|
enduro
news |
|
|||||||||||||||||||||||
|
Ride Off Road |
||||||||||||||||||||||||
 
HARRY WINS HACKING MEMORIAL On Sunday the 22nd of June was Rideffroads first running of the Doug Hacking Memorial Hare and Hounds Enduro at Abram Motopark, Wigan. After a week spent building a new course from the one used in March with additions of new areas. It was going to be a clean sheet of paper for everyone. Much to the Rideoffroad's teams relief after weeks of dry weather on Saturday the rains came ensuring Sundays track was perfect and the possible dangers of a dust bowl were long gone. The morning's two hour race got underway at 10am sharp with the popular sportsman class heading off the line to tackle the new track for the first time. At the front of the field after the first lap was Jamie Binns on his KTM who looked a good bet for the win. Unfortunately for Binns his fellow competitors were hot on his heals with eventual race winner Thomas Healey taking a fantastic win over fellow KTM rider Nick Owen in second. With Rideoffroad regular Gary Longmire third relegating Gareth Parr to fourth and previous race leader Jamie Binns to fifth. All the sportsman rode an excellent race and with the addition of many new faces, this is beginning to be one of Rideoffroad's most popular and well supported classes. Following the race was a trophy presentation where the top five were awarded their Doug Hacking Memorial awards. After the success of the morning race and the now perfect track, the stage was set for the afternoons climax race which would see the experts, over 40's and clubman do battle in the 2.5 hour race format. Like all classes the expert class is welcoming many new faces, one of these being ex British championship front runner John Shirt who made a welcomed and rare outing for this race. At the drop of the flag at 1.30pm the experts roared off the line to be headed round the first corner by old hand Shirt showing he still has the old magic in there to take on these Hare and Hounds regulars. After the end of the first lap it was Shirt out front followed by fellow Gas Gas UK rider Luke Meredith in second with Harry Hillas third. This order would prove to remain the same for the next two hours fifteen minutes. Further down the field was some intense racing with the likes of Crossland, Cripps, Houson and Rideoffroad newcomers Biff Smith and British championship motocross rider Andy Wilson. At the two hour fifteen minute mark it was Sandiford Honda rider Biff Smith who had worked his way through the field after a poor start into fourth position, whilst at the front it was KTM rider Harry Hillas who was set to spoil the Gas Gas party. As the riders went into the last two laps it was Shirt still out front followed immediately by Meredith who was now followed by Hillas. Unfortunately for Gas Gas UK boss Shirt the race was now taking its toll and a rare mistake possibly cost him the win. At the flag it was the hard charging Hillas who emerged to take a well deserved creditable victory leaving Meredith in second and slow starter Biff Smith in third relegating a now tired Shirt to fourth with motocross regular Andy Wilson fifth. The over 40's class saw Rideoffroad regulars Coburn, Snithson, Lofthouse and Bastow do battle. It was a classy ride from Coburn which saw him take the win over Rockets V twin Aprilia rider Phil Smithson who once again got the V twin on the podium. After a strong start it was John Lofthouse who finished in third with the leading trio all a lap ahead of fourth place Husqvarna rider Simon Bastow leaving Paul Grant fifth to round off the over 40's trophy winners. The clubman class were the last off the line but the competition was fierce. The eventual race winner Chris Ball was locked in a race long battle with second placed Ben Haycock. The leading duo finishing on fourteen laps and were separated by a mere ten seconds. In third and fourth positions the close racing continued with Mick Munday and Dominic Garnham also finishing on fourteen laps and whilst being two minutes behind the race leaders. They were also only separated by twenty seconds at the finish. The hard working KTM rider and clubman class newcomer John Holt finished in an excellent fifth place leaving him the day's final trophy winner. The days racing was rounded off by a trophy presentation where all winners were presented with their hard earned awards and product by the late Doug Hackings son Grant which rounded off a great days sport And another Rideoffroad success
Expert. Harry Hillas KTM Luke Meredith Gas Gas Biff Smith Honda John Shirt Gas Gas Andy Wilson Honda Over 40. Ian Coburn KTM Phil Smithson Aprilia John Lofthouse Honda Simon Bastow Husqvarna Paul Grant KTM Clubman. Chris Ball Honda Ben Haycock Yamaha Mick Munday Kawasaki Dominic Garnham Husqvarna John Holt KTM Sportman. Thomas Healey KTM Nick Owen KTM Gary Longmire KTM Gareth Parr Husqvarma Jamie Binns KTM
