European Classic Championship - Round 2 Spa Francorchamps 4 hours. 6th /7th July

This weekend the team head for Spa, with one of the best line-ups ever - Linden, Brasher and Conroy.
The team returned fresh from their Mettet 4 hrs. win in June determined to better the 2nd place achieved in the first round of the ECC at Imola. The main competition is likely to come from the Moto-Bel Guzzi, Haquin Kawasaki and Kaiser/Kaiser, all top three runners at Spa last year. Back at Mettet, Stephane Mertens told us that Dholda Honda, winner in the last two races, would not compete this time due to lack of funds; a real shame if that turns out to be the case. More competition should come also from the Glam team of James Clark and Bob Collins, who failed to find form at Imola, but surely will be at the top again at this one.

Since Mettet the team have moved forward in several areas; there is a new pit perch in the pit lane, new posters, new team clothing and some bike improvements as well. New strengthened tacho brackets have been brought into service since early season failures of the originals, plus improved cross over gear linkages, following a failure at Imola.

So, its back on with the lights for the first night race of the year. see you Saturday night. The race starts at 8.00 PM and runs to 00.00.AM

Mertens – 100th career win at Mettet!

Peter Linden and Stéphane Mertens won last weekend’s 4 hours of Liege, the Classic Endurance event held at Mettet, notching Merten’s 100^th win.

The Sweatshop Phase One Kawasaki was put on pole by Mertens with a blistering lap of 1.12.3 secs, with Mettet first timer, Peter Linden also topping his group with a 1.13.9 second lap.

The Richard Hubin Harris Suzuki qualified second and the British Steve Boam/Steve Clarke Harris Suzuki was third.

The full grid (33 are allowed) contained no less than four world endurance champions and exotica abounded! Moto Martins, Harris’s, P&M’s, through to TTF1 900 Ducati twins. One team even tried their luck on a TR 750 Suzuki two stroke. There really were some very serious entries – but regrettably arch rivals, the MotoBel Guzzi team was not there.

The race was held in two, 2 hour legs, one on the Saturday afternoon and the other on Sunday. Mertens and Linden won them both. The second leg was a real highlight with Mertens dicing with Richard Hubin, swopping the lead for the first 25 minutes. Hubin eventually faded but finished the leg in 2^nd.

Peter Linden’s 2013 performance continues to be impressive. Second fastest of the weekend and that despite being new to Mettet. At this one he played the support rider for a change, and who could want a better partner. For the reunited pair, racing again for the first time in 13 years, it really was a dream weekend.

Steve Boam and Steve Clark, on their Harris Suzuki, saw off opposition from the Roger Ruiz and Richard Hubin Teams to snatch 2^nd place on aggregate by a mere 9 seconds .

Thank you to Sweatshop, Continental and our other sponsors for your continued support.

Results

1^st  Mertens/Linden  Sweatshop Phase One P&M Kawasaki  180 laps

2^nd Boam /Clark      SCERT Harris Suzuki                           176 laps

3^rd  Ruiz/Ruiz           Suzuki  GSXR                                   176 laps

4^th  Blain/Blain         Kawasaki 1000J                                 172 laps

5^th  DeVos/Steenhaut   Ducati TT 900                                172 laps 6^th  Senechal/Frerad     Suzuki GSXR                                 170 laps

With thanks to the photographers, Jacco Dijkhuizen and Pascal Kinds

Stephane Mertens joins Peter Linden for the Mettet 4 hrs.

The 2000 World Endurance Championship winning team of Peter Linden and Stephene Mertens reforms for next weekend's 2 x 2hrs race at Mettet. The event runs over the weekend of 1st/2nd June, with an afternoon race on each day,on the recently revamped Ardennes circuit in southern Belgium.

In 2000, these two, with Warwick Nowland, stamped their authority on a fiercely competitive season. After seeing off the factory entries, the main competition, as expected was the superfast and reliable Kawasaki of GMT 94. Despite Phase One Endurance scoring podium places at 3 of the 6 races, it was GMT that pushed them to a down to the wire battle at the Bol d'Or. And what a battle; both teams fought for 15 hrs for the podium on one of those dank misty Magny Cours weekends. As the advantage went from one team to another the night fight was first broken by Linden, and not in a good way!.Whilst pushing hard to close the gap between 3rd and 4th he fell, not badly but badly enough to drop two places after repairs. With such a competitive field it looked like the team would struggle to  make up, with only 9 hrs remaining; but with luck swinging evenly, it was now GMT's turn and this time it was certainly big trouble. It was mechanical.They got it back to the box and to the uninitiated (not that there were many of those at 06.00 on a Sunday morning) it looked minor, but to those who looked closely, the rod sticking out of the front told the real story. Game over;its endurance after all. ! Six out of six for Phase One - what a season.

