SEMRC RACE REPORTS 2006/7 CHAMPIONSHIPS

SEMRC Winter Series, Whilton Mill,
17 December 2006

With the second round of this popular winter series getting into it's stride after a lengthy delay in the morning, after a rider was injured [not seriously as it turned out].

First to open proceedings were the Junior Mini moto riders, the A's being the usual fairing banging up front between Bradley Ray and Wayne Ryan, for a change, it was Ryan who had the upper hand, with Ray only managing 1 win out of 3 races to Ryan's double, although Ray managed to bag fastest lap in all 3 races, best of which being a 49.89, third was a very consistent Oliver Melser. The B's, which ran alongside, had Josh Daley take 3 straight wins, who seems to have improved since switching to GRC machinery. He was hounded all the way by 2006 SERMC Champion, Tom Weeden, who also managed to get fastest lap, third overall was Josh Harland.

The 4.2hp Senior class saw Alex Olsen and Kyle Harris battling away, with Olsen coming out on top, also with a brace of fastest laps to his credit, in the end, Harris had to settle for 2nd overall, with Sam Cherry third. The Air-Cooled class, which are basically modified versions of the same class, saw Danny McPherson dominate with three straight wins, Luke Shelley with three staight second places, with Daniel Underwood taking the last podium place.

The Production A class saw Badley Ray get his revenge, with 3 straight race wins over Wayne Ryan [as well as three fastest laps], with Josh Brown having to contend with third overall. Production Superlight, which runs combined with "A's", saw Phil Canessa totally dominate, with Danny McPherson and Alex Olsen battling for the final podium positions, with McPherson coming out on top.

The Production B's was another case of one rider dominating, that was Philip Scott, however, third place rider, Daniel Underwood, did manage to get fastest lap in one race, however, team mate, Luke Holness stole second overall from Underwood with a solid performance. The Production C/D class, saw an "old school" rider, in the shape of Peter Hickman, show that he can still ride a mini moto after all these years, with 2 race wins and a second, to take first overall, Luke Arter being the only rider to beat Peter all day, earning him second overall, with Mark Biswell bagging third.

The final mini moto class, was the Blue Ribbond, the open to tuning, Supers class, Philip Scott rounded off his excellent day out with three straight wins, with 2006 SEMRC Champion, Dave Perry having to settle for second, and newcomer, Daniel Underwood third overall, although Perry did get fastest class lap of the day, with a 47.20.

Pit Bike Juniors, saw Ben Turner [EMRA 2006 rookie of the year in the Jawa class], take a very hard fought win from Jim Lovell, with a hard charging Lee Jackson third overall, despite his two second place finishes, so close was the racing. The Senior Pit Bikes were equally tough, with Ryan Tyres coming out on top, courtesy of two race wins, over Wesley Steinschauers single victory, which was enough to earn him second overall, with Matt Baldwin taking third.

The GP50 class saw total domination by 2006 Junior Pit Bike Champion, Connor Tagg, who has recently moved to this class for 2007. Second belonged in the end to Callum Ward, who was kept on his toes by third place rider, Kieren Sturley, although man of the meet, was undoubtedly Daniel Booth, who came fom nowhere in race three, to take second place. Usual front Runner, Devon Turner was having a torrid time, but hope to be back on form, now he has taken delivery of his 2007 Conti. The Jawa GP50 Auto class, saw Robbie Britchford dominate once agin, with Joe Ravenscoft second, and newcomer, Robert Varey third

SEMRC ROUND 1
30th/ 31st March 2007
Ellough Park Raceway , Suffolk

Fine but windy weather was the theme of the weekend, with 150 competitors turning out for round 1.

Junior A's were abundant, with Ben Joseph taking top honours with 3 straight race wins, chased down by 2nd place rider, Sidney Hargreaves. Third was where the battle was, with Ryan Folkes coming out on top of Elliot Atheton. The B's were a straight Wayne Ryan brace of victories, after which, it was announced that Wayne was not going to compete in the class any longer and was going to concentate on the Conti series. The Academy series, which runs heavilly restricted machines, belonged to Jake Bayford, with Badley Hughes and Kieran Hagger fighting for 2nd and 3rd, despite his 2 second places, Badley Hughes suffered a DNF in race 2, handing 2nd overall to Kieran Hagger.

A huge 4.2hp Senior A/B grid saw plenty of close action, Tom Weedon, fresh from some impressive results at Mallory Park on his Jawa RS70, cleared off, leaving Liam Ellis and William Shuckford, to battle out the 2nd and 3rd place standings, with Jake Swarbrick always a threat. The B's saw Lewis Taylor, Bernie Hook and Andy Weedon swap paint, tyre marks and almost bikes on what seemed to be almost evey corner! With the Taylor and Hook both having race wins, although overall finishing results were as above.

The superb Air-Cooled A/B class, introduced by the SERMC in 2006 was also to provide thrills a plenty, with Tom Weedon once agin heading the A's, Jack Keen scoring a brace of 2nd places to come runner up, and Scott Gullen doing enough to fend off Michael Ford for the final podium spot. The B's saw 2006 Champ, Bernie Hook take 3 straight wins, with Thomas Wright and Andy Weedon fighting for the final 2 podium places, but the day belonged to Wright.

Production A was another demonstration race by Wayne Ryan, who isn't going to feature in the class for the remainder of 2007, so Tom Callear was more than happy with his 3 x 2rd places, from the very young Ben Joseph. The Superlights, which are mixed on the grid at the same time, saw yet another Tom Weedon victory, although 2nd place man, Scott Gullen took the final race win, just to keep Weedon on his toes! 3rd overall was Jamie Perrin with 3 x 3rd places

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A very large Production B class provided plenty of action, with Gregory Max-Madero doing enough with a 3rd, win and 2nd to take 1st place overall, even though R6 rider Arter had 3 straight race wins, Luke asked to be kept out of the results as is concentrating on riding the 600 Yamaha this year. Second overall went to Stephen Good, although it was a very close run thing, with Will Shuckford [3rd overall] and Paul Garret detemined to not let Madero have an easy first win

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The Production C/D class was another big 'un, and was just as hard fought as the B's, Stephen Fench took top honours.....but without actually winning a race, so close was the action, Peter Bengston came 2nd overall....again, without a race win! Lewis Taylor came home 3rd overall to top off a good day for him. The D's was a straight Andy Weedon brace of 3, leaving Glenn Bettney in his wake, although the second place points actually went to Neil Tidy with Bettney not being a club member, with our very own Steve Wade taking the 3rd overall points

