Baskerville 2 Hour Endurance 2020 | Race Report

Baskerville 2 Hour 2020

By James O’Hagan

With COVID-19 limiting race meetings across the Australian mainland throughout 2020 down int Tassie the Sports Riders Club of Tasmania (SRTC) continued to ride and race in relative happiness.

Baskerville recently hosted the 2020 Motorworks/Michelin 2 Hour endurance race event. The racing format hasn’t changed much over the years and accommodates for all riders, starting with the Tassie Juniors who came out and showcased their fine form. The Yamaha R15s could not match the pace set by the KTM 85s being piloted by the Skinners. 

Formula Baskerville provided some close racing at slightly more relaxed speeds. Some of the battles included Mat Allen riding the wheels off his CBR250R attempting in vain to pass Chris Eaton on his CBR600RR.

Tas Superbike

The racing in the Superbikes was simply a two horse race, Wade Schrader piloting his Yamaha R1 (#420) and Kane Bowman riding on a classic GSX-R1000 (#988). With a much smaller grid due to several riders reserving their energy for the 2 Hour event the two riders made the most of a clean track.

Schrader on his Yamaha R1 had to retire in his last race due to some minor mechanical challenges. Kane Bowman cruised in for victory.

Tas SuperSport

The sprint races were tightly contested over the weekend. Matthew Long riding his Yamaha R6 was dominant across three sprint races, only missing out on a clean sweep after Jonathon Hughes scored a victory on the Motorworks Triumph Daytona 675.

Sunday Feature Race Lites

A mix bag of old and new formed up on the Sunday Lites feature race grid. Liam Waters was keen to maintain his reign on the title, however local riders Taran Ocean (RS125) and Jesse Woods (Ninja 400) were keen to be crowned.  14 riders sat on the grid ready to ride, when the lights went that trio pounced into turn one with Liam Waters maintaining a slight lead.

Liam Waters, Jesse Woods and Taran Ocean held away across the top three positions from start to finish. As the race progressed, Liam showed his talent and stretched his lead before inclement weather leading to many riders being lapped several times on the short circuit thus officials brought out the red flag and the race was declared.

Taran and Jesse both discussed how they were waiting for the chequered flag to be waved, and how riding on the wet track certainly made for some exciting riding. Liam Waters won the race with a fastest lap of 58.6029s on lap four. Jesse Woods and Taran Ocean rounded out the podium.

Motorworks – Michelin 2 Hour Endurance Race

With the weather brining a mix of wind, rain, cloud and sunshine, all riders had lots to contemplate and prepare as start time approached. Tyre choice in the forefront of most minds. As the riders waited on the far side of the track, their team mates and pit crew held the 17 bikes for a full Le Mans style start.

Ducati mounted Kyle Buckley struggled to start and fell behind by 20 seconds or more, but with 120 minutes of racing ahead he had plenty of time to make up ground. Damian Faulds took the lead heading into turn one on the Scott’s Motorcycles ZX-10R. Meanwhile Jason Spencer on the Motorcycle City Honda Genuine CBR600RR wason the pace and maintaining steady high 50’s.

On lap 22 the mechanical gremlins took out Wade Schrader on his R1. On the 60th lap, Kane Bowman came unstuck at Suckers which called for the red flag. Paramedics were on hand and he was able to be treated and taken to the recovery bay. Meanwhile, all the bikes lay waiting in the pits. No one was allowed to adjust or touch the bikes during the red flag.

Several teams discussed options and strategy. With previous events always having red flags and rain, it could have been a strategic move to remain on slicks, or go wets and risk not making it to the end. Matthew Long remained on wets and on the re-start clawed back huge chunks of time, at some points lapping 10 to 15 seconds faster than most of the field.

Hamish Sellers (#57), called it early, better to ride another day. Hamish explained he didn’t feel safe out on the track in those conditions on slicks, he’d had a couple of moments barely on the throttle coming onto the main straight, and after crashing in the morning, he opted it was safer to stay upright and fight another day. The passion from the Sellers family was showcased as Harry, Hamish and Bob all enjoyed the weekend.

Towards the end of the race the track had dried and slicks were now the prime choice once again. Damien Faulds and Kurt Sushames finished the 116 laps with a convincing lead followed by Jason Spencer and Mitch Hawsksley on their CBR600RR.