The Luton & District MCC ran the single-weekend ACU British Vets Championship at Toddington for the third year running, and with an innovative race programme and unique format for dealing with multiple classes, you can tell that word is spreading as most of the classes enjoyed full gate entries on a circuit designed for the older generation while still providing a thrilling challenge and plenty of committed racing!
First of all, of course, it has to be said that tragedy did strike the event late on Saturday afternoon. Long time supporter of the event, Over 50s Novice Class rider Kevin Pride, from Gloucestershire, pulled off the circuit on the final lap of his second race of the day and collapsed. Despite the best medical care possible and instant attention to his situation, he was unable to regain consciousness and very sadly passed away. Everybody at the event, and the entire Motocross community, sends their condolences and best wishes to his family and friends. RIP Kev Pride #94
After much tough deliberation and after permission was given by the Police and ACU it was agreed that the event would carry on, although one block of racing was lost from Saturday, Sunday’s programme ran as intended after a two-minute silence in remembrance of Kevin.
Both days took place in bright sunshine, with the wind whipping across the shallow slopes of the largely natural circuit and giving the organisers a real headache in their efforts to keep the dust down, but a good watering session at the end of practice helped the situation.
The format sees two gate drops per race, so each class starts only with their direct competitors as another class gets underway 30 seconds later. In the five-lap races, only the very fastest catch up to the tail end of the next class on the sprawling, two-minute-plus Toddington layout. In this way, the fastest in each class don’t interfere with the results of the other, and a strictly-policed bib system keeps it easy for spectators, and new commentator Ben Rumbold, to keep track of who is who!
By far the fastest race of the day was the Over 30s Championship class, as the first gate drop, with the Over 40s to follow. Defending Over 30s Champion Adam Wells sported his usual number 156 on his bib, but proudly displayed the red #1 plate as is allowed for the top ten in the Championship’s regulations. While Adam was not always the fastest starter on the Apex Worcester KTM, he fought hard against the #2 rider Carl Jones, who took victory in race one after a slip off from Adam Wells. . Wells went on to win the remaining 3 races and retain the red plate for next season! Jones took a solid second overall, although Ayres got amongst it to claim one second place away and took third overall. Some solid racing from Kawasaki-mounted Michael Ogden, including a third place in race three, saw him in fourth overall ahead of the vintage Honda of Gareth Artus and consistent northerner Jake Moss.
Pos
No.
Competitor
Points
R1
R2
R3
R4
1
1
ADAM WELLS
255
60
65
65
65
2
2
CARL JONES
249
65
60
62
62
3
885
KRIS AYRES
240
62
62
56
60
4
56
MICHAEL OGDEN
232
56
58
60
58
5
57
GARETH ARTUS
226
58
54
58
56
6
23
JAKE MOSS
213
54
52
54
53
The Over 40s Championship class was a two-horse race between defending Champion Glen Phillips and two-stroke flyer Neville Bradshaw. The pair, with incredible international experience to their names, gave a masterclass on flat-out racing, carving through traffic with scary pace at times! Only once did the South African manage to start in front of the Welshman, in the final race of the weekend, but Phillips gave everything to take the lead away, and did so with a stunning out-braking move into a downhill right hander that nearly cut Bradshaw’s nose off! The title again went to the unbeaten Glen, ahead of Nev, with Luton club Chairman Paul Burn claiming third overall after a weekend-long battle with Luke Mellows, who took fourth. Justin Robinson on the MHP Racing Yamaha claimed fifth overall ahead of John Butler.
Pos
No.
Competitor
Points
R1
R2
R3
R4
1
414
GLEN PHILLIPS
260
65
65
65
65
2
272
NEVILLE BRADSHAW
248
62
62
62
62
3
97
PAUL BURN
238
60
58
60
60
4
44
LUKE MELLOWS
230
58
60
58
54
5
48
JUSTIN ROBINSON
218
56
56
54
52
6
3
JOHN BUTLER
215
53
53
56
53
The Over 50s Championship started off each block of racing, and Sean Smith again made this title his own, dominating for the third consecutive year, although the brightly-coloured Simon Bonser took the third race victory away from him on his way to second overall, matching his result from 2023. Yamaha man Danny Blakely suffered a mechanical problem in the last race of the day which cost him 3rd overall and handed that to former Inters winner Chris Walker (no, not the ex-WSB rider!) with Dirt Bike Centre rider Rob Mead and Guy Day closing out the top 6.
Pos
No.
Competitor
Points
R1
R2
R3
R4
1
121
SEAN SMITH
257
65
65
62
65
2
97
SIMON BONSER
251
62
62
65
62
3
155
CHRIS WALKER
228
58
54
56
60
4
739
DANNY BLAKELEY
221
60
60
60
41
5
61
ROB MEAD
219
54
56
53
56
6
4
GUY DAY
217
53
52
54
58
The Over 60s Championship saw Brian Staples, who had claimed bronze and silver in the previous two seasons in the Over 50s class, move up to the older category and prove to be too much for the opposition, although last year’s runner-up Russ Jarman, a former British Championship rider, gave him a challenge at one point! While Staples won all four races, Jarman had to contend with the charging 125cc Honda of ex-IMBA contender and factory mechanic Julian Dobb, who took second overall away on the final race tiebreak with a stunning pass on Wildman Willis! Mike Allport scored consistently despite some average starts to claim fourth overall on his Suzuki, while Willis recovered from an awful first race to claim fifth overall on his 125cc Willis Property Maintenance Yamaha, ahead of Ian Knight in sixth.
Pos
No.
Competitor
Points
R1
R2
R3
R4
1
22
BRIAN STAPLES
260
65
65
65
65
2
5
JULIAN DOBB
242
62
58
60
62
3
2
RUSSELL JARMAN
242
60
62
62
58
4
3
MIKE ALLPORT
223
58
53
56
56
5
93
WILDMAN WILLIS
216
38
60
58
60
6
211
IAN KNIGHT
215
53
56
53
53
One of the fastest races of the day was the joint Evo & Super Evo class, who will have their deciding Championship round at the Apico 2-Stroke Festival at Sellindge on the first weekend of August. The Evos (1980s machines) started together with the Super Evo 1990s bikes and raced as hard against each other as they did within their own classes! Nev Bradshaw brought his 1989 125cc Honda to convincingly clinch the Evo class win each time, ahead of Gloucester boy Gareth Artus, North-Easterner Michael Ogden, Matt Coles, the sweet Yamaha of Scott Allen, and Devonshire’s own Matt Wells.
Pos
No.
Competitor
Points
R1
R2
R3
R4
1
272
NEVILLE BRADSHAW
260
65
65
65
65
2
57
GARETH ARTUS
248
62
62
62
62
3
56
MICHAEL OGDEN
238
60
60
58
60
4
27
MATT COLES
232
58
58
60
56
5
18
SCOTT ALLEN
222
56
56
56
54
6
242
MATT WELLS
217
53
53
53
58
Bradshaw dealt with some tough racing from Super Evo warrior Carl Jones, however, who swapped his modern Yamaha for a 1990s 250cc Honda, duking it out with the Evo bikes of Bradshaw and Artus, as well as his chief competitors Kristian Hutchings, on another 125cc Honda, and the fast-starting CR500 of Sean Wainwright. Hutchings did take race one after a mistake from Jones, but lost out due to a poor start in race three. Ryan Butler stayed consistent for fourth overall, although James Barnwell was fourth for the whole meeting until he led the final race on his APM Components Honda, and crashed from that lead! Barnwell had to settle for fifth overall in front of the gorgeous black Chesterfield Yamaha replica of Christopher Thorpe, the first non-Honda overall!
Pos
No.
Competitor
Points
R1
R2
R3
R4
1
2
CARL JONES
255
60
65
65
65
2
55
KRISTIAN HUTCHINGS
249
65
62
60
62
3
26
SEAN WAINWRIGHT
244
62
60
62
60
4
204
RYAN BUTLER
224
56
56
54
58
5
74
JAMES BARNWELL
223
58
58
58
49
6
29
CHRISTOPHER THORPE
220
54
54
56
56
The Over 30s Inters had their gate drop during the Evo & Super Evo races, and Kawasaki-mounted Tyrone Tugwell took all four race wins, despite often having to pass the fast-starting machine of Jamie McCarthy. Thomas White made the journey from South Wales worthwhile with third overall, including second in race two, while Oliver Pearce, Dan Smith, and Marcus Smith rounded out the top six.
Pos
No.
Competitor
Points
R1
R2
R3
R4
1
784
TYRONE TUGWELL
260
65
65
65
65
2
79
JAMIE MCCARTHY
244
62
58
62
62
3
12
THOMAS WHITE
240
58
62
60
60
4
91
OLIVER PEARCE
226
56
54
58
58
5
8
DAN SMITH
217
52
56
56
53
6
726
MARCUS SMITH
215
54
60
51
50
The Over 40s Inters shared the circuit with the Over 50s Championship lads, and Southside MX rider Aaron Hopkins got amongst plenty of those riders with a dominant performance throughout, only once suffering an average start that made him cut through the pack rapidly. Behind Aaron there was some great scrapping between Dai Jones, last year’s fifth-placed rider Joe Surry, and Ryan Palmer, while Matt Willis also got his enduro machine into the argument with some close racing, especially in a strong move on the Devon Cornwall Coatings Suzuki of Sean Kettlewell for third in race three! Jones took second both times on Sunday to claim that position overall as Surry’s starts from Saturday deserted him.
Pos
No.
Competitor
Points
R1
R2
R3
R4
1
101
AARON HOPKINS
260
65
65
65
65
2
4
DAI JONES
236
60
52
62
62
3
747
JOE SURRY
233
62
62
51
58
4
64
RYAN PALMER
224
58
58
56
52
5
20
MATT WILLIS
222
50
56
60
56
6
406
SEAN KETTLEWELL
215
53
54
58
50
There were that many Over 50s Inters entered that they had the track all to themselves in the dark green bibs, and Yamaha two-stroke rider Patrick Carter justified his late entry with a great weekend, taking three out of the four race wins, although he had to battle most of the way! John Priestley fell from a strong position in race one, so had to fight to recover for second overall on his Honda, while Warren Clifton had to get his elbows out a few times on his Suzuki, taking third overall! Richard Tapscott, fourth in 2024, matched that result this time after a rough first outing, but took a Holeshot-and-hide win in race three to put his KTM ahead of the one of John Gauntlett, with Andy Mitchell in sixth.
Pos
No.
Competitor
Points
R1
R2
R3
R4
1
125
PATRICK CARTER
257
65
65
62
65
2
153
JOHN PRIESTLEY
232
52
58
60
62
3
46
WARREN CLIFTON
232
62
56
58
56
4
595
RICHARD TAPSCOTT
229
44
62
65
58
5
544
JOHN GAUNTLETT
229
60
60
56
53
6
61
ANDY MITCHELL
208
53
52
43
60
The Over 60s Inters had to qualify to earn that rank, with those outside the top 20 going to the Novices group, and Welshman David Jones on the Olivers Skip Hire Kawasaki took the first three race wins with ease to get his hands on the trophy, while fastest Qualifier Andrew Holland took the last race win, but lost second overall to Peter Midgen, who took the place by a single point! Bristol boy Adrian Saunders had an up-and-down weekend for fourth overall ahead of Greg Pascoe, with Robin Davies squeaking into the top six despite an awful third race!
Pos
No.
Competitor
Points
R1
R2
R3
R4
1
354
DAVID JONES
257
65
65
65
62
2
152
PETER MIDGEN
236
58
60
60
58
3
443
ANDREW HOLLAND
235
62
54
54
65
4
4
ADRIAN SAUNDERS
232
54
56
62
60
5
14
GREG PASCOE
230
60
58
58
54
6
33
ROBIN DAVIES
215
56
62
41
56
The Over 30s Novices were dominated by tall Kawasaki rider Rikki Wainwright, although he often had tough resistance from similarly mounted Christopher Fuller. Last year’s fifth-placed rider Fraser Hopkin took third this time, with Will McRae always in fourth, and Lee Faulkner and Carl Warner taking the final two trophies.
Pos
No.
Competitor
Points
R1
R2
R3
R4
1
149
RIKKI WAINWRIGHT
260
65
65
65
65
2
57
CHRISTOPHER FULLER
246
62
62
60
62
3
389
FRASER HOPKIN
242
60
60
62
60
4
794
WILL MCRAE
232
58
58
58
58
5
876
LEE FAULKNER
220
54
56
56
54
6
540
CARL WARNER
214
56
52
53
53
The Over 40s Novices saw some of the most aggressive racing of the entire meeting, but it was all behind maximum man Jake Morphey, who powered away in all four races on his Houchell Design Honda. The glorious 500cc Kawasaki of John Penfold was second both times on Saturday, but he was absent on Sunday, which allowed the light blue TM of Ben Kirkman to come through into second overall, but not without some fierce opposition from Rimantas Buinickas, who took second in race three but just fell short of passing Kirkman in the final outing to lose the tiebreak in the points! Ben Cannings took a solid second in that final race on his Kawasaki to claim fourth overall, while Croydon charger Steven Nicholls took fifth ahead of local man David Ashpole.
Pos
No.
Competitor
Points
R1
R2
R3
R4
1
196
JAKE MORPHEY
260
65
65
65
65
2
46
BEN KIRKMAN
236
58
60
60
58
3
293
RIMANTAS BUINICKAS
236
60
58
62
56
4
711
BEN CANNINGS
224
56
48
58
62
5
797
STEVEN NICHOLLS
217
53
52
52
60
6
999
DAVID ASHPOLE
214
52
56
54
52
The Over 50s Novices also saw some entertaining battles, with last year’s fourth-placed rider David Marlow taking the overall verdict on his Honda, although in the end it was with consistency, as the 1990s Honda of Graham Jones took two wins but added just a fifth and sixth in the other two races! Andrew Smith won the other outing on his Yamaha to claim third overall, while John Elliott suffered with a penalty that dropped him to fourth on his Kawasaki, ahead of Phil Oxley’s charging enduro machine and Eddie Fuller in sixth.
Pos
No
Competitor
Points
R1
R2
R3
R4
1
113
DAVID MARLOW
245
65
62
62
56
2
33
GRAHAM JONES
240
56
65
54
65
3
27
ANDREW SMITH
234
58
51
65
60
4
100
JOHN ELLIOTT
234
60
58
58
58
5
414
PHIL OXLEY
230
48
60
60
62
6
74
EDDIE FULLER
224
62
53
56
53
The Over 60s Novice Class was won each time by the ultra laid-back style of one DC Williams from Herefordshire, although local rider Kevin Franklin looked to be challenging on several occasions, at least one fall denying him the shot of breaking the perfect weekend! Adrian Hadman took a solid third overall ahead of the black-and-yellow Yamaha of Neil Matheson, with the KTM of Reg Willis claiming fifth overall, and Luton’s own Richard Jochacy taking the final trophy in sixth.
Pos
No
Competitor
Points
R1
R2
R3
R4
1
818
DC WILLIAMS
260
65
65
65
65
2
36
KEVIN FRANKLIN
248
62
62
62
62
3
417
ADRIAN HADMAN
236
60
56
60
60
4
99
NEIL MATHESON
228
58
60
58
52
5
57
REG WILLIS
222
54
54
56
58
6
19
RICHARD JOCHACY
216
56
58
54
48
All in all, despite the awful ending to Saturday’s racing, the third running of the ACU British Vets Championship at Toddington was another brilliant weekend of Motocross, with a wonderful atmosphere amongst the competitors and some super-slick organising from the Luton & District Motorcycle Club. With a massive entry list that paid testament to a similar atmosphere from previous years, the club can surely look forward to many more meetings like this with a similar level of support. We’ll see you all there next year!