“I WANT to win,” is the simple answer by 21-year-old Dylan Gray, when he’s questioned about his aim at this upcoming weekend’s Formula X-Treme 1000cc superbike series event in the Free State.
The plucky B.Com marketing graduate who has been riding bikes since just after he could walk has in a short space of time made his mark on the superbike racing track.
He’s only had podium placings in his three outings in the competitive arena. The end of 2015 marked his first outing burning rubber competitively, when he placed second at a race day at Dezzies Raceway on the Lower South Coast. He then went on to Redstar raceway in Mpumalanga on 13 February, where he won both races in the sub 10 class, winning overall for the day. The thrill of winning clearly caught on, as he again impressed at the next Redstar raceway event, the national Super GP race one of the series, on Sunday, 20 February. There he won the first race and placed second in the second event, achieving second overall.
“I only started competing about a year ago, owing in large part to the prohibitive costs of racing,” explained Dylan. “But with the aid of my sponsors, as well as the track that was built in Port Shepstone, it was easier for me to get into racing.”
The self-confessed petro-head confesses that the adrenalin is what keeps him flying around the race track most weekends – that and perhaps the thrill of riding at speeds of up to 260km/h. “There’s no sensation like when you’re pumped at the track, ready to race,” said Dylan.
In addition, the love of racing keeps him on a tight training leash with daily gym sessions, as he has to maintain optimum strength to endure the rigours of racing. “People don’t realize what it takes out of you. Cornering, braking and acceleration all require strength and control, so the gym workouts and running are important.”
Equally, his Yamaha R1 bike is kept in pristine condition between races as well as on race day, thanks to the investment of his sponsors South Coast Motors, Wagner Racing and Tool World. And that’s some investment considering a set of tyres may last half a day in the racing game. Dylan says he’s putting in the hard yards as an indication of his appreciation to the Toti-based businesses that have sponsored him. “They’ve put Toti on the grid and I can’t thank them enough for their faith in me,” said Dylan. The sponsors benefit from the exposure when his bike is featured whizzing around the track at televised events.
Heading into round two of the Super GP national series in the Formula X-Treme class at the Phakisa Freeway Circuit in Welkom, Free State this coming weekend, Dylan is clearly focused on winning. “I definitely want to win.”
In an ideal world, his not-too-distant future would include post-graduate studies and featuring prominently on the national superbike racing circuit – not necessarily in that order. But for now, he’s revved to ride hard in races around the country “to have fun and make my mark”.
Sponsors keen to help Dylan in his quest to dominate the superbike racing circuit can contact him via email at beewebbstock@icloud.com.
