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Portsmouth MCC |
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 RD6
Major Hadley Trophy - Woodberry Lane Purrfect riding as the Catt wins final round Report by Richard Troth What a quick season it has been and find it hard to believe another year gone but what a climax of a final round with so many different configurations on who will win as so many classes so close. Due to the previous few days rain i thought the track would be a quagmire but how wrong i was and i think due to the recent ditch/drainage work done by the club and the high winds conditions were testing for the inexperienced but no bother to the others, the course itself was flowing with a few obstacles to test and a lap of just a touch over 5 miles.
Championship
Experts
Clubman A
Clubman B
Veterans
Sportsman Thats it for another year.... but is it..... The awards presentation
evening where the class winners will be announced and not before will be
held at Which leaves me to thank all the committee and back room staff at the club for letting Teamsnapper be part of their club and of course to all the riders and supporters who support us Teamsnapper, hopefully we will see you all at presentation evening if not have a great xmas and see you all next year Rich T, Kaka T, Connor Smith and Ian Napleton (The Snappers of Teamsnapper)
PMCRC Woodberry Lane for round 5 of the Major Hadley Trophy with an entry of over 100 riders and perfect conditions and with Euan Harrison designing the course we knew it would be smooth and fast, walking round the paddock pre race talking to riders really brought home the atmosphere as so many really up for it and with so many classes really close for the class championships the pressure was apparent in some. Championship led the proceedings with the old master Lawrence Catt(KTM) taking the lead which he nearly held for the first lap but Midwest rider Aaron Smith (Husaberg) sneaked by to take the lead but Lawrence was back on Aarons tail and was making a move on the inside but lost the front end which resulted in Aaron getting a good 15 second lead from then Aaron was never challenged again and he duly listened to his Dad during fuel stops and rode the perfect race taking the win easily and only rider to do 14 laps and the fastest lap of 12.59, i have said it before but Aaron is getting better and better and is showing with every event more maturity, Lawrence Catt managed to hold on to 2nd place but was pressured by another PMCRC legend Rob Carey(KTM) who rode a great race and if he had got better start things could have been different but a well deserved 3rd place, Ben Mayhew(KTM) took 4th place and Tony Williamson(KTM) 5th i seriously think Tony was a very bad person in a previous life as this man has no luck, super fast but so often ends up DNF or crashes i really believe that when Tony gets it all together he will regular Podium week in and week out. Dave DT Taylor (TM) was my pre race favourite for top 3 and with 2nd fastest lap of day (13.11)he was quick but sadly retired after 10laps.There was a notable absence of current club champion Simon Beken who has sliced top of his finger off during the week, wish you well Simon from all at PMCRC and Teamsnapper. Expert Class Roger Frean (Yamaha)took the win, i know very little about Roger but what i do know is that he is fast and very entertaining, his lap times (13.13 best lap)were that of Championship standard, Olly Mayhew(Husqvarna) was a good solid 2nd and has such great riding style albeit crashes a little too often but what an entertainer, 3rd went to Mr Consistent Simon Coventry (KTM)whom i did not recognise on track early on as nearly always wears black and he was bright red today but a well rode 3rd place, 4th spot went Dave Grover (Husaberg) who only just nabbed that 4th spot from Dan Groom (KTM) who seemed to get stronger as the event wore on which is the opposite usually for Dan. Clubman A Class Mr consistent Nick Baker (KTM)seems to get better as season progresses, Nick has a very lazy style of riding which makes him look a lot slower than he really is, maybe another Troy Corser of the Enduro world but a well earned victory with 12 laps and best lap of 14.18, 2nd was my pre race favourite the Blonde Bombshell Stephen Mulliner(Yamaha) who spends more time airborne than a Ryanair pilot all Stephen needs to do is stay on his bike more as does like a tumble a bit too often, What can i say about 3rd place James Pittaway(Yamaha) who entered as Sportsman but was promoted to Clubman A due to his lap times, this was James first time in an off road event although regular road rider, talk about natural ability and was talk of the day with his flair for liking the air and getting fastest time in this class which was in line with Expert Class, a man to watch indeed. Other notables Aaron Dibnah 5th (Team Dibby KTM),Jamie