The Wirral Hundred club and the British Racing & Sports Car Club combined on 24th September to celebrate the 25
th Anniversary of the opening of the Anglesey circuit. This was especially fitting as Wirral Hundred had run the first bike race meeting there on 11
th October 1992 and BRSCC followed with the first car race meeting a few years later.
This was the first combined car-bike race meeting at the circuit and Wirral Hundred showcased its most popular class, Formula 600. The Anniversary races were run over two 12-lap legs of the Coastal circuit, with £1,000 of prize money on offer.
A wet qualifying practice saw Barry Dimelow on pole position for the first leg, but both he and Jamie Devine, one of the race favourites, had tumbled out in the tricky, damp conditions within the first two laps. Simon Napier, who had been second fastest in practice, took the lead from Jamie Harris after a brief reversal of positions on the penultimate lap, it was Napier who won the by just 0.2 seconds. Harris’s fastest lap put him on pole position for the second leg, and again, relishing the wet conditions, it was Napier who forced ahead, but Harris this time riding tactically, managed to take the lead on lap 8 and retain it and by the finish he led by a comfortable 5.4 seconds, thereby taking the aggregate victory and a special 25
th Anniversary trophy provided by the circuit. Napier was a comfortable second on aggregate and two outstanding third-finish rides from the orange-jacketed Josh Jones gave him the third-position trophy. The best of the rest were Chris Eden, Eoin Collins, cousins Carl & Chris Jones, and Nathan Harrison. All credit to all the riders – and officials and marshals - for putting on such a show in such difficult weather conditions, and for contributing to such a special occasion.
The next Wirral Hundred action is its iconic season-ending Anglesey Grand meeting on the International circuit over the weekend of 7
th & 8
th October, with the 24
th running of the Grand and a full complement of W100 championship races. This event is preceded by a Friday test day, which will incorporate time set aside for an ACU New Riders’ Course for those wishing to obtain race licences for 2018. There are places still available for the race meeting, the test day and for the New Riders’ Course and anyone interested in either should contact race secretary Margaret Dewsnap on 01244 813127.