Shredhill Rounds 7 & 8 Race Report
Shredhill in Gloucestershire is one of Britain’s finest 4X tracks. A cornerstone of the British 4X Series for many years, this fast, flowing track is always a favourite for riders and spectators. With fun jumps, high berms and split lines on the track, racing is always amazing and this weekend it was no different.
The team at Shredhill did an incredible job preparing the track. Without doubt the best condition it has ever been in. Everything was perfect and the scene was set for 2 days of racing.
With weather forecasts all week saying that a sunny weekend was in store, riders were super excited to get to Shredhill!
Saturday – Round 7:
Saturday morning arrived, and it was blue skies and perfect conditions! Riders needed all of practice to get to grips with the new track. Big jumps and rhythm sections demanded riders full concentration.
Practice got underway at 10.00 and the riders got going. The first turn is tight at Shredhill, so you could see riders starting to look at lines in that turn especially, but also using insides on several other turns. Shredhill is famous for passing so riders were looking for all the places they would use in racing.
Gate practice started at 11.30 and then racing was underway by 13.15. Every moto point would be vital towards qualifying for the finals and mistakes would be punished when the total points were added up at the end of the day.
I think it’s safe to say that every race had some drama throughout the day. By finals time we were down to the fastest riders who would battle for the podium positions.
Big Fun: Aaron Beard
Rippers 7 – 9 Female: Sofia Rees
Rippers 7 – 9: Alfie Fishwick
Rippers 10 – 12 Female: Betty Wills
Rippers 10 – 12:Seth Kucharik
Juvenile: Dylan Spence
13 – 16 Female: Esme Ward
Youth: Jack Davey
Senior: Jono Harradine
30+ Women: Agnes Musial
Masters 30: Kingsley Mears
Masters 40: Christopher Evans
Masters 50: Matthew Pratley
In Senior Women’s, 4X star Elizabeth Bown was simply unstoppable all day taking a commanding win and extending her overall series lead. Jessica Dove rode strong to finish 2nd with Alice Taylor finishing 3rd.
In the Elite men’s, Connor Hudson was on a mission all day. Battling through his motos and taking 3 wins, he looked good. In the final he would be up against his brother Jack Hudson, Jake Hart and Joe Wallbridge. The gate dropped and Connor made a strong gate with Joe, leading into turn 1. Connor held his line and Joe had to sit in second down to the motorway section. Jack Hudson went down allowing Jake Hart to sit in third. Into the huge hairpin turn, Wallbridge was all over Connor Hudson, but into the on-off Hudson nailed it and pulled away. Across the line it was Connor Hudson, Joe Wallbridge, Jake Hart and Jack Hudson.
It was a fantastic Elite final and all the crowd appreciated what they had just witnessed. This was 4X racing from the top drawer with clean, calculated passes by riders going flat out. It was awesome.
After racing it was the podium presentations followed by the DMR whip off, long jump and high jump competitions and a game of laser tag in the battle sports arena next door to the 4X track. But the highlight was the huge slip n slide that Shredhill had built. The kids and adults were loving it!
It was a brilliant night where the de-brief took place from the days racing in the setting sun with fun, music and good vibes.
Sunday – Round 8:
Sunday morning and the sun was shining once again. The weather was certainly on our side this weekend!
During practice riders worked on their lines from Saturday as they tried to polish up their race plans for the afternoon.
Through the motos, the racing was fierce but clean. Riders were battling to make it through to the knockout rounds.
By mid afternoon it was finals time. After some incredible racing the winners were:
Fun: Willem Copson
Big Fun: Brian Earp
Rippers 7 – 9: Alfie Fishwick
Rippers 10 – 12 Female: Betty Wills
Rippers 10 – 12: Seth Kucharik
Juvenile: Evan Davey
13 – 16 Female: Esme Ward
Youth: Newton Hindley
Senior: Markku Reynolds
Masters 30: Kingsley Mears
Masters 40: Steven Matthews
Masters 50: Martin Ogden
Senior women were flying all weekend. When the gate dropped it was Elizabeth Bown who held it together to take the win. A hard fought second for Jessica Dove and Alice Taylor was able to secure 3rd.
Finally, it was the elite men. Connor Hudson was the man to beat all weekend. He took gate 1, Shredhill local Tom Bell in 2, Jake Hart in 3 and Ben Jones in 4. The gate dropped and it was Hudson who took the holeshot leading into turn 1. All 4 made it through and set off down the motorway section. Hudson pulled his lead out convincingly but the fight for second was tight all the way down the track. Jake Hart was in the mix with Bell and Ben Jones was using every line to carry speed. Crossing the finish line it was Hudson taking the win to round off a perfect weekend with Hart in second, Bell in third and Jones in fourth.
At the finish line Hudson said:
“I am so stoked. It has been a perfect weekend taking the win both days. I’m so happy. The track has been amazing all weekend so a big thank you to the Shredhill team. Thanks to British 4X for putting on an amazing race series. I can’t wait for Twisted Oaks now on September 19/20.”
DMR Riders of the Day:
Saturday – Matthew Pratley
Sunday – Louis Hopkins
A huge thanks to the series sponsor Schwalbe who help to make it all possible. Our other sponsors Motul, DMR, ABUS, Yellow Jersey, TWC, USE, Surf & Turf, Bikestow, Halo and of course British Cycling.
Thank you to all the venues, riders, medics, commentators, officials, commissaires, marshals, family and friends who attend every race. You make 4X the amazing sport that it is and long may it continue.
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