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Race reports 2008

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2007 Race Reports archived HERE

2009 RACE REPORTS

Skipton Club Day 31 May

Superb weather and a good turnout, but an electrical catastrophe was the cause of cancelled meeting. Turned out to be a good day for testing though.

Skipton Club Day 3 May

Today we had a lower than usual turnout possibly due to a poor forecast which turned out wrong and in our favour (as it usually does!) so the 9 pilots, 6 nitro and 3 electric, were split into 2 heats. Phil ran race control as smooth as ever and although we had the occasional 1 minute shower, the track never got wet, so maximum lean angles and record breaking pace was the order of the day.

In combined Stock / Superbike Colin had his KP going even quicker than ever, posting a new race record in the first round! Dave Scouse was also at a new level with his Mclarney stock bike, almost equaling Colin's Superbike times. In fact round 2 Dave got his Stock bike round just 1.5 sec off the old Superbike race record. Round 3 saw yet another record broken by Mr McCabe, a blistering 16.88 lap which I just cannot see being beaten this year. Thankfully things calmed down a bit after that, Col and Dave still had close racing in the finals, both bikes on the limit and beyond. Phil had a few mechanical troubles spoiling his day, but his lap times show he's still on the pace.

In nitro, Allen and Shaun Waterfall continued the Team Superblade battle for the no.1 pilot, Shaun just coming off best in qualifying and gaining a new pb on 21 laps. Ken Dineen and Alan Watkinson ran the FS2s and it was nice to see Ken banging in good laps and Alan once again in good close racing with the the Superblades. Karl Boak was back after last meeting's surprising performance, pushing his standard TTn to the limits, and wearing out the front wheel hub which was so bad the disc would not stay on! John had a mixed qualifying, opting to run his FS2 and having close battles with Allan and Shaun. In the first final all bikes ran line astern until something unexplainable happened on lap 5 and all bikes went down. Just one of those things or a gust of wind? I don't know. Anyway John came out of the melee on top and stayed there to the end, Shaun having a dice with his Dad got pushed back to 3rd with Allan second. Leg 2 and Shaun got clean away from pole putting in fast consistent laps right to the end to take the win, John coming 2nd from Alan Watkinson.

Thanks again to Phil for running the meeting, the next club meeting is in 4 weeks, May 31, but don't forget the first BRCA national of the year in 2 weeks, 17 May at Brookland.

Results opposite, no media today.

Skipton Club Day 19 April

Best meeting of the year so far. The Easter break left many itching to get racing again and we got a good turnout. 14 entries split into 7 nitros and 7 electric and all split into 3 heats. As usual we had 4 qualifying rounds and 2 finals, Phil was race director for the day and ran things super smooth including some great informative commentary which added nicely to the fun and excitement. In Stock we had the inevitable battle between our top drivers Dave Scouse and Chris Douglas. Right from the off Chris was on top form, keeping just ahead of Dave and taking the first 3 wins. Dave was doing well, but a mechanical problem put paid to his meeting in round 3. Roger Hardy looked to be well on the pace as well, never far from the leaders and culminating in a 21 lap win in round 4. Improver of the day has to be Andrew Mcaughey, from 9 laps in round 1 to a very rexpectable 16 laps in round 4. Looks like something has clicked into place!

In Superbike Team Pink was running their new 2009 race bike in the hands of Clive and Dave Andrew, this bike looked incredibly fast and stable and set a new race record in round 3. Colin McCabe was showing what the new KP09e can do and boy did it look fast. Helped by some new trick forks Colin was only a fraction behind Dave and no doubt a little agrieved at losing the race record to Dave, Col promptly romped home 0.3s quicker in round 4 leaving Dave looking mystified and a little upset! Phil Tennant was back with a bang, using some new high power lipos he was struggling to keep the front wheel down but even so managed a 23 lapper in round 2 and was only 0.14s off the lap record! Of course with all this high speed stuff the lap record just had to go. Col knocked 0.8s off it in the storming 4th round to make sure his name stays in the record books.

