Fast times

There's nothing like watching from the sidelines to motivate you!  

Seeing Broc Parks podium his Kawasaki every race at Brands after I beat him at
World  Superbikes at Donington Park infuriated myself and the team.Not in a bad way, just 
by how well they did  and we knew we could run with them.

Michael (Rutter) did well considering he had no testing or practice and jumped on my 
bike for some top 10 action and still brought it back  safely after so many
people crashed over the weekend.

Brands Hatch was a very important weekend due to it being Kawasaki's  
25th year anniversary of the Ninja and MSS Colchester Kawasaki once  
again teamed up with Confused.com for another round which was all  
great news. I was at Brands to help Michael and Julien with support  
and any issues they may have but to also give away a new ZX-10RR in  
Kawasaki's and Confused.com draw on race day.

David Parker my new trainer from Body 4 You came for the weekend which  
was good as I trained with him around the circuit every time I should  
of been out riding. As I've had three weeks off I wanted to replicate the  
strain of racing on my body and the time restraints I get between  
sessions, PR and to fit food and drink in at the right times.

For the second superbike race I enjoyed some banter with James Whitham and  
Jack Burnicle commentating on Eurosport which I had good feedback from, even though 
I swear I dont sound like that in real life (yes you do - DM).

This week I'm running around catching up on meetings and launching  
another Si-Andrews T-shirt which will be on sale on my website next  
week and also sold on the Kawasaki clothing stall at BSB rounds.

The nice weather has helped my hand move a little better so I'm planning  
on getting out to Europe somewhere to help speed up the recovery.

See you at Cadwell!

Firstly a big thank you to Ryan Thorpe and Good as late Friday evening at Mallory Park I received a call asking if I was still in  need of a surgeon. After nearly giving up on finding, or at least getting hold of a surgeon, Ryan organised an appointment with one of the very best hand surgeons in Europe.

Mallory was eventful. We missed most of first practice with teething problems then couldn't get a decent time on my number one bike. We switched back to our kit bike and swapped a few parts on Saturday which put us back in the game.

We got knocked back to sixth on the last lap of superpole which is a weakness on my part but I was still happy as we did our time on race tyres. It felt really easy which is the best feeling on Earth being able to ride at the front without feeling like you're having to work hard for it.

Pretty sure most of you watched the race so I won't go into detail but it was such a nice feeling to get to the front and push hard. I've led  and won races in Superport, which was a few years ago, but you never forget!
With eight laps left I got taken out by Josh Brookes... It happens and it could of been a lot worse for both of us, so I'm just happy that when thing went bad they actually went well!

I left straight after the second race to go back home to swap vehicles and drive straight to ST Elisabeth Hospital in Nederrji, Belgium. I had to drive as I couldnt fly back after the operation. Once I arrived at lunchtime with Jo, who was suppose to be my driver for the return journey but wasn't because she "can't drive on the wrong side of the road", they got to work with X-rays and scans, and then proceeded to operate within the next hour which the surgeon was happy with.

Four days later cut off the cast to ride a Kawasaki GPZ900 for a magazine shoot but also to try to get the hand moving and stopping it from seizing once the swelling had gone down. Considering we're currently on a three-week break, I've done 1500miles travelling to Ipswich for oxygen and laser therapy, London, Lincoln and Nottingham for meetings and Belgium twice... so much for a holiday!

I'm looking forward to Brands Hatch just for a rest.

I've got to be signed fit to race again by the medical staff at Brands as it's only 18 days after having a two-inch screw put in my hand. All being well I'll be out there putting the ZX-10R Ninja back where it deserves  
to be, at the front.

Wish me luck, I am going to need a lot of it this weekend!

Over & Out Si

WSBK at Donington was a mixed weekend for us. We struggled with getting close to our BSB lap time and I was up working on every possible angle until I ended up falling asleep on one of the team's laptops. I'm proud of the guys for working so hard and keeping the faith.

Well it's been a whirl wind of an adventure!

I'm so used to keeping myself busy with my business and training after all these years of being in a small team, I've been taken by surprise how much press, PR and media work I now do for MSS Colchester and  Kawasaki. (That's my excuse for taking so long to update my column)

I'ts a wonderful feeling being able to repay Nick and my guys, and also Kawasaki UK, for helping me and working so hard at the weekends for to get everything in place.

I'm also still adjusting to people knowing who I am, so make sure you wave as I just scoot along missing everyone, or alternativley a big high five will do it.

