She said, it's now never.
I got fighting in my blood.
I'm tiff. This is Roll with the Punches and we're turning life's hardest hits into wins. Nobody wants to go to court, and don't. My friends at test Art Family Lawyers know that they offer all forms of alternative dispute resolution. Their team of Melbourne family lawyers have extensive experience in all areas of family law to facto and same sex couples, custody and children, family violence and intervention orders, property settlements
and financial agreements. Test Art is in your corner, so reach out to Mark and the team at www dot test Artfamilylawyers dot com dot au. Tara Morrison, welcome to Roll with the Punches.
Thank you, sir, Fanin. Very happy to be here.
I'm start here, my idol, here, my idol. I'm obsessed already.
I want to be you. No, oh, thank you. That's very nice. That's cool. I've listened to a few of your other podcasts and yeah, they sound You've got some really inspirational people on here, so I'm somewhat surprised, but very very very happy to be here.
Voluntier, Yeah mate, I got shout out to Alan Rourke. I got nudged by him a couple of times articles of you sent through. He was like, this would be a good I was like that because I bought a motorbike last year. I had had a motorbike when I was seventeen, a road bike, had a few bikes along the way, and then nothing for eleven years, and then in a heartbeat, wow, last February, I just all of a sudden went, ah, I should Why don't I not
have a bike anymore? And then I went and bought one and it was the best, and so obviously he knew that connection, and I went all this chick's awesome. She raised his motorcycles Solute Superstar And how old are you? Tara?
That's so cool with me, thank you. I'm twenty one, just turned twenty one. Yeah apart right hand? Well sorry, no, go ahead.
Go I think you're going to tell me anyway. How did you get into motorbike riding and racing?
Yes, so I started when I was about seventeen. I started on my first road bike at two fifteen. My dad bought it for my sweet sixteenth. Actually yeah, good dad, thank you. But yeah, I had ridden like dirt bikes a little bit beforehand, but nothing too serious, just for fun, just a little bit. But then yeah, when I got my road bike, I started like a little go kart track, just wearing jeans and like a leather jacket, and my mum and dad were both there and it was like
my first time riding a road bike. And they stopped me after a couple of laps. I'm like, what's up? And they were like, you can't be riding a jeans You're gonna put some leathers on or something because I was going going way fast than they expected. I'm like, hell, yeah, that sounds good, awesome cool. And then my mom and dad actually met stunt riding. So I've always been brought up around on motorbikes and everything, and my mom had letters that I can fit into with knee sliders and everything.
And then I think the next time I went there in my mum's letters, I started getting my knee downe and stuff. And then we slowly started going to like bigger tracks like track days and everything, and then started doing club racing and then state racing, and now I'm racing the National Championships, the National road Racing Championships, So like some people. Also, when I say that I race motorbikes,
I think dirt bikes. Actually it's actually road bikes. So I'm a bitchmond on like circuit tracks and stuff like that.
Yeh.
But yeah, now I race in the National Series ASPK it's called and I've also been to the Netherlands and I've been to Spain and I'm hoping to go to England in a few months. So I've also done some international racing as well, which is so cool. But yeah, it's it started so slowly, but once we started, it rested so quick.
Yeah, at what point did you see? I mean, I guess you started on a track rather than just cruising around the road, so it was probably a fairly natural progression. But how like how soon were you like I want to I want to race pretty quick?
Like I think I was. I think I did like just like track days for like maybe like five months after my first time riding a bike. I did have my l's and I did ride the bike that is now my actual race bike. I rode that on the road. But then when I turned seventeen, I yeah, once I turned seventeen, I just used my car because I needed to start carrying around engines and track tires and bike paths and stuff, so I couldn't carry that on the
bike anyway. And then I turned my bike that I rode on the road into my race bike, and now I've got about four of those bikes that are all race bike set up the exact same. I prefer to spend all my time on the track instead.
Yeah, understandably, yea, what is at what point did you because it's I know, it's an expensive sport, right, yes, it's a super expensive sport.
So at one point.
Did you know or feel that you had potential to chase this or did that matter to you? Are we going to do it anyway?
Yeah? Just like I was saying, the progression was so quick that I almost didn't really have time to think about it. My parents have been in the race scene for a while. My dad also owned a motorcycle shop, so and he's a like fully qualified mechanic and everything, so at least that part was all covered and he
was teaching me everything. We were doing all the stuff to my bike just to a us just ourselves, but also like he knew lots of people already, like Davo Johnson who races, the Ala Man t T Yeah, the biggest circuit racing in the world, the most dangerous as well. But he's been my coach since like go cut days and he still coaches me to this day. And you know, he knew people like Lea by Day who also raced like primarily in Europe and everything, like he did track
days as well. When I went there and they coached me, and then yeah, that's how that slow progression, well quick progression actually should like to say, happened just being coached by him mainly and having that competitive racing spirit I think as well helps a lot. Just wanting to win and then the urge to want to win makes you
go faster. And people like to say a little bit of like natural talent, like it is in my blood a little bit I think as well, you know, growing up around it myself, going to the races, watching it on a TV every weekend. Yeah, kind of. I don't want to say it came naturally. It's a lot of hard work, but at the beginning it did, and gods of interest and people quickly started following my racing career, and yeah, I just really agree to love it and
wanted to take it as far as I can. And even when people ask me now, they're like, what is the end goal you want of racing? Like what do you want to end up racing in? I just want to keep going and going and going and to see how far I can go. Pretty much that's the that's the goal, just to go as far as I possibly can.