Nitro - well we had so many, it was the first time we'd split them into 2 heats. This caught John out as he neglected to check the listings and ended up running in the wrong heat! Ken Gospel stormed off to a 1st round win with newcomer Karl Boak 2nd, Karl had made a 3 hour trip to get here and was showing us just what a standard TTn and no bike racing experience can do! Having only had car park practice prior to coming, Karl soon got into the swing of things and was banging in 18 laps by the end of qualifying. Amazing. Ian Gosling was running his TTn and although looking good on the track, he had engine troubles and had to change the TT.12, but unfortunately the gremlins had taken residence in his bike and things were not to improve. Allan Waterfall was joined by son Shaun in team Superblade, Shaun hadn't raced since August last year but it didn't take long to get back into the swing of things and took the 2nd round win on 18 laps. Allan wasn't liking this and decided to pull his finger out and put in a good 20 lapper in round 3. Shaun took the bait and pulled it back in round 4, beating Allan's 20 lapper by 15 seconds! In the 2nd nitro heat John was having all sorts of mechanical troubles and decided to give up and watch instead. Alan Watkinson was configuring a new clutch setup on the 4 stroke and got it dialled in by round 2. Alan was happy and looking forward to the remaing races. Round 3 saw Alan with a personal best result for his 4 stroke, but even better was to come in round 4 with an extra lap!

In the finals Chris and Roger took a win each in Stock, Roger taking the overall win with a solid performance. In super, Dave bowed out of the finals, leaving Clive on the controls. Col was on top form, winning both legs and obviously going for a new lap record and sure enough broke it successively in both legs! Phil had a good first leg, but problems in the 2nd with a broken damper led to locked steering on many left handers. Only 6 started the nitro final leg 1, pole man Shaun led from the off with Alan Watkinson on his tail and Allan Waterfall close behind. A small mistake from Shaun on lap 6 let Alan through to lead which he held on to till the end with Shaun losing another place to his Dad on lap 16. The 2nd leg was tense with everyone fighting for position. Alan nipped past Shaun on the first lap to take the lead again but lost it back to Shaun on lap 9. Alan put the hammer down and at times got close enough to pass but Shaun kept it together and crossed the line first, just a few seconds ahead of Alan who took the overall win.

So, many thanks to Phil for running the meeting and many thanks to everyone who made the effort to come. Next meeting is in 2 weeks, May 3, which is 2 weeks before the first national, so last chance to get get your bike ready.

Video and pics will appear shortly in their respective pages. Results opposite.

Skipton Club Day 15 March

A busy day today, a dry track, fairly warm and a bit of sunshine. What more could you want? 3 four strokes in the nitro heat? yes that too. So, we had 12 entrants, 5 nitro and 7 in the mixed sport / superbike heat. Colin was on near record breaking pace all day in Superbike, only narrowly missing out on a new record by a whisker. Chris, Dave and Steve were pulling in very similar laps in the Superport class and all 3 produced some close and exciting racing which was great to watch. Although Dave won the meeting with a 1st and 2nd, it was Chris who turned up the trumps with new lap and race records, pushing Dave off both slots. I'm sure Dave won't want to wait long before returning the favour, but it certainly won't be easy. John Aldred and Roger Hardy made up the remaing electric placings, John having a temporary break from nitro and Roger showing good pace for a non regular.

In nitro Richie Jones was back with an NF, but with no run time before the meeting, most of his races were spent setting up and repairing. Allan Waterfall headed the leaderboard after round 2, with Ken Gospel close behind. By round 4 John had found his 4 stroke and joined the other 4 strokes of Alan Watkinson and Ken Dineen. What a gorgeous noise! Allan Waterfall suffered a severe electrical failure sideling him from the finals, which left Ken the lonely 2 stroker amidst a trio of thumpers. John got the hammer down and front wheel up to take both wins with Ken close behind.

Results opposite, thanks again to Steve for running the meeting, even managing to squeeze in 4 qualifying rounds and 2 finals for all. A good meeting. Next in 2 weeks, 29 March.

