EXCITING young Kerry motorcycle racer Kevin Coyne received help from some of the biggest names in world motorsport when his Kawasaki was hit from behind by another rider who was unaware that the road ahead was congested.
The 18-year-old from Killarney was competing at the HEL Performance British Junior Supersport Championship meeting at Snetterton in a category for those aged between 13 and 23 considered a feeder series to the main British SuperBike championship.
Ambitious Kevin made his championship debut at Donington Park last month and he is the first Kerry rider to commit to this class.
Picture: Knee Down Photography
Last weekend, while preparing for his second race and stationery in the pit-lane, Kevin’s power-packed Kawasaki was hit from behind and the incident damaged the gear lever and other parts of his race bike.
While it looked certain that he would not be able to make the start, mechanics from Paul Bird Motorsport Ducati spotted his plight and repaired his stricken machine just in time for the race.
They should have been celebrating with their professional riders, Tommy Bridewell and Christian Iddon, who had just taken second and third in the main race of the day but they stopped their journey to the podium to help the young Killarney rider.
Alan Irwin, father of top Irish rider Glen Irwin, who had just won the feature British SuperBike race, also helped Kevin as he made his way to watch his son’s victory celebration.
Kevin’s father, Mark, remarked: “We are so grateful. Without their help, there is no way we would have started the race and they certainly had more important things to be doing with their riders on the podium. We can’t thank them enough.”
Their efforts were in vain, however, as Kevin was forced to retire from the race after his bike suffered an electrical fault, an issue related to the pit-lane incident.
Encouragingly however, he was running as high as 17th overall, well inside his target of a top 20 finish when he retired.
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