Kawasaki have been great people to work for. I was quite nervous after leaving a small one-rider team built around me, but I think it's turned out really well and I'm working so hard day and night helping with  
everything I can which I think will pay off and also shows in our results!

Thruxton was a great weekend as a little bad luck placed us 10th but managed to get back to have a fourth and sixth, Snetterton we were fastest all day friday and top three saturday until the weather cancelled our  
final session which was for the best as no tyre could work in those conditions.... It was nice to talk to all the team managers and be actually be listened to.

We had some rubbish luck with a few tyre issues and front forks braking placing me 10th and 11th... but on the other hand first time I've ever topped the time sheets in BSB and all these problems happened before World Superbikes, so every cloud has a silver lining!

I left the track went straight into training and physio for the wrist I've injured a while ago, I had my niece's birthday party yesterday, Charity Golf tournament and dinner tonight and then drive through the night with my motorhome to Donington Park. I then have to come home to pack my truck, then back to the circuit thursday morning for a riders' press meeting.

It's a good thing supermarkets are open 24hrs now as need everything  for Knockhill the week after as I won't have time to go home.

WSBK here we come! I can't wait and I'm fully fired to prove myself and  that MSS Colchester Kawasaki can whip some world guys.

Have fun

Si

I'm currently sat in my local hospital car park writing this after another check up on my shoulder, it's slowly getting better but not being able to give it the rest needed from training is prolonging the recovery time... but it is getting better which is nice to know before I go into Donington Park.

Oulton Park hard work! You get easy weekends when you can turn up and be in a good position and some weekends you have to really fight to be there. That was me. My crash in race one, and whole load of problems from start to finish of the weekend, was leading us around in circles which can happen all too easily with modern superbikes but something often over-looked is going back to basics.

Six minute before being knocked out of our first pole session we concentrated on the chassis rather than anything else and it paid off. OK we were being knocked from third to fifth after the flag, but it was the best quali MSS Colchester Kawasaki has had.

We all left Oulton with mixed emotions because as a team we had poor results but the race came to us easily and running in third for both races gave us all hope and excitement that the work everyone has done has worked and there is still so much more to come as the year  
unfolds.

Following the weekend of Oulton Park, I found myself with the ex-minister of transport Steven Ladyman riding around the Thundersprint in Nantwich with his charity CALM which is for young people suffering with depression. We both had a great day relaxing in the sun, riding through town and racing around the sprint course but also having time to catch up with all the people who turned up to watch the racing.

I also got asked to open the new Racers' Bar at the Thistle Hotel Brands Hatch... Apparently they wanted a celebrity bike racer. So I asked them why they had called me! Still, is was a good day which gave me the opportunity to learn about pulling pints, which is a lot harder than it looks.

I've got my bike theory test in two hours which I'm excited about and will be telling every about at Donington if I pass. See you at the track!
 

ONE DOWN, 11 TO GO

It's amazing how much training we do, the miles and the hours at a time we're out, but nothing can prepare your body for being race fit.

The weather in Le Mans was a fantastic 20-degrees and we had two solid days OF testing from 9am-6pm with an open pit-lane so even with four riders I still managed a couple of hundred laps.

The first day was spent learning the track and getting up to speed then testing tyres with different fuel loads. Le Mans is a great track with a wonderful sixth-gear first corner which flows into a second-gear chicane. Long, sweeping corners going up and down hill which is fun and fluid to ride.

After full day's riding the rest of the night was spent dining at the  
hotel and getting to know all the people in the GSR Kawasaki team which is always fun when some don't speak English and my French isn't great either.

Day two was setting up the bike with many hand signals and bike noises or asking Julien to try to translate for me. The first corner is so fast it really took most of the day building my confidence to take it flat-out, which was where I was losing all my time.

I had to leave early that day as only one train left Le Mans for the airport so after lunch I was given most of the afternoon to play and get up to speed, my last stint was on a new rear tyre and worn front, which is fine around the cambered corners but hard work on flats.

I finished fourth overall and our team was 2nd in actual combined times so I left feeling very positive and more confident about not only completing the 24-HOUR but finishing well.

Im back in the UK now packing for 2 UK tests with MSS Colchester Kawasaki and more aching.

ALL SYSTEMS GO

I've had a great week so far! I have been approached by a new sponsor whilst having tea and biscuits at the garage where I keep my drift car and then introduced to another which is a big international business.

After that I signed my life away to my new management company ca:sm sports management which is run by a great guy called Charlie who now looks after all my legal work and management meetings, so I'm looking forward to him being able to finalise talks with all the people I have sorted out but not had time to meet.