I love that. What is what in terms of training for racing? What does that look like? Is there any physical training that you do or is it all on the track?
No? Yeah, definitely got to physical training. That's alsort of the misconception about racing is people in motorsport. I think that some people don't think it requires as much physical you know, energy as like other like all sports something like that. But it does just as much. Because I race against the boys in the ASBK racing we have here, there's no segregation to the boys and girls race against
each other. Yep. And at the moment, I'm the only female entrant in the three classes the super sport three hundred and six hundred zuperbikes. Really yeah, I'm the only entrants to enter. Yeah, thank you, But yeah, in again and dirt racing and stuff, they have girls and guys classes, but here in Australia in road racing, because I'm like one of the only ones, we don't have enough girls to make it our own separate class. We race against
the boys. Yeah. You know, there's a couple of female races around Australia that race in the state championships of each state around Australia, but there's just not an for us girls in Australia to make a different separate race. So I'm racing against them. Obviously, it's easier for guys that have a bit more like endurance and stamina. It's also easier for them to have, you know, grow muscle and everything. Yeah, so I've been talking to like a
nutritionists at the moment. Name's Emma had simpler health. She's been help.
Shouted out to Emma.
Shout out to Emma. Yeah, been helping out heaps with just like you know, diets on race weekends and out of race weekends. And I do CrossFit as well. My partner and I do that together, all endurance, you know, one rep max reps as well, just to grow muscle but also stamina. And it's like you're working out but with a leather suit on. So motorcycle races. When I come back in, I'm like red as a tomato, dripping with sweat. Like it's really hard work on the body.
And because your mind is also working over time to think of every like you know, every corner and every time you overtake someone, it's really mentally training as well. So yeah, that you're always under that pressure physically but also mentally, which wears you physically. So yeah, it's a lot. It's a lot so training and stuff. I yeah, I
take it really seriously. I'm always doing CrossFit and everything, and I'm on the motorbike every single weekend, whether that's racing around Australia, testing at new tracks around Australia, doing state titles, doing track days, trying out different bikes, trying out different settings. Yeah, I'm always on the bike, always, always. It's all about seat time as well. So however much you get to be on that bike, is how good you're going to end up being? I reckon?
Oh yeah, oh mate, the envy. I've twice in my life I've done a track day. Once was in around twenty and eleven. Yeah, I was dating a racer and for our first anniversary he gave me a track date. I hadn't touched the bike for three years then.
So he sounds like it was more for him than It was.
The second best day of my life. And I put that just above my very first boxing fight, which was the most incredible experience. So this came very close second to that. And do you mind.
Where did you do it? What track were you at?
At Broadford?
Oh?
Yeah, yep, yeah, on one of his mates six hundred ninjas. It was known to be one of the fastest six hundred on the track. How how fast I went? But I remember wobbling my way out of the gates. Oh, And his mate goes, dude, is she gonna be all right on that question? And I came back in after session one and just rife with adrenaline, but just looked at them and went, I don't know how you do this.
I just remember because there was so much tension in my body because I just hadn't been riding, and there was so much redlin that my arms and legs. I just went, this is so physic I don't think I can go out again. This is so physically draining. I'm sore, it hurts, I'm topped, like doms worse than the gym has ever done. But the next session, so it was more relaxed, was better than that. But yeah, I just could not believe the physicality of the sport.
Yeah it is. It is really physical. You know. That bike. I don't know if you had a six three six that the newer six hundred, the Kawazarki ones, but they're a really heavy bike and they've also got a lot of power as well. I raised a Kawazarki Ninja four hundred and I've just started racing a Yamaha R seven
this year as well. My Ninja's got about forty five horse power and it's about one hundred and fifty kilos, whereas the R seven that I've just started racing this year, it's a bigger bike with about sixty five horse power at about one hundred and sixty five kilos and I'm only fifty five kilos so kilo me, you know, throwing around it on one hundred and sixty five kilo machine underneath me, it is pretty intense, like, you know, trying to steer it in and yeah, you know, get the
bike to where you want it and handle the power of it too. But a six hundred that's no mean feet that would have been. That's not the easiest bike to ride it, but especially for your first track day. So that's pretty cool mate.
There was nothing to be seized at at all.
No, that's awesome.
It was almost the same. The first thing I did when I bought a bike last year was I booked what I really didn't process this well to I bought what was advertised as a kind of a lady's road ride day. Okay, yeah, yeah, I'm like, oh, I'm so out of condition of riding that I really just I need I need to be taught again. I need to remember that everything I'm doing innately is actually correct in
controlling this bike. So I booked this day ladies ride day, and then as it approaches, I'm like, tip, this is this is a track day at Broadford again, and you remember that track day And I was so terrified. The only reason I went is because I could remember how great the day was. But I've never been so scared. I had arrived there, I got I made a friend and made them come with me because it was all my friends with bikes and dudes. Yeah, so I made a friend. Yep, trying again, but so wonderful.
