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Goodbye Norton | Cam Donald Column
Date 04.3.2016
Cam Donald Shares Why He Parted Ways With Norton
Nothing lasts forever, and this is usually the case when it comes to partnerships in motorsport. Just as MT went to press, I parted ways with Norton and will not be racing for the team at this year’s Isle of Man TT.
I joined Norton at the beginning of 2014 and signed a three-year contract, with an assessment clause at the end of each year. In this day and age there are few racing contracts that last a single season, so a three-year deal is far from normal. Norton’s plan to build a competitive 1000cc Superbike to take on the might of the Japanese factories was something that excited me. It was an ambitious project, but I was ready for the challenge!
If I’m honest, a lot of my motivation was being involved with Norton. It is, after all, one of the oldest names in motorcycling, with a rich history of success at the Isle of Man. When Norton claimed its last TT victory in 1992, with Steve Hislop aboard, it was a huge moment in motorcycling. Not only was it the first British win at the TT for 30 years, it was also a small, underfunded team, that had developed its own rotary engine.
I had no illusions about how monumental the task ahead would be, but relished the thought of helping Norton once again be a TT frontrunner as an underdog.
At that stage I was yet to ride the SG3 Superbike, but received regular reports on development via former-TT winner Steve Plater as test pilot. In 2012, I was teammates at Honda with Steve in World Endurance, so I knew him well.
Arriving in the UK for my first test on the bike, I climbed aboard the SG3 at a cold and cloudy Cadwell Park. With an open mind and no expectations, I took to the track to see what I had to work with. Straight away I was shocked at how bad the bike was – surely this wasn’t the bike I’d been reading so many positive testing reports about.
Thinking back to that day, I remember a television crew on hand to record the event. As I removed my helmet I hadn’t a moment to think before a camera was in my face for comment.
At the time I used words such as ‘raw’ and ‘unrefined’ and that was the truth but, also just a more diplomatic way of saying bad.
What made the bike so hard to ride was the lack of throttle connection. Simply put, the reaction of the engine was not in sync with the rotation of the twist grip. No matter how good your chassis or tyres are, poor electronics will make everything feel out of kilter.
The mountain we had to climb immediately felt steeper, but the team’s enthusiasm was brilliant. Unfortunately, however, no matter how much you want something you still need to know how to get it.
I soon realised the very young team was struggling to deal with the complex issues in need of attention.
Although the team worked day and night, we arrived at the 2014 TT underprepared and paid for it in our results, finishing neither races we started.
I was encouraged by our post-TT team meeting where everybody was brutally honest about what needed to be done. Plans were made and work would start immediately to get things back on track for year two.
Norton purchased three CRT-spec Aprilia MotoGP engines to close the performance gap on the competition. There was some criticism of using another brand’s engine, but I didn’t have an issue with this.
Rem Fowler won the twin-cylinder class of the first TT in 1907 aboard a Norton powered by a Peugeot engine. Nobody would ever dispute that his bike was not a real Norton. Norton is in the development stages of building its own V4 production engine so it made sense. Use a race-proven engine of a similar configuration to allow the engineers to learn about the electronics to suit, etc.
Travelling to the UK much earlier last year involved going straight to work track testing the new SG4. Each time out the bike was improving but the increments were small and, again, we ran out of time. For my second year, the boat crossed the Irish Sea with a bike I knew was going to struggle to be competitive.
In the first Superbike TT race we had a race finish. Eighteenth wasn’t where we wanted to be, but it was a finish. In the Senior TT, another mechanical issue forced me to stop. Another year done.
Returning to Norton HQ in England for another post-TT meeting and no punches were pulled. I left believing that all involved understood the urgency in how soon the new bike needed to be built for testing. A target was set for the new bike to begin track testing before year’s end.
As I write this, the new bike has yet to turn a wheel at a racetrack and I can see history repeating itself. Sure, the bike will most likely be better this year but so will everybody else’s. If the same approach is taken then how can we expect a different result?
