Lawnmower parts keep world champions on track
Wednesday 03 June 2009
TT
Sidecar stars Tim Reeves and Patrick Farrance had endured an eventful start to the 2009 Isle of Man TT.
The three-times World Champions are hoping to build on the sensational podium finish they enjoyed on their debut at the TT last year.
However, with three practice sessions gone and first Sure Sidecar race on Saturday, not everything has been going their way.
In Saturday evening’s untimed opening practice session, Reeves and Farrance put in a steady lap as they eased themselves back into racing on the legendary Mountain course.
Things were looking good for the first timed session on Monday evening, until an air pressure sensor broke towards the end of their first lap, leaving the outfit to coast back to the Grandstand from Hillberry.
The lap was timed at 107.818mph, meaning Reeves and Farrance would easily have exceeded a 110mph average lap speed were it not for the mechanical problem.
Undeterred, the crew pulled in to fix the sensor and set off for a second lap – only for the motor to stop at Keppel Gate. An inspection revealed a filter in the lift pump, which feeds the main fuel pump, was blocked.
Reeves and Farrance were on for a good opening lap at the start of Tuesday’s practice session until, exiting Quarry Bends, the throttle cable snapped. Reeves pulled the Suzuki outfit in at the Sulby Glen Hotel, but was able to get going again after borrowing a lawnmower cable from a young spectator!
With the stop for repairs, the opening lap took more than 50 minutes and meant Reeves and Farrance didn’t have time to go out again.
Reeves said:
‘I think I need to go and see the Manx fairies to improve our luck!’
‘There’s nothing major going wrong, just small problems that tend to only happen at the TT, but when the bike’s been going, it’s felt really good and Monday evening’s second lap felt like it was going to be my quickest ever.’
‘I know we’re there or thereabouts so it would be nice to get a flying lap in to see exactly where we are. When we stopped on Tuesday, I thought that was the night over and we were all set to have a pint of lager, but a 15-year-old girl had heard what the problem was and asked if a lawnmower cable would work. I didn't think it would, but she was insistent that I go and have a look at her dad’s garage and it turned out he was a Honda Flymo dealer.’
‘There were parts everywhere so she rang her dad, who was marshalling at Quarry Bends, and he told us where the bits were. We fixed the cable and managed to get going again, but by the time we’d got back, we missed a second lap by about 2 minutes.’
‘Like I say, we’re feeling good so, hopefully, that's the end of the problems and we can get some good laps in during the three remaining sessions so we’re 100% ready for the first race on Saturday.’
Practice is schedule to continue at 6.20pm on Wednesday.