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Rock Oil Championship Round 1
Driffield March 13th

Driffield MOD driver training area is a truly iconic venue in east Yorkshire; the 650 Acre site boasts some of the best terrain available for the ultimate Enduro test. Add in the experience and of Wayne Braybrook who has the ability to create the best possible track for all ability levels, and the ingredients are all in place for an awesome event.

Sunday March 13th was no exception, early morning fog cleared to make what can only be described as the perfect racing conditions. A massive 29 rider line up of Youths were treated to the full adult course, Saul Hirst has grown up in North Yorkshire with a love for racing motorcycles, his dreams came true on Sunday when he smashed the youth A class by taking the win over his mate and training partner Richie Moorhouse. Local lad Toby Flack rode with lots of aggression to be the only other youth A to complete 7 laps. Youth B honours went to new RAW club member Finn Pearce, Jack Badnarek was a very close second place with another local lad James Rial earning a fine 3rd in class.

The largest turn out of adult AM riders RAW have ever seen were eager to get racing as the sun finally started to heat up proceedings. The 2016 Rock oil championship is set to be a real mix up, lots of riders have moved up a class, which means new names are now at the sharp end of proceedings.

Sportsman Vets were the first class away after the event safety briefing. Shane Marriott was the rider who looked to be having the most fun on his 350 EXC, Shane was ready to retire in October 2015, let's just say he's got the bug for racing again after his superb 3rd place in the vets class. Lee Pallet ripped around Driffield to take a fine second place, and Damian Lord held on for his first win of the new season. In the Massive sportsman class Phil Dodsworth finished in 3rd place out of 73 starters, Young Josh Haith has sent out the warning marking his intentions for the new season with a strong runner up placing, the winner on the day was Robert Taylor who had a trouble free ride to take the win. The Novice class was oversubscribed before race day, with 71 riders on the start line all riders had to work hard for a good result. Ricky Pearson took the win finishing on 9 laps; Steven Brown took his KXF to a fine runner up placing getting his championship fight off to a great start.

With the track now in perfect condition, the soft soil berms had appeared, as the track whooped out in many places the afternoon race riders had the experience to not only choose smooth lines but also they carried more speed to make track conditions easier to ride. No fewer than Twenty Seven expert riders lined up at Driffield, this, for a club championship event has broken all records. Scott Austin got his taste for winning again on his Middleton MX Honda after a good battle with Hard Enduro top runner Andy Noakley. Noakley placed runner up on his Rocket Centre KTM as he used the event for speed training in preparation for Erzberg in May. Ex Trials top man Jonathan Richardson overcame a nightmare start when his Eurotek KTM refused to fire up, being dead last away to fight back to take the final podium place was a great effort. The clubman class is set to be a battle of the young guns for this season, local lad Danny Culkin now seems to have come of age as he took a fantastic win on his 300 KTM, Eurotek's James Jackson grabbed the holeshot and finished the day in a fine runner up place. Marc Vardy took his MAV builders KTM to an excellent 3rd place. The top three clubman were less than one minute apart at the flag. Clubman Vets was won by MTB legend Steve Pete who clearly loves his Enduro action, Paul Westgarth was runner up with Ashley Jones rounding out the top three. The Expert vets class has been heralded a great class choice for those who have previously been experts but don't want to hang it out there with the fast boys. Anthony Ayrton managed to get the extra lap in to take a great win. Alex Owen took his number 1 Husky to a great runner up place, with John Bradford getting his championship off to a strong start with good points on the board.

Over 300 riders attended the start of the RAW Enduro Rock Oil Championship, slick organisation and a creative course design will always be the key to its success, as well as providing what all Enduro enthusiasts love the most... an awesome day out on the bikes with friends and rivals.

Round 2 heads for Lee Dell Rochdale on April 17th where plans are already underway to provide a larger paddock to accommodate the RAW fans.

Next Event is the RAW Enduro Challenge 4 hour team event Round 1 at Butts Quarry on April 10th.

www.rawenduro.co.uk