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The Supers seem to be going through one of it's doldrum years once again, the A's was won by Jamie French, with his brother, Stephen taking three straight wins in the B's, Lewis Taylor once again coming home 2nd and Bernie Hook 3rd

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New for 2007, was the Conti Cup South, despite the newness of the class and riders, the racing was nothing short of stunning, James White and Wayne Ryan, both took race wins, but a bad start in race 3 was enough to demote Ryan to runner up, with Tomas Doughty securing 3rd overall with a 2nd place in race 3

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The Supermoto classes on really starting to grown again, and a huge field ensured some top notch action. Mark Woof, from Luck Devils won Cat A from Simon Gardner, both sharing race wins, the other race winner was Ben Tuner, who turned out to have a nightmare of a day, with 2 x DNS. Jason Pollen however, I'm sure wasn't too heartbroken, as he ended up 3rd overall. The Cat B class belonged to Daryl Martin, a veteran of this class, with Ashley Starr taking 2nd and George Whitton 3rd, despite taking a heavy tumble in race 3. The modified class finally seems to be growing, and with the 2006 Champions absent, it was anybody's....except Jim Lovell had other idea's, and shocked everybody with his 3 race wins for Monstermoto, second on track was Tim Dance, although the points went to Kate Goldsmith, who was actually placed 3rd overall

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SEMRC ROUND 2
14th/15th April 2007
Lydd Raceway, Kent

Once again, sunshine was the order of the day, not to mention nearly 180 competitors, the day promised much and didn't fail to deliver, especially at the long [the biggest circuit on the SEMRC calender] and fast Lydd Raceway.

Junior A saw the return of Bradley Ray to the series, who showed exactly why he is the reigning champion, with 3 straight wins. Ben Joseph had to settle for 2nd, with Zak Corderoy bagging 3rd from a had charging Jake Archer.The B's saw Chester Buckle with a clean sweep, followed home by Connor Wade. The Academy was Jack Bayford's day once again, with Kieren Hagger 2nd.

4.2hp Senior A/B were big grids once again, Tom Weedon starting where he finished from Round 1, with 3 x wins in the A's. This time, it was Sam Cherry to follow Weedon home, with a brace of 2nd places, with Adam Panther bagging 3rd, but the points going to Will Shuckford. Lewis taylor completed a hat-trick of wins in the B's, with Bernie Hook having to settle for 2nd, and although Andy Weedon claimed 3rd overall, it was only due to the inconsitency of Paul Garret and Jade Spencer.

The Air-Cooled class saw stong battles up front, with Luke Shelley, 1st overall, and Scott Gullen, 2nd overall,. both claiming race wins, with Tom Weedon having to settle for 3rd overall this time. Andy Weeden came out on top in the B's, helped by a DNF by eventual 3rd overall, Bernie Hook, in the meantime, Weeden was chased down by 2nd place finisher, Thoma Wright.

Bradley Ray, once again, stamped his authority, this time on Production A, Jordan Simpkin would benefit from Tom Callear's awful day to take 2nd overall, with a hard charging Ben Joseph 3rd. Poduction Superlight would see Michael Corderoy come out on top, although you wouldn't have guessed it after race one, where Michael finished a lowly 8th, with Phil Canessa taking his only win of the day, wich would eventually lead to Phil fisnishing 2nd overall, chased hard by Michael Sipka, who came 3rd overall, after having a miserable time in race 2, also only finishing 8th.

The Poduction B class was again well attended, with Phil Scott taking 1st overall, with 3 x straight wins, equally consistent for 2nd overall was Luke Shelley, while 3rd overall, was hard fought for, with lot's of inconsistent performances, however, Ben Carr did enough to bag 3rd.

Production C/D is always worth watching, and a few suprises were thrown up, mainly again, due to inconsistency from some of the usual front runners. In the C's, Chris Martin was not only fast, but consistent enough to come 1st overall, with Paul Garret coming 2nd, with 3 x 3rd places! Stephen French benefitted from a Bernie Hook DNF, to claim 3rd overall. The D's saw the return of Terry Jones, who came back with a bang, and 3 x straight race wins, Andy Weeden having to concede for 2nd, while the consistent Glenn Bettney came 3rd.

The Supers classes suddenly came alive again at Lydd, this time, the A's were a three way scrap, between Phil Canessa, Phil Scott and Michael Corderoy, who came home in that order. The B's saw another Chris Martin cleansweep, although 2nd place man, Stephen French bagged the all important points, with Matt Filby, the most consistent finisher of the day being rewarded by 3rd overall.

A large Supermoto grid was expected at Lydd, and it didn't disapoint, the Cat A's was hard fought between Jake Watts and Andy Cowey, with both tying on points, the only other race winner in the class, Jake Gowing came home 3rd, with Mark Woof having machine problems, to struggle home 4th overall, and keep his championship aspirations alive.Dave Perry headed home 1st overall in Cat B, but with ever improving George Whitton coming home with 2nd overall, and one race win over Perry, 3 x 3rd place man, John Chatfield taking 3rd overall on his first appearance! The Modified class, saw CB500 Cup man, Ryan Tyers bring the bike home 3 times in first place, from his Monstermoto team mate, Ben Turner, with Tim Dance having to settle with 3rd overall, despite some very hard riding.

Jawa GP50 Auto, saw Connor Wade bag a 1st place trophy from Jake Archer, after a DNF from young Archer. The Conti Cup South, again, lived up to expectations, in Practice and qualifying, it was obvious that there was nothing between, race day winner, James White, 2nd place overall [and also a race win] Jamie Thackerey and Adam Robinson, who crashed in race one, wrecking any chance of a top 3 finish overall, due to the pace and consistency throughout the field, Kieran Sturley, once again showed why he was "most improved LCRRC 2006" rider with 2 x 3rds and a 2nd to come home third overall.

SEMRC ROUND 3
5th/6th May 2007
Whilton Mill, Northampton

The Whilton Mill circuit, set in the rolling countryside of Nothamptonshire, is always one of the riders favourites, as any visitor could see from the busy paddock area. The racing here is always good, and this round lived up to expectations.

