MAN ENGINEERS ON THE RIGHT TRACK

At the beginning of this year, two young engineers from MAN Diesel & Turbo UK Ltd (MDT-UK) in Hazel Grove decided to take their love of motorcycles to the next level and compete in the Thundersport GB Championship.

Jake Poole seen in action here on the track and Brendan McCormick (mechanic) spent an initial £2,600 on purchasing a five-year old 600cc Yamaha motorcycle and then a further £5,000 restoring the bike to racing standards.After many hours working literally in a garden shed, Jake and Brendan – or JLB Racing as the team was now called – tested the bike thoroughly at Oulton Park in February in preparation for the first race meet of the season at Brands Hatch in March. At this first meet, the team finished in fourth place, a completely unknown position for a first-year race team.

Brendan (pictured right) was asked for his thoughts at the end of the team’s first season. He said:

“As with any new racing team entering into competition for the first time, we always knew that the 2014 Thundersport GB Championship was going to be a huge learning curve for us. We completed four of the nine scheduled races on the calendar as well as attending six testing sessions during, and leading up to, the season. We estimated that the team travelled over 10,000 in approximately six months and that doesn’t take into account an unknown amount of miles on the track.

“Every weekend we attended – irrespective of the result – was always a highlight for us. Working as a team and getting the bike ready along with the community that racing in a Championship brings, always made things entertaining and there was never a dull moment. When we had to overcome issues just before a race started, a good result made things even better.

“In each race the team completed, we finished in the top ten and an overall finishing position in the top twenty in the GB Championship is an achievement we are all very proud of, especially when we were regularly up against much more experienced teams and riders. We will be taking the lessons learnt from this year into 2015 as we look to complete more races.

“As well as having to deal with mechanical and injury issues throughout the season, not to mention the financial implications of between £1,300 and £1,500 per race, JLB Racing is determined to continue.

“On behalf of Jake and the rest of the team at JLB racing, I would like to take this opportunity to thank all our families, friends, work colleagues and sponsors – not least our main sponsor MDT-UK for their backing and help with the transport.

“We genuinely could not have done it without you and we’ll keep everyone informed of what will happen next year”.