Last weekend saw Coventry motocross club welcomed to a perfectly prepared Sherwood national track with a healthy field of riders lining the gates.
The scene was set for a great days racing with the younger rider’s nerves and excitement building as they walked the track, taking in the size and scale of the jumps and fast sections of the track.
There were some regular CJMX faces out to tackle the Nottinghamshire circuit as well as riders from local clubs and the ORMS nationals series, looking to get some last minute practice before they head to Sherwood next month for round two of their championship.
As practice took shape there was some stand out riders looking set to steal the spotlight in their individual classes. Looking on the pace was Kyle Lane, CJMX regulars Scott Bates, Dylan Spencer, ORMS rider Andrew Smart and Jonathan Walker in the clubman class.
First on the order was the new for 2014 clubman class. Luke Dowsing was the man who made the best start to his day, taking the holeshot in race one and kicking off a day long battle with Jonathan Walker, who was riding extremely well in the Sherwood sands.
Eventually it was Walker who took the first race from Dowsing and a hard charging Lewis Waldron in third. Race two was much of the same with Dowsing and Walker powering away from the pack, battling amongst themselves ending with a reverse of the race one finish.
Race three came around and there was one significant absence on the gate. Dowsing had chosen to try his hand in the Veterans class seeking a greater challenge and more competition. This effectively handed the win to Walker who still went on to dominate the third race on his way to first overall with a 1-2-1 card. Jac Kearsley and John Measham made the most of Dowsing’s absence taking second and third respectively after a solid day.
Next out was the veterans and what a field of veterans it was with AMCA Championship riders of yesteryear, CJMX regulars and national series competitors all looking to take the spoils.
It was Thurlow Bone who came out the traps best taking the opening race holeshot and pushing hard to fend off Matt Ryder and Ste Marlow from the outset as they chased him down.
Ryder eventually took the opening race win from Bone and Marlow shortly behind. Race two saw Ryder again take to the front this time opening up a good lead over Marlow who was fighting with Stuart Scott for much of the race. Bone didn’t have the best of luck in race two with little mistakes knocking him back to fourth.
Third time out for the Vets and this time there was a new face added to the mix in the form of Luke Dowsing. Right from the start there was drama as Ryder dropped into the first corner falling and dropping to the back of the pack. Marlow, Dowsing and Scott capitalized on Ryder’s error opening up a gap over the rest of the field creating their own little battle ending with Dowsing taking a debut Vets win ahead of Marlow and Scott.
Ryder managed to work his way back through the pack claiming fourth in a very impressive fashion. The winter series win went the way of Ste Marlow who dominated the class at Mepal with Alan Edwards shortly behind who managed to secure his best ever finish in the 12 years of being a CJMX member.
In the seniors Kyle Lane proved dominant winning all three races and the overall in a stylish fashion. Not far off the ORMS MXY2 points leader was Myles Duffy on his new Husqvarna 125cc.
Duffy didn’t have it easy though having to battle his way through Mitchell Warhurst and Lewis Robinson on his way to second overall. The stand out ride of the day in the seniors though was Mitchell Warhurst who fell at the start of race two making it look unlikely he would make the top five.
Warhurst got his head down and managed to climb up through the pack to third with an emphatic ride setting him up for third overall. Ollie Sharatt didn’t have the best results on the Sherwood track but after a consistent ride and a good points haul from last time out at Mepal he managed to claim second overall in the winter series.
The series win however went to Mitchell Warhurst after a brilliant performance last time out at Mepal in the tough winter conditions.
The Open class witnessed some top draw racing from ORMS riders Scott Bates and Andrew Smart as they went to battle for the lead in every race along with Thomas Matthews.
Bates made the best possible start taking the race one holeshot and opening a gap over the chasing Smart, in the end though Smart’s consistent pace proved too much as he passed Bates and stole the opening win.
Race two and this time it was Smart who made the best start immediately putting the hammer down, gapping the field and claiming another win. Bates wasn’t far behind but a battle with Matthews ultimately affected his overall pace.
Third time out and this time it is was a surprise to the leading duo as Matthews came out fighting passing Bates then having to fend off the attack of Smart eventually taking a win on his less powerful 250 machine.
