In 1987 Honda unleashed the VFR750R RC30 in Japan — 30 years later we pitted it against modern superbikes in the No Limits Endurance Racing Championship!
It all started, as with many things, over a few pints and curry! Mention was made of No Limits Racing running an endurance championship, and “wouldn’t it be fun to enter an RC… just like the old days?”.
The RC in question at the time was an HRC kitted 1994 RVF750 NL5, and by may of 2015, we were setting up in the paddock at Snetterton for our first ever taste of endurance racing.
The No Limits rules allowed up to 4 riders per team, each with their own bike, and their “pit stop” would simply be to pull into the pit, swap the transponder from one bike to the next, and then the next rider would set off. Not much “endurance” when a rider only has to complete 45 minutes in a 3hr race, we thought!
We wanted to race "in the spirit of endurance"... two riders, one bike.
So that’s exactly what we did! Checking the rules, we needed a dedicated refuelling team (a refueller and a fireman, kitted out in the appropriate flame resistant overals/goves/balaclava/goggles). The rider must not be sat on the bike during refuelling, and no-one could work on it whilst it was refuelled. Other than that though, it was all pretty straightforward, and not only did we have a great time, we drew a lot of attention in the paddock. We secretly hoped another two rider/one bike team would enter, but it wasn’t to be.
Two more races [and a heavy crash at Brands Hatch — a race we’d still go on to finish with the aid of lashings of the obligatory duct tape and cable ties] would follow that year, but we were already bitten by the endurance racing bug!
In 2016 we were predominently concentrating on building Performance Engineering, but still found time to campaign the RC45 another three times, honing our team's skills.
Performance Engineering was really starting to take off, and we were taking in a number of VFR750R RC30s for recommissioning and engine rebuilds. Many RC30 parts by the mid-2000s were discontinued, and much of the NOS (new old stock) was rapidly drying up.
With so many RC30s floating around the business requiring increasingly difficult to find spares, we started down the murky path of reproducing many of them ourselves. From stainless steel valves and head bolts, all the way down to conrods and crankshafts, we invested heavily in the marque. Inevitably the question was asked… “wouldn’t it be cool to race one?!” As crazy as it sounded however, there was method to the madness. What better way to prove the products we were reproducing, than to subject them to track torture with some endurance racing?!
Either by luck or by fate, soon after we were offered the chance to buy a pair of RC30s and a truck load of spares by a Facebook follower in Denmark. One of the bikes just happened to be an ex-race bike, which sweetened things for us considerably, as due to their value these days to cost of converting a nice road bike was too prohibitive. It was a no-brainer, so we jumped in two vans and headed for the Channel Tunnel!
Upon our return to the UK, we got straight on to building up the race bike. Everything was either refurbished or our new GTPE [Performance Engineering] parts. The motor was rebuilt with our own crankshaft, conrods, pistons & rings, and stainless steel valves. The heads were ported to the late Brian Capper’s “HRC+” spec, and the engine built by his protégé, Steve A’lee.
The first outing for the Performance Engineering VFR750R RC30 Emdurance Racer was at a cold wet Silverstone in March 2017.
We were actually racing the RC45 NL5 in the 6hr, but took the opportunity to shake down the RC30 during the practice day, in preparation for the big event.
We had a guest rider for the Silverstone event, none other than TT winner James Hillier. James and Steve Haith, the owner of Performance Engineering were to race the RC45 in the 6hr. The RC30 had already been out for a few shakedown laps during the first practice session, and checked over to make sure everything was tight and leak free, so we asked James if he fancied giving it a few tours.
James had previously ridden an RC30 on the Isle of Man during a classic meeting, but he said it had been a bad experience on a poorly prepared bike, so he was more than a little skeptical as he threw his leg over the bike for the first time. With that in mind, he set off down the pit lane for a couple of laps to see what he made of it. The smile on his face left little doubt about the experience, and commented that he wished this was the bike he’d had on the island, as it was like night and day, the difference between the two bikes.
Successful shakedown!
We eased the Performance Engineering RC30 in for its first race in the 8hr/1000km at Donington!
Not wanting to do things by half, and having run out of time, we entered the No Limits 1000km in July.
Even more so than with the RC45, we knew we weren’t going to be competitive; this was a parts and people proving exercise. We wanted to show that our manufactured parts would stand up in the heat of competition, that our engine building and preparation/servicing would make the distance, and generally test ourselves over the course of a full day of endurance racing.
The RC30 performance absolutely faultlessly, as did the team.
Each rider ran 45 minute sessions, with Steve Haith taking the first stint. At each stop we’d top the tank off with 12 litres of fuel, and send the next rider on his way.
At the end of the 4th stint, Steve A’lee pulled in and we fully refulled (15L) and changed the tyres. Pit entry to pit exit was a minute and thirty seconds, with the bike stationary for just 61 seconds. Not bad for amateurs playing endurance!
The race was actually very uneventful. It couldn’t have gone any smoother, and apart from two very tired riders, and two rather windswept and slightly sunburt timing crew stood on the pit wall for 8 hours, the bike and everyone emerged completely unscathed.
