Well, I did book the sun and it didn’t disappoint, red hot both days.
The supporters turned out in force which made the weekend, barbees n whiskey in full flow
and everyone really enjoyed themselves, I avoided the whiskey, obviously…
First job was to swap the wheels on my bike and put the drys in for a change ready for
qualifying. This round they had put us Steelie racers in with the powerbikes and super
twins, should make it interesting I thought. The front of the grid was made up of these guys
so we were pushed down the order, no worries as we were only racing each other. My plan
was to roll round, stay on and not set anything on fire, the only flames i wanted to see
were in the BBQ, I came 5th and 2 secs off my PB, fine by me.
First race I was up to second place then I decided to ‘road shift’ to 2nd gear instead of
‘race shift’ to 4th, (must swap my FZR 750 to race shift!!) nearly blew the poor thing up and
Sam went by and went on to win it, mega job mate.
Second race, another mistake with gears meant a bit of grass tracking at the end of the
back straight and again dropping from 3rd to 5th!! Lowest points score of the season that,
damn. That’s the excuses out of the way, last race I came in 3rd.
It was a proper weekend for all concerned, Martyn, Sam, Richy and Mike were on fire and
rode mega and the only incident was Mikes bike over heating which the lads repaired for
him. Top work J and Karl.

A very nice surprise

On the Saturday evening after the BBQ some of the lads called me into their tent, they told
me they had put their heads together and come up with the idea of supporting me due to
my recent run of bad luck. They decided they were each going to donate £33 as it’s my
racing number, they had also asked friends and family and gave me a big wedge of
money. I was gobsmacked and really moved by everyone’s generosity, I really couldn’t
believe it. A massive thanks to everyone who supported me.
As a wee thank you I am going to put everyones name on my bike, titled 33 for 33 and on
this website. Go to the sponsor section to see their names.
Stickers are on order…

Other stuff

It’s been a bit hectic lately, what with christenings, kiddies parties etc etc and my life long
mate Carlo got hitched to Lucy which was fantastic, lovely day, great catching up with
everyone and really made up for them both.
I’ve booked a week off in September with the family so we can get away in the wobble box
again over to Aberystwyth this time. I intend to do as little as possible except make sure
our little guys have a brilliant time, can’t wait.
As my number one bike has died I’ve decided to get a replacement in the mean time and
see if I can resurrect it over winter so I’ve got a 14 hour drive up to Aberdeen, only 740
miles!! Wish I could find one closer to home, the others have been from Hull and Devon.
My bro Ian has offered to book the day off as well to come and keep me awake. If my new
badges have turned up in time I’ll take my new race leathers to get logo’d up on the way as
well. I hope to call in on friends in Edinburg and Montrose as well, fingers crossed they’ll
be home, should be a good wee “man trip”…

Andy Ibbott

Ive just been updated on the progress of my great mate Andy Ibbott, director of the
California Superbike School who was taken seriously I’ll a few months back, he has just
managed a 2 mile walk whilst wired up with some electric gadgetry that his neuro physio is
using to stimulate certain muscles in his leg to aid movement, next up will be vocal chord
surgery then they will move onto his swallow, he’s up against it but he has such
determination I know he’ll pull through, wish you the best of luck fella…

Well with just one round left and lying joint fourth in the championship, the title looks out of
reach, I’d have to win all 3 races and the others would need to have a bad day at the
office, having said that the rain is a great leveller so you never know, I’ll be pushing hard
that’s for sure. Im hoping to be on my replacement bike and fingers crossed it goes well
and doesn’t give me any problems. I’ll have to swap the forks and shock off my destroyed
No1 bike so it handles, switch it the race shift, get on it and stretch the throttle cable, wish
me luck…
See the events section for the dates as I hope as many friends as possible turn up for the
“Grand” finale, oh and this round is on the full circuit. So bring your tents if you can stay
over or just pop over for one of the days but please come, it’d be ace to see you there.
Don’t forget to click on the twitter and Facebook tabs to re tweet this blog for me as I could
use the support.. Cheers

I’ve put some new pics in the gallery too so see what you think.

Go big or go home…!!

Al Racer33

The Races

Well my number 1 bike has tried to ruin my season! It’s popped out a spark plug and burst an oil pipe so I thought I’d get my own back and decided to blow up the engine and set it on fire! Job done, it’s a write off, it can only get better now.

I wasn’t the only one lacking mechanical sympathy, Martyn and Sam’s bikes were both smokin’, Martyn has burnt a hole through his piston crown and I haven’t heard what’s happened to Sam’s yet.