HARRY RIDES INTO THE HILLS. Sunday the 18th saw the RideOffRoad team heading to their brilliant new venue at Pateley Bridge. Having been subjected to the sunshine for the last two weeks the glorious grassy Yorkshire hillside was ready to be exploited to the full, promising to make up a fantastic course. After days of hard work from the RideOffRoad team the final course simply had everything leaving the riders who attended feeling repaid after giving the newly formed RideOffRoad team of Wilson and Braybrook their valued support. As the day got underway the 11am start saw the experts head off along the virgin grassy course having never had a bike over it, the conditions were going to provide a new challenge. Harry Hillas making his RideOffRoad debut took full advantage of the pre-race briefing making a slow start whilst familiarising himself with the conditions and then upping the pace to take a well deserved win on his KTM proving that he is a rider to watch in the future. Second place went to a rider very much back on form, Kawasaki mounted 'Big Man' Grant Hacking with long time Sandiford Honda rider Jason Crossland taking third. Keeping the top three honest all day and riding a great race was Mark Houson (left) who is now left to spearhead the good ship MPS Husqvarna in the north until Gavin makes a welcome return leaving Scott Stevenson to round off the top five experts. The ever competitive over 40 class saw some great racing with Cumbrian rider Rob Butler showing the rest of the field a clean pair of heels. Bur Rocket Aprilia mounted Phil Smithson refused to give in and showed that the V twin can be competitive at club level with an excellent second place. Next in was Anthony Crowe just managing to hold off MPS racing team boss Mick Seward in fourth with KTM mounted Terry Greenwood fifth. The clubman class provided some excellent racing with Paul Irwin making a welcome return to form after returning to 4 stroke power also means a return to the expert class for the next event for Paul but non the less the Race FX boss took a great win over second and third place riders Liam Ward and Lee Iowano. After a race long battle Liam just managing to hold off fellow friend Lee to take second relegating Lee to third staying on the same laps as the Husqvarna duo was James Croft in fourth leaving Neil Marshal fifth. The sportsman class revealed a runaway winner in David Williams who at the flag was two laps up on the rest of the field in only his second enduro. Naturally David has now also won a ticket to the clubman class in future RideOffRoad events with this great ride. Phil Dodsworth claimed second relegating William Hillas to third whilst Lancastrian Brian Williams took an excellent fourth just pipping the eventual fifth place Tom Tomlinson at the line. Following the days excellent racing with trophies down to fifth palace and some valued product support from Ipone Oils to all trophy winners the general feeling was that after suffering with weather conditions like most other clubs in the early months of the year Sundays brand new venue and excellent weather means that RideOffRoad are back on track. Report by Justin Wilson.
After months of testing, debates and discussions the rideoffroadUK team have launched the new innovative Eco class into all events with immediate effect. The main difference for Eco class competitors will be the use of a trials tyre on the rear. Having used a trials tyre at this years Tough One, both Wilson and Braybrook were amazed just how much extra traction trials tyres have to offer Hare & Hound Enduro riders. As well as being able to feel the tyre gripping over tree roots, rocks and off cambers, it became apparent that any disadvantage over conventional MX tyres is almost unmeasurable with the exception of sloppy Muddy conditions where a MX tyre would be slightly better. The Plus for riders and organisers is that Sportsman and Clubman riders do not get into as many situations where they may get stuck due to lack of traction. The riders will then gain in confidence through being able to ride parts of particular tracks with ease, where a standard MX tyre would be way too hard to cope with the terrain. In reality Cross Country racing terrain is more like trials going than MX based tracks most of the season, as we see more and more " Sportsman" coming to just enjoy a days riding, why not make life easier by giving yourself more grip than other competitors before the race starts. Trials tyres lasted far longer than MX tyres during our test, which was also carried out with Clubman riders, all who took part in the test agreed that the benefits far out weighed any disadvantages to the rider. Another added bonus is the addition of Prize money for this newly formed Eco Class, this should encourage riders to give it a go. As Clubs and organisers struggle to keep land and areas to ride, lets start thinking about how to preserve our sport and get old venues back by showing we genuinely do think about the environment and our surroundings. WOR head man Steve Ireland backed the new idea proving that the two separate organisations really are working for the future of our sport. We have negotiated preferential rates on trials tyres with two leading tyre companies, this sees rideoffroadUK members having access to tyres some 40% cheaper than RRP.
