> T E A M V B R A C I N G N E W Z E A L A N D

NZSBK 2011 round 3 Newsletter: Ruapuna, Christchurch, 12th and 13th February

> C O N T E N T S

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CAPTAIN’S LOG

HOTSHOT

SAM BAKER

MAKING TRACKS

TRACK PREVIEW: RUAPUNA

KEN JONES

JOSH McGRATH

18 HOTSHOT

Team Manager Maaty vanBooma’s update from round 3 at Ruapuna

Josh McGrath, knee down and

“gaahn frit” (as they say in the West Island)

The Team vb Racing calendar has more dates this summer than Paris Hilton!

Which way does the track go, and what’s

the lap record…?

Sage advice helps Ken as he set new personal

bests on the Greg Percival YZF 450

Another round winfor this rising star!

Sam and Josh leave the grid as the New Zealand 125 Grand Prix restarts

under heavy skies

Rubbing’s racing, and Sam wasn’t afraid

to get in amongst it at round 3

> C A P T A I N ’ S L O G

Team Manager Maarty vanBooma’s update from round 3 at Ruapuna.

Motorsport is a sometimes cruel mistress;

preplanning, double checking and re-

checking can all seem to be for nothing

when the best laid plans come unstuck,

but the measure of a good team is how

they collectively deal with the adversities

presented to them. For Team vB Racing,

the Thursday before round three of the

NZSBK series was our nightmare event; if

it could turn to custard it did. For me it

was even worse, I was back in Napier on

business and oblivious to events

unfolding.

Arriving at the track on Friday morning I

convened a team meeting for everyone

and suggested we put the previous day’s

dramas behind us and look forward to the

challenge of the weekend. A good team

will overcome any problems and that is

exactly what the team did!

By Sunday night we had achieved a great

deal. Young Josh had secured his second

round win of the series so far, Sam had

gone faster than he ever had at Ruapuna

and was showing much better consistency,

and Kenneth had both a new personal

best on the 450 and achieved his best

placing so far. Stu and I had the bikes

running fast and strong and the results

reflected that effort. It was a great

weekend for the team, a whole team

effort and a whole team result, it made

me extremely proud of each and every

member there over those 3 days.

While motorsport may burden one with

the lowest of lows, it will also give one the

highest of highs, the highs will outweigh

the lows but it is the test of ones mettle

how we respond to these pressures. My

30 years involvement with motorcycling

has shown me full the kaleidoscope of

emotion, energy, effort and attitude, this

past meeting has shown me that my team

has every tool they need to achieve great

success, and I can happily say that, after

Thursday, we can overcome anything and

It makes me very excited for the rest of

the season to come!

Looking ahead, Hampton Downs is only

six weeks away. We’re hopeful of securing

Josh’s services for the final two rounds, he

was originally slated to only do the first

three rounds due to racing commitments

in Spain, but it is now a possibility that He

may return to finish out the season.

Sam and Ken will definitely be back with

both working hard on their fitness and

conditioning over the break.

We are in negotiation with another

Australian rider should Josh not be

available, and are also looking at the

possibility of running a 3rd GP125

machine at the final two rounds. So while

it may be break time, it is certainly still

very busy and not without its challenges

but I’m comforted with the knowledge

that, as a team, we can overcome any

adversity that may come our way!

Talk to you all soon,

Maarty

> H O T S H O T

Team vB Racing 2011: Maarty vanBooma, Josh McGrath, Stu Holdaway, Sam Baker, Andrew Forward, and Ken Jones

Ten minutes west of Christchurch, Powerbuilt International Raceway at

Ruapuna Park (to use the full name) is one of the more complex tracks the Championship visits, also making it one of the most satisfying to win at.

Ken takes us for a lap on his Greg Percival built YZF 450 R.

“As I go past the start finish line I see the 100m board approaching fast, so I sit to

the outside of the track and straight line the first part of turn one. I brake, and change down three gears while shifting to the outside of the track for turn two.

As I hit the apex of turn two (Flexoplas), I start to gas it up and make my way to the kink, changing back one gear and keeping to the righthand side of the track until I can see the apex of the right hander at

turn three (Pothole). Once I have the bike

turned it’s hard on the gas and down towards the hairpin.

