Our Partners

23 July 2008

Frontrow GB are confirmed by the 2009 Dakar organisers as an official entry! The ‘sold out’ event will take place in South America for the first time ever.
 
Only 7 riders from the UK and Ireland are entered into Dakar 1009 two of these, our own Jon Stamper (GB) and Stan Watt (Ire) will be assisted by the ever reliable Walker Ecosse; Stuart Walker, Gordon MacDonald and our new technician, Dave Marton.
 
Other confirmed UK riders include Mick Extance (GB) with many years experience at Dakar in Africa, Ewan Buchan (GB), Craig Bounds (GB), Philip Noone (Ire) and Gary Ennis (Ire).
 
Frontrow GB are expecting this Dakar to level the playing field as, unlike in Africa, there is no previous terrain knowledge for any rider.
 

Please read on for the official information and comments from Etienne Lavigne

DAKAR SOLD OUT
 
More than 550 entry forms have been received six months ahead of the start, it’s already a success for the Dakar Argentina-Chile. Because it really is “the Dakar” that will be run in Argentina and Chile from January 3-18, 2009.
 
New regions worthy of the most difficult rally in the world will provide the competitors all they will require to push their limits. Those who like to surpass their capabilities have answered in mass for this all-new challenge. From May 15 to June 15, the competitors who had been chosen for the 2008 Dakar were given a sign up « grace period » and they will make up 65% of the field of the next Dakar.
 
After the six weeks following the start of the inscription period, more than 500 teams had already been chosen, after a review of their entry form, to take part in the next edition of the rally. Among them, 16% are first time participants
 
The field will be, as last year, world-class with the presences of factory teams and the top independent teams. 
 
This summer, the reconnaissance runs will continue on as will all the preparations in order to ensure this new challenge is a success.
 
Unchanged, unequalled, inimitable, the Dakar remains the Dakar
 
ETIENNE LAVIGNE – ‘’the Dakar has to be the toughest race in the world’’
 
What conclusions can be drawn about registrations for Dakar 2009 ?
The result is excellent. It’s a real success ; we’ve received almost 600 applications. There is a very real enthusiasm for the 2009 edition. This proves, quite simply, that the Dakar is unique – always a great adventure, and it is inimitable. The Dakar goes on - and continues to inspire dreams.
I would like to take advantage of this interview to extend my heartfelt thanks to all the competitors who’ve registered for the Dakar 2009, in spite of the difficult context, -those people have shown a great deal of confidence in us.
 
Can you tell us a bit more about Dakar 2009 ?
This will be a really great event ! Believe me, we have rarely been so excited as we were by what we saw on our reconnaissance trips – what a discovery !
Breathtaking landscapes, and such incredible diversity ! Time and time again, we stopped in our tracks - simply to admire our surroundings. It is indescribable – nature in a pure state.
 
In concrete terms, what is the course like ?
The route is ambitious - remember, we’ll be doing 6,000 km of specials ! It will be extremely varied - there will be fast, very fast, steering, sand, and dunes – drivers will need the skill to adapt to different race conditions from one day to the next. The route will be both testing and demanding... People will have to be very well prepared, physically.
 
So should competitors expect a difficult route ?
Yes. We are organising the Dakar, not a walk in the park, and the Dakar has to be the toughest race in the world.
 
In practical terms - will there be bivouacs ?
Of course ! And every day ! This is another example of where competitors are going to be very surprised. We’ve selected extraordinary locations – for example, alongside the Atlantic and Pacific oceans ! And in the middle of the Pampa, we’ll be offering sumptuous and wild bivouacs ! In places where we can really make the most of the natural environment around us !
The ‘Bivouac’ spirit with catering, briefings, all the competitors coming together to share their experiences… It’s essential, this is the Dakar spirit, these are our values.
 
So the competitors won’t be staying in hotels ?
No ! As in Africa, it’s a personal choice. Those who want to stay in hotels can drive a few kilometres and find just what they’re after…
 
Is the Dakar popular in South America ?
For our friends in Argentina and Chile, hosting the Dakar is like organising the World Cup ! When the competitors are welcomed by 500,000 spectators in Cordoba, the words ‘human warmth’ will really come into their own ! The enthusiasm being generated by the Dakar in Argentina and in Chile is immense, the participants will receive a real hero’s welcome.
 
Changes to the rules ?
The technical regulations for cars, bikes and trucks will be identical to those for the Dakar 2008.
 
What about the media ?
There are no worries on this front ! The Dakar will be broadcast in 180 countries ! The media actively seek to be part of the adventure; their level of curiosity is very high.
Amateurs will be at the forefront, and we want to take advantage of this new Dakar to remind people of a few essential values: this is above all a course made for amateurs, with the presence of professional teams. This is where the magic of Dakar lies. The T2 category will also be very well-supported – to give a simple example, the T2 vehicles will be identified by very brightly-coloured plate backgrounds, so that journalists will be able to identify the vehicle category in an instant.
 
