Cold and wet

Hello Tightwad fans,

Over the winter it is a time of frustration for us racers as there is nothing else to do than polish your bike and tinker for the hell of it. To stop yourself suffering too much with withdrawal symptoms, Mallory park put on an open race on boxing day called the "plum pudding race". This year it is the 35th anniversary meeting so i thought i would enter it. But before i do this event i thought it would be a good idea to do a practice day as i have reworked the engine and need to check it is running ok.

Friday 19th of December saw me and my little scooter head off to do an afternoon of testing on a track that did not get above 5 degrees. I was there a bit early so i could watch the cars do a few laps as they practice in the mornings and bikes in the afternoons. As the weather was so cold the track was really struggling to dry out but a dry line was starting to emerge. Then disaster, a ford escort driven by a complete wanker blew its gearbox and instead of pulling off and waiting for recovery, this rocket scientist thought he would do nearly a full lap spewing out oil and drive back. I hope you read this blog you piece of shit as you spoil it for other track users.

Anyway the track marshalls did a quick and successful job of clearing it up for a change and before long i was out on track and testing the bike.

Now, as the track was soaking wet from the clean up operation i was not going to get any lap records but i could at least let the engine scream a bit in top and hold onto the clutch in case it seized. The bike seemed slow and lumpy and had an intermittant misfire but i stayed out for ten laps to see if i could get a better idea of what the fault was. I was having fun but the bike seemed slower than the last time i took it out and i was wondering if i had made a mistake with this last session of tuning. I pulled into the paddock and set about checking the engine. Firstly i found that my plug cap has worn out and was floating on the top of the plug so that would explain the misfire but everything else seemed ok. I refuelled the bike set out for the next session.

My local Tesco's is now selling 99 octane super unleaded so i thought i would try it and see if is any good. The verdict is that i have not noticed any difference between v-power and Tesco's other than Tesco's is cheaper. I think i will run it for 2009.

The second session was much better with the misfire repaired and all the old fuel from the summer used and replaced with fresh stuff, i found the grin factor growing and i got totally carried away with riding around a cold wet circuit and started to push for a better lap time. This was not the day to do that sort of thing but i did not crash so i got away with it really. The end of the second session came round all too quickly and it was into the paddock to check the plug colour. On inspection i was hoping that it was running rich and i could down jet and get more power out of it but no such luck, it was on the money. That is all the engine has in it, it is running a bit better than it was and is pulling a few more revs but i was hoping for a greater power increase. I reckon i have only given it another 1-2hp extra so i will have to go with that for boxing day and have another look at it after christmas. ( i have a plan)

A mention should be made about this chap who was parked next to me in the paddock and pestered me all afternoon to let him have a go on it in return for a blast on his Ducati. I turned the offer down as it's a motorbicycle and thus any fool could ride one and where is the challenge in that. (actually i was too scared to get on it)

So there you are, maybe as many as 40 laps of Mallory for only 49 quid. Not bad value and the bike is still in one piece. I have sprung a small oil leak but nothing to worry about and it will all be ready for boxing day. I will update you afterwards.

So don't forget to ask for a Lambretta for christmas and join the BSSO.

I do not have a picture of the practice session so i have put on a pic of a zebra showing you its arse.

Merry christmas and remember to try and find some sponsership for the Tightwad racer.

E-mail siredward@btinternet.com or call 07751267711 with any help you can give.