Martin Powell (Yamaha 1000) could only manage three third places in the opening round of the club’s 401-1100cc Open title, but that was enough to give him a slender lead in the series. Cardiff’s Julian Hughes, armed with his new GP Motorcycles Kawasaki 1000, won the first two races.
The first was red flagged after four laps with Hughes just under half a second in front of Steve Griffiths (Kawasaki 1000) and Powell third. Hughes ran home winner in the second, with Griffiths even closer to him. Powell was third again and last season’s championship runner-up, Barry Evans (Yamaha 600), the 25-year-old from Anglesey, fourth after being only ninth home in that shortened first race, after starting from 20th on the grid.
Both Hughes and Griffiths missed race three after the rain came, leaving Matthew Rees (Kawasaki 600) to win in the tricky conditions from Evans and Powell. Powell has 24 points, four more than Hughes and six in front of Evans and Griffiths.
Jason Markham (Honda 350) was planning an exciting 2014 season, but that was before the Army told him he was being posted to Canada until November. This meeting was, then, would be his only race outing of the season and the Sleaford-born racer took advantage of it. He won all three Classic 251-500cc races, beating Mark Griffiths (TAB Honda 350) each time out.
Markham (Suzuki 650) was second home in the first two Minitwins races, beaten each time by Chris Ganderton (Suzuki 650). Rain before the third and final outing left conditions tricky. Markham, on Intermediates had two big slides on the opening lap, persuading him to stop. Ganderton had no such problems and beat Michael Brookes (Suzuki 650) by nearly four seconds to complete his hat trick.
Martin Powell (Suzuki 1100) was also a front-runner in the club’s Forgotten Era Over 500cc championship. He took a third, a second and a fourth place in his three outings to end the day on 24 points, joint second with Marc Taylor (Yamaha 1000) and three down on Steve Birtles (Yamaha 1000), who had a win and two second places.
Mike Carter (Honda) will find it hard to retain his 400 Supersport title after a tough opening round. He failed to score points in race one after finishing down 12th place and then could only finish fourth and ninth in the next two. Up front Sandy Berwick, Mark Purslow and Paul Odlum were battling it out. Berwick leads on 28, Purslow 27 and Odlum 24, with Carter trailing on 9 points.
It was a day of hat-tricks.
Simon Harris (Yamaha), the man who sponsors big-bike racer Julian Hughes, won all three 250GP races from Gareth Willis, while Kimberley Rose (Honda) was unbeaten in her three 125GP outings in front of Ted Cornes.
Matthews Rees (Kawasaki) took all three Steel Frame races and now holds a five points’ lead over his closest rival, Jake Hingley.
David Edwards (Yamaha 250) scored a hat trick in the Classic 250 class, but Ken Hankey failed to score points in the third race, so trails him by 12 points.
Mike Carter (Honda 400) won all three Forgotten Era 251-500 races and leads Paul Grantham by five points, but things did not go so well for the reigning 400 Supersports champion in that class, where he lies eighth on 9 points, 19 behind series leader, Sandy Berwick,
Chris Ganderton tops the Minitwin class on the maximum 30 points, eight ahead of Michael Brookes. The Cunliffe brothers were unbeaten in the Sidecar event.
Caron Roberts won two of her three Forgotten Era up to 250 races and finished in the other. She tops the points’ table on 29, three clear of Dave Edwards.
Roger Smith picked up his pace in the Classic 125/Single Cylinder class. Fourth in race one, he was third next time out then won the last, putting top of the championship on 25, three ahead of Ken Halliwell.
Ian Cowley came out on top of a disappointingly low turn-out in the 50cc Racing Machines class, on 27 three ahead of Mike Connell.