RYAN VICKERS,FROM THE BEGINNING.
This is where it all began. My dad, Paul Vickers, has always been a motorbike fanatic and has been riding motorbikes all his life. He even had an exceptional talent, finishing 3rd in the World Wheelie Competition. I am the youngest of my 2 siblings and I had an immediate connection to motorbikes from a very young age. It was all I seemed to want to do. This bike was my first ever motorbike, which was originally for my older brother. As he grew out of it, I was just about able to get on it and I first rode this Italjet 50cc at the age of 3.5 years old.
For years, I alternated between this motorbike and my push bike and was always learning new things. I remember first standing on the seat while riding, doing stoppies, wheelies, and building jumps!
"my dad finished 3rd in a world wheelie competition"!
"Do you even race"?
So fast forwarding 3 years
So fast forwarding 3 years, I had been riding bikes constantly but just on local greens, I went from the Italjet 50cc to a PW50 and then, finally got a KTM 50cc.
We didn’t have any idea how to race or even how to get into it and it was only until we went to a practise track at a local track called Besthorpe MX, that we got approached by a guy called Neil Wigger, who was impressed with my riding and said “do you race?” no we said and had never really thought about it. So he told us how to and put us in contact with the Norfolk and Suffolk Motocross Club. This is where we decided we were going to try go racing but with no money ourselves we had to reach out to local companies and we was fortunate enough to be able to get enough money together to get bikes and go racing. So we entered our first race at the age of 7 years old with the Norfolk and Suffolk Club at Great Hockham which was only 15 minutes from our house. We had no idea what to expect but I managed to get 3rd place in Race 1, 2nd place in Race 2 and 1st place in Race 3, which give me the Overall win that weekend. This was an unbelievable achievement and still sticks with me to this day. To have won my first ever race meeting was amazing and completely unexpected and I guess this is really what set my whole racing career off.
RYAN VICKERS,FIRST YEAR OF RACING
So in that first year of racing, I became the Norfolk and Suffolk Champion and also the Norwich and District Champion. During the year we moved to an American Manufacturer called Cobra as we got to know a guy there called Neil McClelland (Cobra Neil) to me who was the main guy for Cobra UK distribution. Over the next 3 years, I continued racing in the same clubs and managed to win 8 Youth MX Championships. I progressed up to the 65cc class in 2008 still onboard the Cobra.
YEAR 2009
In 2009 we switched from Club racing to British Championship racing where I ran in the RedBull Pro Nationals Championship. I was at this point riding for Cobra UK and our first year was very tough as our bike was not very competitive at the time but it was all good experience learning a lot of new tracks and getting used to riding at a higher level. In 2010 Cobra brought out a new bike which was a big step and we were able to be very competitive. So with a year under our belts, we had a fantastic year and still stands out to me as one of the best years of my life. We battled for the Championship all year with Keenan Hird and Taylor Hammal, I won many races and if not winning we were on the podium in nearly every race. I had 1 DNF at Foxhills due to a puncture which caused me to crash and I wasn’t able to re-join and this lost me the chance of winning the title.
I ended up 2nd in the Championship which was the biggest Youth Championship.
YEAR 2010
After our success in 2010, we struggled to make that next step in Motocross due to funding and I also had a couple of injuries that put me out for quite a long period. During this period one of my Sponsors Jamie Hitter, an ex-road racer himself, suggested that I give tarmac racing a go when I turned 12 years old and he would set up a team for me to start racing in. This wasn’t something that I jumped at as I wasn’t hugely interested as a kid coming from Motocross I was brought up with the excitement of Jumps etc and I thought Road Racing ‘looked’ boring as it was flat. With the influence of my Dad and Jamie, we agreed I would give it a go and I went to Mallory Park in 2011 just after I turned 12 years old to get my ACU License. This was my first day on the tarmac on an Aprillia RS125 and funnily enough, I absolutely loved it… I think with my motocross experience I adapted very fast and it wasn’t long before I got my knee down and then I was hooked.
After completing my ACU License Jamie stuck to his word and set up a team for us to race in, competing at Thundersport GB in the Aprillia Superteens.
I managed to compete in 6 rounds of the Championship in 2011 and got on the podium multiple times, one being at the World Superbikes round where we competed at Donington Park. Unfortunately, we had a few crashes and could not continue due to financial reasons. This was a shame for all of us as we had such a promising start and showed a lot of potential and I was enjoying the road racing. For everyone, this was tough and left us thinking about what next.