Fun and the girls who have in the community are excellent. Like all the girls who ride you know, who do track days and racing and stuff around Australia are just the best. Like obviously, you know, a girl rider obviously has an instant connection with another girl rider because there's not many of us, so it's almost default mates. Yeah,
but yeah, the community is great. We I just want to try to influence girls to start racing because that there's so many girls who are so great at doing like you know, on their bike, gone around the track, doing track days and stuff. But to make that progression to doing track days to actually go to your first like club race or state race is a huge jump. But I really want to get girls into racing because the increase of girls like getting on the bike and
going to the track is like growing heaps. I would just love to see more girls racing. That would be the dream country for me. That'd be really really cool. But back to Broadford ticking, I think I think Victoria has the best and the worst track in Australia really yep, and Broadford is definitely on the worst end in my because that's corner where everyone high sights yea, the crash
corner they call it. If you have to go to a track and there's got a corner called crash corner, I'm not racing this track.
The worst thing yeah, well someone come off in the first session about ten minutes in. It was like someone's someone's turfs already. The worst thing is since that day, I've done a bit of research on my bike. I bought it just an mt O seven. It's naked bike, right the yeah, the high output one. So so it's good.
It's a good quick bike. It's not the learner model, which as I was as I was signing the papers for that, the BUK selling it to me was like, you know, this is not a learner model, because I told him I hadn't touched the bike for eleven years. I rode out there thinking I'm going to I'm going to flip this as soon as I get on the highway.
No, don't think like that. I don't think like that.
But I've read since I've been reading about the suspension on them, and people just they're like, the suspensions terrible, you'd never do a track on it, throw you off. And now I'm ter take it to the track again.
No, that's not aloney, that's that's bullshit. That's not true at all.
No, Hey, you talk to me about like I'm interested in. I guess that given the physicality of it and a female racing males, what's the advantage and what's the cost? So I imagine power to weight. Being lighter, I am imagining is an advantage, but having strength is an advantage. What's important.
I was gonna say, funny you say that technique because the year I started in the ASBK they started a minimum weight limit. Oh so about a kilo is about like half a horsepower worth of horsepower obviously, So yeah, being light would be an advantage. But because we have to meet a minimum weight, I have to add a little bit of weight to my bike. So you have a minimum bike weight and then you have a minimum
bike end right awight. Because I'm such a light rider compared to the other, like twenty one twenty year old boys I'm racing against, that I have to add weight to my bike. Some of the guys I race against as well are actually like a little bit younger or a little bit lighter than me as well, so they would have to add weight as well. But the thing about the minimum weight limit is to make it all equal. But I'm someone who's a little bit lighter than the
guy who's racing against me. But my bike ultimately is heavier because I've had to add the weight to my bike, whereas his bike's a little bit lighter than mine because he is heavier. So stronger, heavier dude is dealing with a lighter bike, whereas me, a lighter check is dealing with a heavier bike.
Would it make a difference, Well, what difference would it make putting the weight on the bike or somehow putting it on the rider? Could you put the weights on you and change the dynamics of riding in that way? Nah?
I know, we just pop the weight under the seat. That is the best way that we've found the balance of the bike to be, you know, really nice. Yeah, No, it's like do they do that in jockey? Is that what horse ridders do? They add the weight to themselves, don't they? Is that right?
Actually I'm not actually sure, but no we don't.
I don't think you're allowed to add the weight to yourself. But that would also like hold you down. You'd prefer the bike to be heavyer underneath you, but no, so yeah, we add the weight to our bikes instead. But yeah, there's lots of there's lots and lots of rules like that that you have to meet. But obviously our bikes are all got like aftermarket suspensions front of hawks and the rear shaker like a different brand than stock as well. And we have like specific racing foot pegs and specific
racing handlebars like clip ons we call them. We also have like mufflers that they all give output of different horsepower too, So it's all it's all the little things that add up to make a bike a race bike. But then have to make it fair because in the Super Sport three hundred, they raise Kawazaki Ninja four hundreds like I do, or they raise the R threes so
my bike. Also, the computer inside the bike has to be restricted, so the Yamaha R threes, which have a three two one cc engine, can keep up with the Ninja four hundred, if that makes sense. Yeah, yeah, yeah, and then the R threes are allowed to fall exhaust system whereas the Ninjas aren't, but they're made that they're equals now. But yeah, there's all little knicks and tricks like that, to make the bike as you know, as fast as you can, Like one horse power makes a
big difference on the little bikes. So yeah, my bike is pristine thanks to my dad and my boyfriend's work and everything because he helps out too. So yeah, there's all the little things to add up to make it the best you can.
How do you like? How did you choose which bike you wanted to ride?
Yeah? Since the beginning, we like, we've been a Kawazarki family quackers.
My first bike was a Kawazaki to fifty. Thanks.
Yeah me too, Yeah, me too, yeah, yeah, yeah, yeah, well my first road bike was but yeah, that's so cool. But yeah I had a like an Ininja two fifty, and then I jumped to an Injo of four hundred. But yeah, we think that we think the Ninja four hundreds are a bit cooler and better than the R three. But now I've got an R seven, so I'm racing Yamaha anyway as well. But no, no, I love both the excuse me, no, I love both the brands. But yeah, just probably a bit a bit more primarily of a
quacker family. But my first bike was a Pee Wee fifty, which is a little Yamaha. My parents bought that bike before for myself, before I think I was born, so I think it was next to my cot waiting for my arrival after the hospital.