Skipton Club Day 1 March

Today we had a dry track with just the occasional short and light shower to create a bit of interest. So, straight to the electric heat - top runners today in Stock were Steve Newey and Dave Scouse, these two were close all day, at it hammer and tongs with little between them. They even shared an identical fastest lap in round 1! But it was Dave coming out on top in the qualifiers, with Steve close behind and the radical new superbike of Dave and Clive Andrew mixing in for good measure. Ian Gosling showed a huge improvement, gaining a personal best in the process (and seen playing with his new nitro bike inbetween races!). Phil Read finally bit the bullett and grabbed Steve's old stocker for a go. Apart from a few crasbar niggles, he did really well for a first timer and I'm sure we'll see him again soon. Major achievement of the day though, must go to Richie Jones, who also was in his first race and like Phil, just aiming to get a few clean laps in. But after realising the transponder wasn't counting, a quick re-position showed he was actually pulling in 16 laps! Not bad considering his rear shock was a mess. Overall win went to Steve from Dave after a couple of really close races, with Ian third.

In nitro Team Superblade was up against the unstoppable Gominator, Alan Watkinson's FS2 and John Aldred's quick TT - John got quicker and quicker throughout the day, lap times kept falling and gained his personal best lap late in the 2nd final. In fact the fastest laps of all the nitro runners were very similar, showing just how close nitro racing can really be. A flat battery for JV and an exploded shock for Ken in the first final left Allan Waterfall with a clear enough track to take the win and break his 19 lap barrier. A broken exhaust hangar in the 2nd final left Allan with an early retirement and John and Ken were back at the front, but in 2 leg finals it's consistency that counts, so that left only one overall winner - Alan Watkinson with Ken Dineen's Fs2 thumper. Well done Alan. Overall then, an excellent day's racing. Of course it doesn't really matter all that much who wins, just as long as you have fun. That's what Skipton racing is all about. Many thanks to Steve for running another super smooth and relaxed meeting. Next one in 2 weeks 15 March. See you then. Results opposite.

Skipton Club Day 15 Feb

Well what a good day! Winter finally loosened it's hold and produced a warm(ish) day with no rain, so near record breaking pace for the 11 entries booked in. Again nitro runners outnumbered electrics, showing just how popular this class is now becoming, with many converts from the now endangered electric classes. In the combined Stock and Superbike heat it was the McLarney Team drivers dave Scouse and Chris Douglas (Stock) battling for supremacy throught the day, with race director Steve Newey doing his best to keep between them producing some close, fast and exciting racing. But it was Dave at the top throughout qualifying, indeed round 2 produced the best, with only 4 seconds off the race record after 7 minutes, that's really going some. And then to the 2 finals, Dave again shone with text book driving consistency, getting so close to the race record, missing out by only seconds in both races. Colin McCabe was the only Superbike pilot today. His KP09 looked smooth and fast, coupled with his considerable skill it was a wonder the lap record wasn't broken, but he came really close and actually broke the race record in round 2 by nearly 3 seconds!

The nitro field featured two FS-2 4 strokes, 2 Superblades, a Gominator and a modified TTn. JV took the first 2 wins, with Ken Gospel close behind and it wasn't till the 3rd round that Allan Waterfall got back into the groove after a long absence and made it 3 wins for Team Superblade. Alan Watkinson picked up the pace throughout qualifying to get his FS-2 4th place on the finals grid. Both finals had their ups and downs, from close racing, cut engines, stripped spurs and crashes, but above the turmoil there was only one winner, of both finals - Allan Waterfall. So, well done to all winners and commiserations to those who had a 'bad day', there will of course be better ones to come. Next race in 2 weeks, March 1. Many thanks to Steve Newey for running the meeting, I don't know what we'd do without you.

Skipton Club Day 18 Jan

It was good to see more of the club regulars back after the long break, despite the poor stormy forecast which including high winds and snow showers. In stock we had the UK's top Stock class McLarney Team Pilots Chris Douglas and Dave Scouse, both needing to blow away the rust and cobwebs of a long break. Both Ian and Derek McLarney were there as well, no doubt getting good feedback from their drivers. Ian Gosling rounded off the Stock heat and all took a little time to get back into it and setup their bikes to suit the ever changing conditions. By round 3 the track was almost dry and inviting ever steeper lean angles, but the strong wind and squally showers proved it very difficult to keep consistency. That didn't stop Dave and Chris producing some very nice driving, with some great rear end sliding going on throughout the day. By the the final qualifying round, Chris had FTD and head into the finals with confidence. Dave got some stunningly fast laps in the finals, but Chris's consistency won through to take both wins.