Moller 6th (Gas Gas) and John Brown 7th (Whiteways Cafe KTM). Dan Lewis(Team Dibby KTM) had worse start of the day and made some serious inroads and got up to 3rd at one stage but what Dan does well is crash and crash he did time and time again eventually retiring due to one crash to many. Veteran Class A clear winner in this class was Neil Repton(Suzuki) who rode the perfect race and was circulating at Clubman A top end pace and was never challenged, 2nd spot went to Teamsnapper good friend Carl Swateridge (Husaberg) it was Carl’s first ride with PMCRC and first visit to Woodberry Lane and i have a funny feeling we will be seeing a lot more of him next season, well done Carl and much deserved, 3rd went to Paul Townley (KTM) who rode very consistently lap after lap. Clubman B Class This is the tightest of all classes for the Championship title, today’s victory went to Joe Atkinson(KTM) who rode in my eyes perfect the whole race, fast yet consistent and with fastest lap of course with a 15.18, 2nd spot went to Julian Hunt (KTM) who rode superbly and probably best i have personally seen him ride and not looked visibly fast but looked comfortable, other notables Simon Clark(KTM) 4th, Gerald Holdaway (Gas Gas) 5th, Ian Andrews (KTM) 6th and Jeremy Eastlake (KTM) 7th, this class is far from over with many in the running. Sportsman Class I spoke briefly to winner Big John Anderson(KTM) before race who as usual arrives late and he looked like someone who had not yet woken yet i have no idea what his good wife Lesley made him for breakfast but he rode quite simply the best i have ever seen him ride period, John is usually Mr Steady and consistent but today he looked fast and certainly had the bit between his teeth, great ride John, talking of consistency and if you do it regularly it will pay off as it did with 2nd place rider Chris Welch(KTM) whom i know will be still smiling to get on the podium, well done Chris, 3rd place and fastest lap of the class (15.58) went to the young Dan Jarratt (Yamaha) whom is so inconsistent and really on his day is a Clubman B podium rider and make like to add he is a most entertaining rider with his air shows. Results are provisional only Overall a superb day with some great battles throughout the classes and the battle has one more round on the 6th November so many classes will be decided on last round...Let the battle commence. Photos of the day were won by Lawrence Catt (Photo taken by Teamsnapper Apprentice Connor Smith, Younger brother of Aaron) and Tony Williamson, whom will get A4 print of photo, disc with all their photos from today and a T shirt, Please contact us for details. I myself had an incident at the start of the race when an unfortunate rider and good friend when his throttle stuck wide open going over the tyre obstacle and hit me at some speed, the rider was ok but retired due to bike problem, i myself am battered and bruised but ok, sadly my new £1500 lens was smashed and unrepairable but main thing is that rider and myself were not seriously hurt. Report by Teamsnapper www.teamsnapper.co.uk
Aaron Smith leaves all is his wake We arrived at Woodberry Lane near Portsmouth in near perfect conditions that would have suited the 100 rider entry list for round 4 of PMCRC Major Hadley trophy, Shane Babey and his team had put together a flowing track with the odd surprise here and there with man made log pile and tyre obstacle, start as usual was 11.00am prompt .......exactly the same time our dear lord decided to start a monsoon above Woodberry lane and all hell broke loose...... let the games commence. Championship Class What a great event despite the conditions and it shows how much work
PMCRC have put in by spending many weekends cutting in drainage channels
and ditches for days like this, applause all round. Must add that these results are provisional only. More details Photos available from www.teamsnapper.co.uk
Glorious sunshine greeted us at Woodberry Lane for RD3 of PMCRC Major Hadley Trophy which was a godsend after all the rain in the previous few days, which means at Woodberry it would be very sticky for the first few laps... which to us spectators means entertainment, the course itself was a reversal of the 5hr Iron Man run here a few weeks ago, was good to see a full entry with many of the usual suspects but also nice to see some new faces and London Fire Brigade MCC were well represented as were the RAF Team. Championship Class Expert Class Clubman A Clubman B Veterans Sportsman
A special mention to Karl Dyderski who has some very serious personal issues and hang ups in cross dressing and covers them up well by doing charity work dressed up as .......... that depends on his mood luvvies ..... only joking folks, Karl rode around (yet again)(cough cough)(what issues) in a pink fairy costume for charity ...that being the Hampshire And Isle Of Wight Air Ambulance who were represented at the meeting by Roger Leppard who was presented not only with the money Karl made on the day £172 but the cheque from the 5hr Iron Man for £4000 , applauds all round. Photos
