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Team Can-Am Podiums Again at Llangrove
2009 QRA ACU British Quad Cross Country Championship - Round 3

Europe (7/6/2009) - Sunday the 14th of June saw Team Can-Am travel to the Welsh Border location of Llangrove for British Championship action, Tony Nash and the diligent crew at the QRA UK promoting the 3rd round of the 2009 QRA ACU British Quad Cross Country Championship at the spectacular venue. A challenging layout with a mixture of fast open sections, wooded areas, some river and stream crossings and also taking in part of the motocross circuit used for the
Inaugural Quadcross of Nations held in 2007, the venue provided a mix that tested riders of all abilities.

With two of the five-strong team forced to sit out the meeting, Iain Johnston recovering from injuries sustained at the opening meeting while Shaun Gunther was left without a ride after his bike was stolen just prior to the event, the remaining trio travelled to the Herefordshire venue focused on delivering more outstanding results for the team, and after three fast and furious hours action all three had put in a superb display despite difficulties throughout the day, Justin Reid and Beverley Barnes taking 3rd and 4th in their respective classes, with Chris Cooper cruelly robbed of a possible podium and Can-Am 1-2 after running out of fuel at half distance.

Beverley Barnes
Beverly Barnes

Beverly Barnes had a bad start, but was able to make her way up to 3rd position at the halfway point

As the flag dropped for the start of the Clubman class race, Beverley uncharacteristically stalled twice off the line and headed out on the opening lap in 20th position and dead last. Quickly finding her rhythm and settling down to a fast pace in the opening stages, Beverley used the
excellent power and handling of the DS450 Xmx and began to charge through
the field, making up an amazing seventeen positions for 3rd at the halfway point. Continuing to circulate at a furious pace but suffering in the latter stages from the after effects of a head cold, Beverley battled valiantly for the remainder of the race to take the chequered flag after
eighteen gruelling laps for a fantastic 4th. "I'm a little disappointed that I lost my 3rd place in the closing stages after fighting so hard to get through from dead last. I don't know exactly how I managed to stall twice off the line, but once I got going I quickly got in to the track and was able to really attack. The long fast straights were perfect to make the most of the power of the standard DS450 Xmx, and after walking the track earlier I made a few suspension adjustments which worked perfectly around the entire circuit. I've had a really bad head cold during the week, which began to take it's toll in the last hour and I dropped off my original pace
slightly, but I dug deep in the closing laps and was able to hold on to 4th so I'm happy with that."

Chris Cooper
Chris Cooper

Can-Am's Chris Cooper had yet another great start in the Pro class

Getting fantastic drive off the line for the start of the Pro class race, Chris took the holeshot as he lead the field out on the opening lap of the three-hour moto. Setting a frantic pace from the off, a slight mistake near the end of the opening circuit saw Chris riding side-saddle as he battled to
regain control after hitting a rut, Team-mate Justin Reid slipping past as Chris regained his composure. Increasing his pace as the race progressed and with the lead changing several times with never more than a few seconds the gap between the battling duo, Chris had pulled a thirty second gap to 3rd as the race approached half distance with the "fuel next lap" board being shown from the pit crew, but just two corners in to the lap his bike began to show signs of low fuel and forced Chris to ease his pace, Chris nursing his bike around the circuit but running out of fuel halfway around the lap and forced to take no further part in the race. Chris commented after the race "I had such a good time racing with Justin, we showed what a good bike the Can-Am DS450 Xmx is today. I made a mistake which basically saw me riding side saddle, thankfully Justin came past and no one else and I managed to stay with him and also make a sneaky pass. I'm really happy with the power and handling of the bike and I'm feeling very confident about the rest of the year with how the race went, it's just a shame we couldn't get a Can-Am 1-2".

Justin Reid
Justin Reid

Can-Am's Justin Reid


A fantastic start to the three-hour Pro class race saw Justin slot in to 2nd around the first corner as the field headed out on the opening lap. Quickly finding his rhythm and gradually increasing his tempo, Justin passed team-mate Chris Cooper near the end of the first lap and the duo battled for position in the early stages as they pulled a half-minute gap to 3rd. Maintaining his lead as the race approached half distance, Justin was setting a blistering pace on the last lap before his scheduled fuel stop when his bike cut out near the start of the lap, Justin quickly realising his fuel level was lower than anticipated and wisely backed off in order to get back to the refuelling area. Losing valuable positions and time as he nursed his machine around the long circuit, Justin quickly refuelled and set off to make up positions, charging through the field in the latter stages to bring the Team Can-Am DS450 Xmx home in a fantastic 3rd, the result taking him to 7th in the series standings and tied on points for 6th. "The first hour and twenty minutes went perfectly to plan but the circuit was very fast here so we used considerably more fuel than we expected and it cost us dearly. My 'in lap' took about 2 minutes more than a normal lap which undid all the advantage that we had gained and more. I'm still pretty new to this discipline of racing so I'm learning every race but today was a harsh lesson! On the positive side my DS450 was performing flawlessly and I think that Chris and I proved today that the bike has the pace to win."


Pro Class Results 
Winner Paul Winrow
2nd David Baldwin
3rd Justin Reid
4th Jason Wildman
5th Martin Benbow
Clubsmans Class Results  
Winner Jaime Hall
2nd Sam Barrett
3rd Christian Bye
4th Beverkt Barbes
5th Elizabeth Price

 

Championship Standings (after 3 of 6 rounds) Pro Class
1st Paul Winrow 75 points
2nd Jason Wildman 62 points
3rd David Baldwin 52 points
4th Stefan Murphy 49 points
5th Martin Benbow 45 points
7th Justin Reid 38 points
8th Chris Cooper 37 points

Championship Standings (after 3 of 6 rounds) Clubsmans Class
1st Jamie Hall 72 points
2nd Christian Bye 63 points
3rd Beverly Barnes 58 points
4th Peter Gallagher 50 points
5th Nick Grant 40 points

 

PHOTOS COURTESY OF PETE COBBE of www.endurophotos.co.uk

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