Northern Radio Moto Club

Skipton, North Yorkshire

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2010 RACE REPORTS

 

Skipton Club Day 28 Feb  RESULTS

Not sunny and very cold, but today's weather was surprisingly better than forecast. That is, it didn't rain and the track stayed dry all day. Perfect for yet more record breaking! And right from the off Dave Scouse was after doing just that. Rd1 saw Dave beat his previous race record by 2 seconds, using a wet front setup! Not bad. Phil Tennant was on the pace as well, only a lap down, Snooey was struggling with a weird handling bike and Ken Dineen was getting his stocker dialled in. Rd2 and Dave couldn't better his race result, so smashed the lap record instead! Phil managed an identical race time as Rd1,  Steve still getting problems and Ken increasing the Stock pace. Rd 3 and finally the records stay put, but not for want of trying. So to the first final and unbelievably, Dave did it again - adding another lap to the record (now 27!) and shaving a fraction off the new lap record with his well set McLarney.  I asked Dave to do a 28 lapper in the second final, only joking of course, but he very nearly did! Shaved another fraction off the lap record again as well. And in the first final Ken managed to break the Stock race record as well. Surely that's it, or I'll have to be contacting the Guiness people! At lunchtime we again had a sidecar race, with Richard's missus Bron adding to the grid with a newly painted Mardave and getting round very well for a first timer. Also JB was back with his Venom 1/8 mixing in with the sidecars and showing much improvement since the last visit. Sorry, can't remember who won, as was not added to the race schedule (maybe we can fix this next time?). So, to nitro. Ian Gosling seemed to be stuggling all day with the dreaded 'bouncy weave' that nitros tend to get at times, putting up with slower laps to keep it on the blackstuff. Hopefully Ian will find the cure in time for the next meet. Ken Gospel also had a frustrating bad gremlin day and that left Alan Watkinson and JV both on FS2s, to battle it out. JV was on a mission to recapture the race record that Alan nicked at the previous meeting, but Alan seemed to have increased his pace a little as well. The result was some really excellent close racing, with both pilots on identical bikes, it was nail biting and heart stopping all the way through.  JV managed a successfull mission in Rd3, but Alan increased the pace again in the finals and again the close racing was just great. A win each so a draw. Till the next meeting, Alan!

Supermotard. As a well known local pilot (with a memory like a sieve) is fond of saying, it was ace! Ken set the pace in Rd1 with (now not so newbie) Richard very close behind. JV had a handling problem and Steve (Croston, not Newey as stated in the results) was having a blast. There was, as usual, a certain amount of track diversions going on, bollard aiming, wheelie showboating, head on crashes (how?) etc, all adding to the fun. And a certain Doncaster plumber was to be seen taking his own route around the track, trying to keep his M5 on the ground and succeeding. Most of the time.  Anyway, JV got to the front in Rd2, with Richard again a close second. And yes, inevitably, Richard got his nose in front and crossed the line 1st in Rd3. In the Finals, Richard left everyone else floundering in his wake to take the first final win, with Ken 2nd. And Although JV got the 2nd final, Ken won overall, Richard 2nd. Oh who cares. It was just good fun, as usual! 

Hopefully we'll see everyone back in 2 weeks for the next instalment. And of course thanks to Snooey for running the meeting again. No pics this week as light was low, but there's a wee video clip on the video page.

 

Skipton Club Day 14 Feb  RESULTS

2 regulars back with a bang, a dry sunny track and a newbie winning his debut race! 

Yes it was another good day at 'Skipton International Raceway'!

In nitro Ken and JV seemed to be getting an unfair share of the problems, Ian had his 5 minute starting procedure down to 30 seconds and current National champ Alan Watkinson was back. Running the FS2, he set a new race record in Rd1, then promptly beat it again in Rd 2 by 2 laps! JV beat the old lap record in Rd 4 , but Alan upped the pace and knocked .3 sec off that! Ian was pulling in similar times to the last meeting where he earned top spot, but the extra pace from Alan was too much to catch. By now John was sidelined with a loose engine bearing and Ken was having radio / servo glitches, so that left Alan to cruise in for both final wins, despite a valiant effort from second placed Ian.

Superbike (mixed Stock and Superbike) was awesome to watch, the McLarney of Dave Scouse and Snooey's KP were super quick, both on the ragged edge and beyond.  Inevitably the lap record fell again, with Dave cutting a fraction off Roger Hardy's best lap from the last meeting. Steve Croston was back with his KP dialled in and producing his best performance yet, improving throughout the day and culminating in a personal best of 21 laps in the final. Ken Dineen also put in his best performance, having a very consistent day and breaking both the Stock class records. Dave got a drive problem in final 1 putting him out, which allowed Snooey to ease off the breakneck pace, but did he? No of course not. He did his best to grab the lap record from Dave and got within a gnats hair, but alas it was not to be.

