Team Blog: Dubai based bike duo competes in 3hr endurance race at Cadwell Park

Dubai based Vendetta Racing team flew over to the UK to campaign in the the Hottrax Sorrymate.com Endurance 3hrs held at Lincolnshires famous 2.17ml Cadwell Park with its famous ‘Mountain’ section.  Scotsman Alan Boyter teamed up with the Isle of Man specialist Cornwall rider Steve Blackney for the round, using the Yamaha R6.

The team www.vendettaracinguae.com have sent us a rider blog covering their antics throughout the weekend

Sat 20^th Aug – Cadwell Park – Qualifying report By Alan Boyter

Fortunately the weather held out for us again with Saturday being another great UK summers day.  After having 6 sessions the day before then having a night to digest our new track knowledge we were both a lot more confidant in Qualifying. We had a short practice in the morning then fitting some new rubber to qualify on in the afternoon.  We used Metzler Rentec tyres which we know last longer and give a huge amount of grip.  We also know from the Ducks Cross Endurance team who were supporting us that they will handle a 3 hour race with extra to spare.

We ended up Qualifying in 30th place, 2 spots behind the Ducks Cross guys and out of 35 teams so we were quite happy.  We have come as novices and with the British Superbikes running at Cadwell next weekend a lot of the teams were using the same endurance race as a practice session, so competition is tough!

Sunday 21^st Aug, Race day -report By Alan Boyter

The morning was damp and gloomy which didn’t bode well but we were assured that it would improve.  By the time warm up came round at 9:30 the sun did show itself and the track felt great, dry, with lots of rubber down and so much fun…although still way too narrow!

The circuit dates back to the 1930’s and the pits are actually in the middle of the circuit so access to set up down there could only happen over lunch when there is nothing out on track. We took the opportunity to watch a bit of the racing in the hope to learn more of the corners.

There were over 6 different bike races throughout the day and it was great to see the different lines of those with a good circuit knowledge take. We were also amazed at the competition, it really was an eye opener at how good some of these guys were (not including the BSB boys)

Lunch came and we got access to move all the equipment down to the pitlane.  We took as much as we could including a spare bike which could be used for spares. As there are zero facilities down there and you’re stuck there for the afternoon you have to think of every eventuality.

We now played the waiting game until it was our turn, the schedule was running slightly late due to some accidents in previous races but around 3pm we got ready for the classic Le-Mans start. For those unfamiliar with this, the second rider stands holding the back of the bike at one edge of the start finish straight while the first rider stands at the opposite side of the track.  When the race starts the first rider sprints across the track, jumps on the bike, starts it and goes!  And what a start Steve (Blackney) got, making up over 8 places by turn 1!

He was also making some great lap times, however on lap 4 when we were looking at the stopwatch and reading 3 minutes and counting we knew there was an issue.  Luckily we agreed to carry our phones so we could communicate back to the pits and sure enough the call came through, the chain had snapped coming into the last turn and he had crashed out.

After some frustrating phone issues due to the complete lack of cell coverage round the circuit we got the message back to him to get the transponder from the crashed bike and try and cross the track back to the pits.  The spare bike was now to be our main steed!  As well as taking the complete bike down which had wet tyres fitted we also had a second set of wheels with used tyres.  We all frantically changed the wheels, checked everything was tight, adjusted bars, added fuel and then waited for Steve.

At the time we were unsure if we would be classified if we used a spare bike but it would mean at least we’d get to race.   Just as we finished up Steve emerged from the bushes unhurt with transponder in hand, I was good to go !

The spare bike had been crashed on Friday testing which had relegated it to being ‘spare’ so the first lap was taken slow just to get a feel for it.  The suspension settings were totally different as was the gearing and control positions.  The brakes weren’t as good and the quick shifter wasn’t working but hey, we’re out racing!

You would think 40 minutes on a short demanding track (which has a jump!) would be a killer, but you soon get into a rhythm and the time ticks away quite quickly and soon enough I saw the pit board and came in to change with Steve.  The change and refuel took literally 20 seconds and Steve left for his 40 min stint. At the 2 hr mark I had a look at the timings and we had clawed our way back to 32nd place!  perhaps we’ll officially finish after all.

Steve managed some really fast laps but spend 15 minutes of his stint behind the safety car while an accident was cleared up. When he came in he instantly pointed to the foot peg which had made its way loose through the session but he figured it would hold until the pitstop.  It was duly fixed, fuelled and by the time we changed over again we were in 30^th, back to where we started, and considering we crashed and changed bikes, it wasn’t bad at all.

We had figured that I would have to do a slightly longer run to get to the finish as it wasn’t worth changing again for 1 or 2 laps but as soon as I came past for my first lap I saw the pit board pulling me back in.  Not sure what was going on I completed the lap and came back in to be met with the guys with tools in their hand and as soon as they set to work on the bike I saw what they had.

The steering damper bolt has sheared at the frame and was flapping around the fork leg!  I had felt that the damper wasn’t working but I put it down to the different bike.  Looking back it could have caused quite a spectacular accident if it had jammed the steering, well done to the Ducks Cross guys who had the experience to spot it.

As the final stint went on I was slightly concerned about the tyres we had.  Prior to this they had already done a couple of races so would they last?  I had no idea of the time but the session was feeling quite long, the sun was going down into clouds which made visibility with a dark visor slightly harder but there were a couple slower paced guys I was battling with which had me occupied and soon enough I could see the chequered flag waving as I came out of the final turn. It really was a great feeling riding past it, an amazing sense of achievement considering our mechanical issues.

As it turns out, our race result was not classified due to us using the spare bike but if it was we would have finished in 28th place.  Steve had the fastest lap out of the 2 of us with a 1:42.6 and we completed 77 laps…..28 less than the leaders! It was a fantastic weekend and we were so lucky with the weather. It was also a great toe dipping experience to the world of endurance racing.

A huge thanks to Ducks Cross Racing for preparing our (Steve’s) bike and lending us their spare one to race on and to Mark Reid for making the long Journey from Aberdeen to help out.   Now we have to prepare for the 3hr Oulton Park Endurance held on the 16th of Sept.

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