Smart ended the day in first overall with a 1-1-2 race card from Bates and Brad Doyle in third who had a mixed day but his two thirds helped him grasp a podium spot.
Thomas Matthews was the man on a mission in the AMX dominating the class and battling with the MX1 guys, stealing a win in the final race of the day impressing many on lookers. Ricky Lethaby had a good showing kicking his day off with a third and then improving for his last two races claiming two second spots.
Chuck Davies was looking set for a good overall spot after a second in race two but a DNS in the third race ended his chances of a podium. Third overall went to Jack Seabourne after a consistent ride and a score card that read 4-3-3.
The Overall winter series win went to Dan Neale after a brilliant debut AMX performance at Mepal. Second in the series was Joe Tobutt, another young rider trying his hand in the AMX class and finally third overall was Ricky Lethaby who’s strong finish at Sherwood proved enough for a podium spot in the winter series.
The 85 BW class didn’t see the biggest entry but the action was as good as ever with Matt Brame storming his was into first and never looking back, taking the overall win with 135 points to his name and three wins on the cards.
Dylan Spencer looked impressive also taking the opening race holeshot by some distance on his Husqvarna. Spencer went on to finish in second overall with a healthy 2-2-2 race card. Right behind Spencer in third overall was young Jack Clayton who had his best ever result in the BW class in race two claiming third spot overall.
The overall winter series win went the way of Dylan Spencer with a jaw dropping 207 points. Scott Davidson managed to claim second in the series on his new Husqvarna putting the icing on the cake for Bud Racing with both there riders in the top two spots. The final podium spot went to Matt Brame after a disappointing time at Mepal his good finishes last weekend helped him get his feet back on the podium.
In the 85 SW class Skye Energy drink rider Taylor Hampshire came out all guns blazing taking race one, asserting his dominance and setting the tone for the day. Brogan Johnson seemed on top form stealing second overall with a 2-2-2 card.
Third overall went the way of Dan Fisher, but it was not easy as Charlie Boiston challenged him all the way managing to pinch a third spot from Fisher in race two.
The winter series win went to an ecstatic Jacob Bell who braved the conditions last time tallying up the points just enough to get the overall win. Second went to Jacob Russell and third in the series was Jude Hartwell.
Next up were the Auto riders and it was CJMX hot shot Kayde Raynes who claimed the first race win ahead of a fast charging Rio Jones & Harry West.
All the auto riders were finding it tough in the blazing winter sun but that didn’t stop Raynes who came in race two fighting fit eventually adding another win to his sheet.
West rode extremely well second time out pinching a second spot from Jones who couldn’t quite find the rhythm to beat his rival. Third time out and with everyone tiring it was proving tough for the autos.
Raynes took another commanding win confirming his first overall ahead of Jones and West with Jones holding on to the second spot which was only enough for third overall.
West rode extremely well managing to hold to second overall. Jacob Moore and Neo McCartney both had good rides in the final race of the day with Jacob taking fourth spot just in front of Neo in fifth, a good sign for the season ahead.
To top off young Nitro Neo’s weekend and in his debut series he managed to secure a third spot and a place on the podium in the winter series.
The overall series win went to Raynes though after a great show at Mepal fending off Harry West who managed to secure second overall adding to his points total at Sherwood.
In the juniors it was Alfie Jones who took the overall win from Harrison Boam. Race one didn’t see either Boam or Jones take the top spot though as it was Fian O’malley fresh from his Arenacross tour who came out on a charge taking the opening win of the day, only to have engine trouble in race two which would rule him out for the rest of the day.
Race two was all about Boam as he took to the front and managed the gap perfectly as Jones tracked him down fighting his way through the pack only to make a mistake late in the race giving Boam a comfortable gap once more. Race three and Jones made the most of the tough conditions taking a final race win clinching the overall after a mixed day. Alfie Wilkinson showed good speed in the final outing securing third overall with a second place finish ahead of Boam in third.
Coventry motocross club’s next meeting is at the fantastic AMCA venue, Carter Hill at the side of the A46 near Cropwell Bishop. This will be an open trophy meeting meaning top six will be walking away with silverware for their efforts so get booking online or by contacting the club.
Thanks to everyone who came out racing with CJMX and we hope to see you next time at Carter Hill.
