Simon Baggett

I have been riding motorcycles for years, on and off the track, but it's not until you finally go racing that you realise how little you really know. The learning curve is very steep and can be rather overwhelming sometimes. Even with a few mates around you to help with the bike, you can't help but begin to question whether the things you are doing are right. This is where I am so glad I met Jeremy.
When you start out your racing life at the ACU licence test day for your (CTC) Competence to Compete course, you are assigned an instructor. I was most fortunate to get Jeremy as my instructor. He gave me his personal phone number and said "call me any time you need some help".. I couldn't quite believe that someone was that keen to help me, and I could see he was keen...you can see it in his eyes!
As my first race meeting approached, I got an e-mail from Jeremy asking to call him to let him know where he could find me once I had got to the circuit, so he could come and check to see if I was ok and if there was anything he could do to help....well there certainly was.
I had the benefit of having traveled to all the previous seasons races supporting a friend, so I had half an idea of how the weekend ran and what to expect. Even so Jeremy rang me and came to my pit to make sure I was doing ok. There was plenty to ask of him and the advice came flowing over to me. All kinds of questions were answered and the best thing for me is to have someone back up your own train of thought. This has given me a load of confidence. To actually have someone say .."that's right, but also maybe you should think about it this way.." is fantastic.
even basic stuff like what tyre pressures you should run on any given set of conditions, is surprisingly good advice. It's amazing how many people get that wrong.
The learning curve is endless and as ex-British Champion, Mike "spike" Edwards once said to me ..."even as you pass the age of 40, you never stop learning"
I sincerely mean it when I say Jeremy is a top instructor. You get no ego or I am better than you attitude. Just One sincere guy who genuinely wants to help and you will see he can't hide his enthusiasm and level of pleasure that he gets out of seeing you do better.
In my first race weekend I remember lining up for the start ,right at the back, when I heard a voice shouting from the pit wall "GO ON SIMON!"...I thought, who the hell could that be?... it was Jeremy......I was mid pack by the first corner!

Simon Baggett
Thunderbikes # 67
www.projectfz750racer.blogspot.com