In Nitro Alan Watkinson was running the thumper again, but the combination of an increase in power and slippy track took some getting used to. John Aldred was back with the TTn but suffered a few problems before calling it a day before the finals. Ken Gospel with his Gominator and JV with the Superblade had their usual dices at the front, but Ken was having a few damping problems to contend with leaving John to grab FTD. The first final saw John getting the lead after a mistake from Ken on lap 3 and John didn't look back. The possibility of water in the carb and numb fingers left both Ken and John opting out of what would have been a very wet 2nd final.

Originally we decided to add a heat of 1/8 bikes and 2 did go out in the first round on a drying track (despite the strong wind!), but a blown servo on one bike put paid to that. Hopefully more will be willing to participate next time.

Many thanks to all who came, hopefully the weather will be better at the next meeting 31 Jan. And big thanks to Mr Snooey for running the meeting again.

Results opposite.

Skipton Club Day 4 January

Although a fairly cold day, the sun peeked through occasionally to lift the temperature a fraction above freezing, but the track remained dry all day and grip was certainly no problem, at least until the sun went down anyway! Only 10 competitors braved the elements, but with a fairly equal class split there was no problem running a heat of each class. In Stock, Race Director Steve Newey put on another stunning display, with laps less than a second of the record and taking 2 of the qualifying wins from Ken Dineen's 1. Ken's consistency led to a very close finish in the 2nd final, less than 2 seconds seperating them at the end. Chris Ridgeway had a re-run of the previous meeting, looking like he was driving it like a car, until closer inspection revealed an actual problem with the bike. Let's hope you get the bike sorted for next time Chris. Superbike saw both Ian and Derek McLarney back on track, with Colin McCabe on top form and the man to beat today. Colin took the first 2 qualifyiers, both on 22 laps and a fastest lap only 1/2 second off the record!

Ian bounced back in round 3 and took the win, but with only 1.5 seconds between Ian and Colin at the end, it was certainly CLOSE! In the finals Colin took control with a 23 lap win in leg 1 and won the 2nd leg from Ian to take the overall win.

In nitro it was the Gominator again at the front throughout the day, Ken driving consistently well to take all qualifying wins and overall finals win. 2nd in round 1, John Aldred showed much improvement since the last meeting, partly due to some proper rubber this time, but also more driving consistency. The TTn's lack of serious lean being the limiting factor today. Alan Watkinson also showed much improvement with the FS2, putting the leader under pressure throughout the day. John had a mixed day, stunned by the Superblade's improvement in handling due to new forks he just tried to go faster and ended up crashing more.

1/8 - 4 Venom GPV1's and a Scaulfi mini KP took to the grid for a lunchtime race, the track looked to be huge for these little bikes, but lap times were not that slow - best laps around the 23 sec mark from Steve (and he was backing it off due to a hard rear shock) showed the potential. Once a good setup is found these bikes should really fly.

Once again, many thanks to Steve for running a great meeting, next one in 2 weeks time Jan 18th. Today's results opposite.

2008 RACE REPORTS

Skipton Club Day 14 December

This was definately one of the most enjoyable winter meetings in a long while. No rain and a dryish track saw 4 nitro bikes and 3 stock take to the track to blow away the cobwebs of a 3 week wait. Chris Ridgeway, Ken Dineen and Steve Newey battled it out in Stock, with Steve taking both final wins, despite Ken's smoother driving and Steve's habit of sliding all the way around the rostrum corner! Awesome control there Steve. And Chris ended the day a much happier man as his bike and the lap times just got better and better.

