Team Can Am Reid 3rd In Series After Tinkerhill - Highland Bakery Ulster Premier Quadcross Championship

Justin Reid Can-Am ATV Racer

Race One
A beautifully prepared Tinkerhill circuit greeted the riders as they began timed practice, Justin putting in a series of blistering laps to post 4th fastest time, The combination of hot weather and lack of rainfall left the hard-working crew at Quad Racing Ireland with no option but to heavily water the surface in the week prior to the event and between each block of races to control the dust around the hardpack circuit. As the gates dropped for the opening race of the day, Justin got good drive off the line and rounded the tight first corner and out on the first of eleven laps in 8th. Quickly adapting to the varied surface conditions, many areas dry and dusty while watered areas were somewhat slick, Justin quickly found his groove and began moving up the ranks, passing Sean Goss and Alan Haugh to complete the opening lap in 6th. Using the excellent traction of the Carlisle tyres in the difficult conditions, Justin gradually increased his pace as the track came to him and with just five minutes gone had caught the battling duo of Johnny Kelly and early race leader Brian Kerr. Using his years of experience and the excellent handling of the Lonestar / PEP suspension to try different lines, Justin passed Kelly at half distance before demoting Kerr to 5th on the following lap. Continuing at his
relentless pace as the race entered the final phase, Justin quickly caught and passed Michael Taggart with two laps to go, Justin taking the chequered flag after seventeen, action packed, minutes to record a fantastic 3rd.

Race Two
A carbon copy start to the opening moto saw Justin once again head out on the first lap of the one mile circuit in 8th before moving past Terence Mackin and Sean Goss to break the timing beam for the first time in 6th. Heavy watering on many parts of the circuit while others were dry and dusty was a recipe for poor visibility, but with the Oakley goggles handling this problem with ease, Justin quickly found his rhythm and was able to set a blistering pace from the onset, Justin catching and passing Michael Taggart on lap two before charging past David Cowan, Gary Mullan and Brian Kerr on consecutive laps to move up to 2nd with ten minutes of the fifteen minutes plus one lap moto run. Setting off at a furious pace to chase down the leader, who had by this time opened up a twenty second lead, Justin gradually reduced the deficit to five seconds as the race wore on, but coming across back markers embroiled in their own battles for position at some of the most difficult parts of the circuit for overtaking hampered his astonishing progress somewhat, Justin taking the chequered flag after eleven blistering laps for a superb 2nd place finish.

Race Three

International ATV Racer Justin Reid

A poor start by his standards in his final outing of the day saw Justin round the first corner in 11th, but once again using the awesome grunt of the Rotax powered DS450 Justin was able to make up two places on the opening lap, Johnny Cullen and Aaron Haslett the first victims of the factory Team Can Am rider. Quickly settling in to his race pace and keen not to let the leaders break away in the early stages of the race, Justin moved past Alan Haugh for 8th on the 2nd lap and had found a way past Jonathan McKnight and Terence Mackin for 6th one lap later when he was dealt a cruel blow, the advanced electronics on the cutting edge Can Am DS450 detecting a battery voltage problem and switching off the ignition circuit as a precaution, Justin unfortunately forced to pull off the circuit and retire from the race.

This has been another fantastic result for Justin and Team Can Am, although Justin will no doubt be frustrated by the final moto result while in a healthy position to strengthen his grip on the championship. Excellent speed, fitness and tenacity helped him to achieve 5th overall thanks to his excellent results in motos one and two, and despite dropping to 3rd in the series the deficit to the top of the table is a mere nine points, Justin is still well in contention with two rounds remaining, the first of which is the demanding Donemana Race Circuit on the 16th of August which should favour Justin and the Team Can Am DS450.

Reid
'The conditions were pretty bad today but the club did a good job in the short time that they had. The races are short and it's hard to make up time here due the conditions. It's a pity about the last race but at least we're not looking at a hefty repair bill to fix the engine thanks to the engine management system. I'm still very much in the title chase and looking forward to Donemana where we had a good run at the start of the season.'

Next Race: Saturday 16th August - Highland Bakery Ulster Premier Quadcross Championship (round 5), Donemana Motocross Park, Donemana.

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