FURNER motorcycle racer Dallas Skeer has returned from another fruitful round of the Australian Supersport Championships with a seventh overall placing for the weekend at Morgan Park, Queensland.
Skeer took his Suzuki GAXR 600 to seventh in his first race, before a ninth place in the final race of the weekend.
His consistency again shone through, with some close lap times across both races.
The result sees him entrenched in seventh place in the championship after four rounds, 24 points clear of his nearest rival.
Skeer said he was pleased with how the weekend panned out, considering he is not overly familiar with the Morgan Park circuit.
“There are a lot of locals who race up there and last year we struggled with the circuit,” he said.
“This year we went up there for testing two weeks before which really helped.
“Now I just have to find another second of pace.”
Despite the northern location of the circuit, Skeer said the weather was not overly impressive.
“Friday the first practice session was wet so we sat that out,” he said.
“In the second session there were wet patches but we went out on dry tyres.
“Friday was colder up there than it was down here.”
Qualifying was a mixed bag, with Skeer struggling to find a decent time.
After just a few laps in the first session, he headed out to set a good time in the second session.
“In the second session I was stuck trying to chase lap times,” Skeer said.
“I was about to pull in then a couple of faster riders went out in front of me who I knew were a second or more ahead of my times.
“I stuck behind them and they pulled me along to the qualifying time of 1:17.2, which was about two seconds quicker than my qualifying time last year.
“They were not really getting away from me too much so it was good to see what they were doing.”
With that behind him Skeer faced two races on Sunday.
The first saw his best result after a crash in front of him and a penalty handed out to another rider.
Despite that, he still managed to keep consistent lap times across the entire race.
“Me and Tom Taparis – who won the weekend – were the only riders able to stay within one second of our laps times over the whole race,” he said.
“I was able to stay in the 1:17s for the whole race and did not drop down in consistency at all, which is what I aim for.
“Then towards the end of the race you really start catching people who are slowing down.
“It is one of the most physical tracks in Australia, so it was good to have the same race pace towards the end.”
The second race saw a ninth place, which is where Skeer said he expected to be.
“I got a good start and was up to sixth,” he said.
“Another rider pushed me wide and I fell back to eighth, then dropped to ninth.
“But my lap times were good and I was consistent.”
In just his second year in the competition, Skeer has changed his approach somewhat.
He had previously hoped to finish top 10, which he achieved last year.
Now he is pushing harder for better results.
“At Tailem Bend I finished fifth in two races, seventh in the other and fifth overall for the weekend so I know I can do it,” Skeer said.
“Now when I do not do it I do get a bit disappointed, because I have done it before.
“At Morgan Park there were three local riders in front of me who mainly do that round, so finishing seventh overall and in front of my next competitor for the championship was still good.”
Considering Skeer suffered bike issues and a DNF at Phillip Island, his season has panned out
well.
He now has a long break before the next round at Winton Motor Racewway in Victoria in early September.