Nitro Champ Ken Gospel stomped all over the opposition today with another cool display of consistently fast driving, taking all race and final wins. Newcomer John Aldred's first attempt at the Skipton track with a standard TTn was very impressive, thankfully he slowed the pace so as not to embarass the nitro regulars. Cheers John! Alan Watkinson and JV ran identical FS-2 4 strokes, this was the first time for Alan, tempted away from stock by the sight, sound and smell of the gorgeous 5cc OS thumper in Ken Dineen's superb chassis. Alan was getting on the pace and really enjoying it by the end.

The racing was close, fun and very enjoyable. Just as it should be. What a shame there were a lot of regulars missing. Obviously they've forgotten how good winter racing can be. Or maybe they saw the forecast and preferred to stay in bed. Bunch of wussies!

Next race January 4. Merry Xmas!

Skipton Club Day 23 November

A poor turnout due to the wintry weather meant not enough entries to warrant running a meeting. And actually it turned out to be a nice day, with very good grip on a fast drying track by early afternoon. Not a wasted day for those that turned up though, The time was well spent practicing and trying different settings.

PLEASE NOTE the next meeting is in 3 weeks, December 14.

Skipton Winter Series Rd1 9 November

A fine start to the day allowed 3 rounds of qualifying before the dark clouds and heavy rain set in, causing the meeting to be abandoned.

Skipton Club Day 19 October

Well after a long and tiring national series, the Skipton crew were back at therir home track for the start of the fortnightly winter racing series. This alternates between laid back club racing days and the popular Winter Series days, incorporating a nitrobike championship and the sedate but very close and big fun 'Silvercan' championship.

Today we had 3 newly crowned National champions in attendance, so congatulations must firstly go to Steve Newey in Superstock, Colin McCabe in Superbike and Ken Gospel in Nitro. All top pilots and all regular Skipton club members. The day started cool and windy with a damp track which totally dried out by the end of round 2, allowing max lean angle and near record pace by the finals. In Superbike it was good to see Phil Tennant back at the track with no loss of form after a long absence, giving race winner Colin McCabe a good battle in all of the races and Derek McLarney on top form with I believe a 23 lap personal best! In mixed Superstock / Supersport, Dave Scouse took top honours today, getting his best race in the 2nd final with a new lap record and race record to boot! No-one could touch him, but Alan Watkinson and Ken Dineen did a good job trying. Nitro saw 3 different bikes on the track all powered by OS 18s. Ken Gospel's 'Gominator' and Allan Waterfall's 'Superblade' having superb dices all day with very similar lap times, John Veal using a steadily improving lightweight KP to take both final wins.

A superb meeting, many thanks to Steve Newey for doing the hard work as race director and to all 12 competitors who turned up. Next meeting is Nov 9, for the Winter Series 1st round. Bring your Stock class bike ready to fit the handout silvercan motors provided, or join in with the nitrobikes. Any other class of bike will still be able to race, but not score points in the championship. See you there.

Woodvale August 3

This month's club day was held at the Woodvale Rally near Formby, essentially a huge model air show but with so many other attractions, exhibitions and demonstrations including ourselves. The idea was to put on a demo and look good for the many spectators, who at times were standing 3 - 4 deep eager to see what we were doing. Bathed in sunshine for most of the weekend the event was a huge success and thoroughly enjoyed by all. Results didn't matter, so not posted here.

Many thanks to Colin and Ken and everyone who helped to transport and put up the track and equipment and especially Steve Newey for putting the event together, running the meeting and giving the crowd a great running commentary.

Next Skipton club day is September 7.

Skipton Club Day July 6

Well the day started off well, no rain and enough bikes for 2 heats. The rain came later, but didn't spoil the racing too much. Steve Newey started the meeting and as usual, nitros were off first. With new nitro pilot Jonathan Bradbury not running due to a radio problem, it was down to Ken Gospel and J V. Ken drove brilliantly on the damp and slippy surface to win each qualifier and both leg finals, getting a personal best in the process. John got servo problems with his nitro and ran the ARX in the 2nd final, getting lap times pretty much the same as everyone else! Ok, there may well have been a shortcut taken at some point, I can't remember. Anyway, in the superstock rounds there was some great close battles going on, with Ken Dineen, Alan Watkinson and Ian Gosling pushing and shoving each other round the track. Ken and Alan have been entertaining us like this for a few years now and it was good to see Ian fighting for position with them and driving superbly. Another newcomer to Superstock racing is Chris Ridgway, who steadily improved throughout the day, learning loads in the process and finishing with a personal best. Race Director Steve Newey was the lonely electric pilot mixed in with the nitros but managed to avoid the chaos to get the meeting's fastest lap and best race time.

