My Story
Bitten by the motorsport bug
My name is Cem (pronounced 'Jem') and I am an avid motorcycle racing fan based in North London. My passion for two-wheeled motorsport was properly ignited in the mid-1990s when I became hooked to World Superbike (WorldSBK) racing, which at the time was being shown live on Sky Sports; Keith Heuwen and Julian Ryder were the commentators during that period, and for me they are the 'original' voice of the sport (got to love those rose-tinted specs!).
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In fact, I had already developed an interest in 500GP in the early '90s, but due to my passion for Formula 1 at the time - I was, and still am, a huge Ayrton Senna fan - and combined with Mick Doohan's crushing dominance of the 500GP class throughout the mid to late '90s, I gravitated more towards World Superbike during that period.
Throughout the mid to late '90s I attended the UK World Superbike round at Brands Hatch on numerous occasions when 'King Carl' Fogarty helped draw bumper crowds of 120,000+ (unofficial figures). Getting out of the car park, or indeed car 'field', was fun and games - two+ hours of waiting anyone?
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Opportunity knocks
The major turning point in my young adult life came about in 2001. At the time I collected Motorcycle Racer magazine, which was edited by Tony Carter, who would go on to present the World Superbike coverage on Eurosport in years to come. Former three-time British Superbike Champion Niall Mackenzie had just started commentating on World Superbike races for Eurosport that season and frankly I thought he was awful (sorry Niall, you've improved a lot since then!), so much so that I emailed my displeasure to Motorcycle Racer...
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Well wouldn't you know it, they duly published my email in the next issue! My initial excitement at seeing my comments in print was short-lived however, as 'Racer' (well, more specifically Tony) decided that apparently my name must be an alias and sarcastically commented: "Nice name, couldn't have thought of a better one ourselves."
I didn't have a very thick skin back then and wrote a lengthy complaint about why it was unacceptable for a reader to have their name ridiculed. As recompense, I was offered to go to a British Superbike race of my choice as a 'VIP Guest' of the Virgin Mobile Yamaha team - I was ecstatic! Being based in South London at the time, naturally I chose the iconic Brands Hatch as the circuit I wanted to attend.
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So, the big day finally arrived and armed with our 'Virgin Mobile Yamaha VIP Guest' lanyards my friend and I walked around Brands Hatch like we owned the place! I was a big Noriyuki Haga fan, and because he was a Yamaha rider I was excited to meet James Haydon who was ostensibly riding the same R7 Superbike that Haga came so close to winning the World Superbike Championship with in 2000.
James had established himself as a British Superbike championship contender during his tenure at Reve Red Bull Ducati and had been riding the wheels off of the R7 in the 2001 season in an attempt to keep up with the faster Ducati 998s of MonsterMob Ducati and his previous employers.
Unfortunately, he crashed in Race 2 and as a result was unable to attend the 'Meet & Greet' session - I was gutted! We still managed to meet Virgin Mobile Yamaha's second rider, Jamie Robinson, who in fairness was a very nice guy and posed for photos with us.
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Posing on James Haydon's Yamaha YZF-R7. Don't know what I was thinking with the natty t-shirt/jeans/suede loafers combo...
Having my photo taken with Jamie Robinson
Posing on James Haydon's Yamaha YZF-R7. Don't know what I was thinking with the natty t-shirt/jeans/suede loafers combo...
© Cem Rüstem - NB: Pre digital camera days, date setting on the camera was obviously not correct as photos were in fact taken in 2001!
Then while we were preparing to go home, I thought to myself: "I've got my gap year coming up (I was about to complete my second year at university) - why don't I apply for a job at Motorcycle Racer?" - so that’s what I did. There was some back and forth between Tony and I for the next few weeks - which basically involved sending Tony a handful of written pieces about the sport to prove my literary skills and fundamental knowledge of the sport were up to muster.
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​Opportunity taken
Suffice to say, I secured the role of 'Staff Writer' for the next year at Motorcycle Racer magazine. By the time I joined Motoplay Publications, Tony had been promoted to Publishing Editor for both Motorcycle Racer and Motorcycle Sport & Leisure magazines and Ian Wheeler (Yamaha Motor Europe's current Racing Communications Manager) stepped into the Editor's seat for Racer.
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I could go on and on about my time there, but I'll just sum it up by saying it was easily one of the best and most memorable years of my life. I got to attend some British Superbike races as well as the Isle of Man TT, interview riders in person and on the phone, had a handful of credited articles published and got to see how a publication house and its different departments operate - warts and all.
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When the year was up I was actually asked to stay on by the magazine but I returned to university to graduate, and then felt duty-bound to join my dad and brother in the family business - that was in 2004. My passion and love of motorcycle racing never dwindled though.
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Here are a few of my credited works for Motorcycle Racer magazine:
Motorcycle Racer Credits Panel | Shared credit for Barry Sheene obituary |
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Credited Daijiro Kato obituary | Short interview piece with Michael Rutter. Technically not credited but my name still appears in there so... |
On the ferry back from the Isle of Man TT with Tony Carter - 2003 | Camping at the Isle of Man TT with the Hugh Grant of motorcycling, Jonathan Bentman, the current Editor of 'Trail' magazine - 2003 |
'Mad Sunday' at the Isle of Man TT - 2003. Rod Chapman, then Editor of Motorcycle Sport & Leisure magazine, looking somewhat pensive. |
© All images Cem Rüstem
He who dares...
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Fast forward almost 20 years and I now find myself in a position where I am pressing the reset button on the 'Trip' counter of life - and this website is the equivalent of 0 on that counter. Now in my early '40s, my immediate goal is to utilise my passion for the sport and use this blog to give some much-needed exposure to Turkish riders, in particular to UK-based Turks/Turkish Cypriots who know very little, if anything, of our 'Fast Turks'...
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However, this site is not limited to just Turkish riders or just a Turkish/Turkish speaking audience. Neither will this site be blindly partisan in its views and general tone - sure, I make no bones of the fact that the site may never be completely neutral given the direction I'm taking, but I am striving for the highest standards of journalistic integrity. I want to hear opposing viewpoints and have reasoned debates about the sport I love so much, I don't want an echo chamber where we all confirm and feed into each other's biases.
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This is my first attempt at creating a website and starting a blog so no doubt it will be a learning process and I’ll make some mistakes along the way.
The ultimate goal is to find a job in a World Superbike/MotoGP paddock in the coming years, preferrably in a PR/Communications role. It may be a long road ahead, but I am feeling very motivated and positive, determined to immerse myself in the world of two-wheeled motorsport.