About Me

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Ed Hurn

Team Eagle won the UK National F1 Title for 2002. For this season Ken (with me at the prize giving - left) did most of the Open Race series and I did the F1 Nationals.

A fun year, some of the antics that Dan Newton and I got up to do not need repeating. As for Luke's forward roll out of a taxi.....

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14/10/2001 Team Eagle consists of Ken Rigley and me. We have just won 3rd position in the UK F1 Championship...our first year in F1 and with a new craft design.

I am doing a boat building apprenticeship with Northshore Yachts in Southampton. At the 2002 Boat Show in London whilst rigging equipment at the top of the mast of a yacht on display in the artificial lagoon, the winch jammed and I spent a scenic half hour swinging 50 feet up above the show whilst my colleagues cleared the winch on deck. Quite amazing being 10 feet below the roof of Earls Court looking down on the balcony show stands!!

lucon1.JPG (28854 bytes) I started Hovercrafting when I was 13, helping my father to repair an old Eagle RD250 that we bought for £100. Being an old craft it was a bit heavy and slow but a good learning machine.

This was me at 14 just after I won the Junior World Championship. I am sexier looking now I am older. The photo was taken on a big hair day!

I am sitting (read "posing") in 1127 - for racing I kneel, with my feet jammed back on footrests near the engine. Before I installed the footrests I burnt out two sets of trainers when standing on the engine exhaust manifolds behind me as the craft reared up to near vertical as I "caught air" off competitors in front. To recover from that potential crash situation you have to throttle back and lean forward to lower the nose then power back up again before the craft hits the deck and "ploughs in" - instant reactions needed! (see cool pics for a sample photo)

The F1 guys wear a fair bit of body armour but in F3 and Juniors we don't use much. I use knee pads and a body belt in addition to the compulsory crash helmet and life jacket. I use the belt support since having a major shunt at Mere Brow in my first season of racing.

Although my home town is in Nottinghamshire (Robin Hood and all that). In the school holidays I am learning the art of repairing motor cruisers at the local marina. Experience gained in repairing minor GRP damage on 695 and 1127 comes in very useful !