So I never qualified and was put on the back of the grid, joy. I managed to scrabble my way up to 5th in class and salvage some points and the last race I got a second in class and a little trophy, just to replace my melted ones! Not too shabby from the back of the field so it wasn’t a total disaster.

Point to point mountain walk

It’s been that time of year again when me n James load our big ruck sacks and head off into Wales to continue our north to south walk, this time my old mate Carlo decided to join us which was cool. We started at Trawsfynydd and walked for ten hours the first day and seven hours on the second covering twenty five miles.

There was some right ankle twisting terrain, some brooks we had to jump over and J almost lost his boot in a bog at one point. On the night we camped out under the stars we found the only piece of flat ground within the walls of a ruined house with a lovely view down the valley and enough wood to keep our roaring fire burning til the early hours.

By the end of day one my socks were rotten and my under crackers were also in a sorry state due to my can of Stella bursting in my bag and leaking all over my ass! So both were used to fuel the fire some more, it was that hot I fell asleep on some propped up slates before I made it into my tent…

When we finished we had made it to the foot of Cadair Idris mountain ready for the next leg and our feet were ruined, James had managed to wear his boot soles through to the square layer underneath and could barely walk the last few miles so his and my boots were binned on the spot!

Short n sweet blog this time guys…

Hope to see everyone at Anglesey for round 4, it’s gonna be a warm one.

Al

Racer33

The Races

The nice long practise session went well, I felt pretty quick and it didn’t feel difficult which is always nice. I was given 31st on the grid for the qualifying race, got an ok start but the elbows were out and after the first lap I was up to 19th and getting a move on. I passed a few more over the next few laps and come the last lap I stuffed it under another in the last turn to finish 15th and 1st in class, not bad and again I set a new personal best lap time. This put me on the front row in third for the championship race, things were looking good and I was feelin like a win.

The race took ages to come as there were some big multiple rider crashes and the air ambulance had to fly in twice, not good for all those guys involved, wish you all a speedy recovery, there were some very nasty injuries. Eventually our turn came and we rolled out onto the grid, the flag was waved for the sighting lap and away we went, turning left at Island Bend my right boot slipped off my foot peg, I looked down and there was oil everywhere, looked back up and the marshals were waving so I pulled off the track just before the right hander of shell oils hairpin. I was very lucky on reflection as the right side of the rear tyre was absolutely swimming with oil, had I have taken the right I’d have definitely dropped the bike. Turns out the oil cooler feed pipe had decided to burst off, soaking a quarter of the circuit and half the field following me, sorry lads!! I also managed to ruin the marshals sun bathing time, poor chaps worked like troopers with the cement dust n brooms, gave them good opportunity to take the P out of me though, not a good sign when I was recognised by a couple of them. I may get an invite to their Christmas party if I’m not careful..!

The big delay I’d caused made me realise I may have time to get back and get onto the grid on my spare bike but by the time I got back to the paddock the second sighting lap was just getting under way, damn! No points again…!! not good at all.

I managed to get track side in time to watch the boys have a cracking race and put in some real good performances. The following weekend Tommy Hill crashed on on someone else’s oil, glad none of the lads behind me did.. Tommy’s sharing my luck, he runs 33 as well..!!
Whilst loading up at the end of the day, James thought it’d be a good idea to tip my carefully sorted box of neat spares all over the deck! Twinky… “Don’t forget to shut the lid and carry it flat fella” oh well.. I’ll let him off though as he organised a BBQ at his newly renovated gaff, what a crackin’ afternoon that was.

TT 3D Movie

James had also organised for all the lads to go and watch this new movie about the Isle of man TT races featuring Gut Martin, what a film and a defo must see, Guy was absolutely spot on and made it really amusing. It was a good behind the scenes look at what goes on at the spectacular races and an insight into what goes on in the racers minds. We all thought it was mega and headed off for a cheeky pint and a chat about it afterwards, Sam was so inspired he would have signed up for racing the TT there and then.

Bit more bad luck

You may have heard on Facebook or Twitter that my garage suffered a fire, it melted my leathers, helmet, boots etc, ruined my fairings that were hanging on the wall and smoke damaged everything else that was in there, great. I thought I had some work to do after the burst oil pipe, I really could have done without this. Oh well, chin up.
Kaz and I took the nippers away for the Easter weekend in the sun for a nice chill. We were able to relax and Hayden and Chloe could run around in safety, they even went on an Easter egg hunt and scoff them little selves full of choccy, bless. Then we got a phone call of Kaz’s parents who had been informed by the police that thieves had gained access to my garage, nothing worth taking though thanks to the fire, every cloud eh. We put it to the back of our minds and got on with our little holiday.

