We return to the Billown circuit for round four of the 2013 Bike Road Racing Series. This is actually the other races that took place during the Southern 100 weekend. Two race reports will be coming your way, or rather, one race report, will be split into two parts.
Get ready for more high speed, and close action. This is the Billown 100. Let's review (having raced here, previously), the key corners on this 4.25 mile track, before we go racing. The corners include Ballakeighan, Iron Gate, Joey's Gate, the Ballabeg hairpin, Williams corner (the trickiest part of the track which goes past a farm, and into this unique turn called the bomb hole). Cross Four-Ways follows, before sliding into Church Bends. Out of Church Bends, the riders fly down the fastest part of the track at Great Meadow.
To complete the lap at Billown, it's hard on the brakes through the last two turns known as Stadium Bend, and Castletown corner. The first race of the day, is not for Superbikes, but instead, it's the combined race for 125cc and 400cc motorcycles presented by Station Garage. Castletown is the capital of the Isle of Man, (or Mann as it's properly spelled). Chris Palmer, is a local racer. He and his family, live here. Palmer runs a 125cc bike.
OK, folks. We are ready for the aforementioned Station Garage 125cc/400cc race to begin. Strap on the helmet and the racing gloves, twist the throttle, and get ready to race. There will be one, and only one winner this year. No separate honors for each class. Some big names are in this race. Chris Palmer, William Dunlop, Paul Robinson, and Ian Lougher, are probably the four biggest stars in this category. Lougher and Dunlop run a lot of different kinds of bikes in these race meetings.
The sun is low in the sky, and we're ready. Go! Chris Palmer and Alistair Haworth both get the jump on the rest of this field. Callum Collister is also up there. The field is bunched up going into Ballakeighan and Iron Gate. Rider Dave Kennington on bike #46 wanted to make an outside move. He couldn't quite do it. Collister, Howeth, and Dave Taylor are the top three right now. One year in this race, the start was so late, the streetlights in the town came on during the race.
Chris Palmer is being challenged by Dave Corliss. The bikes fly past Joey's Gate and into the hairpin. Collister continues leading this race. Paul Robinson ditches his bike. One of the 250cc riders is in trouble already. Fortunately, he picks up his Aprilia, and continues. Chris Palmer is absolutely flying on his 125cc Honda at the moment. Never let go of the throttle on a 125cc bike. Keep it wide open and wound up, all the time.
Alistair Haworth has taken over the race lead. Chris Palmer, meanwhile, closes in on Dave Taylor. Howeth leads. He's very good on a 400cc bike. Ian Lougher makes a pass on Dave Corlett. If the top three finishers in this race are on 400cc bikes, the 125cc riders won't get any glory, unfortunately. Callum Collister goes back in front for the time being. Chris Palmer is indeed closing up on his competitor. Dave Taylor is the man he wants to pass to gain another spot.
Haworth retakes the lead from Collister coming down into Castletown corner. We watch Joe Newbold on bike #143, being chased by a couple more riders behind him. Howeth and Collister are going to battle to the end in this one. They're shoulder to shoulder coming to Ballekeighan again. The 400cc bikes are very controllable, and they're beautifully made bikes, too. The leaders race into Ballabeg hairpin another time. Now, we see a battle between bikes #76 and #56. Eddie Lymer rides the #76 machine. Seamus Elliott is also in that battle.
Through Great Meadow and into Stadium. Collister is running very well in this race, and is well in control. Dave Corliss battles Mark Goodings for position. Ian Lougher, meanwhile, is booking it. He's fifth after being stuck in sixth place for a while. He seems to be closing up on both Dave Taylor and Chris Palmer. Palmer wants to overtake Taylor into the braking zone for Ballabeg. Oh no! Taylor runs straight on, missing the corner! He'll lose time now. Chris Palmer could get on the podium here. Eddie Lymer and Dan Sayle continue their battle. Sayle is on bike #56.
