Noble looked up for it as he posted the 2nd fastest time in qualifying and we were hoping for him to give us something to cheer. One lap into the first race and our hopes were well and truly shattered as Noble had an almighty crash. As he jumped past Doran Coutts on the step-down just before the finish line he landed off the dry line in the slushy mud and was immediately out of control. His bike was all over the place as he bounced through the following whoop section and as the front wheel suddenly tucked under he was catapulted over the bars, bouncing off the face of the next step up jump before hitting the deck hard, knocking him unconscious in the process. After regaining consciousness he was attended to by paramedics while the race continued and amazingly had suffered no major injuries. Even more amazingly, as the race came to an end he managed to remount his twisted machine and ride across the finish line to grab a handful of useful points.

After a couple of hours to recover Noble decided to give it a go in the second race but as the gate dropped it was evident he was in too much discomfort to actually race and we were left to watch both the Proppa.com boys strolling round at the back of the field. Both of them had to come into the pits for some rest bite from the pain before returning to complete the race and pick up some more valuable points. Because of their grit and determination they both picked up enough points to keep their hopes of taking 2nd and 3rd in the championship alive. With one round remaining Noble looks secure in 2nd with a 39 point lead over last years winner Carl Nunn with Parker just 6 points further back in 4th. Krestinov has closed to within four points of Parker with Snow just one more point further back. If Parker can get his hand sorted before the final round in two weeks time it should be a tremendous four way battle for the final podium position.

With the Pro’s going through the pain barrier the team was hoping that young gun Garland would put a smile back on our faces but he was having his own problems in the big wheel 85 class. After recovering from a crash to take 4th in the first race he looked secure as he stretched out to a 5 second lead in race two but he was about to suffer the same fate as his senior team-mate as he took off on the same jump as Noble came to grief on. Just as he hit the take-off his rear shock seemed to rebound early and he was ejected over the bars, landing in an unconscious heap in the middle of the track. After being attending to by the paramedics he was soon on his feet but was battered and bruised and it looked like he may take no further part in the day’s proceedings. Not to be outdone by his older teammates in the bravery stakes he decided to give it a go and after some major running repairs to his mangled bike he was back on the line for race 3. He looked hesitant as the gate dropped and rounded the first turn at the back of the field but he soon picked up the pace and blasted his way through to 2nd at the flag. After taking another 2nd place in the 4th race he was still on track for an overall podium as he took the lead in the final race of the day but a few laps in he suffered a rear puncture and try as he might he couldn’t nurse his bike to the finish. As the tyre came completely off the rim he was left half way up the second of Foxhill’s famous hills, his and the team’s misery complete. Well nearly complete, just to cap the weekend off I backed the race truck into a gate post when I got back to the workshop. Not that it mattered, I was beyond caring at that stage.
Anyway, there’s one thing for sure, we’ll be back to fight it out again in two weeks time when we travel to Wakes Colne for the final round of the Red Bull Pro National Series.

Race Report – Steve Turner

The team’s next outing is the re-scheduled 8th round of the Red Bull Pro Nationals at Foxhills on Sunday 5th September where both lads will be hoping for better conditions and much improved results.

The Red Bull Pro Nationals descended on Canada Heights, Kent for the second time this season for round seven of the series. Although the track had been heavily watered in the days leading up to the event it was unusually hard and didn’t cut up like it usually does, instead becoming very slick and one lined.

Silkolene 2 stroke – Saturday
With Noble sitting it out after having his machine stolen it was left to Parker to fly the flag but after a 6th place in the first race Parker slid off early in the second, injuring his knee and took no further part in the day’s proceedings.

Red Bull Pro Nationals – Sunday
Race 1
Although struggling with his knee Parker still managed an impressive 4th place in qualifying with Noble in 9th but in this series the MX2 boys get first gate pick so rather than start from the middle Parker decided to gamble on the very outside gate. It almost got him the holeshot as he blasted round the outside but he couldn’t quite make the corner first. Even so he was still in the top eight as they moved into the wood section, with Noble half a dozen places further back. Both riders set about moving through the field and were making good headway until Parker slid out dropping him well down the order. Both riders pushed as hard as they could but with the track so fast and one line it wasn’t easy to gain places. Noble rode really well to get up to 6th at the flag with Parker back in 9th.

