Since 2009, Malte Schröder from Krone Quality Assurance has devoted himself to motorsport, already clinching a number of championship titles with his 1983 Suzuki GSX 1100.
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n 2009, Malte Schröder was a visitor at the Great German Road Race in Bremerhaven. One year later, he stood at the start of Germany’s largest motorbike road-racing event with his own machine - in front of 20,000 onlookers. As the adrenalin pumps through his body, Malte Schröder knows: “This is my sport.”
The 32-year old, who works in quality assurance at Krone and monitors chassis quality in the quality control department, read up a lot and bought a racing licence from the “Motorsportbund” and a 1983 Suzuki GSX 1100. He rebuilt the motorbike so that he could compete in the IG Classic Superbikes racing series (CSBK). Classic superbikes date from the period before 1985 - once high-tech machines, they are today much coveted vintage items: “They are very rough. It is just pure energy.”
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His first race was sobering: On his favourite race track in Schleiz, he rode a 3.6-kilometre route in 2.03 minutes; he has since managed it about 30 seconds quicker. He has trained intensively for it and became AMA Legend Champion in 2013, 2015 and 2016. Malte Schröder does ten races each season; he travels to the Czech Republic, Belgium, France and Holland. He is also involved in the IG Classic Superbikes Association. “I was its first chairman in 2016. I picked up a lot of things from the organisational work that I use in my job as well.” Malte Schröder has a lot of support and can easily take holidays, for example, when a race is coming up. He has five sponsors, his family are right behind him and his partner often goes on tour with him at weekends.
Even today, it is the moment just before the race starts - when the red light on the starting lights goes out - that fascinates him the most. “In that moment, I think of nothing else - I am 100% focused.” He also applies this experience in the office: “On the motorbike, you have to make instant decisions. That has made me a lot more confident.”
