THE Mourne Motorcycle Club hosted their twelfth annual off-road racing event for charity at Millbridge, Ballynahinch, on Wednesday, June 20.
This year the event was held to raise monies for the Motor Neurone Disease Association of Northern Ireland and the Perinatal Trust Fund of the Royal Jubilee Maternity Service at the Royal Victoria Hospital.
The racing involved solo motorbikes, quads and sidecars split into seven different classes, with each getting three competitive six lap races, before an extra four lap race for fun.
The Clubman red class was first to the line and Carryduff man Chris Boles came home in first and second positions in the first two races, as Ballygowan man Ivan Cairns came home in second and first positions. In the third race Boles led from the start, until he stalled on lap three and dropped back to fourth position as Callum McCartney moved into first and won the race. Boles fought back to take the overall victory by passing Cairns on lap five, before they finished in second and third positions.
In the Clubman blue class Downpatrick man Micky Galloway was fighting Ards man Jonathan Carolan and Saintfield’s Sam Simpson for the overall victory. Carolan took the honours after two wins and a second place finish, as Galloway earned second overall with fourth, third and victory in race three. Simpson finished third after a second and two third place finishes.
The Clubman Green class was won by Newcastle man Daniel McFerran, with fourth, second and first positions. He was followed home by F Dunn with second, fourth and second positions and David Kane finished third after two wins and a tenth place finish in race three.
The Sidecar class was won by the former British Champions Neil Campbell and Ross Graham, from Lisburn, with a second place finish and two wins. They were followed by Hillsborough’s Gary Moulds and Nikki Adair with a win and two second place finishes. Third overall was taken by Dean Faulkner and Gary Ringland, from Maze and Boardmills, after two thirds and an eighth-place finish.
The Evo class was won by English rider Ashley Greedy, who won all three races, ahead of Annalong man Lindsay Newell with three second place finishes and Ballynahinch man Jason Garrett in third position after two thirds and a fourth place finish.
In the Quad class Saintfield man Dean Colhoun led from the start to take the chequered flag in his first race in three years following an injury. In the next two races Colhoun let the pack start ahead of him, but he still came through to take two more wins. Josh Crozier, from Banbridge, finished in second overall with two seconds and a third place finish and Armagh man Gareth Graham took third overall with two thirds and a second place finish.
In the Combined Grade A and B class Greedy lived up to his name as he won a second class overall on the night, with two wins and a second place finish. Glenoe man Glen McCormick finished second overall after fourth and second place finishes in the first two races were followed by victory in race three. Moira man Scott Hamilton secured third overall on the night with seventh, sixth and eighth place finishes. The top Grade B finisher was Lurgan man Gareth Knox, followed home by Ballynahinch man Chris Bell and Bobby Irwin, from Lisburn.
Race report by Stuart Campbell
Photos courtesy of Mourne Observer.
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