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National Putoline Hare Scramble Championship '08 |
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Victory for Voase at Butts Final Round The dirtbike-traxs team were once again at the Butts quarry mx track in Derbyshire for there annual xmas hare scramble, which was to form the final round of the National Putoline winter hare scramble championship. With as many changes as you can put into a small circuit the dirtbike -traxs team had a good blend of the mx track surrounding woodland and the loop around the quarry, the log and rock section which the dirtbike-traxs team constructed some years ago and still provides a challenge and spectator point before the riders go through lap scoring. Once again the popular dirtbike-traxs team had attracted a full entry, with a good expert line up including the very welcome return of former GNCC star Ryan Voase, Ryan has gone through hell to make his competitive return on a bike after breaking his wrist some years ago and then suffering horrific complications needless to say his wrist is still very weak . The weather was good but cold a great relieve to the organizer as the last event suffered 35 hours of rain leading up to the start At 11 am sharp the start signal was given by race director John Kerwin , and just like his old self Ryan Voase took the RAS sport hole shot award as he lead the riders out of the quarry, as the race settled down rising star dirty Harry Hillas was leading with Ryan in second and sometimes third as he eased himself into the race and the pace , Hordes of spectator had gathered around the top of battyboy hill were many competitors were having massive amounts of fun as they entered a muddy hole and then had to climb out up a steep bank which of course became very slippery During the early part of the race husqvarna mounted Lee Sampson had a spell in front but by the time the riders had completed there refuelling stops Voase emerged back in front of a hard chasing Hillas , Ryan continued to stretch his lead and as the time ebbed away he squeezed out for a last lap giving him a 1 lap winning margin over dirty Harry Hillas with Gary Daniels 3rd Harry Hillas who took the overall championship win with great riding over the 4 rounds . The clubman class was won by Thomas Healey from Chris Ball , factory Phil Capstick was in with a chance of an overall podium position in the championship but let the pressure of occasion get to him and his chance of glory slipped away . The o4o class was again dominated by husqvarna team member Mark Houson from gas gas rider Kev Hipwell and Rod Heald in third, Ian Shannon finished in 4th but that was enough to secure the overall 040 championship. John Calvert won the sportsman class from James Reeves with Craig Thorpe 3rd Craig won the overall championship The ladies class for the first time was amalgamated into the main adult race and for the first time run over the full 2.5 hour race duration Katy Bullock emerged as the winner from Gina Bewlay with Emma Ball third, while Jane Daniels competed in the seniorA youth group and took the win from William Hillas / The well supported novice class was won by Graham Hunt with Tony Buffin second. Once again the dirtbike-traxs team produced another great days riding with no investigations required the results were available within seconds of the course closing with the presentation of the awards that drew a close on another great year for the progressive dirtbike-traxs team with brand new virgin venues 09 is set to keep dbt firmly at the top . Video
Ellington banks Ripon 13/14 december Round 3 national putoline winter hare scramble championship Smith wins wet Ellington The Dirtbike-traxs crew transformed the Ellington banks course in preparation for the full entry attending the 3rd round of the National Putoline winter hare scramble championship, with lots of work going in to cutting new sections resulting in a lap time of 10 minutes for the average rider. The weekend started on Friday as the gates were opened to welcome the riders that were camping, and bang on time the rain started early Friday evening just as the first riders were setting up camp, the rain continued for a relentless 36 hours saturating the ground, even though the ground was wet the course remained rideable, Saturday started with a practice session using the full course, the dirtbike-traxs crew were amazed when 30 or so riders turned up to practice as the rain was truly bouncing down, it just shows some riders can not get enough bike time. At 1.30 pm the youth and ladies competitors lined up and were given the start signal in truly dismal conditions, with the race duration cut to 60 minutes Davey Todd won the the senior B class from Adam McCarthy Michael Gilby won the junior class from Ryan Cheal with Justin Staplers third, Jane Daniels prove to be top girl in winning the ladies class from Emma Ball second with Molly Howe third. all the youth and girl power riders must be congratulated in persevering in monsoon conditions. As Sunday dawned the rain had finally stopped there was a lot of standing water but the Ellington course has a hard base so there would be no problems with the track turning in to a bog . With a full entry the starter gave the start signal at 11.30 and a strong expert line up headed off around the Ellington track , some of the expert mx riders thought they were going to show the hare scramble lads the way home time would tell, missing from the expert line up was dirty Harry Hillas, as the experts set off dirty Harry arrived in to an empty car park the back doors on the van burst open with a cloud of smoke, and the Hillas boys bikes running leaped out of the back to join in the race at the rear, dirty Harry was on a mission nearly 6 minutes down on the first lap, but his efforts to catch the leaders would be in vain, Paul Smith the motocross rider on the RAS sport TM 300 was in front of the experts class but he was being chased hard by 040 rider "the ginger one" Mark Houson on the fourstroke husqvarna 250, Mark was making the RAS sport tm mounted Smith work hard for his eventual win, with Anthony Ayton second and Dave Myers third, dirty Harry Hillas put in a great effort to get 4th but must hope santa brings him a new alarm clock. Mark " the ginger one" Houson as usual on the husqvarna 250 took the 040 class win from Rob Heald second and Ian Shannon third Top clubman was Chris ball second Ian Harrison with Stuart Gordon third , the well supported sportsman class was won by Robert Dawson while Harvey Sutcliffe won the novice class, William Hillas won the senior A class from Jane Daniels. A big thanks to the riders who once again packed the venue in extreme conditions, one day soon I hope to report on an event that has suffered from extremely good weather conditions. Don't forget the final round of the series is at Butts Quarry Derbyshire on the 28th of December were the trophies will be presented for the overall winners. Results Video
