The penultimate round of the 2024 TBEC Championship was held at Whaddon in Buckinghamshire on Sunday, October 6th. The compact course used the many different trail sections looped in with the existing motocross track to make up a diverse six-mile circuit. Unusually for TBEC, the course didn’t include very much woodland, normally in abundance on most of their Hare and Hound enduros. Torrential rain that had fallen during previous days threatened to spoil the proceedings, but on raceday, although overcast, the weather remained relatively settled. Even so, the going was decidedly tricky in places with slippery, muddy climbs, descents and corners that were certainly ready to test the riders.
Five minutes before the start, competitors received instructions from TBEC official Phil to start their engines for the warm up. For two whole minutes the cacophony of two strokes and four strokes together drowned out all other noise, then all went silent for sixty seconds as the electronic clock ticked down to the 10.30am start.
First away from Row Zero was young Joe Jefferies on his #29 KTM followed immediately by Phil Gilder (#24 GasGas), James Foxley (#355 KTM), Jack Kew (#126 Honda) and the #58 KTM of Eagan Bruley.
Following on one minute later came Row One, with Shane Patenall (#118 GasGas) taking the initiative in front of the #308 KTM of young Finlay Woods, then championship contender Dan Wheeler (#442 GasGas), Josh Watson (#80 KTM) and Jamie Barnes (#115 Beta).
Reigning champion Tobias Bailey (#1 KTM) was first away from Row Two, eager to chase down the hares in front of him. Following him through the gate was the #357 KTM of Paul Stone, Colin Wilson (#296 KTM), Darren Carter (#661 KTM) and the #34 KTM of Ian Gilder.
Rows 3 to 10 departed in a similar fashion in one-minute intervals until all ten blocks of riders had safely been dispatched. TBC Engineering’s Dan Wheeler was obviously enjoying the slippery conditions as he came around first at the end of lap one, having bridged the one-minute gap to Row Zero in front of him. Joe Jefferies was next to clock in, and not too far behind was Wheeler’s teammate Tobias Bailey, who had closed the gap between himself and row zero even more, his opening lap of 12:11 being one second faster than Wheeler’s. These guys weren’t hanging around, being the only riders in the field circulating with low 12-minute lap times. Also quick, but one minute adrift with his lap time was James Foxley #355.
Young Josh Watson got off to a disastrous start, the rear wheel bearings of his KTM disintegrating and forcing his premature retirement. This malady effectively handed over the Under-21 championship lead to arch-rival Joe Jefferies, who had scored in every round and, pending a good finish at Whaddon, could tie up the class championship with one round remaining – due to the TBEC format of dropping the lowest score at the season end. Back in mid-field, riders were having their own private battles against not only their track rivals but against the slippery course itself. Seasoned campaigner Terry Allen, #73, entered his 1970s Husqvarna and was doing a pretty good job on it, too, for a bike over 50 years old!
Up at the sharp end, Bailey had gained the lead position on the clock, but Wheeler still held track position, which was reduced with every lap that passed. Then, on the 5th lap, Bailey passed his teammate on the track and continued to open up his advantage. He came around to clock in for his 9th lap at 12:23, electing to start a tenth lap as he still had 9+ minutes to run. A minute later, at 12:24, Dan Wheeler decided to come in after his 9 laps, as to do another would have cost too many penalties to make it worthwhile. Champion Bailey scorched around on his 10th lap in 11:52 to record the only sub twelve-minute lap during the morning session. And that’s how they finished the morning enduro, with Bailey just gaining the edge over Wheeler with his extra lap.
In the afternoon enduro – which was run in reverse direction, the field got away at 1.30pm pretty much as they had in the morning session, though by now the track had dried out a little. It was certainly a fair bit faster than the morning enduro, as witnessed by the quicker lap times posted.
Bailey and Wheeler resumed their epic battle royale from the morning session, a fiercely contested one which saw Wheeler tear off into the distance on his opening lap to record a blistering 11:42 time! This placed him slightly ahead of Bailey who circulated 20 seconds slower at 12:02 for his opener. Behind them in the E1 class, Rob Molloy was storming around, doing his level best on the #192 GasGas to position himself well for his class finale. Vet Phil Gilder (#24 GasGas) was also rapid in his lappery, attacking the slippery sections with some gusto, as was Kiwi rider Corey Edwards in the Legends class.
