Blake’s Podium Finish

Blake arrived at Brands Hatch on Thursday evening, in the late warm sunshine, for the opening round of the Thundersport Championship. This was going to be a very competitive round as it had attracted a sizeable entry from a number of British Superbike racers who would use the event as a warm-up (no pun intended when you read the weather conditions) for their season. Blake has moved on to a 600 within the very competitive Formula 600 class and following on from testing in Almeria, this would be the first opportunity to test both his and bike’s ability in a top British Event.

The test day on the Friday was very cold and in direct contrast to the weather the previous day. The track was too cold to do any meaningful testing other than get the right gearing on the bikes.

Saturday was qualifying and the first race. The morning was very foggy, cold and damp and so Blake chose to go out on the wet bike with his new Michelin wet tyres. There were 45 bikes in the session trying to qualify for 38 places with a mix of BSB and club racers. Qualifying was ruined by the race control who mixed up transponder numbers and no data on the timing screens matched with any rider. Blake pushed as hard as possible in the conditions and he was rewarded with 31st on the grid – this did not match with our own data (18th) but we had to run with that in the first race. The good news was that the lap times in the first race would determine the grid positions for the main days racing on the Sunday.

Blake was determined to prove race control wrong and the race set off in sunshine, but cool, with a damp track – Blake went out on dry tyres. The race was 16 laps long and lap after lap Blake would pick off 2 or 3 riders on the Brands Indy circuit. Bearing in mind the quality of the field this was no mean feat and by the end of the race Blake had made his way up 17th place – 6th in class. His lap times were 10th quickest of the race and so a move up the grid for the following day to a third row start – this was very useful for the chance at a great result on Sunday.

Blake woke on Sunday morning to the noise of rain pattering on the caravan roof – it was also cold again. It was obvious that the 2 races would be wet and so the wet bike was prepared for the first race before lunch. Blake had a great start and by lap 2 had worked his way forward a couple of places. On lap 3, in treacherous conditions, a rider high-sided coming on to the main straight and was thrown into the tyre wall at over a 100mph. He was obviously hurt and the race was red flagged whilst medics ensured he was OK. The delay was 10 minutes and Blake was sat on the track waiting in the cold and rain for the reduced lap re-start – he was very cold and frustrated as he had settled into a good rhythm in the first start. On the re-start he made an equally good start however was unable to maintain as good rhythm due to the lack of feeling in his hands. Over the 16 laps Blake was able to move forward a couple of places whilst many riders were throwing their machinery at the scenery. He was delighted to see the chequered flag and had managed to secure 5th place in the Formula class – excellent result but better was to come.

After lunch the temperature dropped even lower and was hovering around 2 or 3 degrees – the rain was still hammering down. The final race was called at 15:20 and as Blake lined up on the grid for the formation lap it was a mixture of rain and sleet coming down – this was not good viewing for the feint hearted! Blake had a great start and by the first corner had already move up 3 places. He was able to set the same pace as the front runners whilst the rest of the field behind him seemed to either go backwards or again throw their machinery down the track – attrition behind Blake was quite high. The front runners, including Blake, seemed to be riding at a different level in sleeting, freezing conditions. It was almost impossible to imagine how anyone could keep a motorbike upright! Blake closed down on 2 riders in front and was able to make successful passes in successive laps – as they tried to keep up with Blake one of the riders crashed and the other then slowed down. By lap 12 the attrition behind Blake was such that many riders were out although those in front were not so obliging! Blake was now lying 2nd in class with only one BSB rider between him and a win. On lap 13 the red flags came out in the interests of safety and a result was called.

Blake was so cold and disorientated (he couldn’t even feel his fingers) that he wasn’t even aware of where he had finished on the podium! When they called out 3rd place he even thought he had miscalculated and was not on the podium but he had in fact secured 2nd – best result so far and a fantastic achievement in a new class, on new bikes, on new tyres and also surrounded by BSB talent.

Moving on up

Ready for the season....