The final round of the popular national putoline hare scramble championship took place at Driffield east Yorkshire last weekend organised by TGOR . Despite the unfortunate clash with Weston beach race [ we have to take the dates allocated to us by the mod] the Driffield event attracted over 400 riders a staggering achievement . The course comprised of 5 plantations linked by grass and chalk tracks had undergone a lot of hard work over the pervious month ,the course is a lot wider than in previous events with the inclusion of quads in Sundays race timetable the course under went considerable widening benefiting the solos as well, The weekend started on Saturday with a Husqvarna training day with instruction from Paul Bolton and team, the well received session ended in time for the 2pm start where nearly 100 youth and ladies lined up for a 90 minute hare scramble with favourable weather conditions time keeper Martyn Field gave the go signal and the first wave of youths were on there away around the Driffield track . During the early stages a battle for the front of the senior b class raged between Robert Johnson, Davey Todd, and Luke Flack . With Robert Johnson taking the win from Luke flack second and Davey Todd third all completed 7 laps with this win Robert made sure of the senior B championship crown. Once again Michael Tatham won the juniors from Dan Bewlay with James Watts third all completing 6 laps , while in the ever expanding ladies group Jane Daniels was the winner from Gina Bewlay with Debbie Kerr in third , it nice to see how the ladies class has grown through the season and how good the riders are ,after a well attended presentation that drew a close on Saturdays proceedings All through Saturday the hard working admin team were bombarded with request for entries for Sundays adult race, so much was the demand that event director and time keeper Martyn Field had to instruct the track building crew to add in a further 5 minutes of going for Sundays full line up. With warm weather and sunshine Sundays adult race was full nearly 300 riders ready for the 12 noon start , with the sun high in the sky the start signal was given and the thundering masses set off , Ian Shannon took the RAS sport hole shot award provided by the kindly Royston Palmer as he lead the pack towards the first wood. The leading experts Hacket , Daniels. Reynolds, and Smith were to be locked in a race long battle for the win with Cumbria based Adam smith taking the win by an 18 second margin from Craig Reynolds with Daniels a further 34 seconds down on the winner all completing 10 laps. In the E1 clubman class Josh Bendel and Joe Deacon were riding for the overall championship win both mounted on Husqvarna 125 Josh got off to a poor start but made up ground on Joe they were now swapping the lead but it was to be Deakins day and he squeezed out a 94 sec winning margin which gave him the overall championship win these 2 are now on there way to expert land were they will have no problems in mixing it with the top lads , David Wilson was the top clubman open rider while Ian Shannon maintained his great start in winning the 040 class , After a long lay off with a knee injury Robert Dawson won the sportsman E1 class. Jane Daniels sufficiently recovered from her Saturday win in the ladies class put in another outstanding performance to win the senior youth class ,and with Billy Parkinson winning the novices that drew a close on another outstanding week end at Driffield . once again the national putoline hare scramble championship has stood the test, with vast numbers of riders supporting the series, next year will see some new venues in action, but before then on the 6th of December the awards will be presented with Biff Smith picking up a £1000 for the over all win and cash and product prizes for all the other classes a massive thanks to putoline oils for there support, and don't forget it all starts again in February .
Woodhouse The Dirtbike-traxs team were forced into a last minute venue change as the proposed venue at Gisburn Lancashire was water logged another casualty of the poor summer we have experienced in the north west of England, however the north east of England has not been quite as badly effected so the Dirtbike-traxs team switched to the dry woodhouse venue at Great Ayton. With a good weather forecast the action started on Saturday morning with the return of the popular Dirtbike-traxs Husqvarna academy/training schools with Husky stars Gav Houson and Paul Bolton giving instruction. This was followed in the afternoon by a practice session which proved a great success providing the large numbers of riders camping with something to do on the Saturday afternoon. The venue had received a substantial amount of work over the proceeding weeks with a view to using it in October but enough of the work had been completed to use it earlier than planned and as Sunday dawned with bright sunshine the youth and ladies would tackle the challenging woodhouse track first. At 9am the youth and ladies set off. Davey Todd in the senior B class made the most of this event which is only just down the road from his home by winning in convincing style from Luke Flack the series leader Robert Johnson had to settle for third place on this occasion , in the juniors Michael Tatham won from Harrison Bell with Michael Gilby in third , Jane Daniels won the ladies class from Anita Gordon with Gina Bewlay third. With an hours break the hard working dirtbike-traxs crew set about switching in the adult course with its exciting climbs and descents. At 11.30 time keeper Martyn Field gave the start signal and the first wave of riders were off, as the leading group of experts charged up the hill side Biff Smith the Biffster fresh from his Romaniacs adventures emerged as the leader taking the RAS sport hole shot award , over the first hour the racing was very close with Harry Hillas taking the lead briefly, Biffster fighting back and Adam Smith making a charge in to second place after an unaccustomed poor start but on lap 8 Adam was hit in the face with a rock which resulted in a broken nose and an early retirement , meanwhile up front in the experts Biffster had refuelled allowing Andrew Hackett to take the lead with trials specialist lee Sampson in second but once more the Biffster fought his way back to the front and started to build a comfortable lead , with 15 minutes to go a branch tore the wiring on his husky and he came to a halt allowing Andrew Hackett to take the win with lee Sampson second , after effecting repairs the Biffster manage to pass Harry Hillas on the last lap to claim third place .leaving Harry to come home 4th. But it was the Biffsters day with this result he has made sure of the national putoline hare scramble championship title and a cool £1,000 to go with it Josh Bendell stormed to the clubman E1 win and certain promotion to the expert class riding his dbt backed husky , Steven Hind won the clubman open class from Marcus Firth , while Ian Shannon won the 040 class from Bill Howe , George Knowles proved once again to be master of the young guns winning the seniorA class from Adam Taylor with Jane Daniels taking her second trophy of the day in third place . Thomas Healey won the sportsman e1 class while Richard Spencer was the sportsman open victor. As the weary riders trooped back to there vehicles, it was clear that the day had been a great success with many stating that this was the best event of the summer. Talking to John Kerwin - event organizer - at the end he said "we had to use this venue earlier than planned. We had intended to widen the track to enable easier passing. This work will be completed before we hold the next event here next spring. The farmer is also allowing the use of some new land which will increase the ride time by 5 minutes. Don't forget that the championship finishes at Driffield on the weekend of the 12th of October. There still a lot to fight for".
