2025 WMRRA Round 1
Track:
The Ridge Motorsports Park, Shelton, WA
Date:
April 19-20, 2025
Results:
| Class | Result | Video |
|---|---|---|
| MW SBK (Saturday) | 11th | Video |
| MW GP (Saturday) | 4th | Video |
| MW SBK (Sunday) | 4th | Video |
| 450 SBK (Saturday) | 2nd | Video |
Summary
This weekend was a close call to whether I could make it at all. Between my own fitness and bike parts, it was cutting it close. But I got to the track at 1AM Friday morning just in time to set up in the paddock and get ready for racing. WMRRA made this a double points round which really encouraged me to get it in gear and try to pull this off.
For those that haven’t been following along, I had an incident with another rider at Chuckwalla a month ago. I got off surprisingly well for the severity of the crash thanks to excellent gear and some solid luck, but I am still nursing an injury in my left abdomen. I’d managed to knock out a 5K run the week prior gritting my teeth, so I figured “I can go racing, but it might be harder than usual”. That turned out to be spot on. The bike also had some work done. The latest breaking element was a right fork leg. The original one got stone chipped in such a way it couldn’t seal. Luckily I found one via a fellow racer Brandon Scott. The unfortunate part was he is located in Spokane. I had another friend, Salman Khan, chase it to me Thursday afternoon when he headed over for the race round. Paul McComsey (WMRRA Chief Tech and my often mechanic) helped me get the KTech DDS internals in the fork leg so I could have the bike fully together at 6:30PM. This was a remarkable turnaround.
I elected not to ride the Friday track day and focus on having energy for the races. I did get a chance to do a test lap Friday though thanks to 2-Fast track days and Mark DeGross. It gave me peace of mind to know the bike was at least put together correctly. I teched the motorcycles and gear of the paddock Friday night and steeled myself for Saturday.
The weather forecast for the weekend was mostly dry with some flareups scheduled of some sprinkles. This is pretty normal for April in the PNW. I along with the other competitors hoped for decisive weather. Dry or Wet are both pretty workable. The in between can be trying. We lucked out. While we’d have spits here and there, the amount was never enough to truly contemplate rain tires.
My first race of the weekend, MW SBK, went alright, though I finished under my target in 11th. With the injury I was definitely being cautious and wasn’t too willing to engage in battles for position. This meant that most anyone who went for a pass on me was able to complete it. The pain level was reasonable and in the next race, MW GP, I figured I could up my intensity a bit. This worked out allowing me to finish in 4th. I made a late pass on Drat after stalking him for most of the race.
I woke up Sunday not too much more sore than an average race weekend. This left me hopeful for what I could do on the track. I still took it easy, only turning a lap in morning practice, focusing on putting in the laptimes when it mattered. MW SBK came up first in the day. I got a great start, slotting into third place and staying on 2nd place. Unfortunately Oliver Jervis lost it heading out of T7 towards T8. As I headed down the hill, I saw a bike to my left flipping rather high into the air. When I got to turn 9, we saw an incident from the wave in front, Formula 40, as someone lost the rear and their bike had made it all the way to the hard barrier on the outside of the track. This event was red flagged. We’d restart the race later in the day. I didn’t get as good as a start as the first event, but it was still solid. I’d take 4th the second time around.
450 SBK was the final event of the weekend. I got a decent start in this event and would spend the majority of the race in 3rd. A bit after halfway, the leader went off track promoting me to 2nd. I kept a gap to the rider now in 3rd to get on the box once for the weekend.
I have to shoutout a few people for making this happen. Colin Carrihill, my pitmate at Chuck and this weekend; you had my back. You drove the van home alone when I injured myself so I could book a flight and get back home ASAP. You also carpooled to this round, and organized us an RV rental so we could have a bit more comfort. I also need to think Paul McComsey, Brandon Scott, and Salman Khan. Y’all helped me get a fork last minute so I could get out there this weekend. I also have to thank my wife for tolerating the many evenings spent in the garage getting my motorcycle, and piecing my bodywork back together with a rather large amount of fiberglass resin, to a shape that I could race it. She picked up slack around the house while I had other focus as well.
I also have to thank the usual sponsors. KYT continues to put me in quality helmets. Sage at CT Racing Services for KTech and Pirelli support. Track Time track days for giving me a place to hone my own craft and instruct others. StevensonFoto makes me and my bike, even when rashed, look sharp. And Short Circuit Racing for the support trackside.
