 The rest of Marcs Ducati ?
It was a picture perfect weekend for weather; however, the black clouds
continued to haunt our team.
Dietrich's new engine was in and running, Steve got himself brand-new
bodywork to replace the damaged ones from Magny Cours, and Marc had his
clutch reservoir replaced and a new rear shock put. The only question
mark was Andy's bike, which should now have been back to 100%
Andy's mechanical issues continued from the 1st session on Friday. His
bike would run for a complete lap and then the engine would just stop. So,
once again Andy was out for the weekend. He only managed a total of three
laps.
During the last session of the first day Marc was flagged to come off
the track because his bike was leaking oil and blowing black smoke from the
exhaust system. Thankfully it was just a loose braided hose line which
runs into the oil cooler. He went back out for a couple of test laps
to ensure there were no additional problems. He only made it half-way
through the first lap when he lost the front-end during a very fast
downhill left-hand corner. At this point in time the extent of the
damage is unknown, but he is hopeful that the damage can be repaired
quickly in time for the last race of the season, which will take place November
1-3 in Barcelona, Spain.
It was now down to Steve and Dietrich to represent us in the races.
Steve ran well and managed to take 7th place overall in the V2 race. He
is still in 1st place at the overall Championship.
Our story did no end there. Dietrich was to be the last victim of the
weekend for our team. In the last lap of the 750 Race he lost
his front-end going into the uphill left-hander and crashed as well.
Fortunately for him he did slide from the bike to safety and sustained no
damage. His bike suffered minor cosmetic and mechanical damage.
Three of our bikes will be going back to the garage for a lot of
needed service and repair in order to be ready for the final round of the ESC
Championship in Barcelona.
It is surely going to be an exciting race to the finish line for RoPa
Racing!!!
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