Biff
sails to Bowland win Returning to the normally fast and flowing bowland venue for the second and last time this year for round 9 of the national putoline hare scramble championship, the dirtbike-traxs crew had there work cut out to stage the event with weeks of preceding rain the ground was very wet underfoot, rerouting the wettest parts of the course to firmer ground, the event would again test the riders determination not what the dirtbike-traxs crew had in mind for a bank holiday august summer event. The weather had provided us with some rest from the daily heavy rain that the area has endured over the past weeks with a sunny Saturday, the action kicked off at 1300 hours with the youth and ladies event, with a well supported youth classes and a small but growing ladies class the race got underway at 1 pm sharp as time keeper and starter Martyn Field set the event in motion. In the senior B class Davey Todd was in a class of his own mastering the slippery conditions to complete 9 laps to win from Luke Flack 8 laps, with Luke Gorse a further lap down completing 7 Harrison Bell from Barnoldswick was by far the best junior rider making the long trip to Bowland worthwhile Jade Gordon seems to shine in the slop with another fine performance in the ladies class resulting in her second win in 2 weeks Gina Bewlay was second and Anita Gordon third well done to all the ladies a youth riders who persevered in tough conditions Sunday dawned after the now obligatory heavy rain which only eased just before the start this was going to make the off cambers and hills treacherous for the full entry , the dritbike-traxs team had installed bridges across the river for the adult race giving access to a loop around the scar . The council imposed an early start on the event so the start time was 9.30 am. as the expert line set of around the bowland course Adam Smith took the famous RAS sport hole shot award , Andy Cripps Kawasaki took an early lead and started to build a comfortable lead it was in the early stages that he set the fastest lap of the day at 9 mins28 sec , meanwhile the Biffster Sandiford Husqvarna was fighting his way through the chasing pack of experts he hit second place on the 4 lap , he then set about reeling the stylish Andy Cripps catching and passing Cripps at the 70 minute mark while Cripps refuelled , Harry Hillas was doing well holding a comfortable third place Cripps then started to pressure the Biffster as they reeled off 4 laps before Biff broke free two win by a small margin from Andy Cripps with Harry Hillas in third Clubman E1 was won by dbt/ntb Husqvarna mounted Josh Bendell from Chris Ball, Dom Garnham struggled around for his best finish of the year to take the final podium position in clubman E1 David Wilson once again dominated the clubman open with a comfortable win from Marcus firth, John lofthouse continued in his winning ways after take the win at Burnley 2 week ago he was top 040 again, George Knowles won the senior A class from Josh Luckup in second and Jordan Johns third. Mick Thompson was best open sportsman while Tom Healey was best E1 sports man . it was clear at the awards presentation after the event that even in such arduous condition most of the riders enjoyed themselves , for the first time riders it not always like this so don't be put off the sun shines sometimes !! the dirtbike-traxs team would like to thank all the riders and marshals who supported the event in tough conditions this is not how we envisage summer hare scramble events, hopefully September will provide us in the north with some well deserved sun shine in time for Gisburn on the 21 September.
The Putoline Burnley Bog race High above Burnley on a steep hillside the Dirtbike traxs team had taken up residence after having spent the last 10 days at there Gisburn track waiting for the venue to dry out in order to complete round 8 of the National Putoline hare scramble championship, but with no major let up in the rain a decision was taken on Wednesday to switch to the all weather Burnley venue. The hard working dirtbike-traxs crew then worked tirelessly to construct the track and start area at short notice in extremely wet and arduous conditions completing there task on Saturday. With the track sitting on a steep hillside even the preceding 24 hours of heavy rain through Saturday and into the early hours of Sunday couldn't stop the Burnley bog race. As most of the rain runs straight off the hill side, with only the tops and the few flat parts retaining water, the bog race was all set for another memorable muddy encounter with the Burnley terrain. The track is 5 miles of open moorland going with a long climb up to the top of Hapton moor from the start, before the course swings around and heads across the boggy tops back towards Burnley taking in some big ravines off cambers before returning to the start. Although called the Burnley bog race the track is very rideable while providing something totally different to test the riders. The large entry of youth riders assembled on the line ready for the 9am start , bang on 9am official time keeper Martyn Field gave the start signal and the first wave of youth riders were off on there way around the Burnley course , the youths were treated to a shorter course, in the senior B class Robert Johnson maintained his winning ways with a comfortable win 1 lap clear of second placed Davey Todd who lost a lot of time to Johnson when his bike failed to restart early on in the race, Scott Altass finished in third despite sizing his bike close to the finish and having to push , in the juniors Michael Tatham took a narrow win from Michael Gilby with Ben Clark in third. The girl power class was won by Jade Gordon with Jade's mum Anita a close second and Bekky Hobbs in third. This drew a close to the first half of the Putoline Burnley bog race. The dirtbike-traxs crew switched the track into the full adult version ready for the 11.30 am start , as the start time drew close crowds started to gather around the first of the bogs , just after 11.30am the first wave, of riders approached the bogs, during the early stages young Gary Daniels lead the expert class, quite an achievement as this was his first outing in the expert class in the National Putoline hare scramble championship, it was during the time he was leading that he set the overall fastest lap of the day, but the Biffster Sandiford Husqvarna was closing in and by lap 4 took up the lead, riding the Husqvarna TE250 the Biffster cruised around the remaing laps to take another victory in the National Putoline hare scramble championship, with Gary Daniels taking a fine second place, Adam Smith took third place . The clubman E1 top spot was claimed by dbt rider Josh Bendell on his NTB supported Husqvarna wr 125, while David Wilson secured the clubman open win. Local rider John Lofthouse not only won the RAS sport hole shot award, but then blasted on around the burley track for 8 laps to take the top veterans award with Brett Haley second. Some of the sportsmen found the track slow going but not John Calvert who won the sportsman E1 class or Richard Spencer who took first place in the sportsman open class. As the riders filtered back to the car back it was clear that despite the hellish weather conditions over the last weeks in the Lancashire area the Burnley venue had provided a great day out on the bikes, with the riders revelling in the muddy conditions, the dirtbike-traxs crew had pulled of another mega event despite the appalling weather conditions, hopefully the weather will be back on track by the time the championship visits Bolton by Bowland on the 24th august.
