2004 Feb 12 | Infineon Raceway

The weather was pleasant for a winter day, and I was feeling fairly comfortable for the first half of the day. However, in the afternoon session, one of the B-group riders took a spill and had to be transported via ambulance to a hospital an hour away. That alone isn't so remarkable (and the rider turned out to be fine), other than the fact that THERE WAS ONLY ONE AMBULANCE THAT DAY. So the track had to be shut down while the one ambulance returned. This resulted in a nearly 3-hour hiatus. Once the sessions resumed again shortly before 4pm, the sun was already getting low and playing weird tricks on the lighting. I went out for 2 sessions and came back in, not feeling quite 100%.

These photos were taken in my last morning session before lunch. They are all at Turn 10. This is a sweeping right-hander that can be taken much faster than one would initially think. The turn itself is not so much the challenge -- but immediately after the exit, you're on the brakes hard because the Turn 11 hairpin comes up real quick.