BP2

GP Winter Warm-up Final Round

The 3rd & final round of Gwent Police's Winter Warm-up series took place on Sunday 22nd February at Mynnyddislwyn near Blackwood. The weather was sunny & dry with a biting east wind. The 5 mile course mainly consisted of the Round 1 route in reverse with a couple of tricky bits thoughtfully added to really warm up the riders. It started on the MX course, went around the fields & through a quarry & a farm before dropping down a greasy gully & along the first of several guily cambers which increased in their guiliness before returning to the finish via some big jumps on the MX track that pumped the riders up for another lap. The start was at 11am & the field of 150 competitors - in 3 ranks of expert, clubman, sportsman - were to be flagged away at 1 minute intervals. There was a slight delay for the Sportsman when a clubman on a Yamaha over cooked a wheelie out of the gate & fell sideways into the path of a Kawasaki (my Kawasaki). The Yamaha rider was not seriously injured & he was treated by the medical crew at the scene. I clouted my left ankle going over the bars which was useful as I could complete the event without having to think about all that gear changing nonsense. The final camber in the wood on the early laps was a challenge for many. A long line of riders developed - grimly gripping the bar as they walked their flouncing machines along the root strewn slope - like a formation ballroom team on Come Dancing. Caerphilly MCC's secretary Gareth Jones - who had returned from a snowboarding holiday in Italy the day before - was one of the many who went off piste on an early lap but still completed 8 laps once a line had developed. Ex-championship rider Chris Bird led from the start but was forced to retire when he lost his brakes. Frank Morgan had to be on hand to film the moment he discovered the loss. Mx rider Lee Jones held it together for 16 laps to win the Premier & Expert Keith Horsnell was the runner up. Greg Evans (top left) - riding a 250 Cyclelogical Kawasaki - went into the final round with a 15pt lead & his 3rd place was more than enough to clinch the series. Tim Hunt's 13pts for 4th made him runner up for the series. Ben Morgan was 10th having moved up into the Experts after 2 wins gave him the Clubman class. The Caerphilly MCC British Championship team (top right) - sponsored by Wayne Mounter - got in some valuable practice for the 1st round at Breckland. Left to right: Peter Houghton - who is competing in his first season at Expert level - was 8th, Gerald Poole - 6th overall in the 2003 Welsh 4T Championship - was 7th & Micheal Rees - who was runner up in the Clubman class at the 2003 Welsh & won the Fast Eddy Clubman class on the same weekend despite a shoulder injury that has kept him off a bike since - retired but will be back. VOR sponsored rider Matthew Reed - who was also preparing for Diss - had a blistering ride holding on tightly to his new leviathan & finished 6th in the Experts. Adam Gayther was the Best Clubman ahead of runner up Paul Morgan. Jerry Adams was the Best Veteran & Barry Quibbell was the runner up for the event & the series. Results & Final Standings. The Presentation Evening will be at Blackwood Police Social Club on Friday 27th February starting at 7.30pm, free buffet, partners & families welcome. Amongst the prizes will be free entries donated by the Fast Eddy Organisation for the class winners to their first round in Tewksbury on 3rd & 4th April.

Thanks to Huw Watkins, Helena Hunt & the Gwent Police team for a superb series of events. Also ESW Centre president - Harold "H" Lewis - who scutineered, stewarded & punched the cards on a bitterly cold day with warm humour & Malcolm "Jock" Bell, who was everywhere he was needed with his quad & tow rope.

Photographs available from Helena Hunt.

Video available from: Frank Morgan, Malvern Lodge, Howey, LLANDRINDOD WELLS, Powys, LD1 5RE. Tel: 01597 822642

Finally local farmer, Jeff Miles, made a huge contribution to the success of this series & his plans to make this venue a permanent facility deserves your written support. Please write to him at - Penrhiwdarren Farm, Mynyddislwyn, Blackwood, Caerphilly.