So with round three looming ever closer and with a rook of work to do repairing and cleaning my bikes, including over spending on replacement riding kit, fairings etc it’s gonna be a challenge, but that’s how I roll. Having everything 100% ready in plenty of time is just a little bit boring, anyways, I enjoy a bit of bike fettling.

Refreshed website

As you will have guessed by now Graham has brought my website more up to date for me giving it a fresher look and making it a bit more interactive, leave me some feedback and let me know what you think. Also hit the tabs and follow me on Facebook and Twitter to keep up to speed with what’s going on.

Go to the events section to see when the next round is, it’s a Whit meeting on the bank holiday Monday so pop a reminder in your phone and head on over, if we get half the people that turned up for Oulton I’ll be well happy.

My luck’s gonna change…

Al, Racer33

Finally the waiting is over. I took a half day holiday on Friday so I could roll up there and set up in daylight for a change, Martyn and Mike were already there so we had a nice chillin’ afternoon, “the big yellow thing” had strangely put in an appearance so it was really pleasant as well.

I woke up Saturday to another dry and sunny day, the quarter of an hour practice went well and I felt really quick. I have been figuring out new plans for corners I felt could be improved the most during the off season and it all felt pretty good.

I drew 15th on the grid for the qualifying race, by the end of the first lap I was up to 6th, passing much more superior machinery. I felt really quick yet comfortable and I made it up to 5th but got passed again and crossed the line in 6th. First in class though. I found that I had gone half a second quicker than my previous best, a big leap, well happy with that…

Finishing last season with a win kept me on a high although it was a wet win, today was dry and I had to prove to myself that I could win in the dry as well. My time had put me on pole again so that set me up for a good performance, feeling as quick and confident as I did it was mine to lose and I wasn’t gonna let that happen. The lights and my clutch lever went out and we were away, I was really determined and by the second lap I had gone even quicker again, I controlled the race from the front and crossed the line first, 11 seconds ahead of the field and another win, mega, I also got my new sponsor a mention over the tannoy, spot on… Previous best was a 1:16.6 and I managed a 1:15.3.

It was Mikes first race of his life and he was a tad nervous to say the least. He was running his Honda VFR400 in the forgotten era class. His aim was to not finish last and judging by his performance on the track day in Feb I knew that wasn’t going to happen. From a good grid of 24 riders he crossed the line in 13th!

Absolutely awesome result, a racer in the makin’ for sure. We were all clapping him on his return to the paddock and to see him smiling from ear to ear like a Cheshire cat even behind his helmet was great, he was buzzin’, well done fella.

My great friend Andy Ibbott, all round top bloke and the director of the California Superbike School has recently been taken seriously ill. He had to undergo an artery operation but he suffered a stroke and later pneumonia, he’s been unable to speak and at best wiggle his toes. A week or so later he made it off his bed and into a chair through steely determination, a reflection of his true grit as a character, he’s inspirational. He’s been training for the Marathon de Sables, a desert marathon in searing heat dubbed the toughest race on earth, to even consider it is madness!! James Cracknell is attempting it.

I wish Andy a full and speedy recovery, my thoughts are with him, Donna and their kids Kit and Alfie.

Saturday night we decided instead of a track walk we’d drive out to the Valley hotel for tea and a couple of pints to round a top day off. Overnight the weather turned, it was pissing down and the wind got right up. I couldn’t sleep for my flapping awning even with my ear plugs in. Seems we didn’t have it as bad as the lads opposite as you can see from the picture, their gazebo had decided to mate with their van..!!

No scrutineering on the second day meant a lovely lie, brew in then a change of wheels to wets. I was looking forward to today’s races as I’m pretty confident in the wet. Pole again but a terrible start meant I dropped to 4th off the line but I knew I could pull it back, I got up to second but I was wrong, before the lap was over there was a bang and my bike lost it’s power, I was going to pull in but I thought it’s still going so decided to carry on and see if I could get any points. I managed to limp home and salvage 16 points, not at all bad given the circumstances, turns out my number one spark plug had ejected itself out of the cylinder head so my bike was only running on 3, gutted. Big thanks to Ben for jumping in and getting it stripped for me. Nothing we could do at the track so back in the trailer and out with the white bike and get it ready for the last race.

