15th to Crowe about
In a race dominated by Aussies, Jeremy Crowe has finished in 15th position in his debut international outing at the weekend’s 6th round of the World Supersport Championship at the Nurburgring.
The 2008 German round of the World Supersport Championship was notable for Australians due mainly to Aussie finishing 1-2-3 courtesy of Andrew Pitts win, and Josh Brookes and Broc Parkes taking second and third.
However another Aussie battled it out, with Yamaha Australia rider Jeremy Crowe filling in for the factory Team Yamaha Spain teams regular pilot David Salom. This was Jeremy’s first international race. The following press release from Yamaha fills in the details:
In a race dominated by his countrymen, Australia’s Jeremy Crowe has finished in a commendable 15th position in his debut international outing at the weekend’s 6th round of the World Supersport Championship at the Nurburgring in Germany. The R6-mounted rider, competing for Team Yamaha Spain, entered the European event quietly confident at his chances on the new circuit layout, which had never been raced on before by class competitors.
Wet and windy conditions in the leadup looked set to shake up the field, and the initial sessions saw varying track conditions which steepened the learning curve for Crowe. His brief from the team was to strive for steady and solid improvements throughout the course of the event’s practice and qualifying sessions.
The most significant challenge for the Aussie was adapting to the Pirelli-shod R6, vastly different from his regular ride in the local championship which races on Dunlop rubber. Accompanying Crowe to the round were members of the Yamaha Racing Team David Facione, Glenn McMahon and suspension specialist Frank Pons, who worked in with the Spanish crew to setup the R6 in race trim.
A break in the weather afforded riders a dry, warm track for the start of the race, but the red flags were out before the end of lap 1 after a multi-rider crash in the first heavy-banking turn. The restart process saw significant delays before the race went green. Crowe was off to a solid start from P17 on the grid, finding a steady race pace and eyeing a points-paying position. As the chequered flag was waved at the completion of 19 laps,
Crowe had made his way to 15th, achieving his aim of finishing in the points. “I’m happy with my first ride in the World Supersport Championship, it was tough and there was a lot to take in but I feel like I adapted to the Yamaha Spain R6 and the Pirelli tyres pretty well in such a short space of time,” said Crowe. “The Nurburgring is unlike any other track I’ve raced on, the wide, flowing corners are designed for high speeds and there were some tricky corners. I learnt more and more about the circuit after each lap. The leaders set a solid pace during the race and I was pleased to pick off a few positions. Racing against a field of unfamiliar riders was quite tough as I wasn’t used to their individual styles and couldn’t predict the moves they were making.”
“The team set a basic brief to make it through the weekend with consistent improvements and no incidents, and I’m very happy to have achieved this.” “I’d also like to thank everyone who has provided this opportunity, especially the YRT members who travelled to Germany with me. I look forward to further World Supersport outings in the future.”
Jeremy would like to thank the following valuable sponsors who make his local and international racing aspirations a possibility:
Yamaha Motor Australia: www.yamaha-motor.com.au
RIAA (Risk and Investment Advisors Australia): www.riaa.net.au
Swings & Roundabouts Winery: www.swings.com.au
OzQuest Homeloans:www.OzQuesthomeloans.com.au
Axo Leathers: www.ficeda.com.au
OGK Helmets: www.motonational.com.au
RaceArt: www.raceart.com.au