Up at the front, Dan Wheeler had obviously hit problems, either crashing off his bike or hitting lapped traffic, as his lap time showed him to be over a minute slower than his opening lap at 12:47. Bailey, too, must have had his problems on track, since his second lap was 12:30. The two teammates were having a ding-dong cat and mouse battle and were probably enjoying it as much as the spectators. Bailey eventually pulled the plug and put in some fast laps to put himself ahead of Wheeler on the clock and within close proximity of him on the track. Both Bailey and Wheeler completed 10 laps this time, but Bailey’s faster lappery in both morning and afternoon races was enough to give the champion the overall win.
So once again, the two TBC Engineering teammates scored a one-two, placing them in an almost unassailable lead at the top of the Championship table. However, as everyone knows, the TBEC scoring system is one where even the top scorers cannot afford to stand on their laurels, because just one ‘no-score’ can upset the whole applecart! Finishing in a fine third place was young E2 rider Finlay Woods who performed consistently all day. Fourth overall went to a rejuvenated James Foxley, cementing his position in the Elite class. Young Joe Jefferies brought his KTM home in fifth overall, and it was enough for him to claim the Under-21 championship with one round to go!
Class Results
ELITE Class
In the Elite class, reigning champion Tobias Bailey (#1 KTM) topped the group, having been the only one to complete 20 laps. In second spot, runner-up Dan Wheeler (GasGas #442) ran a close second on 19 laps, with James Foxley (#355 KTM) coming in third on 18 laps. TBEC organiser Lee Smith brought his Husqvarna #6 home in 4th spot.
E1 Class
Jack Kew took his Honda #126 to the class win on 17 laps, with 2nd place man Rob Molloy on his #192 GasGas doing one lap more but losing out due to receiving 22 penalty points for going several minutes over time. In 3rd place was the #357 KTM of Paul Stone, with 16 laps under his belt.
E2 Class
Young Finlay Woods topped out the E2 class on his #308 KTM, having circulated 18 laps with no penalties. In second place was #262 Gary Curtis (Husqvarna), with one lap less on 17. Rowan Tarplee took his #249 KTM to third spot with 16 laps completed.
E3 Class
There wasn’t much to choose between them but Jamie Barnes (#115 Beta) just came out tops in the E3 class after a race long tussle with John Paul Bowering (#94 Beta), both having completed 18 laps. In third place on 17 laps was the #123 KTM of Ryan Pinzani.
Legends class
New Zealander Corey Edwards topped the Legends class on his #48 KTM, completing 18 laps, 4 ahead of runner-up Les Liney on the #331 Sherco. Not far behind in third was the #180 Beta of Darren Brooker, who also tallied 14 laps.
Vets Class
Phil Gilder again topped the Vets class, with his #24 GasGas completing 17 laps at the expense of just 9 penalty points. Darren Carter brought up second place with 16 laps on his #661 KTM, nearly 7 minutes ahead of third-placed Martin Bone’s #223 KTM, also on 16 laps.
Under-21 Class
From the off, young Joe Jefferies dominated the Under-21 class on his #29 KTM, completing 9 laps in each of the morning and afternoon races for the loss of 13 penalty points. Luke Townsend took a 3 point penalty on his little #169 KTM with 16 laps completed. Lewis Callaby finished a fine third on his #17 Sherco, having completed 14 laps with no penalties.
Super Vets Class
Des Pichel scored highest in the class with 16 laps completed on his #166 KTM. On 14 laps was second placed Jon Foxley with his #10 KTM, a full 10 minutes ahead of 3rd place finisher Steve Cornelius with his #398 Beta, also on 14 laps.
Trail Class
Gareth Davies took his big Yamaha Tenere #234 to the class win on 14 laps, while Nicholas Thomas was only slightly behind in second place with 14 laps on his Honda #140. Bringing up third was #268 Daniel Bloom, also on a Yamaha Tenere with 12 laps completed.
XDAY Class
Of the X day class, Rob Clarke came out on top with his #816 KTM with 15 laps to his credit. In second spot was the #810 Beta of Ricky Putenall with 3 laps less. Third placed Lee Jarvis took his #812 Yamaha around to complete 13 laps.
Half-Day Class
Ben Hovell took his #138 Husqvarna to top the half-dayers, with Darryl Gilder taking his new Triumph #517 to a good second spot on one lap less with eight. Alan Mitchinson was also on 8 laps in third place on his #33 KTM.
The final round of the TBEC Championship takes place at
Deepdale, SG19 2NH on Sunday, November 3rd, so make a point of being there to enjoy the ultimate action of the year. Remember parking is restricted so you’ll have to arrive in the same vehicle as the entered rider you’re supporting. Take it easy and see ya, R A.
Results