I wish Norton well for the future and I’ve learnt a lot from my time racing there, but it’s time to take a different path.
What’s next?
I’ve had surgery to sort my arm and I’m back on the bike and feeling good so racing the TT this year is still my plan.
Catch up on the latest news as Cam rejoins with Wilson Craig Racing for 2016.
Date 04.3.2016
Cam Donald Shares Why He Parted Ways With Norton
Nothing lasts forever, and this is usually the case when it comes to partnerships in motorsport. Just as MT went to press, I parted ways with Norton and will not be racing for the team at this year’s Isle of Man TT.
I joined Norton at the beginning of 2014 and signed a three-year contract, with an assessment clause at the end of each year. In this day and age there are few racing contracts that last a single season, so a three-year deal is far from normal. Norton’s plan to build a competitive 1000cc Superbike to take on the might of the Japanese factories was something that excited me. It was an ambitious project, but I was ready for the challenge!
If I’m honest, a lot of my motivation was being involved with Norton. It is, after all, one of the oldest names in motorcycling, with a rich history of success at the Isle of Man. When Norton claimed its last TT victory in 1992, with Steve Hislop aboard, it was a huge moment in motorcycling. Not only was it the first British win at the TT for 30 years, it was also a small, underfunded team, that had developed its own rotary engine.
I had no illusions about how monumental the task ahead would be, but relished the thought of helping Norton once again be a TT frontrunner as an underdog.
At that stage I was yet to ride the SG3 Superbike, but received regular reports on development via former-TT winner Steve Plater as test pilot. In 2012, I was teammates at Honda with Steve in World Endurance, so I knew him well.
Arriving in the UK for my first test on the bike, I climbed aboard the SG3 at a cold and cloudy Cadwell Park. With an open mind and no expectations, I took to the track to see what I had to work with. Straight away I was shocked at how bad the bike was – surely this wasn’t the bike I’d been reading so many positive testing reports about.
Thinking back to that day, I remember a television crew on hand to record the event. As I removed my helmet I hadn’t a moment to think before a camera was in my face for comment.
At the time I used words such as ‘raw’ and ‘unrefined’ and that was the truth but, also just a more diplomatic way of saying bad.
What made the bike so hard to ride was the lack of throttle connection. Simply put, the reaction of the engine was not in sync with the rotation of the twist grip. No matter how good your chassis or tyres are, poor electronics will make everything feel out of kilter.
The mountain we had to climb immediately felt steeper, but the team’s enthusiasm was brilliant. Unfortunately, however, no matter how much you want something you still need to know how to get it.
I soon realised the very young team was struggling to deal with the complex issues in need of attention.
Although the team worked day and night, we arrived at the 2014 TT underprepared and paid for it in our results, finishing neither races we started.
I was encouraged by our post-TT team meeting where everybody was brutally honest about what needed to be done. Plans were made and work would start immediately to get things back on track for year two.
Norton purchased three CRT-spec Aprilia MotoGP engines to close the performance gap on the competition. There was some criticism of using another brand’s engine, but I didn’t have an issue with this.
Rem Fowler won the twin-cylinder class of the first TT in 1907 aboard a Norton powered by a Peugeot engine. Nobody would ever dispute that his bike was not a real Norton. Norton is in the development stages of building its own V4 production engine so it made sense. Use a race-proven engine of a similar configuration to allow the engineers to learn about the electronics to suit, etc.
Travelling to the UK much earlier last year involved going straight to work track testing the new SG4. Each time out the bike was improving but the increments were small and, again, we ran out of time. For my second year, the boat crossed the Irish Sea with a bike I knew was going to struggle to be competitive.
In the first Superbike TT race we had a race finish. Eighteenth wasn’t where we wanted to be, but it was a finish. In the Senior TT, another mechanical issue forced me to stop. Another year done.
Returning to Norton HQ in England for another post-TT meeting and no punches were pulled. I left believing that all involved understood the urgency in how soon the new bike needed to be built for testing. A target was set for the new bike to begin track testing before year’s end.