Throughout the day there was at least one and sometimes 3 sidecars on the track, Maggie with the Mardave and both Kens with their own designs were driving between races and in the lunchbreak. Sorry I forget who came off best, but I feel sure it was Maggie!

Supermotard again brought laughter and smiles to faces, JV set the pace in Rd1, but it was hellish close in rd2, all finishing on the same lap and only 1.2 seconds seperated all pilots! For his first bike race, Richard Steadman was surprisingly quick, having tamed his wheelie monster and getting some obvious practice, he was now putting the regulars to shame. Ken struggled with radio problems and John hard a hard time keeping the front wheel down, but both kept pressure on Richard which only seemed to make him go quicker in the finals, culminating in his first ever 2 wheeled win! So, all in all another successfull meeting, the only downside was the lack of cakes as JB couldn't make it! Many thanks to Steve for running the meeting, I hope to see everyone again in 2 weeks. Usual pics in the gallery and results on the link above.

 

 

Skipton Club Day 31 Jan  RESULTS

Sunshine! At last. And although cold, we had a dry track for the first time in months. As expected, the new 8 minute records soon tumbled, with some fast laps in round 1, but after a bit of tweaking to suit the grippy track, round 2 produced the best with Phil Tennant, Roger Hardy and Dave Scouse within a mere fraction of a second of each other in the bid to gain the fastest lap. Roger eventually took the lap record from Dave with a stunning 17.60, but Dave got the new race record with a amazing 26 laps! Roger equalled his new lap record in round 3, Dave was having brake trouble and Phil went on to win with 25 laps. In the finals Dave continued to have trouble so it was Phil and Roger to battle it out, with Phil trying his best to tame the quicker bike, but Roger was to end up with both wins and overall champ for the day.  In Nitro Ian Gosling stormed off to a convincing first round win leaving Ken Gospel and JV a little shaken, but not stirred. Round 2 saw Ken get his own back, pushing Ian into 2nd. Ken again got the win in round 3, really putting the hammer down to get clear of Ian, who fought back bravely.  Things seemed to be reversed in the first final with JV taking the win after reverting back to the Superblade. In the 2nd final it was Ken and Ian fighting it out to the line with Ken getting it, Ian second and JV retired after losing a clutch bearing (again). Overall nitro winner - Ian Gosling. 

Supermotard was yet again a hilarious experience, I don't think anyone really cared who won or not, which was just as well because no 2 bikes ran the same track! Roger had to stick mainly to the tarmac for fear of wetting his esc and Ken & JV were seen taking many shortcuts to catch up with each other. In the finals we actually had 4 Andersons with new guy Richard joining in the fun and antics. Hopefully he'll be back for more at a future meeting soon. Many thanks to everyone for coming, particularly those who stopped by to have a look and a chat and the new guys who may be joining in the fun soon. Also to JB for the cakes and support and Phil for running the meeting, standing in for a not too well Steve. There are a few photos in the gallery. Next meeting in 2 weeks, see you there?

 

 

Skipton Club Day 17 Jan RESULTS

The ice thawed just in time for the first proper meeting of the year. With 3 rounds and 2 finals for the 3 classes and 4 drivers doing 2 classes it turned out to be quite a busy day. We are now running 8 minute races, but even the additional time didn't cause any problems and the meeting was finished before 4 pm. With the track being damp all day the grip level varied between not much and very little, but as usual produced some great spectacles, king of the show was yet again Chris sideways Douglas, with what must be a swivelling rear wheel at the back of his bike! Great driving Chris. Well only 3 nitros today, but the level has improved to the point now where only around a second seperates the fastest laps of all 3. Or maybe it was the low grip track 'the great leveller' but either way, it was closer racing and more fun than usual. 2008 Champion Ken Gospel got it all together with some great driving to take 3 wins, John got 2 and for some reason Ian Goslings results somehow never seemed to match his performance which has certainly improved recently. In electric, it was Dave Scouse with his fast, clean consistent laps that proved dominant, although Chris would have done better if he'd just cut the showboating for a while. Improvement of the day must undoubtedly go to Stephen Croston, after a little help from Chris, his bike became so much easier to drive and the results showed it. And surely Ken Dineen must take good credit for becoming the overall NITRO winner! Driving an electric stock! Well of course he was added to the nitro races to keep numbers even, but even so, it just showed how well he did today. In Supermotard, the racing was mostly close, with a little contact at times, a few shortcuts were taken but ignored, and apart from a certain Formby resident with whinging complaints about sandbagging and others having better batteries and motors, we all found it definately hilarious! Roll on the next meeting, in 2 weeks time.

