Winter Test – Cartagena Spain 2017 video now live
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Monthly Archives: January 2017
Winter Test – Cartagena Spain 2017
Written by WO2 (QMSI) Carl Goodchild
So…..as one of the rookies this year, on my first team winter test, as well as first trip abroad with my bike, there was much anticipation and nerves as to how I would perform. I was also apprehensive as to what would be expected of me from the team. A total of 13 riders from across both the Endurance and Sprint teams attended the winter test, some with additional family and friends to support and assist them.
The chosen location for the test was the Circuito de Cartagena in southern Spain. Why you might ask, well, it is commonly known for having a desert like climate which provides good “dry” and “sunny” riding conditions most the year round, which is what we all thought would be the case this year. However a small Siberian weather system decided to make a stop over the country as we touched down and instead of an awesome sun filled action packed start to the week, we were we faced with freezing cold conditions and almost an inch of snow fall! This then turned into about 30 hours of heavy relentless rain and high winds, which meant that the first scheduled day on track had to be cancelled.
Due to a lot of suspension servicing and upgrades over the winter months, a target had been set initially to get some good base settings sorted for both wet and dry conditions with approximate lap time targets. As day 2 progressed we saw dryer conditions come through finally and lap times start to drop, knocking 6-8 secs off every session we did.
As the rookie I looked to my more experienced team mates for guidance during this time, this also enabled the team to bond further and everyone offering their support to those out on track.
As the day progressed things took a turn for the worse with Sgt Craig ‘Soph’ Ellis, another rookie and my team mate for the year, taking the first visit of all of us to the gravel trap after running a “little” hot in to turn 1. He dusted himself off well and once he got the bike back to the pits, the team came together once more to help rebuild it and get him ready to go back out on track. Cpl ‘Jas’ Cooper had also decided to take a small detour through the gravel trap and did very well to keep the bike upright until….he hit the boggy mud patch at the edge of the gravel which had different ideas about him staying upright. Again he escaped injury and any real damage to the bike and after a quick wash and scrub down of his leathers and bike, he was ready to get back to the action. The final incident and surprise of the day was when WO2 ‘Andy’ Day was seen at a crawling pace heading back into the pits with what was later discovered as a very poorly clutch basket,springs, casing and other internal components. This would see him have to sit out the rest of the test however, he had some ideas about how to change that which we’ll cover later….
Day 3 brought yet again a sketchy start, however, the track dried out so we could get some quality time on track. Come lunchtime though we had a small shower, not enough to go back to wet settings. So knowing we had until 1800hrs on track the team chose to wait it out until the track dried. It finally did and with many others choosing to go back to their hotel early it left us with an open pit lane and a free track. This allowed some of us, me included to do a 45 min race distance stint on track and again see lap times plummet and exceed initial goals.
During this time both Captain ‘Pep’ Brown and Sgt ‘Spence’ Spencer-Fleet had decided they were going to have some fun and start pushing their limits. For Spence, this didn’t go as planned, after what was a small movement in the front heading into the chicane, lead to lighting up the rear and heading off track through the gravel pit towards the tyre wall. His experience in this part of a race track showed as he kept it upright until he came in contact with the notorious Spanish wet mud and like Coops, struggled to keep the bike standing. the bike was undamaged and he was able to get back to the pits unaided (the marshal that ran 200 meters to help wasn’t happy!!!) We were now starting to see a cue at the wash down point, as the team were not the only ones to run on and splash in the mud.
Finally, on Day 4, the Spanish sun we all expected to see came out to play and although still a little fresh, track conditions were great. More progress was made by everyone in the team and after some line practice and feedback from the teams most experienced rider veteran ‘Loz’ Williams earlier in the week saw me exceed my new lap time targets. The whole team showed great improvement simply just by being on the bike. After crashing earlier in the week, Soph had managed to get a good base setting with his bike (thanks to some help from Andy who had made it his mission to ride as many other people’s bikes as he could) and his confidence grew steadily until the crash (less the visible signs) had all but been forgotten.
Although later that afternoon I decided to join the exclusive club within the team and pay a small visit to the gravel trap (which were truly horrendously deep). I escaped without major issues and overall had a very successful time during the test. I have come away with some valuable data and knowledge from the more experienced members of the team, which I can take forward before the season starts. I feel that we have bonded well as a team and have a positive outlook for the season ahead. The only let down of the test was the weather at the start of the week but that’s how nature works, you just adapt and work with it which as soldiers is what we do best.
The winter test was an excellent way of getting the riders, their brains and bikes up to speed, but also to test the bikes for reliability after a winter of fettling.
The team couldn’t have gone without the support of team and personal sponsors. We thank you all, and to No limits Trackdays for organising a excellent event.
Roll on the first round at Silverstone in March for the Endurance team and Brands hatch for the sprint team…. bring on the competition, Both teams are out to win some trophies.
Keep an eye out for our winter test video to be released soon.
Race season is coming….
With 2017 well and truly here, the team now look forward to a busy year of racing.
This year we have 5 teams in the No Limits ACU Endurance Championship. With 1 National 1000 team, 1 Clubman 1000 team, 2 Clubman 600 teams and our new Rookie 1000 team. Over the coming weeks we will introduce the teams.
But for now countdown begins….
14 days until bikes leave for Spain.
18 days until team fly to Spain.
19 days until pre season testing starts. 4 days on Circuito de Cartagena.
81 days until the opening round at Silverstone.
We would like to thank current sponsors for their continued support and new sponsors welcome to the team. Borrowing ‘every little helps’ from a shopping brand… it really does, as we continue to search for sponsor support, if you, or you know someone who would like to get on board and support the team then get in contact. Not only is it a great opportunity to further publicise your company and raise its profile, as a bonus you get to enjoy watching some highly adrenaline filled motorcycle racing and get our hospitality treatment. If interested please message us using button above.
Now who was any good at countdown? What words can you find?
Army Endurance Motorcycle Race Team 