This event is one of the highlights in Teamsnappers calendar as PMCRC is our club and we personally know nearly all the riders and committee members and we know how much blood sweat and tears go into this event and although its purpose is to raise money for the Air ambulance and local charities and be a more relaxed event with raffle, fancy dress, ice cream van and other things to make it a family day out .....however this event has become very competitive for the main entry and it’s a title people want “2011 Ironman Winner” and having the option of being a solo entry or Team entry appeals to many, last year’s winner KTM mounted James Giddings was here to defend his title and as he said to Teamsnapper “I want to keep this title” as was the Team winners last year Euan Harrison and Sean Holdway who were also keen to keep their title. The venue “Woodberry Lane” is synonymous with holding water due to the land being a cross between mud and clay and if it is wet it becomes very sticky and tacky and the word challenging comes to mind and due to the recent weather it was looking like a mud bath would be on the menu, however PMCRC track crew had been out many times recently clearing ditches so the water would disperse, putting in extra soak ways and spending not just time but a lot of money and investment in creating a venue not only for the Ironman but the future of the club by offering such a well maintained venue that has many course variations and the track layout for the Ironman was so very different from anything i had seen before at Woodberry and although the surface was wet and sticky it would be apparent that after a few laps the grip would come and conditions perfect. Sadly on the Saturday one of PMCRC stalwart members and chief marshal Dave Bone broke his leg whilst he was course setting. We arrived at 0630 and welcomed by Shane Babey who camped overnight and then cooked Kaka and i bacon and black pudding rolls which was most welcoming. Shane had offered me the loan of his KTM 300 so i could do a lap and see where the good photo opportunities were, Si Beken was going to come round with me as he had helped set course up and was more familiar with it. The course itself was a tad over 5miles that consisted of 4 extreme sections that had easy routes as well and it was so good to see that the easy routes were a lot longer and made the extreme sections worth having a go, the first extreme section was the log pit which was exactly as it sounds a man made pit filled with logs of all shapes and sizes that caught every rider out that went through it at some stage of the day, the next extreme section was a tight entry to a stack of high banded logs that led you into a deep ditch that had a near vertical climb out with the top edge logged....the confident riders make it look easy whilst others were stuck for many minutes, extreme section 3 was an 8ft ditch that you had to jump to clear as it had been made so you could not ride in and out, it was made to jump only and you had to be a bit brave as the landing was quite sticky/tacky, the final extreme section was Simon Beken’s “Wheel of Misfortune” that was built by Simon and consisted of a very strong sturdy metal frame that had car wheels all along and was about 3 foot off the ground...... sounds easy to get over, not to the many who tried and tried but could not get the knack yet some made it look so easy, I am sure this will be included in next year’s event so YES I DARE YOU to try, the course also consisted of 5 good jumps another tyre obstacle, ditch running trails, some good fast bits, some very tacky/muddy bits, forest trails, to be honest it had it all and with over 180 riders and the promise of the hottest day of the year so far it had all the right ingredients to be a great day for all involved.... nearly forgot to mention the ladies from signing on that were dressed to thrill (Believe me... my vision is still blurred) in their fancy dress outfits that put a smile on all and sundry even Dave Ryall (Chief Scrutineer)managed a wry grin. The start was styled on the Le mans Start (Man running to his machine) however due to the more relaxed nature of the event it was decided that the likes of James Giddings and Aaron Smith who are super talented riders would have to put their boots on first then run to their machines which was a great spectacle to watch and left them at the back of the pack playing catch up and it must be said to James and Aaron for being such good sports in an event that raised over £4000 for the Air Ambulance. Besides some riders dressed as Baywatch Babes, John Travolta (Saturday night fever suited and booted), Cows, Mohicans, Babies etc the fun stopped there and