The junior classes seem to have expanded by the round since Ellough Park, and this was the best yet, the A group saw Bradley Ray do his usual runner, but the battle behind was what kept spectators attention, Ben Joseph was once again runner up to Ray, enough to retain his title lead, with Jake Archer bagging third, despite valiant attempts by Michael Corderoy, who's podium aspirations were wrecked by a lowly position in race one. The B's saw the return, and domination of Wayne Ryan, in the meantime, paint was being swapped behind Ryan for the final positions. Josh Daley was looking good in race one and 2, but a DNF in race three was enough to drop him the 4th, main benefactor was new boy, Chester Buckle, who with some other good peformances, scooped 2nd in race 2 and second overall, snapping at Buckle's heals, in fact beating him in race one, was Adam Copland, who had to settle for 3rd overall by the end of the day. The ever growing Academy class saw a new race winner, in the shape of Bradley Hughes, this time Jake Bayford, series leader having to settle for 2nd overall, followed by Kieran Hagger in third.

The 4.2hp Senior class is one of the most fun to watch, and again, seems to be growing once again, the A group saw Sam Cherry take 3 x clear wins, leaving Adam Panther and Will Shuckford to scrap it out for the final two places, who finished in that order with Shuckford only getting the bette of Panther once all day. The B's continued to be about Lewis Taylor, leaving 2006 Champion, Bernie Hook and northerner, Paul Garrett to scrap it out for 2nd and 3rd, on this occasion, Garret getting the better of Hook after a poor result in race 2.

The Air-Cooled A + B class were combined as always and poduced Drama a-plenty, The A's saw Alex Olsen and Luke Shelley swapping paint, with Olsen coming out on top, third belonging to a very consistent Jack Keen. The B's saw Andy Weedon continue his domination of the class, with only Bernie Hook beating Weedon all day in race two, following Hook into third was Darren Norton, who was gifted the 3rd overall after a DNF fom Thomas Wright in race 2, wrights 2 x 3rd places were not enough to get him on the podium.

Production A was another Bradley Ray mugging, with Fraser Harris coming home 2nd, with 3 x 2nd places, but not robbing valuable points as he is not a regular. Third was Josh Daley, making up for his bad day in the Junior class. The Production super-lights also run in this class, and Michael Corderoy once again dominated with 3 x straight wins, however, all the drama was behind him, with no other rider managing 2 x 2nd places, it was all very close, Scott Gullen rode the wheels of his bike to come in 2nd overall, with Michael Sipka third, despite race top three finishes from Phil Cannessa, Matt Stainer, they didn't do enough in the other races to be top of the pile.

The Poduction B class was huge, and despite this, Luke Shelley still managed an impressive 3 x 1st places, with a very consistent Max Madero coming in 2nd, despite only posting 3 x 3rd places. 3rd place was Alex Olsen, who despite 2 x 2nd places, a DNF in race one conspired to keep him down the order. The Production C class was again, very big, and it was expected to be a whitewash from British Champion, Chris Martin, however, Grant Villette had other idea's, and fresh from injury, took his first win overall of the year, followed by Stephen French and winner from round 1, and occasional visitor when not racing his R6, Luke Arter in 3rd. Production D was all about Andy Weeden once again, followed home by Kyle Burgess and Steve Wade, our resident photographer!

The Supers class was a little better attended than of late, and the A class was almost anybody's! Michael Corderoy two race wins secured him 1st overall, and a win in race two was enough to get Luke Holness runner up spot from Lee Williams. The B class was about total domination from British Champion, Chris Matin, with series leader, Stephen French having to settle for second overall and Lewis Taylor 3rd, despite the best efforts of Jamie French.

The Conti Cup South saw series leader of both the southern and national series missing most of Saturday through illness, Wayne Ryan seized his chance to take 1st overall with 2 rrace wins and 1 x 2nd from James White, the first time White has been beaten this year. Kieran Sturley, who came home 3rd, could'n't quite keep the leaders close enough to really get stuck in, as White and Ryan exchanged the lead, sometimes, several times a lap! Connor Wade took another 1st overall in the GP50 Auto class, benefiting from yet another non-finish in race one for little Jake Archer.

The Pit Bike class was huge and verging on having to be almost split up, the Cat A, 125cc machines, which strangeley, seem to have the performance edge at the moment from the Cat B 140cc machines, was biggest. Jake Gowing bagged 3 x straight wins with Rik Lewenden coming home 2nd, despite being beaten in race 1 by previous champion, Andy Cowey, who had to settle for 3rd overall. The B's saw Lydd race winner, Dave Perry repeat his performance, with George Whitton also repeating his Lydd performance with another 2nd overall, with James McNiece bagging 3rd overall, having a great day was James Mac Farran, who bagged a 2nd in race 3, but came home 4th overall. The Modified's saw Ben Turner make up for machine problems at the previous round, with 2 x race wins and a second, enough for 1st overall, Jim Lovell, his team mate and the only person to beat Turner all day, came home 2nd overall, with the ever hard Charging Tim Dance 3rd

SEMRC ROUND 4
5th/6th May 2007
Red Lodge, Suffolk

The Red Lodge circuit in Suffolk was a brand new one to many at the SEMRC, although it used to be a regular on the calendar up until 4 years ago, one thing was for sure, despite it being extended, it was still quite tight and slippery, skill, and tyre choice were the name of the game, and thankfully, the weather was excellent.

Juniors as always lead the day, and the A's saw Bradley Ray continue his total domination, followed by a very fast, and consistent Zak Corderoy. The real battle was for third, with the ever improving Jake Archer coming out on top of the likeable, and quick Ben Joseph. The B's saw Wayne Ryan dominate once again, followed up by Connor Wade and Joe Hill in 3rd. The Academy is really hotting up, with new boy, Ryan Brain pulling off another 3 wins, the final podium places were a scrap between series leader Jake Bayford and Bradley Hughes, with Bayford doing his championship not harm at all by bagging 2nd overall, even after a slightly shakey start in race 1.

4.2hp Senior A/B, always a mixed grid these days, saw another Tom Weedon display [who was going staight to Mallory Park, where is currently 2nd in the GP70 EMRA championship], leaving Sam Cherry and Adam Panther scrapping it out, and although it looked like it was going to be Cherry's day in after race 1, Panther staged a comeback to claim 2nd in races 2 & 3, and runner up on the day. Further down the field was an almighty battle between Chris Threadgill, Jake Swarbrick and Will Shuckford, who's DNF in race 3 put him out of contention for a podium spot. The B's saw newly adopted Northerner, Paul Garrett, come out on top after some battles with Bernie Hook [3rd overall], and series leader, Lewis Taylor, who had to settle for 2nd overall.

