Ashburton’s Jacob Skinner in action at the recent Southern Classic Festival at Levels in Timaru. Photo Heather MackenzieWhen the country’s top motorcycle racers line up at Ruapuna this weekend for the first round of the New Zealand Superbike Championships, a young Ashburton rider will be in the thick of it.

Jacob Skinner, 17, won’t be lining up in any of the big races and he won’t be eyeing up any big championship titles though, he is just planning on having fun and making the most of the experience.

Just three years after he first experienced racing a road bike, Skinner had found his happy place, and that was on a road bike zipping around some of the country’s top race tracks.

And he had one of his fellow competitors – his dad, Paul – to thank for it all.

“I first started riding road bikes about three years ago now, but I’d started riding dirt bikes when I was about six,” Skinner said.

“I didn’t really enjoy it much, but then my dad started getting into road biking and I went to watch him and thought I’d like to do that.”

He gave it a go, and never looked back.

Now, he is nipping at the heels of the rider to beat in his class – his dad.

The pair competed on the same model of bike and in the same class now, and Skinner said his dad was the fastest in the class, holding the lap record at Ruapuna in the class.

But Skinner said he was only about eight seconds a lap behind him at Ruapuna now.

Skinner rode a Kawasaki Ninja KRR150 – a small two-stroke – and it was on bikes like that where he saw his future.

“I plan on always racing on 150 two-strokes because I just love it so much.

“It’s a different style of racing than the bigger bikes,” Skinner said.

When it came to the future, Skinner wasn’t setting goals in terms of results though.

“The ultimate goal for me right now is just to go out there and have fun and enjoy winning classes – who doesn’t enjoy that – but as long as I’m out there having fun battling with my mates and coming back and chatting to them about the races, that’s what matters,” Skinner said.

His best result on the bike so far was a third placing in the King of Canterbury series last year, contested over six rounds, and he was eyeing up some races as far ahead as later on next year as future trophy chances.

For now though, his attention is on Ruapuna this weekend.

There, he will compete in one of the support classes – the super sport 150 class – and while it isn’t one of the championship classes, it was big in his books.

The New Zealand Superbike Championship is made up of five rounds – two in the South Island and three in the North Island – but Skinner is only competing in round one at Mike Pero Motorsport Park.

Before Christmas, Skinner competed at one of the biggest events he’d experienced so far – the Southern Classic Festival at Levels International Raceway in Timaru.

Run by the CAMS (Classic Action Motorcycle Sport), the event attracted 200-odd riders and Skinner said the atmosphere was incredible.

There, he competed in a development class alongside two other Ashburton riders – Dean Watson and Damian Perriton.

Erin Tasker © The Ashburton Guardian - 4 January 2019