Still wet I had some ground to make up, slotted behind the number one on the grid the flag was waved for the warm up lap, the back wheel went sideways and a few guys went past, not a good sign, I’d have to sort that for the race start. I made a more controlled start and got to turn one first and held it, I was 2 seconds a lap quicker than everyone else but going going up the back straight, full gas in 6th gear, foolishly I braked at my dry brake marker still slightly leant over which was too late for the conditions and I lost the front. That was that zero points, err bother!!!

So a weekend of very mixed fortunes, but I can take a lot from it. The engine’s cylinder head is off ready for helicoiling but they’re like hens teeth! Just hope I can get it sorted in time for Oulton as it’s stronger than my white bike.

Richy n Martyn both rode well, both picking up silverware which is great to see and Sam also had some strong rides, well done lads.

Yeah, Oulton next, lookin forward to that one, stick a reminder in ya phone and come over for a great day out. It’s Saturday 9th April and as it’s only up the road it’s an easy run out. Love to see all of you that’s been in the past and some new friends, there’ll be a brew waitin’, you can even help with the bike prep if you fancy it?

Speak Soon.

Al, Racer33

I’ve discovered Twitter now after being on Facebook for a good while and the thing I find motivating is following loads of BSB and moto gp racers etc and hearing how they are getting on with their off season training, which gives me the kick up the ass I often need. It’s certainly helped at the recent track day as I rode every lap at a reasonable pace and felt quite fit and comfortable come the end. The next couple of days were another story mind, legs were in turmoil, well out of practise.

Both my bikes went well on the track day, it was the first time I’d ridden the white bike since I bent it at Oulton park about 10 months earlier, last job I did was to fit a full Yoshi exhaust system. The first 2 sessions were damp and as I’d put the white bike on wets I gave that a spin out first, it performed well but I need to make some suspension changes to get it bang on. The black bike was as good as ever on dry tyres and I finished the day by throwing some dry wheels in the white bike for the last session to put some quick laps in to make sure everything was fine, I’m happy and good to go for the 19th and 20th of March.

It was a great day all round as Mike was prepping himself for his first season of racing on board his Honda VFR400, he was riding really well and his confidence was building for his first ever race. Sam was also running his 2 new steelies he’s bought for joining our class, Richy was testing his new engine after his last one froze and cracked over winter and Bloomers was parading his newly painted Mercedes sponsored beast. It was great to have James back as well, he missed last year due to renovating his new gaff, we’re like a well oiled machine when he’s about, legend.

Oh I’ve gone and bought myself a new road bike too, well I say new, it was in 1988! Don’t laugh, it’s not a bad little thing, it’s a Yamaha FZR750 Genesis in white with speed block red, proper old skool, and all for the measly sum of £550 an eBay special…!! Only cost me £55 for a years insurance as well, result, cheap biking. I’ve only bought it to go to Ireland on this year with the lads for a bit of a “mancation” (a word I’ve nicked off Colin Edwards!) to watch some proper road racing between the hedges at Kells and to partake in a Guinness or three. Eh if anyone fancies it just give me a shout, should be good fun tearing up the Irish countryside even if it is on a bouncy old 750 with less waft than my 600cc racers.

Oh Kaz was 21 again in Feb so we abandoned the offspring with their grand parents and fled to a country retreat for some lovely R&R, she really enjoyed herself so I was well happy. I drove down to the Telford exhibition centre recently to a tattoo show with my mate Scotty for a bit of inspiration for my next lot of ink, it was a great show and well worth a visit, hasn’t made my decision any easier though.

I’ve had a couple of Racer33 T shirts logo’d up which look pretty cool that I’ll be wearing to each round to advertise my new title sponsor Noel Baker British meats. Cheers guys. The new tyres are all on order now so I’ll get them fitted and make a few final tweaks to the bikes and that’ll be me set for round one. Don’t forget to tap onto the Facebook and Twitter links at the bottom of each page to keep up to speed with what’s happening, I can also follow you guys too…

I really hope to see as many of you guys as possible at the opener, I know it’s a long way to go but there’ll be a hot brew and a warm welcome for anyone making the trip, I’d really love your support, it’s worth at least a second a lap…

Well, this glass of red wine ain’t gonna drink itself so that’s it for now…

Speak Soon.

Al, Racer33

Our twin kiddies turned one so we had some friends round to celebrate for a low key party, which turned into the adults drinking ’til midnight, when the nippers were long in bed. So much for low key…!