The Air-Cooled A/B classes, again mixed, saw lot's of close action in the A's, with 3 different race winners, Tom Weedon, who came 1st overall, Luke Shelly, 2nd overall and Alex Olsen, 3rd overall, with Jack Keen also in the mix, but a low position in race 1, keeping him off the podium. The B's were a Bernie Hook [1st overall]/Andy Weeden [2nd overall] job once again, with Joshua Porter [3rd overall] offering the only resistance to the black bike onslaught!

Production A saw the seemingly unstoppable Bradley Smith leave everyone choking exhaust fumes, with Jordan Simpkin having blinder, coming 2nd overall with 3 second places, the 3rd place spot saw Sidney Hargreaves getting the bette of Ben Joseph, with Hagreaves improving all the time since he stated riding the 50cc Conti machine earlier this year. Production Super Light, which is mixed with the A's, usually provides lot's of action, and this round was no exception, Michael Corderoy did the business, despite only coming 3rd in race 3, with Phil Canessa 2nd overall, who also had a lower than usual finish in race 3, and wasn't able to capitalise on Corderoy's "poor" [by his terms] result. Third on the day was Adam Stainer, helped by winning race 3, from Adam Stainer...bit of team work going on?!

The Production B class is one of the busiest, and hardest! Phil Scott, who has recently returned to GRC machinery, was the most consistent, with 2 wins and a 2nd to take top spot, lower down the field, it was almost anybody's! Greg Madero, Luke Arter and Luke Shelley were banging fairings left right right and centre, and it was a close call, but it ended up being Madero runner up, with Arter 3rd.

Production C saw Arter get his revenge, with 3 straight race wins over runner up, and class new boy, Will Shuckford. Paul Garrett managed to push Bernie Hook out of any chance of a trophy by claiming 3rd overall, despite Hooks 3rd place in race 1, a DNF in race 3 scuppered his chances.The D's, which run, again with the C class, saw another straight Andy Weeden brace of wins from Steve Wade, with Neil Tidy having to be content with 3rd.

Jawa GP50 Auto saw it all go right for Jake Archer at long last, who despite multiple race wins, this is the first time he finished all 3 races, and all wins! Second overall went once again to Connor Wade. The Conti Cup South saw series leader, James White struggle for the first time this year, it was clear he was not getting on with the circuit, which left Tom Carne to take the meeting win, riding superbly with 2 wins and a 2nd, rider of the day, however, was young Wayne Ryan, who came 2nd in race one, and 2nd in race 2, but this time finishing right up Carne's exhaust pipe, and getting fastest lap in the process, race 3 saw Ryan catch and Pass Carne, and set fastest lap of the day, pretty amazing for a 10 year old that has only been racing less than 18 months total, and a mere few months on the 50cc Conti!

Pit Bike racing is growing so quickly, and watching the action out there once again, it's not a surprise! The Cat A [125cc] class, which is the largest, saw Jake Gowing, Peter Bengston, Andy Cowey and Simon Trowell all up front at some point! It was, however, Gowings day, with Cowey 2nd overall, and the runner up spot eventually going to Peter Bengston, and that was despite a DNF in race 3, just to demonstrate how close it all was! The Modified class saw 2006 Cat A Champ, Kate Goldsmith, finally beat the dominate Monstermoto machines, with Ben Turner having to settle for 2nd overall, and Steve Fawcitt 3rd. Cat B was another win for relative newcomer, and previous mini moto champion, Dave Perry, new boy Bernie Hook pushing championship contender, George Whitton [complete with "Elvis leathers!] down to 3rd overall.

The small, but fast Stretton circuit in Leicester, is always popular with riders, coupled with some of the best weekend sunshine seen yet this year, the scene was set for a fantastic day.

Junior wise, Bradley Ray, who so far has not been caught by anyone all year, was on blistering form, setting the fastest laps yet seen by a pocket bike rider round Stetton, and taking 3 race wins in the process [Junior A]. Zak Corderoy had another good one, with 3 x 2nd places, leaving Jake Archer and Ben Joseph to scrap it out for 3rd overall once again, Joseph coming out on top this time. The B's some some competition for Wayne Ryan for a change, in the shape of Adam Copland, who's win from Ryan in race 3 was enough to secure 2nd on the day, although Ryan's 2 other race wins kept him on top. Nick Harman also had a cracker of a day to claim 3rd. Drama in the Academy cup [where a ride with Phoenix Racing on a Jawa GP50 is up for grabs in 2008] saw Ryan Brain, DNF in race one, with another fast newcomer Bradley Hughes grabbing the win, this coupled with 2 second places to Brain in races 2 & 3, saw Hughes take his first meeting win, with series leader, Jake Bayford coming 2nd, and Brain 3rd overall.

The 4.2hp Senior boys were out in force, the A's being another brace of wins for series leader, Tom Weedon. Sam Cherry seemed untroubled this round, with a comfortable 2nd overall, likewise Adam Panther, with 3rd overall, via 3 third place finishes. The B's was, however, not about the usual front runners, Dave Green made a comeback in fine style to take the overall win from Jade Spencer, riding for Lucky Devils, who would have won the meeting, but for a lowly finish in race 3, a shame after winning the first two races, and it's nice to see the girls showing the guys how it's done! Steve King also had a great day, and his solid 2 third and 1 second place, were enough for 3rd overall.

The Air-cooled A/B was also throwing up a surprise or two, especially for Tom Weedon in the A's, who was having to work a little harder than usual. The day belonged, no doubt about it, to Luke Shelley, with Scott Gullen 2nd overall and Weedon having to settle for 3rd. The B's saw Bernie Hook take another win, despite only a 3rd place finish in race three, Dave Green, once again, was having a belter to take 2nd overall, with Thomas Wright 3rd.

For once, their was something like a scrap up front in the Production A class, although Brad Ray didn't seem to troubled, with another hat-trick of wins, however, behind him, Wayne Ryan and Luke Helm were scrapping it out, along with Nathan Westwood, who had an excellent day, but given the sheer pace of things, still only managed to get 4th overall, trophies wise, as Ryan and Helm tied on points. The Superlight class saw Phil Canessa "do one", leaving Michael Corderoy, Scott Gullen, Tom Weeden scrapping it out for the final podium spots, and all important points, what was certain was that there was nothing between them. In the end Weeden did enough for 2nd, with Gullen 3rd.

