Rider Interview - Ryan Garside.

Posted by Jake Causier on June 8th, 2020

29 year old Ryan from Fleetwood in Lancashire is one half of a professoring dream team alongside Richie Harrison at Myerscough College and in 2019 walked away with the Thndersport GB Steelsport Championship title.

He is also regarded as one of the worlds leading experts in pop up tent wrangling!

Q1 - Race number? I like number 1. Surely that's what we should all be after? But usually, I'd hope for 51.

Number 1, 51 or both! (Image curtesy of Ryan).

Q2 - Club / Championship? Currently Thundersport GB (TSGB) with the odd round with Preston and District Motorcycle Club (PDMCC).

Q3 - Class / Classes? Golden Era Supersport at TSGB and Streetstock 125 with PDMCC.

Q4 - Debut? My first race was in 2010 on Mark Woodmans spare ZXR400H at Three Sisters. Best result that day was 5th lapping 1.01. I think I only ever got the odd round in between then and 2017 though as I couldn't afford it... it took me until 2018 to get rid of the novice bib!

Q5 - Honours / Titles?

2017 Aintree Pre-Injection up to 600 Champion.

2017 Aintree Steelframe 600 Champion.

2018 Aintree Pre-Injection up to 600 Champion.

2018 Aintree Steelframe 600 Champion.

2019 Thundersport GB Golden Era Steelsport Champion.

But to be honest, my favourite would be winning the Plop Enduro! I built 2 bikes for it, (we started 44th and 100th on the grid out of 100 bikes) my team won the 90 class and out team mates won the open class, with us being first and second overall against the likes of Richard Copper, Tom Booth-Amos and a few other seriously quick professionals!

Ready to win and win the Plop Enduro (Images curtesy of Ryan).
The spoils of Victory.
The dream team.

Q6 - Favourite Circuit and Favourite Corner? Favourite circuit's have to be Donington National Ridden) and Mugello (I wish!). Favourite corner, it's close between Turn 1 at Anglesey and Beechers at Aintree! Full throttle in fifth gear on long gearing with your knee inches from the ground! Love it, God I miss that place!

Q7 - Boyhood heroes? I'd say my old man, but it's gotta be Rossi hasn't it!

Q8 - Toughest rival? I honestly couldn't single out one person! On their day, it could be any of 10 or more people! If I had to pick one , I'd say Tom Booth-Amos, although that's more a case of fastest person I've raced rather than a rival!

Q9 - If I could swap places with any other rider? If I can swap talent while I'm at it, then it has to be Marc Marquez.

Q10 - Biggest accident? 2012. It was on the road and to be honest I shouldn't be sat here now. It could have easily killed me! I was doing some stupid speeds on my SV650, overtook a mate in his mx5 soft-top thinking I'd make him jump....well I succeeded as I tucked the front immediately afterwards. As I bounced along the side of the road I went between two steel posts at around 60-70ish which were holding up a road sign. The gap can't be more than 3 feet wide and I just remember seeing the sigh coming and as I braced thinking "this is it" I noticed the sign was giving directions to the crematorium and I couldn't help but find the irony humorous! Not including all of the time in hospital with operations and physio etc, I'm lucky that the only lasting injuries are a few small scars and 9.5 fingers. Lesson learnt and price paid!

Q11 - Biggest influence on your career so far? In terms of advice etc, it's my old man by a mile! But the things that changed it the most has to be the combination of a good friend (Ben Wileman of Easypay Network) sponsoring me and starting working at Myerscough College where the racing fits in perfectly with the Motorsport course syllabus!

Q12 - Rossi or Marquez? I'll get shot for saying it but it's Marquez! I'm a huge Rossi fan and I always have been, but Marquez is better! I don't care how much Rossi fans will deny it, but Rossi fans would now be Marquez fans if Rossi had retired around 2012/2013.

Q12a - If I wasn't racing I would be? Are you superstitious Chris? Lucky 13 for me!

If I wasn't racing I wouldn't be skint!

Q14 - Nickname? Don't really have one but quite a few people seem to have elected Bryan....But the wife prefers 'Nobhead'

Q15 - If money were no object I would? Design and build my own race facility. I used to spend loads of my time as a kid drawing and planning out race tracks and paddocks etc.

Q16 - Brown or Red sauce, Coke or Pepsi? Brown (or BBQ, that's brown..) & Pepsi.

Q17 - If I could be one person for one day I would be? Whoever is in charge of Area 51! Firstly that's the best number.. but seriously I wanna know what's in the! #Paulisreal

Q18 - Cost to race per season? 2017 & 2018 cost me around £1500 each all in! 2019 was probably more around the 7 grand region....

Q19 - Dream bike? 2001 Honda NSR500 V4.

Q20 - Training regime (Gym rat or bike fit)? Pizza fit... or kebab! I do love a good cheesy donor!

Q21 - Dogs or Cats? Cats! Dogs tend to annoy me! I want my cats life! In fact can I change my answer to Q17 to one of my cats?

Q22 - From October to March I can be found doing? Prepping the bikes at work during the week and sulking because it's cold and wet at the weekends!

Q23 - Dry track, wet track or not fussed? I go quite well in the wet but much prefer the dry! The whole weekend is made miserable when it's wet!

Q24 - Best ever race? Proudest of the 2017 win at the Plop enduro but most fun was one of my stints in the 2015 Plop where me, Chris Green and Charlie Corner spent the entire hour elbowing each other to death, tucking the front for fun and using every inch of tarmac and some of the green stuff too! Proper good laugh.

Q25 - Special thanks to? Everyone who's helped me over the years, I'd be here ages listing them all! Big one has to go to Ben Wileman, without who I wouldn't have raced at all in 2019 if he hadn't offered to sponsor me at Thundersport!

And obviously the wife for putting up with me, anybody who knows me knows I'm just a mildly overgrown toddler!

So Ryan sticks one in the win column for Cats as well as giving some very entertaining answers as expected, big thanks to him for helping out. Up next is Ash Gibson of Green Ant Racing.