Nick and the MSS Colchester Kawasaki boys have done a great job in making the BSB bikes look über-trick! I even have my own plaque on the top yoke! Simple things I suppose! 

I'm currently in Paris terminal two transfering from the airport to Le Mans by train for my first test of the year. It's great having Julien as my  team mate in BSB as gives me a chance to understand him better and use him as my translator as my French is only useful up in the mountains.

Training has been great fun since arriving back in the UK. I've done lots of weight training, boxing and cage fighting training with a great friend of mine who is British champ. Well it's fun until the bruises come out! Got punched in the face a few times and walked into one straight to the forehead! We couldn't stop laughing!

The new Si Andrews T-shirts for this season are finished and in production ready for sale shortly from my website also Colchester Kawasaki are putting me through my bike test at there new training centre which has just opened at the shop.

I've got two days here testing before heading home to fly out to Spain with MSS Colchester Kawasaki for BSB testing.

Pin it to win it!

IT'S NEARLY HOME TIME

I just got my first French parking ticket which was an experience when I went to pay the fine, it went like this and only could this happen in France!

Me;             where do I pay for this please?

Policeman: Vous are English, oui?

Me;             Oui!

Policeman: Vous ave English plates on your motor home?

Me;            Oui!

Policeman: Vous ave 45 day before it need paying and you be gone by then!

Me;            Oui!

Policeman: Pour quoi bother it will be too expensive to chase for the money!

Me;            Would you like me to move from the car park?

Policeman: Un car park is un car park, you move forward a metre, back a meter,     sidwards a metre then you are not parked!

Me;            Merci beaucoup

So that’s what I’m doing, what a great view on life!  

After a great season in 2008 with Lloyds British Jentin Yamaha, I couldn’t wait for a break but I also needed to keep on top of my training as it’s hard to get the regime re-started after too much time off.
 
So, following the Qatar World Endurance Race and various sponsors’ Christmas parties but also keep on top with my training as its too much work getting started after a rest period so thought I would combine the two and clear off to the French Alps.
 
Before I left, I spent Christmas Eve with a good friend of mine and his family for the second year in succession and then Christmas lunch with all my family – which is always fun due to my little niece having her birthday on the same day!

I spent Boxing Day training and and packing all kit, clothing and equipment along with bikes and snowboards! January in this country is always a bad month for weather and sometimes it’s dangerous to train with cycling in slippery or even icy conditions as my trainer knows from last year (he went over the handle bars in a big crash down a hill).

So, this is why I wanted to incorporate a holiday/break away from everything this year as a way of pressing a reset button ready for training, racing and my new team.

On December 28 I was packed and ready to leave, so I said goodbye to everyone at home and drove to Meribel up on the Alps in the south of France.  It took 12 hours with my silly sat nav taking me in every possible wrong direction but I eventually made it. I was here last year for a week’s holiday and met some great friends but couldn't stay.

Rob at Freeride has provided all my cross-country ski kit, snowshoes and trains with myself most days. Rhian, his girlfriend, (Ski Physique) has provided free weights and training routes for my snow-running, Nick and Laura (Unique Powder Holidays) gave me a car to get around as it’s not easy getting to some remote places at which we train so I am getting by with a little help from my friends (that’s a good name a song…).
 
All this focused exercise and fresh air means I should be in great shape before I even get back to my trainer in the UK, let alone for when testing and racing begin.

I’ve been talking to my MSS Colchester Kawasaki crew chief most days about the bike and problems I feel I may encounter, and also solutions to them before they become problems!. Chris, Nick, Ian and the whole team are really excited to have me on-board, which is a great feeling and it’s nice to have a change of surroundings, I feel everything is coming together for the team.
 
It is not going to be an easy year by any stretch of the imaginations, but I love a challenge. I want to be able to say I worked hard for the whole season and got the most out of the Kawasaki ZX-10R by the time we finish up at Oulton Park.

Ive got a big hike tomorrow which will take most of the day and have Sunday off so I am having my first ski lesson in 11 years! I can remember how rubbish last winter was in the UK and after speaking to a few friends it’s not much different this year.
 
When you train every day, waking up to sunshine each morning really helps to keep you focused. It’s -8C most but with no wind it feels a lot warmer, especially with the sun reflecting off the snow. I’m having a great time and really happy I did it this year. It was hard to leave my family and friends behind but won’t be long till the season is on top of us all.

Bring it on.