Through my sponsors in motocross I managed to get another bike to just do some practice on. While practising again we managed to get approached by some guys who were really impressed with my riding and wanted to help me get back racing in Motocross.
MEETING NEW SPONSOR
After meeting the new sponsor, he got me a new bike a paid for pretty much everything to go back to racing. I had a KTM 85cc Big Wheel and in 2013 we entered the Redbull Pro Nationals which again was the highest level of racing in the UK at that time and I had a great go at it for the whole season and managed lot of top results and my best was 4th place, which was great considering the time I’d had off of racing at this point.
Throughout this season and our impressive progress, we got approached by a team called MXWORLD Honda to compete in the Arenacross Championship and also the Mx Nationals the following season.
Arenacross wasn’t something I had done before and it was one of the toughest events to do. We had a great start and were battling at the front often my best result was 4th until I had an injury which unfortunately put me out of the rest of the series at the round in Newcastle. Due to this injury, I was out for a long period as there was ligament damage which takes a long time to heal.
So after the Motocross Knee Injury, I was out for the remainder of 2014 and most of 2015. As I was recovering I decided to go see a friend racing at Snetterton, Jack Scott. When I was at Snetterton I met a guy called Chris Satchwell who was at the time helping Jack out. Chris said to me would I like to have a go on a Honda CB500 and race it. I jumped at the opportunity and we quickly progressed things and I managed to get out on the bike later in the year, competing in the final two rounds at Thundersport GB in the Thundersport 500 Class. This class was the cheapest Class to get into Road Racing, the Honda CB500 is a Pizza delivery bike you’d see in London but with no fairings and straight handlebars. In those Final two rounds of the series, I showed promise and progression that gave us a lot of motivation to try do the full season in 2016.
2016-2017
2016 was a fantastic year. We started around the top 10 positions and progressed every time to eventually battling for the podiums and race wins every race. I took everyone by surprise in only my first full year of Tarmac Racing. I battled for the Championship and only fell short by 5 points bringing home 2nd position in the Championship. A lot of people at this point was telling me to do another year in this class before moving to the 600cc Class.
In 2017, we decided along with Chris Satchwell that we was going to move up into the British Superbike Championship and Race in the Pirelli National Superstock 600 class. This was frowned upon from a lot of people as they really didn’t think making such a big step this early on in my career was a wise decision.
We start the year off struggling a lot and we found ourself in a pretty complicated situation as things was just not working out in Satchwell Racing. I definitely wanted to continue racing in the British Championship as I had shown great progression in a short period. We did the first 2 rounds with Satchwell Racing and then we decided it was best to part ways. We were now in a very difficult situation as we could not continue on our own as it would be impossible to fund. I was extremely lucky to get together with my sponsors and have a huge help from my Nan and Grandad which which funded us to get our own Bikes and Equipment to setup our own Team and continue. So in that time we managed to buy Bikes, convert them and buy everything you need to run a Race Team and we turned up to Round 3 under Team Vickers.
In our first ever Round running our own package we managed to get P5, This was unbelievable in every way and this really gave me confidence and also put my name out there.
From that first Top 5 at Oulton Park, our season went from strength to strength. I continuously battled for the Top 5 Positions at every track we went to, which most of them was new to me in my First year.
We had the most incredible end to the Season of which you could ever dream of and at the final 3 Rounds of the Championship I got my first Podium at Silverstone GP, then a 2nd at Oulton Park, and then to top it off, I won the Final Round at Brands Hatch in front of 58,000 people in my first year on a 600 at British Championship level and in only my 2nd full year of Racing.
2018
2018 was the most incredible year, we went on to dominate the Superstock 600 Championship by Winning 10/11 races in the Season. It was the perfect Season, We broke many Lap records and I became the first Rider to win that many races in a Season of this Championship. We had built such an amazing Team of people, Sponsors and friends that this really wouldn’t have happened without them. This is what took me to the next level.
Due to our success in the 2018 season, I was approached by Lee Hardy who was the Team owner for RAF Regular Reserves Kawasaki offering me a 2 year contract to ride in his Superbike Team. This was an unbelievable opportunity and something I was extremely motivated for. At the time I was the first ever person to ‘make the leap’ from the Superstock 600 straight to the Premier Class, British Superbikes. In these 2 years, it was a steep learning curve, with many mixed emotions. I had some amazing showings getting many top 10 finishes straight off the bat which was very impressive in my first season, but we also had some crashes which unfortunately caused some injuries along the way.
