Desert Rallying with Team FrontRow GB...
When you're the UK's biggest Desert Motorcycle Racing Team, you want results. Every second counts. That’s why you need the fastest riders, perfect bikes, the ultimate support vehicles and the best clothing.
Adventure-Spec only supply the finest range of Klim GoreTex clothing direct from the USA and are proud partners of Team FrontRow GB for their 2009 Dakar attempt.
Update
FrontRowGB kit includes
04/05/2008 - The Optic 2008 is over, FrontRowGB return home with their heads held high as Stan Watt takes a podium place!!!
Finally, lets not forget the people whe made the Optic2008 possible (undoubtably the true unsung heroes of these events).
Our thanks go to Team Manager Stuart Walker of, 'Walker Ecosse', for his time and support with his MAN 6x6 Motorsport Support truck without which the Optic 2008 would have been considerably harder.
Thanks to Gordon MacDonald and his amazing skills as a mechanic for giving up his day job and lots of sleep to ensure the smooth running of the bikes for day after day in the extreme desert conditions.
And finally to Scott Gardener without whom the bikes suspension setups and tuning would not have been capable of achieving such fantastic placings.
THANK YOU!!!
If you have anymore questions about the guys who raced, or made this possible, check out the homepage of the UK's most sucessful desert racing team ever at www.FrontRowGB.com .
03/05/2008 - Stan Watt rides Adventure-Spec gear to Victory!!!
Stan in Adventure-Spec KLIM gear racing in virgin Libyan dunes
A tense final day saw many more competitors drop out of the rally as the strain of 4200km of racing in some of the worlds harshest terrain took its toll.
The most significant of these dropouts was undoubtably Oscar Polli who was unlucky enough to experience TWO broken chains over the stage dropping him from 2nd to 14th place overall.
Stans agressive but consistent stage times throughout the event allowed him to take advantage of Oscars misfortune and move up to 3rd overall as well as leading his 450cc+ production class.
Derricks time today placed him 12th overall and 4th in his class. A excellent ride.
Jon rode in to 24th place overall and 9th in class, a fine effort on an international rally against factory teams!
FrontRowGB rider Stan Watt achieved the following:
- 1st in 450cc+ Production Class
- 3rd Overall Rider
- 1st KTM
- Highest placed UK rider EVER in an FIM International Rally
- Stan is now 3rd in the FIM World Rally Championship Standings
Nice One Stan!!
Stage 9 : The last day of the rally
30/04/2008 - Stage 8 Despite mechanical problems FrontRowGB have an excellent days racing!
The middle of the pack pushing hard in the sand...
Another great start for Stan Watt saw him leading the rally by waypoint 2 only to suffer a mechanical problem as his exhaust manifold bolts dropped out because of the vibrations of the big 690.
His speed reduced to no more that 100km/h Stan pushed on as hard as he could and finished the stage in a very respectable 5th place.
Stan is now running 4th overall and first in the 450+ production class.
Derricks time today placed him 13th on stage 8 moving him up to 13th overall and 5th in class. A fine ride on some difficult navigation and terrain today.
Jon rode in in thirtieth place today and now holds 23rd place overall
Dont for get to check out the Rally Raidio and Optic Tunisia links to the right of this text for Stans live daily reports and all the stage details.
30/04/2008 - Stage 7 shows FrontrowGB pushing the factory teams harder than ever...
Jon pushing through the soft dunes on stage 7...
An amazing start for Stan Watt saw him leading at Check Point 1 only to crash heavily damaging his rear fuel lines and his GPS losing over 15 minutes
Stan worked hard for the remainder of the stage and finished 4th overall only 9mins behind the leader putting him in 6th place overall only 1min 30secs behind his class leader
Derrick also fought hard to day on the 350km soft sandy special. Tough navigation and technical riding made for a hard day but 16th place on the stage only 10mins behind Stan puts Derrick at a highly respectable 15 overall and 7th in class
Jons time placed him 32nd on the stage and 25th overall.
The rally leader dropped out today because of engine failure and the total bike field has now reduced from 69 starters to only 39 bikes. Two days to the finish, can Stan take the class win?
The FrontRowGB complaint regarding time lost on stage 3 was overturned today because not enough motorbike competitors complained. The complaint was upheld for the car class and times were adjusted accordingly...
30/04/2008 - Stan Watt, Jon Stamper, and Derrick Edmondson ride an untimed Stage 6...
Stan Watt and Derrick Edmondson doing what they do best...
It seems that although stage 5 suited the FrontrowGB riders very well many other competitors found the 350km dune stage a little too much.
By the start of Stage 6 this morning some competitors were still awaiting pickup and had spent the night under the stars dreaming of a warm sleeping bag and hot food.
Beacuse of safety concerns and the ability of the orgainsers to support injured or stranded riders over such a large area todays stage was run untimed.
This has left all the FrontrowGB riders in an unfortunate position as they were counting on todays long open stage to make up lost time. It seems we will have to wait until stage 7 to see if Stan, Derrick and Jon can weave enough of their magic on the remaining stages to pull back the time they need.
A good call by the organisers. Lets make sure we keep everyone safe out there...
29/04/2008 - Stan Watt, Jon Stamper, and Derrick Edmondson blasted stage 5 through 300m dunes!
Jon Stamper racing the hilly section on Stage 3
350km through 300m dunes took its toll on a many competitors today but for FrontRowGB the sun shone brightly all day!
Stan Watt performance today was little short of inspirational as he split the Honda and Yamaha factory teams down the middle with a 6th place overall a mere 2 mins behind the stage leader!