Thanks to everyone who turned up despite the poor forecast and many thanks to Steve for running the meeting yet again.

Next race August 3 at Woodvale, bring the sun cream, we're due some nice weather I think.

Skipton club day June 1

racing abandoned due to consistent rain

Skipton Club day May 4

Having missed the National, it was nice to get back to racing at Skipton again. This time the forecast must have put off a few regulars, as numbers were a little lower than normal. However, the on/off rain was enough to keep the track wet enough for fairly high grip levels, with most using dry setup lean angles. Fresh from his 2 leg National wins 2 weeks previous, top Supersport pilot Dave Scouse put on a dazzling display of wet weather riding to get 3 x 22 lap wins before calling it a day in the 2nd final due to heavy rain. Skipton regulars Alan Watkinson, Ken Dineen, Carl Lister, Ian Gosling and Mick Laing had a mixed day of gremlins, water ingress and hitting ARX 540s (sorry Mick that shouldn't have been there) but overall a very enjoyable day. Thanks again to Steve Newey for manning race control and getting all qualifying and finals done and dusted by mid afternoon, leaving plenty of time to get home and watch the GP. And football of course!

Next race in a months time June 1, after the 2nd National race which is at Halifax May 18.

Skipton BRCA National Rd1 April 20

For the full race report and results, including championship points table and link to photo gallery, see the BRCA web site, link in the left column.

Skipton Club Day April 6

This was 2 weeks before the Skipton National and an ideal time to set up and test the bikes. But as it turned out, I think most turned up just to have a bit of fun. With the sun out most of the morning, the track was dry and inviting serious lean angles. This was to last until 2pm when the heavens let rip with enough snow to make driving difficult. At times it was hard to make out the furthest parts of the track, but racing continued anabated and on time. Top electric pilot today, getting easily into the 22 lap bracket and in with a top chance for a Supersport win in the National was Dave Scouse. In nitro Team Superblade employed a 3rd driver to ensure top points today, with all 3 running OS 2 stroke motors, it was a formidable display of raw power. Sadly only one off road bike turned up, so no Supermotard today. Would have been great in the snow though. Come on all you ARX owners! Get it to the next club Day.

As you can probably tell, there are no race results to publish, due to the secretary forgetting everything (he's getting old you know)

Skipton Winter Series Rd 5

Report and results not available

Skipton Club Day 17 Feb

12 competitors turned up for this month's club day, all greeted by wall to wall blue sky, warm sunshine and and a dry grippy track. Steve Newey was back in race control and decided to split the racing into 2 heats, 5 nitros and 7 Superstock, although both Chris Douglas and Dave Scouse were running the equivalent brushless systems. In fact it was these two that were at the front all day, never far apart and putting on a great display of close racing. Dave won the first leg final and Chris the 2nd leg, with Chris overall winner. Superstock regulars Ken Dineen and Alan Watkinson also had some excellent close racing, with Alan getting the overall win. New nitro pilot Tony Bennet popped along to see what the club was up to and I'm sure we'll be seeing him again soon. And it was good to see Carl Lister back at the track after a short absence, obviously he's not forgotten how to drive a bike! Skipton regular Ian Gosling showed some improvement today and I think maybe with a bit of persuasion, might be enticed into the nitro camp sometime soon!

Talking of nitro, the 2 strokes of Ken Gospel, Allan and Shaun Waterfall were running a little better today and the lap times showed a narrowing of the gap between the 2 and 4 strokes. Overall win went to John, but I suspect things will be a little closer from now on.

Thanks again to Steve for running the meeting, next one in 2 weeks, 2nd March.

