After weeks and weeks of glorious sunshine, the weather forecasts changed as we approached Round 4 of the Darley Moor championships... But despite a damp start we ran on dry tyres all day.
Boris' extension of the COVID restrictions meant that the race organisers would not allow under-13s into the paddock, so once again Lorna and the kids were unable to attend (which will also apply to the next meeting) leaving the Two Daves to celebrate Father's Day together at the track...
Boris' extension of the COVID restrictions meant that the race organisers would not allow under-13s into the paddock, so once again Lorna and the kids were unable to attend (which will also apply to the next meeting) leaving the Two Daves to celebrate Father's Day together at the track...
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There were bumper grids for this meeting, with the programme showing 31x Formula 600 entries, 18x Twins entries and the Allcomers race had the maximum 36-rider entry with a couple of reserves - the first time we can remember seeing an oversubscribed grid at Darley!
We fit new dry tyres and new brake pads for this meeting and in the Qualifying sessions spent the first few laps making sure everything was bed-in correctly. We qualified 2nd on the Twins grid and 10th on the Formula 600 grid.
Our first race was the Allcomers race, where grid positions are selected "out of the hat". Usually we get quite lucky but this time we picked 32nd on the grid! After a hectic race we made our way passed 30 riders to finish in 2nd position.
We fit new dry tyres and new brake pads for this meeting and in the Qualifying sessions spent the first few laps making sure everything was bed-in correctly. We qualified 2nd on the Twins grid and 10th on the Formula 600 grid.
Our first race was the Allcomers race, where grid positions are selected "out of the hat". Usually we get quite lucky but this time we picked 32nd on the grid! After a hectic race we made our way passed 30 riders to finish in 2nd position.
 Can you spot us? |  Photo by Glyn Ivings |
Twins Race 1 was next. Off the start we got stuck in 2nd gear, meaning that we entered into the Wilsons chicane in 6th place, but we were soon elevated into 5th when CB500-riding Ben Coyle ran into the rear tyre of an SV650. We caught and passed some riders to move into 2nd position by the end of lap 2, where we finished - with Jim Hodson taking the win and Anthony Thane taking 3rd position.
 Photo by David Chapman |  Photo by Graham Mallen |
Following a lacklustre qualifying session, we started Formula 600 Race 1 from 10th on the grid and after the end of the opening lap we had dropped to 11th place. We lacked some aggression/confidence in making passes, which made moving forward through the pack difficult, but eventually we made some moves and finished the race in 7th place - with plenty to think about for the afternoon's races!
Photo by Graham Mallen - moving up a spot
We were now into the afternoon - and to the races that mattered - with points and trophies now on offer! First up was Twins Race 2. From our 2nd-postion grid spot we entered the first chicane in 5th place (race starts are not our friend today!), but managed to get back to 2nd place by the end of the opening lap - albeit 3.04 behind of race leader Jim Hodson. From here we tried to put in clean fast laps, but that unfortunately just wasn't enough, and at the end of the 8-lap race we finished in 2nd position 7.38 seconds behind Jim, with 3rd placed James Barnett a further 17.71 seconds behind us.
 Photo by Glyn Ivings |  Photo by Graham Mallen |  Photo by Glyn Ivings |
Our final race of the meeting was Formula 600 Race 2. For the first time in the day we felt that we rode well in this race. We got a great start from our 7th position grid spot and were 4th into the chicane. Our gearing was spot-on for today's conditions, topping out at 144mph on the Pope Straight and on the rev limiter for around a second. On lap 2 we managed to move up into 3rd position, which we kept for two laps before Jordan Bannon came passed. At the end of the race, Tom Fisher took the win, Albert Walker took the runner-up spot, Jordan Bannon took third and we finished in 4th position.
Photo by Glyn Ivings
Darley Moor Round 4 marks the mid-point of the 2021 championships - but as Round 1 was cancelled and there were no championship points awarded at Round 3 (which was a shame as we had some good results there) - the championship tables currently look as follows.
FORMULA 600 CHAMPIONSHIP STANDINGS (TOP 10)
Tom Fisher 30
Albert Walker 24
David Carson 13
Richard Wardle 10
Jordan Bannon 10
Richard Baker 8
David Glossop 8
Tim Walsh 6
Joe Duggan 6
Lewis Davies 4
TWINS CHAMPIONSHIP STANDINGS (TOP 10)
Jim Hodson 30
David Carson 22
Sean Seddon 12
James Barnett 10
Andrew Herd 8
Anthony Thane 8
Steve Pritchard 6
Richard Hunt 6
Andrew Lloyd 5
Ben Coyle 5
FORMULA 600 CHAMPIONSHIP STANDINGS (TOP 10)
Tom Fisher 30
Albert Walker 24
David Carson 13
Richard Wardle 10
Jordan Bannon 10
Richard Baker 8
David Glossop 8
Tim Walsh 6
Joe Duggan 6
Lewis Davies 4
TWINS CHAMPIONSHIP STANDINGS (TOP 10)
Jim Hodson 30
David Carson 22
Sean Seddon 12
James Barnett 10
Andrew Herd 8
Anthony Thane 8
Steve Pritchard 6
Richard Hunt 6
Andrew Lloyd 5
Ben Coyle 5
Our next race meeting will be Darley Moor Round 5 on Sunday 11th July. During the Twins races an issue with 3rd gear appeared on the Supertwin, so that will be investigated and resolved before then. Other than that, we just intend to enjoy this beautiful British summer! :-)
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