Brewster roosts Bowland Dirtbike-traxs produced another outstanding weekend of hare scramble action at the Ray Head venue near Bolton by Bowland. With hundreds of people camping and a 360 rider entry, the atmosphere was brilliant for the 7th round of the National Putoline Hare Scramble Championship. Series leader the Biffster was going to face a testing challenge from a fine expert line up including the likes of Lincoln Brewster KB racing, Paul Bolton Sandiford Honda, Martin Sandiford Sandiford Husqvarna making a welcome return after the birth of his daughter, Harry Hillas - the young gun - ready to give them a run for their money and a host of other top expert riders. The course was fast flowing grassland with exhilarating climbs and descents, off camber banks and a gnarly rocky gully which would prove difficult in the sportsman race. The course had undergone major changes to previous years. Saturday was the turn of the sports future, the youth riders, over 40 youth and 10 lady riders lined up for the 1 pm start, the race duration was 90 minutes. The Senior B lead the field away, with TGOR rider Scott Altass taking an early lead and looking sharp over the first half of the course he took a fall in a dry stream bed allowing Robert Johnson to move to the front loosing several minutes Scott started to fight back, passing front runners Luke Flack, Davey Todd, Luke Gorse to move into second place. Robert Johnson still out in front took the win from Scott Altass with Luke Flack in third. I n the junior class for riders aged 8 to 12 years Michael Gilby won the day from Michael Tatham with Harrison Bell in third all completing 10 laps . In the growing ladies class Jane Daniels was the winner by 2 laps from Deborah Kerr and Anita Gordon third, as usual in Dirtbike-Traxs youth events all finishers received a Finishers medal . Sunday dawned with bright blue skies and sunshine as the 200 strong Sportsman Novice Senior A race lined up for a 9 am start, with a race duration of 2 and half hours the start signal was given and the first wave of riders set of around the track Thomas Healey took up the lead on his 144 KTM and over the first few laps had pulled out a 2 minute lead, on his third lap he was caught up in the gulley were a series of stricken sportsman riders had blocked the flow, resulting in the gully section having to be cut out, Thomas was now well down but determined hard riding and setting the fastest laps times he managed to finish 3rd behind Richard Mellon the winner and second placed Mathew Ineson, the sportsman open class was won by the improving Jeremy Ashby from Darren Simpson The senior A youth class was won by George Knowles from Reece Morewood with Jane Daniels 3rd picking up her second trophy of the week end having won Saturdays ladies race . With only a 30 minute break between the morning race and the main race of the day, the efficient hard working dirtbike-traxs team repaired the tapes reinstated the gulley ready for the experts clubman and o4o's race , at 12noon time keeper and starter Martyn Field gave the go signal to the packed expert line and David Myers once again got away in front winning the RAS sport hole shot prize, after the early jostling for position it was Lincoln Brewster who emerged in the lead looking smooth and quicker than ever on his kb racing xc ktm, Paul Bolton team Sandiford suffered an early retirement when he clipped a tree bringing him off his bike resulting in knee damage, things got worse for team Sandiford on lap 9 when Martin Sandiford debuting the wr 250 Husqvarna crashed while chasing the leading Brewster, as the race went into the last hour it was the Biffster team Sandiford Honda who was chasing the effortless Brewster but he was finding it hard to make any impact on the time difference, Lincoln Brewster on his kb racing xc ktm took a fine well deserved win from the Biffster with Harry Hillas in third producing a great performance against so many established experts . The clubman e1 class was won by Joe Deakin after the leader Josh Bendall lost his rear silencer and was forced to retire. Lewis Bellfield won the clubman open class making it a good day for kb racing. David Selkeld was the winner in the 040 class from Leo Cordinley with Husqvarna mounted Anthony Crowe in third that drew to a close another great days racing from the dirtbike-traxs team .event director john kerwin said at the end we were a bit worried that the event would not be supported as well as other rounds of the championship after the bad event we had here last year when we had monsoon rain that ruined the event , the conditions were perfect this time and the venue proved to be one of the best we have, with 360 riders enjoying themselves you can't do better than that !! the dirtbike-traxs team move on to butts quarry derbyshire on the 29th june for another action packed weekend.
