Rokit Weston Beach Race report & results
By Dick Law on 16th Oct 24
Conrad Mewse, on his Crendon Tru7 Honda, has had one hell of a year on the motocross scene but ended it with a win at the Rokit Weston Beach Race – something he has wanted to do since his youth.
Favoured rider Ashley Greedy kept Mewse honest for most of the race as the pair of fast sand riders lapped the entire field up to the third-place rider Dan Thornhill (Chambers Husqvarna).
Thornhill himself had a podium-filled weekend. Not only was he third in the main race he and racing partner Ben Webb won the Quad two-man race on Saturday.
American rider Justin Barcia on a borrowed GASGAS 350 that was very much in stock trim, made the trip over to just sample what a European beach race was like. He intended to ride two or three laps just to get the feel of it, or so he said. However, he did the whole three hours and loved every minute of it. This caused problems in the pits as no one had thought he would need fuel, a change of goggles, or even a drink of water. They rushed around and supplied his needs, and he paid them back for the hard work by crossing the finish line in seventh place. It's not bad for someone who has never even seen a beach race before.
For this, the 41st running of the event, Gareth Hockey and his RHL crew did away with some of the massive man-made dunes but added a long series of smaller jumps to mix things up a bit and cut down some of the more extensive blockages. And for the most part, it sort of worked.
The art of beach racing is about making the right decision over a hundred times each lap and having the skills and commitment to carry out those choices for lap after lap for the three-hour race. The good riders make it look easy, but it’s not.
Sam Nunn (John Banks Honda) lead the field of almost 600 down the long start straight and into the first turn. It must be pretty exciting to look back as you get the holeshot and see hundreds of racers bearing down on you, ready to use you as grip in the first dune.
By the time the race was half a lap old, Barcia was in the lead but had Mewse in his wheeltracks. Ash Greedy was next from Shane Carless (Husqvarna), Ben Franklin (Chambers GASGAS) and Thornhill.
The lack of experience caught Barcia out as he took the wrong line through a puddle and became beached on one of the smaller dunes. It seemed to take ages for him to get his bike right side up, and he would end the opening lap back in 20th place.
Greedy slipped past Mewse at the start of lap two but lost the lead again at the role of a dice going to one side of a stuck rider when he should have gone to the other.
This left Mewse in the lead and up to his usual fast pace, from which he was never really challenged. He was on a role, making all the right decisions and looked smooth, like normal, as he went on to win.
Nunn worked his way back from a crash to third on lap three before his machine expired, which was a lap more than Franklin’s bike did before stopping.
Greedy did all he could to stay with Mewse, but the writing was on the wall, and he settled for second place while being ready for any mistake Mewse made.
Thornhill slipped past Carless on lap five and went unchallenged for the rest of the race as he came home in third place, a lap down on the leaders.
Carless hung on to fourth place from Josh Greedy and Ricky Wiggins (GASGAS).
The rookie Barcia surprised everyone, probably including himself, by finishing seventh among our best beach race riders. He said he would be back next year.
“Weston beach race winner,” said a happy Conrad Mewse. “I never thought I would be saying that with the likes of Ash Greedy being here. But it’s phenomenal as it’s one of the big races I have always wanted to win, and now I have done it. I won the kid’s races a while ago but never the adults’ races. I want to return next year and work at it with a better setup. As it was our first time, we made three stops, and I think the others, with bigger tanks, only made two. But it has worked out well, and we have learned a lot.”
A philosophical Greedy said, “I will take second place with no problem at all. I would have liked to have stayed with Conrad Mewse a bit longer. But I am happy with the way I rode, and I pushed all the way till the end of the race. I struggled to get going and, after a problem, to get going again. The second lap was a nightmare.”
Thornhill was on a high and said, “It’s been a dream of mine to be on the podium at Weston. My family had done this event for years, and I told my dad when I started racing that one day I would be on the podium, and it’s nice to finally stand on the box and get the self-imposed pressure off. And two podiums in two days is pretty cool. The bike worked great, and a big shout out to everyone involved, especially my family.”
Barcia didn’t know where he had finished but commented about the whole experience, “This was crazy. It was fun, and I had a good time, but I wish I had had a bike setup to do the race, as I think I could have finished a bit higher in the results.