A word on the venue for the next Dakar ?
All the categories will be fiercely contested, as they were at the Central Europe Rally ! And above all, we should enjoy a fabulous race from the independents ! Gache, Delecour, Lavieille, Muller, Monteiro, Gordon, Henrard, Kahle, Patissier, Errandonea, Vigouroux... I’m bound to have forgotten someone… And in T2 – what a fight ! The differences are often infinitesimal !
As for the bikes, again the number of outsiders is impressive... As well as the trucks, which are once again going to offer us a superb race !
 
How does your calendar look over the next few months ?
A third reconnaissance phase in July, September and October. Then preparation for the first part of the Le Havre scrutineering – a busy schedule !

1st July

An event littered with problems for Stan Watt finally ended in him reluctantly pulling out of the second day in Wales after an oil leak forced his decision. This is the first event Stan has been unable to finish in approximately 5 years.

Moving on... Stan has just taken receipt of the latest 2009 KTM250 EXC which he will be riding for the rest of the season. His next race is at Rogershill Raceway on Wednesday 2nd July ’08 for the Southern Counties Evening 2 hour Hare and Hound event.

23th June

Sunday 22nd June, saw the 3rd round of the Southern Counties Enduro Championship take place at Rogershill Raceway in Dorset, UK. The 3 hour hare and hounds event boasted a 7 mile loop, consisting of fast flowing sections linking a mixture of small woods (including an extreme climb for expert riders), two motocross areas, a multiple jump segment and manmade enduro obstacles.
 
The event was dedicated to Lee Wheatley, who tragically passed away after a recent motorcycle accident and whom over the years has been an avid supporter and competitor at the SCEC events.
 
The championship riders set off on the allotted time (11am) as Josie Warr dropped the flag to initiate proceedings.
 
Mark Cornick on his 530 KTM took the holeshot, closely followed by Gary Wright on the 250 Yamaha, Stan Watt on his 250 Honda, Jeff Goss on his 250 Suzuki, Danny Hall on the 250 Honda and Brad King on a 250 Gas Gas. The first 3 riders appeared to make an initial break with Mark Cornick edging a gap between a battling Gary Wright and Stan Watt.
 
Midway through lap 1 Stan Watt moved into 2nd place in an attempt to close down the leader; this only made the encounter with Gary Wright more interesting as the pair consistently made do-or-die maneuvers on each other in an attempt to take control of 2nd place and settle their own race speed.

The pair continued to swap back and forth until lap 5 when Gary opted out of the extreme section. Although Stan had managed to clear the extreme section on the preceding laps, unfortunately this time he didn't, dropping his 250 Honda at the top of the sheer climb handing the advantage to Gary.

Stan continued to pushed hard on Lap 6 pulling back 40 seconds but again on lap 7 made the exact same mistake on the extreme section dropping off 2nd place by a further 2 minutes.
 
Over the next two laps Stan was unable to make any impact on Gary Wright’s 2nd place. Mark Cornick put together a series of fast and consistently impressive lap times to take the win from Gary Wright by 3mins 17secs, with Stan securing 3rd place a further 3mins 50secs back.
 
A good result for Stan and Frontrow GB as everyone prepares for the Welsh Two Day enduro due to start in two days, Llandrindod Wells, Wales, UK where Stan will be back on his favoured KTM 250 2t.

12th June

Meet the whole team and check out the KTM690 Rally Replicas motorcycles and MAN T5 6x6 truck at the World Enduro Championship in Wales on 19th and 20th July ’08. Stan Watt will be competing and we will have the full desert team along for the ride! Please come along to support Stan and meet the team.

12th June

Frontrow GB have confirmed their intention to compete at Dakar 2009 which, unusually, is taking place in South America.

The same old team will be racing but this time with the addition of Dave Marton who will act as a technician alongside Gordon MacDonald.

Dave has much experience at world championship level making him a key new addition to the team.

10th May

As the Cross Country World Championship makes its way to Sardinia, Frontrow GB make plans for a fast and furious season of racing. Starting in the UK with the Great Britain Cross Country Championship onto the Baja GB and the Baja 1000. Then it's into the US before traveling to more exotic climates in Egypt, Dubai and finally to Dakar ’09!

4th May

The Optic 2008 is over, Frontrow GB return home with their heads held high as Stan Watt takes a podium place!

And lets not forget the people whe made the Optic 2008 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 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!

Optic 2000 Gallery

3rd May

Stan Watt comes in Third Overall! 

In the bike category, Olivier Pain (Yamaha 450) scores his first victory in a major African rally. The young Frenchman and his team mate Mickael Pisano, also riding Yamaha 450 who came in second, gave Yahama the spotlight on the podium. Close behind an amazing performance by Stan Watt from Great Britain finishing third on his KTM 690.

Optic 2000 Gallery

2nd May

Another great start for Stan 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 terraign today.

Jon rode in in thirtieth place today and now holds 23rd place overall

Check out the audio link to hear first hand Stan's daily updates from the Desert!

Optic 2000 Gallery

1st May

The rally returns to Tunisia with another soft stage with technical navigation and lots of sandy dunes.

An amazing start for Stan 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 Frontrow GB 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...

