There’s something really exciting about packing up your whole little racing life into a van and heading off across the country chasing improvement. Morgan Park started exactly like that for me. There was an unofficial test before the ASBK round there later in May and I knew I needed those laps. With diesel prices being absolutely brutal at the time, I spent a while trying to find someone else heading over to Queensland to split the drive with, but no one else was going. In the end I thought, “Well… if I want this badly enough, I’ll make it work.”

So I packed the van, set up my tiny little bed in the back and headed off on my own. Ten hours driving Sunday, another 10 Monday. Honestly, once I got there it all felt worth it. Waking up with the bikes sitting right beside me under the garages felt so cool. It was one of those moments where you stop and realise how lucky you are to be living the life you dreamed about as a kid.

After the two days testing, I drove all the way back home, had a quick reset over ANZAC Day weekend and went straight back to work at Nightmare Designs on Monday morning. That same night was a lot more glamorous though, because Mum and I got invited to the 2026 Ducati unveiling. Mum’s the service advisor at the Adelaide dealership that recently won Dealer of the Year, so it was really special going together. There were beautiful bikes hidden under covers everywhere; my favourites were definitely the Panigale V4 RS and the DesertX. Ducati somehow always makes motorcycles look aggressive and elegant at the same time.

Tuesday I got invited to a local SAPOL road safety event, which was such a cool experience. I got to speak to learner riders and newer riders about motorcycle gear, safety and some of the things I learned working at Peter Stevens. I brought in my wrecked race leathers to show real crash damage and abrasion wear, plus some of my custom-painted helmets, which everyone loved.

Then suddenly it was race week at The Shell V-Power Motorsport Park at The Bend. Thursday I headed to the track while the rest of the team was still at work and got everything set up. Bikes and gear scrutineered, pit set-up done and the paddock slowly started coming alive around me. I also got to shoot some really cool photos with Russell Colvin showcasing my new Phillip Island-themed Tarzy merch and my first ever fully female-owned business sponsor helmet line-up, which made me super proud.

Friday started perfectly with P1 in Free Practice 1, but we quickly realised the conditions were completely different to testing because the wind at Tailem Bend was absolutely insane. We instantly knew gearing changes were needed. I spent the whole day building what I call a ‘wind map’ in my head because every corner felt different depending on whether there was a headwind or tailwind. We finished Friday first, second and third across the practice sessions, so confidence was definitely building.

Qualifying came around and went really well. I finished P4, but right near the end some light rain started coming in, so I came in early to save my tyres for Q2, where I really wanted to attack for the front row. We expected the second session to be wet… but it stayed dry. I found the perfect slipstream, absolutely sent it and qualified P3 by 0.003 of a second – MY FIRST EVER FRONT ROW outside of Phillip Island!

Then the rain came for race one and I was secretly stoked because I love wet races. Straight away there were crashes happening in front of me at turns two and six, but somehow I avoided everything and found myself in second place.

Eventually the leader crashed, which put me into first before another rider and I started battling hard for the win. We swapped positions multiple times over the final laps before he just beat me to the line by less than a tenth of a second.

Even though we missed the win, I was honestly over the moon. My first podium outside of Phillip Island felt huge for me personally.

Sunday brought two more fourth-place finishes, which gave me third overall for the round. Afterwards the whole team celebrated in the pits with beers while I stuck to my lemon lime and bitters and everyone signed my trophy.

Moments like that make every late night, every dollar and every long drive worth it. A massive thank you to my team, sponsors, friends, family and everyone who came down to support me. Seeing people line up during pit walks for photos, merch and autographs still blows my mind sometimes.

We’re building something really cool together and honestly… I feel like we’re only just getting started.