The Thundersport season gets underway very early this year – 2nd March – and so to ensure that Blake was able to get some meaningful testing on the new R6s, a decision was taken to go to Almeria in Spain in January. Blake is moving up from the Aprilia RRV450 Challenge to the Formula 600 class in 2012.

The new bikes are 2004 Yamaha R6s – a dry and wet bike – with the main machine being Supersport specification and the other a stock machine. Each machine has been stripped to the last nut and bolt and then rebuilt by BTD Racing in order to ensure that every component is as precision assembled as possible for the new challenge this year.

Blake arrived in Spain on the Friday to be welcomed by clear skies and sunshine. The weather forecast for Almeria was ‘scorchio’ for all 3 days and indeed the sun never stopped shining with temperatures just above 20˚ C every day.

First day of testing on the Saturday was used to bed in both bikes and it was soon apparent that the Supersport bike had very usable low power delivery. Blake used the Saturday to learn the track and iron out any minor set-up issues with each machine and it took all day to find the right settings. The times came down in large chunks to start with and then in every session Blake was able to improve bit by bit until he was finally settled on a set up on both bikes. We continued to use the Bridgestone R10s on the 600s during set up as Blake had extension knowledge of their characteristics as these were the control tyre for the RRV450 series

On Sunday Blake worked again on pace and also put together some race distance sessions. The 600 races are longer than the 450 races of last year and Blake wanted to ensure that he was able to run at a fast consistent pace over the full length of a race. Both he, the bike and tyres were up to the job and the times were consistently in the 47s and 48s. Despite running on very worn tyres at the end of the day Blake still managed to maintain virtually the same pace.

The final day was the warmest of the lot – 24 degrees – and Blake was due to test a new Michelin development tyre with a different carcass construction. We were unsure of what to expect as the optimum operating pressures/heat had not been established however the feedback would be valuable to Michelin. Blake went out for his first session on low pressures and within 3 laps had put in his fastest time of the test – into the 46s. The tyre performed very well in the early laps but soon lost their best due to the low pressures. Blake then ran the rest of the day on the ‘worn’ tyres to replicate the conditions at the end of races when tyres are not running with their ultimate grip – this again was very useful practice as Blake was able to establish the characteristics of the new bikes in such conditions. The times were also close to the best on the Bridgestones the previous day.

Overall the test was a success with Blake and the bikes dialled in ready for the season start. If time permits we may get one more test at Mallory to try the Michelins at higher pressures and so watch this space.

Thundersport 2011 Finale – Mallory Park

Welcome to the ZingBikes racing blog.

 So the fourth Season of Thundersport GB has finally come to an end, after a drama filled few months, both on and off the track.

 A hard-fought final race resulted in James Folkard taking the top step on the podium, followed shortly by Connor Tagg, and with Jake Dixon in third place.

 With 4^th or even 3^rd place in the Championship likely, Blake had been taken ill for the last two rounds of the championship, ending the season in a comfortable 7^th place. He is now determined to return with a vengeance next year and improve even further on his position.

 Overall, for Blake, this season has been very successful. It has enabled him to progress to the next level in his riding skill which will enable him to make the step up next year into the 600 class – a great result!

 Click here for Thundersport GB’s own write up from the race:

Drama filled final day at Mallory

 The weekend was, understandably, affected by the very tragic news about Marco Simoncelli, who died after being injured in a crash in Sunday’s Sepang MotoGP race and ZingBikes would like to join the many other fans,  in paying respect to the rider and those close to him.

 Here at ZingBikes, we’re sad the season has come to a close once more – but we’realready getting excited about next year’s racing events.

 We don’t want you to think that’s it for the winter now, though – we’ll be updating the blog all year with news from Blake, ZingBikes and the UK circuits – so we look forward to seeing you back on the site very soon!

Brands Hatch race reports

Following a successful test day in glorious sunshine race day dawned raining again – another wet qualifying. That makes 6 out of 7 qualifying in the wet which Blake hates – on a dry qualifying we expect a front row but wet is never good! This one started no different and Blake sat around 10th for most of the qualifying as he got used to the conditions on a new Brands surface. Blake then got his head down as he refused to be moved back any further than 2nd row this time – moving from 9th then 8th then 7th , managing 6th on the last lap. An acceptable start position and in with a good chance for the races.