We are used to seeing Sayle in sidecar competition. Lougher is quickly closing up on Palmer. William Dunlop is another rider who has run 125cc bikes at Billown before. But, he's not in the race this year, having not found an opportunity for a ride. He was on the entry list, but, the ride never materialized. Dunlop has also had issues with his 250cc bike. Now, another brave pass. Lougher, passes Palmer! Lougher and Palmer are going to fight this one out, for sure.
It's game over for bike #117 of Dave Walsh. He's got a mechanical issue with his motorcycle. Walsh is riding a KTM. Alistair Haworth is second, doing a wheelie up the hill. Callum Collister still leads, in a league of his own. It's the last lap of this race. Chris Palmer makes a pass on Ian Lougher. They're side-by-side through Ballekeighan! Who's going to prevail? It'll be Lougher. The back wheels of the bikes go light there some of the corners around here. But, the battle rages between Palmer and Lougher.
Collister is going to win this race. But, it's Lougher and Palmer we'll be watching for. Callum Collister wins it. Now, to third place. Lougher beats Palmer to the line! Wow!
#53 Callum Collister Kawasaki 400
Here's the top five.
1. #53 Callum Collister Kawasaki 400
2. #29 Alistair Haworth Yamaha 400
3. #9 Ian Lougher Honda 125
4. #5 Chris Palmer Honda 125
5. #46 David Kennington Kawasaki 400
Next up, it's the Junior Consolation Support Race, for 650cc bikes. You've got a mix of Super Twins, (the 650cc machines), with a 400 or 125 bike thrown in for good measure. Conor Cummins is not racing this weekend. Instead, he's supporting his dad Billy Cummins, who is running in this race, At the start, from onboard Billy Cummins' bike, we see a slight false start. But, they're away.
Rad Hughes and James Neesom both get good starts. James Niesam leads this race. Nicholas Pfeiffer is another rider in this battle for the lead. Jack Hunter and Steven Orff are also in their own battle. Through Ballabeg, the order remains the same in this one. The riders move through Williams and down into the Bomb Hole for the first time. The order has not changed as they run through Church bends. Rad Hughes leads with James Niesam and Jack Hunter.
A rider "overcooks" the entry to Ballekeighan and fortunately, manages to get their bike turned in the right direction. Neesom passes Rad Hughes for the race lead. Billy Cummins has run into trouble. He's missed an entry to the corner, missing a gear, or finding a false neutral in the transmission somewhere. Jack Hunter comes under pressure from Nicholas Pfeiffer. Dave Clark leads a second group on bike #85. Neesom and Hughes continue to fight for the race lead.
Niklas Pfeiffer is still hanging in there. Neesom continues pulling ahead of Rad Hughes. Billy Cummins' bike must be running at full song again. Ian Cowie on bike #66 and bike #102 battle. #102 is Mark Bamford. Bamford makes the pass and it's done and dusted. Super Twins are a great bike to race on a track like this because the rider can be in control of the motorcycle as opposed to the bike controlling the rider.
The battle continues. But, Ian Cowie makes his way by Mark Bamford. Battle for the lead here, folks. Rad Hughes is all over James Niesam one more time. Niesam does it, and Niklas Pfeiffer passes Jack Hunter. Most of these bikes are Kawasaki's with the exception of one or two Suzuki SV650's. Stuart Raynor on bike #42 is slowing, with mechanical issues. Joe Newbold is also running well. He was in the previous race with the 125cc bikes, too. It's the final lap of the Super Twins race. It's going to be James Neesom's race to lose.
Slower riders such as Dave Clark, Leon Murphy, and James Christie make their way around the course. Billy Cummins is still trying to recover. He's done so, very well. Into Castletown corner, there's a pass. Rad Hughes has gone around James Neesom. Rad Hughes wins! What happened to Neesom? Ah. He gets second place.
