Dust was the order of the weekend for the third and final round of the Taff Buggy race series organized by MIJ Downhill Events. The forecast was good, but no one expected the weather to be as good as it was for the weekend. Saturday was a very relaxed affair, with practice from 9am till half four in the afternoon, allowing for a good ten or so runs thanks to the efficient uplift system which collected you forty meters from the finish and dropped you off forty meters from the start of the track, perfect.

The track itself had a bit of everything- jumps, rocks, grass, tight sections and some wide sections linked up with some pedally parts which made all the difference when it came to racing on a track of this kind. The highlight of the track had to be the rock garden about a quarter of the way down, offering numerous line choices and catching many riders out.

Come race day, the capped number of racers at 200 meant that racing could start later than most races, with racing commencing at midday, allowing for a further five or six practice runs if you were keen. Racing itself was very smooth, with virtually no wait at the top of the track. The timing, provided by Jason Carpenter was also faultless. Times were very close indeed, with just 9 seconds separating the top twenty riders. Rowan Sorrell, the only elite rider grabbed fastest time of the day with a time of 1:51:242. Expert winner Sean Whitecross got second fastest of the day, with Leon Rosser getting third quickest. Prize giving saw a fantastic turnout, with prizes for the top 5 of each category for the race, and silverware for the top 3 overall in the series. The overall winner of each category from the three rounds was also presented with a bottle of bubbly, inevitably resulting in some sticky spectators!

To conclude, the race was the perfect ending to the series for Martin, Ian and John (MIJ Events), and if this race was anything to go by, the Welsh Champs at Caersws late in August should be a fantastic weekend’s racing too.

Round Three podiums

Series Podiums

Chris Astle
www.thebigadventurestore.co.uk