Best parents ever.
Yeah, oh they what, They're wicked. They're very very cool. Yeah, very lucky to have them.
Yeah, oh that's awesome. Tell me more about what it's like to be competing at a high level in a male dominated sport. I imagine that even just psychologically that adds weight.
Yeah, yeah, it does. Yeah, it's a little bit. It's a bit stressful obviously, but I like to take away from it hopefully being out a like inspire other girls that you can do what the boys are doing. It's not just a boys sport, you know, girls doing it. The new Women's World Championship that they race in Europe that started last year, you know, that's an all girls series that runs alongside the World Superbikes. It's only women racing in it. So yeah, the introduction of women into
racing is getting much better. But yeah, just it's you know, it's always been a bit of a boys club. Racing. Motorsports has always been a boys' sport, but it's yeah, it's good to try to break that barrier and let girls, you know, feel like they belong at the track as well. Yeah, it's obviously lots of good fun on everything, and yeah, mentally it's a bit tricky on you sometimes when you know that you're like the only girl on the grid.
Sometimes it's a bit stressful, but you know, you just got to pop your helmet on and you know, just do the best you can do. At the end of the day, it's just your self versut yourself out there, and that's how I like to see it is. I just want to do better than myself from the last time I wrote out, and I try not to think about, you know, the boys and girl thing too much. But obviously, yeah it's good to be somewhat of a role model or something, hopefully to other girls out there who want
to get into it. But yeah, I just tried to think of about it. I just put my head down, work and do what I got to do. I guess.
I love it. Do you do you do much road riding as well? Or you like track only?
Track only? No, I don't even have my license for the road.
So many Why are racers like that? Why don't races like the.
Road the track. The track is so safe. Like it's also another thing is if you're if you like have been thinking about getting a bike or thinking about doing a track day on your bike, the track is so so so safe.
Yeah.
There's like always you know, paramedic paramedics right there if you need them. The track is clean, there's marshals out there who can help you. You know, they've got flags telling you there's a bloody pebble on the track, you know, just be careful here or anything like that. So yeah, the track is really really safe. Sometimes I've stubbed my toe and I'm like, I wish I would just like low side my bike instead. That hurts way less than stubbing my toe on this ball right now. It's ridiculous.
But you know, like I had a little low side. It looks a bit scary, but it's yeah, you're so safe. The gear and the technology and everything that we have now is just top notch. So yeah, I feel really I feel quite safe on the track in all my gear, and you know, I'm smart and calculated and stuff. So there obviously a bit of risk to it, especially when you're racing. There's a bit of risk and I've definitely
had my fair share of injuries. But you know, when you're on the track doing a track day, it's it's super safe. Yeah, yeah, it's all good. But yeah, yeah, I had a few injuries on when I'm racing though.
Yeah, tell us about the first time you've turfed it.
Yeah, well, oh, I can't even remember. I think the first time I stacked it was in my mum's leathers, so mum, so I stuffed those up for her when I was before I got even my own leathers. But you know, since then, I've probably stacked it so many times I couldn't even count, but I've both my collar bones've been played it up. So yeah, I got cute scars on my shoulders. And my most recent stack was I broke my pelvis in half as well. Yeah I had a high side, yeah, high side and broke my pelvis.
I had racing the next day as well. It was the first race of the three races for the weekend, and I was like, no, no, no, I haven't broken it. Just let me like chill out here for a bit. Hurts a bit, but I haven't broken anything. Like I know how it feels to break it. Bye, like no, no, I'm all good. And they're like, nah, we think you have We're pretty sure you've broken something. And I'm like no, no, I've got racing tomorrow. Just like I'll put some mice
on it. She'll be right for tomorrow now I do on the green whistle or anything. And I'm like nah, noah, And then yeah, they forced me to go to the hospital and I was like, yeah, I got okay. And I went there and they yeah, I did an X ray and there was a crack right through the middle and they were like, yeah, you've broken it. I'm like, oh, bugger. So I was out for a little while. Last year
in the ASBK, I came ninth from the championship. I missed round two due to breaking my collar bone, and then I missed I think round five you'd breaking my pelvist. But this year we've had two rounds. I just came back from Sydney yesterday, so we've had two rounds of the ASBK already and I'm second in the championship at the moment. So yeah, much better start this year than last year. I'm still in one piece, so that's good far.
Like okay, So after a couple of big crashes where you're getting you know, broken collar bones and broken pelvis is nothing to be sneezed at. Like, what's it like getting back on the bike.
