Unfortunately our Irish Superbike Championship Event @ Kirkistown on Saturday 7th Sept was a total washout.
The unprecedented amount of rain that fell overnight and continually throughout the day made it extremely difficult for the riders.
Visibility was very poor and the amount of standing water from Fishermans, through the chicane and down the back straight gradually increased throughout the morning.
The Marshalls and Officials worked tirelessly during the lunch break to try and clear the water using brushes and a sweeper but to no avail.
The Officials consulted with several competitors at 2pm and they agreed that although conditions were manageable for practice, under racing conditions things would inevitably be far worse. The Clerk of the Course reluctantly made the decision that on the grounds of safety, racing would be cancelled for the rest of the day.
This obviously has a financial impact on riders & teams, sponsors and the B&D Club as promoter of the event. We have received several ‘complaints’ from riders which although is understandable, it is unfair as this was totally out of our hands. The Club did their utmost to try and manage the situation and hoped to possibly give everybody one race but this was just not possible.
The B&D Club Officials have already spoke with the owners of Kirkistown the ‘500 Motor Racing Club of Ireland’ and voiced our concerns regarding supplying suitable drainage around the circuit to better cope with conditions like yesterdays. The 500 Club have listened and together we hope to have this remedied for next year.
The next B&D Club meeting is this Tuesday when we will have a debrief and decide what our options are and where we go from here.
In closing I’d like to thank all competitors, especially those who travelled from Scotland/UK and South of Ireland at great expense, Marshalls & Flag Marshalls, Sponsors, Officials, Medics, Spectators and Officials for attending our event and for being extremely patient in very trying conditions.
Thank you
B&D Motor Club