Beauty and the East
By TMX Archives on 7th May 08
DESPITE a disastrous final race on Monday, Conner Walkley won the Senior class at the East Kent club's Canada Heights International Youth Motocross over Sunday and Monday of the Bank Holiday weekend.
Just short of 300 riders flocked with their parents to ride the Sidcup club's British Championship circuit beside the M25 to take part in the two-day event with all racers getting four rides, with the best three counting for the overall.
For once, the weather didn't turn out as forecast both days turned out bright and sunny with lots of the spectators going home with body parts looking a lot redder then when they turned up.
Report and Pictures: DICK LAW
Walkley rode to the Senior overall win with two wins after Sunday's qualifying, with one of his races on Monday not going to plan after a first corner pile-up. However, he fought his way back up through the pack to finish that race in 14th place.
Aaron Jenner seemed to follow Walkley home in most races which gave him second overall when the points where tallied up and he even had a first turn crash in the same race, but it was great entertainment as he fought his way back to the front. Constant high place finishes gave David Sweet third overall in the class with a third in race four his best result.
Matt Bayliss had two wins and didn't finish out of the top two all weekend which gave him first overall in Big-wheel 85cc, while Rob Muscat, the only other rider in class to win a race, finished a close second a third place in race two being the decider. Three top-four places finishes gave Paul Coates the last step on the winner's podium.
The Small-wheel 85cc category was the most open of the weekend with none of the riders seeming to want to win it. Liam Garland posted two wins, but lower place finishes in his other two rides dropped him to eleventh overall while eventual winner, Robert Hales finished all his races never higher then third, but consistency gave him the overall honours. Ryan Fellowes' weekend got better and better, as a second place finish in his final race of the weekend gave him third place overall.
With two wins and never finishing out of the top three the on-form Jack Wilson topped the Junior class in great style. Callum Heasman claimed the runners-up spot while Joe Jeffries was third.
On a smaller circuit more suited to their smaller machines, Alby Wilkie won the Auto class by winning three of his races with race-one winner, Ashton Manktelow in second spot.
Bradley Tomlin scored a clean sweep in the AMX class, winning all of his races, while Brett Fisher, with a couple of second places, was runner-up, with James Cole third.
INTERNATIONAL YOUTH MOTOCROSS
Canada Heights, Swanley (East Kent SSC)
Senior A: 1 Conner Walkley, 2 Aaron Jenner, 3 David Sweet, 4 Ryan Williams, 5 Nick Wadge, 6 Rowan Hill, 7 George Purchase, 8 Joe Cundle, 9 Jackson Evans, 10 Connor Pearce.
Senior B: 1 David Bradley, 2 Ewan Day, 3 Sam Underhill.
Big-wheel 85cc A: 1 Matt Bayliss, 2 Bob Muscat, 3 Paul Coates, 4 Josh Brine, 5 Chase Neale, 6 Jack Timms, 7 Lewis Dowsett, 8 Jordan Divall, 9 Sonny Oliver, 10 Ben Thomas.
Big-wheel 85cc B: 1 Andrew Deadman, Max Coomber, 3 Sam Newham.
Small-wheel 85cc A: 1 Robert Hales, 2 Ryan Fellowes, 3 Jordan Godwin, 4 Fraser Viner, 5 Chris Bayliss, 6 Billy Hare, 7 Max Acres, 8 Brad Garrett, 9 Chubbie Hammond, 10 Jake Fry.
Small-wheel 85cc B: 1 Conner Lynds, 3 Luke Harris, 3 James Medhurst.
Junior: 1 Jack Wilson, 2 Callum Heasman, 3 Joe Jeffries, 4 Patrick O'Neill, 5 Jake Deacon, 6 Jamie Carpenter, 7 Mitchell Lewis, 8 Sam Morgan, 9 Josh Coleman, 10 Jack Camwell.
Auto: 1 Albie Wilkie, 2 Ashton Manktelow, 3 Jake Kemp, 4 Lewis Cloud, 5 Ashley Surridge, 6 Tommy Lee-Judd, 7 Bradley Smith, 8 Sam Ongley, 9 Michael Eggett, 10 Oliver Stevens.
AMX: 1 Bradley Tomlin, 2 Brett Fisher, 3 James Cole, 4 Jamie Tempest, 5 Paul Anderson, 6 James Nestor, 7 Junior Thomas, 8 Matt Hornby, 9 Tom Moore, 10 Aaron Lovelock.
For pictures see T+MX NEWS, Friday, May 9, 2008