Race 2
Noble made a decent start and was in the top 10 but Parker was near the back after spinning on the concrete start gate. Noble looked really fast and was moving up the order until Banks-Brown binned it right in front of him. Noble hit the DB Racing pilot as he went down but managed to keep it on two wheels himself. It only cost him a few seconds but it had broke his rhythm and it took him a few laps to pick up the pace again. He still managed to push through to 5th at the finish to take 5th overall moving him into joint 2nd place in the championship with 2 rounds remaining.
Parker forced his way through into the top ten by mid race but the gap was a big one to the guys in front. He didn’t give up though and managed to reel in Coutts just before the end to take another 9th place for 10th overall.

Elite Youth Cup
Race 1
After taking pole in qualification Garland had his eyes set on the top step of the podium but it didn’t look likely as he gated outside the top ten. However he was in confident mood and by mid race he was up with the front two. He didn’t hang around, forcing his way past championship leader Harrison and early pace setter Viner, taking the chequered flag by some six seconds.
Race 2
Race two was almost a carbon copy of race one but after closing right in on leader Viner, Garland dropped it and instead of being able to challenge for the lead he had to be content with 2nd after spending the rest of the race fighting off Harrison.
Race 3
This was the best race of the day as Garland first had to fight his way through the field from outside the top ten before passing Viner and chasing down leader Harrison. The pair pulled away from the rest, setting lap times some 4 seconds quicker than their nearest challengers. Confident in his ability to win Garland sat patiently on the back wheel of Harrison before upping his game two laps from home to make the pass and take a well deserved win.
Race 4
Looking for his 3rd win of the weekend, Garland had left himself a lot to do as he sat in 6th with Harrison stretching out in front. But after charging through to 2nd place he put in some blistering laps to close the gap down to just 3 seconds and with just three laps remaining the unlucky Harrison ground to a halt with a blown engine, handing the win the Garland.
Race 5
After crashing on the first lap Garland was left down in 12th and had to fight hard to make it through to 2nd place by the half way stage. After setting the fastest laps of the race he closed in on leader Harrison but as the two of them battled for supremacy Garland made the sensible decision to back off and settle for 2nd place, giving him a superb overall victory and moving him up to 2nd in the championship.

The team made the trip down to the legendary Farleigh Castle track near Bath for the 6th round of the Maxxis British Championship. Heavy showers on Saturday followed by a dry sunny day on Sunday was just what the track needed resulting in near perfect conditions.

Qualifying
Qualifying was really close and although Noble made it safely into super-pole in 10th Parker missed out by just two hundredth of a second in 15th. In the super-pole itself Noble was unable to improve and had to settle for 10th.
Race 1.
Parker made a blistering start from the middle of the gate and was in the top six as they exited the first corner with Noble just a couple of places behind. Noble was finding it hard to make any impression on the riders in front and spent most of the race in 8th position before losing out to Crockard and Church on the last two laps to leave him in 10th. Parker was flying and on lap four he stuck a pass on Swanapoel to move into 5th and set about trying to pass Coppins but after making a mistake in the woods he lost ground on the Kiwi. After losing 5th place back to Swanapoel he got it back again as Bobryshev crashed and rode superbly as he held off the Russian for the next three laps before finally conceding with just two laps remaining bringing it home in a brilliant 6th place.
Race 2.
Both riders found it harder to make a good start second time out with Noble in 15th and Parker down in 18th. Full of confidence after race one Parker looked on fire as he cruised up to 15th but a mistake on the top loop when he spun his machine dropped him back down to 18th. He again charged through the pack up to 14th but crashed again and try as he might the best he could achieve was a disappointing 15th at the finish. Noble, meanwhile was having a much less eventful race as he moved through to 13th by mid-race before passing Nunn and Krestinov in the latter stages to take 11th.
Race 3.
A similar start to the second race left the boys with a lot to do with Parker in 16th and Noble 17th. With the track becoming increasingly rough and one line it was now becoming extremely difficult to make passes and Parker in particular struggled throughout the race only managing to make it up to 14th by the flag for 12th overall. Noble used all his experience to find a few new lines and was one of the biggest movers on the track as he gradually made his way through the field to post a well earned 10th place finish to leave him 10th overall on the day.
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The team’s next outing is at Canada Height in Kent for the 7th round of the Red Bull Pro Nationals on 22nd August.

