Hottrax Motorsport Racing Club Motorcycle Championship Race Reports
words by Alfonso Lygo

Pictures by RyanWildman at British Sport Photography

Sorrymate.com-Hottrax Motorsport 2011 Round Four at Snetterton, Norfolk on 18th to 19th June 2011

National and Junior Endurance Race - 40 minute Superpole

The start saw a stall on the line prompting the pace car to be deplyed. Current championship leaders Sweatshop (Hugh Brasher/Mick Godfrey) made the best tyre choice given the unpredictable weather conditions to complete 18 laps in the 42 minute encounter. On the road and pushing Sweatshop were 600 triple class winners M & M Racing (Lewis Mason/Robbie Moore) after Moore went out on wets for the first half swapping to a slick toting Mason at half time to cross the line 14s behind the larger machine just as the heavens opened again which could have been interesting a few minutes earlier. Banzai (Ben Jenkins/Rupert Thompson) were more than half a minute down on the 600 but ahead of last season’s National 600champions Pit Stop Racing (Marc/Peter Dilks) with TANC (Pete Baker/Chris Mason) taking fifth ahead of Brand Brothers (Martin/Peter). Filling out the top ten were the very quick pairing at Derek Redmond 4 (Neil Garnham/Tony Rogers), Blujets (Carl Hodgkins/Ash Rothwell), Initiatec JR Racing (John Burr/Mark Roxbrough) and In the Dog House (Arron Bird/Garry Janes).

National and Junior Endurance Race – Three Hours

Raceday was dry but cool and over forty machines left the traditional Le Mans start - just as the heavens well and truly opened. It was a tough call and with 99% of the field on dry tyres and it was Rawlings Racing (Lee & Matt Rawlings) and Half a Chance Racing (Andy Carpenter/Martin Townsend) who lost the bet and were back in pit lane for different rubber. After a few minutes a dry line was evident and M & M were leading from Simply Black and White (David Brooking/James McBride), Pit Stop, DR4, Visorvision (Paul Berryman/Keith Flint), Apex (Adam Woby/Nick Matthews), Brands, BLDS (Bill Lilly/Jon Otter) and Handbag and Shoes (Richie Cunningham/Tommy Dale) - National 1000 championship leaders Sweatshop were 15th.

James McBride had quickly snaffled the lead and was looking strong as Sweatshop fell at Oggies in the hands of Mick Godfrey; attempting to return via the infield Mick found gates locked and took a while before the bike could be made safe and effective for Hugh Brasher to get back out at the tail of the field. Major dramas for In the Doghouse who retired at around the same time as Andy Dix was back in the pit lane looked desperate with his spanker BMW which suffered from a chocolate gearbox. A rash of pit stops came and went before DR4 was leading on the road ahead of 600s M&M, Dales Racing (Richard Steadman/Freddy Pett), Pit Stop, Handbags, TANC, Brand Brothers, Banzai, Visorvision and Ridgeback Racing (Mark Clark/David Stolliday).

After 60 minutes it was the Junior 1000 machine of DR4 sharing the lap with M & M, TANC, Pit Stop, Dales, Brand and Banzai; Black and White were down in 23rd and Sweatshop 9 laps down in 39th – for the championship it was imperative the ZX10 completed 75% of the finisher’s distance to earn as many points as possible.

Half distance and the status quo was being maintained apart from Handbags dipping into the top six at the expense of the Brand Brothers and Dales were on a real push towards the sharp end. BLDS’s ‘supersub’ Otter reported in his pit stop that his clutch was disintegrating and slipping coming out of the slow corners, costing valuable time, they were ninth on the road and second in class, we had lost class leaders Apex with engine gremlins and Half a Chance with a puncture.

With an hour left on the clock DR4, M & M, TANC, Dales, Pit Stop were within 72 seconds on each other, Blujets (Carl Hodgkins/Ash Rothwell) and Ridgeback were in the top ten, BLDS were circulating in twelfth ahead of Black and White but behind Visorvision. The final hour was the most nail biting as Dales put their foot down and started challenging classmates M & M for the class win and second spot on the podium; at the two and a half hour mark this was achieved with the top six teams all on the same lap and M & M within touching distance of Dales as they disputed the National 600 win. The Garnham/Rogers Junior 1000 pairing at DR4 had the almost perfect race to take the flag by 34 seconds from Dales who could not relax with M & M less than two seconds adrift; fourth went to National 1000 winners TANC after a solid performance finishing ahead of Banzai and Pit Stop – all pegged at 83 laps. Finishing only a lap down on the leaders were Handbags, a recovering Black & White, Brand and Blujets. BLDS, Visorvision and Ridgeback failed to make it into the top ten and Sweatshop were magnificent in coming eighth in class to pot some points in their campaign. In a race almost totally dry and with 600s taking two of the podium places and making up half the top ten; is Snetterton 300 less of a power circuit than its predecessor?