The rain stopped after qualifying and the track started to dry out for the race. Blake had a solid start and slotted into 5th behind Phil Canessa. The first lap established 2 front groups of 3 riders and the rest of the field were left behind. Blake was battling for fourth with Phil and Mike Clifford but was unable to get past Phil quickly to latch on to the front 3. After a couple of laps Phil and Blake dropped off Mike and set about closing on the front 3 – then the fun began. The two of them swapped places lap after lap with Blake quicker in the slower technical parts and Phil quicker on the straights due to his size and weight. On the 8th lap Blake overtook Phil into the Paddock bend with a very late braking move, which unsettled Phil, and then cleared off up to Druids with a useful gap. It was then apparent that Phil had a problem (gear linkage had come off after Paddock Hill) and he slowed leaving Blake a clear 4th and not far from the leading pack. With only 6 laps to go Blake worked hard alone and came across the line a closing 4th.

The second race was called and black clouds had descended upon Brands. They set off on a dry track (dry race conditions) and Blake had a great start into 3rd. He was badly cut up on the next corner and pushed back to 4th and Phil took advantage to then take 4th. Blake slotted into 5th behind Phil and settled for a lap whilst they pulled clear of the field. It was then the Blake and Phil Show # 2. They swapped places every lap whilst pulling clear at the same time – no mean feat. After 5 laps they had closed up to the front 3 and on the 6th lap Connor Tagg lost the front going into Surtees. Blake sat in 4th. The front 4 stood position for the next couple of laps and then James Folkard put in a record lap to get a gap to the front and Jake Dixon crashed chasing him – up to 3rd now with 2 laps to go. On the next lap Blake made his move on Phil and he was up to second and managed to create a half second gap going into the last lap. He was flying, putting in his fastest lap of the weekend and then as he approached Surtees before the final corner the sky dumped its contents just on that corner and he went down flat out in top gear followed by Phil – it was a horrible crash to watch as they collected each other across the grass. Another 5 riders went down on that last corner and it can only be described as carnage as half the field were wiped out with the rain just striking that corner within 10 seconds of the end of the race. A cruel end to a great ride.

Sunday dawned sunny but damp and following a warm up in the morning it was apparent that we had a problem with the bike following the crash. Although all the broken parts had been replaced and tested the bike was covered in fluid – the radiator had a small invisible split in one of the veins and so a frantic repair was carried out just before the race. Blake just made the start and lined up for the 3rd race under instruction to keep an eye on the engine temperature! The start was not great although he somehow punted himself into 5th by the second corner. The bad start had let the front 3 get a second gap and he was caught behind Mike Clifford on a rocket of a bike down the straights – every time Blake got past in the corners Mike would blast past down the straight. The front 3 had cleared off and Blake was very frustrated to say the least. After 6 laps of being over taken down the start finish straight Blake managed to pull off a hard move into Paddock Hill and gapped Mike into the next series of corners before the start/finish straight. Although Mike closed down on him he was unable to overtake this time and Blake then set about clearing off for the final laps with no hope of a podium. Another 4th.

The final race was called and again the dark clouds threatened. Blake had a great start and set off with the front 3 and all 4 of them quickly gapped the rest of the field. Although Blake rode exceptionally well the front guys managed to gradually gap him and to be fair there was nothing Blake could do – they were all on lap record pace chasing the championship and Blake was on his limit every corner. He was well clear of the rest of the field and so had a very lonely second half to the race as he collected his third 4th of the weekend to cement his 4th in the championship.

Brands was a great weekend although everyone was very sensitive following Ben Gautrey’s death. The 450 championship lads were all very close this weekend and every one of them wore a sticker with Ben’s race number 25 on it in memory of the current 450 champion.

A tribute to Ben Gautrey following Cadwell Park accident

Following a successful race weekend at Pembrey we were reminded of the extreme contrast between the highs and the lows of the sport. Yesterday at Cadwell Park, Ben Gautrey, the current RRV450 champion and close friend of Blake, lost his life in a freak accident during the Superstock 600 race. Blake and Ben would talk regularly about their racing and Ben spent time in helping Blake with advice on racing his Zing Racing 450 bike. Ben’s advice and friendship will be sorely missed by Blake and he would like to dedicate his blog to the memory of a great champion and friend.