Approaching the hairpin, I’ll sit to the right of the track, watching for the 100m board, brake and change down three gears. Once at the hairpin I follow the inner edge of

the corner around until I can see a straight line out to the ripple strip. I gas it up as I exit and weight the outside peg to improve my drive.

From the hairpin I go through a slight right-left hand kink flat out in third, and then onto the right hander at turn seven.Then it’s a flick left through turn eight, and on through turn nine (Carousel).

At the beginning of the short straight I start to stand the bike up and wind on the gas on hard. At the 100m board I change down two gears, sit to outside of track

and bank it over into turn ten. Just before

the apex, I get hard on the gas and try and move as far back to the right as I can

for the approach to the left hander at turn eleven.

I turn late and wind the gas on hard so I drift wide for the entry to turn 12. This

leads to the right hander known as the Dipper (turn 13), where I hit a late apex and move back to the right hand side of the track for the fast left ahead.

I sit a bit out from the apex so as to miss a nasty seal change that upsets the bike, and then brake while moving to the left and change down two gears.

On the entrance to the final sweeper there is a bump on the outside of the circuit which is my marker to start turning in. I aim to hit the apex slightly late and start to roll on the gas and make my way down

the straight for another lap.”

> T R A C K P R E V I E W : R U A P U N A

Which way does the track go, and what’s the lap record…?

125CC GRAND PRIX LAP RECORD:

1:38.979

600CC SUPERSPORT LAP RECORD:

1:32.136

PROD. SUPERBIKE LAP RECORD:

1:30.007

TURN 15

85 km/h

TURN 3

125 km/h

TURN 4

50 km/h

START/FINISH

190 km/h

TOP SPEED

230 km/h

TURN 13

55 km/h

TURN 9

75 km/h

E N G I N E E R I N G

S o l u t i o n s

> H O T S H O T

Josh McGrath, knee down and “gaahn-frit” (as they say in the West Island)

> K E N N E T H J O N E S

Sage advice helps Ken as he set new personal bests on the Greg Percival YZF 450

We rolled out to the track at a leisurely

10am on a sunny Thursday morning and

were all keen to see what the day had to

offer. Ruapuna is a fairly complex track to

learn so we were all looking forward to

plenty of laps.

With the sun shining and all

the bikes unloaded I

managed to get out for my

first session of the day

around 12.30. I went out

with one intention, that was

to start getting familiar with

taking lines to suit a big

bike rather than the lines of

a 125, and I can definately

say that unlike the previous

two tracks, the lines here

are quite a bit different.

Unfortunately I found that the clutch in

my bike had started to slip so I decided to

call it a day from riding and change the

clutch in the bike as Stu was snowed

under with other work.

Friday was upon us before long, and

unlike Thursday it was to be an early

morning start. Sam, Andrew and I all

arrived at the track around 7am and

started unloading everything so that when

the track opened we were ready to go for

a good sunny days testing.

9 o’clock arrived and it was time for me to

go out and start setting some times. In

the first session I managed

to set a base lap time of

1.48.5. In session two,

again, I was to go out and

do what I know how to do,

and that is to improve.

During this session I

managed to get my times

down to 1.45.5. I noticed

that Terry Fitzgerald (one of

the top riders from the

Superlite class) had been

following me for the whole

session. Back in the pits I

spoke to him about my

riding and see what suggestions he could

make.

Knee slider glued to the inside kerb, Ken expertly pilots the YZF 450 around Ruapuna’s sweeper

With a new list of things to work on, I was

more than happy when the third session

of the day came around and could put few

of Terry’s suggestions into action. Sure

enough, by the end of the session I was

having a ball and I managed to get my lap

times down to mid-1.43’s. I decided to call

it a day so as I wouldn’t wear myself out

for the next two days ahead.

A sunny day greeted us on

Saturday and I was feeling

confident on improving.

Before long it was time for

qualifying. I was determined

to make improvements and

within a few laps I had set a

new personal best of 1.42.3, leaving me in

11th on the grid.

Before I knew it I was lined up on the grid

and ready to go. The lights were on, still

on, still on, still on (12 seconds!) and I

was wondering if they were ever going to

go out. Nevertheless, it was forward

march on the first lap until about half way

around when I had a rather big moment

and realised that I had forgotten to check

the pressures after putting new tyres on

(ooops!) The next lap was a feeler to see

how bad the pressures were, but I pushed

on and equalled my personal best time.

