The thrill of being the fastest in this year’s TVS Youth Media Racing Programme trials has faded. Now it’s time to put on the gloves and get ready for a true test of mettle. Not only are the stakes higher, but the competitors have also stepped up their game.
In my last report, I mentioned that my only goal in the YMRP 8.0 was to win. And I wanted to win. I had the fastest time out of the 39 competitors vying for a spot in the championship, but now it was time to prove that it wasn’t a fluke. Now was the time to prove myself, now was the time to make it all happen. So, with that in mind (no pressure, right?), I was not only looking forward to the first round, but I also started preparing by memorizing the track and the lines for every turn in my head through the onboard videos available on YouTube.
Also read: TVS Youth Media Competition 2024 8.0: Make or break
From the moment we entered the trials, I knew my main competitor was Praveen Kumar who represented Rev Nitro. He is a local from Chennai and knows the track like the back of his hand. Our first practice session was scheduled for Saturday morning and I had been thinking “practice your race start” before. When the moment finally came, the pressure of not missing out on precious track time made me forget all about it. Thankfully, the only consolation was that the pressure was probably too much for the others as well since the others hadn’t practiced either. In the end, I managed to run a 2:17.550 which was actually four seconds faster than the previous round. Surprisingly, Aakash Bhadra from Top Gear finished second while Prateek Kunder from Bike India finished third with Praveen fourth.
On Saturday evening, it was finally time for the official qualifying session. The clouds in the sky helped with the heat, and the practice session had boosted my confidence, but it didn’t go as planned. My goal was to get ahead of the pack and try to set the fastest time on a free track without any distractions. The only problem was that we started in order of bike numbers, and I was fifth. As a result, it was a three-way battle for the lead among three riders, including me. I managed to do it with a few laps left, with a time of 2:16.460. I took pole position, with Praveen Kumar, Prateek Kunder and Aakash Bhadra following in that order.
Finally it was Sunday morning and we were off to the race. Although I felt calm, I would be lying if I said I wasn’t nervous. The lights went out and the lack of practice put me in a tough spot. I dropped to fifth place and now had to start chasing the lead group. As I started to push hard, a few near misses made me realize that I was pushing the bike too hard. However, the quickest way to get ahead is to start pushing harder than everyone else, especially in the corners. I really wanted to win and the pressure of not doing so was far greater than the embarrassment of crashing. Despite a few times where the rear wheel lost control and the front wheel tried to give way, I eventually finished second right behind Prateek. His weakness was cornering speed and I realized that this was exactly what I had to exploit. Despite a few position swaps, I managed to get the winning overtake on the last corner of the last lap, which was only fitting.
Also read: 2023 TVS Young Media Racer Programme: Lights Out!
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