The Production B class saw the ever improving Greg Madero take his first hat-trick of wins for 1st overall, again, lower down the field, things wee close, with Stephen Good, Luke Shelley and Jack Temple swapping paint, also Matt Stringer and Chris Martin taking pot shots, however, Temple rode the wheels off to come 2nd overall, with Good 3rd, who despite 2 x solid second places in races 2 & 3, was way down in race 3.

A big Production C class is usually very entertaining, and lived up to expectations! Jamie French won race one but it all went downhill from there for him, turning into a fairly miserable day, but not for Jade Spencer from Blackburn, who came second to French and then went on to win the next 2 races, and the top trophy! Chris Martin, reigning British Champion, also from Blackburn had an appalling first race, but even then had to settle for 2nd overall to Spencer, 3rd overall was Stephen French, who had his hands full with Will Shuckford and Sean Brown during the course of the day. Production D, which runs with the C group, saw the best action of the year so far, race 1 winner , Kyle Burgess, did enough during the day in races 2 & 3 to secure the overall win, Steve Wade, who won races 2 & 3 having to settle for 2nd overall after race 1 all went wrong! Neil Tidy, was exactly that, to take 3rd overall.

Supers A numbers were once again not brilliant, Michael Corderoy didn't care much however, due to 3 race wins! 2nd overall was Phil Canessa with Robert Cox 3rd. The B's saw a Chris Martin brace of wins for Havoc Racing, with Jamie French bagging 3 x 2nd places, the battle really was for 3rd, with Lewis Taylor doing the business in the end from Stephen French.

Pit Bike Cat A, saw reigning British champion, Kenny Owen demonstrate exactly why he won in 2006, with 3 straight race wins on his "old" 120cc Thumpstar. Lewis Burns started the day well, but then it all went pear shaped, knocking him out of contention, leaving Andy Cowey, Jake Watts and Neil McQueen scrapping it out, in the end McQueen got the better of all of them, with Cowey having to settle for 3rd overall. The Cat B class, saw "newcomer", Bernie Hook run away with it, with Simon price coming 2nd overall. The scrap, once again, was for 3d overall, between Ashley Starr and Sam Lorkins, but it was to be Starrs day. Ben Turner, series leader in the ultra-fast Modified class, was back to winning after Red Lodge, with Kate Goldsmith this time having to settle for 2nd, Tim Dance and Steven Fawcitt were left slugging it out for 3rd, Dance getting the better of him in the end, to be on the podium with girlfriend, Goldsmith, awwwwwww!

Another of the outstanding performances of the day, came in the Jawa GP50 Auto class, and that was from Sam Edwards, who's amazing lean angles, and two wheel drifts [not to mention also being a second lap quicker than anybody else] had people impressed all day. Race one saw Edwards claim a comfortable lead and win, but race two saw him napping on the line, and Joe Ravenscroft, had a comfortable lead for most of the race, but then Edwards started to close him down, for two laps Edwards did all he could to get by, but Ravenscroft just shut the door,on the last lap, two corners from the flag, Edwards made his move and it stuck, to win by a mere half a second. Edwards took 1st, with Ravenscroft 2nd and Jake Archer 3rd.

 (pics to follow)

SEMRC ROUND 7
8th July 2007
Whilton Mill, Daventry

Once again, weather was kind, and a fantastic meeting was in store, although the much anticipated Bradley Ray/Wayne Ryan showdown in the Conti Cup South never materialised after Ryan's engine went sick after final qualifying. Also, the new circuit layout wasn't finished, although suprisingly once again, the "gearbox" class was the fastest on this fairly twisty circuit.
 
Junior A's saw Bradley Ray once again totally dominate, with 3 very straightforward race wins, and the fastest Junior time of 47.885. Ben Joseph was certainly back on form with 3 straight second places, leaving Zak Corderoy to take 3rd overall, with Liam Delves and E.Artherton to slog it out behind him. Wayne Ryan was again un-troubled in the B's, and going broke his own personal best time round this circuit with a 48.613. Adam Copland came second overall, partly due to the misfortune of Josh Daley, who's DNF in race 1 was enough to push him out of the podium places and into 4th, behind Nick Harman. The Academy saw another Bradley Hughes/Ryan Brain battle for the top spot, with Hughes coming out on top with 2 race wins to Brain's single win. Brain did enough to secure 2nd overall and keep him in the championship hunt, with series leader, Jake Bayford having to settle for 3rd overall.
 
4.2hp Senior A's saw another clean sweep from Tom Weedon, and a fastest class lap of 49.957 to add to the hat-trick of victories. Sam Cherry, 2nd overall having no answer for him, with Adam Panther 3rd overall. The B's saw Lewis Taylor take 3 straight wins, but was pushed by Team Evolution's James Dixon, attending the meeting for further testing of their very nice 4 stroke, earning himself fastest lap in race one, and 2nd overall from Steven King, who pushed Andy Weedon off the podium for probably the first time all season!
 
Air-Cooled A was another good day out for Alex Olsen, with a clean sweep of wins, but the action behind him was what it was all about, with Tom Weeden, Luke Shelley and Scott Gullen all up there at some point. In the end, it was Weeden in the runner up spot, with Shelley on the final step of the podium. The B's Saw Andy Weedon back on the top spot, but pushed by overall 2nd place man, Peter Horrod all the way, who in turn was pushed by John Patterson, 3rd place finisher.
 
Production A was back to the youngsters, and for the first time this season, Bradley Ray, winner, found himself being pushed in the shape of Wayne Ryan, with Ray's fastest time of 44.721 comparing to Ryan's best of 44.861! Ryan was 2nd place home, while 3rd became a Josh Daley/Nathan Westwood battle, with Daley salvaging something of the day after a miserable Junior outing, by securing the 3rd overall spot. Production Super Light saw Mike Corderoy once again take all three wins and fastest laps, nobody was touching the boy! The scrap further down saw Scott Gullen, Adam Stainer, Phil Canessa and Tom Weedon swapping paint, with the eventual outcome being, Canessa then Gullen for 3rd.
 
