By JARROD POTTER
IT IS one thing to know your limits, but for Ben Bramich he knows he can’t stop there.
Bramich, 15, from Beaconsfield, went and trialled in last year’s Red Bull MotoGP Rookies Cup last year in Spain and that gave him a taste of speeds beyond his wildest dreams.
He wasn’t able to secure a spot over there in the race, but the eye-opening experience was just as big of a reward.
Knowing the risks you need to take to go from potential star to bona fide champion has set him down a path of calculated abandon as he aims for bigger and better things in 2016.
“Spain was awesome – the competition was crazy and a whole new level, but I still had fun and learned heaps,” Bramich said.
“Just how you think you can go through it that fast, that you’re going at max because your wheels are sliding, but they have both wheels sliding and they’re not fazed.
“They’re crazy.”
With the confidence, knowledge and a little bit of ‘crazy’ riding brought back he received at the tryouts, Bramich has upped the ante in his return to Australia as he now finds himself among the best junior racers on two wheels this season.
Bramich has taken a 15-point lead in the Australian GP Juniors – after the first two rounds at Broadford and Morgan Park – and wants to keep his wheels out in front for the remainder of the series.
“I did pretty well up there (Morgan Park) – we only got two out of the four races done because of the storms up there – but I ended up qualifying first in my class, winning race one with a lap record,” Bramich said.
“The other race I ended up coming second in the wet and the rain.
“I’m now leading the championship by 15 points with two rounds to go – that’s pretty big.”
He’s going to have another go at the Red Bull series – with another tryout in Malaysia this year – and he’s getting fit and lean ahead of his next attempt.
But in the meantime it’s back to the footy field for the Berwick under-15s midfielder, who loves to crash a pack and speed out the back of the contests.
Bramich wanted to thank his family, friends and sponsors BoardPro, Whinner Motorcycles and Nelsigns for their support of his racing ambitions.