I took the family away again for the final time of the year for Bonfire night in the wobble box for a mega fire works display and a hog roast, it was fantastic but the fields were like a swamp and everything got absolutely filthy and covered in mud, probably won’t be doing that again.

I headed off to Dolgellau with the lads during the snow fall as we always do in November for some camping, drinking, campfires and mountain biking, it was a top weekend but a wee bit fresh at minus 8 under canvas!!

I also went to the NEC bike show with the lads which was good but not as good as usual for me as there was no mini moto racing, which is always good for a laugh with a pint in ya and being the last day of the show they had sold out of everything I wanted to buy in my size, doh… Kaz and I are big fans of live at the Apollo so we decided to treat ourselves to a pair of tickets to see Kevin Bridges and have a night away from the little ones in Wolverhampton, we had a nice meal, a right laugh and a couple of cheeky beers afterwards. He was excellent and highly recommended. I had missed my Wednesday night circuit training to go so I hit the hotel gym instead while Kaz went and relaxed in the pool, nice little break.

On a very low note we have tragically lost a great friend and ex work colleague at only 24 years of age, Nikola Jones was driving, I believe, to work when she collided with a bus. I went to pay my respects at the place it happened. It is an unbearably sad loss, my thoughts are with her family at this difficult time. Heaven has truly gained an angel. We will always miss you. Rest in peace…

My life long friend and local butcher Scott Anderson and his brother Carl have offered to sponsor me for next season which I am massively grateful for, their help will go a very long way and I am looking forward to promoting their business for them in return. Scott is learning to ride after being pillion for far too long, he is really enthusiastic about helping out with the bike prep at the races which will also be a great help. Personally I’m looking forward to the top quality meats for the summer barbees..!! Grahamdoddonline is going to produce Scott a new company website so when it’s up and running I’ll let you know so you can check it out. They own and run Noel Baker British Meats and supply quality produce to top northwest hotels and to the public from their shop in Chester, highly recommended and well worth a visit. Thanks so much for the support guys…

My friend Glyn Pearson wanted to do something different for his bike mad grand son Jamie for Xmas so asked if he could sponsor me and have his name on my race bike which I was more than happy to do. He popped round, had a good chat, sat on my bikes and took a rook of photos, now he is looking forward to coming to one of the rounds and seeing his name out on track, thanks mate…

We have just had Christmas and it was excellent, the babies were dressed as Santa and little miss Santa and soon got bored with unwrapping endless presents, bless em, only to be more interested in the paper of course. For the first time, instead of going to our parents Kaz made a top turkey dinner so we were all sat round the table, Hayden and Chloe in there high chairs. We visited both their grand parents in the afternoon where the gifts continued then back home handy for a chill out with a mulled wine and a mince pie, you can’t beat Christmas. Boxing day was spent round at my sisters then a party in the evening at ours, spot on. I’ve just got to finish the left over food and sweets then hit my new turbo trainer that my brothers bought me for Christmas to get fit for the new season and work off this Xmas bulk.

Later this week, fellow racer Martyn #28 has organised a get together for the racing lads at his local pub so we can all catch up, drink merrily and chat about bikes and the season ahead, I’m really lookin’ forward to it.

Both my bikes are prepped and ready to go after narrowly avoiding them freezing solid when the temperatures dropped, I’ve now put antifreeze in them until the start of the season. Richy on the other hand was not so lucky, he found his engine block cracked both front and rear and now has the task of throwing the spare engine in and getting it tuned, gutted, an easy over sight but I’m certain we’re not alone!!

Well that’s the latest for now guys, the plan now is Monday, Friday pedalling in the garage on my turbo trainer, weights throughout the week and Wednesdays circuit training or gym getting myself up to speed for the 2011 season ahead…

Take it easy and I’ll speak soon,

Racer33

I had replaced the head gasket to cure the over heating problem, whipped the motor out and sent it away for the valve timing set up, forked out for some new wets and had the shock re sprung and serviced. I was good to go…

We rocked up there Friday night, armed ourselves with hats, coats and a couple of bottles of beers and all set off on a track walk in the dark to discuss some issues and figure out some new plans for the following day. Saturday had given a wet start then drying throughout the day, wrong!, three times on track and it was peeing down every time.

As I’d not been on track since the bike was rebuilt I thought the day would be more about setting up the rear shock, ride height and cooling system etc but I made some tweeks for the wet weather and it was bang on immediately, result, so I could concentrate on getting a wriggle on. There were a couple of distinct places on the track that needed work so I was trying them out in practise and everything was going to plan, I felt positive for the qualifier.

