Spies ... from two to four wheels!

Ben Spies made the most of his summer break to indulge his curiosity about car racing at the WSB venue of Miller Motorsports Park in Salt Lake City.

Invited along to help out at Yamaha's new bike racing school, Spies was finally let off the leash to try out a Ford Mustang racecar under the supervision of an instructor, and he enjoyed it so much he stayed on for a second day. "I was only supposed to do one day of that, but I had such a blast I ended up doing a second day," said Spies. "They let me do what I wanted to do and I worked with an instructor to get up to speed and just had fun."

Spies confirmed that his times were fast once he got the hang of it, but knows that two-wheels is where his future lies. "I got down to some quick times. I drove with my instructor and he was a bit quicker than me but he wasn't pulling away, so it was fun. I am not starting any rumours about going car racing but it might be fun when I am done motorcycle racing. It's not a chance that many people get to have, jumping in a racecar and taking it to the limit on a real racetrack. It was a blast."

Meanwhile another Superbike rider, this time an illustrious ‘ex', Troy Bayliss had his first true taste of four-wheeled action, over the weekend at Phillip Island. Or rather he didn't, because the triple WSB champion's much-awaited debut in the Australian V8 Supercar championship will now be postponed to Bathurst as his Holden Commodore, in the driving hands of team-mate Dean Fiore, failed even to complete the sighting lap due to a technical problem.