Thank you, CB and the racing family from Utah, for the support!
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今回はボンネビルで一緒にレースしているチームメイト達もユタ州から駆けつけてくれた。ありがとう!
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It was a great shakedown pass of 120.3/mph. We were all super excited for the second pass but the race was canceled due to high winds 😭 Oh, well. At least we could know that we were in the right direction so all is good.
Shinya has been absorbed in preparing Sepia the Knucklehead for the upcoming race at El Mirage dry lake. I’m pretty sure he said it was a plan for the next year but somehow Sepia now has a dual carb. 😳😳😳 He also changed/upgraded many other things to make it faster.
The reason why Crystal Trophy is still at our workshop is that when Shinya build this, he was imagining the owner, our friend, riding dashingly an SR through the canyon to Crystal Lake so this project will not be completed until we see the owner rides it up there. We've tried before but there was always something standing in the way, like running out of time, sudden weather changes, minor mechanical problems, etc., and then the pandemic... So we still haven’t achieved it yet.
So, this would be our 4th attempt and today was the day. We passed Crystal Lake and made it to Crystal Lake Cafe on the top! Finally, the project was completed. 👏🏼
TK, the owner of the Shovelhead project is back in America for the upcoming races of ARCA Menards Series West. He’s commuting back and forth from Japan and California and racing year-round through the West Coast.
TK took time out from his busy schedule and stopped by our workshop for the second fitting session. The project is starting to take shape more than the last time he was here. And glad he liked it! That’s the most important thing and it won't happen if they have a one-way relationship.
Not only watching TK racing but also seeing him interacts with fans up to the very last minute before the race starts and right after the race, right after the fierce battle of tension, Shinya said he was very amazed, surprised and moved. Seeing and knowing various aspects of TK, Shinya developed his imagination and seek what style suits TK, and started working on the project. After a while, when the rider sits on it and feels just right, that's another Ah-ha moment for Shinya. Yay
Anyway, the last time TK was at our workshop he took the seat pan that Shinya made back to Japan with him and took it to our mutual friend BACKDROP Leathers in Nagoya himself. This time, he received the freshly made seat from Ace of BACKDROP and brought it back to us. Ace is having hard time getting leathers for motorcycle seats nowadays but he managed to make one with his treasured leather to make it happen. What a teamwork! We love you, Ace!🙏🏼
So this motorbike is the end result of what Shinya saw and felt through the relationship with TK. In another word, this wouldn't be born without TK’s presence. If it's for someone else, it wouldn't be like this, right? To me, it’s very interesting every time.
Okay, race prep. Shinya found a big cam that he wanted to try out on Tommy’s TR6, the land speed racer, and we needed to modify almost everything to make it fit. Big thanks to specialists Dan of Franz and Grubb Engine and Lief of Lief Racing for their wisdom and generous support to make it happen.
Came to Dan’s shop to pick up dynamically balanced flywheels and modified cylinder, cases, etc. Many real tips and advice from the record holders are priceless. Super grateful and lucky to have knowledgeable friends like them.
Back to our workshop and Shinya is pretty enthusiastic to spend some time with the engine, measuring and checking all the way down the line. Blissful time. (At the same time he’s a bit nervous, too).
We are not professional racers. Racing is our hobby. We are doing this for fun. However, as privateers, our time and budget are limited, and I know it’s easy to say but continuing to do is not so easy. These guys, Shinya, Taka, who is prepping Challenger and Datsun 240Z, and Tommy and Dude who are coming from Japan just for this, and The Bradburns who are great supporters and teammates, I just respect their genuine passion and love for speed, motorbikes, and cars, and feel pretty lucky to be part of it as a crew.
Only today of all days 😭 My loquat began to act up and couldn't catch up with the pack and lost sight of everyone 😭 It wasn’t the engine, maybe something was wrong with the clutch or something. My Triumph never had this kind of problem before so I couldn't figure out. Now I'm all by myself...
Shinya noticed that I wasn’t in the pack and came back for me on his 1915 Indian. Now we are both separated from the group and didn’t know the exact route for today💦
We decided to go back to the staging base, fix my motorbike and ride up to the place where everyone will have lunch. It started to look like the Cannonball though Shinya’s Indian was on a roll 🥹 Sorry, Shinya🙏🏼
Found some problems around transmission and primary chain area that require replacing some parts and Shinya wanted to take it back to our workshop to work on them. However, he tried to fix it temporarily so that I could ride a bit more today or at least ride down to the lunch spot. A couple of hours struggling, he decided not to push himself too hard since it wasn’t the Cannonball. So, unfortunately, our central-Cal ride was over.
Shinya just finished the seat pan so it was a good opportunity for a fitting session with the owner to have him sit and see the overall balance, foot placement, etc. And also Shinya can visually confirm if the character of the bike and the owner’s vibe fuse together well.
However, considering the time and distance between the owners’ location and ours, having this kind of fitting session is not always possible, unfortunately...
Anyway, thank you, TK for making time for this! It's very inspiring for Shinya to meet the owner in person and get to know him/her better. Making each owner happy is his motivation to keep going. If it had not been for his clients, he would not have been able to make anything so special, he always says. 🙏🏼🙏🏼🙏🏼
Shinya has decided to take a break from the shovel project for a while to clear his mind. He says when he starts thinking too much, it's time for him to refresh his mind and do something else. As long as to him, thinking too much will not lead in good direction.