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Eazi Grip

Our supported team Army Motorcycle Road Team – Sprint’s Mallory Park report

Summary

The third and fourth round of the Inter-Service Road Race Championship was held at Mallory Park Circuit. Cpl Heaver won the Inter-Services Race 1, and Pte Seb Evenden QOY won the Inter-Services Race 2 for the Army. Strong results from the rest of the Team ensured the Army stayed at the top of the Championship table with a commendable set of results. The Navy and RAF pushed hard all weekend, so the Team must work hard to stay at the top in the next round at Donnington Park.

#78 Maj John Miller
Qualifying went well for Maj Miller; he started P6 for the first Interservice Race. After a good start, he entered the first corner in P7 hot on the heels of fellow Army rider Capt Small. On lap two, an RAF rider came past to put Maj Miller into P8; he felt faster than Capt Small but could not find a way past crossing the line to finish in P8 with good points for the Championship. The second Interservice race was a reverse grid set off at different times; Maj Miller was part of the second cohort to be set off 10 secs after the first cohort. He spent the first laps battling with the riders in his cohort before they all caught the first cohort; what followed was a bit of a blur, overtaking riders all over the place! He finished P9, again a good result, with most of the riders in front of him lower in the overall Championship.

#87 Maj Stuart Keenan
This was the first time turning a wheel in anger at Mallory Park for Maj Keenan. Despite a few mechanical issues, it was a positive weekend. Qualifying 11th of 13 in class, he got a great start in race one of the weekend, passing several riders round the outside on the first corner and eventually finishing the race in 9th. The first military race of the weekend saw him battling with some more powerful bikes, using the cornering strengths of his twin to make up what he was lacking in the straights. Unfortunately, a trip across the grass at the chicane saw him lose position and end the race towards the back of the pack. The second military race was the best chance of the year for some silverware; with a significant handicap start, Maj Keenan was building pace and holding P3. Unfortunately, a clutch issue on lap 5 forced a retirement, causing him also to miss his class race. Thinking the weekend was over, he managed to sort the problem and get out for the last race, which developed his race craft, changing places each lap with those around him; he lost out in the end but finished the weekend seeing the checkered flag not stuck in the paddock!

#98 Maj Chris Turner
Maj Turner had an eventful start to the race weekend, a new circuit and having issues getting the bike to conform to strict noise requirements;
Military Race one, his first race since injury last year, was a hard-fought battle against Maj Keenan, resulting in a strong finish and a lap time second faster than Qualifying,
Military Race 2 was a Handicap event, starting in a group of more powerful machines with race position calculated on overall race time. A great battle-swopping place against Pte Evenden (QOY), finishing P1 and P2 for Maj Turner. An additional prize of Marshal’s rider of the meeting was probably the best reward of all.

#54 Capt Lara Small
Capt Small was engaged in an excellent fight for 7th place in the Military Race and nailed a low 57 PB. She enjoyed some clean battles in the 600 race and the lighting quick grid starts! Her biggest win from the weekend was a phenomenal bike set up from @twsuspensiontech and a remarkable rescue from GB Racing Protection – another crank casing saved! With her entire bike suspension now refreshed, she used the track time to find out how agile the R6 could be through the bus stop, yet how stable it could feel around Gerrards, leaving her feeling good and well set up for Donington Park in a few weeks! Thank you to @colinportimages and #jackssnaps for the corking shots.

# 23Sgt Clowes
Sgt Clowes arrived at Mallory park apprehensive as he hadn’t raced at the circuit before and was unsure the gearbox gremlins had been fixed after an earlier meeting; he entered two race categories GP 1 cup and Pre National 600.Sat race day was busy with five races to 2 gp1 cup, two pre-national 600, and the military race. In the first race of the day, the heavens opened, and Sgt Clowes rode with wet tyres on a drying track. He ended up 4th in class throughout the day and brought his lap time down to 59sec on the BMW. The BMW was the weapon for the military race conditions were good, and he went for it. Mallory Park is a handful on a big bike, but some inter-service rivalry made it good racing. Sunday came, and the 2nd military race took place. This was a handicapped race where Sgt Clowes ended up on pole. This was a successful weekend for the BMW and is looking forward to Donnington park.