Production B once again saw plenty of action, with Luke Shelley being the man, despite being pushed hard by Greg Madero [2nd overall, and class fastest lap of 45.358], Jack Temple, who rode so well, and despite two thirds, still only finished 4th to Alex Olsen. In fact only 1 point in the accumulative score seperated them. Stephen Goode was another worthy mention, with a 3rd in race 1.
 
Production C saw Grant Villette take 3 wins, and all 3 fastest laps, leaving Stephen French [2nd overall] and Sean Brown [3rd overall] to scrap it out for the rest. The D's saw Andy Weedon perform exactly the same feat as Villette, this time it was to be Steve Wade, Elliot Davis and Neil Tidy scrapping it out for the rest, with Steve Wade 2nd, and Davis doing enough to keep Tidy at Bay for the 3rd.
 
Supers A was far more exciting than it has been for some time, with a four way battle taking place, Luke Holness, doing well currently in Superteen, doing the business with 2 wins and a second for 1st overall. Chris Westwood came home 2nd overall with Phil Canessa having to settle for 3rd, his only consolation being an impressive class fastest lap of 44.837. The B's were a two way battle between Grant Villette [1st overall] and Stephen French [2nd overall] with Dan Hopkins 3rd, which was some consolation after a huge crash in Saturday qualifying.
 
Pit Bikes saw Ben Turner take another commanding victory in the Modified class, from Kate Goldsmith [2nd] and Steven Fawsitt in 3rd. The Cat A class saw Andy Cowey, Jake Watts and Kevin Gritton slugging it out, with Cowey taking 2 wins and a second to secure the win. Watts win in race 3, was enough to secure 2nd overall from Kevin Gritton. The B's saw "Superman" Dave Perry take 3 wins in a three way battle between Perry, George Whitton and 2006 Champion, Daryl Martin. Whitton's 2nd overal kept his championship aspirations alive, with Martin taking 3rd.
 
The Jawa GP50 Auto class saw Joe Ravenscroft on top form, this time beating Sam Edwards, who had to nurse his bike round in race 1, after which Edwards was on catch up, never managing to beat Ravenscroft, despite some good rides. In the end it was Ravenscroft, Edwards and the ever improving Bradley Perie in 3rd.
 
The Conti Cup South saw plenty of action, and with Wayne Ryan out, there was much to play for championship wise. The Joker in the pack was new boy, Bradley Ray on his Conti V4 for the first time, who shocked the paddock by taking pole 1st time out. However, race one saw Ray find the limits of the bike, via a crash at turn one. Before crashing out however, Ray posted an increadible time [fastest of the day in any class] of 44.130, but the DNF was enough, despite 2 wins, to drop Ray down to 3rd overall. Top man of the day was Tome Carne, who was in turn pushed hard all the way by a rapidly improving Tomas Doughty and series leader, James White, who came 2nd overall.

(pics to follow)

SEMRC ROUND 8
21st July 2007
Ellough Park Raceway, Beccles Suffolk

Bad weather, the worst of the year in the South for years, threatened to spoil this first, joint SEMRC & LCRRC event, and sure enough, the downpours on Friday were enough to cancel qualifying, with extended qualifying taking place Saturday morning, which combined with further showers, hampered the usual smooth running of the event.
 
However, some amazing racing still took place as expected, kicking off as always with the Junior [4.2hp] classes. The A's were for Bradley Ray, business as usual, with 3 straight wins, and fastest lap of the day. Ben Joseph continued his excellent form with 2nd, despite battling all the way with eventual 3rd place rider, Zak Corderoy, who looked like he was going to be the man, but a lowly finish in race two saw his 2 x second places not be enough. Also on good form was Lewis Allen and Milo Ward, both bagging a third place race finsih apiece. The B's actually saw Wayne Ryan wrap up the championship, with another 3 straight wins from Nick Harman. In the Academy, we saw series leader, Jake Bayford stage a fightback,and a 2nd overall,  sharing a win each with Bradley Hughes [1st overall], closing the gap to Bayford again, and Ryan Brain [3rd overall].
 
The 4.2hp Senior A's saw another Tom Weedon victory, although he was pushed hard by Sam Cherry [2nd overall] and race three winner, Jake Swarbrick [3rd overall] with Jack Liddiard also joining the fun! The B class saw 3 different race winners, in the shape of Lewis Taylor [1st overall], Hayden Brown [3rd overall] and Bernie Hook, Mr consistent was Andy Weeden, who notched up 2nd overall without a win! The Air-Cooled class was a little less frantic, with Luke Shelley bagging three wins for 1st, Tom Weedon and Scott Gullen slugged it out for the rest of the points, with Weedon doing enough for 2nd over Gullens eventual 3rd. The B's saw Thomas Wright claim his first top spot of the year, with 2 wins and a second, with Andy Weeden having to settle for runner up spot, and Peter Horrod 3rd.
 
The Production A class is again juniors, on the more powerful pocket bikes, and for the first time this season, it wasn't exactly a Bradley Ray whitewash, although he did get the win once again. But Jordan Simpkin [3rd overall] beat Ray in race 2, the first time this has happened in 2007, in fact anybody can remember! Fastest lap was also claimed by Wayne Ryan [2nd] overall. The Superlights saw another excellent display by Mike Corderoy [1st overall], despite a lowly finish in bad conditions in race 3, which was won by Adam Stainer [2nd overall], who was more consistent wet and dry than 3rd place man, Tom Weedon.
 
The B's continued to be hard fought, with Jack Temple once again notching up 2 dry race wins, although 3rd was the best he could offer in the wet, it was enough for 1st overall. In the meantime, Luke Shelley and Greg Madero continued their season long scrap, with Madero getting the better of Shelley for 2nd overall.
 
Production C was much anticipated, after the stunning racing at the last round, with Jade Spencer leading the way, the first girl ever to win this class. However, mechanical gremlins, not to mention a crash made things exciting, but not the head to head that was expected. Chris Martin's 2 wins were enough to secure top spot, and Jayde Spencers fightback earned her a well deserved 2nd, 3rd overall was almost anybody's, but Sean Brown was the man, despite being pushed so hard by Lewis Taylor, Bernie Hook and Stephen French. The D's was business as usual for Andy Weeden, with Wadey and Elliot Davis once again scrapping for the points, which went to Wadey 2nd, Davis 3rd.
 