When I came in I thought for a laugh I

would check how bad the pressures were

and I had 40psi rear and 38psi front

(normally 26 psi front and 27 psi rear!).

Sunday arrived and I was as keen as ever.

The first race was up and this time the

lights only took a quarter of the time to go

out. I didn’t manage to set any blistering

laps due to the temperature change, and

wasn’t able to get the suspension quite

right so struggled a little for feel. I

managed to hold on to twelfth overall

(about eighth in the Superlite class).

Race two was up and we had made a

couple of changes to the suspension

which allowed me to

improve on my times from

the morning and managed

to finish in eleventh overall.

Overall the weekend was a

huge success as it is all

experience, and with

experience comes speed. I had huge fun

and managed to beat the gremlins this

year, finally keeping it sunny side up at

the national round at Christchurch.. yay!!

ROLL ON ROUND FOUR!

Ken

“I had huge fun and managed to beat the gremlins this

year, finally keeping it sunny side up at the national

round at Christchurch.. yay!!”

E N G I N E E R I N G

S o l u t i o n s

> S A M B A K E R

Rubbing’s racing, and Sam wasn’t afraid to get in amongst it at round 3

The Ruapuna circuit in Christchurch is one

of the most challenging tracks I have

raced on. There are both the tight and

technical sections testing the rider and

bike in first and second gear, and also

faster sections testing

bravery and who will hold

the throttle on the longest.

With 15 turns, there is alot

to learn.

We turned up at the track

on Thursday to get an extra

day of testing before the

third round of the New

Zealand Nationals.

Things started out with

some easy laps on the

150cc four strokes, with

Josh, Ken and I getting a

feel for the circuit. I had

previously had a race meeting here at the

end of last year and loved the tricky style

of the track and liked the warmer

temperatures than all our previous riding.

After bashing round on the little 150’s, it

was time to take to the track on the 125’s.

Both Josh and I had good early speed in

some sections, but struggling with both

lines and gearing in others. Both being

bigger, heavier riders than the average

125 pilot, what works for others doesn’t

always work for us, but with some good

setup tips from Maarty and Stu, we both

found something that would work for us

come Saturday morning.

Qualifying on Saturday was cooler than

Friday and my bike was running spot on.

After a quick morning warm

up we went into our

qualifying session. I like to

do my qualifying in two

bites where I go out, do a

quick five laps, come in and

talk about the laps then go

again and aim to go faster.

In the short 15 minute

sessions this can be hard

and I didn’t use my time

the best, only managing

seventh fastest. This was

on the second row so

good starts would be

crucial.

My starts were the worst I have ever had.

I was going from seventh place to last

before the first turn in each of my three

Sam left Ruapuna fourth overall in the 125GP class; an excellent effort!

races, and it left me playing catch up in

every race.

Saturday afternoon’s race was a good one

where I got back some positions early and

had a good battle with three other riders.

We were all putting on tough moves and

in the end I had gapped the group and

ended up in fifth position.

After the race we all had a

laugh as some of the passes

were so close, but that is the

style of racing that is the

most fun, and the crowd

loved it.

Sunday morning was looking

like it could rain, but by the first race the

track was dry enough for slicks. This race

was a good result for me as I did my

fastest lap of the weekend and ended up

fourth. This made me super keen to get

out in race three, the 15 lap New Zealand

Grand Prix, and I wanted to go faster

again and try to land one on the podium.

We headed out on slick tyres and those

morning rain clouds opened and the track

was like ice. I saw about four bikes go

down before the red flag came out and we

all pitted for wet tyres. But in the 15

minute gap to fit tyres ,the rain stopped,

and we all restarted on slicks, still on a

damp track.

The race was shortened, and after seeing

other riders go down on the slippery

surface I nursed the bike home to finish

sixth, happy to bring it back in one piece.

Josh went on to get third in that race

which gave him the round win. That is

another awesome result for him and the

team, and I want to see the little fella

back for the North Island rounds after the

break.

Sunday night was a laugh seeing young

Kenneth Jones with a few strong

lemonades in him. He goes all flustered

and red in the face, and dances like a girl

but I said I wouldn’t tell anyone so I

won’t. It was a funny way to

top off a good weekend.

