Two Hawkins’ mechanical engineers, Charles Murdoch and James Wade, not only investigate road traffic collisions, but also take to the roads themselves during motorcycle club races.
Both enjoyed a good start to the 2022 Classic Racing Motorcycle Club season at the Welsh Classic meeting in Pembrey, Wales. Charles is starting his 7th racing season, and will be defending his 2021 Championship on his Honda CB250 K4 in the 250cc Classic class, and on a 350cc version in the 350cc Classic class. James is entering his first full season racing astride his post-classic Yamaha FZ600 in the Production class.
Charles said of the competition, “Pembrey is well-liked amongst all racing disciplines for the fast layout with sweeping bends. Several seconds can be lost by not keeping the throttle open through the faster bends which lead onto straighter sections. It is certainly a track which benefits the experienced rider.”
Charles qualified his 250cc Honda 2nd in class, albeit, 2 seconds slower than his previous visit to the track. With improving lap times, Charles finished 2nd in the first two races, just behind the experienced Andrew Guy. A big push on Sunday allowed Charles to take two class wins and shave his lap times. The Classic 350cc class is arguably one of the most competitive, but Charles also secured two 4th in class finishes on Saturday before 2nd and 3rd in class finishes on Sunday.
In his first visit to race at Pembrey, it took some time for James to learn the track, however, he still earned a respectful qualifying result. He suffered a fuelling issue in race 1, but undeterred, he improved his lap time by a mighty 7 seconds in race 2.Sunday saw continued improvements as James became increasingly comfortable, however progress was ultimately limited by ground clearance issues.
If you have a case related to motorcycles or indeed other vehicles, or are simply interested in racing, please feel free to contact either Charles or James.
