April 2008 - Mark Smith-Halvorsen shares his background and aims for the future with us..................
I first got into racing 350 ‘proddy’ bikes in 1989 aged 21 because I mistakenly thought I was better than the guys on the TV! What a wake-up call. I won my first novice race halfway through that year and the following year won 10 races on the 350cc Yamaha YPVS. I moved my large frame onto a 600 in 1991 and started winning almost immediately, often against larger capacity bikes. By midseason I was off to ACU Nationals finishing in the top 10 regularly. 1992 saw me compete in the 600 Supercup, scoring regular top 10 results with a best result of 6th at the 600 Brands International Powerbike meeting. Then my sponsorship dried up, and then my racing stopped!
By chance wandering around the NEC bike show, I met up with the same guys who were going ‘Endurance racing’ in 1998 - they wanted me to ride and so I joined their modest effort. At that first race at Snetterton I watched the race being dominated and won by ‘Team Exchange Direct’. I got a call after that race from Bob Farnham asking if I would ride a Fireblade that they were putting together – and I spent the next 3 years running and riding in that effort.
I love endurance racing because it pits preparation, tactics and strategy against outright speed and on-track agility. I don’t have to ‘break my neck’ to be on lap record pace everywhere (which is lucky!), but I do have to ‘bust my balls’ to be fast for an hour.
I guess my role in between races now consists of co-ordinating the team’s efforts. We have a fantastic group of people within Team GBmoto, who are enthusiastic, passionate and experienced. We all know what needs to be done, close season, in between races and at the meetings. I try and stay on top of getting it all done. I used to build and maintain the bikes that we raced but nowadays I am not allowed to touch them!
I find sponsors, arrange supplier deals, maintain many counterparty relationships and fund the budget. I am also responsible for the team of riders we have on board and I also have to train like a ‘nutter’ to get a 100kg man into a 94kg body!
Professionally, I am the Managing Director of a commercial foreign currency brokers - Corporate FX – based in the city. Commute to the City every day from home in West Sussex which alleviates me of three hours each working day. Bit quicker when I have a jaunt on my Ducati Hypermotard. In the office for 10-11 hours a day and its hectic. Believe it or not – race events are a rest! Talked my partner into putting some sponsorship towards the team over the last couple of seasons (he resisted for some time before that!); hence the ‘Corporate FX’ sponsorship.
We are sticking with our successful 05/06 Yamaha for 2008, with some fresh engines, suspension mods. to the forks and up rated brakes. We have a very good working knowledge of our package and feel it will be competitive, for ‘one more year’. Our riders will be Mick Godfrey, Pete Jennings and I again – however we will have to substitute for Pete being at BSB when meetings clash.
Our attitude will remain the same; we will concentrate on getting the bike set-up so that all three riders can perform and be consistent. Thereafter, GBmoto has developed a simple philosophy; race to win – have fun whilst you are doing it. More of the same for 2008.
March 2008 - a big welcome to Damian 'demon' Rowley
Q1 Who are you + which team are you connected with?
Damian 'demon' Rowley + Italian based MCS Racing www.mcsracing.it
Q2 How + when did you get into motorcycling racing and why choose endurance racing?
I started racing in 1993 on an RD350. Over the years I raced several different classes at club level with a varying degrees of success.
In 1997 I stepped up to the British Championship and raced the CB500 National Cup along side James Toseland.
In 1998 I stayed with the one make series for another year then in 1999 I moved to the Honda Hornet Cup but after two seasons of injuries and very little funds I decided to retire from racing.
From 2001 to 2004 I worked as a professional Motor Sport instructor at the Ron Haslam Racing Academy.
2004 was my return to racing in the UK KRC Endurance Championship where I was to learn the craft of endurance racing.
2006 would see me making my World Endurance debut riding for the Phase One Shell Endurance Academy team.
This was big learning year for me riding the European tracks I had only seen on television and riding a Super bike for the first time.
After a little bit of a slow start to the championship we managed to pull it together and finished 9th overall in the Endurance World Championship.
Q3 What do you do in between races and who enables you to enjoy the sport?
I work full time for Virgin Limobike (www.virginlimobike.com) running around the rich and famous on the back of a Yamaha FJR1300. This is where I met my long term sponsor John O'Neill.
Q4 Tell us about your plans for 2008
British rider Damian ‘demon’ Rowley has confirmed he will ride in selected European rounds of the 2008 World Endurance Championship and the Barcelona 24hour. Damian will ride with Italian based team MCS Racing on their Pirelli shod Suzuki GSXR1000.
Demon says: I’ve been talking to several teams and I wasn’t sure whether I was going to stick with the World championship or return to the UK. After several months of uncertainty I’m really pleased to finally know what I’m going to be doing, in principal I’ve also agreed to ride one round of the Hottrax championship.
I worked with MCS Racing and team manager Andrea Fanotto at last years Bol d’Or. I was very impressed at how professional, passionate and hard working the Italians are and I can’t wait to get started.
Unfortunately due to lack of funds the team will miss the first round at Le Mans in April, but are hopeful to be at the Albacete 8 hour.
Demon says: Things are looking good and I’m looking forward to start testing in mid April, we’re also going to be competing at the Barcelona 24 hour in July. I’ve only ever seen the track as a spectator so this will be another new challenge for me, but if we have a trouble free race I’m sure we’re capable of a strong ride.
demon ready for another hard season..............