Supers A was business as usual for Mike Corderoy, with local boy, Michael Sipka taking 2nd and Nick Arthurton 3rd. The B's Saw another cracking performance from Chris Martin, although the French brothers, Stephen and Jamie got the better of Martin in race 1. Eventually the 2nd place overall going to Stephen and brother Jamie 3rd.
 
Pit Bike racing was one of the shared classes with the LCRRC, so it was going to be a humdinger with new riders in each championship on both days. The Cat A's saw rigning champ, Andy Cowey take the wins and fastest lap, with young Jake Watts having to settle once again for 2nd. Neil Maqueen had an excellent day out, pushing the others and claiming 3rd overall in the process. The Cat B's saw a very popular victory for George Whitton, who not only came home 1st overall with 3 race wins over his rival, Dave Perry [2nd overall], but also made it a full house with the fastest class times. Les Noble, leading the LCRRC Championship, came home 3rd overall. The Modified class saw Ben Turner go out in style, with 3 wins and the fastest lap, sadly, Ben and his familly, who have been so much help to the SEMRC over the last few years, with Ben's Dad being Clerk of the course, have now moved to France....we will miss them. Mark Brotherton scored an excellent 2nd overall over the ever popular Kate Goldsmith in 3rd.
 
The Jawa GP50 Auto class saw a return to form for Sam Edwards, even though he had a hard fought battle with Bradley Perie in race 3, with Perie being "the man" in the wet. Joe Ravenscroft stuck in another good performance, but had to settle for 3rd overall this time.
 
The Conti Cup South was always going to be race of the day, with so many of the Conti Cup UK riders attending to get track-time for the UK Championship races on the Sunday. It certainly lived up to expectations! The Wayne Ryan/Bradley Ray battle was finally on, and with qualifying front row, the battle went as expected, except for a very form Connor Tagg, who was determined to show these two how it was done! Ryan and Ray shared a win each, with Tagg third each time, then the heavens opened, and the greater experience of some of the Cup boys shone through, with Tagg winning, Carne second and James White third. Eventual points positions were, Wayne Ryan 1st [with fastest class lap of 49.456], Connor Tagg 2nd, and Bradley Ray 3rd.

SEMRC ROUND 10 (round 9 cancelled due to bad weather)
2nd September 2007
Whilton Mill,  Daventry
 

Whilton Mill in Northampton was the venue for the eagerly awaited clash between the SEMRC and Lucky Devils. The meeting was meant to be just 2 clubs racing along side each other but inevitably it became a chance to show their colours. With some of the biggest grids seen in England this year and glorious weather the riders from both clubs did not disappoint in terms of quality and pace.
Notable rides came from 2 injured riders Kate Goldsmith & George Whitton in the Supermoto classes. Jack Dale & Bradley Perie in the Conti cup and Jawa Autos respectively. Worthy mentions in the minimoto classes go to ‘Haz’ Hartley, Mike Corderoy, visiting Irishman David McCaughan, Elliot Davis, Jack Keen, Jordan Simpkin, Jaydee Spencer, Matt Sowden & Sam Banda.

Racing was opened by the 4.2 senior class with an impressive entry of 41 riders. Battling it out at the front of the lightweights was Sam Banda, Matt Sowden , Adam Panther and Andy Rumsam. On the day over the 3 races Banda and Sowden tied in 1st.  Giving Sowden second because Banda won the first race and Panther with the fastest lap came in 3rd.

The heavies group was dominated by Jaydee Spencer , Paul Garrett , Adrian Arnold  and Steve King. Garretts mistake in race 3 had the overall result of Spencer 1st, Garrett 2nd and Arnold riding a sound 3rd Spencer having put in the fastest lap.

Next was Production A & Superlight with 3 wins and a fastest lap from Jordan Simpkin in only his first years racing  2nd was Ben Joseph and 3rd went to Tom Callear . The Superlights finished with Phil Canessa  1st Mike Corderoy in 2nd after a mistake in race one and the fastest lap with Adam Stainer 3rd.

Production B was another big grid and the racing was hard fought with Greg Madero 1st with the fastest lap, Haz Hartley 2nd on the day with Ben Carr and Darryl Harrison in joint 3rd.

Supers A was business as usual for Mike Corderoy with 3 wins and the fastest lap of the day a very impressive 54.69. Dave Bennett was 2nd after Phil Canessa crashed hard and had a DNF in race 2 leaving him 3rd overall.

Supers B saw 3 wins by visiting Irish Championship leader David McCaughan, with Stephen French 2nd and Lewis Taylor 3rd. McCaughan setting the fastest lap.

The junior grid although mixed was another large entry. Whilst the riders ran together they were scored in their respective classes. On the actual track Haz Hartley produced an impressive display followed by 2 younger riders Ben Joseph and Liam Delves. In terms of the racing classes Joseph won group A with Delves 2nd and the ever popular Jake Archer 3rd.

The B group was Hartley 1st with the fastest lap. Banda having ridden particularly well all day was 2nd one point ahead of Adam Copeland & Taz Taylor in only his second meeting a commendable 4th.

The Academy Class was won by Ryan Brain, 2nd was Brandon Payne with Bradley Hughes 3rd.

The Production C Class was as usual hotly contested and scary to watch. Irishman McCaughan started well and won the first race with Spencer 2nd, the much improved Sean Brown 3rd and Wooff 4th.  Race 2 saw Spencer 1st Lewis Taylor 2nd and Paul Garrett 3rd. Brown crashing out and finishing well down the order. Race 3 had Brown pip Spencer into 2nd with Wooff 3rd. The overall result was Spencer 1st, Brown 2nd and fastest lap to McCaughan in 3rd.

Production D saw a much deserved win and fastest lap from Elliot Davis with phoenix's own Steve Wade 2nd and Neil Tidy 3rd.

Championship leader Wayne Ryan in the Conti Cup was brilliant as ever to watch with 3 straight wins. Riding particularly well Jack Dale was a worthy second followed consistently by Tom Carne in 3rd.

Bradley Perie did an exceptional job of winning the Jawa Autos followed by Sam Edwards with the fastest lap and Jake Archer 3rd.

The supermoto groups were like thunder as they passed start finish and the modified group was lead by Alex Barkshire with the recently injured Kate Goldsmith in 2nd followed home by Tim Dance. George Whitton rode a magnificent 3 straight wins with a fractured heel putting in the fastest lap followed by Kevin Gritton and Bernie Hook 3rd in Supermoto B. Andy Cowey had 3 wins in Supermoto A ahead of Lewis Burns and Jake Watts a well earned 3rd. The hire motard class was as usual Declan Eastwood 1st, Jade Spencer 2nd and Tom Potter 3rd.

