Hade Precourt ends Archambault perfection

By John Hopkins

SHUBENACADIE, NS – After clinching the Amateur Sport Bike title of the Parts Canada Superbike Championship at Atlantic Motorsport Park on Friday Raphael Archambault saw his bid for a perfect season end with a crash in Saturday’s opening race of the doubleheader weekend.

Instead victory went to Jeremie Hade Precourt of Granby, Que. on the JHP Racing / Picotte Performance Suzuki GSX-R600. Charlie Legere of Kinsac, N.S. took second on the Walter Chappell Well Drilling Honda CBR600RR and Hamilton, Ont.’s Steven Nickerson placed third riding the STN Racing / DeWildt Honda Powerhouse Honda CBR600RR.

Hade Precourt led all 14 laps despite constant pressure from Legere, who finished just 0.158 secs. behind the Suzuki.

"I can't believe it," said Hade Precourt, who had badly damaged his bike in a crash at the Atlantic Roadracing League regional event last weekend. "I got a fantastic start. I could hear him [Legere] all race long as we went through corner two. I could tell he was getting on the gas before me so I thought I really had to push."

The win solidified Hade Precourt's hold on second place in the Amateur Sport Bike standings. He now has 213 points, 34 clear of Nickerson in third but 56 behind champion Archambault.

Legere may have been able to make a pass on Hade Precourt but the local ace was battling a transmission problem that caused his bike to pop out of gear on the backstraight.

"I was running my fastest times and I didn't want to screw it up," he admitted. "I was waiting for a big mistake but he [Hade Precourt] ran a solid race."

Third place on the track featured a battle between the Sherbrooke Harley-Davidson Suzuki GSX-R600 of Samuel Proulx, who moved up from 13th on the grid, and seventh fastest qualifier Nickerson. Proulx edged Nickerson across the line for the spot, but was later penalized five positions for exceeding the class horsepower limit of 118 hp by 2.9 in post race tech.

Lee Kuhn topped a four-bike battle for what would turn out to be fourth place on his Toolee Motorsports / Monster Energy Triumph 675 Daytona. The Hamilton, Ont. racer just edged the Meidl Honda Powerhouse Honda CBR600RR of Bodhi Edie, Bill McKay's Kawasaki ZX-6R and the Suzuki GSX-R600 of Aubrey Bailey.

Archambault had easily qualified on pole for the weekend's races on the Archambault Racing / Centre Hamel Honda CBR600RR, clinching the series title in the process, but was forced to start Saturday's 14-lap event from the pitlane when his engine wouldn't start in the paddock due to a fuel pump problem. He was working his way into the top 10 of the 19-rider field when he tangled with the Babins Racing Suzuki GSX-R600 ridden by Bobby Baldwin of Frankville, N.S. in turn one at the start of the third lap and both riders went down.

In a gesture of exceeding sportsmanship, Baldwin rushed over to try and help Archambault get back into the race before even checking to see if his own bike was raceworthy. Archambault was quick to acknowledge Baldwin when he collected his number one plate at the podium after the race.

Archambault did get some measure of satisfaction later in the day as he won the Pro Cycle ARL Amateur Superbike regional event. He crossed the line 9.733 secs. clear of Legere, who was penalized three positions for a jump start and dropped to fifth in the results.

As a result, McKay took second with Nickerson completing the podium, just ahead of Bailey.

