An Early Evening of Grasstrack

Ledbury ran their annual evening meeting at their Hazle Meadow venue and in memory of club stalwart Garry Lawrence.

The 250s led off the evening and youngsters Callum Walker and Zach Wajtknecht won all six heats between them. Wajtknecht went on to take the win in the Final with Walker second and third went to Trevor Clarricoats.

Races three and four were the Uprights and they were won by Mick Norton and James Childe. Childe went on to complete a hat-trick of heat wins, with the stylish Dave Wright taking the other two. Childe led the Final for a lap and a half before Wright passed to take his first win since his return to the sport. Norton got third.

The 500cc chairs were the next to the line and Barrie Bennett & Eifion Hughes took the first heat from Dave Carvill & Richard Phillimore. They also won the third heat but mechanical problems saw them push over the line and retire from another. The overall win went to Manchester based Dave Carvill & Richard Phillimore with two wins and two seconds. Second overall was taken by Keith Richards & Glynn Fletcher a single point ahead of Bennett & Hughes. Interesting to note, Sophie McCotter, daughter of Clerk of Course and ex Sidecar passenger Shaun McCotter, was making her debut in the sport as passenger to Mike Gosling.

Barry Powell ran away with the 350cc class with four out of four wins despite a tumble, an exclusion! and a reinstatement in the second round of heats. Simon Phillips finished second and Lawrence Barber third.

The second vintage class, the Pre 75s, was taken by former European Champion Gerald Short with straight wins. Second went to Tim Curnock and third went to Dave Burry.

After a number of non-starters, a fall and a retirement in the first heat the class was down to just four riders. Despite this there was some great action and 2014 European finalist Rob Finlow took the win from 2013 British Under 21 Champion Josh Dingle. Ben Millichap took third, and fourth went to Jason Newitt.

In the ‘big chairs’ Mark Cossar & Carl Blyth were a cut above the rest. Only Paul Johnson & Carl Pugh and Matt Fumarola & Gareth Williams gave the Masters Champions something to think about.  Other heat winners were Fred Skinner & Stephen Russell and Joe Mogg & Jake Cutler. In the Final Cossar & Blyth dominated with Johnson & Pugh second. Third went to Mogg & Cutler and the only other finisher was Skinner & Russell. Fumarola had mechanical problems coming to the line and didn’t take his place.