Skipton Winter Series Rd4 Feb 3

It may have been chilly, but the action was hot. Once again the Skipton regulars put on a great show in the Silvercan class with some very close and exciting racing and it just proves what a great and cheap way this class is to enter the wonderful world of rc bike racing. Not the warmest of days, but certainly the driest this year and a track that just got drier and drier (thanks to the strong wind!) until bone dry by mid afternoon, producing some serious lean angles and really fast laps. In heat 1 Ken Dineen topped the leader board in all 3 rounds with some great driving and in heat 2 it was the dynamic duo of Colin and Phil battling all the way for the top spot, passing each other too many times to count and keeping the many spectators enthralled with some of the best racing yet. Surprisingly, no records were broken, but with a fastest lap of 20.33, Col came within a fraction! In the finals Col took the first leg win by 6 seconds from Phil and in the second Phil crossed the finish line just 1.5 seconds ahead of Col, after a collision forced Phil to take to the grass, just managing to keep it upright while crossing the line. In nitro the cold weather was playing havoc with the 2 strokes, but the KD FS-2 ran great and took the top honours. Many thanks to Phil for running the meeting and managing to race aswell, no mean feat. Next meeting 17 Feb, let's hope it's a little warmer! It's a club day, ideal for newcomers to have a go, so let's see all you newbies there!

Skipton Club Day January 20

The changeable forecast did little to dampen the enthusiasm of 9 Skipton regulars who braved the elements for yet another day's racing. Unfortunately the rain hardly stopped all day and although it actually provided plenty of grip for some close racing, it was the major cause of many retirements, particularly in the nitro class, with wet air filters, servos and receivers. It was Ken G with the most reliable nitro of the day taking both A final leg wins. In Superstock it was Ken D and Chris D on similar lap times but Dave S was the runaway winner taking both leg wins, although Ken D was sooo close in the 2nd leg. Both Ian G and Mick L were showing marked improvements in performance, Ian getting used to a new and better handling bike and Mick mixing it well with the leaders and doing similar lap times. No media today due to the consistent precipitation. Thanks again to Steve Newey in race Control for another well run meeting, next race in 2 weeks, February 3 for Rd4 of the Winter series.

Skipton Winter Series Rd3 6 January

The first race meeting of 2008 and the weather gods were again kind to us. Although cold, there was plenty of sunshine to lift the spirits. The Silvercan challenge proved again to be great fun and very close at the top and it was Dave Andrew and Dave Scouse at the front swapping the lead all day with Ken Dineen not far behind, scoring consistent 3rds and Allan Watkinson with as many 4ths. Mick Laing, Clive Andrew and Ian Gosling had their own close racing but could not quite catch the two Daves and by round 2 Dave Andrew had gained the new race record and both Daves had moved the lap record up a notch with Dave Scouse getting the faster lap. Round 3 saw both records fall again as the pace increased with Dave Andrew getting both fastest lap and new race record. The pace was relentless and it was interesting to see that the fast laps were gained by keeping up a good corner speed on the slower corners, I don't think either Daves let off the throttle at all! In the first leg of the finals Dave S took the lead after an early mistake from Dave A and never looked back, narrowly missing Dave A's new lap record by 0.03 second! Leg 2 saw the reverse as Dave A set off to win right from the off, a mistake by Dave S made him push to catch up, breaking the lap record again in the process, but not able to catch hard storming Dave A, who took the overall win. In nitro there seemed to be a rash of gremlins causing Shaun and John to miss the finals and Ken G to use his spare bike after a runaway sidelined the main bike. By the finals it was just down to Ken and Allan Waterfall, both who put in great performances and the second leg was superb to watch, with Ken trying everything to catch Allan, Ken getting his bike completely sideways onto the straight at one point and recovering superbly. But the well deserved overall win went to Allan Waterfall with a great drive, even though he was struggling with a few fork problems.

So, overall a great day, lots of fun, a few spills, but the racing was really great to watch. Thanks to Steve Newey for running race control again, hopefully we'll see Steve back on the track again soon. Next race in 2 weeks, January 20th.