The British riders once again proved themselves too tough for European opposition last Sunday, as ASTRA club staged one of two European Solo Semi Final’s at their Swingfield venue. British talent Zach Wajtknecht, James Shanes and Paul Hurry filled the rostrum spots, whilst some other British hopefuls suffered bad luck and crashes.
The Swingfield venue, near Folkestone looked picturesque in the warm sunshine, with the circuit laid out on the same side of the field as the British Masters last year. Overall winner Zach Wajtknecht was in sensational form, managing to lead James Shanes, the defending European Champion, home in 3 out of the 4 heats of the young British stars.
In the A Final, Wajtknecht led from start to finish, but Shanes was never too far behind. Following the two youngsters home was experienced racer Paul Hurry, who put in a solid day’s racing to secure his spot in the Euro Final, a competition which he won himself in 2005. Hurry looked strong all afternoon, but had no answer to the two top riders in the Final. Yorkshire racer Andrew Whitaker was impressive in such stiff opposition. He rode steadily all day to bag himself a spot in the Euro Final.
The best of the foreign contingent was Dutch rider Mark Beishuizen. In his first meeting on British soil, he put together several strong rides, including a spectacular win from the back in his final qualifying ride. French racer Anthony Chauffour also looked good in several rides, taking a heat win during an afternoon that saw his determined performance secure his route to Tayac for the Euro Final. Czech racer Martin Malek rode well to win the B Final and German veteran Christian Hülshorst did what was needed to see his way through.
Although the Brits celebrated glory, there was misery in both the Kennett and Ellis camps. Edward Kennett looked super quick in his opening ride, winning in terrific style. But a nasty looking incident in his third ride left Kennett with a possible dislocated knee- he took no further part. Such was the performance of Kennett in his early rides, he’d scored enough points to qualify for the B Final. This is enough to see him grab a reserve berth for the Euro Final. It’s a long time until the event itself, so Kennett’s European journey might not be over yet.
Sadly, the same cannot be said for Adam Ellis. The Swindon Speedway ace looked super quick, finishing 2nd in two races. But as he led his final ride comfortably, he tumbled from the machine exiting the top corner and his European Grasstrack campaign tumbled too- such a shame for a rider who is clearly quick enough to be there at Tayac in July.
The final word for the Brits must go to Dave Mears. The evergreen racer was brought in last minute as track reserve but quickly found himself in the meeting proper when an exclusion to Gabriel Dubernard occurred in the opening set of heats. And how cruelly fate mocked the Frenchman as it was Dubernard once again who fell whilst leading the C Final on the final lap, allowing Mears to take a well-earned victory.
The European Semi was well supported by a strong contingent of 1000cc Sidecars. Mark Cossar and Carl Blyth picked up where they left off last season. They were headed for half a lap in their opening ride by Colin Blackbourn/Carl Pugh, but swooped underneath Blackbourn/Pugh heading into the pit corner in a spectacular manoeuvre. This was the last time the reigning Masters champs looked troubled, winning all three of their heats, their semi and the final convincingly. In one heat, they reverted to their R1 Cross-plane outfit which was being ridden by little brother Tom Cossar and passenger Wayne Rickards. The outfit change didn’t seem to slow them down.
Westcountry crew Simon Heal and Rowland Broomfield put together one of their best day’s racing ever, putting in solid performances against some of the country’s top crews all afternoon. In the Final, they once again rode excellently to finish runners-up to Cossar/Blyth. Blackbourn/Pugh initially looked to be finishing 2nd, but suspected mechanical gremlins hampered their progress throughout the final. Rob Wilson/Terry Saunters passed them with ease, but couldn’t get on terms with the flying Heal/Broomfield combination.
Cossar/Rickards finished 5th aboard the Crossplane outfit, but their progress was also hindered in the exit of the opening bend. Gary Shearer’s passenger Sam Heath was thrown from the outfit and Cossar/Rickards appeared to feel that the Final needed to be rerun. Shearer/Heath had ridden well in their return to the sport, winning their Semi-Final with a solid ride.
The FIM Europe Jury President for the event, Dane Jesper Steentoft credited the event as a great success as the picturesque venue was bathed in glorious sunshine throughout the day. Although the circuit was a little dusty, it never caused too many problems for the riders or the spectators, as the track staff worked tirelessly to keep conditions to their best. Two weeks ago, nobody would have predicted dust! A fine event in front of a large crowd can only do good for British Grasstrack.
Report and Result images by Gareth Bemister – Action images courtesy of Darren Nokes