Rotten has told us that he will stand down from the dual role of Vice
President and Competition Secretary at the AGM. He won’t be leaving the scene
totally. After a long stint in office he wants some time off on race day. This
means that he will be there to provide support to the new competition secretary
in the run up to September. The committee is also working on documenting both
the requirements of their roles and the procedures we follow to put together a
race meeting. The new competition secretary will therefore be well supported to
perform the role. There’s never been a better time. A word of warning, this role
is very busy on race day, and under MA rules cannot be a competitor at the
meeting. The rest of the committee are there to
support you, too.
The opportunities
just keep on coming
Precious has stood down from the role of Treasurer. Rob’s filling in for
the moment, but the job is up for grabs come the AGM. If you have a way with
numbers, or would like to have a shot, don’t be backward about coming forward.
The Prez
says…
Interclub Racing
Keep your eye out for entry forms for the next
interclub race meeting. Phoenix MCC are promoting a
meeting at Mallala on August 28th. Supplementary regulations are
with the Road Race committee now for approval, so they should be distributed
shortly. Saturday 27th will be an open practice. Bracket Racing will
be part of the programme, conducted under the same rules as Café Racer Club
meetings.
Two things to look out for
Numberplates Scrutineers and promoters are under the watchful eye of the
road race committee to ensure that numberplates (a) conform to the rule book
and (b) can be read from the timing tower. Please pay close attention to your
plates when preparing your bike for the next meeting.
Belly Pans At the first two race meetings this year, a number of bikes
were seen competing with fairings that did not meet the M.A. rules for oil
catching fairing lowers. Be aware that these rules apply equally to open
competition and bracket racing. Clubs have been advised through the road race
sub committee that fairing lowers will be closely checked for rule compliance
at race meetings from now on. Bikes that do not comply will not be permitted on
the track. This is not a case of officials being officious,
it is simply that bikes must comply with the rules. If a bike that does not
comply oils the track, and another rider, or riders, crash, there is an issue
of negligence in allowing the bike on the track. So, what do you need to do to
pass machine examination? Obviously a nice race fairing is optimum, but a lot
of people don't have one, so here are some ideas. Some people will simply need
to tape over existing holes in the lower fairing. Others may need to construct
a little wall in the back of the fairing lower to stop the oil running out the
back. The dam need not be at the very end of the fairing if an exhaust exit or
similar makes that impractical. If you have a standard road fairing it gets a
bit harder, but sometimes the larger holes can be covered with some thin
aluminium sheet. See your rule book, page 85, article 6.2.1.8 for the official
wording. If you don't have a rule book, they are available at club meetings or
from the MSA office. Like all of the rules we discuss in our bike preparation
seminars, this is an issue of primary safety, please treat it that way.
Socially
Speaking
There are a bunch of rallies in the wings and don’t forget the Moto-GP. Contact
Paul “Itchy” Stephens paul.st@bigpond.net.au 0409 542 825 if you’re looking to
hook up with other club members for the ride to any of these events, or if you
have an idea for a ride or get together.
July 15th, 16th & 17th: MRA Radiata Rally,
July 30th & 31st: Rhynie
Pub Run For more information call Aidan 8346 4071
August 12th, 13, & 14th:
Alz Mallee Rally.
August 19th, 20th & 21st: Wombat Warnertown.
For more information call Mark Moore 8364 4377
September 9th, 10th & 11th: Ghost Town Silverton For more
information call Sylvana 8088 1192
September 16th, 17th & 18th: MRA Bush Pig Rally. Crystal Brook MRA. Badge Rally For more information call Greg
8865 2120
Marty has some Winter warmers and a
bun in the oven (or was that a pizza in the pie warmer?)
Catch him behind the
bar at a Café Racer Club meeting at the Velocette MCC clubrooms 74 Drayton St, Bowden (South of Hawker St) at 8:00pm, where he serves
just about everything you can imagine in bottles and cans. Next meetings: 5th July, 19th July (AGM)
Military Hobbies,
I do! I do! I want to renew!
You can renew at a club meeting, or
you can send the $25 by cheque or Money Order to Post Office Box 704, Prospect
East SA 5082. Membership forms are available from the website if you want to
sign up a friend or update your address details. No web access? No problem,
call Rob the Peg and he’ll mail one out. We want you to stick with us as we
build a better future on and off the track.
For
Ducati SS900ie, red, staintune
pipes, carry rack, only 3,900kms., 1st registered Feb 2002 Never dropped - showroom condition
$14,800 Phone David –
mobile: 0410 523445 / Home: 8255 3738
2004 R1 race glass and mounting bracket for gauges, has been
scratched on left side and nose but nothing bad $400; Set of super corsa's use for one day at track, still good $170 ono; 520, DID race chain; New Yamaha sprockets by Renthal, to suit R1 1998-2005, FZS1000 FAZER 2001-2003, XJR
1300/SP 1999-2003 Front, -16 tooth Front; 15 tooth Front; 45 tooth Rear. Ph
Myles 0415 421 218
Psst! Wanna buy a
car?
