I’ve started writing this race report a few times already. Each time I’ve re-read it and been bored out of my mind. A few times I wrote the real race report, with all the juicy gossip, drama, cattiness and more, but I canned those too. Someday when I have more time, and when my writing skills have magically improved about a hundred fold, the juicy race reports might start happening. But I’ve simply got more going on right now than I can handle, and it actually was a pretty spectacular race weekend, so I’ll give you the high level details.
- My bike looked absolutely amazing. I have to thank my friend and ex, James Randolph, for secretly wrapping my tank cover in leopard print at the start of the season. Little did he know that the fashion world would see my bike and decide that for the Fall 2011 collections, it was all about the fierce:
I'd rather be shopping at Nordstrom
But I’ve also been rocking new bodywork, new sponsor stickers, and have been able to fit my broken body back into my streamlined, sexy ACT suit. My rainbow Arai Haga helmet couldn’t look better either.
I'm sexy and I know it
- There was a goat at the track, thanks to the marketing geniuses over at Feel Like a Pro. It was epic. They even tied a Go Pro to its horns.
Goat Pro
- I won Formula AFemme. I didn’t go fast, but I was pleased. Nikki got third overall, and Top Novice.
Bling
- After AFemme, Nikki raced Clubman Middleweight and t-boned a haybale in turn 12. She split the thing down the middle and just kept on racing like it never happened, only she went even faster. It was also epic.
It didn't even have time to get out of the way.
- I felt irritated, and frustrated, all weekend, but then Sunday, in 600 Production, I started 39th and finished 21st with a fastest laptime of a 1:57. I did a lot of them too.
- In 750 Production, I started 12th, and finished 8th, beating Nick Hayman (whom I adore, as I also adore his lady Linda) at the line and with a fastest laptime of a 1:56. A personal best by two seconds.
- At some point during the day, a red flag was called because there was a chihuahua in turn 8. Yes, a chihuahua in turn 8. Apparently he didn’t belong to anyone at the track and was a stray. He was the chillest, illest little chi-wowow I’d ever met. I wanted so badly to take him home but some other lame racer ended up getting him for whatever stupid reason (yes I mean you David Ben-jamin).
The crash truck driver, Glenn, usually picks up crashed bikes. Today he picked up a chiwowow.
- In 600 Superbike, I started 29th and finished 17th. Out of 36. Fastest laptime only a 1:59, it was hot, I was tired, but not that tired. All the bicycling has been paying off, I used to only be able to do two races in a day.
I was so high on life at the end of this race day. I went into the weekend knowing that I’d told a few people I was going to race AMA SuperSport next year. That’s right, the big time. Sort of. So all weekend I was hell bent on living up to my personal expectations of what kind of racer I would have to be in order to be worthy of such an undertaking. Friday, I failed. Saturday, I failed. Sunday, with how I raced strategically, with how I was able to cut through traffic starting from the back, and with how fast I went, I felt absolutely confident that I can do AMA and not laugh at myself. In fact, I’m feeling pretty excited about it. I know it will help me grow as a racer, and of course be a great adventure. And I know I don’t want to be on my death bed saying, “well, I was fast enough to race with the pros, but I never tried it…”
Stay classy, girl racers
