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Builth Wells Motor Club- Round 3 of 2009 H&H Series
Bwlchciliau Hare N' Hounds
Sunday 1st November 2009 - Results

After an initially turbulent and torrential start, it momentarily seemed that Round Three of the Hare and Hounds series had been Halloween jinxed, with the only access road leading up to the event partially submerged under water. Nevertheless, vans and cars crept through at a snail's pace, and the event went ahead as smoothly as could be expected, considering the extreme monsoon weather conditions.

By 11:00 am, conditions had improved slightly and all riders, stewards and spectators were kitted out in waterproof gear, as the rain gradually eased off and the wind died down . The weather had obviously put a few competitors off as just over 50 of the planned 70 riders had turned up to brave the conditions!

Fresh from their excellent ride at the recent International Six Days Enduro (ISDE) in Portugal, Builth Motor Club's Chairman, Gethin Price (Hundred House) and Tim Foreman (Llanidloes), were lined up for the start of the event, and it looked as if the days honours was going to be fought between these two riders.

The Clerk of the Course, James Rees, briefed the riders' just before the start, stating some alterations had been made to the course since the previous day due to the severe weather conditions. Riders were advised to take it steady on the first few laps as deep puddles had formed over night.

As the flag was dropped, the Experts roared away, closely followed by the Clubman, Over 40s, and Sportsman riders. The course proved challenging for some of the lesser experienced riders, nevertheless, everyone managed to plough on and complete the first lap. Out in front and relishing the wet weather conditions was Gethin Price aboard his KTM EXC 300, closely followed by Tim Foreman who was also aboard a KTM, both riders had a very healthy lead over the chasing pack behind. Neil Williams (Brecon) was leading the Over 40s, and also in front of all of the Clubman riders with a healthy lead. The Sportsman class was led by Chris Pryce.

After the first hour of racing, it appeared the track was constantly changing and deep ruts were appearing in places. New lines were forming nearly every lap, proving challenging for all, even the most experienced riders. Fortunately, there were lots of Marshals around, both riding and on foot, to assist riders and give advice if needed. They were constantly updating the Clerk of the Course of any changes to the track. One section of the course was identified as being quite hazardous due to the fast-flowing water and erosion that the bikes had now caused. So, it was decided after a discussion with Eric Williams who knew this forestry like the back of his hand, to re-route, and cut this part out.

On the racing front things were still as hot as ever! Tim Foreman had passed Gethin Price after refuelling and was now leading. These two were really motoring and there was never much to separate them as the day wore on. Rhys Davies was looking strong in the Clubman class and as ever Neil Williams was looking good in the over 40's.

As the three hour mark approached a lot of rider's were beginning to tire and were digging deep into their reserves to get to the end of the event. Some decided that, as there was only a few minutes left till the clock turned to 2 O clock, they would sit and wait to save doing another lap.

The flag went out signalling the end of the race and riders came into the lap scoring to cross the finish line. Some were obviously very glad and it was a big well done to all riders that finished.

Club Chairman Gethin Price was the first expert to finish having re passed Tim Foreman with about a hour to go. Gethin had completed 11 laps of the course and built a lead of some 8 minutes over Tim, who finished as runner up, also completing 11 laps. Third in the experts went to Barry Furber and fourth went to Neil Thomas, both riders doing 10 laps. In the Clubman class Rhys Davies took a well deserved victory with 9 laps to his credit. Rhys had also won the Clubman class at Round 1 of our series at Llyn Y Waun, so well done to him. Second went to Barny Moore of Newton and Third to local rider Aled Price of Rhayader.

Neil Williams proved yet again that he is the rider to beat in the over 40's. Neil completed 10 laps of the course and I'm sure enjoyed the wet, muddy conditions. His nearest challenger was Brian Collins of Ystradgynlais ,who always goes well at Bwlchciliau and he completed 9 laps of the course. Jason Rees came third with Builth Motor Club Secretary Nick Morgan coming in fourth aboard his brand new 2010 Gas Gas 300.

Chris Pryce from Leominster aboard his Yamaha YZ 125 took the win in the Sportsman class completing 9 laps, one ahead of second placed finisher Aaron Wells of Coleford. Third was Joe Gittins Jones who also completed 8 laps with Simon Hamer of Kinnerton taking fourth with 7 laps to his credit.

All in all the event went well and most riders enjoyed the challenging course and were extremely pleased to finish! A big well done to all who did, it certainly sorted the men from the boys! Many thanks to the forestry commission for allowing us once again to have this excellent venue. The St John's, Marie's catering, marshals and also thanks to you riders for once again making our series a success.

The final series results will be posted soon and all prizewinners contacted in due course. Thanks once again!