March 2008 - GBMoto
A huge response from current HMRC Championship Team
....firtsly we have Eileen Fox....probably the best Osteopath in the World
A very talented Registered Osteopath who supports GB Moto (2004 and 2007 UK Endurance racing champions). Started down this rocky path by getting sucked into an earlier incarnation of GBMoto (Bikeshire racing... don't ask!) in 2000 and Eileen hasn't been able to leave it alone since! She loves the challenge of the longer races...riders and the team pitting themselves physically and mentally against the opposition and against their own weaknesses and fatigue.
Eileen is one of the few people in this paddock who does their day job at the race track. During the week, she works between a couple of clinics in London, and at the weekends, packs up her folding table and goes racing!
For 2008, Eileen is hoping for a more settled rider line up this season to give her the opportunity to work in more detail regarding rider fitness, flexibility and injury recovery. Consistency will be the key to GBMoto's title defence in 2008.
The longest text message in the world?....from Mick 'Silver Fox' Godfrey
January
Mick and Sam Godfrey
Mick Started racing in 1996 in Rookie 600 on a FZR600 and progressed to Sounds of Thunder going on to win the championship in 1998. He then ventured into endurance on Alfs t.o.t 2 valve Ducati which they then won there class on, moving onto a 748R with some success and then a 996 Corsa still with the KRC. He also did the Brands Hatch round of the World Endurance Championship (WEC) - "a great bike but always breaking down!!".
Moving on to a Kawasaki ZX9R Mick did the 24hr Le-Mans, Spa and the Bol D'or with a best result of 13th place, as well as runner up in the KRC winning at Pembrey with Mike 'Spike' Edwards and again with the late and great Gus Scott (R I P). Mick moved onto ZX10 power and again did Le Mans, Bol D'or, and Zuho(!) in China. he also did the German 24hr with Trackdaze and a couple of races at Brno in Czech, rounding off with the last full season of KRC with Harvey Mushman on their R1 and did the 2006 TT on a bog stock 2003 ZX6 borrowed from a customer!! - did they know? with a fantastic best lap 110mph.
Mick's wife; Sam will be entering her first full season racing although she did do a couple of races on an old CBR400 about 6 years ago, she is so excited and proud to be riding under the GBMoto banner and she has purchased her own ZX6 to ride.
Mick + Sam are both training hard and moto crossing as much as poss to build up stamina for the season's forthcoming seven races.
Sam on board a road ZX6R
"We both love endurance racing because of the extra challenges it offers and the need for team work from everyone"
Mick is a sales director at Alfs Motorcycles in Worthing a Kawasaki dealer - he's been there for 15yrs whilst Sam is an account manager for a car leasing company.
"We both feel very lucky to be part of a team like GB Moto with all the fantastic team members and sponsors"
Mick will be trying to defend GB Motos overall win from last year on basically the same Yamaha R1 as last year and with some welcome new tracks to charge about on he cannot wait to get going.
Sam will be riding her own ZX6-R previously ridden by John Barton in the TT and may well rank as the most excited person on the grid!!
"All in all we think what Dave and Karen are doing with the Hottrax series is fantastic and cant wait to be a part of it again - many thanks for reading my ramblings and look forward to seeing you all again"
A quick word from GBMoto's Ian Cooper + Associates
"Ian Cooper and I work with GBMoto, along with Kev we sort the Black Rubber things out that stick them to the track (hopefully) - We are the current UK champions and we are looking to defend and keep it that way this year"
"I have always supported motorcycle racing - mainly short track BSB, WSB, MotoGP. About 4 years ago I met a mate I had served in the Army with (Kev Wyatt) who Introduced me to Mark (Macca) the principle owner and rider of the team and it went from there and I love it"
"Between races I work the same as all of us do. I myself, work for Hertfordshire Police riding bikes (Well someone has to) - I also have an understanding wife"
February 2008 - Uprite Racing
A swift pint with…..
…..Max Sholl - team manager of Uprite Racing (Endurance Guru)
Riders yet to be confirmed, but he thinks everyone has a good idea of who he’ll be using with one fast surprise. Either way, expect Uprite to have even faster pilots for 2008, he is eager to point out that "Every race we finished last season, we won, twice with only two riders! Expect to see endurance lap records to be broken"
Uprite will be entering the Barcelona 24 hour race on the first weekend of July "This is our priority as a stepping stone to World Endurance Championship racing".
They will enter a minimum of two rounds of the Hottrax Motorsports Racing Club National Endurance Motorcycle Championship - sponsorship willing!
As an Endurance Guru, Max is available as team manager for any team needing help at any of the rounds Uprite aren’t competing in. Possibility of bringing pit crew as well. (Remember the sterling work carried out with the LMS Elite team scuttling the lardy Hornet 600 into a fantastic fourth place at the KRC Mallory encounter in May 2007).
Max started racing Suzuki X7’s and Yamaha LC’s around various circuits in the early eighties. The attraction to motorcycle endurance racing has been around him, even as a kid, being taken to see the iconic Thruxton 500 miler at the start of the 70’s by his old man. For Max, endurance racing is the pinnacle of racing bikes, Grand Prix are too short and life would be even better if the Bol D’Or was returned to its rightful location of the Paul Richard Circuit in the South of France.
Max + the Uprite team have ambitious plans for 2008, including;
Using the triple race winning GSXR100K6 again with a new engine tune from Crescent Suzuki, super powered!
Living life to the Max (sic) his mantra is "Racing is life, everything else is just waiting" – not the first person to have used those words, however very true!
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