I haven't contributed to the forum much lately so I thought I would write an update of how the 2013 racing year went. I had a different plan for the year and, yet again, not everything went to plan. The plan was that a mate was to race my Yamaha in the local Southern Downs Series and the Masters of Morgan Park event and I would race my Ducati 955 at the same meetings and in some British, European and American Racing (BEARs) races as well. I bought and re built the Ducati because I could and rather than leave the Yamaha sit at home all year I looked around for someone who could be competitive and also could help develop and fine tune the bike. That part went to plan
The Yamaha
My Yamaha is what I call version 3 of a my YZF750. Versions 1 and 2 were fairly standard affairs but version 3 had some bits I had collected over a few years. It falls slightly short of what I wanted to get to but I am not sure now whether there will ever be a version 4. So version 3 includes the following components -
Braced frame and swingarm (sort of copied from pics of factory stuff)
Marvic wheels (ex Ducati 888)
Brembo Front Calipers and rotors (Ducati 916)
Radial Front Brake master cylinder (Nissin)
Brembo rear brake caliper (Ducati 916)
Custom made rear brake rotor
WP forks
WP Rear Shock
Franks Triple Clamps (Australian manufacturer)
Dead loss electrical system (no generator)
Lithium Battery (600 grams)
Akropovic titanium headers (modified collets ex 750)
Termigoni silencer
520 chain and sprockets (alloy rear)
Attack rear sets
YEC Fairing stay
Sharkz WSB spec body kit
Vortex handle bars
JE 1040 pistons/rings
39mm Keihin flat side carburetors
YEC Air box
Weight app 185 kg
Power 150 RWHP
The Yamaha Rider
My mate, let's call him George, has been racing successfully at club level for a number of years and normally races his 944 Ducati. The 944 is high maintenance so the plan was that he would only race his bike in the national BEARs series and race my Yamaha in our club series. George, amongst other things, is also a motorcycle mechanic and does all of his own suspension work. His pace and his mechanical and bike setup skills made him an ideal choice.
After getting familiar with the bike at a pre season meeting, George ran the Yamaha in all four rounds of our club championship in the 'Pre Modern' class and had round results of 2nd, 1st, 2nd and 1st to end the year in 1st place. Along the way he lowered his personal best time on our local track (previously done on his Ducati) by over one second. He also raced it at the Masters of Morgan Park where he picked up third place. He fiddled a lot throughout the year with both gearing and spring weights and then late in the year we fitted a set of flat slides which dramatically improved the performance.
I didn't ride the Yamaha at all though the year as I had my Ducati to ride and I didn't want to risk spoiling George's year.
The Ducati
The Ducati was a basket case that had sat submerged in the Brisbane flood water in 2011 and was then completely disassembled. It was put back together over a period of time and has the following bits and pieces -
Superbike spec rear subframe
Superbike spec carbon fibre crankcase breather
Marchesini 5 spoke wheels
MOTEC ECU
955 big bore kit
Carillo Conrods
SPS cams
Porckchop (lightened crank)
Dual Injectors
Arrow exhaust
Power 130RWHP (good for one of these engines)
The Ducati Rider
That would be me. Mixed year for me. Smashed my PB at our local track by 4 seconds whilst leading a race. Overall took 2 to 3 seconds off my average lap times so happy with that. Went to Sydney in November to race in BEARs at Eastern Creek. First race, first lap, big incident involving four riders including me. Lots of ambulances, police cars and a helicopter. All four riders transported to various hospitals. Another head injury for me and another 3 days and nights in hospital with people asking me what my name is.
I am fully recovered (again), repaired the Ducati and took it and the Yamaha out for a track day last week. I enjoyed the Ducati last year but I have to say that after riding the Yamaha, for the first time with the 1040 kit and the flat slides, oh my, it is the most fun I have had for a while. It doesn't handle the bumps as well as the Ducati but it is not bad and the power delivery is very linear and there is a lot of it...wheelie fun
As much fun as it is, I really can't risk another head knock so I am trying to find another suitable rider for the Yamaha for selected race meetings. I will provide updates if this pans out.
MM