Endurance Racing

Keith was racing in the 'Moto Endurance Trophy' organised by ????. This was a series of races in Holland and Belgium usually of four hours, but with an eight hour race at Zolder. Keith didn't have a regular co-rider but the licence required by the organisers appeared to be quite loose, allowing Keith to give a selection of his friends a blast of racing. Jase was in his first season of MZ racing in England, and was partnering Keith in the four hour race at Assen.

The next morning finds me checking out the shower blocks, they are fantastic, definitely the nicest paddock (and campsite) that I've stayed in. Meanwhile the team had got the bike and their riding gear through scrutineering.

The Assen circuit is the most impressive circuit I've been to, with an enormous grandstand opposite the pit lane and the whole circuit is surronding by earth banking with wooden seating. The atmosphere when the track is full of spectators must be absolutely awesome. Couple that with the facilities in the paddock and enormous hospitality area it really looks like an international level circuit (not too surprising since it is I suppose).

Time for a quick photograph before the start of practice. Left to right Ronnie, Keith, Janice, Jase and myself, Keith's obviously got his lucky number.

Janice sorts out who's doing what on the pit crew front, and practice starts. Jase uses it to remind himself where the corners go (he has ridden here before, but not raced) and geting used to a completely different sort of bike. Keith goes out and puts some laps in for a place on the grid. I settle into writing the lap times onto the pitboard. A quick rider change and practise refuel is done. Everything is looking well organised, practice finishes, and we all stop for lunch.

Keith scares me by showing me how to take the front wheel off the CBR, and tells me if they come in for a tyre change I'm doing the front, gulp. Fortunately in a four hour race this is only likely if the front tyre he's using goes off, or it starts to rain. The bit that worries me the most is refitting and lockwiring on of the brake calipers, I've never done lockwiring before.

The start of the race approaches, I'm feeling nervous, which suprised me since there's not a lot you can do wrong with holding the pit board out. Keith starts and we settle into the rhythm of timing laps, on Keith's Psion with a laptimer program. Works well and is easy to operate with no nasty sums to do. The other teams were clearly impressed as we had a couple of offers for it. Keith and Jase were planning on 40 minute sessions, we would give them an 'x' instead of their lap time, on the preceeding lap, then they'd get the 'in' board.

Unfortunately, the race was red flagged just before Keith was due to come in. The riders form up in the pit lane, in the order which they arrive. This essentially looses Keith a lap as the flag came out just after he had crossed the line, leaving him to start from the back. A lap later and he would have been in the pits and probably gained some time.

Keith flys back out does a couple of laps, then its back in for our first fuel stop.

While Keith's CBR 600 (ex Pro-Carbon) wasn't the fastest machine on the 600 grid, Janice's work as team manager paid off and are stops were some of the quickest in the pit lane. Janice would flag Keith into the right pit and open the tank. Ronnie would fill up the tank, with Spike supporting the jerry can. Fuelling over Veggie would then hold the front of the bike while the riders swapped. Full of fuel and with a fresh rider the bike was back on the track. What amazed me was how disorganised some of the well funded teams were.

Janice puts the pit board down as Jase stops.

After about three hours of timing on the pit wall Janice kicks me off, saying I need a rest. Or more likely it was time a gave someone else a go. Doing the timing was pretty straight forward, with the rider usually running one minute forty something a lap. You could pop into the pits after they went past pick up a drink and get back before they came round again. The worst part was the 'dry' marker we were using on our white pit board was running out, and took some coaxing to get the figures out. If you were lucky they put in some consistent laps and all you had to do was hang the same board out.

The other teams were all impressed by Keith's 'hands up' attitude as the bike was refueled, and he was greeted by a load of hands up as hs came in for his final stop. Jase went out to take the chequered flag. To much cheering from the pit crew and a few beers in celebration. We ended up finishing the day in the middle of the 600 pack. Most importantly neither Jase or Keith crashed, handy since Keith was entering the Manx GP on the bike a couple of weeks later.

We said goodbye to Ronnie, Magda, Spike and Veggie who were all working the next day (monday). Then it was a quick wash and brush up. Before heading into Assen for dinner Keith and Jase took me on a track walk, very useful. A summary of their advice was Keith 'late appex', Jase 'appex at this tuft of grass'. All the corners have a positive camber, apart from the exit of the Nationale Boche where the club circuit splits and rejoins the GP circuit.

Off we went into Assen for beers in a bar which sported a good line in 70's and 80's rock. In the curry house next door we had an excellent meal. Here I was regaled with tales of Eurothrashers do's, some in the very same curry house. The it was back to track for some well earned kip.