It's yeah, it's a bit. It was a bit slow. You want to get out way quicker than what people recommend to here. But I've usually harped what the doctors have said to me to be I've halved that time because I just want to. I want to get back out again. I want to. It stucks being at home sitting on the couch just you know, and everyone else is writing and racing and it's just it's so hard to be at home not doing what you love. And then yeah, you just get back out again, and it
just comes as a territory. You just you know, it's something that you're thinking about, Like it's not something that you think about, but it's something that you're aware that could happen, and it's just the risk you take. But it's really easy to take that risk when you just love the sports so so much. And it's on the rare occasion too that you hurt yourself even at all. But yeah, it's just it's perseverance, it's courage, brave, bravery. I guess, you know, you just pick yourself back up
and go out again. One of my first experiences writing, I did speedway when I was about five years old, and it's just like it's just a little dirt track that you just go around around. When I was about five or four, racing against the boys again and the kids would the kids would have a stack and their dad, their dads would jump over the barrier and help them pick him back up and then have a cry or whatever, and then they come back into the pits. They wouldn't
get back on their bike. And then I remember once probably the biggest life lesson that I think my dad ever taught me was I had a stack and then you know, I had to cry on the track and I was looking at my dad like come on, jump over the fence and come help me, and he's like, nap helping. You got to pick it up yourself and do yourself, so like pick it up, pick it up, And all the dads are looking at him, what the heck? And I was like, oh, okay, I picked it up,
and I remember still crying in my helmet. He's like, finish the race, and I was just crying going around the track, crying in my helmet. But I went around the track and I finished the race and I came back. There wasn't a scratch on me, and you know, and he's like, see, you did it. You stucked it and you got back up. You pick your bike up yourself. You could do it yourself, you know, and you finish
the race and you've got the points and everything. And that was a really big lesson that you just I don't know, you just have to pick yourself back up and keep going. You can't stop.
It's actually really smart. Yeah, you think.
About at the time, I was like, oh Dad, you suck. But now this is shape. Thanks a lot, But now I'm really grateful for it. You know. I learned that lesson when I was like four instead of way later in life, that yeah, you got to pick yourself back up. And that's what I did. And now it's just my instant reaction that anytime I have a stack on the bike, even if it's a track day or a race, I sprint over to it and I try my best, you know, I pick it up and I keep going. Yeah, yeah,
it's got to get it done. Just yeah, it's good.
But the things we go through, like those that experience lives in your body and so if if you walk away from it, you're kind of pressing pause on that, that's going to wait till you You're going to have a reaction when you get back on the bike, because you're gonna have this kind of body memory of like, oh, yeah, I stacked it. It's gonna be terrifying.
Yeah, I mean I kind of love that. Yeah, you would definitely feel that with boxing and stuff like that, like, oh but it's repetitive. But in that moment, you have to keep you know, picking yourself back up that I could I could not imagine that that'd be really hard.
Well, that's as you've been talking. I've been reflecting on exactly that relationship with hard and how like we're talking. We think people might be listening thinking, oh, you're talking about this thing that is not even relevant to me, But it is right because what you're experiencing in terms of adrenaline and courage and doing hard things is reflected
in your life. When you like my boxing coach used to always push and push and push me and be like, I'm not training you for the fight, I'm training you for life. If you can deal with this, then there's nothing this life can throw it that you can't deal.
With exactly exactly. And I yeah, I think motorcycle racing
as well has that aspect to it. It almost takes so much from you that it pushes you to your absolute limit all the time, and then it gives you something because it was so hard to get there, so expensive and tiring and long and draining, and it majeor sore trying to get there, and you know all the compromise that everyone around you has to make for you to live your dream, and then to have one moment, you know, it just it fuels you for the next year. Ioud at the first round this year, I won the
opening race and the supersport three hundred. I was the first first female to ever win a supersport three hundred race in the national road racing category. So I beat forty guys. I was forty one entrance and I was the first one across the line. The rest of the forty boys followed behind me. But yeah, it's just like to get even to get to Victoria, you know, to ten hour drive, you gotta sell your pitch hed You've got to get the bikes ready beforehand, you've got to
pay for ties, you you know, do the weekend. It's hard, it's grueling, it's you know, hard work, and then you just you get past the finish line in first and you're like, oh, that's what it's all for, and it's just one day and then it's over there. It just it just keeps you going. You just it's addicting. You're just always chasing that feeling again, and you get it because you're so dedicated to it that it comes like hard work actually does pay off, it really does. So yeah,
it's very rewarding to see in racing. And yeah, like when when people see like motorbike races, win a race, they're like they think it's great and stuff like that, but for the race, so it's just you have no idea like how much work they had to do to get there. And with you as well with boxing and things just sport in general. Just like the person who wins sees the sacrifices, whereas not many other people do. You know.
Yeah, it's one of the first lessons I often talk about is when I reflect back and I think of my first fight, which was a twelve week corporate boxing challenge, like I was, WHOA, You're already hero, Like, oh yeah, I'll do that twelve weeks, lady in the ring. It's insane.
Wow.
And I went through that, and it was the day before where the nerves just I felt sick and I said, I said out to my mum, I said, I will never ever do this or anything like this again, because nothing in the whole world could ever be worth how
I feel today, like I couldn't even describe it. And then I did the fight like I did it anyway, and I stood outside the ring afterwards, watching other fights and just going this is life, like it takes twelve twelve weeks, which isn't much really in real life it's a lot more. But for me it was this the first time I went for twelve weeks, I changed everything. I did the hard thing. I battled my own in a critique. I walked to the gym every day I
was tired. I didn't drink alcohol like eight different. I didn't socialized when I wanted to socialize. I trained every
single f and day. I got punched in the face and punching the face and punching the face and punched the face and then it was over in four and a half minutes and the outcome meant really meant nothing to anyone else but me, And I was like, oh, this is everything in life, Like, if you have a goal, that's the amount of work and sacrifice versus the moment of it happening, And that's how much it needs to mean to you exactly.
