Cath Thompson reports from round 5 of the Australian 125 GP Championship (Oran Park)
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Practice & Qualifying We went into the last round with Jay already confirmed as Champion, after a flawless season where he'd won all but one race. Peter Galvin & Andrew Brooks were uncatchable in second & third, though the order might reverse. The last GP wildcard was however still very much up for grabs between me, with a slender points lead, and Michael Teniswood, & Peter Taplin, equal in 5th. As Shane Smith said in his last report: that's what motivates the GP classes: the chance to rub shoulders, however briefly, with the best riders in the world. Tennisball was on a mission & nailed 2nd on the grid to Jay's pole. Peter Galvin & team-mate Andrew Brooks followed, with Peter Taplin next, then me & Matt Graham & Paul Campbell forming up the rest of the second row. I had had some dramas in practice & couldn't for love or money go quicker than mid '17s on Friday. A ride height adjustment saw the bike transformed on Saturday morning, & a 2 second slice off my lap times. Naturally, I worried so much about going faster in the second session that I ended up a lot slower. Geoff, my technician, remarked nonchalantly "she always does this, she'll snap out of it in the race". I think maybe it's striving to beat a time that's hard, whereas in a race, you just go with what you've got .. Another moment of high drama for me as Angel ground to a halt in morning warm-up, & I sat the session out by the side of the track. Everyone looked frighteningly fast & loose over the flip-flop even though they were around 3 secs off race pace, you just don't realise until you're spectating from really close. We still don't know what the fault was, but it went away when we threw a new coil, plug & cap at it. Race 1 As we lined up, the second grid spot remained vacant. I kept staring at the little horseshoe on the track with the number 2 in it. It took me a while to realise that Tennisball was pushing back into pit lane, with the end sheared off his crank. It would make catching me in the points nearly impossible, & between feeling really sorry for him & not quite believing my luck, I made a terrible start. I was held up for the first lap by Adrian, doing some friendly (but safe) recreational barging to keep me behind him. Then I went after Matt Graham, whose bike was looking a little sluggish. I caught up to Peter Taplin, & shadowed him for a lap or two before passing him at the bridge, where he'd been getting bad drive - he's big for a 125 rider & this disadvantage showed here. I then had an untroubled ride to 4th. Further down the field, things were also pretty hectic. A tangle at the hill took out Rudi Muller & Paul Campbell, with Paul's fingernail being rather gruesomely ripped out at the root. I later bumped into Rudi on pit lane, clipping his nails back to the quick, just in case …Michael Payne's bike ground to a halt with a dead engine. Brett Parkin, a new entry to the class on an old model bike, turned some pretty respectable times to finish behind Luke Everson, again first C grader. Up front, Peter Galvin overtook his team mate in an audacious last lap move at Turn 1, surprising Andrew with his sudden braking prowess. "Brakes have improved considerably over the drum units on my AJS" quoted the veteran rider. Jay travelled to a serene 8 second victory, smashing his own week old lap record by a second in the process. Peter & Brooksy also went under the old record. Race 2 With immaculate timing, the rain spattered onto us on the warmup lap, the many recent oil-spills making a treacherous surface for slicks. Race Control made a very good call to delay the start. For 10 minutes we agonised over tyre choice, & went with wets as advised by the friendly pit lane fire crew. The Men in Black decided not to risk it, so Jerry Dennis was masterminding our pit. Poor Tennisball & Mat Graham chose slicks. With crash & technical attrition from the first race, only 6 of us really had a start, Jay from pit lane. Peter Taplin, beside me on the grid, shook his head at the starter, & I agreed, what sort of spectacle could we present under these conditions? But the flag fell & Peter & I both did what he had to. He had to go as hard as he could to redress the points between us, & I had to finish in the next position after him. Adrian took off like a ferret down a drain, but his cracking pace only lasted 5 laps before he came undone at the bridge, though he remounted only to crash again with a stuck throttle. Peter T was close behind him, & smoothly took over the lead. I toodled around at a snail's pace, with my pit board saying "P3 OK", & the Men in Black gesticulating me to slow down even further. Believe me, no one's ever told me to go slower before!! Peter rode a focussed & consistent race, but Jay, from his pit lane start, hauled us both & won by 5 seconds. It was a nail biter for all of our pit crews, much worse I'm sure than actually riding. Wildcard! There was a terrific round of applause at the presentation dinner as the announcement was made & I was a complete girl & stared at my lap & tried not to cry. At my side, technician Geoff, the other half of the team was also quiet. I am so grateful for all the friendship & support we've received, especially from Pat & Peter Galvin, Jerry Dennis, Paul Campbell & Raelene, Stumpy & all of Team Taylor Racing, the Brooks'; Adrian Schlegel, & other riders in the class & from other racing friends, marshalls & officials. It was especially good to see Damien Cudlin, pale & thin, encased in plaster, but definitely in one piece. Later that night, we sat watching the Brno GP. What I saw reflected on the faces of fellow first time wildcards was what I felt myself. With eyes like saucers, all were leaning forward, terror & elation alternately flitting across their faces. Next steps? I feel it is a bit rude to take a stocker to the Grand Prix. Apart from the Ohlins front end, bought cheaply in the UK, Angel has not been modified in any way, & its reliability has won us our place. That won't be enough at the GP (although I confidently expect to qualify last anyway), so we're chasing the dollars for a B kit …
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Round 5 - Race 1 - Race 2 - Points - Images
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