West End Boys
By Team TMX on 14th Oct 15
Nathan Watson (IceOne Husqvarna) took the 33rd running of the RHL Weston Beach Race by storm on Sunday.
Taking the lead halfway around the opening lap of the three-hour race, he stayed ahead of the 503 starters until the chequered flag. And four minutes behind, his younger brother Ben (Hitachi Revo KTM UK) completed a family double with a solid ride to second to make it a Watson Weston whitewash.
Jamie McCanney (Husqvarna) took the final step on the podium and was the only other rider on the lead lap but it all went wrong at the start for pre-race favourites Shaun Simpson (Hitachi Revo KTM UK) and David Knight (Hitachi KTM).
Defending champion Simpson pulled his bike up to a stop just around the wet first turn with a misfire and multi-time winner Knighter's machine also developed a misfire on the first lap.
Restarting his machine, Simpson set off only to have it stop again at the end of the second series of jumps. After getting the bike back to the work area at the other end of the track his team managed to get it running right and Simpson re-joined the race five laps down on the leaders. He still managed to finish 36th but it wasn't the result he was looking for.
Knighter took the holeshot but his bike began losing power and it stopped on lap two while he was running second. His team also worked feverishly to repair the problem but he was forced to call it a day half-a-lap after restarting.
At the end of the first lap it was Nathan Watson from Knighter, McCanney, Ben Watson, Robert Davidson (Hardcore Husqvarna), Matt Moffat (Husqvarna) and Ty Kellett (SJ Husqvarna) but as the leaders charged down the beach to start their second lap a large number were still struggling to get over the first big dune.
Nearly an hour in Nathan Watson had opened up a big lead over McCanney, Ben Watson, Kellett, Dan Thornhill (Cab Screens Yamaha), Frazer Norrie (Tooltec KTM), Ryan Staveley (Apico KTM) and Josh Gotts (TMUK) as Simpson was just getting back into the race.
At half-distance and with re-fuelling going on there were two sets of brothers in the top five. Nathan Watson - who had enough time in hand to call in for fuel without losing a place - was still being chased by McCanney and Ben Watson and Todd Kellett had joined big brother Ty near the front.
With the race entering its third and final hour Nathan Watson was still setting a tremendous pace as McCanney and Ben Watson did all they could to close the gap.
Ty Kellett and Thornhill were now a lap down with Moffat, Todd Kellett and Staveley rounding out the top eight.
After three hours and 23 laps it was Nathan Watson who took his first Weston win from Ben Watson who managed to pass McCanney in the closing stages of the race.
Moffat was fourth from Todd Kellett, Thornhill and Ty Kellett with Staveley, Gotts and David Willet (Husqvarna) rounding out the top 10.
Other notable top finishers were Jake Edey (Gear 4 KTM) in 13th in his first adult race after finishing sixth in Saturday's Rookies class and Oli Benton (Hitachi Revo KTM UK) - who won the Rookies race - one place further back.
"It's amazing to finally win," said the ever-smiling Nathan. "My dad [Rob Meek] has won Weston five times and I have had a lot of pressure to get a win. He's always teased me about it when in the past little things went wrong like running out of fuel and mechanical problems so to finally have a good year when it all ran smoothly feels amazing.
"I was a bit worried the last half-hour as I lost the clutch so I couldn't stop. I was running into some of the other riders and if I had stalled it that would have been game over so I was relived to see the finish flag."
Little brother Ben was graceful in defeat.
"If I were going to get beaten today I would have wanted it to be by my brother," he said. "I am happy with second although I was second last year so hopefully next year I can go one better. I had a trouble-free run until the last lap where I got wiped out by another rider and went down."
On the opening lap of the Quad and Sidecar race the 4x4s set the pace. As this part of the track had not been used before - the youth classes used a shorter circuit - the dunes were in pristine condition and it needed four-wheel-drive and big engines just to get over them. But tucked in among them were Sheldon Seal (KTM) and last year's Quad winner Carl Bunce (Suzuki) with the first sidecar crew Dan Lawry/Sam Wilkinson (WHT KTM).
The usual mayhem on the big dune caused a massive blockage with bikes and bodies stuck all over the place until the marshals opened up an escape route around the outside for a while to ease congestion.
For the whole three hours Seal set a constant high pace and took the win by just over three minutes from Bunce, Kieran Power (Galower Honda) with Steve Atkins (Can-Am 100) the first of the 4x4 quads home in fifth place.
"It's never easy out there and the track was the hardest I have ever seen it," said Seal. "The mounds and the holes they have made this year at the far end of the circuit made it really tough and we were all struggling at the start.
"But when I got out into the lead I managed to get a rhythm going and the bike just ran faultless the whole race. I kept pushing on and I could see my lead was getting bigger and bigger from my pit signals. I was worried a bit towards the end when I got a flat tyre and had to ride almost a complete lap until I could get in to change it."
The Lawry/Wilkinson pairing won the sidecar class and came home a very respectable 15th overall.
"It was brilliant out there today," said Lawry. "It's the third time we have done Weston but have suffered with various mechanical problems on our first two attempts. I only started racing sidecars three years ago so it's great to come here and have a trouble-free run for a change.
"The start was the important bit and I think we were third down to the first turn and from then on it was just a matter of keeping a good pace. We just maintained our advantage and stayed out of trouble."
The Millard brothers - Daniel and Joe - were the second sidecar crew home in 30th with Colin Solley/Gareth Clarke third.
The 30-lap Rookies race was fast and furious with the top four all on the lead lap and they crossed the finish line separated by less the five minutes.
An on-form Oliver Benton (Hitachi KTM) took the win from Henry Williams (KTM), Jed Etchells (Team Green Kawasaki) and Jamie Wainwright (Wainwright Haulage KTM) with Alexander Brown (7 Racing KTM), Jake Edey (Gear 4 KTM) and Mitchell Warhurst (Honda) filling the next three places a lap down on the leaders.
Sam Price (SPS KTM) won the Big-wheel side of the combined 85cc race from Daniel Bewley (Horseman Kawasaki) and Howard Wainwright (MX World Honda). Eddie Jay Wade (Husqvarna) was the first of the Small-wheel riders in a fine fifth place with Sam Nunn (GMF KTM) second and Louie Kessell (St Blazey Husqvarna) third.
Charlie Palmer (Pioneer KTM) won the 65s from Matt Tolley (KTM) and Frank Skillin (KTM) while George Betton (Yamaha) won the Youth Quad race from Aaron Davies (Yamaha) and Axel Bone (Yamaha).
