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If you have never been to a minimoto race meeting then you have been missing out on the grass roots of British two-wheeled road racing, with riders as young as 6 scrapping elbow to elbow to prove they have what it takes to become the next Valentino Rossi. It is a sight that you will never forget and it will instil confidence in you that we undoubtedly have some future stars passionately honing their skills on small capacity 2-strokes. It’s not all about kids though, the grids are filled with a mix of ages from 6 to 50’s, every person enjoying the thrill of the competition, wherever their battles on the track. Forget the media sensationalism regarding minimoto’s, these race machines bear little resemblance to the cheap imports tearing illegally around your local estate. These are mini gp bikes, from 39 to70cc of pure adrenalin rush propelling the slick-shod bikes to speeds of 50mph and more and are prepared with as much care and precision as any works gp team.
For 2007 the MiniMoto Racing Association, the UK’s premiere minimoto race series organiser, modified their class structure within their 8 round championship to develop greater competition in the classes and for the first meeting of the season at the South Wales Karting Centre at Llandow on the 31st March/1st April the competitors came in their droves. Over 160 competitors filled the paddock with a buzz of anticipation and excitement as the winter of preparation was finally over and the new season got under way to the sweet smell of 2-stroke oil hanging in the air and the rasp of small capacity engines.
The format closely follows the set up of the big bike races in that Saturday is practice and qualifying and Sunday is warm up and race day with 2 races for the bigger wheel Metrakits – the stepping stone between minimoto’s and pukka grand prix race bikes and 4 races for the minimoto classes and sidecars. Yes you read correctly, there are also minimoto sidecar outfits – smaller scaled hand built versions of the full on kneelers and they are just as crazy as their bigger relations. Seeing truly is believing!
Saturday morning gave the racers the chance to bed themselves in, get used to new machinery, learn the track for the new competitors to ‘The British’ Championship or just blow away the winter cobwebs before the serious business of qualifying began. Even from the practice sessions it was apparent that the level of competition was going to be fiercer than ever this year with a strong local presence and as usual, practice pace picked up very quickly on a slowly warming track from the last rays of March sunshine. Competition between the Team Racetech, Havoc Racing and Minimoto Racing race teams was rekindled and familiar battles between old rivals across all classes could be seen to be stoked as qualifying arrived and riders set their mark with some very close times set before rain set in and the day drew to a close.
Fortunately Sunday saw the sunshine up before the paddock and take the chill off the cool air and after a brief warm up for each class we were into the days racing. And what racing it turned out to be.
In the Junior Production A class (Production spec machine, riders 9 - 13yrs old and <36Kg) Fraser Rogers took the overall honours closely followed home by Bradley Ray and Arran Climpsom with all riders providing some fantastic entertainment. Junior Production B (9 - 13yrs and 36Kg and over) saw some more exceptional racing with Luke Helm taking the first placed trophy from Harry Coomber and Sam Cherry in third. The Junior classes are always entertaining and the Junior Lights class (4.2hp standard machines – riders 6 > 13yrs and up to 36Kgs) proved no exception, bringing together some old rivalry with Bradley Ray taking a well deserved clean sweep of all 4 races from Wayne Ryan taking second overall and Ben Bailey a creditable third spot. Junior Cadets (4.2hp machines – riders 6 > 13yrs old and 36kgs and over) saw a dominating display by Josh Daley, romping away from the field to take a maximum 100 points with Sam Cherry consolidating a great weekend with second overall and George Powell third.
The Seniors Classes are often bruising but always entertaining closely fought battles with full grids and the first round of the Senior Production B class (Production spec machine – riders 14yrs plus and 75Kgs and over) brought the crowds edge of the seat action from start to finish with places swapping most corners and some do or die moves being attempted, not always successfully into the last corner.
After 4 frantic races Dave Perry on the Team Racetech RT2 took the honours with 3 wins and a third from last years champion Chris Martin racing for Havoc Racing in second and team mate Lee Sweetland in third. Senior Production A (Production spec machine – riders 14yrs plus and 60k to 75Kgs) again produced a strong field with talent in depth and breathtaking racing with Racetech’s Phil Scott taking a well deserved clean sweep of wins with some mature, controlled race craft followed home by Karl Raper with a hard fought overall second, with Steven Cook taking third by a point from Alex Olsen, so close was the racing. The Senior Production Lights class saw a dominant display by Danny Kent who again over the weekend showed why he is tipped for big things. In the Production Lights class he took 4 straight wins ahead of Mike Corderoy with a consistent 4 second places and Matthew Stainer and Phil Canessa sharing third place points. In the new to The British Aircooled A class he took another 4 straight wins from an on form Luke Shelley in second and Gary Hopewell in third proving that consistency brings silverware. The Aircooled B class was a Fast Forward Racing 1 – 2 with Neil Harrison picking up where he left off over the winter with 3 wins and a second from team mate John Pattison and Darren Norton picking up third overall. The Senior 4.2 A class saw a clean sweep for Greg James from Richard Ogilvie in second and Joe Stevenson in third overall. In the Senior 4.2 B Ian Develin took off like he had forgotten which bike he was on to take first overall, from Bernie Hook and Stuart Latham tied on points for second and third.
