Lemington Preseason Race

Leamington 4x Round 2

Like every year i think to my self that im going to train hard so i can have a successful year on the four cross circuit and like most years i ride my bike two or three times over the winter. But this year has been a bit of an exception, i have not been on my bike once. Instead this is what my winter training looked like.
I found out about a small race series at Leamington spa after seeing the results from the first round,this may explain why there was such a small turnout. so in my usual enthusiastic manor I decided I should try and make the next race as a late start to my pre season training.

I checked the weather forecast the day before and things were looking good for the days racing. A couple of phone calls to fellow competitors, Lee White and Mick Ridgeway and we were ready for the following days racing. The day started late, as per usual, with Mick turning up 30 mins late because Mick decide he can run his car on vegetable oil but it can only do 55 miles per hour. We met up with Lee some 45 minutes late and cruised on up to Leamington Spa. Unfortunately there were only 7 people entered into 17+ but all of us race in senior in the NPS so I thought it might not be so bad until I found out that there was not electronic gate.

It was a man who would shout "riders ready, pedals ready, go" and drop the gate. Fair play to the fella for doing that but I think he only got the timing consistently about 60-70% of the time. But it did bring back memories of the hayel duel track. So after an hour and a half's practice racing began, but because there were not that many competitors by the time you got back to the start it was your race again which made things a little exhausting.

On the racing front I was getting out the gate pretty sharpish, having a good first straight, a bit raged round the first turn. the first moto was my favourite as when I came round the corner both wheels where drifting sideways and every one at the side of the track started shifting backwards. the second straight was raged to and I probably lost a bit of speed there but that's when it got really bad. the first moto I went into the last corner first and came out third and the second moto I went in first and came out in last. a poor start in the next moto and a win in the last saw me straight into the B-final.Other competitors in this category to watch where Lee and Mick. Mick was having the best gates and pulling in some good results while Lee was not having the best of starts but was super smooth and carried his speed better than any one else around the rest of the track and was also pulling in some good results so the two of them where straight into the A-final.

The B-final for me went pretty much the same as all my motos, a good first straight in the lead, raged round the first turn and the second straight and into the final turn in the lead only to come out in second. so out of 7 riders I came 6th, how crap is that.

In the A-final it was Mick that took the lead followed by Keene with Lee white in third followed by Chris Mucklow and that's how they went into the first turn. For those of you that have never seen Lee White ride you can guarantee that at some point during a days racing he will crash and going into the final you could almost sense it. So into the first turn they came and with no help from anyone Lee's wheels washed out and he was down and out.

So the A-final finished
1 - Mick Ridgeway,
2 - Alistair Keene(I think that's his name)
3 - Chris Mucklow
4 was Lee White.

The B-final finished
5 - Chris Hatcher (I think that's his name to)
6 - Gareth Parr
and in last some one else who rides for MTB-Bitz I think it was Cooper.

Highlight of the day, well for everyone else any way, was when I shouted to Lee White "watch the lights" as a joke. but in shouting this every one that could hear that looked round only to see me looking backwards while cycling forwards straight into the back of a fellow competitor. We were both down and the shout was now "Gareth, watch were your going". So all in all a fun day out.

For pictures of the days riding click on this
link.


There is the last round on the Sunday 24th of February and you can find details on

www.leamington4x.co.uk

Gareth