Allyn Scotland

Incredibly it was another beautiful day at Lochhouses Farm for the third round of the SACU Metzeler Melville Hare and Hound Scottish Championship on Sunday. All five races at this incredible venue have been blessed with superb weather throughout the winter months. The ground was frozen when the riders arrived but by the time the race began at 11.00am the track was in perfect condition for the 130 riders and there was not a cloud in the sky.

Expert rider Allyn Scotland took the holeshot award sponsored by Stuart Tait’s EcosseMX.com although he was passed by double Scottish Champion Ricky Mair on the second lap. There was a tight battle behind them between Stevie Currie Jnr, Drew Harvey and Dean Reid. At just passed the half way point Ricky Mair dropped out with suspension issues handing the lead to Allyn Scotland although he could not relax as Drew Harvey was closing in and almost caught him on the last lap. Allyn would not be denied and won overall a minute ahead of Drew Harvey in second place. Stevie Currie Jnr held onto third with Dean Reid fourth and Naill Patton fifth.

The Over 40 class was won by James Harvey in his usual laid back style, James never looks to be going particularly fast but as is often the case with riders like him he can keep a good pace for the whole race. The battle between Mark Ritchie and Stevie Currie senior continued with Mark coming out ahead in second place with Stevie third, Mark also won the holeshot prize from Ecosse MX.

Barry McKie won the holeshot award but Craig Jagla had not ridden for eighteen months and did not hold him back as he took the overall in the Clubman Class. Craig spent most of his spare time fettling his Honda CRF and it obviously did the business for him, Chris Gallagher finished second with Liston Bell third. In the Clubman B class Graham Mechan won ahead of road racer David Paton who is using the Melville winter series to keep fit for the coming season and Hugh O’Neill finished third.

The largest class as always was the Sportsman class and it was a competitive as ever, Michael Craig won the holeshot award but there were three riders who were desperate for the results at the finish and it was Allan Milligan who won ahead of Jamie Robertson in second with David Dick third.

The motocrossers rode a shortened loop for two hours after starting from the back three minutes behind the Enduro classes. Gordon Morrison took the holeshot and led the first lap with Colin McLuckie and Bob Jack battling behind them. Colin took the lead and never looked back taking the overall in the Motocross A class. Gordon Morrison held on to second place with Bob Jack revelling in the conditions finishing third. The Motocross B class was won by Michael McClarty with Gordon Clark second and Alex Haddow finished third.

There was one difference at this event unfortunately there were a few crashes and one very lucky rider. John Henderson was the first casualty breaking his collar bone on the first lap while Kevin Watt had a big crash when he hit a tree hard smashing his triple clamps and it looked really nasty but he escaped with a suspected broken knee cap. The Melville Club has been lucky at the last four events and it was almost inevitable that we were due a couple of incidents. There were a few other bumps and bruises and the Melville club would like to wish all the riders a speedy recovery and of course a big thank you to the paramedics and first aid crews.

This event would not be possible without the lap scorers in the tattie boxes and it was very cold despite the sunshine. The Melville Club is also very grateful to event secretary Graeme Chalmers who has done a sterling job. There is a full team of helpers headed by Stephen Gilhooley who were hard pushed on Sunday with the number of bumps and bruises and they can take the credit for making sure the race ran the full distance.

Lochhouses results H H

The Melville would also like to express it’s gratitude to Robert Dale for allowing these events on his land, the ground was perfect again and it is incredible that we can run a race series in Scotland right through the winter.

The next Melville event is the Pathhead two day Scottish Championship Enduro on the 21^st and 22^nd April, regulations will be available from www.scottishenduros.co.uk or www.melvillemc.co.uk

Jake Boyes won the A class and won the winter series overall, Jake’s bike just made it across the line in the last race much to Jake’s delight as it would probably not have managed another lap. Gavin Robertson returned for another day of winter racing finishing second overall with Jason Martin finishing a consistent third.

