Pal Virik Nilsen and his Australian partner Tom Barry - Cotter vent down to Dubai a week in advance to test the equipment and to be best possible prepared for the season. It gave a positive result and they where among the front runners when the official program started in Dubai.
Friday was the match race where two and two teams meet on the course, with the winner moving on to the next heat and it all ends with a thrilling finale. Pal and Tom got well presented . It ended with a nice podium and a flying start to the season.
- We were incredibly excited by this podium. That shows we have used the test days right and that we are on the right track . It also give a much needed breath of positivity within the team says Pal.
Destroyed engine
The main race Saturday was a slightly different story. The Dubai Duty Free boat that Pal and Tom was going well at the start from the sixth position in the grid. They remained in fourth-fift place until the engine suddenly stopped in a turn. Then six competitors did past before Pal got the engine running again. After a few more rounds it stopped again completely. The team was in fifth place before they had determined that the engine was completely destroyed and the race was ruined . It happened after nine laps completed eighteen .
- Sure it's incredibly sad after the good start we had on this race week says Pal. We had no alarms on the instruments so we thought it was not serious when one engine stopped on lap seven. There's not much else to do and think positive and look to the future and that we never give up.
Next event in xCat series is in Fujairah in the United Arab Emirates February 12 to 15.
FOTO: Raffaello Bastiani
Posted by wwwebteam