Traq Rods Corner

Round one 2008 championship report

Right people I think its time for a huge round of applause because, yes, I have finally got myself from in front of the TV to in front of the computer to write this raceday report that you all want and are waiting to read. So enough with blowing my own trumpet and lets get to it shall we.

Round 1 has been and what can be said about it. Well to start of with it was wet, shocking I know!!!! Thankfully the rain didn’t stay around for the whole event just appeared every now and again to lay some of the damp stuff on the track that had been steadily drying out. I think we can agree these weren’t the conditions we were hoping for, despite that it didn’t hinder the day’s proceedings at all. The turnout was good considering the wet stuff falling from the never-ending grey cloud above us, which provided brilliant racing all day.

Lets start with the Adult Cags shall well this class looked very interesting on paper with a few new entrants, two moving up from Junior Cags, including the 2007 champion, you had to wonder if the adults were going to be able to hold pace with their lighter rivals. However Tony not only had their pace but also was setting his own for the rest of the field to chase and managed to walk away holding the 1st place trophy. Although it is clear his machine was suited to the conditions even last years champion, Jamie Simmons, couldn’t compete on a similar machine, with Tony’s superb ride. The other places were hotly contested with Jamie Simmons, Michael Cole and Richard Waters all battling for the remaining places, including a brilliant battle in the final that resulted in rather amusing melee, which should on Youtube any day now. This class is looking really exciting and looks to only get better throughout the year.

Onto the Watercooled Replica Class, which was a bit down on numbers this round, which can be credited to the weather, but still managed to show their class, with Richard Waters and Jamie Simmons both battling hard for the top spot, with Richard able to come away with the honour in the end. There was also a good showing from Max Carman in the damp conditions for his first time in the class. Hopefully the show they put on will entice a few off the sidelines for the next round, including last year’s champion, Alex Gripper, who seems to be missing in action.

The Performance Class were also present with a strong grid allowing for a race of their own. Congratulations must go to James Girvan and Michael Cole, who had their first meeting in the class, but done it on slick tyres in the slippery conditions. Andy Bassett was the man setting the pace throughout the meeting but did forget in a couple of races that he needed to stay on the bike. While John and myself were pushing each other for the other places. The final was almost a dead heat with myself being named the winner just passing the line before Andy by about a whisker.

The Blata Class also had superb showing with new riders joining the ranks of this brilliant class and also providing a few surprises along the way. Everyone was looking at Clare Bear to continue her dominance of the class. It was not to be, although she did manage a win in one of the heats she couldn’t get to grips with the conditions and even had a few meetings with the tarmac during her day. It was however Gideon Thomas taking the spoils on the day making the most of the wet conditions, surprisingly considering he doesn’t usually race in these conditions, which made this ride even more superb. The other places were all well contested for throughout the field with varying results which will be clearly seen once the final points for the meeting have been posted, it’s close to say the least.

Finally the Junior Cags showed their brilliance once again with excellent and exciting racing throughout the entire grid and the day. This year’s championship was wide open going in with everyone looking to stake their claim to the top spot and the early lead in the championship. This was done by Ross Simpson with a ride that can only be described as class. He took his time and kept his cool in the tricky conditions allowing him to walk away with the first place trophy for the day. However its clear he hasn’t got an easy time ahead of him to stay on top as the rest of the field were extremely quick as well and are not to be overlooked as they provided some brilliant battles and without a doubt will be pushing for the top spot at the next round.

Well that’s it from me I hope you all enjoyed your racing on Sunday, I know I did, and are looking forward to the next one. Unfortunately I won’t be with you on April 27th but will be kept up to date on the days racing and desperately looking at the results to keep an eye on who will be pushing for the trophy and title that will define them as Surrey Champion 2008, at the end of the year. See you all trackside soon.

Marty aka Traq Rod