Optic 2000 Gallery

30th April

Exceptional circumstances, exceptional measures :

Stage 5 IDRI/IDRI will definitely be remembered. No major, but a few bikes and cars stopped with mechanical concerns, or in difficulty to rejoin the bivouac.

At 11 pm. Last night 95% of competitors were in the “park ferme” in Idri.
As dawn broke all competitors had rejoined the bivouac, The convoy followed the rally tracks of the special, or the assistance road for the late runners.

Stage 6 was therefore neutralized, no times were taken today. The race will continue as normal from tomorrow for stage 7 between Sinawin and El Borma.

At 11 pm. Last night 95% of competitors were in the “park ferme” in Idri. As dawn broke all competitors had rejoined the bivouac, The convoy followed the rally tracks of the special, or the assistance road for the late runners

Optic 2000 Gallery

29th April

350km through 300m dunes took its toll on a many competitors today but for Frontrow GB the sun shone brightly all day!

Stan Watts 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.

Optic 2000 Gallery

28th April

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

Optic 2000 Gallery

27th April

At Km150 on Stage 3 Derrick and Stan 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.

Optic 2000 Gallery

Immediate embarkation for Tunisia
In a slow but orderly manner over 300, cars, bikes and Trucks of the “Rallye de Tunisie” embarked on a 24 hour crossing of the Med. Destination: La Goulette, arrival expected Friday Morning.

Following last nights’ Nocturnal qualifications rounds, all the teams are making the most of their time onboard to prepare themselves for their nine day African Adventure. On the program: general brief, road book study and last minute preparations. Also the opportunity, to spend one last night, in very comfortable beds!

It seems everybody is relaxed in these cruise conditions, either around the bar or on the outer decks watching the sun set. Most Competitors happy to meet up after many months of separation.

For the first time none of the contestants forfeited following technical checks, only two trucks were classed in the Open Category, by the FIA rules.
Stan Watt is anticipating Africa….A revelation in the Rallye du Maroc, Stan didn’t shine in the prologue, coming in 18th of the Super Special; you can understand his impatience to disembark in Tunisia.
Romain Bernard, Stéphane Enout both usually behind the scenes as writers for Auto Hebdo have decided to confront the elements and are discovering the Rallye de Tunise, 2008 as competitors. All the best to the new comers!

Pedro has ambitions! Landing a comfortable fourth position, Pedro Bianchi Prata, from Portugal is prepared to give it all he has got on the Rally de Tunisie 2008. After all he was filth in the Rallye dos Sertoes (Brazil) as well as the last Shamrock, the national champion is hopeful to show his talent on this Rally.

Leonid Novitskiy in the desert….In his Mitsubishi Pickup, Novitskiy promises a to be great show of talent as he makes his tracks through the African desert. He’s already shown what he can do back home recently winner of the Northern Forest Baja (Saint Petersbourg), he came in third in the qualification leg

Optic 2000 Gallery

The countdown to Tunisia has started!  Just days away from the start the team have been training hard.  The race starts on the 23rd and runs through until the 3rd May. Check back here to keep up with the team's progress!

With less than 3 weeks before Frontrow GB’s departure for Marseille for the start the Optic 2000 Rally of Tunisia, both riders, Jon Stamper and Stan Watt, finish training on their KTM 690 Rally bikes before they are prepared for this international desert event.

 
For the first time, the Rally of Tunisia will also incorporate 4 days in Libya before a return to Tunisia for the closing stages. The NPO (rally organisors) have put together an exceptional event that will also include an enduro cup category for standard enduro motocycles to experience some of the skills needed to compete in a true international rally.

All Frontrow GB riders, including Derrick Edmondson, will be competing in the main marathon class with the KTM690 Rally Replica. As ever the team will be supported by Walker Ecosse with their MAN T5 6x6 assistance vehicle and technicians, Gordon MacDonald and Scott Gardner.
 
You can follow the riders and results here and at www.npo.fr

 
At the 3hr refuelling station Stan was surprised to find himself ahead of Derrick Edmondson. At this stage Stan was leading the Marathon event and was second overall only to Wynn Hughes and Edd Jones, the only Pro riders in the event. Derrick soon followed into the refueling area before both riders left together.
 
During this race Stan had been asked by Talon Engineering to trial their new revolutionary concept wheel and tyre system which seemed to be working exceptionally well, so much so that it had transformed the handling of the KTM530 plus assisted the BUD Suspension when traversing the rocky terrain at high speeds. Unfortunately however, the front wheel needed to be changed on the 4hr 20min mark. Stan pitted and changed the front complete for a standard KTM rim with BIB mousse and Michelin S12. Losing 7 minutes on the wheel change, Stan pushed hard to make up time, and he was still in the dominating over Derrick with 90 minutes to run.
 
Immediately after the change over it became obvious the handling of the bike had completely changed and it was not long before Stan crashed on a fast downhill section. On remounting, his concerns were raised again when at high speed he lost control of the KTM530, but luckily he was able to avoid what could have been a disastrous crash over rocks and through trees.