Teenage race ace Aaron Clarke is to make the step up to the National Superstock 600 class for the 2014 season.
The 18-year-old Kirton rider, who enjoyed great success in the Bemsee Club Championship last year, is bidding to follow in the footsteps of fellow Lincolnshire racer Ben Wilson.
The teenager is a student at Lincoln College, where he studies Sports Development and Exercise. But motorcycle racing has always played an important part in his life. Indeed, Clarke spent a lot of time riding distances on his mountain and road bikes before progressing to motorbikes – where he competed at various events, including Sandracing at Mablethorpe.
Living in the same village as local legend Wilson, Clarke has watched him progress over the years and, encouraged by his success, made his own road racing debut in 2012 in the Rapid Solicitors National Junior Cup on a Kawasaki 250 Ninja.
He finished an impressive sixth in the championship, before making the move up to a Kawasaki ZX-R 600. Clarke then found more success in the Bemsee Club championship, where he secured a number of race wins and podium finishes.
Clarke said: “I now feel the time is right for me to have a stab at the National Superstock championship which runs as a support class to the British Superbike series.
“To help me with my fitness I now have a personal trainer, Jimmy Woods, who is putting me through my paces to ensure I am at peak fitness for the forthcoming challenge.
“I have already taken in a couple of track days at Cadwell Park in preparation for the new campaign and was pleased with my performance on both occasions.
“This will be a huge learning curve for me and I am under no illusions as to the quality of the opposition. For the first couple of rounds I will aim my sights at qualifying for the race and then do my best to finish as well as possible. Once this had been achieved I can then look at progressing up the field and into the points.”
The Superstock 600 championship is run over 12 rounds to include a round as support to the World Superbike championship at Donington Park.
The full calendar is as follows: R1 – April 18/19/20/21 – Brands Hatch Indy; R2 – May 3/4/5 May – Oulton Park; R3 – May 23/24/25 – Donington Park – WSBK; R4 – June 13/14/15 – Snetterton 300; R5 – June 27/28/29 – Knockhill; R6 – July 18/19/20 – Brands Hatch GP; R7 – August 1/2/3 – Thruxton; R8 – August 8/9/10 – Oulton Park; R9 – August 23/24/25 August -Cadwell Park; R10 – September 5/6/7 September – Donington Park GP; R11 – October 3/4/5 – Silverstone GP; R12 – October 17/18/19 – Brands Hatch GP.
