The final round of the Darley Moor championships (Round 8) included the prestigious 'Stars at Darley' event, which featured entrants from the British Superbike, British Supersport, National Superstock 1000 and National Superstock 600 Championships.
This year the entrants had a total of fourteen previous ‘Stars’ titles between them - demonstrating the enduring popularity of the event! The event had two 10 lap races, with the rider having the best overall combined finishing position taking the trophy - but with Buildbase BMW rider Richard Cooper winning both races in the cold and wet conditions, he secured himself the 'Star at Darley' title for the fourth time!
In addition to the main Stars event, there were also a number of Darley Moor Club Championships that were decided at this final round - in particular, Tim Poole (of the Poole Performance Centre) managed to narrowly beat Jamie Hodson to claim the Formula 600 club championship.
But enough of that - and onto the important stuff... ;-)
After not riding for a month (and not riding in the wet for even longer!), my riding skills were feeling a bit rusty when qualifying started. But as I got dialled into the conditions, I went faster and faster in each qualifying session & eventually set my fastest lap on the final lap of the final qualifying session. My efforts in qualifying placed me 4th in the Formula Darley class and 3rd in the Mini Sound of Thunder class.
For the final round of the championship, all of the club race classes were given a single 15-lap race that carried double championship points.
In the Formula Darley race, Brad Vicars took an early lead before eventually crashing out of the race. I was chasing down Michael Brookes whilst trying to get comfortable with the rainy conditions. During the race, Michael successfully managed to put a backmarker in-between us (twice!) to open up a gap between us - but after I bridged the gap, and he ran wide at the hairpin on lap 12, I was able to make the pass and retain the lead until the line - which was our first win in the 650 class!
The Mini Sound of Thunder race was a similar affair, where I was chasing down Michael Brookes who was lapping consistently. As the race went on, I would gain a bit of time and then lose a bit of time, until the last lap of the race where I ran into 'Townleys' corner a bit quick and then fought to stay on-track and upright. Brad Vicars took the win, Michael Brookes finished in 2nd and I brought the bike across the line in 3rd place in our final race of the 2013 season.
It is a nice feeling to end the season on a high with our first win in the 650 class, as well as securing 2nd place in each of our chosen club championships.
I would like to take this opportunity to thank all of my supporters (if you're reading this - then that's you!), Dave Carson Snr, Steph Carson, Sam Pointon, Lorna Carson, Nana Carson, Tim Poole of the Poole Performance Centre & I would particularly like to thank Michael Mulvaney from Proficient Security for his continued support.
It is now time to continue development of the Two Daves Racing Kawasaki ER650 Supertwin in preparation for the 2014 season. Please keep your eyes peeled for a series of updates & improvements that will be arriving during the winter off-season.
This year the entrants had a total of fourteen previous ‘Stars’ titles between them - demonstrating the enduring popularity of the event! The event had two 10 lap races, with the rider having the best overall combined finishing position taking the trophy - but with Buildbase BMW rider Richard Cooper winning both races in the cold and wet conditions, he secured himself the 'Star at Darley' title for the fourth time!
In addition to the main Stars event, there were also a number of Darley Moor Club Championships that were decided at this final round - in particular, Tim Poole (of the Poole Performance Centre) managed to narrowly beat Jamie Hodson to claim the Formula 600 club championship.
But enough of that - and onto the important stuff... ;-)
After not riding for a month (and not riding in the wet for even longer!), my riding skills were feeling a bit rusty when qualifying started. But as I got dialled into the conditions, I went faster and faster in each qualifying session & eventually set my fastest lap on the final lap of the final qualifying session. My efforts in qualifying placed me 4th in the Formula Darley class and 3rd in the Mini Sound of Thunder class.
For the final round of the championship, all of the club race classes were given a single 15-lap race that carried double championship points.
In the Formula Darley race, Brad Vicars took an early lead before eventually crashing out of the race. I was chasing down Michael Brookes whilst trying to get comfortable with the rainy conditions. During the race, Michael successfully managed to put a backmarker in-between us (twice!) to open up a gap between us - but after I bridged the gap, and he ran wide at the hairpin on lap 12, I was able to make the pass and retain the lead until the line - which was our first win in the 650 class!
The Mini Sound of Thunder race was a similar affair, where I was chasing down Michael Brookes who was lapping consistently. As the race went on, I would gain a bit of time and then lose a bit of time, until the last lap of the race where I ran into 'Townleys' corner a bit quick and then fought to stay on-track and upright. Brad Vicars took the win, Michael Brookes finished in 2nd and I brought the bike across the line in 3rd place in our final race of the 2013 season.
It is a nice feeling to end the season on a high with our first win in the 650 class, as well as securing 2nd place in each of our chosen club championships.
I would like to take this opportunity to thank all of my supporters (if you're reading this - then that's you!), Dave Carson Snr, Steph Carson, Sam Pointon, Lorna Carson, Nana Carson, Tim Poole of the Poole Performance Centre & I would particularly like to thank Michael Mulvaney from Proficient Security for his continued support.
It is now time to continue development of the Two Daves Racing Kawasaki ER650 Supertwin in preparation for the 2014 season. Please keep your eyes peeled for a series of updates & improvements that will be arriving during the winter off-season.
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