A TRIP to Tailem Bend was the perfect opportunity for Furner motorcycle racer Dallas Skeer to put more kilometres under the seat of his 600cc Suzuki, as he continues to learn the new bike.
Skeer is currently holding a top 10 position in the Australian Supersport Championship after he stepped up from the 250cc Moto3 class.
However, last weekend – not an Australian championship round – also threw some tough challenges at the young rider, with Round 3 of the South Australian Championships.
After missing Round 1 at Mallala it was always going to be a tall order to be in contention for the outright title, but after a clean sweep at home at McNamara Park anything was possible.
With that in mind Skeer took to the new “Bend” circuit on Saturday chasing a good race setup for Sunday.
“We were able to get a really good setup after the second session and I felt really comfortable on the bike,” Skeer said.
“There was a lot of traffic in every group so I struggled to get a clear lap.
“In the fourth session I was able to get one good clear lap and the track was up to good temperature.
“Feeling really good on the bike I was able to push out a 1.57.223 lap time.”
That time eclipsed Skeer’s previous personal best at The Bend by more than two seconds, providing plenty of confidence heading into Sunday’s races.
The opening race of the day saw Skeer with the hole shot, to lead for the first six corners before a mistake saw him drop back one position.
Skeer then dropped back to third place after a faster rider passed him, but was able to keep pace and attempt to reel the leader in.
After a spirited dice, Skeer made his move on the last lap, claiming second spot.
Rain threatened for the final race and caught Skeer out with his set up.
The cold track provided little front-end grip, but Skeer was still able to qualify second for the race.
However, in the lunch break the rain came down and Skeer went with his wet bike for the warm up, before deciding on the dry bike for the race, then relegated to pit lane for the start.
With the race distance cut back from eight laps to four, the task to work his way through the field became even tougher.
Despite the challenges Skeer was able to bring the bike home in eighth place to finish fourth for the weekend.
That pushed him up to second in the state title race, just eight points in arrears with two rounds still to run.