Houson dusts them in a driff win The True grit off road club hosted the 6th round of the national putoline hare scramble championship at there driffield venue in east Yorkshire last weekend with another bumper entry. The championship remains the most popular in the uk.with 11 round attracting between 350 to 500 riders per event The venue a former airfield and now a mod driver training area has numerous small pine plantations linked by fast open grassy tracks, the lap time was around 20 minutes for a clubman rider making it one of the longest hare scramble courses around , once again the hard working true grit team lead by the inspirational martyn field came up with lots of new going to test the riders. The first of the weekends races got underway on Saturday at 1 pm with the well supported youth races for riders aged between 8 years and 14 years split into 2 groups junior and senior B, with bright sunshine and a strong easterly wind the youth race got underway bang on time , the seniors b riders set off first and Robert Johnson the series leader was soon setting the pace at the front of a hard chasing group of 4 top senior b riders Davey Todd, Luke Flack Scott Altas, Ayrton Aldridge were all giving it there best swapping places during the 90 minute race , but try as hard as they could the chasing group could make no impression on the effortless Johnson as he eased away to take yet another win in the series , in second place was Davey Todd with true grits own Scott Altass taking 3 place Michael Tatham once again won the juniors by a 5 mim 37 second margin from Michael Gilby with Dan Bewlay in third . Running along side the youth races was the increasingly popular ladies race were Jane Daniels showed she meant business in winning the race by a lap from Gina Bewlay riding her new ktm, in third place was Deborah Kerr, Rachel Davies, Ryan Voase;s partner came home in 5th place despite giving birth only 4 weeks ago , it was good to see Ryan who remains upbeat while awaiting surgery on his hand this drew a close to Saturdays racing. Sunday was another fine day but the strong easterly wind was causing problems with the chalk roads whipping up clouds of dust even before the bikes had started, running on a 1 race format due to time restrictions placed on the club by the mod. the start grid looked impressive with over 340 bikes ready for the off and at 11 am sharp the signal was given and the first wave of riders were off , taking the Ras sport hole shot award was expert Adam Smith on a Sandiford Honda , before the riders had entered the first set of woods Gareth Davey hit the front a lead he would hold over the first lap before Mark Houson passed Davey and took up the lead, which during the next 2 hours he would hold on to eventually win the expert class by a 44 second margin over the rapidly improving Adam Smith, Andrew Hackett finished in third place despite getting lost on the first lap and having to fight through most of the riders after he had retraced his steps . in the clubman E1 which contains all the leading young guns Michael Briggs won from DBT;s husqvarna mounted duo of Josh Bendell in second and Joe Deakin in 3rd. David Wilson took the top spot in the clubman open class with Ben Hamilton in second and Jay Hudson third , David Selkeld dominated the 040 class winning by a lap over second placed Ian Shannon who claims that was his last race ever and he is just going to sit back with his pipe and slippers and take things easy !! . Thomas Healey won the sportsman E1 from Roy Palmer the Ras sport boss, while Mick Thompson won the sportsman open class. It was clear at the end the riders had enjoyed themselves despite the race being cut short due to the extremely dusty conditions the tgor team had once again put on an enjoyable event appealing to vast hordes of riders who continue to support the events and the national putoline hare scramble championship, the next round moves back to Lancashire to Bolton by Bowland were a new track waits for the riders on the 14/15 June.
The Gisburn massive Once again the Dirtbike-Traxs team put on a spectacular hare scramble show with a carnival like atmosphere at the Gisburn venue in Lancashire for the 5th round of the national putoline hare scramble championship. were over a thousand plus spectators lined the course for Sundays action, the famous Barns banks were full of spectators, the weather was superb with non stop sunshine this in its self was justification for postponing the event for a week from its planned may 4th date. On Saturday it was the youth riders turn to race, using the longest ever youth course at Gisburn which included one of the loops that forms the famous Barns banks At 1 pm the senior B riders lead the youth riders away, Luke Flack. Scott Altass, Davey Todd, were in the front group during the early part of the race with Luke flack setting the fastest lap of the day with a 9 min and 12 second lap, during the later stages of the race Davey Todd was building a lead which would give him a comfortable win, with a winning margin of a lap over Luke Flack in second , with Robert Johnson putting in the performance of the day starting 4 minutes after every one had set off he came through to take the third place podium spot. Michael Tatham continued in his winning ways with victory in the junior class with Michael Gilby second, Harrison Bell made the arduous trip from Barnoldswick worth while by taking third place, Beccy Hobbs won the girl power ladies class in a close race from Jade Fisher second and Gina Bewlay third all completing 7 laps .with a well planned award presentation the youth day drew to a close. Sunday dawned in glorious sunshine with the temperature into the 80's by mid morning it was going to be a tester for the 260 sportsman novice and senior A riders , the start signal was given at 10 am the first wave of sportsman riders were off around the Gisburn track, through the open rolling fields before descending into the woods for the first time the leaders came to crow hill were some of them started to have problems , a sharp left turn on to a short steep rocky hill was catching many of the sportsman riders out, as the sportsman leading pack came to Barns banks they were greeted with the masses of spectators waiting for the action to start with riders struggling to get to the tops of the steep banks the crowds were kept entertained all day , as the sportsman race , drew to a close, in the E1 class there was a close battle for the win between Terry Moore , Davy Moorewood and mark Rollin , with Davy setting the fastest lap but the win would go to Terry Moore by seconds from Mark Rollin second and Davy Moorewood third , the sportsman open class was an other close run thing after 2.5 hours of racing Peter Carr took the win by 10 seconds from Jeremy Ashby second ,with Chris Tennant third , all completing 12 laps George Knowles was the best of the