The cruellest of misfortunes robbed Kent’s Jack Thomas of third pace in the GB Under 19 Championship – having fought his way to an 11 points tally which shared third place on the final score-chart, the 19 year old suffered a sprocket on his clutch basket ripping off right at the beginning of the run-off for the final rostrum place to get no further than inches from the starting gate as his young adversary, Leon Flint went around unopposed to deny Thomas the bronze medal.
In all, four SLYDE Kings’ riders took to track at the championship held at Ipswich Speedway. It began especially well for Taylor Hampshire competing in his home county, with a convincing tapes to chequered flag victory to see him level at the top of the score charts with pre-meeting favourite Dan Bewley (the only top division rider in the field), Eastbourne’s Tom Brennan and the rider the crowd generally accepted to be the ‘home’ favourite, Mildenhall’s Drew Kemp.
For Bewley and Brennan there turned out to be comfortable marches to the respective first and second places on the night. Bewley went through the card unbeaten (headed only briefly once – by last year’s 250cc British Youth Champion, Leon Flint in his fourth ride), whilst Brennan dropped just a solitary point – to the imperious Belle Vue man Bewley of course.
Thomas’s first ride saw up against Brennan and he had to settle for a second place, after initially leading but seeing the Eastbourne man get past him and pull away. Team mate Anders Rowe found himself rather off the pace in this one. Looking to put the mechanical woes which adversely affected him last Monday, young Rowe wasn’t to end pointless again in his further rides, with a highlight being a second place in his third outing – to end the meeting on five points.
That saw him finish one point ahead of the fourth Kent man in the 16-rider field, Alex Spooner who finished with a third place beating the highly rated Jason Edwards in his fourth ride followed by taking second behind Thomas in heat 20 to end on something of a high.
Hampshire meanwhile followed his opening race win with a second place next time out behind surprise packet, Joe Lawlor and grabbed one more second place (in heat 16, in a race when Kemp’s fall ended the Mildenhall youngster’s chances of a rostrum position).
That fall by Kemp opened the door for Thomas who had started with just three points after two rides (taking third behind Bewley & Kemp in heat seven), but then rallied with two heat wins in his final two rides. The first of these put him right back into contention for a rostrum finish that had been his target: beating the Belle Vue Colts’ pairing of Kyle Bickley and Lawlor in heat 14. Much depended for Jack on the outcome of heat 18 which pitched Brennan, Flint & Lawlor together.
In the end the order of finishing exactly matched Thomas’ requirements -the already uncatchable Brennan winning and Flint failing narrowly to get past Lawlor in a blanket finish. That meant by winning heat 20, Jack would be in a run off with the Birmingham youngster Flint – and the Kings’ heat leader duly delivered.
The run off though ended before it even began in a dramatic explosion of sparks as the clutch sprocket fell to the track as the tapes rose and with it went Thomas’s hopes of overhauling Flint to get third place.
Hampshire meanwhile had finished on a very solid nine points in 8th. place.
The four Kings’ men are back in action for their club next Monday, May 21st, in the home match against Mildenhall (6.30pm start time at Central Park Stadium).
1. Jamie Halder (Coventry Bees) 1 1 0 3 2 7 9th.
2. Joe Lawlor (Belle Vue Colts) 2 3 3 0 2 10 5th
3. Dan Bewley (Belle Vue Aces) 3 3 3 3 3 15 [M] 1st.
4. Ben Woodhull (Belle Vue Colts) 0 F F 1 NS 1 16th.
5. William O’Keefe (Stoke Potters) 1 0 0 0 1 2 15th.
6. Taylor Hampshire (Kent SLYDE KIngs) 3 2 1 2 1 9 8th.
7. Matt Marson (Mildenhall Fen Tigers) 2 0 F 2 0 4 11th. =
8. Charlie Brooks (Eastbourne Eagles) R 1 1 1 F 3 14th.
9. Tom Brennan (Eastbourne Eagles) 3 3 2 3 3 14 2nd.
10. Anders Rowe (Kent SLYDE Kings) 0 1 2 1 1 5 10th.
11. Jack Thomas (Kent SLYDE Kings) 2 1 2 3 3 11 4th.
12. Jason Edwards (Eastbourne Eagles) 1 2 1 0 0 4 11th.
13. Kyle Bickley (Belle Vue Colts) F 2 3 2 2 9 7th.
14. Alex Spooner (Kent SLYDE KIngs) 1 0 0 1 2 4 11th. =
15. Drew Kemp (Mildenhall Fen Tigers) 3 2 2 R 3 10 6th
16. Leon Flint (Birmingham Brummies) 2 3 3 2 1 11 3rd. (after run off)
R1. Joe Alcock (Stoke Potters) F
R2. James Laker (Kent SLYDE Kings) dnr
Heat Results
1 Bewley, Lawlor, Halder, Woodhull. 57.1
2 Hampshire, Marson, O’Keefe, Brooks (Retired). 61.0
3 Brennan, Thomas, Edwards, Rowe. 58.6
4 [awarded] Kemp, Flint, Spooner, Bickley (fell) no time
5 Brennan, Bickley, Halder, O’Keefe. 58.1
6 Lawlor, Hampshire, Rowe, Spooner. 60.0
7 Bewley, Kemp, Thomas, Marson. 57.1
8 [awarded] Flint, Edwards, Brooks, Woodhull (fell) no time
9 Flint, Thomas, Hampshire, Halder. 59.0
10 Lawlor, Kemp, Edwards, O’Keefe. 59.4
11 Bewley, Brennan, Brooks, Spooner 57.6
12 [awarded] Bickley, Rowe, Woodhull (fell), Marson (fell) no time
13 Halder, Marson, Spooner, Edwards. 62.0
14 Thomas, Bickley, Brooks, Lawlor. 59.5
15 Bewley, Flint, Rowe, O’Keefe. 58.3
16 Brennan, Hampshire, Woodhull, Kemp (fell rem. ret) 59.3
17 [awarded] Kemp, Halder, Rowe, Brooks (fell) no time
18 Brennan, Lawlor, Flint, Marson. 59.2
19 Bewley, Bickley, Hampshire, Edwards. 58.1
20 (rerun twice) Thomas, Spooner, O’Keefe, Woodhull (NS) Alcock (fell) 59.5
Run Off for Third place: Flint, Thomas (EF) 61.8