Avalon Biddle (No21) leads the pack while contesting the NZ Supersport championship at Teretonga. Photo / John Thornton
Avalon Biddle (No21) leads the pack while contesting the NZ Supersport championship at Teretonga. Photo / John Thornton
On April 1 a young woman will become the first New Zealander to line up on the grid as a fulltime racer in a FIM road racing world championship in 17 years. Avalon Biddle has had her sights set on this goal since she was wobbling around go kart tracks many years ago.
The two-time FIM European Women's Cup champion has sealed a deal to contest the World Superbike Championship (WSBK) in the newly-minted Supersport 300 class.
"Right from the start the goal has been to get into a world championship and I've done it, with the support of so many people," said Biddle.
"The company who owns MotoGP, Dorna, also owns WSBK and are restricting Superbikes to be like Moto3, Moto2 and MotoGP.
"They've now got 300cc, 600cc and Superbikes, which is now just like MotoGP. Just this year we're only doing the European rounds - it's still classed as a world championship - to keep the cost down, but from 2018 we'll be doing all the rounds."
The 24-year-old is joining the highly regarded and experienced Dutch outfit Sourz Foods-Benjan Racing on a Kawasaki Ninja 300.
The field of 35 riders is packed with and brightest young riders from 13 different countries, all of whom snapped up the opportunity of getting a foothold in the junior class of the WSBK.
Biddle will one of two females in the packed field and is looking forward to the challenge of taking on the blokes again.
"The field is massive and it was filled straight away and oversubscribed. I had to get in really quick to get a place on the grid.
"The interest they've had in the class is amazing," she said.
"It was fortunate that I had known the guys who run the team for a while being in the same paddock and I would always say hi to them.
"They contacted me at the end of last year and asked if I wanted to race 300s. I was a little sceptical to start with as all the bikes aren't that equal, It's a new category and I'm sure everything will balance out over the season.
However, you've got to take every opportunity that presents itself and we'll see how it works out," said Biddle.
In the meantime, Biddle is contesting the 2017 domestic New Zealand Supersport Championship on a Kawasaki Ninja 600 and reckons this might just give her the edge over her international competitors.
As any racer worth their salt will attest, nothing beats getting competitive race kilometres under your belt.
Having raced a national championship will put Biddle in good steed come April and she should be very competitive straight away.
"We've already had two rounds of the national series and are racing at Taupo this weekend and the following weekend at Hampton Downs.
Avalon Biddle.
"The 600 class is really competitive this year and the guys are putting in really quick laps. It's hard work but it's going really well. I'm sixth or seventh in the championship at the moment and I'm pretty happy with that. We've had a few problems with my bike and it's not running as well as I'd like. However, we had a good weekend at Teretonga where I got a couple of fourths.
"Racing in this championship will help me when I get to Europe and I might have a bit of an advantage," she said.
Another plus that should not be overlooked, is that Biddle has been racing a 600cc machine the past couple of years. Dropping down to the smaller and possibly more manageable 300cc bike will suit her well.
Not only is the bike smaller and more nimble, not having to concentrate on the physical demands of a heavier race bike will allow Biddle to concentrate on race strategy and tactics.
Rest assured these machines are not just rolled out of a showroom with race numbers on them, they are quite highly modified and as such, will not respond to a passive riding styles.
"Being my size the smaller bike will allow me to concentrate more on the racing and I'm really looking forward to getting on something much lighter and smaller. The bike can be modified to fit me and we're allowed to change quite a lot like suspension, brake and to some extent the engine and ECU.
"The racing is going to exciting and I'll be back doing something I really enjoy with a lot of slipstreaming and passing," said Biddle.
