Mike Whitewick
April 04, 2007
At just 24 years old Mikey has already been on the scene for the best part of eight years and has championship race wins on his CV. Young can be replaced by matured and experience can be replaced with ‘got the tee-shirt’. Mikey hasn’t blagged his way into a respected GP team; neither did he have the gift of the gab, work the rest out for yourself…
MOTO: Hi Mike, what you been up to in the off-season?
MIKE: Well pretty much been getting everything prepared for the new season, I was over in Belgium last week with Julien (Bill) testing, the weather wasn’t all that but we were over there in the sand getting the suspension dialled in.
You are one of the younger mechanics of the bunch but seem to have been around forever, how did the job come about with Steve Dixon and Yamaha?
I had been racing for about ten years when my dad bought a bike from Steve around the time I was leaving school, I didn’t really have any serious intentions at the time on what I wanted to do so my dad asked Steve if there was anything available at the workshop. To start off with I was just helping around the workshop sorting out bolts, that kind of thing and it progressed from there really.
How involved do you get with the technical side of things?
I have really enjoyed getting involved with the technical side of the job. At the time I got quite involved with the 125 tuning side when Steve was too, but now we get a lot of our stuff from Rinaldi, I’m still involved but just not as much. Things are developing so fast that you learn new things every day. Rinaldi give us a lot of support, last year Gordon had Stefan Everts engine from the previous year and Billy was feeding off McFarlane’s engine, it was a shame Gordy got injured.
What did you do while Gordy was injured?
Well I’m the only guy with a licence to drive the truck so that was a good starting point, but really it’s a big team effort and there is always something to do regardless of whether or not you’re rider is out there.
You have a new rider for this year, how is he getting on in the early part of the season?
Julien (Bill) is getting on pretty well, it is bit of a change for him coming off the big KTM but the testing is good so far. It’s hard to gauge at this point but it’s looking promising, I’ve seen him practice against Tanel Leok and Rattray and he’s looking good against those guys. He’s a very professional rider and puts in 110%. It makes it worthwhile, we put in a lot of work and it great when a rider does the same, and those guys have to work really hard and its good when it pays off for them.
Describe your best day at the races?
I would say the day Billy won his first British Championship race at Lyng in 2001, I remember going across the line and that was a good feeling, being involved with the whole team was pretty special that day. It’s hard to explain, but any day the rider or team is doing well is such a good feeling.
How does that compare to having your own personal success on a bike?
I feel lucky with what I do, obviously everyone wants to race and have that success too, but I still get to ride every now and again so it’s not too bad in the way I don’t really miss it that much. The job seems to get better all the time the more I learn, so that kinda takes the edge out of the racing side of things.
What was your worst f—k up?
It’s pretty hard to explain, but it was to do with the Rinaldi ignition, we were using a 250 starter in there because it was a bit hard and slippery so when I put in a heavier fly wheel which had a pick up point from a 125, so basically the pulsing was wrong with the spark plug so the bike did about 200 yards of the first race and blew up.
What’s the coolest pit board signal you have ever given out?
I try not to put to much junk on there and give them what they need, but I would say it was that day at Polesworth at the last British Championship. Ray Archer got a great photograph of me putting out to Billy that he must pass Astuta for the championship. I prefer to remember the image rather than the signal!
What is the trickest bike you have worked on?
Obviously the bikes tend to get better every year, but Gordy’s 450 Rinaldi bike from last year was pretty special, it was amazing how much work went into that thing. Also the 125 was a really trick bike to work on, we got that thing really strong and I was quite involved with the development of it, so to be honest I would say the 125.
What is the atmosphere like working for the team?
I have been working there and with Steve Dixon for eight years now and it really good. He pretty much lets me and the other mechanic Ben get on with it. He knows what we have got to do and he trusts us to get on with it. He is involved with other things too besides the racing, but it’s the trust thing that really counts. I enjoy working with him, he’s pretty laid back and keeps a level head all the time no matter what is going on, and on top of that he has been very loyal to me.
Are there any road trip stories that stick out in your mind?
There was one that I remember too well. I was filling up the truck at a petrol station in Italy; I had only just got my licence to drive the truck. We had the diesel on one side and the generator fuel on the other. So I topped up the diesel and thought I’d reverse the truck up and pull over to the other pump for the Genny fuel. Well, I wrote off the car that was then sitting behind us, we had a tow bar on the old truck and I didn’t even feel the impact, it was like something out of a film, I couldn’t understand what was going on until I got out of the truck and the guy was standing there with pump nozzle in his hand, the car was totally crunched up and his wife was looking petrified in the passenger seat. I spent about three hours filling out paperwork in Italian but looking back it was quite funny.
What is the best gift that you have received from a rider?
Billy gave me a good black and white photo of me and him from a couple of years ago, which was really cool. I had shirts and stuff from the Des Nations, but I’d say it’s the photograph.
Where do you see yourself in five years time?
I don’t know where I see myself in one let alone five! If I’m still enjoying what I’m doing then I’ll keep on doing it. I very into road racing as well so maybe that’s an option but I would say that’s quite a distant future.
What are the worst parts of the job?
I know everyone says it but its got to be the awnings, especially at British Championships when you only get there on a Saturday and go home on a Sunday and in-between have spent the best part of one day putting up and dismantling the awning.
Final words to life by?
Learn and enjoy.
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