2023 Preseason is Almost Complete...

The month of February was action packed to say the least. It kicked off with the first PanAmerican Superbike race of 2023. It was held at Homestead Miami Speedway. I was looking forward to the weekend for a handful of reason:

• I was getting back into competition mode
• Some of my friends from NJMINIGP were coming down to ride
• I had some targets in mind that I wanted to work on and Homestead was the best track to do it on

The weather over the weekend wasn't the best. However, I needed to have mixed conditions training prior to my BTC season starting. That was one of my weak points last year. Being able to deal with a wet, then gradually drying track back to full wet is something I don't get to experience much. This weekend gave me exactly that. Being able to work through my mindset and focus is a tough adjustment for me. As I gained confidence in the machine and in my own riding ability, I was able to FEEL the bike and pavement more. My senses were very much heightened. I felt at one with the machine and began gaining more and more pace as well. 

Being able to go through the data on Saturday with SDK for his input but as well with my Microlise Cresswell Crew Chief Alan allowed me to be as best prepared for Sunday races as I could. Clearly the weather is out of our control but deep inside I wanted it to be wet again so I can get as much seat time as possible. Homestead is not a terrible wet track but definitely has its sketchy areas. Navigating those at pace really put me at ease and gave me some new found confidence as well. Made some great progress in the areas I was aiming for and left the track with more confidence then when I first arrived. 

The following weekend we headed out for the SFLMINIGP round 1 being held at Gainesville Raceway. This track is fast and flowing which makes it a blast. Sometimes situations happen in order to keep you progressing; once again the weather wasn't ideal but I refocused and took advantage of more mixed weather conditions to train on. I rode a variety of bikes this weekend from a Yamaha TTR125 on 16" DOT to an Ohvale GP2 on 12" slicks to a Honda 150R on 17" slicks and of course the Honda 450r Motard as well. 

Gainesville had much more grip than anticipated. Even on slicks I was able to rail through the corners and adjust to the slip  (Click for video) really well. It allowed me to push past limits I didn't know I had at times. It was awesome to experience and the confidence in the mixed conditions grew more. Still understanding that I can't push as hard as I do in the wet, but being able to feel the bikes move and understand what they are telling me so I can adjust made the weekend very successful. I missed out on the motard podium with SDK by 1 spot but I know where I lacked in pace and where I could of done better. The Motard class is definitely the closest form of racing for me to the BTC so I truly enjoy the hard fought battles. Always learning; there will be another shot I am sure. 

The weekend after we headed to my favorite track in Florida; JenningsGP for a private track day with some friends from up north. Being able to ride and train with Gus Rodio, Ben Gloddy & Joe Limandri  allows me to learn from the guys that are further along in the sport than I am. They have a ton of experience and we are all MINIGP Alumni's as well, so we work very well together. I got to train on the NSF and on the Zenith Performance CBR600 for the weekend. There was also some more mixed conditions early on in the weekend and I got to spend more time on the NSF working a different track with different feelings. 

We ended the month with a recon call with my physical and mental coach Michael Torres. We discussed our work through the month, preparations for my upcoming test in Spain with the team and how to prepare the mindset for the upcoming British Talent Cup season. Being able to work with Coach allows me a different perspective to my thoughts entering the season. We identify targets, adjust to conditions and aim to execute at our best. If you are ready to move up a level in those departments...click over his name and send him a message.

In March I head out to my test in Spain with the team. February has given me the opportunity to increase my confidence and feel on the bike in those mixed conditions which I needed. The UK is very weird with their conditions, which I understand is something I can't control. However, I can control my mindset towards them and being able to ride in it so much at pace this past month has given me the confidence to approach it open minded and feel the information the track and bike are providing me. 

We are still very much pursuing new partners, sponsors and donations for the 2023 season. I have plenty of highly visible locations on my suit, bike and helmet.

Small donations can be provided right here on my website: https://jujuracing.com/collections/fundraisers

BRING ON THE 2023 SEASON!