With the new season approaching, Team ILR have secured the signature of Nadieh Schoots as she re-unites with the team's Ninja ZX-10R for a full season in the Pirelli National Superstock 1000 Championship.
Nadieh rode for the team last year in the final round at Brands Hatch and, displaying maturity and professionalism she gave a good account of herself as she improved with every outing during the weekend, in what was her first time in the class.
Nadieh caught the motorcycling bug at an early age, and a minibike straight line test on a quiet country road near her home at the age of 14 was all it took to convince the 24 year old from Spijkenisse in The Netherlands that motorcycle racing was what she wanted to do, and for the next four years she travelled with her father to race and train at kart tracks all over Europe.
It was at the end of 2009 that an opportunity arose to take part in a 3-day circuit training programme with an Aprilia RS250, so Nadieh and her dad set off for Ales in the south of France and, for someone who at this point still viewed racing as a hobby, her performance at the test was impressive as she spent the first day scraping her knees (and foot pegs) in every turn and by the last day she was one of the fastest riders on track.
Encouraged by this, the bold decision was made that she would take the step up to Supersport racing.
Nadieh has since come a long way and, always looking for new challenges, 2015 was the first time in her career that she raced the same bike in the same series for the second year in succession when she competed in the BSB Ducati TriOptions Cup.
Up until now she has taken her time and focused on learning her trade and both she and her team believe the time is right to push for results.
A young lady with her feet firmly on the ground, Nadieh appreciates how incredibly fortunate she has been to have had all these amazing opportunities and adventures, and the 2016 ride with Team ILR is the next stage in her ambitious plan to move into the prestigious British Superbikes class and on to World Championship level.
Team boss Ian Lougher is renowned and respected for supporting and passing on his wealth of experience to young riders, and Nadieh is certain to benefit from her berth within such a well established, professional team.
Nadieh Schoots and Team ILR owner/manager Ian Lougher with the Ninja ZX-10R at Brands Hatch in 2015.
Ian Lougher Team ILR owner/manager:
"Nadieh rejoins us for the full season of BSB Superstock 1000 for 2016, and we at Team ILR are very much looking forward to working with her.
I think Nadieh acquitted herself very well at the last round of the series at Brands Hatch in 2015, considering she had never even ridden a 1000cc machine or raced at Brands Hatch before.
It's an extremely hard and high standard of class in Superstock, plus the unpredictable October weather didn't help either.
We will kick off testing at the official BSB tests at Silverstone, Donington and Oulton Park, and work on getting Nadieh as comfortable as possible on our Team ILR ZX-10R, and find a good base setting for her to proceed with." "
Nadieh Schoots:
"I'm really happy to be racing for Team ILR this season.
The wildcard at Brands Hatch last year was a jump in the deep end for me, but with the support of Ian and the rest of the team I felt confident all weekend and to have this for a full season means a lot.
It's the first time in my racing career I'll be able to focus all my attention on getting faster while we're at the track, and I intend to make the most of this opportunity."
NAME: - Nadieh Schoots
DATE OF BIRTH: - 09 October 1991
HOMETOWN: - Spijkenisse. The Netherlands
HEIGHT: - 1.77M / 5'10"
WEIGHT: - 68KG / 150LBS
LANGUAGES: - Fluent in English and Dutch
EDUCATION: - VWO
GOAL: - Professional motor racer, aiming for World Championship level
TRAINING HOURS: - 20-25 hours per week (Strength and Stamina training)
HOBBIES: - Music, Books, Cycling, Dirt Track, Cooking, Movies/Series
FAVOURITE TRACK: - Brno (Czech Republic)