The aircooled A class was won with an exceptional ride from Jack keen from Scott Gullen ahead of newcomer Adam Cameron in 3rd.
The B group saw Peter Horrod win with Thomas Wright 2nd and Hayden Brown 3rd

Overall a superb display of small machine racing with a cheerful and friendly paddock atmosphere, from the front to the back, the riders were as skilled as their larger counterparts. Riders as young as six put in performances that have you wondering if you are watching the next world champion ?

Whilton Mill Winter Series CHampionships 07/08 -
Round 2 Race Report

This hugely popular winter series has always had a knck of getting away with things weather wise, but this one looked as if it was going to be a wash out as predicted. Everybody awoke to a steady stream of rain, which shortly before morning qualifying, took a turn for the worse....the miraculously stopped! The circuit never really dried out, but track times, and the quality of racing improved as the day went on.
 
Juniors saw a welcome number of new faces getting dialled in for the 2008 season, but it was the "establishment" who were to dominate. Wayne Ryan ended up a lowly 5th after running off the circuit, leaving the door open for Zak Corderoy to start the day with a win, with Joseph Francis bagging his best finish to date in 2nd in the terrible conditions. Races 2 + 3 saw Ryan back to normal with 2 wins, but Corderoy was sticking with him, and his 2 second places were enough to bag the top trophy, with Ryan coming 2nd overall, Jake Archer was Mr Consistent, with three third places giving him 3rd overall.
 
4.2hp Senior saw Sam Rumsam take a clean sweep of wins, leaving Sam Cherry, Ben Prati, Mark Biswell and Neil Tidy to scrap it out for the rest of the pots. Pole sitter, Neil Harrison was a DNS for the day. Prati and Tidy were scrapping it out for 2nd in race one, but races teo and three saw Cherry make a comeback with two second places for 2nd overall, Biswell, who DNF'd in race one, took third in races two and three, but it wasn't enough, with Prati doing enough for 3rd overall.
 
Jade Spencer set pole for the Air-Cooled class, but it wasn't to be her day, with a third in the last race being the best result of the day. Andrew Rumsam was once again the "kiddie", with another brace of race wins. This left Jack Keen, Neil Harrison and Jade Spencer to slug out the rest, things were tight between Keen and Harrison, who were level going into race three, but Keen's second place was enough, with Spencer demoting Harrison to fourth to secure 2nd overall for Keen, with Harrison 3rd.
 
Wayne Ryan had a better day of it in Production A, while usual front runner, Bradley Ray had a very uncharacteristic awaful day, with two DNF's after winning race one. Ryan's second in race one, and two wins meant he was top of the podium, in the meantime, just about everybody was fighting hard, with Ryan Brain and Bradley Hughes getting their first top three finishes in this class. But it was mainly about being consistent, with Ben Joseph [2nd overall], and Zak Corderoy [3rd overall] showing their greater experience.
 
Production Light saw three race winners, Tom Weedon, Jordan Simpkin and Matt Stringer, with only James Davis managing to get a whiff of a top three finish, the others all taking them, close racing for sure! Weeden was the most consistent, taking 1st overall, with 2nd overall going to Simpkin and the final trophy to Stringer. The Production Heavy class also saw three race winners, in the shape of Stephen Good, Ben Prati and Richard Holmes-Williams, Good was the man though, coming 1st overall by a mere 4 points over Prati, who in turn was a mere 3 points ahead of Holmes-Williams.
 
Pole Sitter, Mike Corderoy decided to sit the Super National class out on the Sunday, leaving Jordan Simpkin, Tom Weeden and Jack Keen to fight it out, and once again, three race winners! Simpkin was never out of the top two, which secured 1st overall, but things were so tight between Weedon [2nd overall] and Keen [3rd overall] that they were seperated by a mere point at the end of the day.
 
Supermoto Junior provided some top action, between British Champion Josh Brown, Lee Jackson, and top Conti Cup rider and grass-tracker, Joe Irving. Race one saw Jackson take the win, with Irving second and Brown third, however, Brown had other idea's for the remaining two races, pushing Jackson hard, and eventually getting the better of him both times to take 1st overall, Jackson having to settle for 2nd overall, despite some brilliant riding. Things looked not so good for Irving in race two, with Brad Thornton taking third place, but his comeback in race three was enough to secure 3rd overall.
 
Arguably, Pit Bike racing is really what winter racing is about, and since it started, has seen some of the UK' top road racers, motor-cross and Supermoto racers take part, this year is no exception, with huge grids, and some stunning racing. Cat A saw Lewis Burns take three race wins with Luke Potter and Scott Gullen having to scrap it out the for the final podium finishes, Potters two second places, despite a low finish in race three [with Jake Gowing taking third] were enough to secure 2nd overall, with Gullen 3rd.
 
Cat B race one looked as if the road racers were going to show everybody how it was done, with Paul Veasey taking the win from Alex Berkshire, Jim Lovel and Wes Steinschauer, with Dan Linfoot up there for good measure until he fell. However, a pile up in race 2 saw Veasey out for the day, then it came down to a straight scrap between Steinschauer, Berkshire and Lovel. "Wild" Wez Steinschauer took the remaining wins for 1st overall, with Berkshire 2nd with two seconds and a third from Lovels [3rd overall] two thirds and a second.
 
The Conti GP50 class saw the rider awarded "LCRRC Most Improved 2007", Andrew Fisher take a shock pole, even bigger shock was Bradley Ray down in 7th on the grid, however, race day dawned, and Ray didn't put a foot wrong with three wins for 1st. Lower down the field, Fisher bagged a second and third, but a DNF in race one saw him out of contention, James Robinson took hiw second podium of the year with 2nd place, while Devon Turner and new boy Bradley Hughes were tied on points for 3rd. The GP50 Auto's saw 2007 SEMRC cahmpion Jake Archer take 1st from Josh Owens.
 
The GP70 class saw 2007 British Champion, Adam Robinson taking it easy in appaling condition, with Kyle Harris taking his first race win. Tome Carne also looked as if he was threatening, but as the track dried, Robinson started to push hard, ending up taking both race wins and 1st overall, with Harris taking 2nd overall and Carne having to settle for 3rd, despite two second places, as a result of a crash in race two.