#superstock1000

Brands Hatch 25/26th March 2023

Few pics from the first weekend out this season. Lots going on. Suzuki was back from engine refresh so a good shakedown for that in preparation for the coming weekend at British Superbikes. All well, albeit slightly off the pace due to conditions. Wasn’t willing to push too hard, particularly in the wet. It was very easy to end up in a heap an have a bike to fix. I had a big Colin Edwards style moment in the first race on the Sunday and genuinely thought I was off. Over the screen and just hands on the bars, planned my departure from the bike and everything and somehow ended up back in the saddle so just cracked on. Already putting that one in the bank as save of the season and think I will struggle to better it. 

There were also a lot of riders associated with the team out. Some had raced before but there were a few who were out on the grid for the very first time so it was busy in the garage. There were a few crashes but thankfully not too much damage to riders or machines. 

Anglesey, Sep 2022. 

One off tribute livery on Suzuki GSXR1000 that I ride with True Heroes Racing. I rode this bike like this just once on Sunday 11th September 2022 at Snetterton Circuit in the Superstock 1000 championship at British Superbikes. 

See my previous post for more detail and this link to a Motorcycle News article. 

https://www.motorcyclenews.com/news/2022/september/true-hero-racing-queen-tribute/

Image by me 

Oulton Park, Sep 2021.

Bike back from rebuild. Engine felt strong and sharp. PB lap times and very happy with the weekend overall however the good times were not to last as my next post will show. 

Snetterton, Sep 2021.

Mixed weekend for me. Steady FP1 to get my head around how fast the Norfolk circuit is. FP2 went out fully committed to going fast on used tyres and managed to go nearly a half second faster than I did at race pace on new tyres last year. Confidence was high going into qualifying on fresh rubber but that was short lived. Just about managed to get up to a decent pace (for me) and still feel comfortable and was about to start to push hard for a lap time when bam! I was on my arse. 

Changing down for the last corner on the transition from right to left I had a surge from the auto blipper whilst still on the brake. Front tyre gave up and down I went. Fairly fast crash but very little damage thankfully thanks to RandG crash protection on the bike and quality helmet, gloves, boots and leathers on me. Still qualified so no great shakes. 

Warm up on Sunday proved the bike was all good after the crew had worked their magic to fix it up. I was ready for a race. Unfortunately my race was even shorter than my qualifying session. Turn two at Snetterton is a hairpin and I broke my own personal rule of getting on the outside of other riders early in the race. It only takes one moment from a rider underneath and often multiple bikes go down. That's exactly what happened. Rider closest to the kerb had a wobble, next rider out reacts. I was on the outside and instinctively squeezed the brake a bit harder to avoid the rider inside me, down I went. Almost felt like walking pace so again no real damage but a DNF that early in a race is disappointing after all the graft the team put in to get me out there. Bike is already good to go for this weekend at Silverstone where I will endeavour to make amends and get good finishes. 

Cadwell Park, June 2021.

First run in the full True Heroes Racing 2021 livery, OneX leathers and LS2 helmet. 

Warm weekend, steady lap times and expected placing in the Open class. 8th, 7th and a 6th. Still holding 3rd overall in the championship. 

Donington Park, Oct 2021.

Early ride on the taxi bike for me on Friday. First lap of the weekend and I stepped off in a straight line at a fair old rate of knots. Blipper issue on downshifts been causing a few problems and it finally bit me good and proper leaving me no doubt that I have not been the cause of the issue. 

I managed to ride in FP2 in the dry without modifying my riding. However a wet qualifying was a different story. A few changes were made to try and solve the issue but it was still there, I rode around it in qualifying by never being on the brakes whilst downshifting but that was less than ideal. I was outside the qualifying time but made the grid nonetheless. 

A few more changes were made for Race 1 but after two laps I decided to retire to the pits because it was pointless risk to myself, the bike and others by trying to ride around a known issue. A few more changes were made overnight and morning warm-up seemed promising with not one single surge on downshift during the whole session. I was hopeful we had fixed it. I was wrong, outlap for Race 2 I got a slight hint of a push from the blipper but couldn’t be sure. I decided to start the race. First 4-5 laps no problem and I even managed to run with the pack and put in a PB by over 0.8 of a second. All was going well until I felt the dreaded surge on a downshift from 5th to 3rd gear into the Old Hairpin. As it was dry and there were no bikes near me I decided to finish the race and see if the problem persisted. It occurred a few more times but was certainly less pronounced and I feel we have made a step in the right direction. 

I am booked onto a trackday in the coming days to really get to the bottom of why the bike is doing what it is doing. All being well it can be resolved. If not then I am going old school and disconnecting the quick shifter completely and will manually shift/blip and even use the clutch if I have to. 

Time will tell. 

Huge thanks to everyone who had input over the weekend to try and get the bike sorted. See you all at Brands Hatch for the final round of the year. 

Thruxton, August 2021.

Not ridden this circuit since 2017 and it was the first time the team had two bikes out in the same class (SSTK1000) since the tragic accident that killed my team mate, Mark Fincham. To say I was mildly uncomfortable initially being out on track and so close to Salty could be an understatement. Sub-Consciously I was probably a little reserved in race 1 just to get it out of the way but I felt better in race two so pushed a little harder. Overall good results for me personally and a PB lap time in race two.

Race 1. Good start and managed to run with the pack for a good few laps, team mate came by and gapped me. Could see him pushing hard to get by the next rider and unfortunately he went down on the brakes into the last chicane. Took stock and tried to stay consistent to finish the race. 1:20.003, so close to getting my 1:19 that I was aiming for. 

Race 2. Good start again and once again my team mate passed me on the first lap. I was a little more determined this time so put a move on him out of Church towards the last chicane and got my head down. Didn’t see him again and used my board to manage the gap to the bikes behind whilst not making mistakes. PB and P28 in the end. 

Huge thanks to Nathan, Calvin and Chris for keeping the bike spot on. Next stop Donington Park in two weekends time. 

Thruxton, August 2021.

Not ridden this circuit since 2017 and it was the first time the team had two bikes out in the same class (SSTK1000) since the tragic accident that killed my team mate, Mark Fincham. To say I was mildly uncomfortable initially being out on track and so close to Salty could be an understatement. Sub-Consciously I was probably a little reserved in race 1 just to get it out of the way but I felt better in race two so pushed a little harder. Overall good results for me personally and a PB lap time in race two. 

Free practice 1 wet. Good session and plenty of laps done in very wet and windy conditions. 

Free practice 2 dry. Still a bit greasy but nothing too bad. Bike started to feel a bit more compliant after working with Andy from Kais Suspension but session cut short due to the weather closing in. No point changing wheels for the remaining few minutes. 

Qualifying. Fresh rubber and brake pads. Went hard straight away and managed to do my fastest lap early in the session. PB. Lesson to take away, start the session on a used tyre and switch to a new one once warmed up and ready to go fast. That’s what all the faster riders did.