It was a massive result for father and son team of J& B Racing (Brad and Jason Bradlaw) who sewed up a podium place in the Junior 600 race, what more appropriate way of celebrating Father’s Day – giving them both a day to remember.

Michelin Power Cup 1000

Race One

Gaz Evans on his BMW earned pole by a stunning practice performance by over 2.5s from Tony Kielty, Shane Pearson and current points leader Mike Dickinson. The opening couple of laps took two victims; coming man Shane Pearson and John Boakye after Gaz Evans peddled his Beemer off the start line and was never troubled during the race, Tony Kielty and Toby Simpson ensured the top three retained formation until the end of the race. Dickinson was fourth for much of the race until slipping behind Greg Allsop who steered his R1 passed the getfaster man, Paul O'Connor, Steve Sarson and Steve Bentley rounded off the top 8. The next three riders could be covered by a small bed sheet; Andy Rouse, Stephen Harrison and 70.

Race Two

Undoubtedly the best race of the programme, spots of rain graced the assembling grid but evaporated by the start. Yesterdays winner Gaz Evans was a DNS after totalling his BMW in a ding at Coram whilst out on a wet front & dry rear during morning warm up - ouch! Fireblade mounted Pearson made a super start from the back of the field to grab second on lap two behind Keilty who set off from the front row. A quartet of riders circulated in close proximity for a number of laps with the lead being shared between Lo Turco, Pearson, Dickinson and Keilty. It was Dicko who took the top podium step after grabbing the lead at the half way point demoting Pearson, Rhalf & Keilty who held a huge gap over Allsop a fair bit ahead of Sarson, Bentley, Harrison, Eagling and Bransgrove. Andy Rouse could have had a better run calling into the pits with an unhealthy sounding Honda, returning but retiring a lap later with a disappearing gearbox.

Race Three

Interesting start to his final race of the day as he started from the back of the grid after failing to get out of the pit lane in time for the sighting lap. By the second lap the amiable South African had earned his place at the head of the pack in front of Pearson, Lo Turco and Kielty with Allsop in pursuit. We lost Darren Blackwell with a couple of laps to go and Kielty was deposed by a charging Allsop and Simpson, the leader board reading Dickinson, Lo Turco, Pearson, Allsop, Simpson, Kielty with Sarson and O’Connor difficult to split on the line.
  
Michelin Power Cup 600

Race One

Setting the pattern for the weekend, mixed qualifying conditions produced a front row of 'back from his hols' Danny Imberg, wet weather man Ady Allsopp, Jeremy Mitchell and rookie Richard Charlton - title favourite Grant Wagstaff was on Row 2 with a whole lot of work to do. A late appearance in the pit lane causes Allsopp to start from the back of the grid. Newcomer Ketchell capitalised on his front row start and was away like a bullet until Lap 3 when he bailed out onto the grass and into the mud. Another non finisher was Allsopp who from last was up to a creditable fourth on lap one, second by lap two and missing by lap 3. Wag was a beneficiary of all this moving up from 5th to 3rd then into a comfortable second spot which was protected until the end of the ten lapper. Paul Barker was third ahead of Richard Charlton, Peter & Marc Dilks, Will White, Nick Green, Adam Woby in a handy ninth and Daniel Ward Clarke in tenth. 

Race Two

That man Imberg nailed the start never to heeded, another man on the move was Adam Woby who got a stormer and moved up from eighth on the opener to sixth at the end of the nine lapper. Allsopp made it hard work starting towards the back and unable to work his way up the field. The field included the Pit Stop Racing riders of Dilks brothers Marc and Peter as well as Mark Affleck who kept it clean to finish fifth behind leader Imberg, Charlton, Wagstaff and Green. Sean Moore was outside the top half dozen in front of a battling trio of Allsopp and the two Dilks who clashed machines in the hotly contested drama. Newbie Dan Ward-Clarke fell at Nelson, spoiling an otherwise productive entry into the Michelin Power Cup.
  