Winter Warmup 2

Round 2 of the Gwent Police MC's East South Wales Centre Hare & Hounds Championship took place at Penrhiwdarren Farm, Mynyddislwyn, near Blackwood on Sunday 4th January.The entry of 143 was 50% up on round 1. Both the course & the weather were superb. The 5 mile lap wound round the MX course & farmland before a nose bleeding descent to a forest path & then a steady climb took the riders to the bog which had been well churned in round 1. Experts skipped over, clubmen whipped through but the late arrivals sank until Huw & Helena arrived with more tape. A long camber with a single rut then led to a hole in a fence & a new element - courtesy of Forest Enterprise - which descended a firebreak then climbed a barrelling single track. The return leg included two quarries & a dung heap. In the Experts, Gary Player set the early pace chased by round 1 winner Greg Evans & Jack Twentyman from Bodmin. This exciting battle wound on through the day. As the greasy top came off, the racing lines got faster and faster. Lee Jones from Merthyr briefly took the lead before his Husky let go in a huge way in the paddock. The three early leaders were chased hard by Alun Pearce & a pack of Gary Grover's Husaberg's. As the hours wore on, there were literally dozens of blokes from the Novice & Beginners classes pushing & swearing at big 4 strokes along cambers, up hills, and so on. Nice to trail ride, but would you want to dig one out and then kick it. On the final lap 2 star crossed Yamahas fell into the same rut & could not be parted. As the closing minutes all to quickly came, there was a hard core of serious racers clocking steady & very fast times. At the end of 3 hours, Tim Hunt was the winner with 15 laps less than 2 minutes ahead of runner up Jack Twentyman (left) from Bodmin. Alun Pearce was the Best MX Expert. In the Clubman, Ben Morgan posted his second win ahead of Paul Bright. Rhys Jones won the MX junior. The 4T winner was Rob Lewis ahead of Steven Williams. Jeremy Adams was the best veteran. NB Helena has a host of excellent quality photographs for sale.... Just £10 for a CD with all the photos on, or £5 for an individual 10x8 enlargement.. Send an E mail to helena_t_hunt@hotmail.com for more info or proofs. Well done all the finishers, we will be posting some exciting news shortly about our championship & the class prizes. Results

Winter Warmup

The Gwent Police MC have decided to go down the road of providing off road sport for the riders who are otherwise left in the cold by a lack of practice facilities & areas for recreational motorcycling in South Wales. True, there are a large number of green lanes, but if you have no licence, where do you go?? Round 1 of GPMC's East South Wales Centre Hare and Hounds Championship 2003 took place at Penrhiwdarren Farm, Mynyddislwyn, near Blackwood on Sunday 7th December. The venue has hosted events in the past, & some enthusiastic work by the farmer, Geoff Miles enabled the Police team to set a full & varied course. The "Winter Warmup" series attracted almost 100 riders for the first round. The weather was bright but a biting east wind made everyone eager for the 11am start when the field was flagged away by course director Huw Watkins in 3 groups at 30 second intervals. From the start of the 5 mile lap the riders followed an existing MX track with an exhilarating series of downhill jumps. Before the start there had been the usual banter about "letting the looseheads get away" & "taking your time" but inevitably it was shoulder to shoulder in the air once the flag had dropped. Pools of water had gathered in several places which would become slurry pits as the event progressed. Beyond the MX track the course followed fences around fields of closely cropped grass before dropping into mature woodland where there were a series of testing descents & climbs. The biggest hill consisted of unusual pebble shaped stones in soft clay. It was so fascinating that most riders stopped for a closer look. Unphased by the varied nature of this superb course, 18 year old Greg Evans from Church Village won the Premier with 16 laps. He was riding a Cyclelogical Kawasaki 250KXE & competing in his first 3 hour H&H event. Simon Jones was the runner up on a KTM300 which looked decidedly second hand by the finish. Mid race, James Nathan snatched the lead briefly but dropped his CRF450 on the last lap & had to settle for 3rd. The four stroke class was well won by Gareth Hopkins, who was up with the experts. Nicky Evans won the MX juniors who seemed to fade more than their expert colleagues. Ben Morgan took the premier clubman award, and looks good to move up to centre expert next year. Nathan James' father Wayne won the Veterans class. The course received praise from all classes, thanks no doubt by the weather. Riders may keep their numbers for the series, as this will make the organisers job a little easier. Results.

There are photographs available, with good results, e-mail please to Helena_t_hunt@hotmail.com for a proof copy, with your number. Nominal cost only.