senior a youth with 12 laps, William Hillas and Adam Taylor were only separated by 1 second after a hard fought race with William claiming the second place. After the hard working dirtbike-traxs team repaired the broken tapes the main race of the day could get under way 150 experts, clubman, 040's lined up and at 1.30 sharp the race got underway , David Myers took the Ras sport hole shot award and lead the race for the first half lap before Adam Smith Sandiford Honda pushed to the front he was caught by the Biffster as they passed the pine woods , Biff on his Sandiford Honda held the lead for 3 laps before Scott Austin , Andrew Hackett , and Harry Hillas all passed him as he struggled with arm pump , by lap 8 Scott's lead was 25 seconds over the second placed Biff who was now motoring having recovered from early arm pump but there was going to be no epic battle to the finish as on lap 9 Scott Austin punctured and retired leaving the Biffster to take the chequered flag on lap 14 Harry Hillas claimed a fine second place with Andrew Hackett third. Clubman E1 was dominated by DBT riders in 1st place Gary Daniels 2nd Joe Deakin and 3rd Josh Bendell all completed 13 laps with 7 minutes separating them, clubman open was won by Marcus Firth on a Ras sport TM , with Simon Douglas Sandiford Honda second and Chris Ball in third . John Bradford won the 040 class from Phil Darwin with Bill Howe on his mighty Berg in third .the awards presentation drew a close on a fantastic weekends racing a big thank you to all the riders for complying with the strict camping and no riding of motorcycle rules , after several visits during the day from Ribble valley council safety executive were impressed with all the health and safety aspects of the event that dirtbike-traxs and its hard working team had put in place .talking to dbt at the end , that's been a great weekend of camping and racing, 460 riders have enjoyed them selves the dirtbike-traxs team have once again set new standards in professionalism with the track ,results ,presentations, safety . On a different note it was great to see husky rider Gavin Houson out of hospital and at the event after his recent accident, we all wish him a speedy recovery. Results Main Event Sportsman Youth
Hackett storms to Greenhow win The Dirtbike-traxs crew found themselves at another new venue for the 4 round of the National Putoline hare scramble championship, the event which was planned for Settle in North Yorkshire had to be changed at short notice so the dirtbike-traxs team employed one of there spare venues Greenhow in North Yorkshire which comprised of 2 large fells with a steep valley running through the middle providing challenging stream crossings accents and descents and the long climb out of the valley bottom towards lap scoring , once again the hard working dirtbike-traxs team had created another interesting course to test the full entry of 250 riders, At 10.30am the quality expert line up were given the start signal David Myers was away in front taking the RAS sport hole shot award and he led the experts on to the fell for the first time , as the leading pack descended from the fell and in to the quarry section containing the long stream bed, it was Andrew Hackett on the sandiford Honda who had taken up the lead, but was being chased hard by some of the north's best hare scramblers Lincoln Brewster kb racing gas gas Jason Crosland sandiford Honda, the biffster sandiford Honda David Myers ktm and a host of other top experts , by the time the leading experts had reached the valley of hell David Myers was in the lead with Lincoln Brewster and Hackett chasing hard , through the first 3 laps the lead changed with Brewster and Myers taking turns at the front before Andrew Hackett sandiford Honda picked up the pace to pass the leaders meanwhile the biffster not at his best was hoovering his way through the expert class despite suffering poisoning from a suspicious boiled sausage consumed at a wedding the previous day, Andrew Hackett was now on a mission building up a good lead and reveling in the conditions , but he was going to need the lead on the last lap his bike was overheating and he lost several minutes while he cooled it down enough to get going again limping it back to take a well deserved win not realizing he still had a 7 minutes margin over second placed man the biffester, David Myers finished in a fine third place only a minute a drift of the biffster. The expert race had been a hard fought affair with the lead changing many times and provided a great spectacle for the spectators. In the competitive clubman E1 class the team dirtbike-traxs young guns picked up first and third places with Joe Deakin dbt husqvarna taking the win from Ian Harrison both completing 9 laps with Josh Bendall dbt husqvarna in third, the clubman open class was once again won by Dave Wilson on 10 laps with Karl Greenall second and Simon Douglas third, John Burrow won the 040 class from Rob Butler. The sportsman e1 class was won by Davey Morewood from Thomas Healey. In the sportsman open class Richard Spencer was the winner, the senior A youth riders did very well as a class with nearly all the competitors completing the race such is the quality of the dirtbike-traxs youth scene George Knowles was the winner from Reece morewood with William Hilas in third special mention to Jane Daniels who finish 4th and Becca Dawson 6th.both upholding girl power honour It was a hard day for the novice group and well done to all the riders that completed the race with Chris Pickard claiming the win. Talking to the dirtbike-traxs team at the end it was clear that they were pleased with the way the event ran. the event was challenging with plenty of places to pass just a bit to hard for novice riders in places and fears over a shortage of car parking were wrong it is now clear that we could park double the amount of vehicles and employ a 2 race format giving the sportsman riders an easier course .The next round of this popular championship moves to Lancashire and the famous Gisburn track on the may 3/4th bank holiday weekend entries are open for youth and adult with camping over the full weekend. Check out the website for details www.dirtbike-traxs.com `
