Zolder – This and That
15. September 2009Nothing really spectacular happened in Zolder this year. In the first race of the weekend there was a dangerous encounter featuring Antonio Albacete and David Vrsecky, when they entered the start/finish straight at 160 km/h in the penultimate lap. Both RaceTrucks missed the concrete walls by a hair’s breath – the one on the right-hand side and the other on the left-hand side – but thankfully nothing bad happened to anybody. And the organizers certainly breathed a sigh of relief afterwards, because in the past these walls have already been smashed several times by the RaceTrucks made of 5.5 tons of iron and steel.
From a visual point of view, the most spectacular incident was the moment when José Bermejo entered the final chicane where, cheered by the fans, his Mercedes truck was sliding out which sent him into a spin and across the gravel.
But in sporting terms the final stage of the championship will certainly be spectacular. The fight of the foursome turned into two separate duels, although it’s still technically possible for Jochen Hahn and Markus Bösiger to win the title, as there is still a maximum of 120 points up for grabs, but practically there will be two Buggyra versus MAN duels – Vrsecky (Buggyra) and Albacete (MAN) will compete for the title, and Hahn (MAN) and Bösiger (Buggyra) will contest for third place.
Although it stayed dry, the weather wasn’t that great, which could be a reason why the number of spectators was a bit lower than last year, when on Sunday – traditionally the day that attracts the biggest crowd in Zolder – there was bright sunshine.
Team Hahn Racing as well as Stuart Oliver’s team had been working right through Saturday night. Jochen Hahn had noticed for some time – and particularly in Zolder – that whenever he took a bend at a high speed and during an abrupt change of pace the oil pressure dropped too low, and the pilot was afraid that at some point this would result in some extensive engine damage. That’s why, together with the MAN technicians, they made some alterations, and obviously they succeeded in overcoming these problems, because in the final race of the weekend Hahn came off as the beaming winner.
But the extensive engine damage Hahn had only been afraid of became a reality for Oliver. His engine conked out, albeit for different reasons. And the MAN crew went full steam ahead together with the English team to replace the engine.
This great demand of manpower occurring at the same time was difficult to cope with for the team of technicians from Nuremberg, because one member of their crew, MAN technician Peter van Vessem, was the unlucky fellow of the weekend, because a broken left hand put him out of action. This means a premature end of the season for the long-serving RaceTruck mechanic; and even the many autographs – from the pilots and his colleagues – covering his plaster cast were of little consolation to him.
Between the races in Zolder and the round in Le Mans there is only a 6 day break. Therefore many teams stayed in Belgium and will from there go on their 600 km journey to Le Mans.
For those who would like to watch the Zolder event in moving images there will be a 30 minute report on DSF on Saturday, September 19, at 4:45 p.m.