Aragon update

Due to unforeseen circumstances Hugh cannot race at this weekend's final ECS round at Aragon. Mike Dickinson has been drafted in to accompany Peter Lindén on the number 1 entry. The number 4 bike will be raced by Stéphane Mertens and Ian Simpson, in an all out effort to win.

Snetterton 4 hrs

Steve Smith and Peter Linden crashed out of the lead of a wet and overcast Snetterton 4 hrs race during the first hour. After a fine start, in difficult conditions, Steve Smith lost the front end at the Bomb Hole during rain. After assessing the damage the team retired in order to preserve key spares for the upcoming Aragon race that they departed for just 36 hrs later. The key issue was the destruction of another fuel tank.

The event started well with dry cold qualifying in which both riders topped their groups. The grid comprised a wide cross section of machinery, not strictly in class, but all underpinned by a great enthusiasm for being there. Technically, qualifying was straightforward, but the opportunity to test a set up which coped best with the very cold track was impossible due to deteriorating weather conditions.

The team regretted the early retirement following the crash, but focus had to stay on the European Series and compromising spares could not be considered.

Hearty congratulations to Steve Boam and Steve Clark for their fantastic win at Snetterton on the SCERT Suzuki. After years of trying the team thoroughly deserve this result.The team are now en-route to Spain where one of seven teams can win the series. Sweatshop Phase One are pulling out all the stops to win, with a double entry of Mertens/Simpson and Brasher/Linden.

The team wishes to thank Rob and Darin for their efforts in getting the Snetterton race off the ground and hopefully set for a great future. Thanks are also due to Ray Marchant for entering the team and to Graham Matcham for the superb Continental tyres.

Aragon race is on 31st October.

Finally, thank you to Martin Gelder of Race24.com for the superb coverage of Snetterton and we look forward to the resurrection of in depth articles on the exciting sport of Classic Endurance. 

RB 

Misano 4hrs; - winnin’ in the rain !

During 4 hrs of torrential rain Peter Linden and Mike Dickinson fought off a serious challenge from the Austrian Team Horvath Guzzi to secure the team’s first win at Misano.

Free practice had gone well, in lovely sunny conditions, but the heavens opened for qualifying and the race. Although the thirty or so competitors were soaked, competition was fierce, with sweatshop Phase One eventually scoring pole, with Horvath Guzzi 2^nd , Segale 3^rd (Kawasaki)  and Wobker 4^th on another Kawasaki.

The race conditions were truly appalling, with the risk of aquaplaning high from mid-race onwards. At one stage it was thought that conditions were bad enough for the race to be stopped. However, with great skill and supreme judgement Linden and Dickinson guided the 100% reliable bike to its wet win.

 

It’s been a long time since the team raced with the ECU in a sealed polythene bag…..but it was worth it.

See you at Snetterton for the inaugural Snetterton classic 4 hrs this Sunday (18^th) afternoon.

RB

    

Misano and Snetterton

Misano 18.00 (Italian time), Saturday 10th of October.

We are pleased to welcome ‘Dicko’ back to join Peter Lindén for another classic 4 hrs adventure at this weekend’s Misano event. Hugh is once again away on Marathon duties and Mike has kindly agreed to stand in.! And what a stand-in he was at the Classic Bol, returning excellent lap times and coming home with a win.

Misano is a Saturday evening race, starting in the light and racing into darkness. It is the final event in the Italian 4 round championship for classic bikes of pre-82. The previous rounds have been at Imola, Mugello and Vallelunga, so it could be a great one to do in the future, if there are no date clashes. Peter is on great form and with Mike and a new engine (to be run-in on Friday), expectations are high….

The track is just over an hour from Bologna and I checked Ryanair prices the other day. Under £50….what’s YOUR excuse.?!

Snetterton 13.00, Sunday 19^th October

Snetterton could be a temperature shock to the system after Misano, but we may be lucky! The Team are pleased to announce that Peter Lindén will be joined by Steve Smith for this race. Steve competed well at the classic Bol on his father’s Yamaha OWO1 with Steven Neate, returning great times and with every prospect of a class win, until their machinery let them down. For those who don’t know; Steve is ex-endurance racer Dave Smith’s boy, and the OWO1 is the very one which Dave competed on in the early 1990s.

The Snetterton 4 hrs race is a significant event as it is the first classic 4 hrs race in the UK. We are used to having the sport in all our neighbouring countries and it is difficult to understand why it’s not been here sooner. Anyway, it is now and the Team are very pleased to support this inaugural event and salute the organisers for taking the plunge. Already, a bigger and better event is being spoken about next year, but right now there is a race to win. First free practice is at 10.20 on Saturday morning with a single qualifying session, per rider, later on Saturday. Warm up is late morning on Sunday. The race is at 1.00. Please come and visit us.

Thanks to MES and Ray Marchant for entering the Team for this Snetterton race.     

Marchent Engineering Services