Round 3 of the National Putoline hare scramble championship was held at Nord Vue near Penrith last weekend, the venue proved a good choice holding up well and providing good car parking despite 2 days of driving rain, with a full entry the week end started on Saturday with a Dirtbike-traxs academy/training day instructed by Graham Jarvis the well attended day was enjoyed by all that took part . The Nord Vue track which comprises of a sandstone quarry with its technical ups and downs plus 2 large fell sides which are set out in a motocross style , both fells are based on sandstone with only a shallow covering of soil ,and are well suited to wintry or wet conditions . After heavy overnight rain Sunday was a better day with the rain holding off and the sun eventually breaking through. The youths and ladies were first away and at 9.30 am the large field of youth riders set off around the impressive Nord Vue course which had been suitably shortened for the youth race , 3 classes were in the first race Senior B, Juniors , and Ladies. In the senior B class Aryton Aldridge, Robert Johnson, Luke flack Edward field were in the leading pack before Robert Johnson took the lead and started to pull away, Robert was reveling in the conditions, Robert eventually won by a lap from Ayrton Aldridge with Edward Field in third .Michael Tatham dominated the juniors winning by a lap from Michael Gilby with Harrison Bell in third. In the ladies class Molly Howe was first from Deborah Kerr second and Georgina Bewlay third well done to all the youth riders that finished especially the riders on the 65 and auto's who's small wheels struggled in the conditions . At 12 noon the massed ranks of the main race of riders were lined up filling the large quarry floor as the start signal was given Expert Craig Reynolds took the hole shot , as the expert riders made there way on to the fell side Adam Smith cr 250 took the lead and over the first lap Adam increased his lead , by the second lap the Biffster on his team Sandiford Honda had found his rhythm and moved into the lead, Andrew Hackett Sandiford Honda was busy putting the nightmare of his last few dirtbike-traxs events to rest by holding a comfortable second place , Craig Reynolds burnt his clutch out while trying to battle through a group of stranded riders on bear bank, as the race moved into the closing stages Harry Hillas had progressed through the experts into third place , the Biffster took the win by 4 minutes from Andrew Hackett with Harry Hillas in third all completing 10 laps. In the clubman classes, Gary Daniels won the E1 class but was chased hard by a trio of Dirtbike-traxs mounted Husqvarnas 125's with Joe Deakin taking second , Josh Bendell third and Billy Robinson 4th . In the clubman open class Dave Wilson took the victory from David Appleyard with only 17 seconds seperating them at the end. The largest class of the day was the sportsman class and Dave Wilson took the open win while Matthew Ward was best E1 sportsman. Joshua Lockup made the long drive from Hull worth while by winning the Senior A youth class despite nursing an injured hand sustained at the previous round from Jordan Johns in second with Adam Taylor 3rd As the riders filter back to there vehicles it was clear that despite the best efforts of the wet weather over the previous days the event had been a great success. as at all DBT events every thing ran on time and full results were available within minutes of the last rider finishing the course ,the well attended presentation finished the day off nicely with 31 of the 33 awards being presented . The championship moves to North Yorkshire over the weekend of the 19/20th April with a brand new venue near Settle.
Two Hou's take Ellington wins Rd 2 National Putoline Hare Championship Scramble Ellington Banks Ripon The Dirtbike-traxs team produced another outstanding weekend at Ellington Banks Ripon for the 2nd round of the National Putoline hare scramble championship with 400 riders taking part in the various races .the Dirtbike-traxs team had spent the last few weeks reversing and grading the track adding in new sections to the all ready fantastic Ellington course., the track is ideally suited to winter racing and is not adversely affected by the weather conditions. The action started on Saturday with the youth races and a dirtbike-traxs academy training day, using a shortened track Saturdays well supported youth race started at 1 pm. with the weather conditions overcast and the rain holding off, the senior B youth lead the field away around the Ellington track and for the next 90 miniutes Robert Johnson and Davey Todd would be locked in battle with Robert Johnson taking a narrow win from Davey Todd second ,Luke Flack finished 3rd despite reparing a puncture. In the juniors Michael Tatham was the clear winner with Dan Bewlay second and Harrison bell in third Katy Bullock won the newly introduced ladies class from Anita Gordon 2nd and jade Gordon third. After heavy over night rain Sunday was a much brighter day , and at 9am the massed ranks of sportsman novice and senior A riders got there chance to tackle the outstanding Ellington track young Thomas Healey sports E1 who has just come into the sportsman class from the senior A youth was setting a fast pace out in front with every lap he increased his lead eventually winning by a lap from Davy Morewood , sportsman open was won by Richard Pickering , the competitive senior A youth class a breeding ground for future talent saw William Hillas win this class . As the rider filtered back to there vehicle each finisher received a bottle of Pro clean courtesy of the Pro clean company There was a short break while the experts clubman and 040 assembled on the start line ready for the main action of the day and at 12.30 sharp the bikes roared into action rounding the first 2 corners it was number 8 Gary Hutchinson on the Husqvarna 125 who claimed the RAS sport hole shot award , by the time the riders reached the putoline bank in the woods Gavin Houson mps racing Husqvarna was in the lead , the Biffster onboard the Sandiford Honda and Graham Jarvis Sherco 450 both had a poor starts and were trying to make ground on the flying Houson , as the race past the mid way point Graham had progressed into second place and was closing on the Husky mounted Gav Houson but a crash in the mature pine woods slowed his progress and allowed the hard riding Biffster to move into second place , Gav's pit crew had given him the time difference to the second placed Biffster and over the last laps he was cruising styling it over the jumps to take a well deserved win , the Biffester had to settle for second but moves into a clear lead in the race to claim the large cash prize fund that is part of the National Putoline hare scramble championship, Graham Jarvis took third still finding his enduro fitness and speed. Mark Houson on his mps racing 250 Husky won the 040 class after a tough battle with David Selkeld making it a double win for team Houson , while in the clubman E1 class Joe Deakin DBT Husqvarna 125 won with a margin of 67 seconds from Josh Taylor . The clubman open honours went to local rider Steve chunk Watson once again the riders were rewarded with a bottle of pro clean , the week end had been a great success and again the Dirtbike -traxs team provided a quality set of well run races and the inclusion of the new P A system and commentary was well received providing up to date race information, the National Putoline hare scramble series moves to Penrith on the 30th of march were the riders will be treated to an even longer course with new loops
