From MCP member bibs.
As promised the Qatar Pinoy Riders are present once again to witness the staging of this year’s first big racing event the first round of the 2008 WSBK season held at Losail International Circuit Qatar.
This time we are not just mere spectators but also partly a participant of the event as we are now slowly being recognized by the different motorcycle community and teams here in Qatar. With Pinoy technicians and Pinoy riders a familiar fixture in the local bike scene.
That is why when the second leg of the Qatar International Road Racing Championship (QIRRCH) was held as a side event of WSBK on day two it was QPR’s time to shine. Team PITSTOP of Qatar fielded a Spanish rider (Victor Carrasco) on the local event and the team manager wanted to gather a group of supporters to cheer the foreign rider. So the call was made to Yadzky and everything was put in place. The task was to gather 40 individuals who would carry the colors of Team PITSTOP at the grandstand. As a compliment we were given free t-shirts and complimentary passes with special access to the paddocks and of course the PIT LANE WALK. I was not part of the “cheering squad” though as I volunteered as a track marshall just for the experience. But of course Yadzky gave me my complimentary pass which I reserved on day three.
With QPR’s support it was a succesful race for the local series and to put the icing on the cake Victor Carrasco won with a best lap of 2:04 beating Qatar’s number one rider Mishal while the banners of PITSTOP and QATAR PINOY RIDERS are flying in the grandstand.
Day three was a different story. With our complimentary passes we had the priviledge to really be “inside” Losail Circuit. The word of the day was “ambush” as we were like hungry predators waiting for our prey. We all know that this is a once in a lifetime experience so whenever we had the oppurtunity to take our pictures with a famous rider we did not hesitate to make the “kill”. Howitzer being the most armed and dangerous.
With our persistence we were able to satisfy our hunger. It was a very rewarding experience as we had the chance to rub shoulders with the likes of Biaggi, Xaus, Corser, Haga etc.. Our fellow QPR Bandong even had his helmet autographed by Xaus and Biaggi. Hundreds of pictures were taken and a short video was taken with Jjem walking side by side with Max.
The story does not end there. Just after race two Pirelli organized a fun ride inside the circuit and the participants were given the chance to run 3 laps on controlled speed with pace cars in front and at the back of the pack. The riders were mostly expat bike enthusiasts living here in Qatar and of course QPR was represented by Bandong, Ravenal, Patrick and Al.
Truly it was a wonderful weekend for everybody and MCP was proudly represented.
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