NORTH WEST LAWN MOWER RACING ASSOCIATION
Race Report from South Witham Gala – 2nd July
2005
The NWLMRA made its annual trip to the South Witham Gala
deep into Lincolnshire over the weekend. Racing was on Saturday
only, but we still had a healthy turnout of machines for the
day’s racing
#31 Daz Whitehead’s lap of the track
“From the start line was a flat-out uphill left-handed
‘straight’ which passed the pit area before heavy
braking over a couple of bad bumps. This fed into a pretty
tight left-hander before a short straight. Next up was a hairpin
right, but it was very easy to run wide if you left your braking
a little too late. This opened out into another straight and
then it was an off-camber left hander that got faster all
the way round. A tricky corner for some which could throw
you out wide if you weren’t careful. After this was
a straight before a very fast and long left hander to take
you over the finish line and onto another lap of this very
quick track. Lap times were around 24 seconds for the fastest
drivers”
Saturday 2nd July 2005
The Points races were first up and due to the number of machines
there it was decided to split the classes. Group’s 2
& 4 were first up with 5 drivers taking the start. #4
Dave Askew took the holeshot to lead into the first turn from
#64 Mark Rostron, #8 Kev Grimer and #12 Martin Shaw. #100
Phil Davies stalled on the line but rejoined shortly after,
making his way to 4th on lap3, and 3rd on lap 8. Dave Askew
controlled the race for an easy win ahead of Mark Rostron
and the fast closing #100 of Phil Davies. Kev Grimer was 4th
ahead of Martin Shaw who picked up a class win in Group 2
for his efforts
The Group 3’s were next and as the lights went green
#96 Chris Randall led into the first turn from his brother
#69 Matt Randall, #31 Daz Whitehead, #86 Ian Carter, #2 Mike
Stark and #11 Sam Shaw. Mike Stark passed Ian Carter for 4th
on lap 3. Chris Randall suffered brake problems late in the
race which allowed Matt Randall through to take the lead on
lap 8, and the win two laps later. Chris came home 2nd ahead
of Daz Whitehead, Mike Stark, Ian Carter and Sam Shaw
The final Championship race of the day was the Grand Prix
that saw all eleven machines take the start on this very small
track. #69 Matt Randall led the first lap from #96 Chris Randall,
#64 Mark Rostron, #2 Mike Stark, #86 Pete Collishaw, #4 Dave
Askew, #31 Daz Whitehead, #100 Phil Davies, #8 Kev Grimer,
#11 Sam Shaw and #12 Martin Shaw. Lots of overtaking in the
pack made for an exciting race, with Daz Whitehead gaining
places early in the race moving up to 3rd by lap 4 before
being pushed off the track by another mower which cost some
time and places. Mark Rostron also made good running early
featuring in the top 4 for the early laps till a problem dropped
down to mid-pack. Dave Askew also briefly made the top three
before a lack of fuel forced him to slow and drop some laps
to the leaders. Phil Davies improved on a poor start to make
his way through the field as the race wore on. At the front
Chris Randall passed Matt Randall and gradually pulled away
to take victory. Both drivers covered 25 laps in the 10 minute
race. Phil Davies, Daz Whitehead, Mike Stark, Mark Rostron
and Pete Collishaw all dropped 1 lap, while Kev Grimer dropped
2. Sam Shaw was next along dropping 3 laps, while Dave Askew
dropped 5 laps. Martin Shaw was last across the line having
lost 6 laps
Some fun races took place in the afternoon with a variety
of different drivers winning races
The 2005 Championship Standings after Round 11 are:
~
Class 4
#4 Dave Askew 86 points
#100 Phil Davies 63 points
#64 Mark Rostron 54 points
#8 Kev Grimer 33 points
Class 3
#69 Matt Randall 88 points
#96 Chris Randall 82 points
#31 Daz Whitehead 72 points
#11 Sam Shaw 60 points
#44 Sheldon Webster 49 points
#86 Ian Carter 39 points
#27 Stu Polkinghorne 8 points
#2 Mike Stark 7 points
#18 Josh Clarkson 4 points
#26 Robert Smith 1.5 points
Class 2 Wheels
#7 Andy Little 80 points
#24 Dave Smith 13.5 points
Class 2 Roller
#12 Martin Shaw 78 points
#66 Andy Howard 26 points
Grand Prix
#31 Daz Whitehead 202 laps
#96 Chris Randall 191 laps
#69 Matt Randall 190 laps
#11 Sam Shaw 181 laps
#4 Dave Askew 179 laps
#7 Andy Little 155 laps
#44 Cameron Hill 139 laps
#12 Martin Shaw 129 laps
#100 Phil Davies 104 laps
#64 Mark Rostron 97 laps
#86 Pete Collishaw 85 laps
#8 Kev Grimer 68 laps
#66 John Parden 63 laps
#24 Dave Smith 26.5 laps
#2 Mike Stark 24 laps
#27 Stu Polkinghorne 14 laps
#18 Josh Clarkson 13 laps
#26 Robert Smith 5 laps
The next NWLMRA Race Meeting will be at Willingham-by-Stow
on 16th/17th July 2005
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