap
six, I made a great move through the outside line after start finish
and was back in 7th position. Unfortunately, the other two were already
away and after pushing another lap, I realized I can't close the gap
without risk. Since I was safe on my position, I decided to save rear
tire considering the look of it after qualifying and ride it home
carefully. Race 1 result: 7th |
| Second race, rain was back, although light and
therefore managable. I had an even better start to the first
corner, but then was blocked for a split second on the inside, so some
riders passed with extra speed on the outside. I crossed behind one to
the inside for the next right turn and just managed to position myself
exactly level to him before turning in. Again good to have string
elbows, so I defended my line and moved ahead for the next left turn -
cool move! With this, I came out of first lap in 8th position. In lap
four, I again was passed in the offroad section and dropped down to
9th, but this time keeping close contact. I knew I could go faster than
the ones in front of me, but did not find a good way to go by. In lap
six, two guys of this group went down, so I moved up to 7th again,
directly behind sixth position. I was clearly faster on the asphalt
part, trying different lines, but was not aggressive enough to make a
move... and in lap seven, I lost a line in the offroad and the guy
behind me used the chance to go by - down to 8th again. He managed to
also pass the other guy in front of us - of course in the offroad part
- and I stayed right behind them until the finish line, but didn;t find
a way to pass. So 8th it was. Since the others had quite different
results in both races, I finished 6th in aggregate! Race 2 result: 8th Overall: 6th |
| The next race is already next week on 3 and 4 September in Joure.
Again, I hope for good
weather, but will prepare a new rear rain tire just in case ;-) It is a
two day format because it is part of a village fest or something, let's
see. |