Courtesy of  Yorkpress.co.uk

IT’S been a season to remember for York motorcycle racer Sarah Boyes.

The 23-year-old Team Boyes Racing rider has clinched the Auto66 Club Road And Track Championship, while also winning a coveted ‘replica’ at the Isle of Man TT races.

Boyes, who lives on the outskirts of York, took the nine-round championship by storm, winning her Northern Lightweight class by eight points on her 125cc Honda bike.

In only her third season of competitive racing, the former Manor School pupil also achieved one of her motorcycling dreams at the Isle of Man Manx Grand Prix.

She finished 11th in the newcomers race for bikes up to 400cc with an average speed of 91.5mph and 20th in the lightweight race for up to 400cc machines.

However, that was enough to earn the North Yorkshire Road Race Supporters Club rider first place in the 125cc category – and the accolade of best female rider.

Boyes, who works for Royal Mail delivering in the Stamford Bridge area, said: “It’s been a really good season. I fulfilled my ultimate ambition at the Isle of Man – to win a replica was really special.

“The two-stroke 125 class is dying out. There won’t be races for that sort of bike for much longer, so to do it on a 125 makes it even more special for me. I just love racing my 125.”

She also loves to beat male opposition on the track, adding: “There is the odd girl racing, but it is pretty much all blokes.

“The boys don’t like it when you beat them, but everyone gets on really well and it’s a really good paddock.”

Having won the Auto66 125gp Clubmans Championship in 2010 and following that up with the Road And Track title, Boyes is looking for new challenges in 2012.

“I am hoping to do the Isle of Man again and go even faster than this year, and I want to do some national road races in Ireland,” she said.

“I also like racing at Oliver’s Mount in Scarborough, so with all that I probably won’t defend the Auto66 championship.”

Boyes paid tribute to the contribution her father, Steve, has made to her success in 2011.

“My dad has been racing for a long time so I have grown up around racing,” she said. “He has given me a lot of support and does all the work on my bike.”

Boyes has also been backed this year by York-based Transit Motorcycles, the North Yorkshire Road Race Supporters Club, Metmachex and www.mugs4u.com