By Pablo Elizalde
The Kawasaki team on Friday completed their three-day test at the Phillip Island circuit, where the Japanese squad were again welcomed by poor weather.
The circuit was again hit by rain at night and so it was damp in the morning, with track temperatures lower than expected, something that caught test rider Olivier Jacque out.
The Frenchman suffered a big crash late in the afternoon, although luckily he escaped injury.
Despite the accident, Jacque was happy with the work done during the test.
"These three days at Phillip Island have been positive, because we now know how much work we need to do to improve the bike before we return here to continue testing in the New Year," he said.
"We tried a slightly different engine today, which had some positive points, but we're still struggling a little bit with the front-end feeling.
"I had a big crash late on in the day after the rear came round on me through the right-hander at Hayshed. It takes some time to warm up the right-hand side of the tyre here, and although I'd been really careful up to this point, I must have just given it a bit too much gas on cold tarmac and down I went.
"It was a big impact, but apart from a few bruises, I walked away uninjured. It was scary though!"
Teammates John Hopkins and Marco Melandri had a more positive day, the Italian covering 79 laps as he continued acclimatising to the team.
Hopkins, meanwhile, managed to complete long runs despite having to adapt his riding style to compensate for the injuries he is suffering.
The Anglo-American rider will fly to the United States, where he'll undergo surgery on Wednesday to remove the metal plates from his left foot, ankle and hand.
"Today was more positive for me," he said. "The injuries weren't such a big problem, although I had to adapt my riding style because I still can't put any pressure on the left footpeg.
"We found a pretty good set-up on the bike and my lap times were pretty consistent over the long runs we did for Bridgestone, and it's this consistency that's important to our development programme right now. It's been good working with Marco; we work well together and I'm sure we'll be pushing each other all the way once we start testing and racing again next year.
"Now I'm off straight back to America, where I'll have surgery on Wednesday to remove all the metal from my various injuries. As well as taking the plates out of my left foot and ankle, Doctor Ting will also remove the plate I've had in my left hand for the past three years. I'll be about two kilograms lighter!
"My plan is to take it easy after the surgery, to make sure I'm fully recovered, and then train my butt off ready for the new season."
Source:
http://www.autosport.com