CALABOGIE, Ont. (May 22) Brett McCormick nipped Jordan Szoke for the fastest time in practice for the opening round of the Parts Canada Superbike Championship at Calabogie Motorsports Park on Friday. The 17-year-old from Saskatoon turned a lap at two minutes, 1.853 seconds on his Team Suzuki / Blackfoot / Picotte Motorsports Suzuki GSX-R1000 late in the afternoon practice session. Szoke’s best on the Canadian Kawasaki Motors Kawasaki ZX-10R was a 2:01.897, just 0.044 secs. behind McCormick. “Every time I go out I’m getting faster,” McCormick said. “We haven’t changed much on the bike. Yesterday I was just learning the track and we didn’t get much time this morning because of the rain. This has been my first real session on the Superbike.” Szoke was over two seconds quicker than the field during testing on Thursday but found the times close up considerably on Friday. “Everybody’s caught up but I know we can run these times all day long,” said the three-time defending Parts Canada Superbike champion, who won here last season. “We’ll look at the data some more and maybe make some changes for tomorrow.” The next time the Superbikes will be on-track will be Saturday morning’s pre-qualifying session, which will set the top 10 for the afternoon’s Pirelli SuperPole shootout for the Inside Motorcycles Pole Position Award. Kevin Lacombe of Granby, Que. was third fastest in Superbike practice on Friday with a time of 2:02.645 aboard the Team Toyota Yamaha / OTSFF Yamaha YZF-R1. Local ace Andrew Nelson of Kars, Ont. was fourth with a time of 2:03.610 on his Nelson Racing Yamaha YZF-R1 and Roxton Pond, Que.’s Karl Daigle was an impressive fifth fastest at 2:03.614 on the Perusse Kawasaki ZX-6R. Szoke led the way in practice for the Yoshimura Pro Sport Bike division with a time of 2:03.129 on his factory Kawasaki ZX-6R. A late surge by McCormick brought him close to the defending class champion as he turned a 2:03.437 on his final lap on his Suzuki GSX-R600. Lacombe was third with a 2:04.414 on his Yamaha YZF-R6. Sebastien Tremblay of Longueuil, Que. led the Armour Bodies Amateur Sport Bike practice on his Kawasaki ZX-6R, Ottawa’s Dan Henri was fastest among the Suzuki SV650 National Cup competitors, Ryan Roche of Pickering, Ont. paced the Honda CBR125R Challenge field and Richmond, Ont.’s Vicki Schouten led Pro Honda Oils Women’s Cup on her Kawasaki ZX-6R. Saturday’s action at Calabogie Motorsports Park features qualifying for all national classes. Races are set to go Sunday afternoon. This weekend’s races will be shown on TSN and TSN HD premiering Tuesday, June 16 at 1:00 p.m. Eastern and repeated Saturday, June 20 at 4:00 a.m. Eastern. The event will also be televised on RDS. Check local listings for dates and times. More, from a press release issued by Öhlins USA: 17-YearOld Saskatoon Sensation Snatches Top Time in Canada Superbike, Using Öhlins Suspension Calabogie, Ontario, Canada: On the opening day of official practice for the opening round of the 2009 Parts Canada Pro Superbike Championship, Brett “The Kid” McCormick ended the day with the fastest lap of all, on his 2009 Suzuki GSX-R1000, outfitted with the latest in tuned Öhlins suspension components. Wait, there’s more. McCormick’s fastest lap was also a new overall motorcycle lap record for the 3.05-mile circuit of Calabogie Motorsports Park, located in beautiful Calabogie, Ontario, Canada. The Kid turned a lap of 2:01.853 on his Team Suzuki Blackfoot Racing Picotte Motorsport GSX-R1000. Wait, there’s more. In Friday’s practice for Yoshimura Pro Sport Bike, The Kid from Saskatoon, Saskatchewan, nearly besting the field in two classes, setting the second-fastest Sport Bike time of the day, just a few tenths of a second behind the fastest lap. McCormick posted a time of 2:03.437, on his team’s GSX-R600, also outfitted with the latest in tuned Öhlins suspension components. The Kid McCormick said, “Our first test went well and the performance of the Team Suzuki Blackfoot Picotte Motorsport GSXR 1000 and GSXR 600 are carrying over to the first race weekend. I know I still have a lot of work to do, I’m ready, the team is ready and the bikes are definitely ready.” Öhlins USA Road Racing Technician, Mike (not a kid) “Thermosman” Fitzgerald, said, “This kid is amazing. He loves to ride and he gives us great feedback. He has a quick feel for what his bike is doing and he can communicate it to me. He’s a talent who makes my job easy.” The Kid McCormick is the sole rider for the Factory effort of Team Suzuki Blackfoot Racing Picotte Motorsport. Pascal Picotte, former AMA Superbike contender and two-time Parts Canada Superbike Champion, is the team owner and also teenager McCormick’s racing coach, sharing his years of experience to the young factory rider. Chassis and suspension tuning is of course handled by Öhlins USA’s illimitably talented Mike Fitzgerald. Öhlins USA distributes and services the world’s leading performance suspension for automobiles, motorcycles, ATVs, and snowmobiles. Öhlins develops its proprietary and innovative suspension components at the highest levels of racing from open-wheel car racing, to Moto GP, to off-road competition on two and four wheels. Öhlins USA also provides training for service centers and dealers. www.Ohlinsusa.com.