By John Haughey
BBC Sport |
 Raymond Porter is competing for the McAdoo Kawasaki team |
The Garda Siochana probably don't know it but they played their part in making Raymond Porter a North West 200 winner. Back in 2001, the Lifford man decided that he'd had enough of dodging the boys in blue on the country roads of Donegal.
"I gave up the runs on the road because it was getting too dangerous on the public roads with traffic and garda checkpoints," Porter tells BBC Sport.
"So I decided to sell up my road bike and I bought a 600 track bike.
"I did a few track meetings in 2001 which was the year of foot and mouth.
"In 2002, I decided to get the road racing licence and give it a go."
In those early days, his experience and knowledge of the road racing scene didn't extend beyond an annual trip to the Kennedy International North West 200 with some biking friends.
But he'd always loved motorbikes and with his fellow-Donegalman Uel Duncan supplying machinery, his talent quickly became obvious when he won the Manx Grand Prix newcomers race in 2002.
Porter continued to make steady progress on the national scene over the next two years but his big breakthrough came at the North West 200 in 2005 when he claimed a shock win in one of the 600cc supersport races.
"I hadn't won a national race at that stage. I'd come close a few times and had a few seconds but I ended up winning a big race before a small one which was unusual."
 | All the riders are fairly selfish because when you get injured, you see what it puts your family through |
The win helped to get a few more sponsors on board although he had already received financial backing from a number of local businessmen in Lifford, notably Alan Hynes.
Of that 2005 Triangle win, Porter recalls making the best of a changeable day weather-wise.
"I was riding for JD (John Donnan) Motorcycles at that stage and I made the right tyre choice."
Last year's North West was a mixed affair for the Lifford man.
"It didn't get off to a good start with my team-mate Ken Doherty getting badly injured.
"But I had a good result in the Superstock race where I had a good battle with (Bruce) Anstey and Hutchie (Ian Hutchinson) and ended up second."
 Porter claimed a NW 200 win in 2005 in wet conditions |
By the time of the Ulster Grand Prix in August, Porter was on different machinery having switched to the Des Moore Honda team and he claimed a close second behind Guy Martin in the big event at Dundrod.
Come the end of the season, the Donegal speedster's seven races wins and 14 second places throughout 2006 had caught the eye of a few more teams.
"I was doing well with Des Moore's team last year but I just got talking to Winston McAdoo at the end of the year.
"The McAdoo Kawasakis seemed very competitive last year. Ian Hutchinson had race wins and podiums at nearly all the international races.
"The superbike DMRR Honda was very competitive but I thought the 600 and superstock bikes maybe weren't as competitive as the McAdoo Kawasakis so I thought I would make the switch.
As to what motivates him to put life and limb in danger, Porter acknowledges that it's "certainly not for the money".
"If you can run at the front and win races, you will do okay out of it financially.
"All the riders are fairly selfish because when you get injured, you see what it puts the family through.
| The employers seem happy enough to give you time off at the start but as the weeks go on, it seems to bug them |
"You start thinking:'Maybe I'm a bit selfish going out to race'. But once you are sitting on that line with the visor down, you're just thinking about yourself and you want to win."
Porter's sporting career has resulted in him having several short-lived jobs over the past six years.
"The employers seem happy enough to give you time off at the start but as the weeks go on, it seems to bug them and I just found that it was easier to leave a job, and go look for something that suits the racing better.
"It's never too handy to get something that suits around the racing so I'm a part-time mechanic and I come and go as a I please."
Porter says he will go into the North West 200 in "fairly confident" mood.
"Of course, I would have loved a bit more track time on the McAdoo bikes. Cookstown proved that I hadn't enough time under my belt.
"I know I'm lacking a wee bit there but I'm fairly confident of going to the North West and things clicking into place. Well...I'm hoping anyway."
On the fitness front, Porter has left nothing to chance by putting himself through a punishing winter.
| I've heard in the past that riders could drink to five o'clock in the morning at the TT or the North West and get on a bike and win a race |
"I needed to do that to build up my knee after getting injured last year.
"With my injury, I was swimming six days a week to build up my leg. In normal circumstances, I would be going to the gym five nights a week in the winter but when the racing season starts, it's down to two or three nights.
"I've heard in the past that riders could drink to five o'clock in the morning at the TT or the North West and get on a bike and win a race.
"I could be proved wrong but I just don't think that could happen any more. The level of the racing has definitely gone up.
"All the riders that run at the front, concentrate a lot on their fitness and their diets. With six or seven laps around the North West, put it this way - the fittest rider is likely to come out on top."
As regards the men to beat, Porter insists that the honours could be spread around in what he believes will be the most competitive North West 200 in years.
"There are at least 12 or 13 riders that could finish on the podium and when you have that number of contenders, you have to really be on form.
"You have got to try and qualify on the first or second row. Then, you have to get off to a good start because if you don't get into the leading group by the end of the first lap, you don't really stand a chance of winning."
And as Raymond Porter makes clear, winning is what it is all about for him.
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