May 2004

Well, this month went OK, but it was a struggle. After last months crash, the ensuing vibration, and my desire to finish the season without any more drama, I decided to put in the spare motor. This went pretty smoothly considering that it was the first time I had ever done this on a Ducati. While I was at it, I put on a new (used) exhaust system and did some more permanent body repair. The new exhaust pipes ran closer to the tire, but I thought they would be OK. I was running the Dunlop 190's, and I thought if they didn't fit, I could always go back to the 180's. Well, that was my first mistake. Dunlop doesn't make the 180 any more, and yes, the tire did rub against the exhaust when it expanded at speed. So, this started the Saturday calamity where I had to find a new sprocket/chain/rear eccentric combination that would move the tire back far enough to work without changing my overall gear ratio or ride height too much. Well, it turned out that I could get a working combination with an increase on the rear sprocket by two teeth, and a new chain. I use a riveted chain, and to replace it requires tools, grinders, and patience. Doing this at the track in dirty dusty, windy conditions is about the worst thing I can imagine. I was having no fun, and to top it off, the wind blew the bike over while I was looking for a chain link.

I finally got it together, and had just enough time to do the things I really had planned on, like adjust the shift and brake levers, reset the quick-shift relay, and then take a lap or two to see whether this change in sprockets would mean I needed to use different gears. What a mess. All this adjustment also alters the ride height because of the eccentric rear axle adjustment. Since I couldn't measure the ride-height in the before state (being unprepared), I really had to do some thinking about setup. I also had used the clutch that came with the motor and it was dragging, so I couldn't get into neutral which was making stopping and starting sort of a problem.The bottom line was on Sunday I went out and raced what I had. I actually didn't do too bad. I got 3rd in F-Twins, 2nd (again) in BOTT Middleweight, but 8th in F40. This F40 Heavyweight is getting old, I just can't run with the GSXR1000's, so next month I am running F40 Lightweight. I have a LOT of bike setup to do now. I had planned on getting the PC remapped, but with all that went on I didn't have time. At least the new motor ran OK and I got through the weekend. My quest to beat Richy on his new 749 was not looking good.

Back