Superdrome class report by Andy Wilks

I drove up to Frisco this past weekend for the Superdrome development course
which they require before you can race there. I had previously raced
only at Alkek in Houston.

It was a really cold 40F, but the weather looked like it would stay dry
and 13 people showed up. I think about 5 or 6 of us had our own bikes,
the rest grabbed some rental bikes from the bunker and then got them set
up with pedals and seat height adjustments.

Barry put on a great 4 hour class which allowed those new and with
previous experience to maintain interest. We worked our way slowly onto
the track and then higher and higher over a couple of group runs. After
that we did some free riding and then a few simulated pack races.

Only one tense moment during the start of the miss and out where one of
the newbies hit a pedal and fell down in turn 1. He took down 2 others
so there was pretty big pile starting to form. I ended up riding in the
grass after riding over somebody's back wheel! Nobody hurt though since
we were all bundled in winter clothes. I went off the front in lap 5 and
another rider got on my wheel. We traded pulls on every lap and I
survived to the end to get 2nd place! If I had thought to stand up to
sprint, I probably would have taken first...

This track is a blast compared to Alkek. It just feels faster since it's
the walls are higher and it's 83m shorter. Superdrome is 250m and 44
degrees in the turns compared to 333m and 33 degrees in Houston. I felt
the steeper bank made it easier to ride tight on the pole line through
the turns.

The facilities are really nice and well maintained and the track surface
is great. It's 1 1/2" marine plywood with a textured paint surface.
decent grip in the turns but not too slow.

I'm sure I'll never become a super track racer since I'll probably only
make it up for a few training sessions and a few races, but it's a lot
of fun!

Andy Wilkes
1/28/08