Robert Bertram won the B class that was run together within the A class races to save time and daylight, Iain Greig finished second with Dave Wheatley third. The adult C class was won by Chris Walker with Gavin Lowes second and Peter O’ Neil finished third.

Kieran Marr won the first race in the Youth MX2 Class and fought his way up to second in the third race securing the overall win for the day. Robert Bell won the second race but had a difficult time in the third race charging up through the field to grab second overall ahead of Ewan Arthur in third.

Reece Wilson continued his domination at Lochhouses in the Big Wheel 85 class winning every race with Bradley Mann second throughout the day with Robert Smith taking the final step on the podium.

In the Small Wheel 85 Class Dylan Carnegie won ahead of Kai Thompson with Claire Winthrop mixing it with the boys finishing in third.

In the 65’s Daniel Chisholm put on a dominant show that saw him win every race with a hard charging Ryan Thomson pushing all the way to second with Andrew Pohlen finishing third.

This was the final round of the Melville Motocross series that has seen three great events with amazing weather and no major injuries to any riders. The course has stood up well and we have never had less than 130 entries. None of this would be possible without all those who help on the day, especially the Jack family who put in a huge effort to make sure all the riders have a great day. Thanks must also go to Robert Dale, not only for the use of his land but also because he graded the track on the morning of the race when it was frozen over ensuring the race could go ahead.

The next event is the Metzeler Melville Scottish Championship Hare and Hound at Lochhouses Farm on the 19^th February. There will be all the Enduro Classes in this three hour event plus a two hour Motocross class that does not go through the trees. You can enter at online at www.entrycentral.com

Tam Weir is an experienced trials organiser and has joined the Melville to build on the contacts and support that exist within the club. Langton Lees farm is better known for the fantastic British Championship motocross circuit although the Melville trial will use the adjacent land for the sections covering a large area avoiding the motocross track.

To help re establish the trials discipline the Melville Club has agreed to offer a £2 One Event Club Membership to compliment the £10 One Event Licence available from the SACU plus the £12 entry resulting in a total of just £24 for adults and £22 for Youths. There will be classes for all, Adult A, B, C, Twin Shock, Pre 65 and Youth, for details contact Tam Weir on 07966 410116 or 01620 829405 and entry forms will be available from www.melvillemc.co.uk

Trial Entry4thMarch12

Three times Scottish Champion Ross Rutherford was riding at Lochhouses for the first time and nearly missed the first race and had to push through the pack finish second overall. It was Ryan McLean that was on fire all day, he came out swinging from the first race and won the first two races topping the points taking the overall. Jake Boyes was another rider who definitely had his Weetabix in the morning although a technical fault cost him dear in race two resulting in third overall for the day. Returning to Lochhouses for the first time in a while Neil Flockhart finished fourth and enjoyed his start to the New Year. Neil Chatham had a couple of races with Ross Rutherford as he raced through the pack but a damaged rear moose slowed him in race two. David Houston was another man in the mix of top riders all pushing very hard finally finishing sixth. Craig Trew damaged his knee in the first race and was not able to take part for the rest of the day, the Melville Club hopes that he has not done any damage in his preparation to compete in the Le Touquet Beach Race.

In the Adult B class there were three winners Ivan Williamson, Paul Chatham and Dean Reid although there can only be one winner and Dean took the honours as he won the last race that determined the overall tie for points with Ivan. Paul Chatham finished third just six points behind with Robin Bertram fourth, Steven Lambie fifth and David Wheatley sixth.

John Moody won the Adult C class with Dylan Annand second overall following a big crash on the last lap of the last race and was lucky to walk away and still take the win in that race. Gavin Lowes rode consistently all day taking third with Kevin Ritchie fourth, Chris Ketchin having the ride of his life finishing fifth and Chris Walker sixth.