So, Mertens and Linden back in Belgium together after all these years, what an exciting prospect...they were 2nd at the Spa 24hrs last time and Mertens won for Phase One at Mettet last year. Who knows what next weekend will deliver - in addition to lots of fun of course.

Mettet is 3hrs from Calais, you really have no excuses. !!             

Sweatshop Phase One -2nd at Imola.

Peter Linden and Cormac Conroy took a fantastic pole position at last weekend Imola 4hrs, the first round of the European Classic Championship (ECC). The pair qualified first, in mixed conditions, but because of the ‘no pushers ‘rule started from 45^th position, with the other no-starter motor entries. 

The 54 starters all got away cleanly in the mid- 20Cs,  but overcast conditions, at 15.20, for what was to be a fantastic race. !

Team no 111, the German Classic Endurance Team (Frank Heidger and Christian Ganter) took an early  lead closely followed by Taurus and Hampe, with Christian Haquin at the helm. On lap 3, still with only moderately warm tyres, Haquin slid off whilst pushing for the lead, handing the challenge to the  MotoBel Guzzi and Team Taurus. Meanwhile Linden had set fastest lap whilst carving through the traffic to pass Motobel on lap 6 and to take the lead on lap 9. It was truly a performance to be proud of. 

Linden pushed hard at 2 min 08/09 pace pulling a 21.6 second lead over MotoBel by stop 1 at 42 minutes. Conroy, an able and successful BSA Rocket 3 racer delivered a fast and measured performance to deliver an increased lead of 26 seconds over MotoBel, with Italian Team Fusco trailing them by stop 2.

The field was slowed during rota 3 by light rain, which most teams successfully negotiated; one however fell, necessitating 4 pace car laps. This was timed awkwardly for the team as it has to pit under the pace car (to avoid violating the max. 45 minutes stint rule) which cost the team nearly 4 minutes. This dropped the Team to 4^th – and with the field being so competitive, it would be impossible to retake the lead, which had been gifted to MotoBel, with Alf (Mick Godfry and Patrick Banfield) second and Team Glam (James Clark and Bob Collins) in third.

Now the fight was really on – but Conroy’s progress was hampered by a failing plug cap and a failing gearlink crossover mechanism. Both were changed at stop 4 and, whilst at 5^th . Linden once again took the helm and was told to pull the pin, which he duly did, delivering another fastest lap (a low 2 min 08secs) whilst chasing  Alf and Glam . The drama wasn’t over yet though, Mick Godfrey had got the signal to defend hard and in doing so, took a new and final fastest lap of 2 min 07.5 secs to hold second at the final stop.

Any worries that the new soft compound Conti front would not last the distance were dispelled when Cormac set his fastest lap (2 min 10.3)  during the Team’s  last rota to retake second place from Alfs P&M Kawasaki  ten laps before the flag.

To close;  what a fantastic performance by the riders, pit crew and sponsors – without any part the result just could not have happened – the tyres were great, the riding outstanding and the pit crew 1^st class. Second after round one is a tremendous position to be in, and with a fastest lap  a full 3 seconds ahead of the round 1 winners, and tyres lasting the full 4hrs, we are perfectly set for the season.

Mettet is on the weekend of 31^st May/1^st June, when Peter Linden will join Stephane Mertens on the Sweatshop Phase One bike for the 2 x 2hrs event.

TRUE SPORTSMANSHIP

During the race Sweatshop Phase One chose to stop under the pacecar( which was lapping unpredictably slowly)  to avoid violating the 45 min riding time rule and thus handed the lead to MotoBel.  MotoBel did not make a similar stop and (I believe) mistakenly, went for a 48 mins.

This, if the race director had spotted, it would have resulted in a stop and go. Now this is the good bit – because the director didn’t see it, the MotoBel team boss agreed to Russell’s request to hold the bike for a self imposed 30 second penalty at their next pitstop – which they duly did. OK, they still took the overall advantage, but it was sporting nevertheless.!!