More photos by John Davies

Bwlchciliau Hare'n Hounds

The final round of yet another well supported series for Builth Wells Motor Club. The day dawned cold and threatened rain but stayed dry throughout, even the sun tried to shine on the riders as they enjoyed the challenge of the course at Bwlchciliau.

The seven miles of track included forestry tracks, wooded sections, fast straights and many BIG PUDDLES, had been set up by Eric Williams and all the riders enjoyed the days riding, many complimenting the club on the quality of the tracks used for the series.

The Experts started at 11.00 with Carl Tilley leading the way for the first 4 laps after which Gethin Price, riding well, enjoying the tussle with Carl and Jon Hinam,. took the lead and stayed in front for the remainder of the race. Jon Hinam pushed him all the way but Gethin won with one and a half minutes to spare. Gethin and Jon completed 11 laps.

The Clubman followed and Andrew Marsh led them home, completing 9 laps of the course, followed closely by Sean Buchan with only 18 seconds between them, Marcus Jones was third.

Neil Williams finally won the battle with Brian Collins. Brian had been in the lead for most of the day but Neil piped him in the end,with both completing 10 laps and Paul Davies from Neath was 3rd completing 9 laps.

Tim Saunders from Swansea lead the Sportsman class with Ryan Leary 2nd and Mark Lonergon 3rd. with less than 2 minutes separating them in the end.

The Series results will be completed after finalising these results and winners of the series will be duly notified. Results Expert Clubman Veteran Sportsman

Video & DVDs: Frank Morgan, Malvern Lodge, Howey, LLANDRINDOD WELLS, Powys, LD1 5RE. Tel: 01597 822642

Builth Wells Motor Club Ltd
Hare and Hound Series Round 3 Bwlchciliau Forest

The final round of the Hare and Hound series which took place on the 4th November 2007 at Bwlchciliau forest was another successful event for Builth Wells Motor Club. It rounded off the series with just over a hundred entries and the feedback from riders was that they had had a very enjoyable day.

The weather during the few weeks leading up to the event had been good and the ground was perfect for a course which covered approximately 8 miles. There was a mixture of terrain which provided plenty of variety and challenges for even the most experienced riders.

It was a close race for the top positions in the expert class. Club star Gethin Price led the charge, closely chased by David Brick, Tim Foreman and Carl Tiley. Gethin maintained his lead ahead of David Brick who finished in second place followed by Tim Foreman in third place. Sadly Carl Tiley had to retire after 7 laps.

The clubman class was won by regular side car passenger and club member, Neil James, who was having a one off solo ride as part of his rigorous fitness regime. The top 5 clubmen completed a credible 9 laps.

The veteran class was won by Neil Williams who revelled in the more challenging conditions. Brian Collins was second, Steve Milling third and club secretary, Nick Morgan, fourth. All 4 riders completed 9 laps and would have finished at the top of the clubman class. Not bad for old farts!!

The top 4 Sportsmen completed 8 laps. Shaun Price took first place, 4 minutes ahead of Stephen Thornton who finished ahead of Shaun Buchan and Reggie Street.

The club would like to thank everyone who provided help and support on the day including Forestry Commission Wales, St John’s, Marie’s caterers and especially the riders for making the event a great success.

Results

Builth Wells Motor Club put on the "The Bwlchciliau Enduro" on the 6th November 2005. It was one of the wettest days of the year and torrential rain leading up to, and during the event made it very tough Enduro. Although there was only 53 starters, the course soon cut up, keeping the marshall's very busy from the start to the finish. One of the worst places of the track was the special test, which a lot of Sportsman and Clubman found very hard. Making light work of these wet conditions was championship rider Dylan Jones from Llanidloes on his Yamaha WR250F. Dylan won two out of the three special tests in the expert's class, but was beaten on the first test of the day by Ashley Wood. Dylan pulled out a fair advantage on the last two tests, and actually beat runner up Ashley Woods by nearly two minutes by the end of the day. In third in the experts was Chris Matthews from Knighton who also had a good ride.

The Clubman class was won by Mark Perrot of Leominster, on his Honda CRF 250, with another Honda man Stuart James finishing in second place. Paul Knibb finished third in the Clubman. Brian Collins of Ystradgynlais won the Over 40's class. Brian had a clear win and was the only rider in the class to stay clean on the going. Runner up was Builth's club secretary Nick Morgan.

The biggest entry of the day was the Sportsman class. Out of the twenty starters, only four were classed as finishers and everyone had dropped time. Eventual winner was Craig Hawkins of Cwmbran, second was Sam Wilson of Cheltenham and third Colin Newman of Llandovery.