Hughes on top at Fast Eddy opener! 2021 Fast Eddy Club Championship Round 1 – Race Report & Results

This weekend saw the opening round of the Fast Eddy Club Championship take place, and it was a great opener! Named the ‘Mega Venue’ by Paul Edmondson, it truly lived up to that and provided two great days of riding.

Report and Images by Tilde Tighe – Foto-x

After a practice day on Saturday, the Kids Race started at 3:30 and, despite a bleak weather forecast for most of the week, the sun was shining! The new format for the championship this year isn’t really that new, but more of a return to traditional club championships that help riders, especially kids, progress more easily without huge steps up between classes. Also, races were limited to numbers of riders so that the track didn’t get overcrowded and prioritised quality over quantity.

The race was made up of 23 kids across 4 classes: BW 85cc, SW 85cc, 65cc and Autos. Their hour-long race made for great Saturday afternoon entertainment, and with perfect weather it was a great addition to the weekend’s schedule.

In the BW 85cc class it was Will Barnett who put in an excellent ride to take first in class and the overall race win! He pulled a 1 minute 40 second lead on second placed Tom Dyson, who was also second overall in the race. They both completed 19 laps, two more than third in class Josh Cole.

The class win in the SW 85cc class and third overall in the race went to Jack Brookes, followed by Harri Farrell in second and Royston Totty in third, both a lap behind. In the 65cc class it was Harry Jordan who took the top spot on the podium, as well as an impressive 6th overall. Second place went to Talon Harbour, followed closely by Aaron Jones.

The three Autos rode impressively and managed to keep up with the rest of the pack and completed 13, 12 and 11 laps respectively. First place went to Jack Forman, second was Tommy Rowan and Adas Juska was close behind in third.

The first adults race on Sunday began bright and early at 9:30 am, when the Kid’s race used to start in previous years, and it was a shock for the adults who are used to having a longer lie in! With over 80 riders lined up and light rain overnight making the grassy track slippery, it was sure to be an exciting 2-hour race!

The Sportsman 2T and overall race win went to Tom Slater who completed an impressive 11 laps of the 5-mile course. Kai Tinker was only 45 seconds behind in second place in class and overall, with Colby Moorcroft third in the Sportsman 2T. In the Sportsman 4T class it was Roy Bloomfield who took the lead in front of Jake Moore in second and Scott Tatchell in third.

The Over 50s B and Vets B classes are often overlooked, but are actually very competitive classes! In the Over 50s B it was Shaun James who led from the first lap and made up a 5-minute lead on second placed Stephen Thornton, with Wayne Parkes a lap down on the top two in third. As for the Vets B class, Carl Wilkes rode well to take the win, followed closely by Kieran Jordan in second and Ant Park rounding out the podium in third. In the Novice class, Mark Thompson got out in front and led the race throughout to win, a lap ahead of second placed Kriksciukaitis Marius and third placed Dylan Leech.

The 85cc Class was competitive, with some riders from the kids race the day before taking part to test the waters and see which race would suit them best. However, it was Jayden Jones who dominated the class to take the win nearly 4 minutes ahead of Alfie Davies in second place, followed by Dylan Tinker in third. Will Barnett had rode well off the back of his win the day before and was in second place for most of the race, but after he lost his clutch with 3 laps to go he slipped down to fourth place but still managed to finish!

The PM race was also 2 hours long and tackled the 5-mile track that had been worn in by the AM race riders. The huge hills, grassy expanses, stream crossings and a big jump made for exciting spectating!

The Expert class was packed full of fast riders, and they made the race incredible to watch. However, Sam Hughes put in a superb ride to take the Expert class and overall race win! He managed 12 laps, as did second placed Harry Houghton, who was also second overall. Close behind them was Richard Moorhouse, taking third in class and overall.

While the overall standings were filled out mainly by the Experts, a number of Clubman riders made it into the top 20! In the Clubman 2T class it was Sion Evans who took the top spot on the podium, followed only 40 seconds behind by Ash Cotterell, with Ant Trawford a further 2 minutes behind in third. As for the Clubman 4T’s, Jack Evans put in an excellent ride to take the class win, with Olly Ray hot on his tail just 20 seconds behind, and Liam Ryland in third.

In the same way as the AM race, the Vets A and Over 50’s A put on a show for spectators and the podiums were hotly contested! However, it was Derek Bawn who came out on top in the Vets A class! 10 seconds behind in second place was Tim Forman, and Luke Powell was a lap down on the top two in third. In the Over 50s, John Shirt put a great ride in and took the class win, followed by Chris Wagstaff and Andy Harvey, both a lap down on Shirt on 11 laps.

The final class in the PM race, Youth A, was as competitive as ever! Jack Sandland dominated the race to take thr top spot on the podium and build up a minute and a half lead on Roan Delaney who took second place in class. Rhydian Rees was a further 3 minutes behind in third place. A special mention goes to Ryan Griffiths in the Youth class who competed in both adult races on Sunday, totalling 4 hours of riding!

Thanks for all the support as usual on behalf of the Fast Eddy Team, and see you in 3 weeks time across the road (the venue is yet to be named- Paul?) for Round 2!

Results

PM Race

AM Race