Amateur Sport Bike Race Results
1. Jeremie Hade Precourt, Granby, QC (Suzuki GSX-R600) 14 laps
2. Charlie Legere, Kinsac, NS (Honda CBR600RR) +0.158 
3. Steven Nickerson, Hamilton, ON (Honda CBR600RR) +6.466
4. Lee Kuhn, Hamilton, ON (Triumph 675 Daytona) +12.548
5. Bodhi Edie, Warman, SK (Honda CBR600RR) +12.746
6. Bill McKay, Tavistock, ON (Kawasaki ZX-6R) +13.195
7. Aubrey Bailey, Parry Sound, ON (Suzuki GSX-R600) +13.568
8. Samuel Proulx, Magog, QC (Suzuki GSX-R600) +6.241*
9. Natalie Catherine Provost, Laval, QC (Honda CBR600RR) +22.551
10. Mark Goodwin, Williamswood, NS (Kawasaki ZX-6RR) +28.361
11. Matthew Raymond, Digby, NS (Suzuki GSX-R600) +45.485
12. Amy Szoke, Brantford, ON (Honda CBR600RR) +46.064
13. Stephen Clark, Hampton, NB (Honda CBR600RR) +47.660
14. Geoff Cole, Elmsdale, NS (Yamaha YZF-R6) +2 Laps
Did Not Finish
David Tremblay, Longueuil, QC (Honda CBR600RR) 9 Laps 
Philippe Masse, St-Dominique, QC (Kawasaki ZX-6R) 7 Laps
Paul Whitehead, Baddeck, NS (Honda CBR600RR) 4 Laps
Bobby Baldwin, Frankville, NS (Suzuki GSX-R600) 2 Laps
Raphael Archambault, St-Colomban, QC (Honda CBR600RR) 2 Laps
Did Not Start
Vanessa Gareau-Dominguez, Montreal, QC (Suzuki GSX-R600)
Time of Race: 16:42.953
Fastest Lap: 1:10.796 by Charlie Legere on lap seven
* -- Over Horsepower Limit - 5 Position Penalty

Amateur Sport Bike Point Standings
1. Raphael Archambault, 269
2. Jeremie Hade Precourt, 213
3. Steven Nickerson, 179
4. Bill McKay, 157
5. Marcel Irnie, 141
6. Bodhi Edie, 136
7. Aubrey Bailey, 126
8. Philippe Masse, 103
9. Amy Szoke, 87
10. Joey McRae, 80
11. Jody Greening, 74
12. Samuel Proulx, 72
13. Lee Kuhn, 59
14. Natalie Catherine Provost, 52
15. Charlie Legere, 45
16. Todd Starchuk, 44
16. Marco Sousa, 44
18. Dominic Dupont, 42
19. Emerson Lefurgey, 38
20. Vanessa Gareau-Dominguez, 35
21. Simon Proteau, 33
22. Ryan Middleton, 31
22. Alain Lefebvre, 31
24. Sylvain Dery, 29
25. Jeff Fenwick, 27
26. Craig Hubley, 26
27. Marco Dias, 24
28. Alexandria Cohen, 22
29. Mark Goodwin, 19
29. Etienne Giguere, 19
31. Tanner Willcocks, 18
32. Matthew Raymond, 17
33. Stephen Clark, 13
34. Geoff Cole, 12
34. Calude Bergeron, 12
34. James Peterson, 12
37. Steve Kozicki, 8
38. Martin Gosselin, 6
39. Pedro Sousa, 3
40. Alex Coelho, 2
41. Ted Kuehn, 1

Pro Cycle ARL AM Superbike Results
1. Raphael Archambault, St-Colomban, QC (Honda CBR600RR) 12 laps
2. Bill McKay, Tavistock, ON (Kawasaki ZX-6R) +13.637
3. Steve Nickerson, Hamilton, ON (Honda CBR600RR) +22.756
4. Aubrey Bailey, Parry Sound, ON (Suzuki GSX-R600) +22.918
5. Charlie Legere, Kinsac, NS (Honda CBR600RR) +9.733 (Jump Start Penalty - 3 Positions)
6. Mark Goodwin, Williamswood, NS (Kawasaki ZX-6R) +34.140
7. Amy Szoke, Brantford, ON (Honda CBR600RR) +45.763
8. Matthew Raymond, Digby, NS (Suzuki GSX-R600) +45.986
9. Marty Fogarty, Windsor, NS (Suzuki GSX-R1000) +46.260
10. Stephen Clark, Hampton, NB (Honda CBR600RR) +47.106
11. Paul Whitehead, Baddeck, NS (Honda CBR600RR) +1:00.654
12. Geoff Cole, Elmsdale, NS (Yamaha YZF-R6) +2 Laps
Did Not Start
Bobby Baldwin, Frankville, NS (Suzuki GSX-R600)  
Vanessa Gareau, Montreal, QC (Suzuki GSX-R600)  
Philippe Masse, St-Dominique, QC (Kawasaki ZX-6R)  
Bodhi Edie, Warman, SK (Honda CBR600RR)
Time of Race: 14:11.484
Fastest Lap: 1:10.251 by Raphael Archambault on lap nine