(Bowmanville, Ontario) September 15th, 2012 – At three hours, the BEMC Indian Summer Enduro at the Canadian Tire Motorsport Park is the greatest test of driver, car and crew of the season.
The Garage/MBRP’s #110 Viper put in its fastest qualifying time for this track. Unfortunately, that time was .008 seconds over the permitted top speed for the GT2 class. As a result, what should have placed #110 at pole position pushed it to the back of the starting grid in twenty-sixth place.
Remarkably, driver Martin Barkey was able to work his way to the front of the pack by the 10th lap and remain there until his first pit stop on lap 36. After taking on fuel #110 was back on the track with all of the other GT2 cars ahead of him. By the mid-point of the race Martin had worked his way to second place overall with one other GT2 car in the lead and held that position until the 70th lap when he pitted again, this time for a full tire change as well as refueling.
The pit crew pulled off a flawless stop with no penalties and after Martin got a cold energy drink, he headed back onto the track. Having built enough of a lead over the third place GT2 car he was able to remain in second place within his class. With a full course caution and quick calculations by the pit crew, Martin stretched his fuel mileage enough that he would not require a 3rd stop. By the end of the race he had completed 107 laps over a gruelling 263 miles (423 km) and successfully held onto 2nd in class. And while almost all other race teams ran with two or three drivers Martin was able to complete the race on his own.
“I felt I was prepared mentally and physically for this long race, I was really pumped to see the flag drop” said Martin Barkey, CEO of The Garage and co-founder of MBRP Inc. “Once again I was most impressed with our team and our pit stops. We may have been the only car on the grid that had two pit stops and had to change tires on this race. It was great to see the guys working in unison with not a single issue or time loss in either of our pits. Thanks guys.”
There is just one race left in the 2012 season, the CASC-OR/CTMP Celebration of Motorsports. Along with The Garage/MBRP at least two other teams have a strong chance of taking the GT2 championship. It all comes down to Martin Barkey and his team performing flawlessly at this next event and makes Saturday, September 29th, the single most important day of the season.
Be a Booster
The Garage/MBRP is chartering a Hammond motor coach so that you, your family and friends can attend this crucial race. $25.00 per person covers return transport from The Garage, at 329 Old Ferguson Road, Huntsville and access to a full day of racing. The bus leaves at 8:00 a.m. Contact Barbara Bloomfield at 888-569-6005 or email her at bbloomfield@the-garage.net to book your seat. Space is limited so get in touch with Barbara soon.
Image Gallery
Click Here to view our high resolution image gallery for all of the pictures of this exciting race.
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We would like to thank our 2012 corporate sponsors. Without their generosity and support we wouldn’t be as competitive as we are. Big thanks go out to: Tire Discounter Group (www.tirediscounter.ca), Jackson Transportation Services (www.jacksontransportation.com), Praxair (www.praxair.com) and Jake Media (www.jakemedia.ca).
For more info on MBRP Inc. visit: www.mbrp.com or email marketing@mbrp.com.
For more info on The Garage visit www.the-garage.net.
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