Portsmouth Motocross Club
Round 1 Summer Series
Report by Kay Turner
West Meon – 20th February 2011
Images courtesy of Click466.co.uk
With all the rain down South recently, Portsmouth MX Clubs opening round of their Summer Series was doubtful, but the Club bit the bullet and went ahead with their meeting at West Meon, with nearly 200 riders arriving to a muddy, but rideable track.
The VMX, AMX Novice & EVO class were at bursting point, so a double-line-up was brought into force, and a full gate roared off the start line. The mud was an issue with riders unrecognisible to the lapscorers, but overall winner Paul Spacagna was easily seen, scoring two firsts and a second, battling hard with second placed man Darren Hansford. Hansford was the first race winner, pulling out an impressive lead to secure the win. A second and a fourth secured him second overall. Ray Chivers put in a determined effort to remain in front of Tony Hale and succeeded in the opening two motos, keeping a good distance between him and his arch rival. But flu-filled Hale found the extra strength to whip past Chivers in the third race to move into second place, but Chivers secured third overall with three third places. Showing no signs of his man-flu, Tony Hale was still on the gas, chasing Chivers in the opening motos, but determined to be his nemesis, he found the extra speed to move into second place in the closing moto to secure fourth overall. Mike Townsend made a last minute decision to race and thoroughly glad he did so, as he remained high up the leaderboard throughout the day. An impressive third in the fourth moto, rewarded him good points which placed him in fifth overall. Louis Reid punched the air with delight in the fourth race as he won the moto and finished the highest placing EVO rider. An impressive fifth in the opening race combined with the race win in the last rewarded his hard efforts with sixth overall.
The old Pompey boys came out of the woodwork to make the AMX class an exciting set of races to watch. A near-full gate ensured there was going to be some serious bar-bashing on the first corner, but Zac Blackwell ensured he went straight into the lead, and despite a rare dismount off the Yamaha Blackwell ensured two race wins were his to take home the overall victory. Max Tranah made a welcome return to his old club and was hot on Blackwell’s back wheel, chasing him down in each race, and managed to secure the victory in the second moto to add extra points to take home second overall. A handful of riders battled it out for third overall, Terry House, Phil Lewis, Gareth Padgett, Paul Watts & Jake Hassell all getting involved in the action, but Hassell was the rider to go home with the smile on his face, three fourth places securing him third overall. Gareth Padgett finished fourth overall, but should have placed higher. A spill or two in the opening race denied him keeping his second place, and bike problems in race two denied him pushing the Kawasaki too hard, but race three saw him back to his best, and edged straight into third spot, working hard to keep Hassell off his back wheel. But he kept the place and took home fourth overall. A great sight to see Paul “Wildman” Willis back at the club, and was as impressive as ever on the track. Three top ten finishes rewarded him with fifth overall. Brad Aspden was hard to spot in the opening race, numbers completely awash with mud, but a good performance on the track rewarded him with ninth place. Slipping down the order slightly in the remaining races didn’t hinder his chances of a top six position and was placed sixth overall at the end of the day.
A jam-packed gate of Senior riders made for some more entertaining action on the track but there was no denying the overall winner . Jordan Carrier was on fire and blasted into the lead in all three motos, a couple of breathtaking battles with George Clarke making the action exciting to watch. Three straight wins rewarded Carrier with the overall. Clarke wasn’t to be outdone and took the lead with Carrier chomping at the bit behind him, but a spill denied him from keeping ahead and with two second places was rewarded second overall. An impressive second race by Chae Jenkinson ensured a high finish, a couple of spills denying him repeating his second race runner-up spot, but with a fourth, second and third he finished in a commendable third overall. Harry Hinson remained high up the leaderboard throughout the day, two fifths and a fourth rewarding his hard efforts on the track, and took home fourth overall ahead of Aaron O’Mahony. Mahony picked off riders as each race progressed, working up from ninth in race one to finish the day in seventh place and took home fifth overall. Aaron Williams remained in the thick of it throughout the races, and could have placed higher, but unlucky for some in race two he finished in thirteenth place, but two great sixth places in the first and last motos secured him sixth overall.
Inter Open rider Camlann MacDonald was unstoppable in the opening races, flat out and riding at his best, he secured the first two wins to secure the overall victory. An impressive effort in moto three reward him with third place after working hard to plough his way through the rest of the pack. Girl-power shone through just behind in the form of Beth Farmer who chased hard and put in a perfect performance on the track to finish in third in the first two races, then fourth in the final moto to secure second overall. A newcomer to the club James Ford didn’t have the best of starts to his day with a crash near the end of the race pushing him from second place to fifteenth, but races two and three saw him power his way straight into second place where he pushed the leaders to the chequered flag and secured third overall. Jamie Cox had a consistent ride throughout the day, not putting a wheel wrong and staying focused to ensure he placed highly. Three fifth places rewarded his efforts with fourth overall. Oscar Schmidt was outstanding in race two, impressive from the drop of the gate, just missing out on securing third place toward the end of the race he still managed to pass the finish line in fourth place to secure fifth overall. Newcomer Loui Harris could have easily finished in the top three after a brilliant second in race one, and a blinding last race win, but after sitting in second spot in race two disaster struck and he disappeared from view for a number of laps. Eventually appearing, he disappointingly finished in 25th but with his brilliant two other scores, still managed to finish the day in sixth overall.
