Thruxton – 4th Round BSB and Supersport Cup 28th/29th/30th May

Thruxton has been the hardest weekend yet.

There is no secret in the fact that so far this season we have been a little down on BHP with the Double ‘M’ racing Yamaha and with the very fast nature of the Thruxton circuit, it really showed.

I had expected this though and I was happy to push hard in each session to try to stay in touch with the fastest of the Supersport Cuppers. With it being a bank holiday Monday race, we were on circuit for practice and qualifying on Saturday and Sunday with the sprint race on Sunday too.

Saturday and Sunday stayed dry. I was able to secure 6th on the grid for the Cup and 25th in the main championship. Obviously I was not pleased with that and I realised I would have to have a very good race to reach the Cup podium but it didn’t go all my way. I got a good start in the race and was in a reasonable position. On lap three I was pushed wide at the final chicane and lost over 3.5 seconds, allowing four riders to pass. The red mist came down and I was able to re-pass all these riders to finish the sprint race in 22nd, 4th in the Cup. A little disappointed to have finished off the podium but content with the points.

It was very wet for race two on Monday. I got off to a great start and was able to lead the race for the Supersport Cup from start to finish! This also meant p14 in the main Championship class. I felt much better after this race as up until this point my results had been average with the lack of power.

So overall, the weekend was again a success and I am now 3rd in the Supersport Cup just 12 point behind the leader. The next Round is at Knockhill on 18th and 19th June where I will be looking for some top results. I have also been informed that with a new engine for this event, we will have more power too! A big thanks to my tech Alan Bennie for his persistence and all of our sponsors, Double M Racing, Horsetiger, Motorcycle Law Scotland, Charlie Johnston, Bike Paints and GB Racing and  for their continued support!

David wins BSB Supersport Cup on both days at Croft

I am happy now that I have some good solid points on the board after Croft BSB! The whole weekend we were under constant threat from wet weather. It was very difficult to predict and this made for some last minute tyre decisions and changes. Thankfully we were not caught out and the team were on the ball for each session. Qualifying went well, unlike the previous round at Oulton! I was able to secure top spot in the Cup and 20th overall.

The first race was my most enjoyable of the season so far. I was able to mix it with a lot of the main championship contenders throughout the race even although they were clearly on superior bikes… I won the Supersport cup and finished 16th overall.

Sunday again was overcast and no one was sure if it would be wet or dry. Thankfully we raced in dry conditions with no rain showers, unlike the Superbike class where there were several incidents. In this race I feel I could have been more aggressive than I was and I definitely plan on working on this at the next round. I slipped to 18th in the main championship race but was able to secure the win again in the Cup… and another 25 points.

I’d like to say a huge thanks to the team for all their efforts over the weekend as I know it was not easy! Also a big thanks for the support provided by my sponsors, Motorcycle Law Scotland, Double ‘M’ Oilfield Services, Charlie Johnston and Horsetiger. Without their loyal support all this would not  be possible.

9/10th April – Croft NEMCRC

Well, what a weekend! This weekend I had my first outing on the Double ‘M’ Racing Yamaha R6. From Friday to Sunday we had beautiful weather, warm and sunny, making it perfect racing conditions. The first few sessions on the bike I used to familiarise myself with the 600cc machine after having ridden the 1000cc bike over 2010. It wasn’t long before I was comfortable on the bike and able to get close to the Supersport Cup lap times! For me I looked at the whole weekend as a shakedown test although there were several races. I was happy to have won these races and especially the Ken Redfern Trophy race as this is a very prestigious trophy with names such as Ian Simpson, Jim Moodie and Brian Morrison on it… to name but a few. It was a very positive weekend and it provided a good amount of track time.

 

I am now happy with the way the Yamaha is set up and I am looking forward to my first round of the British Championship at Oulton Park. I’d like to say a big thanks to everyone who has supported me and also to all my helpers over the weekend. Well done to the NEMCRC for a very well-run race meeting.