This moves Stan upto 7th place overall, a mere 17 minutes behind his class leader Patrice Carillon
Derricks run to checkpoint one today was mindblowingly fast as he beat allcomers, but his flame may have burned a little too brightly early on as he dropped back to 23rd place on the stage but retained 15th place overall
Jon put in his now trademark steady performance finishing the stage unflustered in 27th position and holding the same overall ranking.
It seems the game is afoot! Can Stan use the power of the big KTM to move up to one of the coveted top 3 positions? Can he use his skill and technique to overtake Patrice Carillon? Long days are Stan speciality and tomorrow is the longest of them all....
Stan Watt (G-B/KTM 690) : At last a great result on the Rallye de Tunisie. Two days ago I had such a great start but ended up losing myself. … I love these high speed sections as my bike really finds its rhythm, as was the case today. But I didn’t take too many risks, as in this terrain an accident can quickly happen”.
Our comisserations to Ludivine Puy whose bike lies burning in the dunes...were glad you were not hurt and will race again.
28/04/2008 - Stan Watt, Jon Stamper, and Derrick Edmondson right back on form...A long stage today with the first of the dunes allowed Stan and Derrick the opportunity to claw back some of their lost time
By the end of stage 4 Stan rolled over the finish line in a time of only 6 hours. Not bad for 459km... Derrick and Jon also worked hard and their sweat was repaid with a serious rise in placings.
Stan gained 20 places to 13th overall and Derrick also picked up quite a few places ending his day at 20th. Jons 30th place overall continues his steady unflustered run.
A dune day tomorrow will allow the team another opportunity to gain places, but its a marathon stage which means no bike servicing tomorrow night. Fingers crossed for no mechanicals in the next 24 hours as Team FrontRowGB try to pull back the 30 mins they need to lead their class
They are still awaiting information regarding their request for a time 'rebate' after stage 3. Check the video below for Stage 3 info
27/04/2008 - Team Front Row GB lead the rally....and then lose 45 mins..At Km150 on Stage 3 Derrick and Stan Watt were showing the other competitors exactly what their KTM690 were capable of as they led the entire rally with minutes in hand
However following an incorrect directional marker on piste they continued their race across an open plane criss crossed with tracks unaware of their mistake.
Other competitors were immediately made aware of the error by being redirected by a convenient helicopter, but for Stan and Derrick the lead was about to become 33rd and 34th places respectively as they lost 45 mins to the new leaders before regaining the correct tracks...
A protest has been lodged and the whole team is itching to get back out tomorrow and reclaim the postions lost today. Check out the days rally round up below.
Listen to the Rally Raidio page to hear Stan explain what happened in his own words
27/04/2008 - Just In - Video Updates of stages 1 and 2 26/04/2008 - Team Front Row GB show they mean business. As the pistes open out, their lead opens up!Derrick Edmondson and Stan Watt pushed hard today taking a commanding 1st and 2nd place in class and moving firmly up the leaderboard to 7th and 8th place overall. Both were pleased with the results and are looking forward to the longer days ahead. Jon Stamper will be a little disappointed with his 12th in class today, but knowing Jon he'll be looking forward to the two marathon 600Km+ stages where his awesome endurance capacity and unbending steady pace serve him very well.
The Team will be happy that their positions place them brilliantly well for a series of attacks on the lead over the next four long desert days.....if the desert lets them!
25/04/2008 - Team Front Row GB hold their positionsWith only 25km of special stages and over 300km of liasons the guys will be happy with holding their places today and are definately looking forward to the longer desert days ahead when they hope to show why their bikes of choice are the relatively heavyweight KTM690 Rallyes
Tomorrow brings the first of the true race stages at 295Km!!!
Stan racing the prologue.
23/04/2008 - Team Front Row GB open the Optic 2008 with 12th, 22nd, and 48th Positions. In the production classes that places them 2nd, 6th and 20th respectively.With only 2.5km to ride, mainly for spectators and the worlds press, no here at Adventure-Spec thinks these positions show much other than the team have arrived...
But, we cant help smiling at the 2nd place. Nice riding Derrick!
Jon Stamper on the start line.
22/04/2008 - Team Front Row GB leave for the Tunisia/Libyan Optic RallyLast Saturday the complete team of six members left for the south of France and the start of the Optic Rally. Tomorrow will see the KTM 690's in full flow as they race the Prologue of the event for spectators and the worlds press.
Getting the MAN 6x6 Support truck onto the ferry wont be easy but as the team head deep into the desert it will provide a level of support unrivalled by any other Optic team. Keep watching this space for more info as the rally unfolds and dont forget the listen to the regular Rally Raidio reports for on the spot news.
15/01/2008 - 2008 Season annoucedKeen not to lose the momentum built up during 2007 The Team have now committed to the 2009 Dakar, The Optic North African Rally, and at least one more FIM International Rally Round yet to be announced. Check their Info Page to see their upcoming events as the preparation begins again for the ultimate test during the Dakar 2009.
05/01/2008 - Dakar 2008 CancelledCheck out our RallyRaidio live satelite phone links from the start of the event to hear exactly what happened and where the team go from here...
2006-2007 The SeasonAfter an amazing first season Jon and Stan expanded rapidly from two semi professional road and track racers to a fully prepared Dakar Team. Complete with a MAN 6x6 Motorsport support truck, two mechanics, a suspension expert, and eight bikes including four KTM690 Rally Replicas their campaign began.
Some awesome riding saw four top ten places during the 2007 desert season complete with a commanding win of the Tuareg Rally in Morocco by one and a half hours, and a straight win of the Guy Hoquet Rally (reduced to a second place only by a technical time penalty). Ready for the Dakar, the team expect great things.