it was all serious looking eyes as the event got under way. Championship and overall winner was James Giddings despite his boots forfeit he was on superb form and the tacky conditions really suited his KTM and style yet he had some good racing with runner up Daniel Taylor who is getting faster and faster each time he rides and makes very few mistakes, james also had the most laps with 19 and best lap of the day of 14.55, Well done James a much deserved victory and a victory i know your proud of. Expert Class was won by TM mounted Dan Warner who was one of the best over the extreme section “Wheel of Misfortune” and with a best lap of 16.49 and 17 laps to his credit deserved the win, he was chased long and hard by the very experienced Mark Jordan who rode his socks off and was so good to see Mark coming back to form we all know he has and only just missed out on doing 17 laps by a short margin, 3rd place went to Isle of Wight rider Rob Taylor who had a battle all day with 4th place rider Tim Newman. Clubman A was won by Teamsnappers very good friend Dan Brundell who this year has been riding nothing short of brilliant, Dan rides as often as he can and that shows as his confidence is at an all time high and is definitely ready for the expert ranks and with 16 laps and a best 17.33 he was a shining star in this class, runner up was John Brown who only early last year was a sportsman rider and 50 yrs young he has made more leaps in Enduro riding than Neil Armstrong did for mankind and he is such a stalwart of the PMCRC that his 2nd place made a lot of us smile, well done John , however it looked at one stage that 3rd placed Helen Spiers was going to catch John but due to conditions Helen tired but along with John they managed 14 laps. Clubman B was won by Yamaha mounted Iain Randall who managed 16 laps with a best lap of 17.17 and did so well because he did all extreme sections lap after lap and made so much time up and his grit and determination showed especially over the “Wheel of Misfortune” and he was clearly enjoying himself out there as you could see it in his eyes, a great victory Iain, Second place went to Steve Head who is probably still grinning from ear to ear and if there was ever a rider that deserved something from this sport for effort then Steve is that man and he was my rider of the day so a disc of his photos will be sent courtesy of Teamsnapper, 3rd place went to Jeremy Eastlake who has not only recently come from the Sportsman class but this was his first ride back after sustaining a nasty wrist/arm break some months ago. Veterans Class was won by a country mile by KTM mounted Wayne Player who is every cameraman’s dream because if he sees you he will pose and he kept me entertained for most of the day and with 16 laps and a best lap of 16.55 he can ride as well lol, runner up went to the most laid back rider of the day Nick Littlecott who has this riding style that is so relaxed you would think he was on a Harley on holiday but he so looked like he was enjoying himself, 3rd place went to Roger Newport closely followed by his wife Fiona although rumour is that Fiona let Roger past on the condition he cleaned both bikes when they got home and he was on dish washing duties for 7 days. Sportsman Class was won by Brian Hawker KTM with 13 laps and another John Brown Husaberg in the runner up spot, the final podium went to Dominic Rowe. The overall Championship Team and Overall team winner was yet again last year’s winners Euan Harrison and Sean Holdway (Gregory Havant Ltd) with 18 laps and best lap of 16.22 , the paddock was full of gossip and the main topic was that Husaberg Stalwart Euan Harrison had been approached by KTM to ride for them in what is to be believed a very lucrative deal ...i personally know Euan and knew he would never stray to the orange side or thought i did until saw him climb aboard a bike i can only describe as orange, it was a sad day for many of us Husaberg riders who booed him from the sidelines all day long, for those disbelievers’ please go onto the Teamsnapper website and look at the photos themselves, it is believed he left the venue by a side exit and has been unavailable for comment JJ. Expert Team winners were Joe Gordon and Dave Machinek (Nappy Novices) who managed 16 laps and a best lap of 17.24 Clubman A Team winners and good friends of Teamsnapper were Aaron Dibnah and Dan Lewis (Team Dibby Racing) with 17 laps and a best lap of 16.34. Clubman B Team winners went to Julian ”Hi Kick” Hunt and Karl “Boogie” Dyderski (Disco Inferno)who can only be described as Cuban disco dancers on Motorcycles who managed to boogie woogie 15 laps and with a best lap of 19.36 they were in disco heaven. Veterans Team winners went to Mark Barter and Rob Richards (DPMCC2) with 15 laps and a best lap of 17.22. Sportsman Team Winners went to Mark and John Greenbank (Moon Machine) with 14 laps and a best lap of 19.25. Teamsnapper were very proud to have sponsored the Father and son/daughter team event which had 15 entries and was won in a very convincing style by Shaun and Aaron Smith(Midwest Husaberg UK) with an amazing 16 laps and the fastest Team Lap of the day 15.15, Well done guys. As you have read not only was it a fun day but also a highly competitive one and a big thank you to all the sponsors/helpers/club members who helped make this not just a special event but also a memorable one. Photos available from www.teamsnapper.co.uk
