Thursday September 1, 2016 at 11:24am
Chris Mort (Honda 600) added three more wins to his season’s tally to retain his Crewe and South Cheshire club’s 450-1100cc title at the fourth and final round of this year’s series at Tonfanau.
Coming into this meeting Mort led his closest rival, James Evans (Yamaha 600) by 18 points, but Mort was just too good for the opposition and ended the season 26 points clear of Evans, who could only manage a third and two fourths.
Mort won race one by almost 11 seconds from Grant Gaskell (Kawasaki 600), with Evans third over a second further back. Mike Norbury (Honda 600) started 21st on the grid and had climbed to second place, in pursuit of Mort, but fell at the hairpin. Norbury had the consolation of the joint fastest lap of the race along with Mort.
Norbury had to start race two from the back of the grid and was working his way through the pack when a rider ahead of him missed a gear. Norbury clipped the rider but managed to stay on. Despite the near disaster Norbury recovered to finish third, just five hundredths of a second behind Gaskell. Mort was over 11 seconds clear of the pack.
Mort completed the hat trick in race three, beating Norbury home by less than a tenth of a second. Gaskell was third almost 11 seconds further back.
Gaskell was third in the final points’ table, with Norbury fourth.
Chris Ganderton (Suzuki 650) made sure of the Minitwins championship, despite finishing in just two of his three races. Ganderton, the 32-year-old landscape gardener from Anglesey, beat his closest rival John Nicklin (Suzuki 650) by 12 seconds in race one, but then failed to finish in race two, which was won by Nicklin from another Ganderton, Chris’s brother, Andrew. That blip cut Chris Ganderton’s lead in the series to just four.
Andrew Ganderton won the third and final race, three fifths of a second in front of Chris. Nicklin was fourth home, giving Chris Ganderton the title by a six point margin from Nicklin.
Dean Ephgrave held slender one point lead over Tony Griffiths, brother of Classics champion Mark Griffiths, in the Steel Frame 600 class, coming into this meeting. In fact the top four were covered by only seven points.
Jon Wright won race one, chased home by Griffiths, Lewis Clark and Ephgrave. Griffiths now led by a point.
Wright was winner of race two, with Ephgrave second and Griffiths third.
Ephgrave and Griffiths were level legging on 70 points with just one race to come.
Wright completed his hat trick in the decider, but Griffiths took second from Ephgrave at the last corner by six hundredths of a second to win the championship by just a single point, 79 points to 78. Wright was third on 70 points and it might have been a different story if he had not missed the third round of the series.
Mark Griffiths (Honda) was once more unbeatable in the Classic 251-500 class, with three more wins taking his tally of victories to nine. He took the title by a comfortable 17 points margin from Sarah Measures (Yamaha).
Measures trailed Griffiths by just a single point coming into the meeting, but she was only fourth in race one, beaten by Griffiths, Alan Brooks (KSK Honda) and Adrian Day (Honda).
Measures’ hopes of taking the title were not helped by her finishing fourth in race two, behind Griffiths, Day and Brooks. Sadly Measures crashed out of the final race, bringing out the red flags. Griffiths won again, to take his tally to 80, with Measures second overall and Graham Dickinson (Suzuki) third.
Griffiths was also out in the Sidecar class, acting as passenger to Gary Wilson in his Suzuki K5 1000cc outfit. Wilson had had two dnfs at Aintree and the problems following him to this meeting. Both practice sessions ended after less than two laps. Help was at hand, though. Kirsty Hauxwell kept the tea flowing, while Craig Hauxwell tried to find what was wrong.
He found a blocked secondary fuel filter and Wilson and Griffiths were set for the races. They were third home in all three.
Nevil Jones and Tom Bryant made a clean sweep of the races, but could not stop the absent Roger Stockton and Sharon Doodson taking the title.
Caron Roberts (Suzuki) tried hard to retain her Classic 250 twin class title.
She won her first race beating her main rival, Ted Cornes (Suzuki), but just over a tenth of a second. But Cornes headed her home in the next two, to end the season on 87 points, four more than Roberts.
Derek Heap (Rob North BSA 930) held a 14 point lead over Mick Crompton (BSA 750) in the Classic over 501cc class coming into this meeting. Crompton won two of the day’s three races and was second to Paul Johnson (Rob North Triumph 750) in the other, but with Heape notching up a second and two all three outings to take his season’s tally to 60,14 more than Mick Crompton who was third home each time.
John Price was out to retain both the Forgotten Era 251cc-500cc and the 400cc Supersport titles. With maximum points so far in each class, he led the Forgotten Era class by 11 points and the 400c class by 16.
He had blown up the engine of his number one dry bike at his last race at Anglesy, so he was having to use his second dry machine here. Having
only ridden this machine a few times this year he had to get used to a
different ratio gear box and the different feel of the bike, even though they are virtually the same bike.
From 18th on the grid in his first 400 Supersport race he pulled through the pack to take second place overall and first in his class, taking enough points to retake the championship.
Price had the same start position in the Forgotten Era class. But made a great start and was soon chasing Steve Birtles on his Yamaha FZR 1000. Price had a good run into paddock bend and nipped past him. He managed to hold on to first place to the flag having notched up a fastest lap of 91.49mph.
Price was still leading the championship, and pole position helped him make a great start. Victory made sure of retaining the title. Steve Birtles (Yamaha 1000) could not always match the pace of Price’s little Kawasaki, but he was unbeatable in the big bike class, taking a clean sweep and snatching the Forgotten Era over 501cc title from Dean Culley (Suzuki 750) by just two points, 84 to 82. Paul Myler (Suzuki 1100) was third in the final standings on 74.
Corey Lewis (Kawasaki 250) was unbeaten in the three Forgotten Era up to 250 class races, but it was not enough to win the championship. He headed home Huw Edwards (Rotax 250) and Dave Edwards (Honda 250) each time out. Those results gave Dave Edwards the title on 88, 22 ahead of Huw Edwards.
The Classic 125 and Single cylinder 250cc class had a modern Aprillia 250cc twin, ridden by Andy Mears, on the grid which unsurprisingly won all three races. But did not feature in the points.
Dave Thorp (Ducati 250) won race one on the followed by Nick Bromley on his very special BSA Bantam and Carron Roberts on her Bultaco. Hudson Keanaugh (Yamagamma), of BSB fame, was first 50 home followed by Mark Bainbridge on the Aprillia and Dutchman Hans Knoppers on the Kreidler. A split fuel tank put existing 50cc champion and lap record holder Sam Grief out of the race.
Dave Thorp was overall winner in race two. Ducatis romping home with David Braisier in second and Roger Smith third.
Grief fitted a replacement generator fuel tank and made an incredible start from the back of the grid, to take sixth place overall and first 50. Keanaugh was second, after another close race with Binbridge. The joke in the paddock was Grief riding the fastest generator in Wales.
Grief took an outright win in race three, beating all the Classic 250s at near lap record pace. Bainbridge was second 50 home and Knoppers third. Keanaugh finished down the pack on an ailing machine.
Earlier Parry finished all three races narrowly missing out on his aim of a sub minute lap. Hans Knoppers and Roos Key travelled all the way from Rotterdam for the event, showing great dedication and riding immaculate machines.
Overall Tonfanau 50cc Champion was Mark Bainbridge with Sam Grief second and Ernie Parry Third.
Nick Bramley on that very special BSA Bantam 186 wrapped up the Classic 125 and 250 Singles class with a second place and a win. He ended the year on 79 points, 11 more than Roger Smith and 18 clear of David Brasier, who notched a fourth and two seconds.