Pembrey started with typical Welsh weather – changeable and wet. Qualifying took place on a half wet, half dry track and the field took to the track on various combinations of tyres. The track next to the paddock where Blake was positioned was soaking wet and so we went with full wets not realising that the other half of the track was dry. The end result was 11th on the grid – an uphill task for the weekend ahead.

Although showers fell regularly over the weekend, all 4 races took place in the dry. The first race was a race-long battle with Liam Shellcock for 5th which Blake eventually won. The second race was again for 5th amongst 5 riders and Blake secured a 6th place due to an error on the penultimate lap – ahead of his championship 4th place rivals.

On the Sunday the weather started showery but cleared to leave a glorious day. The first race was a battle amongst 8 riders for 4th and positions swapped constantly – Blake took a disappointing 8th due to rear tyre issues. The last race was set at lap record pace amongst the front runners and Blake cleared the main pack to chase down the front 4 – again from 11th on the grid – he ran at his fastest pace of the weekend on new rubber and came home home a clear 5th. His results meant that he finished ahead of his championship rivals and so we are hoping that when the points tally is calculated that Blake will be at least back to 5th in the championship standings.

Blake at Pembrey for the Bank Holiday Weekend Racing

Blake will be racing this weekend in Pembray, South Wales. The 1.5 mile circuit is flat and twisty with extraordinary grip levels from the tarmac. Often a wet lap time is only 2/3 seconds off a dry one. Normally you would expect 10 seconds +.  Blake goes into this round with a positive mental approach and confidence is running high after a very successful test day at Snetterton 300 over the weekend. Blake will have a full days practice to get his machine setup to the unique rigors of the far flung track then on Saturday he will go into qualifying to determine his grid starting position for the weekend. This leaves the rest of the weekend to compete in the 4 planned races. Pembray is a place renowned for extreme changes in weather. Look out for some fast tyre changing by pit crews and an exciting ride!

An Ace Race at the Snetterton 300

Welcome to ZingBikes racing blog, the website dedicated to reporting on up-and-coming rider Blake Woulds as he competes in the Thundersport GB championship.

As usual, at the weekend ZingBikes was in attendance to support Blake as he raced, this time at ‘Races for Aces’ at Snetterton; the 6th of 11 Thundersport GB races this year.

With 122 points, Blake started the weekend in 5th place overall, with his eye on higher positions still. After experiencing a variety of highly challenging races already this year, the question on everyone’s mind was, ‘would this weekend present further problems, or would Blake be able to move up the leader board’?

Read on for all the action from Races for Aces, exclusively from ZingBikes Aprilia Racing, proud sponsors of Blake Woulds.

Saturday – Qualifying
As many will know, Snetterton has recently laid a new track, the ‘Snetterton 300’. Completely rebuilt last year, the track now includes “a new twisting infield section, completely transforming what was previously a fast but slightly tedious circuit.”. Having not previously visited the updated track, Blake would have a major challenge on his hands when racing against other riders more familiar with the circuit.

The qualifying session got off to a great start, with Blake setting a quick pace that kept him in an impressive 5th position for the entire first half of the race. However as the track dried, some riders caught Blake up, following closely behind to challenge for the higher position. The session ended with Blake in 8th place, overtaken by the other riders with a result of qualifying in the second row of the grid – but still within his target of a first or second row start, and still in with a great chance of top finish.

First Race
Torrential rain before the start of the first race had resulting in a huge amount of water on the track, creating hazardous conditions for all the Aprilia riders. As the race began, Blake moved straight into sixth position on the first corner, a move which allowed him much-needed flexibility to spend the first lap working to establish grip and braking markers in the rainy conditions.