Yeah, you're You're so right. I completely agree with you there, it's yeah. And then you're spending so much time, every minute of every day leading up to it, and then you know, like either You've got one four and a half minute fight or I've got like one fifteen minute race and it all comes down onto that. It's just so I understand that how you felt before your fire as well, because I feel very civiler before a race. And my Mum's always like, it's just excitement, like you're
getting it confused with being nervous. You're not nervous, You're just excited. I'm like, no, no, I'm nervous, thanks my love your guys, but no I feel sick.
Yeah, it's like, oh, I'm good. Then this wave of emotion you're like, oh.
God, it makes you It makes you realize how capable you are, and then how you have that feeling in your gut, in your throat, in your head and you do it anyway.
Yeah, but then then the realization that you, Tara, cannot perform the way you need to physically without that chemical reaction happening in your body.
Exactly.
You need the adrenaline in order to have the reaction time improve, and.
You just have to focus everything onto racing and be like, this is what this is for and and yeah, yeah, I'm not too sure if it's the same with boxing, but for racing, like if you're not one hundred percent in oh, yeah, you can't make it. You have to be one hundred and ten percent dedicated, yeah, or it's
a twenty four to seven sport. Like even though we're only racing on the weekends, it's like the training and the mental side of it beforehand, and the getting the bikes ready, working on them and even working to save up money to pay for the tires for the racing. It's like every single thing I do in my life is around racing. Absolutely everything, every single decision I make is around it, and I wouldn't have it any other way.
Do you feel, how do I want to ask it, like, are you aware now that of the fact that you are already etched in history? Ah, jeez, you didn't know if if you hadn't worked that out. Sorry to put that all of that on you now.
No, I mean no, yeah, I yeah, I'm aware. Yeah. Sorry, just put a massive smile on my face. But yeah, no, I'm aware, And I'm just I want to set more records. I want to do more things. I want my name to be out there. I want people to know me.
I want to be someone's like Anna Grasco or Valentino Rossi or does someone that they look up to and then you know, they get into it themselves because they've heard of me, and and yeah, and I want to set those records for myself and you know, for my own career as well as you know, all other like kids and girls or races out there. But yeah, yeah, I'm aware of it, and I want to I want to set more records. I want to be the first woman to win a national champion in chips. So I'm
in the right direction right now. But there's about forty three of us on a leaderboard and I'm second, And yeah, I want to be the first female to win an ASVK championship. So yeah, just to have those massive goals is what I need. And you just got to even if you like sometimes don't believe in yourself, you just got to set the goal and just just do as
much as you can. Just how hard you want it, how bad you want it, and stuff like that, you just got to chase it as much as you can make it happen all over again, keep going on to the next goal and the next goal, the next goal, and always have something in front of you, which there's no shortage of that in racing. There's always something you can improve on, you know. So that's also another good for another good thing about my life as well, that
I always feel like I'm chasing something. I'm not stationary. I'm always moving forward, and I'm really grateful for that in my racing career and that in my life as well. It's really good.
Every time you mentioned the being second on the leaderboard or you give me a visual of winning against forty other blokes, I get goosebumps all to my body. Like the level of excitement I have for that is almost too much for me to stand right now.
Thank you, oh man, you have no idea. Like there's there's a photo the race, the photo finish they called it. They posted it on the ASBK Facebook and it's me like celebrating with my arm like humping up and I'm looking behind me at the guys and they're like neck and neck, and I'm like a bike length in front of them, and I'll just you know, going around, you know,
standing taking a moment of fame. You're like ten minutes of fame and riding around the track and everyone's clapping for you, and you're trying to like wras up the crowd and you know, wave it and high fiving all the marshals to coming in part Fermey and you know, just that little moment of fame. It sounds so silly,
but yeah it was. It was really surreal. I came a third for that that round overall, which put me third in the championship, and then this last round at Sydney Motorsport Park the weekend just gone, I'm not as strong. That's what I was talking about in Victoria, that Victoria has the best and worst track. So Philip Island, the
track that I absolutely love is the best there. And then Broadford my favorite but Philip Barnes my favorite in Australia, and then Sidney Motorsport Park this weekend is yeah, I haven't been there very much, so I you know, you have to be a little bit realistic about it. I'm like, oh, I might be like dropped down a position or two, but to actually go up a position and come second now in the champion second championship now is really good feeling.
I've got five more rounds left, so I've got two more in Queensland, got one more in Sydney again, and then we're going back to Philip Island and then the last race of the year in November is back home for the finale at Taylor Bend in South Australia. So it's a long it's a long championship. You're just going to stay consistent and steady, level headed, and you know, think about the championship. You can you can definitely you can't win a championship in a round, but you can
definitely lose one. So consistency is key and that's what I'm looking at overall. You know.
What, I guess different types of riders are suited to different types of tracks, Is that right? Yeah?