Wigan Enduro Motorpark. Thinking about the future…. After long negotiations with Ken Winstanley of Wigan Motorpark rideoffroadUK are proud to announce the opening of the First specific Enduro practice track in the North West. Ken Winstanley the driving force behind the KWS Masters MX series has a wealth of experience in MX promotion, Ken sees the forming of a new venture such as this in the North West as yet another step towards the sustainability of off road motorcycle sport in the UK. Having had a very successful opening round to the rideoffroadUK event schedule for 2008 Justin Wilson And Wayne Braybrook soon realized that the Abram Motorpark venue is a real Jewel in the crown for Enduro and Trail riders in the North of England. The course will be laid out by the rideoffroadUK crew and will give Enduro riders the chance to not only have a tailor made enduro Hare & Hound track to train on, but the option of testing and setting machines up for the weekend races has now become reality in an environment that will be 2nd to none. The track will be open two Thursdays 1pm until 7.30pm and two Saturdays 10.00am until 6pm each Month. Dates to be confirmed Soon. The rideoffroadUK duo of Wilson and Braybrook will also be on hand to offer Help and advice on riding and setup, In addition the rideoffroadUK Coaching Academy will offer 1 to 1 and group training sessions which can be booked to run in conjunction with the practice days.
"Dave gets it Wright" Report by Dick Curwen After a full week of "marking out and cutting in" an entirely brand new Hare & Hounds lap at Abram, the newly formed rideoffroadUK crew were looking forward to the first ever running of this new series of events. With the course looking like a cross country test from the WEC all the riders were fully briefed as to the importance of staying between the tapes and keeping to the marked course, needless to say all riders behaved like true sportsman and stayed on the marked course. With a lap length of 10 to 15 minutes ahead of them the Sportsman were flagged away shortly after 10am, taking the holeshot was Lee Abbott and all the spectators were treated to an opening lap that could have been mistaken as being the main race leader. Abbott continued throughout the 2 hours to dominate the class with a display of controlled, and very impressive, riding skill keeping the spectators entertained by clearing the Start area table top on every lap and eventually taking a impressive win. He was followed home by Ashley Walsh in 2nd and David Williams took a fine and well deserved 3rd place on the podium. After a short break, to allow the rideoffroadUK marshals to carry track maintenance and link in the two main race wood sections, the main event consisting of Open / Experts, Over 40 and Clubman were ready to go to the start line. As the main race competitors were given the sign to warm their engines event organisers were all too aware of the lurking black clouds. First away was the Open Expert class. Dave Wright took his RaceFX YZ250 round the first corner to take the holeshot followed by the chasing pack of riders keen to reach the first fast field section. The Bark of Wrights YZ250 could be clearly heard as he drifted his machine out of sight at some astounding pace followed by the hard charging KB Racing Gas Gas mounted Lincoln Brewster. As the riders came back into sight and onto the MX track loop its was Brewster leading around 10 seconds ahead of the fast starting Wright. The two stayed locked in battle for over an hour until Wright took full advantage of Brewster's unfortunate crashes on the slippy field section, they were followed home by 3rd place finisher Craig Reynolds, fourth was Jason Crossland and in fifth place was young gun Andrew Noakley who was consistent throughout the event on his 144 KTM. Over 40 class was as expected a battle of high honour with Mick Armstrong taking the win from Trevor Dodgson with Mick Kendall finishing in 3rd place. John Lofthouse was expected to do well aboard his CR but unexpected cooling problems ended his day prematurely. The Clubman class riders, who are the backbone of our sport, were the final line to start. As they progressed around the Special Test style lap it became apparent how determined these riders were to battle against anything that is thrown at them, mid way through the race the heavens opened and the rain came down, this did nothing other than make most riders grit their teeth and continue to show the "never say die" approach of this quality line up of riders. The Clubman honours went to Ben Metcalfe, 2nd place went to Levi Johnson and rounding out the podium was KB Racing rider Lewis Bellfield. A Big Thank you to all who attended this maiden event, thanks to all the rideoffroadUK team of hard working marshals and officials, and it must be said riders & competitors thanks for staying on the marked course, until next time that we rideoffroad.
|
RESULTS.
