KING OF THE HILL Sprint Enduro – Round 1 FIR Welsh Open Sprint Championship
Cwmythig Hill, Rhayader, Mid Wales
Event Preview by Chris CZORA
Some fabulous enduro action is on offer in Mid Wales this Sunday, as the first round of the Factory Image Racing sponsored Welsh Open Sprint Championship gets underway, with the ‘King of the Hill’ enduro at Cwmythig Hill.
The organising Rhayader Motor Club boast quite an impressive line up for the event, with arguably one of the strongest line ups of elite riders outside of a Grand Prix!
With the venue also holding the Enduro GP of Wales later in the season, quite a few of the top stats will be looking to get some tracktime at a venue where they hope to fly the flag for Britain! Topping the names is Brad Freeman on his factory Beta, fresh from his recent Enduro GP victory in Italy.
Last year’s King of the Hill Jamie McCanney is back, along with Jack Edmonsdon, these two dualled it out last year across the seven tests with McCanney’s eventual win coming by less than a tenth of a second, quite incredible!
With the weather looking to be a repeat of last year’s sunshine, the going is expected to be dry and fast, and there’s every chance of the elite category being just as closely fought on Sunday. Alex Walton is the local star and will be looking for a good result, whilst other top names include the Manx contingent of Danny McCanney, Jed Etchells, Jack Keenan, Max Ingham and Robert Moyer. Harry Edmondson will be back, he enjoyed a strong finish last year, whilst Aaron Gordon, Charlie Chater, Josh Gotts, Sion Evans, Ben Zeale and former youth ace Charlie Crossland will be amongst some of the top names to look for.
Plus… lurking intriguingly on the entry list is an ‘Undisclosed Wildcard’. There’s one or two rumours as to who this will be, but we’ve been sworn to secrecy, to find out who it is, you’ll have to come along on Sunday!
The event line up sees over 200 riders taking part, with categories for Experts, Clubman, Under 19s, Under 16s, Vets (35+ and 40+), Ladies and Sportsman. Whilst it’s a Welsh championship, the King of the Hill event is a national favourite and the strong numbers of Welsh riders are joined by competitors from across the UK. A notable name in the Expert class is Fraser Lampkin, who continues his family’s off-road dynasty, he moves from a Beta 125 to the larger 250 as he joins the adult ranks.
The Ladies’ group carries one or two notable riders to watch out for, including the reigning British Champion and Enduro GP star Nieve Holmes who continues her good comeback from injury, whilst last year’s Enduro GP of Wales winner and world number two Rosie Rowett will surely be relishing her return to the venue where she beat the world.
The event gets underway from 9am, with tests throughout the day. As a sprint enduro it’s spectator friendly with the riders all competing on one close course. The test route is approximately three miles long and incorporates the Cwmythig Extreme enduro course, and the motocross track, along with some grassland field sections, meaning the riders have to demonstrate both outright speed, and technical clutch control and slow speed rhythm to set a good time. Tests run through until 3:30 after which there will be a presentation of awards, so it’s a full day out, and with the forecast good weather it certainly promises to be an enjoyable day at this fantastic, scenic venue. And what’s better yet, organisers have just announced that the event is FREE of charge to spectators!
Cwmythig Hill is located approximately 1 mile from Rhayader on the B4528 St.Harmon road, postcode LD6 5BU. Signposted from the main A470 at Rhayader town centre.
Chris Czora 