The Supers Class – up to 50cc anything goes open class – is fast, furious, eye popping racing from start to finish with 6 tyre melting laps of precision control. In the Supers A class Racetech took a clean sweep with Phil Scott rounding off a superb weekend with overall first place from Dan Underwood a strong second and Luke Holness in third. The Supers B was another one not to take your eyes off, with positions constantly changing however after closely fought races it was Danny Hedger that took the overall spoils from Chris Martin second overall and Nick Densley in third. In the Supers Lights class it was Danny Kent who proved that put him on anything and he is capable of winning coming home first from Mike Corderoy second overall and Scott Redding third.
To see two grown people on a hand built smaller scale sidecar outfit hurtle around a kart track alongside a field of likeminded people really is a spectacle it is worth going out of your way to watch. It takes a special breed of person to do this – slightly insane is almost certainly a pre-requisite but meeting after meeting these racers push the boundaries and enjoy every minute in doing so. The F1 Sidecars saw a clean sweep of wins for Mike Mantell and Louise Hutt from Gordon Martlew and Phil Mapplebeck in second and Mick and Daniel Leigh in third (Pic below).
In the F2 Sidecars it was a clean sweep for Mick Williams and Sue Morrell from Jon Carver (Pic below) in second and Geoff Ribchester and young Yanna O’Neil in third on their debut.
The 4T Sidecars was a bit of a lonely outing for Richard Guest and passenger Marc Coyles (Rich n' Marci - Outfit#1 - pic below) but it is points in the bag for the season ahead.
The FAB Racing run Mini GP50 and 70cc British Championships provides a quality springboard between minimotos and the mainstream big wheeled race championships and the standard of riding is incredible. The machinery is top class and looks like a GP bike and some of the youngsters taking part will undoubtedly end up on your television screens in years to come. The racing falls into three classes – Mini GP50, Mini GP70 and Mini GP-Fun 70’s for adults over 3 x 10 lap races for the 50cc class, 12 laps for the 70cc class and 10 laps for the Fun70 class.
The Mini GP50 class saw some dominant racing from Bradley Ray to take all 3 race wins from a consistent and hard charging Kyle Ryde in second and Harry Comber’s two thirds and a fourth just pipping Aaron Climpson to third place overall. The Mini GP70 class saw a monumental battle between Fraser Rogers and James Flitcroft in races 2 and 3 with only 0.179 and 0.039 seconds splitting the two of them in each race. It was really breathtaking to watch these two race so closely lap after lap, always in control but never more than a few feet apart. Sadly, a DNF in race 1 left James Flitcroft in joint third overall with Luke Helm, Jason Douglas picked up a very creditable second overall but the much deserved first place went to Fraser Rogers with 2 wins and a second and a display of future potential that was impressive.
The Mini GP-Fun70 class lived up to its name with thrills and a few spills thrown in for good measure. As the chequered flag dropped it was Robert Keys taking the accolades from Stephan Castille in second overall and Paul Baxter in third.
If you have any doubt about the future of British two-wheeled racing then get yourself along to a round of ‘The British’, the UK’s premiere minimoto racing series and see for yourself the wealth of talent being nurtured in this country. I guarantee you will not be disappointed, you may even be tempted to give it a go and you won’t find a better bunch of people, from organisers to competitors anywhere. The next round is at Larkall in Scotland on the 21st /22nd April then Lydd in Kent on the 26th/27th May. Spectating is free.
Source: Gary Moore (aka cbr6man)
Photos: Neil @ powersportmedia.co.uk
Full Race Results: http://www.blatamad.co.uk/ROUND1FINALRESULTS.htm
More Info: http://www.mmra.org.uk
Also published in issue 1 of TinyBikes - http://www.mmra.org.uk/downloads/TinyBikes07-1.pdf (10Mb - Rightclick, Save Link As)
Permission to reproduce granted. HiRes Imagery - HERE
Gary's Bit! (Senior Classes) - Photos coming soon!
On the 20th April the second round of the MiniMoto Racing Association (MMRA) British Minimoto Championship rolled into Larkhall, 20 miles South of Glasgow for another weekend of fast and furious low capacity, miniature GP racing competition. The first round at Llandow in South Wales had set a very high bar to follow but over the course of two days, both competitors and spectators were treated to some of the hardest fought racing I have seen, across all classes. The circuit itself reminded me of a smaller version of Cadwell Park and a walk of the track at dusk the evening before the meeting commenced indicated that it would be a very fast circuit with very high grip levels. The circuit had everything, fast sweeping bends, a very interesting ‘bus stop’ hairpin at the far end of the circuit before a sweeping ‘straight’, a tight infield double hairpin section and banked elements of the circuit running into a final flip flop downhill section to a tight final corner that was bound to create some last corner action.