#62 Sgt Sam Cartwright
Sgt Cartwright started the week completing the day of testing and feeling confident in the bike. He qualified 16th out of the 28 riders on the grid. Sgt Cartwright finished 12th out of the 28 riders for the first race. The inter-service race saw Sgt Cartwright on the grid in 11th place out of 26 riders; he managed to gain a place from the start but lost it on the penultimate lap and finished in 11th place.
The second inter-service race was the handicap race. Sgt Cartwright started in 14th place with a 10-second delay. During the race, he had a few moments that caused him to lose some positions. For the next pre-national race, he started in 17th and finished in 16th after running on at the chicane. For the weekend’s last race, Sgt Cartwright pushed and managed to finish in 13th place. Overall, a good weekend but some room to improve on for next year.

#42 Cpl Dove
Cpl Doves Weekend started a bit better than expected during practice on Friday,
Previously in 2020 he managed a PB of 59 seconds at Mallory park, so he wanted to improve on this time, which he managed to do, securing a 58-second lap in my pre-National 600 races.
The military race was run as a handicap event; due to track position, Cpl Dove had a lonely ride for most of the race. Cpl Dove completed his overall focus of more bike time this year. A great weekend with a great team looking forward to Donnington in July.

#93 Cpl Liam Palmer
Mallory park for LCpl Palmer was an overall good weekend. Testing found him hitting last year’s lap times straight away and feeling comfortable. Qualifying saw LCpl Palmer 3rd in class and a new PB lap time. The individual Stock Twin races produced a tight battle between the front six riders. LCpl Palmer managed to finish in a hard-fought 3rd place in the second Stock twins Race;
In the Inter-Services race, LCpl Palmer battled with some much quicker machines, finishing the first race as the first 650 twin across the line and the second military race finishing the second 650cc twin across the line. A commendable result and skilled ride.

#159 Cpl Tyler Viveiros
Mallory Park has always been a happy hunting ground for Cpl Viveiros, and this weekend would prove no different. Cpl Viveiros qualified P4, moving up into P3 after Saturday’s Superlaps. In the four Stock Twins class races, Cpl Viveiros successfully podiumed in three, narrowly missing out on a clean sweep of trophies when talented teammate LCpl Palmer battled with him during an exciting race-long battle to take his place on the step and maintain the Army’s presence on the Stocktwin podium all weekend.
The Inter-Services race allowed the smaller machines to take advantage of the format and fight with the championship leaders. Arguably, in the most enjoyable race Cpl Viveiros has participated in, he led the race P1 on the road for the majority despite being set off simultaneously by several faster machines. However, this wasn’t enough as he also had to lap riders if he wanted his first military podium, which proved too tricky around the bumpy Leicestershire circuit. He finished the race 5th overall.

#133 Cpl Heaver
Inter-services race one Cpl Heaver started in P2 behind SAC Paul Cunvin (RAF). He again had a blistering start putting him into P1 at the first corner. The entire race was a battle with Paul, making it quite a spectacle. Luckily, keeping him at bay, he led the race and crossed the line taking the win.
Inter-services Race 2 as a handicap event based on each rider’s time from Saturday’s race. He had a bit of fun making his way through the pack. Starting at the back of the grid in 37th with a one-lap and 28-second time penalty, we worked through and finished 11th. A commendable result sets Cpl Heaver up well for Donnington Park in July.

#17 Pte Evenden
Pte Evenden struggled with setup, Inter services Race 2 handicap he realised all he had to do was consistent lap times not get passed. He made some suspension changes as he was still struggling to get the machine to turn in. Start of the race, he got off to a good start, running a little deep into Gerrard’s on the second lap and not being able to gap Flt Lt Castle or Turner. It was a little back and forth. With Maj Turner passing on the way into Edwina’s, Pte Evenden knew he would have the opportunity out of Devil’s elbow (having the quicker bike). After making the pass, he set after Flt Lt Castle and picked him off. Just keep the laps steady until the end and bring it home in P1 for the Army team! And his first podium!

Posted on Tuesday, July 5th, 2022 in News

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