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BACK IN THE GROOVE
Phillip Island
is one of my
favorite tracks
so I wasn't
surprised that
I qualified in
third-place
on the grid.
I expected
nothing less
than the
front row
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Team Joe Rocket Suzuki leads the
2009 ASBK Championship! That's
the heading I wanted to see...
The first round of the ASBK
Championship was held in
conjunction with the WSBK meeting
at Phillip Island and saw Josh Waters
leave with the points lead in the
championship after three fantastic
rides.
For me, the meeting was all about getting comfortable and
back into the groove on my GSX-R1000. There were a lot of
thoughts going through my head that I don't normally have before
a race like how to get a good start, passing maneuvers, being
aggressive into the first turn and not backing off. These thoughts
used to always come naturally for me!
Phillip Island is one of my favorite tracks so I wasn't surprised that
I qualified in third-place on the grid. I expected nothing less than
the front row. In the race it would be a different story however, as I
knew that my left foot was still quiet weak and I couldn't throw the
bike around where I needed to on the track. Changing direction was
also harder than I expected. Josh had a few problems in qualifying;
otherwise he would no doubt have been on the front row with me.
After feeling a little nervous and uneasy at the start of the first race
I ended up fourth behind Josh. I surprised myself by getting a great
start, and I didn't back off into the first turn. I had a lot of fun dicing
with the guys and at the flag I felt like a massive weight had been lifted
off my shoulders. I was comfortable on the bike and everything that I
used to do instinctively was coming back, thankfully.
Saturday's race didn't count in the points, but on Sunday morning
I awoke to rain. Unfortunately the track didn't dry out so I used my
spare bike, which was already set-up for the conditions with a full set
of wets and the suspension on softer settings.
I got a reasonable start in race two but had a few big slides, one
was in Doohan Corner where Josh went passed and the other was
exiting Southern loop as the track was slippery and unpredictable
when it finally started to dry out. Glenn Allerton and I traded places for
fourth, and I stayed behind him until the last lap, hoping to attack over
the line. Unfortunately a lapped rider got between us and I watched
Glenn cross the line in fourth, two bike lengths ahead of me. My
confidence really benefited from that race with all the near
misses that I had to contend with, as well as the
battle with Glenn. Congratulations to Josh
Waters, who took out his first ASBK
race by nearly seven seconds. I
know it won't be his last.
Our second race for
the day turned out
to be dry. I didn't get a bad
start but I was swamped in
between Doohan Corner
and Southern Loop; there
was a little bit of argy-bargy
going on!
By the end of the first lap
I was back in seventh but
on the fourth lap I managed
to pick off Dan Stauffer,
then Jamie on the next lap
and Coxhell the lap after.
I was in fourth with the
intention of stealing third from Josh, but again, a lapped rider hindered
my chase and I had to settle for fourth. With two fourth-places and
a fifth for the weekend I currently sit fourth in the championship.
Normally I would be a bit down with those results but I'm stoked. It's
been eight-months since I last raced and it feels unbelievable to be
back on my GSX-R1000.
The team was also very happy with our new supersport rider, Troy
Herfoss. In his first-ever race at Phillip Island he pushed the Team Joe
Rocket Suzuki GSX-R600 to fifth, sixth and fourth-place finishes in
his three races. He was a little unlucky not to finish higher up, but the
supersport races were very close and he really had to fight for those
positions. Troy's first weekend of racing was very impressive indeed.
Judd Greedy also did Suzuki proud with a first and two-secondplace
finishes onboard his GSX-R600 to walk away from Phillip Island
as the joint championship leader.
Team Joe Rocket Suzuki worked really hard all weekend to give me
an exceptional machine, and I'm really grateful for their support.
The second round of the ASBK Championship heads to sunny
Symmons Plains on April 3-5. We will be doing some testing at Winton
beforehand, which should help me immensely. Watch this space.
Gilesy
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