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Verwood, Dorset, September 2009 – BRP Recreational Products UK Ltd would like to express their congratulations to BRP's Team Can-Am™ riders, Beverley Barnes and Chris Cooper, who recently secured first place in the Ironman / Ironlady and second place overall respectively at the QRA Great-8 Quad Festival, sponsored by BRP, riding the latest Ultimate Sport ATV, the Can-Am™ DS 450™ EFI X mx.
Race Report: Beverley Barnes
Beverley was off the line in third position and knowing she had a full eight hours of riding ahead of her, kept a sensible, steady pace. After the first few hours, Bev began to fall down the position board, but understanding the concept of this long endurance race, the 'Iron Lady' wasn't phased, and with three hours to go her hard work paid off as she moved to second place overall.
As Beverley left the final pit stop with less than two hours to go, she had climbed to a phenomenal first place position. Optimising on her outstanding stamina, Bev maintained her pace and stayed safe right to the finish line, where she crossed the line in first place with a lap more than any other Ironman/lady.
"I'm so proud of myself and my ATV" commented Beverley "The Can-Am's smooth power deliverance was definitely a key in holding off my fatigue. The ride was comfortable for the whole eight hours with only the expected blisters on the palm of my left hand caused by a rogue glove that came loose and another blister on the top of my toe from changing gear so many times! I can't help but think the DS 450 EFI X mx thoroughly enjoyed that race, as did I, making every obstacle, rough lines, twisting cambers, tight tree work and fast straights, all thoroughly enjoyable."Race Report: Chris Cooper
"This race was going to be a hard test on machine and rider" says Chris Cooper, and let's say he passed! Chris entered the race as a two man team with Clint Eagle, using their own separate ATVs.
As the flag dropped for the pro-class riders, Chris got off to a flying start, grabbing the lead within minutes and maintaining his position for the first hour with a minute and a half lead over second place. After an impressive first hour, Chris sat out and let his team mate ride for the second.
Chris' next session saw the duo regain the lead after Chris saw his opportunity and pushed hard to get some distance between himself and the leaders Bunce and Murphy during their rider change. When Chris returned to the track for his third session, the QRA British MX riders Bunce and Murphy had a gap of 2 minutes 50 seconds over Chris and Clint. Using maximum exertion, Chris managed to reduce the gap down to 1 minute 15 seconds on his turn. Clint’s third hour saw the duo maintain 2nd but with 3rd place closing in and 1st place now 4 minutes 45 seconds ahead.
During Chris' last hour session, knowing the team in 1st place would be tiring; he was at his strongest and content. With a few clear runs through the woods with no backmarkers to pass Chris had reduced the lead down to 2 minutes 15. Clint, being an experienced enduro rider, knew that anything could happen in an hour, so pushed on and maintained 2nd place.
"All in all my team walked away with the holeshot award and 2nd place overall. The Can-Am’s reliability saw us get a great result at a big, well known and ever expanding Great 8 meeting" concluded Chris.
Also on the new Can-Am DS 450 EFI X mx, Team Can-Am rider Iain Johnston achieved 5th place in the Ironman/lady class. This was a fantastic effort by Iain who is still recovering from injuries sustained in the opening rounds of this year's Quad Cross Championship.
With 97 entrants and some of the top motocross boys and girls riding at the Great 8, the fantastic achievements of Beverley, Chris and Iain provides further testament to the most race-ready 450 sport ATV line in the industry; the DS 450 EFI model range represents the embodiment of BRP's passion for innovation.
Ends
Bombardier Recreational Products Inc. (BRP), a privately-held company, is a world leader in the design, development, manufacturing, distribution and marketing of motorised recreational vehicles. Its portfolio of brands and products includes: Ski Doo and Lynx snowmobiles, Sea Doo watercraft and sport boats, Evinrude and Johnson outboard engines, direct injection technologies such as E TEC, Can Am all-terrain vehicles and roadsters, as well as Rotax engines and karts.
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Ski-Doo, Lynx, Sea-Doo, Evinrude, Johnson, Can-Am, Rotax, E-TEC and the BRP logo are trademarks of Bombardier Recreational Products Inc. or its affiliates.For information: Kate Hitchings Marketing and Commercial AssistantTel. +44 (0)1202 812103 katy.hitchings@brp.com
