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Chris Birt
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Just found this site and it's brought back memories of a fantastic time. It was reading about the exploits of Howard and co in Bike magazine that persuaded me I had to go to Le Mans. None of my mates had any money so I went alone and had a ball.Made loads of new friends and got to talk to Howard and Dave. I was still going to endurance races 15 years later!
It was the same exploits that gave me the courage to take up racing. I never had enough money and wasn't as good as I thought I was but at least I did it when so money others never did (have).
I still have all my souvenirs from those times, including the 'Team Bike' ones. Great times, full of David and Goliath type inspiration. Thank you.
6 December 2011 - Wiltshire
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Benjy
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Fantastic site! How have I not seen this before? Loads of stuff and I can see many nights ahead trawling through the pics. It is all so long ago that I can't really remember the details, but this should help me. I have never knowingly thrown away any of the t-shirts (but I did have to throw a T45 Team Bike sweatshirt) so that should be a good guide to when and where I took part.
My best memory? Hard to say, too many, too many forgotten in the haze of time, and the haze of the moment.
Trying to get 2 bikes through scrutineering at Le Mans in '85, especially the RS850, with only one set of functioning (ie silencing) end cans. Wedging perforated discs down the outlets (but most importantly, standing behind the bike when they were doing the noise test to catch/step on/hide the incriminating evidence if/when they got spat out) - that didn't work. So an elaborate scheme was hatched worthy of a Colditz escape committee. Take the good cans off the bike which had passed, remove the metallic green paint tell-tales the scrutes had used to identify them and fit on to the bike not yet passed and resubmit. Easy. But then we still had a set of cans without the green marks. H went back to scrutineering, created some sort of argument with them (situation normal!) to create a diversion while Jeff sneaked into the back of the scrutineering tent and dipped his finger into the paint pot. Fast exit, back to the garage to replicate the paint daub and forge his initials on the loud cans. Easy!
Running the original VF750 with the RS850 engine at Le Mans. Loads of trouble in practice, and possibly also had to pit prematurely after a few laps. Pit marshal extremely unimpressed. But a few laps later it overtook the leader (hard to believe, but it's what I remember) going past the pits. Pit marshal extremely impressed, big smile, "Ca marche, oui?". All was great for an hour or so until it went past pits trailing smoke and flames. Pit marshal extremely unimpressed.
A master class in lockwiring from Ainslie. Thanks, has been so useful ever since.
Team Oaf drowning their rented Sierra on the beach at Bandol after attempting a high speed drive-by. Didn't the car end up abandoned in a Dijon hotel car park? Sump cracked on a high kerb, out of oil on the motorway, and the lads wondering how they were going to explain it all, especially as they had signed to say that they wouldn't take the car abroad.
Being in a VW Caravelle Synchro 4WD driven by Howard, overtaking traffic, but ON THE VERGE.
And oddly, but a very strong memory of the best whitebait I have ever had, in a seafront restaurant the day after the Bol.
And of course, being inspired by H in so many ways.
I'll try to dig out some pics.
Cheers
Benjy
2 August 2011 - Rural Kent, UK
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Dermot
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Cooo, people still keep popping up! I never thought the site would aqquire a life of it's own!
1 March 2011 - dubai
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