Zwolle, The Netherlands, 30th December 2025: When you combine passion and hard work, personal success lies in the knowledge gained with each race. Weeks, days, and hours are spent analyzing track, weather, and parts data. Multiple combinations are explored effortlessly, eager for that one special moment. And when it all falls into place, that is where victories are won. How long the journey takes depends on many variables. Just ask Shernon Martis. In the last two years, Shernon has gained a lot of knowledge while pursuing his life’s dream: racing the fastest bike on street tires.

Text: Benjamin Wefer
Pictures: Ian Blackett – Blackett Photography.

In 2024, after several years of absence, Shernon returned to the track and set his sights on the UK Championship in the Competition Bike category to get as much seat time as possible and familiarize himself with the bike. Being a one-man show, he began reaching out to several well-known names in the bike community to gain the knowledge he needed. After a satisfying 2024 season, this year didn’t go as expected. But his appearance on the track didn’t go unnoticed as the Santapod Racers Club nominated Shernon for Best Appearing Bike. We sat down with Shernon to reflect on the 2025 season, his gains and learnings, and how he stays focused on his dream of competing at the highest level.

Let’s start with the obvious questions: has your life goal/dream remained the same?  Yes, still the same! My ultimate dream is to compete in the fastest category on street tires: FIM Super Street Bike. Although the goal is clear, I am realistic too and see that FIM is out of my reach. Yes, one needs serious cash to compete in FIM, and as a self-funded team, it’s simply out of reach for now. But I can still be found at the track, improving myself, seeking opportunities to climb the ladder, and enjoying every step!

So what was the plan this year then? Well, our plan this year was simple, Shernon replied. Be better than 2024 and dip into the 7.9-second zone. Unfortunately, we didn’t make it. However, I improved my on-reaction time and 60ft, and was consistent the whole season, so that is a win for us. If you intend to go against the best, you need to be sharp on the tree too! My best reaction time this year was 0.0688 seconds, and my best 60ft was 1.2782 seconds. And, yes, we still have room for improvement.

The year didn’t go smoothly; the main challenge was setting up the turbo system to the proper boost pressure.  We were able to get more power from the current setup, but it also showed us other restrictions across the whole system, which kept us busy. It took some time to find a solution and set the bike back where it should be. Also, the weather gods were not on our side during the weekend we chose to travel to Santapod, so we came short on seat time.

You’re a self-teaching kind of guy. How is that working out? It’s not easy, I can tell you that. But in the long run, I managed to get some help from several people within the community, who taught me a lot about how to do things. Also, this year, my learning curve was steep. One of them is Jake Mechaell from JKE Race Works, who has helped me, on and off the track, overcome all the technical challenges and has been teaching me everything I need to know to be fully independent.

Another excellent duo who have been helping me a lot with engine rebuilds is Margot & Steven Schmidt of Schmidt Performance. Together with Steven, I’ve built a powerful yet reliable engine. With his guidance, I could rebuild my own engines.

Also, Wrapspeed Racing, which provided me with many dyno services. They also helped me prepare the bike for a dyno session and guided me through setting up and tuning it on the dyno.
I am thankful to have them around me and very grateful for their patience and willingness to share their knowledge and teach me to be self-sufficient. Also, I want to thank my family for their full support and our lord who’s been my mental guidance. To all my friends, clients, fans, followers, but also the critics who helped me in a way to get to each event, thank you!