“On a fully stock bike, I think seventh place is pretty good for a first-timer. I crashed a bunch of times, but the first one was a bummer as it took me a long time to get the bike out of the wet sand. These boys are crazy.”
When asked why, instead of doing two or three laps to get the feel of it, he raced the whole three hours; he said with a big smile - “I got confused and forgot what time it was. But when I got going, I just couldn’t stop. My wife will be unhappy when I get back but I just couldn’t stop as I was enjoying myself and having so much fun. I will feel it for the next couple of days but that was awesome.”
The Over 40 part of the race saw a win for Derek Bawn from Lee Holland and Richard Penhaligon.
Saturday’s Quad and Sidecar race is like four races in one. You have the solo, two-man, 4x4 quads, and entertaining sidecars.
But the overall race was a battle between solo Jamie Morgan (Yamaha) and 4x4 racer and last year’s winner Steve Atkins (Can-Am), and the pair of them went right at it from the very start of the three-hour race.
The full race quad of Morgan had a distinct advantage over the lumbering but powerful 4x4 quad of Atkins, who had a nice advantage over other parts of the track. This meant it sort of evened out over the lap, and the spectators had no idea who of the two would be in the lead when they appeared again which was very entertaining.
But as the race entered its third and final hour, Morgan opened up a sizable lead, which he held until the finish. Atkins was alone in second as the two riders lapped the whole field.
Carl Bunce’s race ended on lap three just after he moved into third place from a fifth-place start.
Zac Orchard was third on the track while second in the race quad class with Jonny Kelly third.
Lathan Pritchard was fourth overall but second 4x4 home with Jamie Shaw third.
As mentioned, Thornhill and Webb took the two-man win from Grove and Hunter, while Jones and McCormick finished third.
Alun Davies and passenger James Ferguson completed 16 long laps on their way to the sidecar win and finished a lap-up of the second-place pairing of Luke Peters and David Williams. British Champion Bren Wilkinson, with passenger James Millard, finished the race in third place with a sick engine. Oil could be seen dripping from the crankcase after the race.
Saturday’s combined Youth 125/250 race was one of the best races at Weston for a long time, for as Reece Jones stormed out into a lead that would see him lap the second-placed rider, it was behind him that all the action was happening.
Roan Delaney, Josh Vail and George Corke were all fighting over second place. Vail took second from Delaney on lap two, only to have Corke snatch second from lap 10, and then Delaney slipped back into the pack.
Max Corke was fourth at the end of the opening lap and took full advantage of Delaney to take fourth from him, only to have his bike stop on lap six. Finley Evans didn’t get the best of starts but powered his way from twenty-fifth to fourth at the halfway stage, passing Corke for third with four laps left in the race. Then, second in the race was handed to him when Vail ran out of fuel.
Jones was the winner of the 250 side of the race from Evans and George Corke, while Charlie Richmond was fourth in the race but first 125 home. Drew Stock was second, and Charles Hucklebridge was third.
“The track was easier this year,” said Jones. “I understand why they did it, with the older bikes in mind. I had so much fun out there. This race for me at the end of the year is perfect, and I just love it. The excitement and riding around in the sand, which I love and at the end of a hard year of racing, it’s just great to let all the pressure go and have fun on the beach. It’s my third win, and I will be out there again tomorrow with the big boys. I will have to see how I get on against them. I will be signing for a new team next week, so we should be all sorted for next year.”
While the 125 winner Richmond said, “I have never done Weston before. I crashed once, but after that, I just concentrated on staying on the bike. I was meant to ride this beach race on an 85 but got injured so that I couldn’t do it. So, this was my first ever beach race, and it went well. I know Josh (Vail) had his problems, but I just stayed on. I definitely want to do it again.”
In the combined Big and Small-Wheel 85s, Blake Ward-Clarke won the BW class from Casey Lister and Connor Watson. While in the SW division Archie Butterfield won from Riley-Ray Barrow and Ollie Truman.
Cohen Jagielski dominated the 65s by lapping the whole field of riders on his way to the race win. Tyler Peaty was second, and Elliott Shawyer third.