The final top ten;

1^st   MotoBel, Moto Guzzi  

       Christophe Charles Artigues/ Laurent Sleurs, 104 laps,  25 points

2^nd  Sweatshop Phase One,  P&M Kawasaki,  

        Peter Linden/ Cormac Conroy, 103 laps,  20 points

3^rd  Alfs Classic Endurance Team,  P&M Kawasaki  

       Mick Godfrey/ Pat Banfield,  103 laps,  16 points

4^th  Fusco  Ducati TT2 

      Giancarlo Rossi/Duilio Daniani,  103 laps,  13 points

5^th  ACR1, RAU Kawasaki Z1000, 

      Ralf Wobker/Ronald Matthier, 102 laps,  11 points

6^th  Glam Racing  P&M Kawasaki  

      Bob Collins/ James Clark , 102 laps, 10 points

7^th Road Runner, Bakker Suzuki, 

      Henk v.d. Mark/Dirk Brand, 99 laps, 9 points

8^th TT Racing, Moto Martin Suzuki, 

      Bruno Arzner/Thomas Wagner, 99 laps, 8 points

9^th GWCRT Racing Moto Feeling, Godier Genoud Replica, 

      Patricia Audebert/Patrick Rigaud, 98 laps, 7 points

10^th Team Project 34, Moto Martin Suzuki, 

       Thomas Hofmann/Thomas Schuler, 98 laps, 6 points

New colours for Imola

We decided to move forward into 2013 with the Team's traditional colours. First shown in 1989 and just as fast today!

RB














Note the new ignition system and its thick protective plate.

Cormac Conroy joins Peter Linden for Imola

Classic Racing star Cormac Conroy will replace Hugh Brasher for the first round of the European Classic Series (ECS) at Imola on the 21st of April, when Hugh is on London Marathon duties.

Cormac brings much classic and post classic experience, including numerous CRMC class wins and Forgotten ERA successes.

Coincidentally Cormac, as well as Hugh, is an accomplished International runner.

Irishman Cormac normally races a Ryan BSA triple in the UK CRMC events and 2011/12 results show him rarely outside the top 3.

Russell welcomed Cormac to the Team last weekend and noted his enthousiasm for racing and his obvious eagerness to get on the bike at Imola and prove himself. We feel that Peter is without doubt, in possession of an able partner.

See you at Imola.  RB

Photographs by Russell Lee (Sport-Pics.co.uk) and DJG Photography.

A Successful Aragon Test

The Team have just returned from two days testing at Aragon in preparation for the first race of the European Classic Championship to be held at Imola on 20th April. The championship will comprise three rounds - Imola , Spa and Aragon, all 4 hr events. In addition to the ECC races, the Sweatshop Phase One team will also compete at three non-championship races: The Mettet 4hrs, the Oschersleben 4 hrs and the Classic Bol d'Or.

Peter Linden will represent the team at all rounds, with Hugh Brasher and Stephane Mertens in support.

The two 1978 P&M Kawasakis have been extensively developed over the winter and will debut the season at least 7kgs lighter than the spec. used to win the Mettet and Imola races last year. The Team really have been busy !

We are very pleased to confirm that our main sponsor for 2013 will again be long term partner 'Sweatshop'.

Several new sponsors will  also be helping the team in 2013 and the full sponsor lineup will be announced within the next few weeks.

Aragon test - Over 60 laps covered, roughly equally on both frames 15 and 17, by Peter Linden on day 1.
All test objectives were achieved in sunny warm conditions, with track temperatures in the low 20Cs.

The notable work involved;

• Starter motor tests
• Selection of the most suitable of 9 ignition curves.
• Endurance testing of new looms, battery boxes, high power electrical connectors, ignition trigger, ECU and pick ups. 
• Tank connector flow rate tests.
• Fuel consumption tests in preparation for the Aragon race.
• Lightweight fairing, lower and rear mounting tests.
• Front suspension optimisation.
• 520 chain and sprocket tests.
• Establishment of base settings for the Aragon race. 

Day 2 involved both Hugh Brasher and Peter Linden. The main objective was familiarisation with circuit and bikes by Hugh Brasher. This was successfully achieved in mixed conditions with overnight rain clearing by mid morning giving a series of dry runs until the rain started again in the afternoon.

In short, a good all round shakedown. We leave for Imola on 15th April.

Come and see us in the paddock. Ryanair to Bologna and then to the circuit via the Ducati museum - a top weekend - see you there.  RB