I think so philip Island's a really fast and smooth track. Yeah, I yeah, I have no trouble with fifth get corners, like holding it flat. Holding it flat's really easy. But then when I had to start using my brakes, I'm like, wow, bugger. But yeah, fast tracks I really like. I just like having like having it flat out all the time. That's my style for sure. And Philippine is also a very smooth,
flowy track, which I like as well. But then there's other tracks on the calendar that might be a bit more aggressive, like more sharp turn corners or hard breaking or something like that, which I also like. But my definite strong point is definitely fast and flowy tracks. I have a need for speed, I guess. But yeah, I've been to Asen, which is the Cathedral of Speed. That
was my first international race. I raced over there with a team that also had a team in the World Supersport three hundred Championships, So I learned heaps there, you know, racing that My teammates were people who racing the world and stuff, and I think that's another spot where it kickstarted my career and made me jump to the next level as well, because they raced the same bikes as me, And yeah, I had lots of fun at that track and would absolutely love to go back and race there
with all the added experience and knowledge that I have on a bike now and go back to that track. But yeah, that was a beautiful experience, very very fun. And then yeah, so next year I'm hoping to race in the Women's World Championship on my R seven. Girls all round the world from like England, Australia, New Zealand, Spain, everything, all racing that championship and yeah, I would love to
do that. And the lineup for the tracks that they have looked like they would be strong tracks to me as well, and definitely bucket list tracks I would love to go to. So yeah, that's also a really exciting endeavor that I have my mindset onto. Yeah, oh I love that.
On mindset? Who like, do you manage yours? Do you specifically work on your mindset? You're thinking?
Yeah, yeah, definitely. I Again, I speak to Emma a little bit about that, about the mental side of being, as she calls it, an elite athlete. I never really viewed it like that until you know, she started talking to me about it like that. But yeah, again, Like what I was saying earlier is that everything I do I have in mind to my racing, whether that's sleep, eating, physical training, you know, everything is all in mind with that.
But yeah, I've definitely started like a lookout for like sports psychologist kind of things, because it is really heavy on your mind, the kind of sport that we do. And yeah, I do want to start getting into that a little bit deeper, but I haven't necessarily as of lately. But yeah, it's definitely something I'm looking into to take a bit more seriously as well, to have the final
piece of the puzzle and just make everything about raising. Yeah, but I've got a really good community around me, you know, people who help out a lot, and you know, make it a much easier load on myself. But you know, when you enjoy it as well, that makes it a bit easier, a little bit less stressful, and it's going to make it a fun experience for yourself. And yeah, just trying to have some fun at the same time as well.
So yeah, I did a late last year or mid last year, I Did you love this episode on the show Trying to Find the Number of It Mind Faith Episode seven hundred and ninety three I did with Ben Felton and Kevin McGee. Do you know those names?
They sound oh McGhee, yes, yes, that sounds familiar.
Yeah, so McGee, Kevin McGhee or Magoo. He's from Horse and the Horse and Hurricane. He won the Spanish GP in nineteen eighties. Nineteen eighty eight, I think, oh wow, and I think it might have been about two and Ben Felton and him. He was a navigator. Ben Felton one or yeah one the Guinness or became the Getness World Record hold off for the fastest blind man on a motorcycle. Yeah, it's incredible. They made a documentary. So
I had them on the show. I m seed an event in a chukull with them there and they had just insane for a start, insane. I remember Kevin had had had a stack on his bike and it was actually and he got a traumatic brain injury and in when we were at the event, and he was talking about that, and he'd mentioned to me earlier but hadn't really you know, just forget to mention these things on the podcast or in conversation. I'm like he got read his last rights when he was in hospital, like it was.
It was looking really grim, but yet he was out of hospital and back ray seeing within something like I can't remember it was maybe six six months or something, it was a matter of months, but I remember them testing his reaction time, and at the time I was thinking of all of the things that we don't always think of in terms of what's important for specific sports and athletic ability, because his reaction time was well above average for the average person after a traumatic brain injury.
And at the time, I was like, oh, it may even made me reflect on previously boxing and thinking, oh, you know, how much training would just be flogging yourself in the gym as opposed to git. Did I ever think of how to improve my own reaction time or you know those small variables that actually, you know, I
was thinking. I was picturing you on Philip Island. Yeah, just like having the balls to keep the throttle flat out through corn and I'm like, oh, like that that's an advantage that a micro second changes a lot in the race.
No, it does, it does, but yeah, having that confidence in yourself you have to be you have to trust yourself so much. And yes, now that you say that, Ken, I do know Kevin McGee, my dad would be so upset with me if I didn't, So no, I do know Kevin McGee. You raced in the GP with people that were rainy and stuff like that, so yeah, I do know of him. Definitely, he's insane. That's crazy that
you had did a podcast and that's so cool. But yeah, it's all about trust within yourself, confidence in yourself, and that comes with just riding the bike as much as you possibly can, you know, almost becoming one with it. I was talking about that with my mum of the day, and you know, how the bike operates also has a
lot to do with your team around you. So my partner and my mum and my dad and my grandpa Glenn come to the track and Glenn used to race as well in the ASPK the national championships and won
the championship on the big bikes as well himself. So having them there with a really high understanding of how the bike works and operates for someone who's racing it is really important because I don't have to think about that as much, or I think about is racing and then I hop on my bike and it's set up really nice, and you know, I talked him about it afterwards saying like, oh, it felt like it could have a bit more pre load, it felt a bit soft in the front, or it felt a bit like it
was chattering in the rear, or you know, it was running really wide, and then they just changed the bike with the suspension and then when I hop back on it nine out ten times it feels better. So yeah, Or like on rails, people say a lot like when you're riding really well, that like it's on rails and that's when you know that you and the bike almost become one. That sounds a bit naugh, but just underneath you just all you do is thinking about what you want the bike to do, and it just does it.
