It just gets Butter
By TMX Archives on 23rd Oct 08
THE DirtBike-Traxs team was once again in action at the famous Butts Quarry, in Derbyshire. The course had undergone significant changes from the June event, with the course designers including a lot more of the motocross track, plus the traditional Butts routes around the quarry wall and the rocky woodland climbs all mixed in to give the circuit its own distinct Hare Scramble flavour that keeps riders coming back. Although the track was wet in places, the area managed to escape any rain showers over the weekend which was a welcome relief and with the wind and sunny spells the track dried out well during Sunday's racing.
After the successful conclusion to the National Putoline Hare Scramble Championship the previous weekend at Driffield, many riders had moved into new classes.
The Youth and Ladies riders got the day's racing under way with a 9am start. The race was 90-minutes in duration and immediately it was clear that Davey Todd and Scott Altass were going to be the pair to watch in Senior B. Davey eventually took victory ahead of Luke Gorse and in third place was Callum Morewood. Scott Altass retired on the last lap with a broken fuel tap following a crash.
Jane Daniels proved unstoppable in the Ladies class with a clear win from Gina Bewlay and Jade Gordon third.
Michael Gilby was a new name at the top of the Junior class with a good win over Dan Bewlay, and Ryan Cheal' s hard work at the training schools paid dividends as he claimed third spot.
During a one hour break, the course was altered to included all the adult routes. The water splash with its steep climb out caused many riders trouble as well as providing the spectators with hours of fun.
With a full Adult entry and a good line-up of Experts including the return of Husqvarna-mounted Gavin Houson and a number of local motocross aces, the stage was set for some great racing.
The flag dropped at 11.30am and the Expert and Over 40 were first away. Expert Adam Smith crashed on the first corner and he was dead last by the time he got going. However, a broken chain forced him in an early retirement.
Meanwhile, Gav Houson quickly got into his stride and moved into the lead, looking smooth and stylish for an hour.
Then a small crash resulted in a broken throttle and forcing him to retire.
Motocrtoss rider, Craig English, on YZ125 took up the lead and screamed his little machine to victory, although for a time on the last lap it look as if Harry Hillas might catch him.
After making up a four-minute defecit over the last hour and when hot on Craig's heels and applying maximum pressure, Harry crashed. He finishing just ten-seconds behind to claim the runners-up spot. Gary Daniels claimed third spot.
In the Over 40 class, Mark Houson dominated, even lapping second-placed Ian Shannon.
In his first outing as a Clubman, Tom Healey won comfortably ahead of Chris Ball, while Robert Dawson continued his come-back with a Sportsman class win.
Top lady rider, Jane Daniels, never seems to run out of energy. After winning the Ladies class in the early morning race, she topped the Senior A class to round off a good day for team Daniels.
This was a great start to the Winter Championship. It was good to see new names winning and getting podium positions in the different classes.
A big thanks to the riders for supporting the event, bearing in mind that DBT only finished its summer series the previous weekend.
On a slightly different note, this was the first time in years that DBT did not use the transponder system as it is undergoing updates and the results were late. However, normal service will be resumed for the next round at Ellington Banks Ripon on November 8/9.
NATIONAL PUTOLINE WINTER HARE SCRAMBLE CHAMPS
Rd 1 – Butts Quarry, Derbyshire (DirtBike-Traxs)
ADULT RACE
Expert: 1 Craig English 20 laps - 6:35 time penalties, 2 Harry Hillas 19 - 4:27, 3 Gary Daniels 19 - 5:07, 4 Andrew Hackett 18 - 6:51, 5 Lee Holland 17 - 3:34, 6 Chris Scott 17 - 8:35.
Clubman Open: 1 Thomas Healey 19 - 6:06, 2 Chris Ball 18 - 5:32, 3 Ian Harrison 18 - 8:59, 4 Karl Waltho 17 - 0:26, 5 Rob Pearce 17 - 1:59, 6 Neil Marshall 17 - 5:05.
Over 40: 1 Mark Houson 19 - 2:25, 2 Ian Shannon 18 - 2:39, 3 Andrew Holland 17 - 0:35, 4 Colin Blunt 16 - 5:59, 5 Philip Brown 16 - 6:28.
Sportsman Open: 1 Robert Dawson 17 - 4:25, 2 Darren Simpson 17 - 5:20, 3 John Curwen 16 - 1:00, 4 David Dudley 16 - 1:34, 5 Craig Thorpe 16 - 3:15, 6 John Calvert 16 - 3:58.
Novice: 1 Neil Jacklyn 14 - 0:46, 2 Andrew Harrison 14 - 1:05, 3 Mark Dolman 14 - 1:19, 4 Gavin Beech 14 - 5:29, 5 Thomas Ward 13 - 0:00, 6 Kevin Whitaker 13 - 4:16.
Senior A: 1 Jane Daniels 16 - 2:43, 2 Alex West 16 - 8:05, 3 Robert Johnson 15 - 8:07, 4 Luke Flack 15 - 9:55, 5 Edward Field 14 - 0:00, 6 Davey Todd 13 - 5:27.
YOUTH & LADIES RACE
Junior: 1 Michael Gilby 12 - 7:40, 2 Dan Bewlay 11 - 5:49, 3 Ryan Cheal 10 - 2:57, 4 Justin Stalpers 10 - 6:05, 5 Nathan Ball 9 - 6:25, 6 Doltan Shannon 9 - 7:26.
Ladies: 1 Jane Daniels 12 - 2:24, 2 Gina Bewlay 11 - 7:29, 3 Jade Gordon 10 - 3:29, 4 Anita Gordon 9 - 0:33, 5 Emma Ball 9 - 7:10, 6 Tara Johnson 8 - 1:16.
Senior B: 1 Davey Todd 13 - 3:14, 2 Luke Gorse 12 - 6:08, 3 Callum Morewood 11 - 3:46, 4 Billy Steinman 10 - 1:52, 5 Luke Fletcher 10 - 6:28, 6 Lewis Fletcher 9 - 2:11.
The Husqvarna-mounted Gavin Houson made a welcome return in the Adult races.