Mws
Hopton January 22nd |
Welcome
to writings of a mad man, sums my race reports
off quite nicely (available off the Rave
Racing web site ). Those who don’t know
me I race for Rave Racing and have been writing
race reports for our web site. Enter Smithy and
Tim (no offence**) who after enduring some of
my race reports asked if I would type for the
Smoke Riders site (funnily enough I said yes,
if I had said no then well you wouldn’t
be reading this duh ha). When I’m not racing
I can be found most weekends at Chicky with either
my son Alex or the dog Sky.
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Anyway as this is my first
report for Smoke Riders it will be more or less
the same as the Rave report which is more like
a diary and is more centred on the category (masters)
that I race in. I can’t report what I don’t
see or hear about. I encourage feed back to see
what can be changed to appeal to surfers on this
site, just don’t expect too much, And now
to the report.
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Hopton
a small wood (if 3000ish acres is small!) on the
side of a hill in the middle of nowhere, well
Shropshire actually but it’s a right pain
to get to from Luton. Organized by Lindsey and
Dave Pearce from Ludlow down the road a bit, starts
the 06 downhill race season off.
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So
after getting up at an unnatural time for a Sunday
morning and driving 130 miles in the fog (NICE),
I manage to arrive at the same time as dawn breaks
which gives me a perfect link into my first course
description. |
The
course starts from a mound at the top of the hill
(always a good place to start from) and after a
quick sprint you hit the first corner and into the
woods. Up to the second fire road its business as
usual on the original track (read bedded in and
sweet) okay between the first and second fire road
it’s a bit flat but I digress.
Last year the loggers had been in and the track
got trashed because of it: the clear cut last year
was hard work. Fortunately a slightly more direct
way down the hill has made this section 80% better
- for that extra 20%, time will bed it in and it
will be so much fun, with a sheep line and in places
little lines here and there some work some don’t.
The fly in the ointment is the roots and tree stumps
ready to grab your front wheel and send you in the
wrong direction. |
| As
you leave the clear cut and enter the second woods
the tempo changes from flat out almost straight
line to completely new section for this weekend
again taking a more direct way down the hill but
with switch backs left right left right over roots
and tree stumps, then round some corners where you’re
literally using the base of trees as the track,
into a few corners made on natural banked berms,
as you lever the second wood you hit a naughty step
off which is so easy to get wrong. |
| The
next section another new one in a young plantation
has had work done to it, but needs a bit of weathering
to turn it into a great bit of track, a bit boggy
in places but just before you hit the uplift fire
road a lovely little section, after the fire road
there’s a small log on the left that can be
rode round at maybe 2 tenths lost or you can hop
it (although get it wrong and it will have you eating
dirt) just before you get to the old track three
ditches in the track do there best to have you off
(in my opinion if one bit of the track needs sorting
it’s them). Back to the old now to the bottom,
pedal like an idiot for the step down (not that
I could do it this weekend) then into a long right
hand berm (god the braking bumps) you have to hold
as much speed as poss as there a slight flat bit
after it, then into some mad single-track with again
a sheep line and a sneaky right hand line, round
a tight left, over a small natural table into the
finish table then pedal like an idiot to the line
in around about three and half mins. |
With that time to hook up with the lads in the
paddock (well done Jas) and grab myself a bacon
buttie and blast furness hot coffee (courtesy
of Janet’s Jackets) on this cold and crisp
morning. With most the lads riding Sat and some
messy shenanigans that night I was at a slight
disadvantage, although the messy shenanigans probably
evened the playing field a little. Time to scratch
my (insert comical word) whilst I decide what
to tyres to run and get suited and booted ready
for the half eight kick off.
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What
a pleasant shock I got when I found out that the
uplift was from the second paddock and not the
woods (you had to be there). And after the little
push to the top, time to ride. Only managed four
runs and the last one was in extra time that me
and about a hundred other riders sneaked in. It’s
not like the uplifts were poor all morning if
you had to wait ten mins to get on the trailers
you had a long wait, it just took a while to get
to the top.
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| Time
for some racing and to kick of the hard tails and
first up masters rider Wayne Tabernor for the first
of his four runs on his hard tail (he also rode
his hard tail in the masters! Respect). Which was
about our cue to get into the queue, at this point
I made the unwise decision to wear shorts and change
to lighter gloves (one time man, one time***). So
once up the top time for some pre-race banter and
work out what young whipper snappers have come from
the seniors. For some reason me and four other quick
riders were un-seeded and were in with the slower
riders, said four riders had a little bitch amongst
themselves and set off first, I didn’t get
involved but I should have, as on my run I caught
three other riders who admittedly got out my way
when they could. The plus side was I got to watch
the lads come down. At this point I got my digi
camera out but unfortunately run the battery flat
before I could work out to use it (ahh bless). |
| Unfortunately
I didn’t see much other racing as I was to
busy networking/ having a laugh with the lads /
talking buӣ$%$s (delete as appropriate).
I did see the experts and elites from the comfort
of our pit area. They all made it look to easy especially
boom boom (Scott Beaumont) over the final table,
and Marc Beaumont (no relation, I think) who looked
as fresh as a daisy. |
| Being January and a full
entry list we went back to the hard tails for our
second runs to try and get all of us down by 3.30pm
when racing had to be stopped for safety due to
lack of light. |
| Second runs were seeded
and the lads had got four in a row, that’s
what happens when we have our inside man (Dr Evil)
doing the timing. From what I can gather we all
did well. As for my run, other that one person sprawled
across the track, I only managed to go 1 sec quicker
(where did I leave my book of excuses, ah there
it is) “the track had cut up more than I’d
expected”. |
| Again despite being right
next to finish didn’t see much, so sorry (back
to the book) “well we did have to take the
pit down” but my sausage and chips were more
important to me so I didn’t do a lot (sorry
lads). With that I got in the car and buggered off. |
Later after getting
the results the masters have been invaded by more
young whipper snappers in the form of Ian White
nearly 15 sec’s quicker than me taken podium,
upsetting Collin Williams who took second and last
on the podium was last years young un Scott Tankard.
Just missing the podium was Rich Green in 4th .
Seb
Ramsey and Jono Simpson put in good one beating
me and as for four runs Wayne 12th on a hard tail
in this cat very respectable. |
| Elsewhere other than
the vets were Steve Parr took 10 sec’s of
his nearest rival of Rich Abbott, the times at the
top were all close in all other cats. As for the
big boys in the elites Marc took the win over Stanny
with an amazing time of 2:50 and Robert Smith took
third. |
| Results can be got off
pearcecycles
if you want. But for me it was just getting back
to down hilling and meeting my mates who I wouldn’t
see other wise. Thanks goes to Jas and the lads
for getting pit ready, Superfly (Si Paton) doing
what he like to do best TALK the talk on the PA
(to much alcohol the night before put him of riding!),
Lindsey and Dave, Janet’s Jackets (just take
down the calendar of Jono it put me of my food,
again you had to be there), the F.C. and local farmers
providing tractors, first aid and marshals plus
any others I left out. And so ends the first report
of the year. |
| See you around the Timmmey |
You get a p.s . Of
your own.
As this is my first report for you lot I welcome
some feed back but don’t forget I’m
here to race (or at least I think I am) and it’s
hard to get track side with out compromising my
practice. Secondly blah blah blah … sorry
that might have gone on for a bit. Any way no reasonably
offer refused so bye!
• ** fast show
ref
• *** meet the kumars ref |
Repot
by Timmmey ( aka - Phil Gray) |
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