Hawkstone Park was the venue for the 6th round of the British Masters Series. After the heavy rain on Saturday subsided the track was in near perfect condition for Sunday’s racing.

Race 1
After qualifying in 4th and 6th respectively both Noble and Parker looked like they meant business. Noble made a good start and was in 5th place as they crossed the line for the first time but after getting baulked on the start by Jamie Law, Parker was left well down the field. Noble had an uneventful race, unable to push forward due to suffering dreadful arm-pump which doesn’t normally affect him but the track was extremely rough following the earlier amateur races. Despite the discomfort the tough Yorkshireman still managed to hang on to 5th place at the end. Parker struggled with the track all day but still dug deep and gradually forced his way through to 6th place but after initially looking like he would close in on his teammate he suddenly started to struggle with the rough track and had to be content with 7th after being passed back by Jamie Lewis on the last lap.
Race 2
Both riders had good starts in race two with Noble in 4th just in front of Parker in 5th but Parker wasn’t looking comfortable and was pushed back to 8th on the second lap. Although he fought his way back up to 6th by midrace he just couldn’t consolidate the position and ended up finishing in a disappointing 8th for 7th overall. The unique Hawkstone circuit has always been an unhappy hunting ground for the youngster and this time was no exception. Noble on the other hand, free of the first race arm-pump was looking smooth and fast as he moved past Par Honda teammates Barr and Elderfield to take over 2nd spot but he was never going to catch Estonian sand specialist and former GP winner Krestinov who was disappearing into the distance at the front. Not that it mattered as Noble cruised to 2nd at the finish to claim a well deserved overall win.

The team travel down to Wiltshire this coming weekend for the 6th round of the Maxxis British Championship at the historic Farleigh Castle circuit.

The team was back at Foxhills for the 5th round of the Maxxis British Championship and with the weather gloriously hot again the crowds were out in force to see their favourite stars.

Qualifying
Noble and Parker both looked comfortable in the first part of qualifying, both making it into the superpole with Noble in 8th and Parker 9th. In the Superpole itself Parker managed to secure 9th but a couple of mistakes dropped Noble down to 11th.

Race 1.
Parker couldn’t repeat his great starts of recent meetings and was in 13th by the end of the 1st lap but that was a lot better than Noble who came round at the back after going down on the first corner. After passing Crockard for 12th Parker gradually closed the gap on the group in front and on lap seven passed Krestinov at the bottom of the second hill and immediately went to pass Law on the next uphill. But the tough Cumbrian moved across Parker’s line forcing him into the soft stuff and he was thrown over the bars as his front end washed out. After initially trying to re-join the race he was forced to give up with the front forks badly twisted. It was left to Noble to salvage some points as he fought his way through the field. He was actually one of the quickest on track as he made his way up to 13th by the flag and proved once again that in the shorter race format introduced this season it is all but impossible to get back to the front after an early crash..
Race 2.
Both riders made great starts in race two with Parker in 3rd and Noble in 6th. Parker struggled to live with some of the big guns in the early laps but soon settled down just behind his teammate in 7th but just when it looked like he was going to put together another great performance he dropped it at the end of the pit straight, losing three places in the process and although he got back to 9th he was relegated on the last lap back to 10th on the last lap by the charging early faller Stephen Sword. Noble moved into 5th by mid-race and set about reeling in Tom Church and as they started the last lap Noble was closing in. With just a couple of corners left he went around the outside of the CCM pilot and crossed the line just 100th of a second ahead for a superb 4th place.
Race 3.
Neither rider could repeat their second race starts with Noble in 15th and Parker in 23rd but by the end of the first lap Noble had improved to 12th and Parker to 17th. By the fourth lap Noble had charged through to 7th and Parker to 12th and although Parker managed to pass Crockard for 11th he couldn’t make anymore progress and after being re-passed by the Irishman he had to settle for 12th at the finish for 14th overall. Noble closed in on Dougan but had Anderson on his tail and the three of them fought for 5th place for the last couple of laps with Anderson forcing his way through on the last lap to push Noble down to 7th at the flag giving him 7th overall on the day.

