By Phil Wain
May 15 2006

Les Shand enjoyed his best ever International result on Saturday, when he claimed a brilliant second place at the North West 200 road races in the first Supersport 600cc race. This came hot on the heels of a solid seventh place in the opening Superbike race, but the ecstasy of stepping onto the podium turned to pain in his third race of the day, the Superstock. Riding his regular Barron Transport Honda, he overcame a sluggish start to move into sixth place but, on the exit of the Corona Chicane on the final lap, he clipped the kerb and crashed out at 90mph - bringing his day to an abrupt and painful end. To make matters worse, Les broke his collarbone and now faces a race against time to be fit in time for the Isle of Man TT Races.

Practice was very busy for Les and the team and, riding the Robinson Concrete Honda for the first time, it took him a few laps to get used to the Superbike machine - but clocking 193mph through the speedtrap, showed it certainly wasn’t lacking in speed! Having overcome a fuelling problem and poor handling on the front end, caused due to a lack of pre-load on the suspension, Les began to get into his stride and a lap in Thursday evening qualifying of 118.55mph placed him ninth on the grid, well in contention for the two Superbike races. The extra power of the Superbike also meant it was a difficult ride on the high speed circuit, particularly on the technical coast road section of the course.

The Superstock class gave him his best qualifying performance, and he placed fifth on the grid, a pleasant surprise for the 28-year-old, given his short circuit struggles with the machine. Fast through the speed trap, the overall package meant it was slightly easier to ride on the roads compared to the short circuits. His final class, the 600cc Supersport, saw him repeat his Superbike performance, and a lap of 113.12mph on the Wilson & Craig Honda meant another ninth and third row start - although he was slightly disappointed with the outcome, given his previous outing at Tandragee where he had made good progress with settings. Nevertheless, he was very happy with the performance of the machine and confident of good results, the constant changing of machines throughout the hectic qualifying sessions, also meaning periods of readjustment out on the demanding 8.9-mile course.

Conditions were perfect on race day, as they had been throughout the week, and the Superbikes got the action off to a flying start. Les found himself back in 11th after the first lap and, although he moved through to ninth by lap three, he was back in 11th a lap later, such was the ferocity of the racing. However, he was able to put in a few overtaking manoeuvres on the final two laps and, with a couple of riders retiring, he claimed a solid seventh place - although Les still felt there was plenty to come from both him and the Superbike, the front end handling still not how he would have liked.

The first Supersport 600cc race was simply brilliant for Les, and he was able to break the lap record on no less than three occasions. A brilliant start saw him up to third and he was having a terrific dice with Ian Lougher, although Bruce Anstey was beginning to open up a sizeable gap at the head of the field. However, two lap records in three laps allowed him to close the gap right up and, going into the final lap, it was anyone’s race. Les broke the lap record again on the final lap, but Anstey went quicker still and, being strong along the coast road section, he was able to hold on by just 1.7 seconds. It was a brilliant ride by Les and he rightfully took his place on the podium.

Just moments later though his day was over, and he found himself in hospital. After a poor start from his fifth place starting position, Les was outside the top ten on the opening lap but, with typical grit and determination, he fought his way through to sixth going into the fifth and final lap. Still keen to climb even further up the finishing order, he was put slightly off line on the exit of the chicane and clipped the kerb, catapulting him off the machine. A broken collarbone and damaged hand were diagnosed, a very painful and disappointing end to what had been a great day of racing.

Once he had returned from the hospital, Les spoke about his races and how the day had gone.
“I’m over the moon with the podium finish, so it was a shame to crash in the Superstock race and miss the second Supersport 600cc race, as the bike was mega. The first race was brilliant, but Bruce was just that bit stronger along the coast road and, although I was able to close the gap on the first two thirds of the course, he could pull away once we left Metropole and extend his lead again. It was great racing with Ian as he’s one of the best riders out there, and one of the safest to ride with - it was just a brilliant race to be part of.

“I was struggling a bit on the Superbike with the front end of the machine, and it was wobbling over the bumps quite a bit, meaning it was a bit of a handful in places. We kept making improvements all the time so seventh was a good finish but, again, it was disappointing to be forced out of the second race as I’m sure we could have gone quicker still. The clutch caused a few problems off the line in the Superstock race, and it jumped four times before it grabbed, hence me being outside of the top ten. I got my head down, working my way through the field, and was hopeful of getting fifth on the final lap. You have to work the Honda really hard and, on the exit of the chicane, I got the power down early but ran out of room and just clipped the kerb, throwing me off. It was a heavy crash and the bike is in need of repair now, so it was a real disappointment to finish the day in that manner.

“It’s been great working with the team all week, and there’s a great atmosphere in the awning. Everyone gets on really well and it’s nice being appreciated and made to feel so welcome. The crash was a disappointing way to end the day, but I’m adamant that I’ll be fit for the TT and carry forward the progress we’ve made here this week. I’ll be going to Ipswich on Monday for some laser treatment, and will then head over to the Isle of Man a week earlier to spend some time in the hyperbaric chamber. This will speed up the healing process and give me the best chance of being 100% fit.”

There’s now less than two weeks before the Isle of Man TT Races get underway, with the first practice session taking place on Satuday 27th May, but Les is confident he’ll be able to compete at the levels required.