round six was saturday, august 18th. as i prepared for practice, i noticed that my silencer core was broken and out of alignment. the silencer was still riveted together and i didn't have a drill so i didn't risk taking it apart. i just decided to ride with it and see what happened. i ran ten laps of practice and it didn't present any problems so i went ahead and raced with it like that.
the turnout for my class was the smallest of the series so far, only seven riders. there was a threat of rain all day and i think that kept some of them away. in the first moto, i got a second place start. i was behind a buddy of mine who was riding a yzf450. we immediately started doing battle. i would get up beside him in some sections, then he would pull away on the straights. i had his number in the whoops. i would pull two-three bike lengths on him there. we passed back and forth four or five times. on the fourth lap, i got him in the whoops and made it stick. he seemed to tire a little and i finished about five bike lengths ahead of him for the win. it was a blast, probably the most fun moto of the series so far. the silencer problem didn't seem to affect the performance of the bike (although it messed with my head a little).
in the second moto, i bogged out of the gate, got cut off, and ended up with a fourth place start. i passed one guy quickly but the guy in third put up a fight. i managed to pass him in a sweeper on the second lap. my buddy was out in front again. i set after him. there was one section on the track with a wide sweeping berm on the outside of the turn. my buddy used that line, i always took the inside, tight line. i caught up to him on the third lap. i saw him go to the berm, so i stuck the inside and block passed him. he dogged me the rest of the moto but i wouldn't let him get beside me. i crossed the finish line about two bike lengths ahead. it was another fun race and we were both exhausted but happy.
the guy that was second behind me in points finished fourth so i put a few more points between us. my buddy is third in points but i should be safely ahead of him.
i ordered a new silencer today--three rounds to go.