That's a really good feeling. And you know, having a really good team makes it easier on me as well, who definitely have an idea in what they're doing. Makes me have a lot more confidence in my bike and myself. And you know, you have to have a lot of confidence in your bike as well. And hasn't missed a beat touch Wood, So yeah, lots of confidence in my team, bike and myself for sure. Got a good thing going.
Absolutely, and even just the level of being able to communicate and understand what you say and what that means and how that translates to what they do to the bike and your ability to adjust to the changes. That's so much science.
Yeah, it is, it really is. You're like, yeah, we've got a you know, like a not a graph, but like a spec sheet. After every single session I do, we write down every single part about the bike and what change and even what the track temperature was, and it's little teeny bits that all go into it to make it, you know, perfect for you. But yeah, racing isn't just about how good the rider is. It matters about how good the bike is, and you know, how good the support around you is and how much they
know as well. Just recently Steve Martin, he's currently a commentator in the ASBK, but he used to race in the World Endurance Championship and stuff like that and in the World's even and he is like a very big racer. But he commentates the A's b K and we've formed a really good relationship and he comes down talks to us and helps us out with bikes set up. And you know, my dad was a stunt rider, so he could ride any bike really well.
You could just love to be a stunt rider. Can you get your dad to teach me? That will be the.
Oh my gosh, he wants to teach me how to do a WHEELI and I can only do it accidentally, so but it's so hard. I'm like, how do you do that? I can get my knee dout super easy. I don't even think about it. But if I ever were to think about doing a fricking like a wheel stand like a wheelie, or putting my legs over the handlebars, or doing a massive like twelve o'clock stoppy, like, no way,
there's absolutely no chance. I didn't get that gene from him, unfortunately. No, But yeah, he could just jump on any bike and just ride it so well. Like I think that's the difference between like maybe a stunt rider and a racer a little bit. But at least for me, I'm a little bit picky, like I need things very specifically and
I don't like change too much. And you know, but Steve Martin obviously used to race himself, and he knows how to talk to me really well in that way that I'm like, yeah, he totally gets it, you know, And when I say something to him, he understands from his own experience as well, and how to explain it to my dad and team a bit better, and how to change the bike as well, because yeah, there's just a little language that races speak as well, Like you
sometimes see them on the TV. They're like lang lang lang, or it's going and it makes complete sense to another race that everyone else is like, what is she talking about? I? And that's like what Nah, he gets it, but yeah, nah, it's yeah, little things that people don't really know. But we're always changed in the bike, and yeah, make it a little bit different and you know tiewear and yeah, everything makes a difference, and there are lots of things to think about.
I was just trying to find there's this brilliant female stunt rider that I follow on Instagram that I want to send to you, and I can't.
Oh, I think I know her. She's got she's praying.
The ninja that's like like a pearlized color one and a couple of there's a pearl. Yeah, when I will send it to you, I cannot think of her name. But you know what was really freaky is when I opened Instagram to look for it, I thought I'll just maybe if you'll pop up in my Explore. I open the Explore panel, which is currently full of comedians because that's all I've been watching, and all of a sudden, because of this conversation we're having, it's full of motorcycle racing.
And I was like, yeah, and I haven't been looking that up. Oh shout out to the algorithm, but I will find that awesome stunt rider. Can you tell my listeners where they can follow you, find you, watch you, anything you want to promote, any shout out that you want to do.
Yes, please, thank you. Yeah, I'm on Instagram, book, and YouTube. Ti Morrison Racing on Instagram, Ti Morrison Racing ninety five on Facebook, and Time Morrison Racing ninety five on YouTube. My YouTube channel, I make like.
Behind the scene videos and videos of racing and so you can see all what that's about and I explain it and you guys can get an understanding of.
How it works at the national level and everything. But yeah, I've a YouTube video that I've started. The YouTube channel that I've started has been one of the best decisions ever. I absolutely love it. And yeah, if you could check any of those out, give me a follow it that'd be really really cool. Thank you.
I follow you on Insta, but I will be following you on YouTube as well.
Thank you.
You're amazing. I can't wait to continue to watch you can pave you away in this space, and thank you because there's it makes it so. It just opens the door for women in sports like this, and I especially love it when it is a beautiful, down to earth, likable, lovable personality behind the sport, which you definitely are.
Oh, thank you, Tiffany.
Thank you.
It's really nice.
Thank you.
No, I really appreciate it. Yeah, keep killing it yourself as well, and yeah, keep podcast up because yeah, now I've got something to listen to my way to work every morning. Thank you.
Excellent. Thanks everyone check her out.
Bye bye. She said, it's now and never.
I got fighting in my blood
To