The most dominant display of the day went to John Adamson in the Youth MX2 Class. John ran away with every race and you could hardly see the next rider as he was so far in front. Second overall Fraser Pohlen had a tough first race but charged on in the other two and was even starting to make in roads toward John Adamson in the final race. Kieran Marr led the best of the rest to third with Douglas Campbell fourth, Kyle Mc Nicoll fifth and Steven Lennie sixth.

Reece Wilson won the Big Wheel 85 Class although he did falter in the second race crashing and dropping down the order. Reece would not be denied and charged through the pack and was catching Lewis Campbell until a second fall saw him having to accept second in that particular race. Lewis had looked good all day and second overall was his reward. Robert Smith had also been mixing it with Lewis and Reece taking the final step on the podium as his reward. Lewis Smith finished fourth with Callum Carter fifth and Alex Grant sixth. The Small Wheel 85 class was won by Bradley Mann completing three straight wins followed by Dylan Carnegie in second with Scott Russell third. Reece Robertson finished fourth with Kai Thompson fifth and Jordan Gill sixth.

The cold start to the day saw Daniel Chisholm finish second in the first race but two wins in the next two races saw him take the overall for the day. Ryan Thomson won the first race and was looking very promising but he could not match his first race performance finishing second overall. Andrew Pohlen finished third with Domonic Stevenson fourth, James Haddow fifth and Lewis Mitchell sixth.

large turnout. The weather rewarded us all once more and for the third time no major It was great to see the enthusiasm for the Melville winter motocross series and such a injuries. Diana McLuckie and Wenda Bryce braved the cold weather to lap score all day and the event would not be possible without the Jack family, thanks to everyone who helped on the day. The next Melville event is the motocross on the 5^th February, you must be the member of an SACU club and ideally have and SACU licence although this event will allow one day licences for adult entries and are available from www.melvillemc.co.uk. There will also be a Scottish Championship Hare and Hound on the 19^th February at Lochhouses including a motocross class but you must have a full SACU Licence to compete, no one day licences for this one, entries are available electronically online from www.entrycentral.com

Finally a big thank you to Robert Dale of Lochhouses farm for allowing us to enjoy such a fantastic area.

Results

Melville Winter Motocross Series 15^th January 2012

Top six results for each class

Adult A

1 Ryan McLean 130

2 Ross Rutherford 129

3 Jake Boyes 120

4 Neil Flockhart 111

5 Neil Chatham 107

6 David Houston 105

Adult B

1 Dean Reid 127

2 Ivan Williamson 127

3 Paul Chatham 121

4 Robin Bertram 110

5 Steven Lambie 105

6 David Wheatley 104

Adult C

1 John Moodie 125

2 Dylan Annand 123

3 Gavin Lowes 117

4 Kevin Ritchie 112

5 Chris Ketchin 110

6 Chris Walker 108

Youth MX2

1 John Adamson 135

2 Fraser Pohlen 122

3 Keirran Marr 112

4 Douglas Campbell 109

5 Kyle McNicoll 108

6 Steven Lennie 106

Big Wheel 85

1 Reece Wilson 132

2 Lewis Campbell 129

3 Robert Smith 113

4 Lewis Smith 110

5 Callum Carter 105

6 Alex Gray 102

Small Wheel 85

1 Bradley Mann 135

2 Dylan Carnegie122

3 Scott Russell 120

4 Reece Robertson 109

5 Kai Thompson 105

6 Jordan Gill 105

65’s

1 Daniel Chisholm 132

2 Ryan Thomson 129

3 Andrew Pohlen 116

4 Dominic Stevenson 116

5 James Haddow 110

6 Lewis Mitchell 104

The Melville is also looking forward to running trials again with Tam Weir, this was the discipline that established the Melville Motor club in the early days. The trails will be run in a similar manner to the other off road events, not too challenging, weather permitting, designed to appeal to riders of all abilities. Tam is hoping to run about six trials throughout the year. There will be date clashes but that is something that we cannot avoid and as you need a completely different type of motorcycle we do not see this as a problem. The trials will be run by a new group of people from the other Melville off road events. Information will be placed on the Melville website www.melvillemc.co.uk with the dates for all our events.

