Diary of a rookie racer

Racing is often regarded as a young man's sport. Justin Offland, however, is bucking that trend and has built a brand new race machine from scratch, to start racing at the age of 41

By the time most reach their 40s, the majority of those who participate in scooter racing are possibly thinking of retiring or already have done so. At the age of 41, some may think it is a bit late to get started, but why not if you are fit and have the hunger to compete? Justin Offland has entered the ‘production class’, which since its introduction in 2016 has proved to be a huge success. With the grid constantly growing, it has proved to be the best way to attract new blood to the sport. With everyone on similar machinery, it is a more level playing field, showcasing the rider's skills rather than who has the most powerful engine or biggest budget.

Starting out on your own can be a difficult challenge, but Justin has secured the help of SRP Racetech. Under the guidance of Paul Baker on the mechanical side and the vast experience of Stuart Day as a rider, they will help immensely with the strong learning curve that lies ahead. Happy to be part of a successful team means a lot to Justin, and he hopes to make them proud by doing his talking on the track. He accepts opportunities like this don't come along easily and appreciates the support they are giving him.

Test outing

To get up to speed with the challenge ahead the decision was made to get in some important track time in early pre-season testing. By doing so, this allowed him to get a better understanding of the bike characteristics, whilst also having the chance to sort out any niggling problems it may have. Building one up from scratch, often there will always be one or two things that need sorting. The first test outing was at Mallory Park in February, which is not an official BSSO event, just a general track day. By going out on his own, without other scooters present, it was hoped to be a gentle introduction, even though the track was full of motorbikes. Even so, with conditions dry and sunny, Justin proved to be no slouch, keeping up and sometimes overtaking those on similar capacity machines. These actions stirred plenty of interest within the paddock, with many surprised by the pace of the Lambretta and keen to see what engine lay underneath the side panels. A member of the SRP team was on hand to guide Justin both with gearing options and any mechanical maintenance if required. With everything performing flawlessly, nothing needed altering and all present were in agreement that the day’s testing couldn’t have gone any better.

Winning formula

Justin’s first few laps during practice were quite tentative. This was only to be expected as he got to grips with the layout of the track. With a best lap time of 2.26 minutes, there was definitely room for improvement. After a few pointers from the more experienced members of the SRP team, an astonishing 10-second improvement was made during qualifying.

In race one on the Saturday, it soon became apparent that things were getting even better with his fastest lap of the weekend recording 2.12, a considerably marked improvement over the early practice session. Not only that, but finishing in sixth position in the class. Sunday faired just as well in race two, with a seventh place finish. Race three was slightly disappointing due to a clutch failure on the last lap, but even he limped home to finish in eigth position. With a heavy downpour after the first couple of laps in the final race he nearly lost control exiting Hawthorn bend. This was definitely a wake-up call not to get too complacent, having had such a good start to his career.

The next full race meeting is at Mallory Park, which Justin hopes will give him an advantage, already having had track experience there. With the success of his first meeting now under his belt, hopefully this will be the case.

Speaking to Justin, he was keen to point out that this is no flash in the pan and he hopes to continue in the sport for many years to come. He pointed out that the production class was a vital part in him taking the plunge into scooter racing, proving it is a winning formula. Hopefully, when others thinking about having a go at scooter racing see his exploits, this will be the catalyst for them joining in.

Everyone at Scootering magazine wishes Justin all the best for his rookie season in the BSSO production class, and we will be keeping a close eye on his progress throughout the year. Words: Stu Owen