THE Killinchy and District Motorcycle Club held the John Donnelly Memorial Motocross at St John’s Point on Saturday, May 4.
The event, which included the first round of the Northern Ireland Classic scrambles Championship, was a day of fast paced five lap races.
The Pre 65/Pre 70/Pre 74 class started the racing, with Conlig man John Griffiths winning race one ahead of Ballygowan’s Christopher Lappin and Carrickfergus man Harry Stitt in third position. Lappin led race two from the start to take the chequered flag ahead of Griffiths, Ards man Stuart McClurg in third and Stitt in fourth position. Lappin took his second win in race three, with Stitt in second and Griffiths coming home in third position.
The Grade C class was next, with three winners on the day. The first race was won by Comber man Joel Donnan, ahead of Crumlin man Ivor McCrea and Bangor’s Michael Houston in third position. Alan Fairley wasn’t on the line for race one, but he led race two from the line, taking the chequered flag ahead of Houston and Ards man Ben Paul in third position. In race three Fairley led until a fall on lap four left him to finish a lap behind race winner Carrickfergus man Gary Canning, Paul in second and Carrowdore’s Robin Davidson in third.
In the Grade B class Bangor man Andrew Mitchell won race one ahead of Larne’s Eric Bracewell and Craigavon’s Stephen Shortt. The second race was won by Bangor’s Ian McMahon, with Craigantlet man Neil McKenzie in second and Shortt third. In the final race Mitchell won ahead of McMahon, as Shortt finished in third position again.
The Grade A class was next with Comber’s Tommy Merton winning race one ahead of Ardsman Stuart McClurg and Lisburn’s Steven Beattie in third. In race two Merton won again ahead of Seaforde’s Nathan Green and McClurg in third.
Merton won race three for a comfortable hat-trick of wins ahead of Ballygowan’s Chris Lappin in second position and Beattie coming home in third position.
In the first Pre 77 class race John Griffiths won ahead of Killinchy man Adrian Lappin and Stuart McClurg in third. Griffiths won again in race two ahead of McClurg, with Bangor man Richard Griffiths coming home in third.
The final race started with only three riders on the line, but with two riders pulling out Griffiths took the chequered flag for the third time on the day after three laps.
Each round of races on the day had a different final class. The 125/250 Twinshock class ended the first set of races, with Dungannon’s Luke Stockdale taking the win ahead of Comber’s Andy Nicholl in second position and Adrian Lappin coming home in third position.
The last race in the second set of races was an over 50s race with Moneyreagh man Andrew McAlpine taking the win ahead of Adrian Lappin. Moneyreagh’s Laurence Spence was third.
The final race of the day was for the John Donnelly Trophy. Tommy Merton won the race comfortably, taking the honours for the fourth time on the day and lifting the trophy, with John Griffiths in second position and Andrew McAlpine third.
