A cold and damp Donemana race circuit provided the venue for the opening round of the 2008 Ulster Premier Quad Championships, the Ballymoney and District MCC hosting the event on Easter Tuesday 25th of March. Overnight rain and scattered showers early in the day made for miserable conditions for both riders and spectators alike, but even the difficult conditions could not dampen the spirits of Justin Reid as he returned to his base near Comber, the Team Can Am rider taking a fantastic 4th overall after an epic closing race that would see the Team Can Am DS450 claim a maiden UK race win on it’s Ulster debut.
Securing a front row start after qualifying 10th in timed practice despite having to abandon two of his flying laps while negotiating stranded riders in the sticky conditions, Justin got a fantastic start to the opening moto and was challenging for 2nd after three laps of the circuit when the race was red flagged due to a fault with the timing system. A mid pack restart left Justin with a lot of work to do to catch the breakaway leading group, but comfortably adjusting to the ever changing circuit, Justin had moved in to 8th at the end of the opening lap, before passing the KIK Honda of Johnny Kelly and the JMK Suzuki of Val Bell for 6th on the following lap. Catching and passing Johnny Cullen just half a lap later, Justin was now closing on the leading quartet but unfortunately his progress was halted and Justin was forced to retire at the end of lap 4 as his machine started to overheat.
Justin Reid
Quickly putting the disappointment from the opening moto behind him, Justin got another fantastic start in moto two, rounding the sweeping first corner in 5th position and passing reigning champion Sean Goss on the ATV World Yamaha on the opening lap to slot in to 4th. With the JMK Honda of Jonathan McKnight and Yamaha mounted David Cowan now applying pressure, Justin put the excellent power and handling of the Can Am DS450 to good use around the increasingly challenging Donemana circuit, comfortably fending of the challenges of both riders and pulling away to take the chequered flag after ten laps of the gruelling circuit for a well deserved 4th.
A poor jump on the gate in the closing moto saw Justin head out on the opening lap in an unfamiliar 17th place. With the sandy circuit having dried out significantly during the day but remaining one lined and extremely rough throughout, passing opportunities were severely limited, but quickly settling in to a fast race pace and with the excellent handling of the Team Can Am DS450, Justin kept the large crowd well entertained as he charged through the field, making up 11 positions in the opening two laps and moving in to 6th! Using his vast experience and choosing different lines to pick of his opponents, Justin moved past Ricky Toye for 5th as they approached half distance in the fifteen minute plus one lap moto, before moving in to 2nd after demoting David Cowan on the YFZ 450 and David Wray on the JMK Honda on lap five and passing Cathal McGilligan on the F&F Racing Suzuki a lap later. With less than half the race remaining it looked like an impossible task to close the ten second gap to race leader Brian Kerr, but spurred on by the crowd and his pit crew, Justin scythed his way through the back markers to catch and pass Kerr within two laps, Justin taking the chequered flag after nine laps of the demanding Donemana circuit for a fantastic maiden UK race win for the Team Can Am DS450.
This has been a truly outstanding result for Justin and the hard working crew at Team Can Am, Justin’s achievement made all the more significant given that his bike has only had some minor front suspension modifications and an exhaust fitted, and that Justin himself has been suffering from flu like symptoms since early Monday. Obviously disappointed at the result of the opening race, Justin showed true character to bounce back with a sterling ride in race two, but the way that Justin moved through the field and past all his fellow British Championship competitors on full race specification machines in the closing race, gives a good indication just how potent the Justin Reid / Team Can Am DS450 combination is and will bode well for the remainder of the year.
‘I couldn’t believe it when I started to develop flu like symptoms yesterday while getting ready for today, after training so hard for the last three months. I hardly slept at all last night between sweating and shivering! A race track was last place in the world I wanted to be today…
The first race result is especially annoying as it was totally avoidable and totally our fault. After the race was red flagged we should’ve taken more time to ensure that the radiator was clear as the conditions were so bad. The positive is that the quad’s engine management system prevented serious engine damage being done. The second race was fairly uneventful and I just dug in to maintain my position. My start in the third race was absolutely horrendous and I knew that I had some serious work to do. The rougher that the track got the better it seemed to suit me and the Can-Am. I just pushed as hard as possible and picked off each rider as I met them. I couldn’t believe how well the stock rear suspension was performing compared to the full race spec set-ups of my competition. Some of the other guys seemed to tire badly towards the end of the moto so it seems that my winter training has really paid off today.
It’s great to get a race win at the first meeting of the season and I look forward to a few more!’
Race One
Winner – David Cowan; 2nd – Michael McAneney; 3rd – Brian Kerr; 4th – Cathal McGilligan; 5th – Sean Goss; 6th – Jonathan McKnight
Winner – Michael McAneney; 2nd – David Wray; 3rd – Brian Kerr; 4th – Justin Reid; 5th – David Cowan; 6th – Johnny Kelly
Winner – Justin Reid; 2nd – Michael McAneney; 3rd – Brian Kerr; 4th – David Wray; 5th – Johnny Kelly; 6th – David Cowan
Championship Standings (after 1 of 6 rounds)
1st – Michael McAneney 84, 2nd Brian Kerr 75, 3rd David Cowan 70, 4th Justin Reid 53, 5th David Wray 50, 6th Jonathan McKnight 4
Next Race: Sunday 6th April – ACU British MMX Quad Championship (Round 1), Whiteway Barton, Devon
