Bol d’Or – 3:00 am: the ballet of the relays under the stars … –

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3:00 am: the ballet of relays under the stars…

Bol d'Or - 3:00 am: the ballet of the relays under the stars ... -

Leading the race, the No. 1 SERT Suzuki and the No. 94 Yamaha continue their war of nerves with the blows of tenths after more than 12 hours of fighting … They have slightly left behind the No. 63 Honda of Michelin Power Research Team has one lap, but Team GSR’s # 11 Kawasaki and Austria Racing’s # 7 Yamaha are still in ambush…

Leading the race, the No. 1 SERT Suzuki and the No. 94 Yamaha continue their war of nerves with the blows of tenths after more than 12 hours of fighting … They have slightly left behind the No. 63 Honda of Michelin Power Research Team has one lap, but the Kawasaki n ° 11 of Team GSR and the Yamaha n ° 7 of Austria Racing are still in ambush … The night in Nivernais will be tense !

But if there is one show that we never tire of in a motorcycle endurance race, and a fortiori 24 hours, it is the ballet of supplies and handovers: regulated like music paper among the teams. peak, they can however turn out a little agitated when the gasoline spurts out …. 

 VIDEO DOCUMENTS  

Magny-Cours, September 13, 2009 – Fueling the Suzuki n ° 1 of SERT. Video © Site.
 VIDEO DOCUMENTS  

Magny-Cours, September 13, 2009 – Refueling the Honda n ° 63 Michelin. Video © Site.

 VIDEO DOCUMENTS  

Magny-Cours, September 13, 2009 – Refueling the Yamaha n ° 7 of the YART. Video © Site.
 VIDEO DOCUMENTS  

Magny-Cours, September 13, 2009 – RAC 41 / City Bike Suzuki n ° 41 refueling. Video © Site.

Meanwhile, the # 69 RT Racing Team / Motovirus Suzuki crashed into the pits following a crash on the 4th lap of the relay. Not warned, the mechanics were not ready to welcome the driver who then occupies 8th place.

 VIDEO DOCUMENTS  

Magny-Cours, September 13, 2009 – Jean-Luc Nicolas, team manager of Suzuki n ° 69 RT Racing Team / Motovirus. Video © Site.

Very quickly, everyone is busy restoring the GSX-R: changing the two wheels, the fuel tank, the saddle, the entire rear of the frame, the handlebars, the throttle grip and two mufflers. exhaust !

But Jean-Luc Nicolas, team manager and boss of the Suzuki Moto Virus dealership in Lyon, does not seem unduly affected by this incident and remains confident for the rest of the race, although his machine has dropped by four places: "for the rest of the race we do not try to ensure, we go hunting again to find at least our places between 6 and 8! "

Because the stake is important for the team which must defend its second place in the provisional on the world endurance championship, just behind the Yamaha n ° 7 of YART !

ACR74 and TMS Racing, two crews in the same stand

Due to the colossal budgets required to enter a motorcycle in a world endurance event like the Bol d’Or, crews sometimes have to share the same stand. This is the case of the private ACR 74 and TMS Racing teams that we met shortly before 5 a.m…..

As for the ACR 74 team, 38th at 5am after 14 hours of racing, everything seems to be going well for this first participation in a 24-hour race, despite some setup and synchronization problems..

Xavier, the team manager, admits to us having forgotten to warn a rider, Samuel Matthews, of the early arrival of his teammate Cyrille Schertenleib to hand him over … leaving the bike unmanned for a few moments! But the anecdote is rather well taken within the team and becomes a source of joke on the part of the mechanics, who took the opportunity to repair an LED and make some adjustments … forgetting in turn to change the oil and the tires before refueling !

The team, accustomed to the French endurance championship since 2004, had to adapt to a new bike, the Suzuki GSXR K8: they are learning, getting organized and fully intending to complete their first Bol d’Or !

In the same stand, Thierry Morel, one of the drivers of the TMS Racing team (28th at 5am), has a smile: everything has gone without major incident since the start of the race! Relaxed and showing no sign of fatigue at 4 a.m., he has just passed the handlebars to Mickael Morin, professional firefighter.

Their only racing event was a fuel failure in the Adelaide sector around 4.30pm, just before a stint … Result: a stroller session over a hundred meters for Thierry Morel. Descended to 46th place, Suzuki n ° 38 then climbed back to 28th position.

TMS Racing is more experienced in endurance races than their pit neighbors and the ambition of the team manager, Rene Schneider, is to participate in the world championship from 2010. After three years of existence, the team is well established. , even if it has in its midst the youngest mechanic in the paddock with Enzo 17 years old (photo opposite), as well as one of the youngest drivers, Dylan Buisson, 20 years old.

Although the riders have obviously done what it takes to be physically ready, Thierry tells Site that the bike, well prepared, is not tiring and that they "don’t need to tear up".

Before this problem of gasoline consumption, the objective was to make it into the top 20 because their result in this Bol d’Or and the response of the sponsors will depend on their commitment to the world…..

But serious objective and serious organization do not prevent humor: the pin-up of the team’s scoreboard is the best way to get the drivers into the pits, according to the team manager: "you show them a pretty girl and they follow! "

To follow all weekend live 24/24 on Site … Stay connected ! 

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