With nearly a full month of glorious sunshine the sky’s decided to open up the previous day and evening with heavy rain and thunder and lightning for good measure which at Woodberry means Hell to some and Sticky Toffee Pudding top others, PMCRC had to alter a few bits first thing as a matter of riders safety which is always paramount at PMCRC, the sun did try to emerge but nothing would help the ground now, With a full house of over 125 riders the weather had not dampened anyone’s spirits. First off were the Championship class riders and Simon Beken made a holeshot and led for nearly the first lap but it was not long before The Legend Lawrence Catt went past and had a nice lead for 2 laps but with the young upstart Aaron Smith gaining at every turn after a bad start it was only a matter of time before he passed, Lawrence is a true battle warrior on the track and was trying everything to keep on Aarons tail but Aaron increased his lead by a few seconds every lap, very entertaining to watch as Aaron is super fast with arms and legs flailing everywhere and Lawrence is the very experienced super smooth rider, however today belonged to Aaron and won the class and overall, Aaron and Lawrence both managed 12 laps, 3rd went to Rob Carey who did nothing wrong and battled hard for his podium place but couldn’t quite match the top two today and did 11 laps, Andy Ball was 4th with a creditable 10 laps, sadly Simon Beken pulled out with an ongoing neck problem that has plagued him all season and now looks like he will take 3 months off to get back to full fitness, also Euan Harrison who was running high up the leader board till a big off ended his day. The Expert Class was a very hot two man battle between the very fast Dan Groom and the very smooth Simon Coventry who both managed 10 laps apiece, although Dan Groom seemed to be the fitter one towards the end the victory went to the likeable Simon Coventry, the 3rd place battle was also very close between Husaberg rider Dave Grover and David Machinek and Dave worked very hard for that final podium place as David pushed him all the way, both completed 9 laps. Clubman A Class was won by teenager George Hayes whom i have ranted and raved about all year and to his own admission is not a fan of Woodberry as each time he has ridden here its been a quagmire but this kid has talent and bags of it his fastest lap was a minute faster than anyone else in his class a very much deserved win with his 10 laps, 2nd went to London Fire Brigade rider Darren Lee (Daz) who rode a real rock solid race and to my eyes did nothing wrong and managed a very hard earned 10 laps, 3rd and 4th Places went Reg Sheppard and Tristan Robinson respectively and both completed 9 laps. Clubman B Class has a real winner in the beckoning as class winner Julian Hunt on his KTM has now won both rounds and time will tell if he can handle the pressure and keep coming up with the goods, Julian has a very aggressive style of riding and many times today he looked well out of shape but the more i watched the more i realised it is his style and very entertaining he is and managed to complete 9 laps , i just hope he is looking forward to next round as much as i am, 2nd went to another up and coming teenager in the guise of Liam Thomas who is an elite trials rider who has taken an interest into the dark side of Enduro riding and am sure this is only his second event and in these conditions he made it look very easy and is super smooth rider and i really thing this lad will go far, he completed 8 laps. Veteran Class was really dominated by the very popular Steve Bird on his KTM whom looked as good on his first lap as he did his last and just puts consistent laps in time after time and the consistency paid off with the top podium place and only Vet to do 10 laps, 2nd went to Neil Repton on 9 laps who just seemed to fade towards the end but chased hard all day to keep with Steve Bird , 3rd was Tom Connor whom i know very little about but what i do know is that he seemed to revel in these conditions and seemed from my eyes a very steady smooth rider with a creditable 8 laps. Finishing off the day was the Sportsman class which was also the biggest class and the conditions were very tough on some of the novices in this class and credit must be given to those real “dig deep” riders who would not let the tough conditions beat them but the best of this bunch was Husqvarna mounted Ian Watt whom i have watched a few times this season and he seems to be one of those unfazed type of guys who just gets the job done and he did first class job today and am sure he is still grinning now with his 7 laps, also with 7 laps was runner up James Bawden who kept Ian company all day, 3rd spot went to Chris Welch with 6 laps. Again PMCRC have put on a great well organised event that caters for all, Well done PMCRC -. Photos
