In a fraction of the time others have been in the sport he loves, Jordan Decarie has seen great success in superbike races.
This past weekend at the first round of the Bridgestone Canadian National Superbike Championship (CSBK) at Shannonville Motorsport Park, the Barrie resident finished a split second behind race leader Mavrick Cyr from Quebec.
Decarie, 32, said he was happy with finishing second, but will be looking for a higher placing next time.
He has been riding motorbikes since he was a little guy, but didn’t get involved competitively until the last few years.
“I really only got started in 2021, at the height of COVID, and there were a ton of regulations in place including being a half season of racing,” Decarie told BarrieToday. "I did three races in 2021 as a novice class rider and finished second overall that season. Last year, in my first full year competing at a regional level, I took the No. 1 spot.”
That made him excited to compete against what he called Canada’s best riders, which began this past weekend in Shannonville, just east of Belleville.
“I’d obviously like to always finish first, but to place second in a very tight race in only my third season, that's something I’m proud of,” Decarie said.
The race circuit consists of five races — one per month during the summer — where participants collect points based on placement.
With the opening Shannonville leg now out of the way, Decarie will join others in competing at Grand Bend, N.S., Bowmanville and the fifth and final round is back at Shannonville.
“It's open to anyone in Canada, so it consists of some racers from great distances seeing how they stack up,” Decarie said.
Shannonville also has its own regional series, of which Decarie is part, and hosts many who wish to train and use the track.
Training and practice is important, due to the speeds the racers can reach, he said.
“At Shannonville, we can reach speeds of up to 235 kilometres per hour. The slowest corner on that track, I’m still doing about 70 km/h and the fastest sees you hit about 160 km/h,” Decarie said. “It's what attracted me to the sport. I definitely have the need for speed and have as far back as I can remember.”
While he has yet to be injured, Decarie does wear an air-bag vest, which expands within milliseconds of sensing the rider has been in a collision or thrown from their bike.
Decarie hopes more people will check out the standings and help grow the sport. He said social media is a huge way for him and other racers to get the word out. He can be found on Instagram with the handle @jordandecarie25.
To find out more about the sport, check out the website here.