A group of three riders, including Blake, now battled for 4th and 5th position, each rider constantly overtaking then being overtaken, creating a nail-biting spectacle for the crowd. One rider would have to pull away soon, and on the fifth lap, competitor Liam Shellcock did just this, gapping Blake and Thomas Strettle and leaving them to continue the battle for 5th position, followed closely by championship favourite James Folkard.

Blake finished with a hard-fought for 6th place, behind Shellcock and ahead of Folkard at the finish line. Despite the adverse weather conditions, this had been a difficult and exciting race, setting a great precedent for the remainder of the weekend.

Second Race
If the team had hoped for better weather conditions in the second race, they were to be disappointed. Equally bad, if not worse, conditions had resulted in a large amount of sitting water at the back straight, and a ‘pond’ in the middle of the Bomb Hole.
The sheer amount of water meant that there was a serious risk of aquaplaning, and tipping into a corner on any sitting water would result in losing the front end – Snetterton’s Bomb Hole is notorious for unsettling vehicles on their exit from the corner.

Having gained 4th position by the first corner, Blake soon fell victim to the rainwater lying on the back straight, losing a couple of places to the riders behind him. The biggest problem faced by all the riders was that the sitting water became deeper and deeper throughout the race, resulting in a rapidly-narrowing racing line as the race progressed. As the three leaders began to pull away from the pack to develop a class of their own in the wet, Blake continued to battle for 4th place with a number of other riders. As the fight continued, Strettle gapped the other three riders, leaving the pressure firmly on Blake to ensure he got to the line in front of the rest of his challengers. By making an overtaking move on the outside of the Corams section on the last lap, Blake was able to get to the front of the group on the very last corner, coming in at a final 5th place with less than a second separating him and the two following riders.

Sunday – First Race
As Sunday dawned bright and dry, with fast moving grey clouds, it was apparent that last minute tyre swapping would be on the cards.

As the first race was called, a brief shower fell on the warm up lap. Rules dictated that it was now declared a wet race, which would not be stopped for rain – however ten minutes were given for the riders to change tyres if they wished to. With the rain dying down again, Blake decided to use the dry tyres, and set off into 4th place.

On the first lap Blake was pushed wide into a corner and off onto the grass. Getting back in the race, he came round in 9th place, having lost sight of the front five riders and with a fight on his hands to make up his lead.

As the laps passed, Blake battled with the other riders to regain his position, first racing ahead to 6th place before being pushed back to 7th. But in his eagerness to drive to the line, Blake would make a crucial mistake, losing momentum and allowing competing riders Thomas and Clifford to get past him. Where the team had expected a top 4th or 5th place, instead Blake finished in a disappointing 8th position.

To say he was frustrated by the race was an understatement, and everything now rested on the final race to see if Blake could make up his lead and get the result he was hoping for.

Final Race
The final race of the weekend took place on Sunday afternoon, with a soaking yet fast-drying track leading to much debate over tyre choice. Opting for drys allowed Blake to have his best start of the weekend, riding hard amid tricky track conditions to achieve 3rd place by the first corner!

Snetterton’s back straight is very fast and very long, and as the field arrived at the corner at the end of the straight, they encountered an extremely damp area. Four riders, including Blake, got into difficulties as the front wheels tucked under heavy braking, and in trying to avoid a major crash, they all ended up on the grass.

The field was now mixed up, with Blake in 11th where he had been in the first three! The heat was on as he knew he had to beat the tricky conditions and other riders to get back into a higher position to score much-needed championship points – with only seven laps remaining!

With the front five riders away in the distance, 6th position was a possibility. Lap by lap, Blake improved his position, overtaking riders to achieve 10th place, 9th place, 8th…
With just a couple of laps to go, Blake was now in 7th place. Jordan Hole was several seconds ahead of Blake, but the distance was narrowing by more than two seconds each lap. With time rushing away, would it be possible for Blake to overtake Hole to gain 6th position?

The riders crossed the line for the penultimate lap with only a second between them, creating nail-biting tension for the watching supporters!

With little time to spare, Blake used the slipstream down the back straight to try to draft past Hole – and succeeded! Holding the position right to the finish line, Blake finished in 6th place; a great end to the weekend amid one of the most difficult races of the championship so far.