NW200 – Gutted

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Photo: Alan Armstrong Photography

I’m gutted not to have won either of the Superbike races and a double was definitely within my grasp. In the first race the brakes began to fade at half race distance and I had now way of adjusting them. My dad had made a special bracket for the span adjuster, but because of the crash at Brands last weekend we didn’t have time to fit a new one. I was strongest on the brakes but after that I had to make do and there was no way of getting back past Rutter.

In the second Superbike race I got a great start and was just away at the front doing my own thing. It’s never easy but I felt really comfortable and not like I was trying too hard. The race was just coming to me. I had a couple of slides and the red light came on the dash so I knew that was the end of the race for me. A hose clip had broken and the water hose blew off. It’s nobody’s fault.

Because of that I was really fired up for the last race of the day, the second Supersport 600 race. We were struggling for a bit of top end speed at the moment, I was trying to make time up through all of the corners.

I went into Black Hill determined to get a good drive along the coast road but the front end tucked under and it chucked me off. I feel a bit second hand at the moment but I’ll be fit for the TT. It’s been a bit of an up and down day but we can take many positives out of the meeting and I’m as strong as anyone on the Superbike. It’s better to have bad luck here rather than at the TT, so let’s hope I can get the number one spot there.