Both riders are having a run out at the Dirt 321 event at Armthorpe this coming weekend and after the postponement of the 7th round of the Red Bull Pro Nationals the team instead make the trip to Hawkstone Park for the 6th round of the Britsh Masters on the 8th August.

The BYMX roadshow moved onto Finningley for round 5 of the Express Insurance Championship, where the riders were presented with a well prepared track on which to test their sand skills.

Qualification
With the track still in a forgiving state, qualification was wide open and just 1 second split the top 6 riders.
Garland qualified 5th with a time of 1:46.021, just 0.655 behind pole setter Adam Sterry.

Race 1
With a poor mid pack start, Garland put in another strong first lap to move into 6th place by the end of the lap. He progressed to 4th by lap 4 and remained there until lap 7, when he was passed by James Harrison. But he was in determined mood and with just two corners remaining he attempted an audacious pass on Harrison around the outside, but in doing so crashed. Luckily for the youngster he was able to remount without losing a place, finishing in 5th.
Race 2
A better start saw Garland exit the first turn in the top 6 and within two laps he had passed both Kelly and Harrison for 4th. Putting in lap times some 2 seconds quicker than the leader Sterry, Garland was soon right on his back wheel but with a win in sight he was cruelly taken down by a back marker who moved over for the leader but  took Garland down in the process. After parting the two bikes Garland was able to rejoin the race in 3^rd which he held till the flag.
Race 3
A top 10 start was followed up with a move into 5th by the end of lap 1.
Passing Kelly on lap 4 and Eccles on lap 5 saw Garland move into 3rd but with the front two already out of touch he cruised to the finish for his second 3^rd place of the day.
Race 4
Getting pushed wide in the first corner whilst avoiding a fallen rider, Garland exited the turn down in 30th position and despite picking off a number of riders, had only progressed to 14th place by the end of lap 1.
Making progress on every lap saw him move into the top 10 mid race, with further progress lap by lap resulting in 6th at the flag.
Race 5
Sitting in 3rd overall, just 5 points behind Watson and with both Eccles and Kelly breathing down his neck, race 5 was going to be the most important race of the weekend.
Gating just outside of the top 10 and with Watson, Kelly and Eccles all ahead of him, Garland knew he had to push hard to have any chance of a podium for the weekend. Up to 9th by the end of lap 1, he then made up 2 more places on lap 3 with a pass right around the outside of both Harrison and Davidson in the same corner. Eccles was the next rider in sight and on lap 5 he had moved passed him into 4th. Making a pass on Watson on lap 7 saw him progress into 3rd, where he remained, finishing just 2 seconds behind Kelly.
With Watson and his faltering KTM eventually finishing 7th, Garland had done enough to earn second overall for the weekend.

This result has now seen Garland progress to 5th in the championship with 2 rounds to go and although the championship win is unlikely a 3rd place is definitely a possibility as he sits just 2 points behind Harrison in 4th and 14 points behind Kelly on 3^rd.

It was three Red Bull Pro Nationals on the bounce as the team travelled down to Pontrilas, Herefordshire for the 6th round. The weather was sweltering and the track crew did a good job of keeping the dust down, although because of the amount of water they had to put down it wasn’t long before the track became extremely rutted and knarly.

Silkolene 2 stroke – Saturday
After qualifying in 2nd and 6th respectively in a really tight session Noble and Parker knew they needed great starts to give themselves a chance of running up front and although Noble made some pretty good starts he struggled to manhandle his 500 around the knarly track and the best he could do was 7-7-10 finishes for 7th overall on the day, still enough to maintain 2nd place in the championship but losing more ground on leader Eastwood. Parker again suffered from bad start but managed to fight through to 5-6-6 finishes for 6th overall leaving him just seven points behind his teammate in 3rd place.

