2012 RIDER BLOG: Steve Mercer

[Admin]

Hi All

This is the first time I've done this sort of thing, so, sorry in advance for any errors!

Now some of you might be wondering why I’m on my own Honda and not on the Ducati. Well, firstly I'd like to say that I've not had a fall out with JMF or anything like that - in fact I really got on well with James and the lads.


Image: Jackie Henry - Scarborough

However, as the season started, I was getting very worried at how long things were taking to arrive from Ducati and I hadn't been able to do any testing. I didn't want to go to the TT unprepared, as last year was really last minute, and I felt my performance at the TT was below what I was capable of, as a result. Anyway that's why I decided to go my own way and as it happened WA Corless/Jackson Racing offered me another chance to ride for them this year. They are a great team and we got on really well last year, not only at the TT but also for the rest of the year, which worked really well and we got some good results.

So that's where I am now and it's been fantastic so far. We were at Scarborough for the first Road Race of the year where we finished 3rd in the first superbike race and 1st in the main feature race, winning the Ian Watson Spring Cup. Then last weekend it was off to Cookstown - I've not done that event before and again it was most enjoyable. I qualified 12th or 13th on the grid (I can't quite remember). The first race was mega fun - it amazes me how fast you can ride those bikes around such narrow country lanes. Surely it can’t be legal??!! I finished 8th in that race which was not bad for my first visit. In the final superbike race I finished 14th having run on at the start/finish road end, whilst lying 7th, so that was a bit of a shame but hey, that's racing. Hopefully next year I can go back with a year's experience and try running further up the front.


Image: Joe Connolly - Cookstown 100

Next stop will be the TT - I've got some testing to do on the Superstock bike beforehand and I've also now got a Supertwin to ride - I've never even sat on one, so that should be fun. Also, we're hoping to get a 600 ready. It would be great to have the fleet as I've always felt hindered by the lack of track time only having a superbike, so if all that comes off it will be mega and hopefully we'll have a good chance in the TT Privateer Championship. I'll keep you updated and let you know how the testing goes…

Thanks for reading
Steve Mercer

[Admin]

Sorry for the delay once again. I've not really done much lately and only had one ride since the TT so that's why I've not been on here. After the TT I pretty much had to park my bike and get my head down to earn some money and catch up on credit cards, etc….

As always the TT was mega even though it did piss hard most of the time. The highlight of my fortnight was finishing 12th in the Superbike race with a new personal best lap of 126.363mph, which I was really happy with. The bike was mega, definitely the best bike I've ever ridden around there so that makes it even more gutting that I haven’t been able to race much this year.


Image: Steve Corlett - TT

I only had one moment all fortnight and that was during Wednesday evening's practice session when a slower rider moved over on me on the way into Ballaugh Bridge. It was just one of those things. I was trying to go up the inside before the bridge but he moved over to where I wanted to be and although I scrubbed off as much speed as I could, I just ran out of room. I clipped the railings which put me out of shape before take-off and when I landed I was even more out of shape so just bailed off the thing. I banged my hand a bit but nothing to worry about and luckily the bike was ok too, suffering only a broken footpeg and slightly damaged fairing.

I also had a run out on a Supertwin, which was a lot of fun. Compared to the Superbike though, it felt so slow and we nicknamed it ‘The Donkey’! I just buzzed around on it and although I was never in contention for a top ten position, I finished and got a fairly decent result out of it.

The only downside of this year’s TT was no Senior race. I was totally gutted that it got cancelled as I didn’t really push that hard in the Superbike race as I was steadily building my speed up ready for the big race. I knew there was more to come from me but hey, safety must come first and there's always next year...

My plan after the TT was to contest a few more road races like the S100, Ulster GP, Scarborough and Armoy and knew I could have bettered my results of previous years as the bike was flying but, like I say, I simply ran out of money. The credit card had taken a hammering and I just couldn’t justify getting into more debt. So, reluctantly, I had to sit those races out and plough myself into work. I’m a steel erector for Network Rail and the London Underground so, what with the Olympics being on and all that, I’ve been flat out and working as much as I can to earn some cash and clear the debts!

I had a race round Brands GP in the British Championship last weekend for a team called DPM on a Suzuki in Stock 1000 which was the first time I'd been on a bike since the TT. I had tried to forget about racing this year to save the pain but when Howard from DPM called me I had to do it and after about two laps I remembered how much I love this sport.

Considering how long I’d been off the bike – 4 months - the weekend went really well even though I did slide off in the race. Most of you will know how competitive the Superstock 1000cc class is and there was only something like 1.5s covering the top 20 at Brands but we were always in the top 15 and in warm up we were up to fifth.

It was a good boost and a good platform for when I race in Macau next month which I am really looking forward to. I’m joining up with Stephen Thompson so I’m sure it will be good fun as well but if I can get into the top ten, I’ll be well happy. As for next year, I have no set plans yet but will keep you posted. Hopefully with some mega overtime I'll be back out there.

Cheers
Steve