As I write this, the new bike has yet to turn a wheel at a racetrack and I can see history repeating itself. Sure, the bike will most likely be better this year but so will everybody else’s. If the same approach is taken then how can we expect a different result?
I wish Norton well for the future and I’ve learnt a lot from my time racing there, but it’s time to take a different path.
What’s next?
I’ve had surgery to sort my arm and I’m back on the bike and feeling good so racing the TT this year is still my plan.
Catch up on the latest news as Cam rejoins with Wilson Craig Racing for 2016.
ha ! I shouldn't have but I LOL'd
Redding brands Jack Miller an ‘out-of-control lunatic’
06.04.2016| Author: MotoGP desk| MotoGP
Redding was unhappy with the young Australian
Britain’s Scott Redding has blasted MotoGP youngster Jack Miller after the Argentine MotoGP round, saying the MarcVDS man should have spent more time trying to catch the group ahead in Sunday’s race instead of passing and re-passing Redding’s Octo Ducati.
The Gloucestershire rider got caught up with Miller as he tried to make progress but feels that the Australian held them both up until he crashed out after handful of laps. After the mandatory stops Redding was lying in a solid sixth until an apparent disconnect with the throttle forced him out of proceedings on lap 16. “It didn’t cut out,” he said on Sunday evening. “When I opened the throttle it was like it was disconnected.
“I tried to rev but it wouldn’t go. It was just strange, like gas trying to come. I put the bike in neutral and it revved. I put it back in gear and cut out again. I don’t really know what the problem was.”
A day on from an incident with his rear Michelin tyre, that ultimately altered the course of the MotoGP weekend, Redding found himself stranded in 14th at the close of lap three as a feisty exchange with a typically exuberant Jack Miller and a mistake at turn one left him struggling for position.
Redding on it, while he still had power
Yet he quickly gathered his composure to make short work of the upper reaches of the top ten. A speedy bike change gained him two places at mid-race and from there he gained and passed Dani Pedrosa with the minimum of fuss.
“I’m disappointed because we made a good race considering the problem we had,” said Redding. “We made good of a bad weekend but it just wasn’t enough. Something had to come and get us again which was quite annoying. The start was OK. Fucking Jack (Miller) fighting with you for no reason. That’s why we lost the first guys originally. Then I went into turn one deep and got caught up with that crash with (Cal) Crutchlow and (Aleix) Espargaro and I was 17th or 18th.
“I managed to catch the group again. I made a great change. I think it was the second or third fastest in the pits. I was fast right out of the box. Pedrosa passed me but I think he only pulled three tenths on me on my out lap so it was really good in that area. I knew I was going to be faster, passed him and tried to make a gap. I was riding about 80 percent because there was too much of a gap in front to really do anything.
“I went into turn one and there was nada. I tried to reboot the engine three times; off, on, off, on. I had to come to an end. There was an opportunity to take some good points. We were sixth at the time. It was just one of those weekends.
The Englishman saved a few choice words for Miller, who was enjoying an inspired ride toward the leading group before a fall at turn three. Looking ahead, Redding acknowledged that qualifying further up the field is a priority, to ensure he doesn’t find himself in those situations again.
“He can put the bike where he wants but we’re going to lose time on other guys. You go into T1, there’s no line there and he’s just driving into the side of you. I’m like, ‘Dude, come on!’ Then you brake into turn two and he’s trying to go round the outside. Into three and he’s there and he goes on the inside and you pass him back on the straight. Then he tries to come back up the inside of you at seven and by that point the leading guys have put eight tenths on you. I knew he wasn’t going to finish the race. He was riding like a fucking out of control lunatic and then he crashes again.
“I can help myself by not qualifying there. I just need to do it. I think when I qualify in the first three rows I’ll be able to hold on to that front group easily. It’s getting there is a bit frustrating because you try to recover, brake harder, make a mistake and recover again. It’s just endless.”