Metro Holden,
Dave Johnson – UK Superstock
Championship Update
22-year-old Hinckley
based rider Dave Johnson took another impressive podium at the sixth round of
the Metzeler Superstock
Championship at Croft at the weekend. Riding on board his Suzuki GSX-R1000 for
Stoke based Xpress Racing he scooped 16 points for
his Championship bid and took himself to 7th in the Overall standings, 14
points off 4th position.
In front of massive crowds at Croft Circuit, the biggest all year Johnson was
keen to impress and show what he is made of. Qualifying in a confident second
position on the gird he was eager to bag a podium result. Gaining the hole-shot
in the race he looked comfortable as he led the pack. Young made a move on him
but Johnson was keeping the fellow Australian closely in his sights. A crash on
lap four forced the safety car to come out and as the pack bunched together,
allowing Coates to make a swift move on him as the car pulled into the pits.
Johnson rode an extremely smooth and consistent race and happily took the third
position. His Suzuki is now two years old and he was battling with Coates and
Young who are both on brand new bikes for the year and allowed them to have a
slight extra power advantage.
Commenting he said 'It's has been a good weekend in general I had a few
problems to contend with. The weather throughout the whole weekend was very
mixed and the race, although wasn't wet, was still very damp and the track was
extremely slippery. I was having a few problems with my visor steaming up
throughout the race and that is something I need to get sorted before we go to Knockhill in a couple of weeks time. Generally though I am
very happy with the result and I've gained some strong points from the weekend,
more than what I did from Mondello.'
Team Manager Nigel Broomhall was content with the
result saying 'It's good that Dave is getting consistent results and it helps
him with his Championship hopes. It's good to once again see him on the podium
and hopefully soon we will see him on the top step. He rode a very good and
hard race and so it was a little frustrating to see him finish third, but
that's racing and now we're looking forward to Knockhill
on the 26th June.'
Dave sits 7th in the championship after the 7th Round
at Knockhill, fellow Café Racer Paul Young leads.
Glen Richards sits 4th in the British
Superbike series. In the Virgin
Steve Martin reports from Misano
Steve Martin achieved
Foggy PETRONAS Racing's highest finish of the season with eighth place in the
second race at Misano. The Australian followed up an
unfortunate 11th place in the first race of round six of the Superbike World
Championship with a ride described by team owner Carl Fogarty as ‘incredible’.
Foggy said: "I honestly believe there are very few riders in the world who
could have performed as well Steve did today. He was incredible. He got good
starts and that's the key thing for us to be able to achieve decent results on
a bike which is still down on power on the rest of the field. It has been our
best day of the season without doubt, although it has been a disappointing
weekend for Garry." Garry McCoy was forced to retire from the first race
with an engine failure and, in race two, he high-sided while closing in on a
points-scoring finish. Both races were won by Regis Laconi
although Troy Corser's two third places were enough
to maintain a 73-point advantage over Chris Vermeulen
in the championship.
In race one, Steve had gained ground from his grid position of eighth with a
stunning start and looked comfortable in seventh place when the race was red
flagged for oil on the track. Following a chaotic restart, which was aborted on
one occasion due to faulty lights, Steve dropped back down the field to an
initial aggregate position of 10th. In the searing Italian temperatures he was
able to maintain consistent lap times and was gaining ground on Karl Muggeridge before the chequered flag. Another excellent
start in race two found him up with the leading pack and he again had Muggeridge in his sights in the closing stages. Steve said:
"I am really happy to have finished two races and to have got some points
in the bag. The bike felt as good as it has done for me and I have now found a
set-up, through adding more weight to the back, that I
think will work well at every circuit. I had one good start today, and two
brilliant starts. In the first race I could sit in seventh without any problem.
It was a shame about having to restart, but that's racing. My start for that
second heat was also good but I got chewed up on the first lap and it was
difficult to gain places after that. In the second race I stayed with the front
guys for a couple of laps but, as the tyre went off, I started to lose corner
speed. The reliability has been faultless all weekend and the team have worked
really hard for these results."
Garry endured a traumatic end to a traumatic weekend. While lying in 17th, and
stringing together consistent laps that matched some of the top ten finishers,
he missed out on a points-scoring finish when he high-sided going into the
final chicane on lap 19. His luck was no better in the opening race because,
after battling back from a track position of 24th, he was forced to retire with
four laps remaining while in 18th. He said: "I had a problem with the
clutch in the second race that was making it harder to back-shift. I guess I
was pushing too hard and high-sided after backing it in a bit too much into the
last chicane. I landed on my head but feel okay. I had been feeling pretty
comfortable until then. For the first race, my number one bike was just not
running properly and my number two bike seemed okay out of the pits but felt
the same as the other bike off the line. I just got my head down after that,
hoping to get into the points, until the engine failure."
Editorial Footnote
Traditionally we break out the club photo albums at the AGM. They were
put together by then club archivist Mark “Buddha” Allen for our 10th
birthday celebrations. Look close enough you may find a picture of me with
hair. They’re getting a bit old now and worn now, something we have in common.
If we kicked off soon, we might manage to catch them up for the 30th
birthday in 2008. I suspect that like everything else in the intervening
period, we would need a technology update. Undoubtedly any new project would be
worked up electronically.
Is there a volunteer in the audience?
Hattie :o)