After my 2 years with Lee Hardy, we came to the agreement that I was going to re-sign for the following year, 2021. As we both felt like we had unfinished business and we both knew the potential if it was to come together. So starting the year with a new updated bike and a new crew chief Stuart Millen we had a great package around us and I was feeling amazing on the bike. We had a very strong start to the season finishing well inside the top 10 every time, we set an all-time lap record at Cadwell Park and became the first motorcycle to do a 1:25.8 lap time. We managed to lead races and get front-row starts. I was on for a great season. Unfortunately, my Crew Chief left to go to World Superbikes which really hit me hard and had big effects on the team. I then had a bad end to the season with a few big crashes. Unfortunately, this ended our time working with the team and at the end of the season we both decided that it was best to go our own ways.
2022 - 2023
In 2022 I rode for FHO Racing BMW and I was excited to be joining a new Team and riding a new Bike. Unfortunately, it turned out to be a really tough year and I just couldn’t get to grips with the bike, the team struggled to understand what I needed to change on the bike so we had quite a few crashes and just not the results we were expecting. Although it was a tough year again at times we showed we could be very strong when my feeling with the bike did come together.
Towards the end of 2022, it was already made apparent that I would not be continuing with FHO Racing for 2023. So I made contact with Paul Curran from OMG Racing, they we currently Leading the Championship and you would have thought I’d have a chance with them after my season in 2022. Shortly after having a couple of conversations I received a call from Alan Gardner (Team Owner) whilst I was playing Golf to say he had spoken to Paul and they had come to the decision that they wanted me to ride for their Team and they wanted to sign me for the next 2 years. This was my dream phone call and I was speechless. To be joining the 2022 Championship Winning team and to be on the most successful bike in BSB was just unbelievable. Now I knew this was my time to shine and I felt ready to do so.
From first meeting the Team and all the crew I knew we were going to get on great and the Team just had such confidence in what they were doing and how they were going to do things and I love having a plan and a structure. Immediately when I first jumped on the bike I came in with so much emotion in just how amazing it felt I honestly could. Not believe it, the bike just worked amazing and we hadn’t even begun working on it yet.
We went on to have my best season in BSB with an amazing tally of 6 podiums and 2 Wins, I had many front-row starts and led a lot of races. I honestly couldn’t be happier with the season we had and I could not be more thankful to Alan and Paul for the opportunity and the team for all their belief in me to do the job.
We now go into 2024 as the Factory-supported Yamaha Team with a lot of confidence and high expectations to take on the Title challenge.
MEETING NEW COACH
In 2017 when we decided to run our own team the Superstock 600 class. I met a guy called Alan Carter, he was a former Grand Prix Winner and he came onboard as my rider coach. I really valued his help as being a very inexperienced rider at the time he really helped me learn my race craft and speed up learning as I jumped into the 600 class. Our relationship grew through this first year and we won the Championship fight in 2018. Alan in his spare time was a gardener from Grimsby, he was working for a guy called Roger Burnett who owns a Golf and Spa Resort, Laceby Manor. Roger was a former Grand Prix racer, TT Winner and Rider Manger for Multiple World Champions.Alan had mentioned a few times to Roger whilst working at the golf Club about he had a great young talent and if Roger would help. After a while a while of convincing, Roger Burnett came to the final round of the 2018 Championship where I won the race and I was celebrating being Champion. Me and Roger had an instant connection and we really got on well, Roger could see a lot of talent and he decided he would help guide me through my career. From that day till current Roger has been a massive part of my career creating huge opportunities and introducing me to many amazing sponsors and friends.
Roger Marshal I first met at Assen in my first year of SBK 2019 and he actually first took an interest in me as he noticed how well I adapted to the track and got up to speed being my first appearance at the track. From this day me and Roger have always got on really well in the paddock and he give me the odd pointer here and there. But he was always working for another team and we could never work full time together. Roger Marshall and Roger Burnett have always been amazing friends and grew up together, even being team mates for Rothmans Honda. So going into 2023 Roger Burnett made contact with Roger Marshal to ask him if he would be my Rider coach, this fell hand in hand as the team Roger had worked for the previous 5 year was ending and this naturally made Roger free to move where he wanted to next. So after the great friendship me and Roger had built since 2019 and then having best opportunity i’d had riding for OMG Racing, it made the switch for Roger to come be by my side and coach me a lot easier. Looking back over the 2023 season having Roger has been the best thing I could of wished for, he has been by my side the whole time and he really has taught me a lot but most of all made me believe in myself and enjoy the racing again and I really look forward to continuing my relationship with Roger for as long as I can hope for.