Strong local support brought with it the best riders Scotland had to offer, some just coming to ride as a one-off, being the sole excursion North of the border for the MMRA, and this really stoked up the melting pot. Although some elected not to take championship points, they were still determined to take away some silverware and cause some upsets.
Saturday morning was the usual early start with sign on and scrutineering requirements and as the damp Scottish day broke it was clear from the paddock that this was going to be another popular round. With the official bits out of the way and the riders briefing completed the first bikes rolled onto the now dry track for a practice session followed by two fifteen minute qualifiers. The previous nights impression that this was a fast track were soon confirmed and those new to the circuit, a first visit here for the MMRA and therefore a lot of the riders, settled down to learn the track and pick up pace. And this they quickly did. Sometimes it is difficult to separate practice and qualifying from actual racing. Different people adopt different strategies towards practice and qualifying but the blinding speeds and times set clearly indicated that people were adapting to this track very adeptly and very quickly despite a number of high speed spills. Local circuit knowledge advantage for the Scottish riders was apparent but by mid afternoon it looked like everyone had been riding here regularly. It also appeared to be a track that suited all classes, with the sidecars and minimotos using the infield double hairpin while the big wheeled Metrakits carried straight on onto the banked section at the back of the circuit cutting out the infield. With the days proceedings drawing to a close the times posted indicated that Sundays racing was going to bring us a day to match the previous round, with some familiar names to the series mixed up with those not so familiar.
Rain during the night greeted the early risers Sunday morning leaving a wet track and the all-too-familiar tyre choice dilemma. Despite being a grippy track in the dry the early morning warm up sessions would have to be utilised to sort tyres but it was the Metrakits who were due to take the track for the first of their races with the anticipation of a repeat of some close racing seen at the first round.
Once again the spectators and watching racers weren’t disappointed, with races producing some breathtaking dices conducted at an electrifying pace. Highlight of the day in the Senior classes had to be the Production B class races with the second race producing what to a lot of people was the race of the meeting with a six man scrap from start to finish. As the flag dropped 15 year old Grant Villette hit the front on the Fast Forward Racing RT2, determined to make up for being knocked off while in the lead of the first race and racing only the day after having laser surgery on a damaged shoulder, hotly pursued by Mark Wooff, 2006 Champion Chris Martin, his Havoc Racing team mate Lee Sweetland, Danny Hedger and Dave Perry on the Racetech RT2 inches behind. As they disappeared down to the bus stop and out of view it was Villette who emerged onto the back straight still at the front and showing great maturity despite this being his first year with the MMRA, holding off the pursuing group of riders lap after lap, even opening a small gap, with Dave Perry skilfully picking his way up to second of the scrapping followers with one lap to go as Sweetland disappeared from the pack. And what a last lap it was. As the riders crossed the line for the penultimate time it was Villette a few metres ahead of Perry with the front running pack led by Mark Wooff just feet behind as they nailed these tiny machines down to the bus stop and back onto the straight. As Dave Perry chased the back of Villette’s machine edging ever closer Villette must have thought he had a start to finish win in the bag but as they came out of the infield hairpin complex Perry was almost in touching distance. As they hit the banking and the downhill section to the last corner Perry edged ever inches closer and as they braked for the last corner Perry went for a gap as Villette tipped his machine in and the watching crowd held their collective breath as Perry’s front wheel caught the back of Villette’s RT2 and they both went down, scattering the riders behind. In the scramble to remount Chris Martin seized the advantage to cross the line first, ahead of Mark Woof with a remounted Grant Villette crossing the line on one wheel with Perry remounting to come home in 7th. Although disappointing for Villette he came of age in this race and clearly marked his intention for the rest of the season as a potential future champion.
Gordon's Bit!
Junior Cadets / Junior Production B Race Report
It was one of those weekends where you could not rely on the weather reports from the BBC, the Met Office or one of those barometer gizmos that take pride of place in motor homes, caravans and under many a gazebo in the paddock. Nope, the man in the know was Stevie, the MMRA’s host for the weekend, who can sniff a raindrop at a hundred miles. So if you were fortunate enough to have a casual chat with Stevie you would know it was going to be dry on Saturday with some very light showers on Sunday morning instead of trying to second guess what the overhead nimbus stratus was going to do.
The programme was curtailed to 3 races per class due to time restrictions but it did not detract from the quality of racing that was about to unfold.