I was given 20th on the grid, 5th row on the inside, not exactly ideal but not last… every cloud! I got a reasonable start and by ‘Cascades’ I was through about half of the field and half of the spray but I needed to push on hard. I was reeling them in like it was a track day and before I knew it I couldn’t see anyone in front of me but I suspected there were a few guys that had cleared off, turns out it were only two so I crossed the line in 3rd, mega happy with that.

Martyn and Richie had good rides but both felt they needed to dig a bit deeper and unfortunately Sam decided to part company with his CBR on the exit of ‘Hizzys’ gutted, but he wasn’t alone as it was really tricky out there. It was kicked straight and made good for the main race.

One of the lads stuck his head in my awning and told me I’d stuck it on pole for the big race, unbelievable, my first, the day was going well… Lookin at the time sheets the usual front runners were a few seconds slower which was good news.

We all rolled onto the grid again in the rain and it was a good feeling to pass everyone and slot my front tyre behind the number 1, just needed to relax and see if I could convert it. Blippin’ the gas, the lights went off and we were away, fourth into turn 1, noooo… never mind, I knew I had the pace and passed one guy into Cascades, tucked in and shot off up the straight, I kept focussed on doing my own thing and managed to pass the others, after a couple of laps I was leading it, I even managed a cheeky look behind up Lakeside and I could see I was gapping them, this was mine to lose, then the bloody red flags came out, I felt robbed, my chance had gone…

Luckily we were redirected back to the grid rather than the paddock (just hoped I’d have enough fuel!). Eventually we were off again, this time in third, one Honda steelie and one Kawasaki in front, I was only concerned with the Honda as the Kwak wasn’t in my championship. Afterwards I was told the commentators were going mad as I battled my way to the lead again by the penultimate lap, but the Kawasaki got by me back on the last lap, second over the line but my first win and 25 points.

Martyn and Richie were 6th and 7th which were mega rides, Richie hacked 11 seconds of his qualifying time after havin’ a word with himself and Mart scored a fourth and got his first trophy, top work lads, we all had a cracking end to the season.

I was made up that Kaz had decided to brave the elements and bring our little nippers Hayden and Chloe along to see their old man race, nice to bring a trophy back for them. They’re one year old in November, how mad’s that! A massive thanks also to everyone that turned up to support and help out, far too many to mention but it was awesome to see you all there, all the regulars and plenty of new faces as well.

Next up for the Wirral 100 is the annual dinner dance and that’ll be it for the 2010 season, if they can find a better guest speaker than Guy Martin it’ll be some night, that fella is a star.

To say I’m looking forward to my fourth season’s racing in 2011 is an under statement, April seems a life time away. With two bikes at the ready and help and support from friends and family I feel like I could be well up at the sharp end next year, but with the costs of race entry and tyres etc spiralling I hope it won’t be out of reach. So if you’d like to consider helping me fund next years challenge I’d be extremely grateful, in return I can offer company advertising, free tickets, personal name in programme, on my website or on bike etc etc….

Anyway, that’s pretty much it for now, I’ll keep you all posted… Soon be Christmas!!

Al, Racer33

The qualifying race on Saturday afternoon was wet, Richy was placed 12th on the grid from previous results, Martyn drew 13th out the bag and true to form I pulled out 27th, bloody great!

Lights out we were 4 abreast going into turn 1, standing each other up and trying not to get tagged, but we all got through safely. It was a ten lapper so I knew I had a little more time than normal so I got my head down and pushed as hard as I could. A few laps in it was red flagged so we had to restart with a 5 lap dash to the flag, we were sat on the grid in the drizzle for ages while a tractor had to scoop up a destroyed bike and sweep up after it. I heard that one guy had run off across the grass at the exit of turn 3, rejoined the circuit and fell off then someone T boned his bike that was lying in the track, nasty!

We got away again for some more of the same, chin on the tank I was picking them off, I managed to carve my way through the field and catch up to Richy who was in 7th by now and was dicing with the championship leader. I reeled them in but never had any laps left to get by so I crossed the line in 8th, 3rd in class which qualified me 5th on the grid, that’ll do me…. Not bad from 27th.

