Motorcycles are often regarded as a way of life and it was never truer than in the case of Kardinya drag racing champion Neil Anderson.

The 45 year old motorcycle mechanic has been riding two wheeled machines for 30 years, from early days in motocross to the 250kmh Kawasaki ZX10R he now rides in the Competition Bike category at Perth Motorplex.

Anderson came into the last season as the reigning champion and then promptly won another five events, giving him another championship trophy to add to the cabinet.

“It has been really tough this year,” he said. “There's some great riders in there and with the numbers the rest of the field can run it's been hard.”

Anderson, in contrast to the noise and speed of drag racing, has also tried his hand at golf and surfing, but it is the motorcycles that keep luring him back.

“The reason I became a motorcycle mechanic was because I started racing, and my folks hated it so I had to do it,” he said. “I find motorcycles more fascinating now than I did then.”

The experience of so many years of racing has helped Anderson remain very calm before race events now, something he cites as one of his few advantages over the tight Competition Bike field.

His Kawasaki may look like your every day street bike but carries important modifications such as lowered suspension, gearing more suited to the drag strip, a better cylinder head and a less restrictive exhaust.

Anderson is able to ride the 197 horsepower rocket to times of 9.2sec. for the quarter mile, enough to keep him ahead of his opponents for now.

“The mechanical side of racing really appeals to me,” he said. “These bikes are already so powerful out of the factory, finding any gains is really rewarding.”