My first full season of road racing is over and after reading a fellow racer's account of his season, I thought I would consider my own highs and lows.

Start of the GTL. This photo-sequence shows Brandon Cinque (411) with the "hole-shot" leading Jon Cone (533) into turn 1 followed by 26 other racers.

Turn 1A on lap 2 of 14, Jon Cone (533) leads Brian Oxx (110), Zachary Lee (509), Steven Schmidt (418), and Wayne Mackert (159)

Brian Oxx (110) leading Jon Cone (533) through turn 1A on lap 5 as Cone leans his bike over under great speed to set up for a pass on his outside when they exit turn 2.

Jon Cone (533) leading Brian Oxx (110) through turn 1A on lap 6.

The high was the Loudon Classic with three 1st places finishes and a 2nd. I won the 20 minute endurance GTL race. It was the first time I felt the type of racing that is fought tooth and nails, clawing with each pass. It was a classic battle with Brian Oxx swapping the lead throughout the 14 laps. I finally snipped by him in turn 12 for the last pass to win by .16 of a second.

The last lap white flag brought out the best in us. Brian blew past me coming out of turn 2 on the straight down to the hairpin turn 3. I re-passed him on the uphill section coming out of turn 4. He outbraked me into turn 6 and cut me off in turn 7. I outbraked him going into turn 9 and squeaked by, but Brian came out of the turn with more corner speed and retook the lead on the last straight before the final turn which is a series of three esses. Under hard braking into turn 12, I came around his outside and passed to set up the drive onto the main straight and won by a hair!

It was a duel between an Aprilia RS250 two-stroke and a Suzuki SV650 four stroke.

I had started the Loudon Classic Weekend with a horrendous highside crash exiting turn 12 during wednesday's practice. It's amazing how silent it is when you get flicked off a bike in a highside and are sailing through the air, and how quickly violent it again becomes when you recontact the earth.

I ended up with bruises. My bike sailed even higher than me before cartwheeling down the track bending its forks and swingarm. My own body did two somersaults in the air - watching the earth and sky swap positions twice before landing on my backside. Peter Kates bent most of the damaged parts back again with his trackside bench press and everyone in my garage chipped in help and parts to put the rest of what I ground off of it back on again.

Not every race gets won like this, nor even fought like this. Yet some of the best races I have enjoyed have been fights out there on the track for 7th or even 14th. I have learned that winning is not everything, though its pretty good. I hope I am top of the podium or on the podium again. But more important I have learned that racing is also in its simplest form: myself racing against the track. Yet I had to learn that the hardest way.