Race Three

Imberg made it a perfect score of three out of three dominating from the opening few yards of the race which was curtailed at 3 laps following a spill by Jamal Mahmood before the start/finish straight. Charlton followed Imberg closely for the race with Wagstaff in a handy third, keeping his title hopes alive. Allsopp didn’t have enough race distance to work his way through and had to be content with fourth ahead of Affleck and the two Dilks (all three Pit Stop Racing riders finishing in formation), Woby was a creditable eighth in what was a very short duration.

MotoGrande 1000

Race One

Triple winner at Anglesey Julian Hughes made the best start on a wet track with dry line appearing, he was quicker off the mark from Ash Daughtrey and Andrew Fenton, the top four had already opened up a gap on the rest. After a couple of laps, champ pretender Phil Brooks was back in pit lane after dramas and a lap later Kris Sanders, shortly to relocate to the Middle East also posted a DNF, Daughtrey overhauled Hughsie for P1 and at around half distance Adrian Beevor retired from fourth at the Bombhole. The top three maintained their stays quo ahead of Stephen Bridle, Jamie Loveday, Adam Reeve, Michael Elliott, Raymond Stagg, Les Linney on his smashing Ducati and Dave Williams.

Race Two

I was Hughes who made no mistake to grab the lead from the green light getting the better of yesterday’s faller Sanders who was on pole, Kris finishing in a useful 3rd sandwiching Brooks at the end. Rhalf Lo Turco was on a charge, seventh at the start gradually headed towards the sharp end to grab P4 in front of the four As - Reeve, Fenton, Beevor and Daughtrey. Bridle was ninth and Jamie Loveday whose father races in Endurance was a convincing tenth. 
  
Race Three

Brookes made the best of starts in a big field of riders from Hughes, Reeve and Lo Turco – this trio of riders becoming a real six wheeler for the early part of the race, by lap four Brookes had given way to pressure from the Brazilian but managed to fend off the attentions of the pursuing pack for the remainder of the encounter. Such was the action that on the penultimate lap Fenton clashed with Beevor who did not make the flag, the top four had created a gap before the rest came through; Kris Sanders and earlier winner Daughtrey. 
  
MotoGrande 600

Race One

In a 10 lapper that started in very wet conditions with a bit of dry coming, super rookie Shaun Champion who took the lead, building up an advantage of 5s on the opening lap from National runner Freddy Pett as Scot Adam. Lap 2 saw Champion off at Oggies as Pett took the lead from Adam, Andrew Nicholson and George Harvey. Niño Cataldo stopped on the start line after a persistent misfire; Pett was reported to be touring at Bombhole leaving Nicholson to take a win over Adam, Harvey, Warren Verwey, Jake Kay and Wayne Crossman in sixth. Completing the top ten were; Matt Smith, Nick Barnes, Nick Matthews and Richard White. Special mention of Carl Payne who pegged a fantastic 13th in virtually his first race.
  
Race Two

After running out of petrol in the opening race, Triumph mounted Freddy Pett made no mistakes in dominating the race. It was left to Champion, Smith, Adam + previous winner Nicholson to slug it out and finish in that order, Adam only 0.2s down on the third man but unable to make up the difference. Colin Norris had an interesting race going off track no less than four times on four different parts of the track, he had been 8th but going off piste dumped him in tenth behind Verwey, Crossman, Kay and Lund.
  
Race Three

Freddy Pett left us in no doubt as to his talent and speed as he used the whole meeting, including a successful appearance in the 3 hour Endurance race as he made it another flag to flag victory on his Triumph 675. The best of the rest included Champion who had a solid second in front of Matt Smith + Kay who fought over the final podium position, Smith getting the better by 87 thousands of a second. A similar ding dong was going off further down the field for Roger Slater, and Colin Norris as they battled away for eighth.

Ducati Desmos

Race 1

In a race that started in torrential rain, was red flagged following a 'bike in a Unsafe position' and a restarted five lap race it was Mr Consistent Neil Appleby a mere 2.8s from Matthew Lawson with Ron Jolley in third. Paul Baleta, Andy Challis and Neal Catling completed the top six.

Same old - same old for race two after an incident and a restart for a five lap rush, this time it was Challis who took the win from a hard charging Appleby by 11 seconds with Paul Payne in a handy third. The splendidly named Dallas Hornblower was only a couple of seconds down on 3rd, a similar time up on Paul Bradbury, Hugh Simpson topped up the first six home

Allcomers

A five lap splash around the new 300 circuit saw a win for Dales Racing, Raymond Stagg, Phil Brooks back from his MotoGrande retirement, Patrick Jeans, Half a Chance Racing, Phil Jeans, Black Flag Racing and Tony Bradshaw.