The Melville has applied for Scottish Championship status for all Enduros and Hare and Hounds as we have not had a problem with numbers at any of our events although a couple have seen numbers down slightly on previous years. The Melville is committed to run as many events as possible and if there is one or two that are on the borderline financially we will run the event if the demand is there. The club membership as a whole is down a little this year although this was expected as part of a long term strategy, we run our events as National or Championship status to ensure we do not monopolise the off road licence holders. We are hoping that the numbers will rise slightly next year with the re introduction of trials events.

Melville members have preformed brilliantly at all levels, Ricky Mair, a first time Melville member, won the Hare and Hound and Enduro Scottish Championships, plus a Silver medal at the ISDE in Finland. Neil Chatham won the Under 23 E1 British Enduro Sprint Championship and won a Gold medal at the ISDE and finished 5^th Under 23 rider in the British Enduro Championship class. Fraser Flockhart won the E2 British Clubman Enduro Championship with Dean Reid and Steven Currie Junior splitting the Scottish Clubman and Hare and Hound Championship between themselves following many a battle, congratulations to all the winners.

There is a decision expected regarding the Enduro at Pathhead shortly, Kenny is hoping that he will be able to run the event with a new start area with an additional forest. The timing of the events and results will be handled by the SACU although we will need volunteers at each event to assist Graham Barron and Charlie on the day.

Iain Gilhooley and Gordon Paterson are stepping down from the Melville committee leaving a couple of spaces if any members would like to become more closely involved with the club. The Melville committee meeting takes place on the first Wednesday of every month at the Pentland Road House in Loanhead, any Melville member can attend if they are interested in giving their input regarding any Melville events. Valerie O Neill is also stepping down as Enduro secretary and therefore we are looking for a volunteer who would like to take on that role. I would like to thank Iain, Gordon and Valerie for all the work they have done over the years, it would not have been possible without them.

I am very pleased that we have had such a strong finish to 2011 and look forward to 2012. I would like to thank all the riders who supported the Melville Motor Club this year and wish everyone a Merry Christmas and a prosperous New Year. I look forward to seeing you at an event next year.

Yours in Sport

Campbell Chatham

Melville Motor Club Vice Chairman

Neil Chatham 1st Place in Expert class

Drysdale Motorcycles Neil Chatham won the first round of the SACU Scottish Hare and Hound Championship at Lochhouses Farm near Dunbar in East Lothian. Nearly 160 riders made the start despite snow on most of the roads around East Lothian. The Melville Motor Club event did not start well for Neil as Frazer Norrie and Drew Harvey clashed on the first corner giving him nowhere to go but straight into Drew. The pair took a moment or two to get them selves untangled and they continued in last place. Frazer took the holeshot and led around the motocross section, when they re appeared after their first lap it was Ricky Mair leading Frazer with Neil in third place having fought his way through the Experts in the woods.

Lap two saw Neil closing on Ricky but Ricky decided to stop for new goggles handing the lead to Neil which he never relinquished. Neil was five minutes ahead nearing the finish and managed one more lap than everyone else. Jamie Law started to reel Ricky in at about half distance but Ricky upped his pace and finished a solid second with Jamie third.

This was only Neil’s second competitive outing on the Drysdale Motorcycles KTM 350 XC-F, “I wasn’t feel especially confident coming into the event as I was unsure how I would do on the 350 in the trees, although once I made it to the front I was able to just ride smooth and comfortably. The bike felt great and did everything I asked of it. I really enjoyed the event, everything ran flawlessly and the organisers did a great job, thanks to everybody involved.”

This win was a continuation of a successful year for Neil and he would like to thank all his sponsors for their support this year.

KTM, Drysdale Motorcycles, Metzeler, Fox, Jewelultra Diamondbrite, Hardcore Racing and Shell Lubricants.

