Parts Canada Superbike Championship runner-up Andrew Nelson is competing in the New Zealand Tri-Series this month and providing Inside Motorcycles with periodic updates on his progress. Here is the Ottawa racer's first submission.
By Andrew Nelson
We have completed the first round of the 'Tri-Series.' There is some amazing talent here and without a doubt in my mind the top 12 racers can come to Canada and be a force in our Superbike class.
We had a Friday practice, which was a chance for me to become more acquainted to the track and my Yamaha YZF-R1, and just the whole structure of how they run this series. The track itself is new -- just over a year old -- and is quite a joy to ride.
The first session was an eye-opener as virtually every other racer had just finished their last race about three weeks earlier in either the Australian Superbike Championship or the New Zealand Winter Series. Needless to say everyone was very fresh and up to speed right away, and I somewhat looked out of place after not being on a bike in just over four months.
Saturday morning came around, we had one qualifying session, which was 15 minutes long. I managed to qualify 11th in a field of 29 riders.
The first race was short, only 12 laps and about 15 minutes, so the first few laps were very intense as every rider was jockeying for position. This was somewhat hard for me to get used to so I kind of sat back and watched them file out over the first few laps. In doing so I lost touch with most of the guys but still finished 11th.
I knew what I was in for in the second race of the day and turned it into a sprint race. I rode hard, and ran wide a bunch of times trying to make my way past a few guys, which looked quite stylish as I was nice and sideways a few times. I had to fight back hard in the last six laps and worked my way up to 10th at the checkered, narrowly beating Tony Rees, who is a multi-time champion here in New Zealand.
We are now preparing for the second weekend and head out today for the big event. Continual upgrades to the R1 are done, so I am looking forward to a stronger finish, as most of my rust is polished off.
If you want to follow along the info can be found on www.nzsbk.com.
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