JENNINGS, Fla. Two-time defending national champion Jordan Szoke set the pace in Tuesday morning’s opening test session for the Parts Canada Superbike Championship competitors at JenningsGP. Szoke was fastest in both the Superbike and Yoshimura Pro 600 Sport Bike classes. Riding his Canadian Kawasaki Motors Kawasaki ZX-6R the Brantford, Ont. rider toured the 2.0-mile circuit in one minute, 16.379 seconds. In his first ride aboard the brand new ZX-10R Superbike, Szoke recorded a 1:16.728. “To have that sort of time right away on the Superbike is really impressive,” Szoke said. “It’s an all-new motorcycle and we still have a lot to figure out. The 600 has obviously been developed over a year, but we’re faster than we went here last year with it.” The JenningsGP lap record is a 1:14.51 recorded by Geoff May on a Suzuki GSX-R1000. The fastest time from Canadian Superbike preseason testing is a 1:15.444 by Pascal Picotte in April, 2006. Granby, Que.’s Kevin Lacombe was third fastest overall and second in Superbike Tuesday morning with a time of 1:17.194 on the Team Toyota Yamaha / Fast Company Racing Yamaha YZF-R1. Lacombe is making his debut with the Fast Company squad here at JenningsGP. Third in Superbike was Szoke’s Canadian Kawasaki Motors teammate Brett McCormick of Saskatoon. The 2007 HJC Pro Rookie of the Year set a best time of 1:17.703 on his ZX-10R. Calgary’s Chris Peris was second quickest among the Pro 600 Sport Bike competitors in his debut with the Team Suzuki / Blackfoot / Picotte Performance Suzuki GSX-R600 with a time of 1:18.146. Fellow Calgary rider Jeremy Stepper was third with a 1:18.175 on the Stepper Custom Homes GSX-R600. Andrew Nelson made his debut Tuesday morning on the NCR Ducati 848 with which he will compete in the Canadian Thunder class in 2008. The Kars, Ont. native turned a limited number of laps and recorded a fastest time of 1:20.522. The Parts Canada Superbike riders will have another test session Tuesday afternoon before wrapping up this preseason test with a full day of track time on Wednesday. More, from another press release issued by Parts Canada Superbike Championship organizers: JENNINGS, Fla. Jordan Szoke ended the opening day of testing for the Parts Canada Superbike Championship at the top of the table in both the Superbike and Yoshimura Pro 600 Sport Bike classes at JenningsGP in Jennings, Fla. The Brantford, Ont. rider took his Canadian Kawasaki Motors Kawasaki ZX-10R around the 2.01-mile JenningsGP circuit in a scorching one minute, 15.239 seconds late in the afternoon. His time was over a second quicker than the next best rider, Granby, Que.’s Kevin Lacombe, who clocked a 1:16.415 on the Team Toyota Yamaha Fast Company Racing Yamaha YZF-R1. “At the end of the day I felt I should put my head down a little and see what we could come up with,” said Szoke, the two-time defending Parts Canada Superbike champion. “We found a little something with the front end and it felt good. But we’re still out from where we want to be, funny as it sounds.” Szoke’s lap was also the fastest time recorded by a Parts Canada Superbike competitor at JenningsGP during the official preseason test, beating the 1:15.444 set by Pascal Picotte in 2006. Making his debut with the Fast Company Yamaha team, Lacombe carved almost a second out of his best time from Tuesday morning. “It’s a new team for me, and new everything, but we’re not that far off the pace,” Lacombe said. “We changed the bike a little bit during the day. But I have ridden the R1 for a few years, and as soon as I got onto it, it felt like home.” Szoke’s teammate Brett McCormick of Saskatoon was third in Superbike with a 1:17.419 on his Kawasaki ZX-10R. “I’m shaking the cobwebs out,” said last year’s HJC Pro Rookie of the Year. “I haven’t been riding all winter, except for some ice racing, so it’s a little tough when they hand you a 180-horsepower motorcycle and let you loose. But each time out it’s a little better, and I’m riding a little better.” Szoke turned a best lap of 1:16.454 on his Kawasaki ZX-6R 600 Sport Bike, with Lacombe again second on the Yamaha YZF-R6 at 1:16.951 and McCormick also third, turning a 1:17.455 on another Kawasaki. Next up were two of the Team Suzuki / Blackfoot / Picotte Performance Suzuki GSX-R600s, with Calgary’s Chris Peris fourth at 1:17.889 and Matt McBride of Mississauga, Ont. fifth with a 1:18.215. Andrew Nelson of Kars, Ont. was the lone Canadian Thunder rider at JenningsGP, and he lowered his best time from the morning to 1:18.915 on the NCR Ducati 848. Course conditions were much improved for the afternoon after morning testing was held in chilly weather. The Parts Canada Superbike riders will complete their two days of testing at JenningsGP on Wednesday. The 2008 season opens at Calabogie Motorsports Park in Calabogie, Ont. May 23-25.