#55 Rad Hughes Kawasaki 650
The top five:
1. #55 Rad Hughes Kawasaki 650
2. #91 James Neesom Kawasaki 650
3. #47 Niklas Pfeiffer Kawasaki 650
4. #69 Jack Hunter Kawasaki 650
5. #38 Billy Cummins Kawasaki 650
The next race is a combined event for the 250s and the 650 Super Twins. It's the Ocean Ford 250/650 race. Dean Harrison and Jamie Hamilton are going to be the main ones to watch in this contest. There was already one race for the Super Twins, and Harrison and Hamilton put on quite the show. It's a clean start, as we ride aboard the #88 bike of Joe Faragher. Watch bikes #2 and #44. Go! Chris Palmer had his front wheel up in the air. Dean Harrison gets the best launch off the line.
Hamilton is third. Ivan Lintin is the leader at the moment. Through Ballekeighan for the first time. Lintin looks to be breaking away from the rest of the pack already. It's Lintin, Hamilton, and Harrison, the top three. James Cownton, Russ Mountford, and Chris Palmer, follow. The bikes run into Cross Four-Ways for the first time, and Joe Faragher is still behind everyone else. Tim Poole is also up there, right behind Chris Palmer.
Ivan Lintin is making a break for it right now. Steve McKnight on bike #64 is also running decently. At the rear of the second group is bike #18 ridden by Callum Laidlaw. The leaders run through the Bomb Hole for the first time. Hamilton and Cownton are giving the Ryan Farquhar team a good run. Farquhar, is of course, a former racer. Ivan Lintin continues to lead this race. Lintin holds the lead into lap three of this race. Joe Faragher gets passed as Jamie Hamilton squeals the tires into the corner.
Adrian Harrison is another rider, deeper in this field. Now, back to the lead battle. Dean Harrison is closing in on Ivan Lintin. These two are leaving Jamie Hamilton in the dust. The gap between Harrison and Lintin closes even further. This will be a grandstand finish to the Super Twin and 250cc combined race. Haven't seen hide nor hair of the 250cc bikes though. They run past Joey's Gate. Colin Stevenson and Callum Laidlaw run farther down the race order.
Chris Palmer and Russ Mountford battle for fifth spot. You might want to go to the fridge and grab a bite to eat, chaps. This race hasn't changed at the front. It's still Harrison and Lintin going at it. John Bott and Adrian Harrison run together, for the last few positions in the top ten. Steve McKnight is still running out there, but he's shown the mechanical black flag (the "meatball"), because of something wrong with the bike. It's a black flag with a giant red dot in the middle, hence the nickname, "meatball". Lintin is still keeping Dean Harrison in his pocket.
Jamie Hamilton might have a problem as he's not riding the bike the way he'd mean to. Chris Palmer and Russ Mountford still battle, as Palmer is coming to grips with a Super Twin, after riding a 250cc bike for a long time, a bike he truly loved to race. Joe Faragher gets passed again. He's had a fraught race. Tim Poole is running decently. Oh boy! Dean Harrison is going to push, and he's right alongside Ivan Lintin now. Harrison slides down the inside. Will he make it stick?
He's got the spot. It's the last lap now. Lintin has the speed. Harrison has the cornering agility, and is better under braking. James Cowton is fourth. Lintin is still ahead. Can he do it? Chris Palmer still holds off Russ Mountford in their battle. They come into Church Bends one more time. Who is going to get the win? Tom Snow on bike #45 (another 250cc machine), runs well. But, that might be the last time you'll see a 250cc machine on the Billown course for the Southern 100. Dean Harrison slides sideways and is on the outside, trying to pass Lintin!
He does it! Harrison is going to win this race. Harrison wins it!
#2 Dean Harrison Kawasaki 650
Here are the results.
1. #2 Dean Harrison Kawasaki 650
2. #25 Ivan Lintin Tigcraft 650
3. #44 Jamie Hamilton Kawasaki 650
4. #52 James Cowton Kawasaki 650
5. #5 Chris Palmer Kawasaki 650
More action to come from Billown and these other Southern 100 races, in another entry. Stay tuned for that in the not too distant future. Part 2, coming your way, soon. So long for now.
No comments:
Post a Comment