Bol d’Or, Magny Cours, 16th/17th April

Eight Phase One Team members have been incorporated into the Honda TT Legends team for this weekend’s Bol d’Or race.
Russell Benney has been appointed TT Legends race manager, and together with Craig Reilly, Lida van Ham and Mike Wain have been working with the team since January.
The team has now completed 24 hours of testing at Darley Moor, Albacete and Magny Cours, and is ready for the 24 hour challenge.
The team’s objective is to finish, with any significant result being a bonus.
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Phase One Diversify in 2011

We can now announce that the Team will be involved in three separate projects in 2011.

First of all, the Classics are go! Sweatshop and Hugh Brasher will support a programme of 4 races, from the Cartagena 5hrs earlier this month, through Spa and Oschersleben to the Classic Bol d’Or in September.

Secondly, the former Phase One Junior Team Manager Roy Hood is heading up the Phase One Team entry for the Donington 6 hrs WEC race in August.

Thirdly, several Team members will be incorporated in the Honda Europe TT Legends Team for the WEC.

Classics:
These are the dates for the main events on the 1978 P&M Kawasaki;

Spa 4 hours, 1st, 2nd and 3rd July – Peter Linden/Hugh Brasher
Oschersleben 3 hours 13th , 14th August – Peter Linden/Hugh Brasher
Classic Bol d’Or 4 hours 15th, 16th and 17th September – Peter Linden / TBA

Classic Spa and Oschersleben are new to the Team and we are all looking forward to seeing how competitive we are at these two very popular events. The race at Oschersleben is part of the traditional August Speedweek.

Donington 6 hours:

With Russell away with Honda, Roy Hood will take the helm at this WEC event, the first in the UK since Silverstone in 2002. The intention is to run one of the Team’s 2010 bikes, with a fresh engine and two top-level riders. The team is seeking a title sponsor for this event. If any supporter has ideas for a prospective sponsor, please contact Roy directly on 07971 667184, or mail to RoyH@Cemuk.com

TT Legends:

Several Phase One Team members have had the privilege of being invited by Neil Tuxworth, to join the brand new Honda TT Legends World Endurance Team.
Seven members will join the Team for the 24 hour races at Magny Cours and Le Mans, and four Team personnel have been incorporated into the full championship Team. Neil Tuxworth obviously wishing to bring as much endurance knowledge as possible into the team from the word go.

Yamaha:

This month Phase One Team Manager Russell Benney formally closed the Yamaha sponsorship agreement covering 2004-2010. The Team wishes to thank all Yamaha Motors (UK, Europe and Japan) staff involved for their valued support. With Yamaha, the Team scored successes resulting in top ten World Championship placings for six consecutive seasons. The best of which was third in the 2006 WEC. In addition, Yamaha supported the Phase One Junior Team which scored 25 consecutive race finishes and promoted more than 16 junior riders into their careers. Yamaha have been a great supporter of the team and we wish them good luck with any future endurance endeavours.

Cartagena 5 hrs – Qualified 2nd but dropped out of race with broken 4th gear

The 5 hrs race weekend ended with a DNF but what a great weekend it was!

The Peter Linden/Hugh Brasher pairing worked hard with much improved lap times to qualify 2nd behind the Motobox Guzzi of Segarra/Segarra (he of European Superstock) and ahead of Cheltenham based “Team Glam” who qualified 3rd. Hugh Brasher set a best lap of 1.51.8 and Linden was on 1.48.9. For both riders these were their best Cartagena Classic laps, and up about 2 seconds on last year.

The field was fairly strong, with Motobox as the star billing, but also with some strong, midfield entries, including the pair of “Pane e Nutella” (yes, really) Moto Guzzis and team Fusco’s Ducati Pantah with Giancarlo Rossi on board. Right at the back and by far the oldest bike there – a Swiss Vincent Rapide, in full race trim. Beautiful.

After qualifying, 23 entries remained for the race.
The race was held as a single leg in daylight hours, with air temperatures approaching a balmy 20 degrees C and the track at 15/16 C. For the Sweatshop Phase One entry, the lowish track temperatures caused higher than expected rear tyre wear. However, useful feedback for Dunlop with their continued development of the Classic rear.

Motobox and Glam led from the start, watched by perhaps 150 spectators – not that many, but the organisers of the WEC Albacete races would have been proud!

As the first hour progressed Motobox pulled a 20 metre lead with Glam’s Bob Collins settling for second, but still pressing Segarra at some points in the lap. Eventually that presure paid off and after about 40 minutes Segarra fell. In quick succession, the Sweatshop Phase One team retired from third with a broken fourth gear, Glam took the lead and immediately lost it with the first of two punctures and Team Fusco contined unhindered and quickly to claim the win. Glam were second and a Pani e Nutella Guzzi third.

The Sweatshop Phase One Classic Team are next out at Spa (1, 2, 3 July) for the 4 hours, followed by the Oschersleben 3 hours during Speedweek on the 14th of August.

The Classic Bol d’Or is on September 17/18th.

The Team wishes to thank Sweatshop, SBS, France Equipement, DFDS Seaways, Dunlop and James Clark of Team Glam for their invaluable support.

We’re also indebited to Dave Martin for the excellent photography.

Let’s go racing!!!

Next weekend’s Cartagena 5 hour race is without doubt the earliest race meeting in Russsel’s 34 years of racing. Never before have we done a February event, but why not? The daytime temperatures look to be in the teens and it’s been dry and sunny.

Hugh Brasher and Peter Linden are back on the 1978 ex Bernie Toleman/John Cowie P&M Kawasaki, this time with a new engine. Over the winter the team have prepared a larger capacity, higher revving motor which they will test in pre practice on Friday the 4th of February. If all goes well this will be the new race motor. Also, the rolling chassic has been further developed with new discs, fairings and many detailed changes. This race will debut the new “Sweatshop” colours.

This is the first race of our Classic season which will include Spa, the Classic Bol d’Or and the Oschersleben 3 hours.

The race gets underway at 12.30 and finishes just before dusk. See you there?

2011 Season starts here

Over the winter the workshop has been reorganised and a new exhibition corner and a P&M corner have been opened.

The exhibition corner features the 3 World Endurance Championship winning bikes, all now in excellent condition and in running order. Their last time out was at Goodwood in 2009 and it is hoped that the team can do some more demonstrations with them this year.

In the P&M corner preparations are well underway for the 5 hour race in Cartagena on February the 5th. And at the other end of the workshop the modern stuff is being refurbished before racing under the Sweatshop colours, with plans to compete at the Barcelona 24 hours and the WEC at Donington.

The team have several bikes for sale in order to get equipped for 2011. Please see the For Sale page.