Guy Martin - My Autobiography by Guy Martin

Author:Guy Martin [Martin, Guy]
Language: eng
Format: epub
Tags: Sport related
ISBN: 9780753549957
Google: BHKnAgAAQBAJ
Amazon: B00I0C467I
Publisher: Random House
Published: 2014-05-07T23:00:00+00:00

CHAPTER 11

PUSHBIKES

‘“You sad buggers, have you got nothing better to do with your life?” It looked so grim. The solo riders just looked like death. I had to try it.’

I’M NOT A fan of gyms. I’m not against them, I just don’t fancy going to them. During a busy time with work and the TV job I had a week where, because of work, I hadn’t been out pushbiking or anything, and then I had to go Birmingham for the filming job. I was in the hotel and thought, ‘Bloody hell, I’m going to have to go in one of these here gyms.’ I went to the hotel’s gym and I couldn’t believe what was going on. There were people flailing their arms and legs about, and blokes blatantly watching themselves in the mirror, with stern looks on their faces, while they were doing stuff. I couldn’t take it in. It all seemed to be about what you looked like. All very vain. Look at me, here I am. But, each to their own.

A lot of motorcycle racers use personal trainers, but I think if you need a trainer to spur you on there’s something wrong. The drive should come from within, but if that’s what people need to get the best out of themselves, then fair play. Again, each to their own, but I set my own goals.

If I lived closer to a fellow racer on a bit of a similar wavelength, like Leon Haslam, I wouldn’t mind doing a bit of training with him. I think he’s a top bloke, but I don’t have time to take half a day to go training. My training is part of my everyday life.

I was with Hector Neill, the owner of the Tyco TAS Suzuki team, one time when we were being interviewed for Irish TV. I was asked how I trained, and I said I didn’t really do any, but Hector disagreed. ‘Well, you could say that,’ he said, ‘or you could say you train 14 hours a day, six days a week.’ And I could say that.

While I’m at work I’m exercising all day. It’s not like being a car mechanic, I’m constantly jacking stuff up and lifting 70 kg truck wheels, truck drum brakes, back axles, truck cylinder heads – it’s all heavy stuff. It’s such varied stuff too, lifting, twisting, jacking, hammering – it’s oily, greasy cross-training.

One of the hardest job is changing Scania mid-lift pins on a three-axle truck. This is on the six-by-two trucks. That means it’s got six wheels, and two of them drive. The middle two steer, and also lift off the ground when the load is light or the truck isn’t pulling a trailer. Anyway, these pins hold the axle to the truck. To replace them you have to burn a cut in the bush and knock it out with a ballpeen hammer and a punch. It takes a hell of a lot of doing. Then you’ve got to knock another one in while it’s still hot.

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