On a 500cc Honda, Nev Bradshaw lapped the pack on his way to the Vintage class win from Sean Smith and Dean Gray.
Rokit Weston Beach Race 2024 Results
Adult solo Top 50
21 laps. 1 Conrad Mewse, 2 Ashley Greedy
20 laps. 3 Dan Thornhill
19 laps. 4 Shane Carless, 5 Josh Greedy, 6 Ricky Wiggins, 7 Justin Barcia, 8 Reece Jones, 9 Tyler Westcott, 10 Charlie Frost, 11 Richard Moorland, 12 James Dodd, 13 Declan White.
18 laps. 14 Brad Thornhill, 16 Mike Williams, 17 Alfie Calvert, 18 Keelan Southwood. 19 Jacob Bowden, 20 Josh Canton
17 laps. 21 Jaydon Murphy, 22 Bradley King. 23 Charlie Crossland, 24 Cory McShane, 25 Jamie Roper, 26 Jamie Llewellyn, 27 Gavin Hunt, 28 Harry Bradley, 29 Leon Williams, 30 Josh Lawer, 31 Charlie Palmer, 32 James Clark, 33 James Haddow, 34 Derek Bawn, 35 Christian Dicks, 36 Branaby Knight.
16 laps. 37 Andrew Gillet, 38 George Eustace, 39 Jake Ford, 40 Connor Atkinson, 41 Toby Bailey, 42 Rowan Penhaligon, 43 Sean Wainwright, 44 Lee Holland, 45 Morgan Deakin, 46 Joe Seedhouse, 47 Lawrie Davies, 48 Tom Merritt, 49 Brett Moore, 50 Niles Reid.
Adult, Over 40 solo Top 20
17 laps. 1 Derek Bawn
16 laps. 2 Lee Holland,
15 Laps. 3 Richard Penhaligon, 4 Alex Owen, 5 Spike Booi, 6 Lee Hattersley, 7 Will Bridger
14 laps. 8 Gary McCoy, 9 Gavin Hunt, 10 Matthew Fitzgerald, 11 Mark Copland
13 laps. 12 Ben Adams, 13 Stephen Megarry, 14 Philip Glider, 15 Leigh Williams, 16 Raymond Otoka, 17 Kirk Baynton, 18 Jack Twentyman, 19 Craig Downing, 20 Matt Clayden
Adult Ladies
13 laps. 1 Lucy Barker
10 laps. 2 Anya Colley
6 laps. 3 Daisy Gough
3 laps. 4 Beth Stow, 5 Maisie Hockney.
Adult quads and sidecar Top 50
18 laps. 1 Jamie Morgan, 2 Steve Atkins
17 laps. 3 Zak Orchard, 4 Lathan Pritchard, 5 Jonny Kelly, 6 Adan Twine
16 laps. 7 Oliver Sansom, 8 Jamie Shaw, 9 Harry Stevens, 10 Jonny McKnight, 11 A Davies / J Ferguson, 12 Jason Wildman, 13 Jack Powell
15 Laps. 14 Dan Thornhill / B Webb, 15 L Gove / Hunter, 16 Caius Hill, 17 Harry Hinkley, 18 Tom Roch, 19 L Peters / D Williams, 20 Joshua Brown, 21 Sam Blackwell, 22 E Jones / C McCormick, 23 J Millard / B Wilkinson, 24 Josh Morris, 25 Connor Leighton, 26 Gerard Selby
14 laps. 27 Charlie Down, 28 Nelson Buckland, 29 Ashley Sheppard, 30 Ash Will cock, 31 Anthony Williams, 32 Mitchell Widlake, 33 K Baxter / C Tite, 34 Ryan Tattersall, 35 Mark French, 36 Natan Jones
13 laps. 37 Stuart Marley, 38 David Vines, 39 Richard Clark, 40 J Chew / S David, 41 Declan O’Conner, 42 Stefan Cook, 43 James Crawford, 44 Mark Kelly, 45 Ross Jones, 46 Ryan Willett, 47 Davey Nixon, 48 Daniel Barrow, 49 Olly Martin, 50 Andy Watson.