CONTACT Neil4646@hotmail.co.uk
Results

RESULTS 4TH DECEMBER

First Corner Action From B Class

In the A Class Craig Trew took the overall win as he is usually in a class of his own at Lochhouses but Gavin Robertson needed the first two races to get dialled in and pulled the pin in the final race winning it convincingly. There had been some bar bashing and Craig dropped back but fought back to second, securing the overall with Gavin having to settle for second overall. Jake Boyes rode consistently to finish third ahead of Neil Chatham and Mark Perfect who had raced hard all day, Mark fell in the last race handing 4^th to Neil with David Houston finishing sixth.

The B Class was won by Ryan Johnson as he dominated the first two races, Paul Chatham was visibly catching but it was only in the final race that he managed to get a good start and took the third race win. Ivan Williamson had been in the mix in the earlier races and took the final step on the podium in third place. Michael Herdman finished 4^th with Robin Bertram 5^th and Stevie Currie Junior 6^th.

The C class was full within days of the entries becoming available showing the popularity of this event for beginners and novices. John Moody won the C Class with Dylan Annand second after an up and down day with Alistair Wark third, Callum Jamieson finished fourth, Sandy Queen fifth and Bill Bruce sixth.

The best racing of the day was in the Youth MX2 Class, Zach Wood, John Adamson and Andrew McNicoll charged round at full tilt for all three races. Zach won the first two races but it was touch and go as John Adamson pushed all the way, in the second race he crashed just before the finish but still managed to hold onto third. In the final race John lead early on and did not look back taking the overall while Zach faded finishing second overall with Andrew McNicoll third. Fraser Pohlen finished 4^th with Josh Hurley 5^th and Greg Queen sixth.

Reece Wilson has been riding at Lochhouses for years now and it is great to see him progress through the ranks in a class of his own, totally dominating the Big Wheel 85 Class. Robert Bell also rode well to finish second with Lee perfect third, Ryan McNicoll fourth, Stuart Skelton fifth and Lewis Smith sixth.

In the Small wheel 85 Class Dylan Carnegie won with Aaron MacDonald second, Brett Baillie third, Jordan Gill fourth, Kai Stewart Fifth and Kristopher Crowhurst sixth.

The 65’s were run on a shortened track including one decent jump, Daniel Chisholm sail beautifully over it to take the overall after winning all three races. Andrew Pohlen finished second having led early in race two. Dominic Stevenson stepped onto the podium in third place with Lewis Mitchell fourth, Gregor Campbell fifth and Lewis Miller sixth.

Results

click here for FINAL PLACINGS 20 NOV

The Melville Motor Club would like to thank Robert Dale for the use of the fantastic land, all the officials and helpers on the day including the ladies for the lap scoring. There were many new faces out racing for the first time and that is exactly the club’s intention, to attract new riders and to have a Carlsberg Motocross, probably one of the best days out at this time of year. You will need to enter quickly if you want to get an entry for the next round of the winter series on the 15^th January, down load an entry form from www.melvillemc.co.uk

The next Melville event is the first round of the Scottish Hare and Hound Championship back at Lochhouses on the 4^th December. You can enter online at Entry Central.com or download regulations from www.melvillemc.co.uk or www.scottishenduros.co.uk

Some of the top riders from Scotland and the north of England have taken part and find the traditional motocross track really enjoyable. Craig Trew has dominated for the past couple of years but the large entry, up to 200 riders, shows that everyone has the chance to enjoy themselves at the end of the year when it is difficult to find somewhere to ride.

The regulations will be available on this website. For 2011 you must have a licence as there are no one day licences available in Scotland. There is a reduced Melville membership and a reduced cost for your SACU licence that takes you through to the 31^st January enabling a rider to compete in the Hare and Hound on the 4^th December and the motocross on the 15th January all at Lochhouses. All the adult classes are expected to fill really quickly so don’t delay to avoid disappointment.

Dates

Motocross

20^th November

15^th January

5^th Febuary