Cadets Race 1
Scots duo Ewan Gray and Jason Mortimer headed the front row qualifiers. They were joined by Round 1 victor Josh Daley and newcomer to the series Sam Cherry. Jason got the flyer as the flag dropped and was closely pursued by Ewan, Sam Munro, who made a good start from row 2, and Sam Cherry. As they flew past the start / finish line on lap 1 it was Jason from Ewan, Sam Munro, Sam Cherry, Josh, George Powell, Niall Campbell and Harry Pullar….phew! Jason, Ewan and Sam Munro were swapping places at the front with Sam Cherry and Josh close behind. It was the leading quartet who made the break and there was really nothing in it. The bikes seemed to be perfectly matched for speed so it was going to be down to rider skill. Jason and Ewan crossed the line side by side going into the last lap. It was going to be a tough call to predict the outcome but it was Ewan who just had enough of an advantage powering through the final corner to take the win. Jason finished a fine 2nd, Sam Munro 3rd, Sam Cherry 4th and Josh Daley in 5th.
Cadets Race 2
Could Race 2 live up to the excitement of Race 1….you bet. Ewan dived into turn 1 ahead of Jason, Sam Munro, Sam Cherry, Josh and Niall. On lap 2 it was Ewan and Jason who were making the break at the front. Jason executed a……what you might say….a forceful move on Ewan to take the lead. Ewan got back him at the end of the straight when he let off the brakes and dived underneath. Then before you could blink it was Jason back in front again. They crossed the line on lap 6 with Ewan in the lead followed by Jason, Sam Munro, Sam Cherry, Josh and Niall. Sam Cherry disappeared from the radar somewhere near the bottom hairpin and Niall was looking over his shoulder as Harry Pullar closed in like a heat seeking missile. Ewan and Jason had pulled out a few metres and crossed the line side by side once more to start their final lap. It looked like Jason had a plan to pass Ewan at the first left hander just after the main straight but the race was red flagged before he had a chance to put his plan into action. Ewan was declared the winner with Jason 2nd, Sam Munro 3rd, Josh 4th, Niall 5th and Harry 6th.
Cadets Race 3
It was Jason’s turn to make the holeshot with Ewan and Sam Munro just behind. Before the end of the first lap Sam Munro had edged into the lead with Jason, Ewan, Sam Cherry, Josh and Niall taking up their familiar positions. Sam Munro was fighting to keep Jason and Ewan at bay. No matter what the youngsters tried they could not find a way past Sam. Ewan squeezed in front of Jason but could not do anything about the leader. Josh and Sam Cherry were having a good dice just behind the leading group and further back George and Harry were catching Niall. Sam managed to eek out a few metres as Ewan and Jason were messing up each other’s lines as they battled for 2nd. After another frantic race long battle it was Sam Munro who took the chequered flag with Ewan in 2nd, Jason 3rd, Josh 4th, Sam Cherry 5th, George 6th, Harry 7th and Niall in 8th.
Junior Production B Race 1
The proddy bikes screamed off the line with Harry Coomber in the lead and Luke Helm, Jason Mortimer, Ewan Gray and Sam Cherry pressing hard. Jason made a superb pass round the outside of Luke to move into 2nd. Jason soon closed the gap on Harry and was looking for a way past but Harry was defending his line like a pro and Jason was having no joy. Ewan closed up on Luke and was piling on the pressure. Ewan out braked Luke but by this time had lost too much ground on the leaders. Harry kept his cool to take the win followed by Jason, Ewan, Luke and Sam.
Junior Production B Race 2
Harry made another lightning start and laid the challenge down to the rest of the field. Harry led after lap 1 closely followed by Jason, Luke, Ewan and Niall Campbell. Suddenly Luke’s bike appeared to slow and he was overwhelmed by the pack. Harry and Jason were the riders on form and pulled a gap from Ewan. Meanwhile Sam stormed into 4th place. Jason put an incredible move on Harry by riding round the outside at the left hander just after the main straight. Harry had no answer as Jason gradually stretched his advantage. Jason took the win with Harry in 2nd, Ewan 3rd, Sam 4th, Josh 5th and Niall 6th.
Junior Production B Race 3
Disappointed after his 3rd place in the final Cadet’s race of the day Jason was in a determined mood and was not going to settle for anything other than a win. Jason got the better of Harry this time to lead into turn 1. Harry had a go at the end of the main straight but Jason let off the brakes to keep the advantage as he peeled into the turn. Jason led as they passed the stripe with Harry in 2nd then Luke, Ewan, Josh, Sam and Niall. Jason was in dominant form and extended his lead over Harry, Luke and Ewan. It was Luke who showed great determination to haul in Harry and nip past him as they crossed the line for the final time. Jason took the win followed by Luke, Harry and Ewan.
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Last edited by Marci : 27-04-2007 at 01:10 PM.
