The penultimate round of the Dirt Store ACU British championship saw an action packed day at the northern circuit of Schoolhouse MX for the Gabriel SS24 KTM team.
Going into the weekend as the MX2 Red plate holder, Cas Valk qualified second quickest. In race one he had a good start but had a coming together with another rider early in the race meaning he had to come through the pack from outside the top 20. On a track that was hard to pass on he had a great ride back to 4th just short of third who was only 1 second in front. In race two he was within the top 10 off the start, he found himself in 5th and for the whole race was battling with Walsh and series rival Chambers. Cas made the pass on Chambers for 4th with 3 laps to go and was just behind third place Walsh. All 3 riders were closing in on each other, with the racing being intense to watch right to the flag. Cas ended up 5th for 4th overall on the day and he takes the red place to the final round!
Cas: “Not the weekend I had hoped for in schoolhouse, I felt I had the speed to win but couldn’t make it happen. Not the best starts and quit a big crash in the first race with another rider, let’s hope to turn it around in the next couple of weeks and finish on a high”
Josh Gilbert qualified third in MX1 and grabbed the holeshot in race 1! He made a mistake in the opening lap which allowed Hammal past him. He struggled with feeling comfortable on track and throughout the race was passed by Mewse and Herlings. He tried to manage the track and battled for third for the whole race but was unable to make the pass, finishing in 4th. A change to the bike set up saw a complete difference in him for race two. Despite not getting the best start he quickly moved through the field up to third and rode a solid race to the finish, clinching third overall on the podium.
Josh: “Happy to be back up on the podium and feeling better in myself the last few weeks. Grabbed the hole shot in race one which was great but a mistake on the opening lap and struggling with the suspension meant I came away with 4th, but a few changes to suspension for race two and it made all the difference. I was able to attack the track and rode so much better to come through the field to 3rd. Lets take this momentum to Turkey and come away with another 2 point scoring rides!”
Team Manager Shaun Simpson: “The racing was tight but the track was fast and not very technical so made passing hard. It was nice to see another holeshot for Josh and returning to the podium will be a great boost. I felt like we seen more of what Josh is capable of this weekend. The speed, fitness and intensity was back to where it needs to be. Cas rode hard all day but things just didn’t align for us. A couple of small mistakes, a crash with another rider and a battle in the second Moto all the way to the flag was only good enough for 4th on the day. Looking ahead to Turkey next week and we will be sure to keep the hammer down until the final Moto of the season. Big thanks to all of our sponsors for their continued support.“
Words by Gabriel SS24 KTM – Images by JHMX Photography