Red Bull Pro Nationals – Sunday
Race 1
After posting the 2nd fastest qualifying time ahead of his stable mate Noble in third, Parker was fired up and it showed as he grabbed the holeshot ahead of Alex Snow and Brad Anderson. They both forced their way past on the first couple of corners but Parker passed Anderson back in the whoops and looked up for the fight until he crashed on the next lap dropping him down the field. Meanwhile Noble who had gated in 7th had progressed to 5th early on but was struggling to catch the men in front and although he stepped it up in the closing stages he had to settle for 5th. Parker had charged back through the field before crashing again on the eigth lap and the best he could salvage was 12th in MX1 at the finish
Race 2
Parker took an even better holeshot this time out with Noble in 6th but had to give ground to Anderson before they had completed the first lap. Although he battled hard to hold off GP stars Tom Church and Stephen Sword he had to yield but was looking comfortable in 4th. Noble was looking more at home than he did in the first race and was pushing hard although he had Gordon Crockard covering his every move. Noble managed to break him towards the end before closing in on Parker with one lap remaining, however Parker wasn’t going to give up any more places and managed to hold off Noble as they crossed the line in well earned 4th and 5th places which were enough to give Noble 4th overall and Parker 7th. Noble is now looking increasingly secure in 3rd place in the championship with a healthy 39 point advantage over Carl Nunn with Parker just two point further back in 5th.

Elite Youth Cup
Garland was in impressive form all weekend and took 2nd overall behind championship leader James Harrison as he raced to 5-4-4 finishes on the Saturday followed by even better results the next day with two 2nd places to give him a well deserved podium.

We now have a week off before heading down to Foxhills, Swindon for the 5th round of the Maxxis British Championships on 25th July.

The team made the trip over to James Noble’s home town of Whitby for the 4th round of the Silkolene 2-stroke championship and the 5th round of the Red Bull Pro Nationals. The weather was glorious all weekend and so too was the racing, although young Liam Garland, riding out of the team awning for the first time suffered some appalling luck.

Silkolene 2 stroke – Saturday
With Noble and Parker posting 1st and 2nd quickest times in qualification on their 500’s it looked like it might be a Proppa.com Honda show but Parker just couldn’t get out of the gate all day even when he switched to his 250 in the last race. Although he set some of the fastest laps in each of the races giving the likes of Eastwood, Noble and Elderfield a head start was always likely to prove costly and so it was as he could only manage 4-5-4 finishes to take 5th overall. On the other hand Noble was looking like his old self as he dominated race one to take the win before settling for two second places in races two and three to take the overall win from Elderfield and Eastwood, moving back into 2nd place in the championship in the process ahead of his teammate in 3rd.

Red Bull Pro Nationals – Sunday
Race 1
Parker posted his best qualifying position of the season in 3rd with Noble in 5th and their growing confidence showed as Parker took the holeshot with Noble in 2nd. Parker looked comfortable as continually set the fastest lap times to move into a five second lead but the experienced Noble refused to let the gap increase any further which seemed to unsettle Parker who tightened up and began making a few mistakes, costing him valuable seconds. Noble gradually wound in his teammate and try as he might Parker could not hold off the local hero, eventually giving up the lead. Anderson and Crockard pushed Parker down to 4th before closing in on Noble but he responded to the challenge and held on to the end to take a deserved win.
Race 2
Neither rider could repeat their first race starts with Noble in 7th and Parker away dead last. Noble was soon up to 4th behind Jamie Law but as he struggled to pass the tough Cumbrian Anderson stuck as pass on both of them as they entered the whoop section and after taking two laps to pass Law, Noble was suddenly faced with an eight second gap between himself and Anderson. In the latter stages Anderson moved past Krestinov to take second behind holeshot man Lamay and try as he might Noble just couldn’t catch Krestinov, eventually settling for 4th leaving him in 2nd overall just one point behind Anderson with Lamay in 3rd. While all this was going on Parker was fighting his way through the field but try as he might the best he could manage was 8th at the flag for 6th overall which wasn’t what he was looking for but was still good enough to close the gap in the championship standings to just 5 points behind Carl Nunn who currently sits in 4th. Noble is now looking secure in 3rd but looks unlikely to catch Anderson and Lamay who sit 1st and 2nd.

Elite Youth Cup
Garland looked really comfortable as the timed qualification board went out but he over-jumped the down hill triple by some distance and in doing so wrecked his front wheel. After a quick wheel change and with time running out he managed to squeeze in just one fast lap, amazingly posting the 4th quickest time.