Adult quad 4 x4 Top 20
18 laps. 1 Steve Atkins
17 laps. 2 Lathan Pritchard
16 laps. 3 Jamie Shaw, 4 Harry Stevens, 5 Jack Powell, 6 Caius Hill
15 laps. 7 Harry Hinkley, 8 Joshua Brown, 9 Conner Keighton
14 laps. 10 Charlie Down, 11 Nelson Buckland, 12 Ash Willock, 13 Anthony Williams, 14 Mitchell Widlake, 15 Mark French, 16 Nathan Jones
13 Laps. 17 Stuart Marley, 18 Declan O’Connor, 19 Stefan Cook, 20 James Crawford.
Adult quad, two man Top 20
15 laps. 1 D Thornhill / B Webb, 2 L Grove / Hunter, 3 S Jones / C McCormick
13 laps. 4 J Chew / S David,
12 laps. 5 J Kerruish / M Thorpe, 6 S Hone / R West, 7 N Brains / R Smith, 8 G Keitch / C Keitch
11 laps. 9 R Barnard / D Thomas
9 laps. 10 L Forrester / D Tune
8 laps. 11 G Jones / N Jones, 12 A Willetts / J Willetts
7 laps. 13 L Stewart / P Willamson
6 laps. 14 L Carter / L Hand, 15 S Davies / L Tutt
5 laps. 16 T Burke / B Burke
4 laps. 17 D Whitehouse / M Skinner
3 laps. 18 L Palmer / K Palmer, 19 I Tutton / G Eustave
2 laps. 20 S Ennett / G Hargreaves
Adult sidecar Top 10
16 laps. 1 A Davies / J Ferguson
15 laps. 2 L Peters / D Williams, 3 J Millard / B Wilkinson
14 laps. 4 K Baxter / C Tite
12 laps. 5 S Chilcott / B Tonkin, 6 T Hirons / D Hughes, 7 M P-Jones / G Williams
11 laps. 8 D Lawry / S Wilkinson
10 laps. 9 S Horton / R Jackson
9 laps. 10 R Chandler / D Webb
Adult vintage Top 10
23 laps. 1 Nev Bradshaw
22 laps. 2 Sean Smith
21 laps. 3 Dean Gray, 4 Matt Coles
19 laps. 5 Matt Hutchins
18 laps. 6 Andrew Hayes, 7 Tallon Sparrow, 8 Ryan Blackwell
17 laps. 9 Alen Eaves, 10 Stephen Sparrow
Youth 250 Top 10
28 laps. 1 Reece Jones
27 laps. 2 Finlay Evans, 3 George Corks
26 laps. 4 Roan Delaney, 5 Graham Haddow, 6 Jacob Potts, 7 Dayton Thompson, 8 Teddy Hyde
25 laps. 9 Kenzie Cole, 10 Lucy Barker
Youth 125 Top 10
27 laps. 1 Charlie Richmond
26 laps. 2 Drew Stock, 3 Charles Hucklebridge, 4 Reece Jones
25 laps. 5 Harry Lee, 6 Lucas Lee, 7 Zane Stephens, 8 Ashton Phillips
24 laps. 9 Josh Vail, 10 Benjamin Sullivan
Youth big wheel 85 Top 10
24 laps. 1 Blake Ward-Clarke, 2 Casey Lister
23 laps. 3 Conner Watson, 4 Marley O’Callagham, 5 Archie Strapley
22 laps. 6 Christopher Brindley, 7 Jack Leese, 8 Maison Jones, 9 Ryan Jones, 10 Danny Jamel
Youth small wheel 85 Top 10
22 laps. 1 Archie Butterfield, 2 Riley-ray Barrow
21 laps. 3 Ollie Truman, 4 Mylie Evans
20 laps. 5 Dexter Hind, 6 Sebastian Brown
19 laps. 7 Aaron Wyn Jones, 8 Oliver Bardow, 9 William Dennis, 10 Ruben Jenkins
Youth 65 Top 10
18 laps. 1 Cohen Jagielski
17 laps. 2 Tyler Peaty, 3 Elliott Shawyer
15 laps. 4 John Slade, 5 Preston Chorley, 6 Jimmy Ball
14 laps. 7 Bailey Fraser, 8 Charlie Tunnicliffe, 9 Oakley Sefton, 10 Sydney Williams
