A BIG few days lie ahead for a rider with big talent "“ as MARK PLUMMER finds out in his latest "˜Friday Feature' . . .
"Five years ago I started with nothing," says CRAIG COOK. Now he stands potentially six rides away from a national title and 15 rides away from regular World Championship racing.
That's a measure of the 27 year-old Cumbrian's fine progress since switching from the bumps to the shale and bursting onto the speedway scene at Buxton.
The Belle Vue and Edinburgh man might have been a late starter, but he is more than making up for lost time as he lines up his first GP qualifier at Berwick tomorrow night.
A star-studded field is set to descend on the big Shielfield Park track but anyone employing the "˜horses for courses' theory will be backing Cook to do the business at a venue when he bagged a five-ride maximum in a Premier League Cup meeting earlier in the season.
He certainly won't be short of confidence either. Former National League and Premier League Riders' Champion Cook said: "I'm looking forward to tomorrow at Berwick. It has worked out perfectly for me really.
"I've got a short trip to a track where I've already had a good meeting this season, rather than having to go on a long trek abroad to somewhere like Slovenia or Germany.
"Being involved in a GP qualifier is taking the next step in my career. It is the level I need to be competing at and tomorrow will give me a bit of insight into what is required.
"I know I'm capable of qualifying for the next round on my day. There are plenty of good riders in the line-up, but they are all there to be beaten.
"Berwick can be a bit of a gater's paradise so I need to make sure I've got my gating gloves on and I'm making fast starts.
"It is all about being sensible in a meeting like this. There is no point in winning four races and then putting yourself through the fence in your fifth ride.
"It is difficult to know whether or not you are ready to be a GP rider. If I was lucky enough to make it, I would have to be ready."
A semi-final date later this month will await if Cook is successful in the first stage of his qualification meeting. The GP Challenge, when the top three finishers win tickets to the big-time, is in late September at Lonigo, Italy.
It is not just international prizes that he is eyeing though. Cook will roll into Monmore Green in 10 days' time as a serious contender for British Final glory.
Cook brought up the rear in the 2013 decider at the same venue "“ a performance which was enough to earn him a reserve berth for the British Grand Prix.
But this year the Millennium Stadium wildcard slot is what he really wants to get his hands on.
Cook continued: "The wildcard is something I'm looking at winning after coming so close last year.
"I would love to be British champion and I would love to ride at Cardiff. They are two huge prizes up for grabs on the same night.
"I've been a bit inconsistent so far this season and that's something I'm working hard all the time to address.
"It had be difficult to understand how you go from getting a maximum at Edinburgh to not scoring for Belle Vue.
"Every little mistake is costly in the Elite League when you're riding as a heat leader in the new format.
"It is extremely tough to ride at number one, three or five as you are up against top riders in every single race, but that is what I need to continue developing and improving.
"I've really had to step it up riding for Belle Vue this season compared to last year."
But, in the second tier, Cook is the man that many aspire to be.
He boasted the highest average of any rider in the Premier League until the recent return of his fellow Great Britain international, Danny King, for the first time in eight years.
And after ruling out riding on the continent, Cook doesn't have plans to leave the Premier League behind anytime soon.
Unsurprisingly he is enjoying every minute of life as the spearhead of an Edinburgh side still to taste defeat in 2014.
He added: "It is pretty insane how well we have been doing. We know we're going to lose the odd meeting sooner rather than later, but it is all about keeping our form going to the end of the season.
"Leagues and trophies aren't won at this time of year and we've got to keep doing what we're doing.
"I've heard people saying I'm too good for the Premier League, but that is nonsense.
"Whereas the Elite League is becoming a bit likes two leagues within one, the level of competition in the Premier League is a lot more even throughout.
"The racing is hard and it is tough. Reserves can go out and beat number ones.
"The reason I ride in the Premier League is because it is not financially viable for me to go to Poland.
"Richie Worrall has sent good equipment out there and only had two meetings. If I did that with my machinery, I wouldn't be able to pay the mortgage.
"I'm not from a rich background. I started in this sport five years ago with nothing. My dad quit his job to work with me."
