- Round 1 of the South African Classic TT 2023 will be held at Phakisa Raceway
- Nine top SA riders will be at Phakisa in Welkomc
- The international riders are Michael Dunlop, Alan Duffus, Steve Parrish, Iain Simpson, Howard Selby, Gordon Grigor, Phillip Atkinson, Adrian McCarthy and Robert Burns
- AJ Venter will compete on a Mike McSkimming prepared IVID Racing GSXR 1 100
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The South African Classic TT 2023, South Africa’s only international bike circuit race, is back for two more rounds in 2023, and round 1 will be held at Phakisa Raceway.
This event will take place on Saturday, 28 January, and will be a charity event featuring top South African and international racers.
On the Friday spectators and motorbike enthusiasts will be able to watch the practice rounds for free.
Entrance to the official event on the Saturday is R50 per person, and those younger than 16 enter free. Spectators can make a small donation of dog or cat food. Engo Free State will benefit from this event.
It will be a family event, and motorbike enthusiasts are promised a field day, says Jared Miller of the Classic Superbike Racing Association (CSRA).
“The aim is to grow the sport and create a love of motorbikes. We want to make motorbikes accessible and present an event for everyone to enjoy,” says Miller.
There will be a fully licenced bar and vendor stalls for bike enthusiasts.
The CSRA was formed in 2016 by likeminded racers who, in the main, had prepared classic machinery for the annual SA TT events.
“Our logic was to organise a series of races in South Africa that would start each year with the TT races and follow with six more events around the country,” explains Fergal McAdam (chairman).
“Four seasons on, and the CSRA has grown from strength to strength, it is now the best supported series in South Africa with over 35 active racers involved.”
McAdam says South Africa enjoyed a “heyday” of production bike racing in the 1980’s and the equipment that this was based upon remains reasonably affordable today.
“There was a ‘sea change’ of superbike specs between the mainly air-cooled bikes of the late 70’s and early 80’s when the oil cooled Suzuki GSXR burst onto the scene around 1985/6.
“FIM rule changes also eliminated two-stroke engines due to emission issues, and we also try to accommodate those still keen to run such machinery. As a result of this phenomenon, and the performance gap it entailed, we have adopted four racing categories in the CSRA,” he says.
These categories are Formula 1 (bikes from 1984 to 1989), Formula 2 (bikes from 1976 to 1983), Formula 750 (maximum 750 cc four-stroke bikes up to end 1989, plus two-stroke bikes up to end 1993), New Era Class (bikes up to end of 1999), and Formula 4 (strictly a parading class with bikes up to end of 1999 eligible).
“We have tried to be as non-prescriptive as possible with regards to our technical regulations, allowing our members to fettle their machines as best as practical, taking into mind the age of their machinery, with rider safety being our prime consideration,” he says.
Amongst the international competitors who will line up are Michael Dunlop, Alan Duffus, Steve Parrish, Iain Simpson, Howard Selby, Gordon Grigor, Phillip Atkinson, Adrian McCarthy and Robert Burns.
The South African riders will include Paul Jacobs, John Kosterman, Fergal McAdam, Mike McSkimming, Leon van der Berg and Etienne Louw, Iain and Dylan Pinkerton, Sakkie Pottas, Kevin Kemp and Clive Arrandale, who are expected to challenge on competitive machinery.
AJ Venter will compete on a Mike McSkimming prepared IVID Racing GSXR 1 100.
Spectators are encouraged to attend the event to witness some racing and to enjoy a paddock full of great machinery and noises of yesteryear.
