#sstk1000

Oulton Park, Sep 2020.

Exit of Brittens Chicane towards Hilltop, Race 2. 

PB laptime and not quite last again but progress being made on the stocker. Oulton Park is a very physical circuit and I certainly felt the extra horse power compared to the Ducati 959. The Suzuki took some getting hold of to get it around the undulating, bumpy park circuit. 

Snetterton, August 2020.

Some on track action shots from qualifying and racing. Progress made in comparison to Donington Park and managed to go nearly a full two seconds a lap quicker than I have ever been. Partly due to getting on the back of the pack for the first two laps of the race and partly because my team mate was there this time and racing him spurs me on to go faster. A tough class for sure but I am confident I can get quicker and it will become a little easier. 

Donington Park, Aug 2020.

Last weekend saw the belated start to the British Superbike season. This year I have made what feels like a huge jump. I have moved away from the one make Ducati Cup series where I have been riding since 2015. I left that series in a good place. Pretty consistent top ten finishes and 15th overall in the 2019 standings. Not bad for an old duffer who only started racing in 2012. 

The National Superstock 1000 class is next level. I knew it before committing to it but to be out there last Friday on a 200 BHP machine trying to go fast was an eye opener. The whole field is rapid. There are previous class winners, road riders and riders who have ridden Superbikes all mixing it at a crazy fast pace. Needless to say I was right at the back and at least a second off where I would liked to have been. Ironically I ended up putting in a PB lap time around the Donington National Circuit but still ended up last. 

At least I know where I stand now, both with the bike and my peers. I have some good guys on the spanners and at no point during the weekend did I feel I even needed to go near the bike other than to ride it. Now it is all stickered and I have my new gear for the season I will shoot some nice images and get them posted up. With a compressed season the meetings are every other weekend so there is plenty of track time for improvement and plenty of opportunities to photograph as I go. 

This time next week the team will be at Snetterton for round 2 and hopefully I can make some progress. 

Huge thanks to the team and sponsors who support what we do. 

Donington Park June 2020.

Getting some good seat time at the minute. A full day on the GP circuit at Donington Park UK on Monday. 

I have stripped the vinyl off the bike in preparation for the new scheme to go on so it’s in stealth mode for now. The season is scheduled to start early August so I am doing all I can to get up to speed so I at least stand a chance of qualifying in the SSTK1000 class. 

Things I have learned so far about this bike; it is thirsty, it eats brake pads and it gives a decent amount of warning if you take the piss with the throttle on used tyres. It is a joy to ride and the big power combined with the mapping and electronics means it feels very easy to ride. Love the auto blipper on downshifts now I am used to it. So nice to be able to get on with braking and setting up for corners without having to worry about a manual blip. Just need to learn to go fast on it.

First real bike post of 2020. New beast in the stable. Stepping up from the Ducati Cup to the SSTK1000 class.