I AM disappointed with my fifth place result from the opening round of the World Supersport Championship in Australia but at the same time I am happy with everything else.
I am happy with my speed, pace and the weekend overall. When my tyre started to go off I was able to control the situation and showed maturity to finish fifth with good points rather than maybe crash and score nothing. I made the best of a bad situation and those are the rides that will win me the World Championship; it’s all about the bad days.
To put it another way, if I had finished fifth in the races I did not finish in 2011 I would have finished a close runner up in the series.
The positives are really strong. My Bogdanka PTR Honda is faster than last year and is at the front in every department – no one has any advantage on us this year. I can’t wait to get to Imola and the start of the European races on 1st April.
I got home from Australia on the Monday and was in the gym on Tuesday and every day since. I am so fired up to get racing and winning, it is all I am focussing on.
I have even moved to Derby as it is right beside my gym. My girlfriend Sidonie and brother Alex have moved in with me and it is all good. I’ve been flat out moving – it’s like I have grown up now I am 21!
I’ve been down to a special training centre near Luton with Leon Haslam that works on full body cryogenics. That is where you sit in a room like a sauna except it is the opposite at -148 degrees celsius. It is good for your body and helps relaxation but after a while you feel really strange, I can tell you that.
I went in for a six minute stint today and Frank Bruno was there. He is still very ripped and fit and holds the record for the longest stay in the chamber – he’s managed 11-minutes. He was chatting away and I really had to concentrate on what he was saying because his voice is so deep. Great bloke and what a boxer in his day, I’d prefer to race him than fight him.
Apart from concentrating on fitness and moving I’ve been to Brighton to visit D3O, the people that make the armour for Furygan race suits. It is clever stuff that is softer than most armour but spreads the impact to protect you. They wanted my feedback on the armour, fitting, comfort and I was really pleased to be able to help. They will have new armour tailor made for me for Imola at the end of the month so I’m looking forward to seeing the difference in fit and comfort when riding.
That’s it for now, see you at the races and I’ll check in again soon.
Sam Lowes
Bogdanka PTR Honda
