Gary Johnson
You might have read last month that I had a bit of an off at Brands Hatch and fractured a vertebrae, well with the help of my mate Aiden at the ITRM Chiropractic Clinic in Doncaster I managed to get myself fully fit in time for the Macau GP, in China.
We went out to the Philippines for a bit before we got to Macau and had a look round a few temples and stuff. It was nice to sample a bit of culture but it meant when we did arrive in Macau it was straight on it. The first session was a bit of a crash-fest and a couple of the newcomers ended up taking some fairly big smashes, leaving them in a hospital bed in China. It looks like they will make a full recovery but it wasn’t the best way for any of us to start the Macau GP and certainly not the best start to their Macau GP careers.
It was a shame to miss a load of laps in the first session as we had made some alterations to the superbike since I last had a ride on it in June: we have moved the angle of the headstock so it’s altered ride heights and stuff. It took a bit of time to get the set up suited to this circuit, but we got there in the end.
We were on the pace pretty quickly, qualifyting in fifth in the first one and then in second qualifying managed to get to fourth. I was actually sitting third all the way until the very last second when some kid on a Ducati called Martin Jessop pipped me to third – he is always going to be able to do that on a factory bike though, I don’t think he would be able to do it otherwise!
Anyway I got a decent start in the race and was third on the opening lap. I was really strong round half the track but struggled a bit round the other half with a bike that didn’t seem as suited to the fast stuff. It was only a matter of time before Martin and Danny Webb came past me.
But all in all it was a really good race. I was in fifth place when the red flag came out for Ben Wylie and Phill Crowe’s crash and a result was declared. I think Ben has taken a bit of a battering so I hope he gets well soon. Phil jumped over the wall, which was kind of lucky for the wall as he would have made a right dent in it, if he’d have hit it!
After the racing we ended up having a fantastic night out partying. There was a huge party that everyone attended, it was absolutely crazy and I had to have a steady one the following day (and night).
I’m out in Thailand now where the lads have had three days cruising round, taking in what Thailand has got to offer (not that though), and now we are about to head back to the Philippines where I plan to have a relaxing time with the girlfriend who is on her way out. We have some other friends meeting us too so it should be a really good way to round off the Macau GP.
I’ve got a bit of down time when I get home but not for long as I’m doing some work for Triumph with their new scrambler, which should be a good laugh. In the meantime though, I’m going to enjoy getting my feet up.