Press Release by Loris Baz:
Hello everybody!
Here we come!!!! Finally!!! Yes, I was finally allowed to get back on my bike after 2 months of missing it!!! It was really exciting to kick off our preparation for the season!!!It was the circuit of Alès where we carried out our first test in 2012 season. The weather was fabulous.
My first outing was on Sunday and I was so impatient that I was ready 1 hour in advance before the session started. I really did miss riding. I found the feeling again in a few laps, the feeling with this bike that I liked so much in the end of last season. Specifically the chassis, light front that I adore and a powerful engine!!!
Allowing myself about 15 laps to get to come with the bike and find my rhythm, we started to adjust the set-up, to “tune it up” and learn how the bike behaves when we put it all in practice – worn tyres and the temperature; we went from one extreme to another. Since nobody in this team knows this bike, it is essential that we learn.
First day has passed and I set a good pace using old tyres that I wasn’t able to improve with new ones since it got a bit colder towards the end of the day. With a beaming smile that never left my face, reflecting the day, we went to sleep.
Day two. We recommenced on the same basis, continued with the set-up, times were decreasing and I set some great lap times with old tyres. Later, I decided to use a new tyre that got me very close to the record and I felt very encouraged. We spent the rest of the day trying to extend each outing on old tyres.
I was really satisfied because my lap times were consistent, but more importantly, my feeling was great and I had so much fun on the bike. All mechanics and Adrien, the team manager, were enthusiastic about our 2-day testing.
We still have one month to go before I sit on bike again in Aragon for another pre-season testing session. I’m going to continue my physical preparation and Aragon cannot come any sooner.
Check out the onboard video from the two day test:
