All content © Bob MuIIins

Cotswold Enduro Club

Slow Pete Series round 1
Bicton Farm
Shrewsbury

Report & pics by Tilde Tighe

Cotswold Enduro Club's first ever visit to Bicton will be a memorable one for many riders. Although firmly a Fast Eddy venue, Cotswold's Slow Pete Series opening round was scheduled for Ashby Moto Park until the weather decided otherwise. Paul Edmondson offered the use of Bicton to Pete Carter as an alternative and everything worked out well, an excellent example of promoters working together for once.

The course was re-graded following a Fast Eddy practice day on Saturday and Pete Carter added his own unique touches to the layout for Sunday's race. Only a handful of the riders had been to Bicton before and many fell foul of its benign looks. Bicton isn't a massive venue and doesn't look too tough but it can be challenging in the extreme for the unwary.

The course was muddy and slippery in places initially but the sunshine and breeze saw the whole venue dry considerably by the mid point of the race, leaving perfect racing conditions. Only the woodland and a couple of mud-holes on the MX track continued to provide sticky going throughout the race.

The entry was full at just short of 120 riders and they were led off the line at 10.00am by the 40+ Veterans, around a few twisty turns and out in to the open fields containing the MX track before turning back towards the start and into the woods section. That's where the fun began. The course ran through the woods twice during the lap and used slippery off cambers at the top of the steep slope for the first section. Momentum was the key to getting through cleanly and the 40+ vets, followed by the 50+ vets conquered the challenge with ease. Two small climbs proved to be very tricky for all the following riders and huge queues built up on the first lap until riders sorted themselves out and the course dried slightly. Many spectators jumped in to assist floundering riders in an effort to get things moving, which eventually succeeded.

The course wasn't especially tough but what contributed to the chaos was riders not looking ahead and not maintaining momentum to carry themselves up the slopes. It was a steep learning curve but one that was quickly appreciated and lessons were learned by most.

The lower woodland section was pretty straightforward, a narrow undulating track with several lines in many places, that lead out onto the second large field at the venue.

Kev Freeman was quickest off the line in the 40+ class, maybe a little too quick as he overshot the first tight right-hander slightly and allowed Darren Bedford the inside line to take the lead as Andrew Keyte quickly followed his line. The 50+ vets were next and Rob Sewell made sure he didn't make the same mistake as Freeman, keeping tight to the pegs and forcing Mick Belcher to take a wider line behind him alongside Richard Wright.

Class after class followed and soon all attention was turned to the woodland. Freeman had taken the lead, managed to negotiate the swarms of stuck riders and got his head down to become the only rider to complete 14 laps, taking the overall win and the 40+ class win. Andrew Keyte was three minutes down on Freeman in second place while Rob Sewell fought his way to third overall and top 50+ rider spot. Darren Bedford took third in the 40+ vets while Mick Belcher and Colin Griffiths both had excellent rides and took second and third respectively in the 50+ vets.

Top non-veteran rider was Roy Broomfield. His considerable experience paid off to grab fourth overall and the Clubman 4T class win, a lap up on second placed Richard Wozencroft who had a comfortable three minutes over Dan Cameron in third.

Ellis Frend was the top Clubman 2T rider, sixth overall against tough competitors in the vets, he did extremely well to nail 13 laps. Behind him a battle ensued between Tom Collett and William Stansbie with Collett taking second in class by just six seconds, very close considering the conditions and traffic in the first half of the race.

Jerry Adams has finally found a bike that will last the entire race in the Class Pre-86 class. He is on form this season and rode to ninth overall, once again experience counted hugely.

Matt Davis had an outstanding ride in the Sportsman Novice ranks, topping the class with 12 laps under his belt. Considering that this class made up nearly half the field of entrants, competition was fierce although the initial log-jams did favour some riders and not others but Davis thoroughly deserved his win ahead of Liam Cottrill and Olly Buckland.

Catherine James showed true grit as the sole Ladies class entrant. She finished with six hard earned laps to her credit and, obviously, the Ladies class win.

For most riders it was their first experience of Bicton Farm and parts of the course came as quite a shock over the opening few laps but it was a very good learning experience and if nothing else, riders certainly learned to look ahead and maintain momentum.

In the summer Bicton is a very different place, fast and dusty at times with excellent technical sections in the woods. Cotswold Enduro Club may pay another visit sometime in the future.

A special mention must go to Matt, the landowner. He is a top-notch bloke and graded the track perfectly between the two days of events then proceeded to use his tractor to pull vehicles in and out of the venue on both days. A great guy with a huge interest in racing and putting on the best event his venue can offer.