Race 1.
Gating around 15th place, he soon worked his way through the pack. Just before the end of the first lap he made a pass on Jack Eldridge into 5th position and thought he’d made it stick. Jack however had other ideas and was determined to gain the place back, but in doing so completely wiped Liam out resulting in a snapped gear lever and selector shaft and a DNF.
Race 2.
Another mid pack start was followed by 4 laps of progression and with lap times as quick as race winner Ben Howell he got on the back wheel of Connor Clarke in 3rd place. Attempting to make a pass through the whoops Liam went down heavy before remounting down in 15th place. He took a lap to get his rhythm back and worked his way back up to 9th at the flag.
Race 3.
A better start inside the top 10 was wasted as Liam went down halfway round the first lap relegating him back to around 20th position. With some aggressive riding he soon pushed his way back into the top 10 and by the time the last lap board came out he had managed to get to 6th place. With the flag just 200 yards away and a clear gap on those behind Liam’s run of bad luck continued as a heavy landing from the last jump pulled the carburettor away from the manifold causing the bike to stop. Liam had to push the bike home and in doing so lost 4 places ending up in 10th position.
Race 4.
After another start within the top 10, Liam moved through into the top five before passing Ben Watson for 4th place. After setting lap times as fast as the leaders he began to tire and had to fight Watson all the way to the line, eventually winning by just half a second.
Race 5.
Gating just outside the top 10 and with Harrison, Howell, Watson, Gardner and Clarke all out of sight Liam put in 4 big laps to claw his way back onto the back of the front pack but again disaster was just around the corner as his rear wheel completely collapsed after another heavy landing causing another DNF. A distraught Liam was left to walk back to the truck.

So after an eventful weekend, finishing 11th overall was not the way he wanted to start life under the Proppa.com awning but now its time to brush himself off and get ready for the next round at Pontrillas where he plans to claw his way back into the championship hunt.

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Round 4 of the 2010 BYMX Championship rolled up at the picturesque Dean Moor track in Cumbria and Liam was determined to get his championship challenge back on track, following a bike troubled outing at Mepal in round 3.

Qualification went well as Liam posted the 4th quickest time on a track that he’d never previously ridden.

Race 1 set the pattern for the weekend, as he rounded the first corner way down in around 30th position. A great first lap saw him pass over 20 riders and move into 10th position. By the end of lap 2 he had progressed through to 7th before pushing onto 5th by the flag, where he finished on the heels of Ben Howell.

Race 2 saw an improved start in around 15th position and again a strong first lap saw him move up to 7th. As the race progressed Liam fought his way through to 3rd at the flag, holding off the attention of both James Harrison and Ben Watson in the process and finishing just 8 seconds behind race winner Adam Sterry.

Race 3 and another poor start as he struggled to get to grips with the cambered concrete start. Exiting the first corner in around 30th position, he again made quick progress up to 15th by the end of lap 1, but misjudging the corner speed of a slower rider in front caused him to stall his machine and as he tried to restart it Ben Watson ran straight into the back of him. After re-starting their bikes they both got away together and charged back through the field but the best Liam could do was a disappointing 12th at the finish.

Race 4 saw Liam’s best start of the weekend in 10th position, but still left him with too much work to do to be able to challenge for the win. A great ride to the flag rewarded with another 3rd place finish and again a great battle with Watson which saw them split by just 0.6 of a second at the flag.

Race 5 began with Liam knowing that as long as he followed Watson home he would be rewarded with the final place on the podium and this is just what he did. Gating around 15th, he made quick progress on lap 1 to move into 7th place just behind Connor Clarke. Making a pass on lap 2, he went about chasing down the group in front which included Adam Sterry, Ben Watson and early race leader Jack Gardner. By lap 6 he had them in his sight and made the initial pass on Gardner to move into 5th. As the race came to a close Liam got to within 2 seconds of Sterry (who himself had done enough to take the overall for the weekend as well as the championship lead) and 1 second off Watson, ensuring a well deserved 3rd overall.

He has now moved up to 7th in the Championship just 36 points behind current leader Adam Sterry with 3 rounds remaining.

This coming weekend sees Liam heading off to Whitby for round 4 of the Red Bull Pro Nationals and his first event riding out of the Proppa.com Race Truck, where he plans to repeat his winning performance from round three.

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