Conditions were one of worst in the clubs history with some of the 4 1/2 mile circuit under water and bogs you could snorkel in, credit must go to Shane Babey and his team for managing to layout a course in such conditions. Simon Beken was the overall and championship winner and looked at ease in the conditions and was the only rider to do 12 laps, runner up in championship class was Midwests Aaron Smith and 3rd was PMCRC's very own legend Lawrence Catt who was involved in a nasty incident at the start which put him on the back foot from the off. The Expert class was very close with the top 3 all finishing very close to each other and a very entertaining battle to watch it was, but the winner was Ben Mayhew followed by Andy Ball and Dave Coles . Clubman A was the most anticipated of the day as possibly any of the top 5
could win the class title, there were lots of place swapping, incidents which
for entertainment value was second to none however the race victory went to
Nick Baker who seriously rode his socks off, second place was The Bear
(Richard Gunner) who did everything in his artillery to catch Nick but today
was Nick's day, 3rd was Joe Gordon and 4th went to the gorgeous Redhead Clare
Taylor. PMCRC would like to thank all the riders/staff/helpers/etc for support and help throughout the season and look forward to you all next season. The final championship results will be kept secret until the awards presentation evening on the 4th December at Merchistoun hall in Horndean, please see website for details www.pmcrc.org Photos are of winner Simon Beken Photos are available at www.teamsnapper.co.uk
With 69 Ironmen & ladies and 50 team entries the 2nd PMCRC 5hr Ironman event, in aid of the Hampshire & IOW Air ambulance, was a sell out well in advance of the event. A lot of effort went into the whole organisation of the event with the focus on having fun. A handful of club members spent 2 days setting up a fast & flowing track with a few man made obstacles thrown in for good measure. With a 3 route choice it gave the novices the option to avoid 'Lawrence's log pit' and head for the double log jump or take the much longer easy route. A tyre wall at the other end of the circuit kept them on their toes and also gave the spectators some great viewing spots. The day was hot and dusty and several riders joined in the fun theme by entering the fancy dress competition, even a couple of bikes were 'dressed' in 70's leopard skin. The arrival of the promised Ice cream van helped to cool everyone down and along with both our resident Burger van and families bringing along portable BBQ's it was a great family day out. The day was topped off by a fabulous raffle with 1st prize being 2 x Weekend tickets to British Superbikes at Brands Hatch courtesy of 'The Roadside Chef'. We'd like to thank all of our sponsors for their donations, with their help we were able to raise a staggering £4000 for the Air ambulance
Euan Harrison & Shaun Holdway took the 1st place for a team with 22 laps and just 52 secs in front, bagging themselves a £50 DirtbikeBitz voucher each, 2nd place was Jason Bowen & Freddy Heath with Ben & Ollie Mayhew in 3rd again with 22 laps, a very close finish after 5 hrs with temperatures reaching 28c. Clare Taylor was the highest placed lady on the day showing many of the men how the log pit should be ridden ! She was presented with a bottle of pink bubbly courtesy of Whyteways Cafe. Overall results - Results by class Pictures courtesy of Team Snapper http://www.teamsnapper.co.uk Further photos are available on http://www.hotshots.biz If your interested in our events or wish to find out any information please contact pmcrconline@yahoo.com .
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Midwest
Husaberg rider Aaron Smith quashed all opposition
PMCRC
Woodberry Lane RD4 Major Hadley Trophy 04-09-2011
“BEKEN the Groove”
My photo of the day was Olly Mayhew who really entertained me and if
you contact us Olly you can pick any one of your photos and we will print
A4 free and throw in a T shirt.
PMCRC
PMCRC
Round 2
Portsmouth
Motorcycle 
PMCRC
2010 Ironman charity event proved to be an outstanding success..
James
Giddings took the win with 22 laps winning a custom set of graphics from
DirtbikeBitz, closely followed by Stan Watt 3min & 20 seconds behind
with Simon Beken coming in 3rd overall Ironman with 21 laps.