After the Ruapuna round I

now sit fourth in the

Championship and am

keener than ever to get back

on the bike. I will be heading

home to race the first round

of the Australian Superbike Championship

at Symmons Plains in Tasmania, and

probably get out for a spin on the dirt bike

too. Big thanks to Maarty, Stu, and

Andrew for the massive efforts over the

first three rounds.

Sam

“ After the race we all had a laugh as some of the

passes were so close, but that is the style of racing

that is the most fun, and the crowd loved it.”

E N G I N E E R I N G

S o l u t i o n s

> J O S H M c G R A T H

Another round win for this rising star!

On Monday after Teretonga we rushed to

Timaru to get to Ruapuna early on the

Tuesday. When we got there Stu, Sam and

I found out the track had been hired out

so Stu, Sam and I went and

worked on the bikes. On

Thursday we finally got to

ride on the track and I was

out on the 150. I did three

sessions on that and I

thought it was time to get

out on the 125.

Since it was so hot, the bike

was running hot and I

didn’t really get a lap in.

That was it for Thursday,

very frustrating as the

others had had laps here

and I really wanted some

extra track time!

Friday morning I was ready to get out and

get some solid laps in. it was a cooler day

and the temp was running perfect. I got

down to a 1.44.2 which I was happy with

for a first time at Ruapuna which is a fairly

technical track. During Saturday warm-up

I tagged on to a faster rider and dropped

2 seconds straight away. 1.42.1 was my

time for that session and I was over the

moon with it. I had a good hard think

about qualifying and how important it is to

get on the front row. When I went out for

qualifying I pushed and

pushed and I saw the white

flag come out for last lap

and I went for it, I pushed

as hard as I could and I did

a 1.41.3 which put me in

third position for the

weekend’s racing.

I got a good start in race

one and was on the back of

Avalon and got into the 1.

40’s, but didn’t drink any

water and couldn’t

concentrate properly, so I

was lapping 1.5 seconds slower than what

I should have been, and the rider in fourth

Don’t call it a comeback: Josh fends off Dominic Jones, who made a surprise appearance in the 125GP class.

was catching up quite quickly. He passed

me on the last lap and so I had to pass

him back as soon as I could.

Going into the hairpin I knew I had to

outbrake Dominic Jones which was going

to be extremely difficult because he is

probably the latest braker out there.

I didn’t back off until he

backed off and it was late. I

went up the inside and ran

wide which also made him

run wide too but I got the

drive out and took third. I

was happy with the result

but also learnt that I need to keep up my

water intake!

On Sunday morning I drank as much

water as possible before I got out. I used

the three lap scrub-in session to figure out

some faster lines and get the jetting right.

For the race I was completely focused on

the start. The lights went out and I was

into second place through the first corner.

Avalon Biddle was in front and the chase

began. She had a two second gap, and I

would catch her through the corners but

then she would get away down the

straights. On the second lap she crashed

out and I was leading the race with

Dominic Jones hot on my tail. We had an

epic battle the whole race but I put a gap

on him in the last lap and took the win. I

was stoked and the media were coming

from everywhere to talk to me!

As we lined up on the grid for the Grand

Prix, it started to rain. They stopped the

race so we could put wets on but by then

the track dried up enough to stay on

slicks. I got a good start and got into third

but I stayed there because

the bike got hot and when I

went to pull the tape off the

radiator the tag on the tape

snapped. I couldn’t get it off

so we were down on power

but I got third position in the

Grand Prix and a round win

(second in a row) and I’m really happy.

Big thanks to Stu and Maarty for helping

me out and getting me a few wins, and I

hope to be back for the N.I. rounds.

Josh

“We had an epic battle the whole race but I put a

gap on him in the last lap and took the win.

I was stoked and the media were coming

from everywhere to talk to me!”

E N G I N E E R I N G

S o l u t i o n s

> M A K I N G T R A C K S

The Team vB Racing calendar has more dates this summer than Paris Hilton! Catch us in action soon!

Teretonga

5-6 February

ROUND TWO

Levels

29-30 January

ROUND ONE

Ruapuna

12-13 February

ROUND THREE

Manfeild

2-3 April

ROUND FIVE

Hampton Downs

26-27 March

ROUND FOUR

> H O T S H O T

Sam and Josh leave the grid as the New Zealand 125 Grand Prix restarts under heavy skies

T E A M V B R A C I N G N E W Z E A L A N D

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