Eventually, it was certain that the race would go off at 5:15. Nine teams went through tech inspection and set up in parc ferme.
eSuperbike received its' third and final tech inspection sticker.
Once again teams had a chance to wander among the machines (well, among the ones that weren't in their own little tents anyway).
Photographers roamed around snapping pictures of bikes...
...and teams.
Allan was interviewed on local radio.
Finally, at about 5 o'clock, the marshals let us up onto the track to the starting grid.
Once again the bikes lined up in order and were sent off at 10-second intervals.
No wheelies here, just a smooth start down Bray Hill.
And then we waited.
By this time we had discovered the TT Live website, where we could track bikes as they pass certain checkpoints on the course. The iPhone came out as soon as Allan was out of view.
Something got jumbled though, and Allan was listed as riding through the Sulby Speed Trap at 102mph, which is faster than eSuperbike was allowed to go! We'd limited the motor controller voltage in order to protect the motors, so something must have been wrong with the course's timing system or our transponder.
Or was something wrong with the bike? If Allan was actually going that fast, then the motors were sure to burn up and fail and we'd be out of the race. But nothing's gone wrong like that before. But why is the number so high? All we can do is wait.
We could tell from the website (watched from an iPhone) that a couple of the teams didn't make it through certain checkpoints. On a 37.73-mile course, the worst part about watching a race is the limited information you can get about the bike and rider while they're out on the course. But Allan's name kept showing up on the screens for each checkpoint: Ramsey Hairpin, The Bungalow, Cronk ny Mona...
And then we finally saw them.
Fouth place!
Allan did the course in 28 minutes and 35 seconds, with an average lap speed of 79.1 mph. He and eSuperbike were faster every time they went out on the course.
The team was all smiles when he came back through the pits.
Lots of congratulations all around on a job well done.
Congratulations to MotoCzysz for taking first and second place, and to Kingston University for third place and the university prize.
The most surprising outcome of the race was MotoCzysz not getting the 100mph lap. Their two bikes drafted off of each other for most of the race to save energy, but the faster of the two only managed a 99.6 mph average. So close! There is a GBP 10,000 prize for the first electric bike to break the 100mph barrier, and it's still up for grabs.
-Mark
Congratulations to your team, MIT! 4th place is not too shabby, especially for your first time out. Maybe we'll see you next year?
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