Despite sparse race entries, Army Of Darkness triumphed in a hard-fought battle with their arch-rivals at the WERA National Endurance 4-hour race held at Roebling Road Raceway in Pooler, GA on July 19. AOD led the race from the second lap and out-performed [their arch-rivals] in the pits but the two teams remained separated by only a second up until late in the second hour of the race when [their arch-rivals] unceremoniously low sided.
AOD’s riders for this race were Ben Walters, Chris Peris and Sam Fleming, supported by seasoned pit crew members Tim Gooding, Melissa Berkoff, Steve Brunton, Chris Manfrin, Liang Chen, Kazumi Yoshida, Anthony Consorte, Ben Walters Sr. and Katie Schaefer.
After the victory, rider Ben Walters observed: “In the past couple years we’ve tried to relax and enjoy the races as they come instead of putting ourselves under a lot of pressure to perform. That said, it is pretty easy to enjoy the experience of winning rather than the experience of troubleshooting electrical problems under a green flag.”
Chris Peris added: “I really want to thank Michelin and JRI. These bikes have so much power and such a stiff chassis that the American tracks create huge loads on the shock and tires. JRI has really got their shocks working well and the Michelin guys have been terrific in helping Tim figure out how to get the best out of their tires.”
Team Captain and rider Sam Fleming offered: “Ben and Chris were so happy with the bike that I had to get on at the end of the race and see what they were talking about. We had a huge lead by that point and I didn’t want to do anything stupid but I did get a chance to lap the entire field except for [their arch-rivals].*”
Army Of Darkness is sponsored by: Walt Schaefer Cycle Supply, Michelin, JRI, Traxxion Dynamics, Battley Cycles, Moto-Heaven.com, Hel, Speedcell, Thrust, armyofdarkness.com, and David Hirsch/Island Racing Services.
Army Of Darkness will be racing for the last time this season at the USNE / WERA / CMRA final at Barber Motorsports Park on October 22.
For more on Army Of Darkness go to armyofdarkness.com
*Melissa would like to clarify that lapping the field consisted of passing two other bikes, one of which was an SV.