Get more on this story in this week’s free Bikesport News app. Click here to download
- See more at: Redding brands Jack Miller an ‘out-of-control lunatic’
06.04.2016| Author: MotoGP desk| MotoGP
Redding was unhappy with the young Australian
Britain’s Scott Redding has blasted MotoGP youngster Jack Miller after the Argentine MotoGP round, saying the MarcVDS man should have spent more time trying to catch the group ahead in Sunday’s race instead of passing and re-passing Redding’s Octo Ducati.
The Gloucestershire rider got caught up with Miller as he tried to make progress but feels that the Australian held them both up until he crashed out after handful of laps. After the mandatory stops Redding was lying in a solid sixth until an apparent disconnect with the throttle forced him out of proceedings on lap 16. “It didn’t cut out,” he said on Sunday evening. “When I opened the throttle it was like it was disconnected.
“I tried to rev but it wouldn’t go. It was just strange, like gas trying to come. I put the bike in neutral and it revved. I put it back in gear and cut out again. I don’t really know what the problem was.”
A day on from an incident with his rear Michelin tyre, that ultimately altered the course of the MotoGP weekend, Redding found himself stranded in 14th at the close of lap three as a feisty exchange with a typically exuberant Jack Miller and a mistake at turn one left him struggling for position.
Redding on it, while he still had power
Yet he quickly gathered his composure to make short work of the upper reaches of the top ten. A speedy bike change gained him two places at mid-race and from there he gained and passed Dani Pedrosa with the minimum of fuss.
“I’m disappointed because we made a good race considering the problem we had,” said Redding. “We made good of a bad weekend but it just wasn’t enough. Something had to come and get us again which was quite annoying. The start was OK. Fucking Jack (Miller) fighting with you for no reason. That’s why we lost the first guys originally. Then I went into turn one deep and got caught up with that crash with (Cal) Crutchlow and (Aleix) Espargaro and I was 17th or 18th.
“I managed to catch the group again. I made a great change. I think it was the second or third fastest in the pits. I was fast right out of the box. Pedrosa passed me but I think he only pulled three tenths on me on my out lap so it was really good in that area. I knew I was going to be faster, passed him and tried to make a gap. I was riding about 80 percent because there was too much of a gap in front to really do anything.
“I went into turn one and there was nada. I tried to reboot the engine three times; off, on, off, on. I had to come to an end. There was an opportunity to take some good points. We were sixth at the time. It was just one of those weekends.
The Englishman saved a few choice words for Miller, who was enjoying an inspired ride toward the leading group before a fall at turn three. Looking ahead, Redding acknowledged that qualifying further up the field is a priority, to ensure he doesn’t find himself in those situations again.
“He can put the bike where he wants but we’re going to lose time on other guys. You go into T1, there’s no line there and he’s just driving into the side of you. I’m like, ‘Dude, come on!’ Then you brake into turn two and he’s trying to go round the outside. Into three and he’s there and he goes on the inside and you pass him back on the straight. Then he tries to come back up the inside of you at seven and by that point the leading guys have put eight tenths on you. I knew he wasn’t going to finish the race. He was riding like a fucking out of control lunatic and then he crashes again.
“I can help myself by not qualifying there. I just need to do it. I think when I qualify in the first three rows I’ll be able to hold on to that front group easily. It’s getting there is a bit frustrating because you try to recover, brake harder, make a mistake and recover again. It’s just endless.”
Get more on this story in this week’s free Bikesport News app. Click here to download
- See more at: Redding brands Jack Miller an ‘out-of-control lunatic’
ESABATM
Meme DMaster Of Disaster
I hope that never happens to me. They would be visiting their maker as I don't/won't play that shit.
I would not have done what this guy did either. All the running and on coming traffic and stuff.
I do wonder wtf started it tho ?
I do wonder wtf started it tho ?
one for the girls ^ enjoy
This is a cool one. Only the license plate sucks.
ESABATM
Meme DMaster Of Disaster
Lorenzo LOL What have you done !
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