Many thanks to Steve for running the meeting and JB for the tasty halftime treats.

Due to the increase in race length, new records are now showing above. They won't stay for long though, the next dry meeting will anhialate them!

 

 

Skipton Club Day 3 Jan

Abandoned due to ice and snow. However, 6 turned anyway and we had a little fun with the offroad bikes (see video section).

 

2009 Race Reports

 

Skipton Club Day Dec 20

Abandoned due to heavy snow

 

Skipton Club day 6 December RESULTS

A reasonable day weather wise, with some welcome sunshine and occasional short shower. Track remained damp all day with reasonable grip, going off later in the day.  The conditions meant that smooth driving and concentration was the key, no-one mastered this better than Dave Scouse who made it look like the track was dry. He went on to win both Superbike finals. Alan W had brake problems with his 4 stroke, Ken G had starting problems, but Ian G and his TTn seemed to be having one of his better days and JV didn't have any problems at all, taking both nitro wins with the excellent Superblade. Steve N and Phil T were just practicing, hope to see both Superbikes in the thick of it next time. The Anderson Supermotards were fun as usual, but gremlins forced this class to be abandoned before the finals. Many thanks to Steve Newey for running another tight ship and I really hope we see more competitors and bikes at the next meeting, 20 December.  

 

Skipton Club Day 22 November

Meeting cancelled due to low turnout....

 

Skipton Club Day 8 November

A poor forecast, but it turned out ok, with only the odd morning shower. The track remained damp, resulting in some of the most spectacular sideways action ever seen at Skipton! Both Dave Scouse and Chris Douglas were enjoying the speedway style so much that the racing came secondary. Chris accrued the most style points however, with unbelievable drifts, on one lap I counted only 2 -3 seconds where his bike was actually going straight! Both Ken D's and Alan's 4 strokes were still going strong in nitro, with Ken G's Gominator giving Alan, the new National nitro champ, a run for his money. JV had a bad gremlin day but enjojed it nonetheless. In Supermotard Snooey was almost untouchable again, at least the only bike to get past his stock M5 had a brushless and 3 cell lipo! Ken G had a good run with his M5 even if he had a hard time lining up for the jump all day, but finally managed it at the end. I can't remember who won and who didn't (secretary forgot his memory stick) but it didn't seem to matter as today was all about FUN!

 

Skipton Club Day 11 October    RESULTS

 

Skipton Club Day 27 September   RESULTS

A nice laid back atmosphere today, we had 7 nitros, 1 electric and 3 Supermotards racing. Unfortunately a generator fault before the 2nd final left us without any results, but it was a good day's racing and a very succesfull one for Allan Waterfall who brought his newly built latest bike along to try out, this is an upright engined, rear exhaust nitro bike and quickly got it set up and on the pace, culminating in the 1st final win! Dave Scouse may have won the Stock race, I can't remember. Steve Newey won the Supermotard race after both ARXs were sidelined with various problems. It would be nice to see more of the M5s at the next meeting, as we will be racing them as well from now on. Some pictures in the gallery. No animals were hurt before you ask!

 

Skipton BRCA round 13 September

Report and pictures on the BRCA site

 

Skipton Club Day 30 August

It was nice to be back after the long break and perfectly timed as a practice meeting, 2 weeks before the BRCA National, so everybody was doing last minute testing. Getting used to the track again after a long absence proved to be a little difficult for some, but it wasn't long before lap times came down to what we are expecting to see and in no time the top stock pilots, Dave Chris Roger and Steve, got stuck together in the usual super close racing we all enjoy watching. Mixing it with them was Col trying different bikes and having most success with the '06 Alleven V3, that bike really flies (see photo album).

Ken D and JV were running the 4 strokes again and Ian his smooth running stock TTn. Surprise visitor this month was Richard Blissett, usually seen at the Cotswold club, Richard put in a long driving stint to get here and race his stocker for the day. He also decided to bring his nitro bike for some early pre-National setup as well - Richard may elect to run nitro at the National to bring the numbers up to the minimum required, as at least 3 locals will be unable to attend. Thanks Rich, you're a star!

Thanks to everyone who turned up and also to Steve for running the meeting today.

Next meeting is the National in 2 weeks. Be there.

 

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.

 

CURRENT RECORDS starting Jan 2010 for 8 min races

                                       LAP                                                                            RACE

NITRO                          19.20  A. Watkinson                                     24/ 8m 6.56    J. Veal

SUPERBIKE                  17.24  D.Scouse                                           27/ 8m 0.05    D. Scouse

STOCK G2                    20.64  K. Dineen                                           23/ 8m 18.8   K. Dineen

SUPERMOTARD            untenable                                                       untenable

1/8 ELECTRIC

SIDECAR