My two good mates Scotty and Carlo turned up to support us for the first time and Scotty being a butcher supplied us with the barbee meat, result, what a gent. I kept it real by having only the odd beer while they polished off a litre bottle of JDs! Crazy fools…

Onto Sunday and we got to have a lie in for a change, no scrutineering or practise and we weren’t out racing until 11.40. When the time came I got leathered up, did a bit of stretchin’ had a can of Relentless and off to the grid. I lined up heading the second row in 5th, lights off and I got a mega start P2 into turn 2, come on!! After a couple of laps I got passed but was running well in third but being gapped, coming through the right hander “Peel” at the top of the hill the guy who’d just passed me had high sided it on the exit (broke his left ankle), back into second place then, but that too was short lived as he had crashed on the racing line and another red flag was thrown… Man I was gutted. The restart got underway and again I started mega and was running in second but this time I was overtaken by a couple of steelies and finished 4th in class, 6th over the line, happy with that and I felt like I was getting back to my old self, I also ran a personal best of 1:16.7 half a second quicker!

James and Karl couldn’t make it again unfortunately as James has just bought a new gaff and is up to his eyes with that, Karl is his right hand man and drinking partner so he never ventured over, instead Carlo rolled up his sleeves and lent a hand spannering and showing an unhealthy interest, that lad is coming racing, I can feel it.

The last race of the meeting for us was the trophy race, no points just pots. Again starting from 5th, again got into 2nd and running strong until I never came back enough gears after the back straight and came out of Peel a gear too high and immediately got passed, bugger, I was hoping for a second but I paid the price with that mistake then I was overtaken again and brought it home in 4th… Which surprisingly enough earned me a wee trophy, how nice. So a 3rd, two 4ths, a personal best lap time and a pot, along with running well in the wet and the dry and now into the top 6 on the leader board – so a top weekends racing really. Richy and Martyn rode well, both getting good points and Martyn’s now getting to grips with his steelie, top work lads.

Now, there’s a big gap until the next round so I’ll strip the engine and replace the head gasket to try and cure this over heating problem. I also need to sort the ride height and realign the exhaust can as it was dragging on the deck through right handers. The bits have also arrived for my white bike, new forks etc so I’ll get them thrown in as well. May book another track day before the Anglesey Grand to give both the bikes a good testing. Check out my ‘events’ section for the dates of the next round, I’ve also put some more pics in the Gallery.

A big thanks to Mike, Pippa, Jack, Emma, Carla, Ben, Geoff and Alan for your support and banter, you made it a fantastic weekend, same again for the next two dayer please… Look forward seeing to more new faces as well.

Speak soon guys…

To be honest, round 3 was about getting a finish under my belt as the first to rounds ended up with me on my backside. My bike is still stripped down after the Oulton park crash as I’m struggling to get parts for the front end so I had to bite the bullet and buy a second bike , an expense I could well do without but, needs must! I put my rear shock in it and sent the forks to Maxton, along with my bent ones to have the internals swapped over. Bad timing really as they were flat out busy with all their TT prep work, but I kept hounding them and they came good at the very last minute. I got them fitted late on the night before loading so we were good to go. When we got to Anglesey I realised I hadn’t reattached my timing transponder so my races wouldn’t count, gutted! Luckily Richy managed to pull a few strings and get his parents to fetch it, mega, very grateful to them for that, thanks.

Typically I drew low down the grid for qualifying but managed to finish in third which I was happy about on my new bike even though the dash clocks had fallen off and I had to wedge them out of the way and the bike was overheating and spitting out water on the slow down lap, what had i bought! This was the first time in 3 seasons of racing that James couldn’t make it which meant I had to get my hands dirty more than once! Damn I missed that guy, he is the main man at the races, invaluable. He foolishly decided to run the Chester full marathon instead, very well done dude.

I qualified on the second row in 6th for the championship race with Bullet next to me in 7th and Richy on the front row, (top job mate). Just behind was Bloomers on his new bike after swapping from the formula 600s to the steelies to join the lads. The lights went off and I got a rare mega start and managed to pass Richy through turn one but he managed to come back past in turn two and chop my nose off, we were in 3rd and 4th respectively. I held my position and passed him on the brakes into the uphill left hander and managed to hold him off. I went fast at the start to get a good position and just did rhythm laps after that which weren’t particularly quick in order to bring it home, consequently I got passed and finished in 5th, ok considering….

Unfortunately Killswitch couldn’t make this round as he had been coaching in Spain and was home too late. Bullet went well but his rear wheel bearing collapsed on the last lap down the corkscrew and Sam tipped off in practise but came back strong in his main race. We were spoilt with the BBQ weather and it was awesome to see new faces,everyone seemed to enjoy the day which was good and I hope you can all make the next meeting.