The Inter 85 riders were inspirational, with the leading group racing at a blistering pace. Michael Ellis was untouchable, leading from start to finish in two motos, having to push just a bit harder in race two to work his way into the lead, but with three straight wins, he secured the overall. Jamie Carpenter was hot on the pace at the front of the pack, a great start in race two saw him leading, and with such a strong field, two thirds and a brilliant second rewarded him with second overall. A handful of riders fought it out for supremacy, with David Keet, Henry Siddiqui and Josh Bunter all riding on the limit to grab the higher place. But it was Keet who stole third overall away from the others, a second, fourth and third rewarding him the extra points to take home third. Henry Siddiqui proved his power in race two, a dominant figure at the front of the pack, straight into second place and remained there until the chequered flag waved him through. A crash on the first lap in the final moto denied him placing higher but he still worked his way through the field to finish in fourth place and took home fourth overall. Josh Bunter made a welcome return to his former club and carried on where he left off, straight into the top six, remaining a prominent figure at the front. A fourth and two fifths rewarded him with fifth overall ahead of Harry Pritchard. Pritchard rode consistently well throughout the day, chasing the front riders from start to finish and with three sixth places took home sixth overall.
The Juniors were out next, Charlie Cole out front from the drop of the gate, and kept his nerve to keep hold of first in all races to secure the overall victory. Liam Jones powered hard to catch Cole, finishing just behind in the opening races to finish in second and with a third in moto three, he was rewarded with second overall. Lewis Cloud was on a mission, chasing down the leading duo, securing two third places in motos one and two, but a spill in race three pushed him back into fifth place but still managed to finish in third overall. George Stock and Charlie Razzel totally baffled the lapscorers, both riders donning number 42 on their bikes, and both riders riding side-by-side in the opening races. But a disastrous crash in race three for Stock saw him out of the running for fourth place, and Razzel took over. A brilliant second in the final moto secured Charlie fourth overall. Ben Richards was flying around the muddy circuit, steadily improving his results throughout the day, but definitely saved the best for last to romp home in fourth place to finish fifth overall on the day. Daniel Sultana had a great opening race, finishing close behind Cloud to pass the finish line in fourth place. Two further top ten finishes rewarded him with sixth overall.
A great turnout of Autos battled their way through the mud, showing no fear as they tackled the steep hills. A great head-to-head battle between Ollie Cole and Jack Scully saw the two riders fighting it out to the finish line, but with Scully crashing on the penultimate lap in race two, Cole was able to secure the overall win with two seconds and a first. Scully’s two race wins still ensured a high finish and was rewarded with second overall. Toby Potter kept in the thick of it at the front, hoping for the any slip up by the top two, and flew across the line in third, second and third to take home third overall. A brilliant performance by Louie Wakefield saw him in the thick of it at the front of the pack, pushing Potter in every race to finish just behind him in fourth, third and fourth. He ended the day in fourth overall. Harry White was close behind too, a brilliant start in the final moto seeing him zooming past in third place, just missing out on keeping the position, but with two fifths and a fourth he secured fifth overall. Austin Wild was riding at full pelt too, narrowly missing out on a consistent set of sixth places, but with two top six placings in the closing motos, he secured sixth overall.
Results:
VMX/AMX Novice/EVO: 1 Paul Spacagna, 2 Darren Hansford, 3 Ray Chivers, 4 Tony Hale, 5 Mike Townsend, 6 Louis Reid.
AMX: 1 Zac Blackwell, 2 Max Tranah, 3 Jake Hassell, 4 Gareth Padgett, 5 Paul “Wildman” Willis, 6 Brad Aspden.
Seniors: 1 Jordan Carrier, 2 George Clarke, 3 Chae Jenkinson, 4 Harry Hinson, 5 Aaron O’Mahony, 6 Aaron Williams.
Inter Open: 1 Camlann MacDonald, 2 Beth Farmer, 3 James Ford, 4 Jamie Cox, 5 Oscar Schmidt, 6 Loui Harris.
Inter 85s: 1 Michael Ellis, 2 Jamie Carpenter, 3 David Keet, 4 Henry Siddiqui, 5 Josh Bunter, 6 Harry Pritchard.
Juniors: 1 Charlie Cole, 2 Liam Jones, 3 Lewis Cloud, 4 Charlie Razzel, 5 Ben Richards, 6 Daniel Sultana.
Autos: 1 Ollie Cole, 2 Jack Scully, 3 Toby Potter, 4 Louie Wakefield, 5 Harry White, 6 Austin Wild.
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