Stepping up to the mi-bike Motorcycle Insurance Australian Superbike Championship, presented by Motul (ASBK) in the Motorsports TV Supersport class was always going to be a tall order for Race Center’s Tim Large, however it’s a task that has become all that more difficult after a troublesome couple of weeks.
Tim was forced to abandon the recent Winton test after only a handful of laps due to a bad case of gastro. Despite needing the valuable laps, Tim just didn’t have the energy to ride and the Race Center team pulled the pin on the test. After looking like things were slowly on the improve Tim’s condition took a turn for the worse and he was hospitalised this weekend just past. A prolonged period of pain, no energy or ability to eat and drink forced him into hospital.
Tim was released on Sunday night at which that time we were preparing to pull out of this coming weekend’s round at Winton Motor Raceway. Despite it presenting a great opportunity for Tim to sample this big step up in competition, he just was not well enough and too weak to consider riding. We decided to leave the decision until Wednesday night and we are very pleased to report Tim has improved quite a bit and he will be racing this weekend 😊
In only his 2nd full season of road racing, stepping up to national level will be a very big step for Tim but it will also be a great experience for him. In 2021 he will only be doing selected rounds and will be on older Yamaha R6 machinery as we use it as a learning year for Tim and his crew with the eye to doing a full season on new equipment in 2022.
For us a Race Center it is a bit of a re-birth into national racing and it’s really nice to be doing it in a structure where our main racing focus remains local level, grass roots racing including the VRRC, then providing a development path for riders to take the step up to ASBK. This n
ew structure also gives the opportunity for some of our VRRC riders to pit crew for Tim, this weekend we are extremely fortunate to have #82 Jake Drew accompanying Daz and Tim’s Dad Mick as our pit crew.
Our workshop will remain open on Friday even though the race team will be away with Saucy running the show accompanied by our new guy Josh, thanks boys!
For those interested in a attending or following this weekend’s action head to Round 2 – WINTON MOTOR RACEWAY (asbk.com.au) for ticketing, live timing and live streaming.
Wish us luck, and send Tim a nappy or 2 if you have them 😉