The Biffstar skates to driff win - Round 1 National Putoline Hare Scramble Championship Driffield True Grit Off Road The MOD airfield at Driffield was the setting for the first round of the National Putoline Hare Scramble Championship. Just as last year the championship remains just as popular as ever, with 500 riders racing over the weekend and over 100 riders turned away. The event organised by True grit off road was a truly tremendous affair. The True Grit team had plotted a new route around the old air field incorporating more of the open going than usual. Racing started on the Saturday, with the junior youth and ladies races. This well attended race started at 1 pm over a shortened track. The Senior B riders were away first in glorious sunshine followed by the juniors and then the newly introduced ladies class. As the riders came back to lap scoring it was Luke Flack leading in his first outing as a Senior B rider, closely followed by Robert Johnson. As the race progressed Robert passed Luke to take up the lead, which he would hang on to until the end taking the win by 25 seconds from Luke Flack with Edward Field in 3rd. The junior race was won by Michael hedgehog Tatham from Michael Gilby and Alex Harris in third. Molly Howe won the inaugural ladies race that concluded a great day of youth racing. On Sunday as the masses of riders started to arrive the temperature was a lowly minus 5, it had been as low as minus 9 during the night. The Sportsman /Novice Senior A race was going to be a slippery affair as the ground was frozen. At 9am the first wave of E1 Sportsmen from the massed ranks of riders set off around the awesome Driffield track. First rider into the woods was tee bee rider Ashley Crossley who on the first lap started to pull a lead from second placed rider John Kerwin Husqvarna 125. As the leading riders completed their first lap a shock was waiting as they entered the woods for the second time. The ground had become polished like glass leaving them sprawling around on the floor. Slowly the riders started to adapt to the slippery conditions, and mid way through the second lap John Kerwin passed Ashley Crossley to take up the lead. John held on to the lead for a lap and a half before the rear tyre came off the rim forcing an early retirement. Karl Waltho was now out in front having earlier survived a near head on trip in to a pond, setting a fastest lap of 20 minutes and 44 seconds. Karl went on to win the sportsman E1 class from Davy Morewood and Ashley Crossley in third. The Sportsman open class was won by Richard Pickering with Gareth Lodge in second place. Josh Bendell won the youth Senior A class with George Knowles in second and Josh Luckup in third. The icy conditions made the Sportsman/Novice race a difficult affair with riders finding the conditions hard to come to terms with, but the sun was now starting to thaw the icy conditions and the Expert, Clubman, 0/40 race would have the best of the days conditions. At 12;30 the premier race of the day got under way with the experts leading the large field of riders away. Mark Tones took the RAS sport hole shot prize, but was quickly passed by Adam Smith Sandiford Honda. Adam pulled quite a large lead over the first lap but on lap 3 the biffster hit the front and looked very impressive on board his Sandiford crf250x to get to the front he had passed Lincoln Brewster KB racing gas gas and Andy Cripps hacking Kawasaki. Martin Sandiford team Sandiford Honda suffered a poor start and started 2 minutes behind the other expert riders. He was a man on a mission and by the end of the third lap he had worked his way up to 10 place. The biffster was increasing his lead at the front while Lincoln Brewster having got on terms with the icy condition was now in 2nd place With some smooth riding. as the race drew into its final stages the charging Sandiford was now in third place having passed Andy Cripps and only 50 seconds behind Lincoln Brewster. But there was not enough time for him to make any more progress as the allotted race time of 2.5 hours was up, with the biffster taking the win from Lincoln Brewster and Martin Sandiford in third, that was one of the most exciting expert races the masses of spectators had seen for a while. Ian Shannon once again dominated the 0/40 class with a controlled ride while in the E1 Clubman class young Joe Deakin took an 8 minute winning margin over Chris Bez Berrill with Brad Keyworth in third. In the Clubman open Steve chunk Watson from Ripon had a narrow 40 second winning margin over Dave Wilson. What a fantastic weekends racing the efficient True Grit Off Road club had provided for the first round of the very popular championship, setting standards that are going to be very hard to match. The next round moves to Ellington Banks Ripon on the week end of the 8/9 March, where riders can expect more innovative things from this leading championship. National Putoline Hare Scramble Championship '08 The 07 Championship was a great success, and for 08 dirtbike-traxs have secured new venues to add in to the championship. Once again Putoline have the title to the series with the prize money and product fund now totaling £6500 to be split between experts, clubman, 040, sportsman and youth classes. More prizes are in the process of being added to make the championship even better, the best expert will receive £1,000. The Championship has something for every one - youth or adult, One thing that came out of this year's championship was the experience of Anthony Ayrton - a reasonable expert rider. He came to all the events and ground out a fine second place - finishing £750 richer behind the outstanding Paul Bolton. What Anthony proved is that even a steady expert is in with a chance just by doing all the rounds!! Remember there are fine trophies for the top 5 in each of the classes all presented at the end of year bash. Riders wanting there awards must attend the presentation night 2008 championship dates 16/17th Feb. Driffield tgor 8/9th March Ellington banks 29/30th March Penrith 20th April Settle 3/4th May Gisburn 24/25th May Driffield tgor 15/16th June Bolton by bowland 12/13th July Burnley 2/3rd Aug Bolton by bowland 13/14th Sept Gisburn 11/12th Oct Driffield tgor The best 9 scores to count towards the championship Please note we are running other events including a time card enduro in kielder forest (date to be confirmed) and a round of the ACU XC Championship on the 29th of June new venue tba, Both of these event are going to be run under the rules of the ACU, when we send out registration cards we will send out both orpa and ACU license forms. Some of you may find the acu license not cost effective and may wish to purchase a day license for these 2 events for more info please ring 07914777534
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