My Oulton crash injuries have all but faded and I have been back to circuit training which was tough, I also took last weekend out to do a point to point walk with James in snowdonia from Trawsfynydd to the end of the Watkin path at Snowdon. We passed 3 dams (pitched our tents on one of them), explored some disused mines, had some beers around campfires (J even sacrificed his socks for fuel)and took in the spectacular views, our bags weighed a tonne but the blisters were well worth it. This is the third year on the run we have done these walks and our plan is to walk from the north coast to the south coast of Wales, I’ll probably be about 50 by the time we’re done…!! Oh well, you’ve gotta have a goal.

I’ve been on track coaching at the newly improved Silverstone circuit using the Stowe and South configurations, it’s so much better now and the facilities and pits etc are spot on. I received some good feedback from my students which is always nice, it’s what coaching is all about really…

I’ve been lucky enough to get away with Kaz and the kiddies again in the caravan enjoying the heatwave paddling in the river and exploring the area, quality family time…! We’re booked in at another site before the next meeting and I’ll tell you I can’t wait, just hope the good weather continues… More pictures in the “chillin’” section of my gallery, take a peep.

So, round 4 of the championship back at Anglesey is over two days on the 24th and 25th of July so stick a reminder in your phone and come and pay me a visit, why not bring a tent and stay over on the Friday or Saturday night, or both!! It’d be great to see you there…

Anyways, that’s it for now guys,

Take it easy and see you soon…

Not for me though I hasten to add, after three or so laps into free practise there was a burning smell coming from my bike so I was going to complete the lap, pull in and check it out but before I had chance the marshals were waving frantically, I thought I’d blown the thing up. I had to pull off the track immediately and jump behind the tyre wall only to be told that my front fender had become loose and fallen into my front wheel, getting ground away and smoking like a good un… There goes my practise.

Repaired and ready for qualifying, I rolled up on the grid with the lads around me ready for a battle. Off we went on the sighting lap and coming out of Druids on the run up to Lodge, the last corner, I switched my attention to my race plan for a split second and that was all it took to create carnage! The field had slowed right up as always and I ran into the back of Simon Quinlan on his ZX10 launching us both up the track, devastated!

I came to rest next to the barrier in a whole world of pain and couldn’t get up. Seems I can’t even begin a race now before it all goes wrong for me. I was put on a spine board and taken to the med centre; I had sustained neck injuries so they put me in a neck brace and whisked me off to Leighton hospital in Crewe. A CT scan and X-ray revealed that I had compressed 6th and 7th vertebrae in my neck, quite worrying really, all I kept doing was wiggling my fingers and toes making sure the unthinkable hadn’t happened. For a short time after that I thought that was it for my racing career, it was a biggy.

All this on the day Kaz decided to bring Hayden and Chloe to see their dad race for the first time which I was made up about, only to put her through hell. They say racing is a very selfish sport and I am certainly guilty of that but I couldn’t see my life without it. It is like a drug and I’ve got a nasty habit to feed.

Fortunately I’m recovering well after the tumble, thank god I had my chest plate on as I think I’d have smashed more than a few ribs. I will be back on the bike as soon as I’m fit, the parts are sourced and the bike rebuilt.

I would sincerely like to apologise to Simon for causing him terrible injuries and damaging his bike, we have spoken on the phone and he is upbeat, positive and holds no grudges which is highly commendable given the circumstances. Wish you a speedy recovery fella. Visit his website www.quinlanracing.co.uk to see his pictures.

In a bizarre twist of fate, I was unable to go to Turkey with the superbike school due to my injuries but the school was eventually cancelled due to no flights being allowed to leave the UK thanks to that volcano ash! The guys wasted days of travelling to France, sitting in airports trying to fly from there, going from city to city with no joy. Heads dropped they conceded defeat and returned home by any means possible, gutted for them and glad I didn’t have to endure that too, every cloud!

Now, next on the cards was the Aintree test day followed by Aintree round 1 on the 15th of May but there’s no way I’ll make that so I’ll try and return to the Wirral 100 round 3 back at Anglesey, fingers crossed.

Finally, I’d like to say a massive thank you to everyone that helped at Oulton Park, my friends and supporters, the marshals and medical staff and particularly to Kaz for her tolerance and unconditional support x, it would be a very different story without you all…

Please keep in touch via the contact section and I hope to see you all next time out…