Good Turn Out for Year's First Race
12.012.09
A good turn out of riders and the warm, calm conditions made the track fast for the first racing night for 2009.  This led to a good night's racing for the cyclists and spectators.

In the opening race, the Senior A Grade 15 lap scratch race, Tim Fulton made his move in the first lap and broke away from the pack to gain a handy lead.  The rest of the pack were happy to leave him out the front on his own, holding the gap to the length of the straight until the last five laps.  Then they started to lift the pace, which saw Nicole Goldring slightly off the back making her work hard to stay in contact.  Fulton was caught with two and a half laps to go but still had enough energy to contest the sprint, with Darren Anderson leading T Fulton, Rhyse Carpenter, Malcolm Clasohm, Ryan Ware and Daniel Anderson into the final lap.  T Fulton was first to the line followed by R Carpenter, Darren, Ware, Clasohm, Daniel and Goldring.

Four laps into the Vets 12 lap handicap Gary Carpenter made a break from the pack and was left out on his own by the other riders.  That is until they began to reel him in with four laps left.  They had him in the next lap.  Keith Gibbons, Adrian Wilson, Peter Werner and Neil Paterson led G Carpenter and Darryl Fulton into the last lap and broke away from them for a four rider sprint to the line.  Gibbons managed to hold off the other riders to be first across the line ahead of Wilson, Werner and Paterson while D Fulton was fifth from G Carpenter and Hayden Gill.

Jai Sutton had an easy win in the Senior B Grade 12 lap scratch race after he lifted the pace with three laps to go.  Pierce Sutton, Dylan Starkey and Jarrod Hamilton weren't able to match his pace.  It was a tight finish for second place with a tyre width separating Starkey and P Sutton as they crossed the line in that order with Hamilton fourth.

In the Senior A Grade 10 lap scratch race Sam Campbell picked up the pace with two laps to go and then took off on the bell with Liza and Charlotte Wakeling chasing him down.  L Wakeling came along side him as they came down the home straight but Campbell couldn't hold her off finishing just behind her, while C Wakeling was third and Jessica Shore fourth.

Scott Litchfield (55m) won the first Novice one lap handicap against Bailey Kesby (0m) and was brought back 10metres for the next race which Kesby took out.  Litchfield started on 50 metres for their last race and almost held off a fast approaching Kesby (0m) who put in a good sprint down the home straight to just cross the line ahead of Litchfield.

BMX riders Jasmine Ledington and Hannah Wilson, in their first rides this season, gained in confidence throughout the night and shared the placings in their one lap handicaps.  Ryan Bodinner and Jacob Hughes had their first try out on the track in a series of handicap races and will be joining the Novices in the coming weeks.

T Fulton took out the Senior A Grade 30 lap point score with 28 points after winning five of the six sprint laps ahead of R Carpenter (15), and Clasohm (12) while K Gibbons (13) took out the Vets race from Werner (7) and Wilson (6).