The TBEC hare and hounds enduro, held on Sunday, 9th June, at Ironstone near Kettering, turned out to be a different event in many ways from those that preceded it. The course itself was made up of many different sections, each contributing to an overall lap designed by the TBEC team to test the skills of the very best riders. Some very technical, nadgery sections – encompassing steep ups and downs, would serve to be a focal point for both riders and spectators alike.
Report by Roger Allen – Feature Image courtesy of Vanessa van Wyk
There were flat-out sections, log jumps, bridges and dense woodlands waiting to catch out any riders whose concentration lapsed for a moment. The damp morning dew on the grass gave rise to some lurid slides and, in at least one unlucky case, bone-breaking injuries, too! The day was overcast but dry and cool, and the low ambient temperature was welcomed by many of the competitors.
When the 10.30 am deadline arrived, Dan Wheeler #442 led off on the TBC Engineering Beta, followed closely by Edward Harris #135 on his KTM. The two were followed in close order by the rest of row zero. Reigning champion Tobias Bailey #1 elected to lead off row 1 on his TBC Engineering KTM, followed by the KTM of Josh Watson #80, with the remainder of the groups following at one-minute intervals. At the end of the first lap, Ed Harris came around to clock in first, just ahead of Wheeler. Just as he had done in previous rounds, Tobias Bailey began carving into the advantage of the lead group, and by lap four, the ‘Cheltenham Flyer’ had bridged the one-minute gap – passing leader Harris on the track and clocking in a corrected 1 minute 25 seconds ahead on time. In the meantime the damp grass was playing havoc with many of the riders, including front runner Wheeler. He had high-sided off his Beta and landed squarely on his shoulder, slowing him down considerably. On completing 5 laps, Bailey pitted for fuel, allowing Harris to pass him by again on the track but still 1 minute adrift on time. Bailey hastily left the pits chasing after Harris, managing to pass him once again but then disaster struck! The champion failed to appear at the end of the 6th lap! Edward Harris arrived at the timing tent on his own with his lead unthreatened and did one more circuit. By the time the 12.30 pm deadline came around, Harris had romped home a worthy winner of the morning session, having completed a full 7 laps.
I took the opportunity to chat with champion Bailey during the lunch break to find out what happened. It turned out that his KTM had run out of sparks caused by a faulty coil. He told me, “I decided to try out my 250 today as I’d just rebuilt the engine last night. It was going great too until the coil packed up! No excuses though. I think Ed was ‘on it’ today so fair play to him, he rode really well.”
In the meantime, Wheeler had gone to the medics, who confirmed that he’d broken his collarbone. Asked whether he’d be retiring for the day, Wheeler replied, “No way, mate. I’ve got points to earn, and I can’t afford not to race, as I want to win the championship!”
The afternoon Enduro got off at 1.30 pm sharp, this time in the reverse direction. Harris led row zero off with Wheeler at close quarters. The latter was obviously in a good deal of pain as a number of riders passed him early on in quick succession. Young Josh Watson was circulating very quickly, as was veteran Phil Gilder #24 on his GasGas. The ground had, by this time, dried out completely, with the grass having been stripped off the surface, resulting in much quicker lap times. Topping the pile of the fast lappers was #170 Ryan Crisp, who popped in a brilliant lap of 16:13 on his Fantic 250. Edward Harris continued to lead from the front and pulled away from the chasing pack, extending his lead lap by lap. As the 3.30 pm deadline came around, it was Harris who headed up the finishers with a total of 14 laps to his credit. In fact, twelve of the first fourteen riders managed a total of 14 laps, which must be some kind of record. In second place overall was vet Phil Gilder, with young Josh Watson again claiming a splendid third place overall for the second event in succession. Brave Dan Wheeler ended his day in pain but with a creditable 4th place, which, considering his injury, was a great achievement. Fast lapper Ryan Crisp tied up fifth place overall. Harris was clearly overwhelmed at his first overall win after many years of trying.
In the Elite class results Edward Harris, of course, came out top of the bunch, followed by Dan Wheeler and Ryan Crisp.
Rhyan Leighton (#501), on his little Husky 150, headed the E1 class. Keith Townsend (#302), on his even smaller 125cc KTM, took second place. Shane Patenall, on the #118 GasGas, claimed third place overall.
In the E2 class, Finlay Woods took control, completing 14 laps on his #308 KTM. Darryl Friday grabbed second spot on his KTM, also on 14 laps, with #20 Matt Willis completing one lap less in third place, also on KTM.
Jamie Barnes took his #115 Beta to the top spot in the E3 class. He also completed 14 laps, with Jean-Paul Bowering taking runner-up spot on his #94 Beta with 13 laps. Sean Parsons did 12 laps on his #429 Beta to grab hold of third place.
The Vets class was won by Phil Gilder, who also claimed the 2nd overall spot on his #24 GasGas. In second place on 13 laps was #390 Warren Scott on his Husqvarna. The Kawasaki of Gaz West #414 claimed third spot with 12 laps completed.
The Under 21 category was taken convincingly by young Josh Watson on his #80 KTM. Josh completed 14 laps, as did Joe Jefferies in second spot, but Joe picked up more time penalties on his #29 KTM. Third place went to Sam Mitchinson on the #31 KTM, two laps down on the leaders.
The Supervets class was won by Des Pichel, completing 12 laps on his #166 KTM. Paul Webb #284 took the second spot with his KTM while Simon Thake coaxed his #358 Husqvarna into third, also on 12 laps.
Gareth Davies won the Trail class on his big #234 Yamaha Tenere after 12 laps. Similarly mounted Daniel Bloom, #268, took second, completing one lap less.
The Half Day class was won by Ben Hovell on his #138 Beta with 6 laps completed. In second spot was the #517 Triumph of Darryl Gilder with Alan Mitchinson taking third place with his #33 KTM, also on 6 laps.
Ironstone turned out to be a brilliant event again, with the TBEC team excelling themselves once more with the track design. There was plenty of action and the circuit more or less stayed dry, even if it was a little bit slippery in the morning. With the first win tucked firmly under his belt, Edward Harris is sure to challenge for the TBEC Championship in the upcoming rounds. The next meeting will be held at Houghton Conquest, Bedfordshire, on July 7th. By then, Dan Wheeler will have had time to recover, Tobias Bailey will no doubt have fixed his bike and even championship runner-up Dan Smith could be riding. It’s sure to be a hotly contested event, so make sure you check out the action on DirtHub! See ya, RA
Results
