Chris Harris admitted it was the most “insane” two minutes of his life after getting a race win for his team…just seconds after jumping out of his van!
The three-times British Champion was caught in a FOUR-HOUR traffic jam on the M6 as he travelled from his home in Rugby to Glasgow’s home circuit at Ashfield Stadium.
He is scheduled to take part in the opening race for his Tigers team and roared into the stadium as the riders were almost ready for Heat 1 on Friday night.
Harris, 41, jumped out the back of his van in his racesuit and helmet on, got on a borrowed bike and went straight onto the track. He then passed both opposition riders from the Edinburgh Monarchs to win a maximum race win with team-mate James Pearson!
The video of his remarkable exploits has gone viral on social media with over ONE MILLION views. Harris, nicknamed ‘Bomber’, admitted:
“I think that was the most insane two minutes of my life. Someone told me that when I crossed the finish line to get a 5-1 with James Pearson, I had only been in the stadium for 120 seconds!"
“It had come after the most stressful afternoon of my life, that’s for sure. I left home at 10.30am but we got stuck on the motorway. Suddenly as time went on we realised time was running out. We did two miles in three hours on the M6. I had to be in Glasgow for 7.30pm at latest for the first race. The sat nav was then saying arrival in Glasgow for 8pm."
“However we thankfully got clear of the traffic and the estimated time came down. I told the team boss Cami Brown and he said we’d try to go for it and get me in Heat 1. I got changed in the van, I was sitting in my racesuit and helmet ready for the last few miles!"
“My team-mate Steve Worrall had his bike ready for me to jump on. We arrived just about 7.45pm, I got out the back of the van, on his machine, and then managed to get past the Edinburgh boys to join James for a 5-1."
“To get a race win like that on a borrowed bike I’m not used to was quite special. I’d like to thank Steve for being so helpful. To be honest, it was a really horrible feeling. I was thinking I was going to let my team and fans down and miss the meeting. I hate being late as it is, I’d rather be five hours early. So I was just relieved in the end.”
After all the drama, the meeting was eventually RAINED-OFF after six heats following a torrential downpour of rain. The result doesn’t stand and the meeting will need to be re-staged. So the remarkable race against time by Harris didn’t even count in the end!
He added:
“That was just typical I guess. Next time I might even leave home even earlier just in case!”