Treble for Lougher; double for William Dunlop at S100
Ian Lougher scored three wins at the Southern 100 meeting; including the Solo Championship, to surpass Joey Dunlop as the most successful rider on the Billown Circuit. William Dunlop scored a brace of 250cc wins; Guy Martin won the opening Superbike race. Bad weather and accidents curtailed the meeting.
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 Southern 100 2008 The 2008 Southern 100 race meeting opened with the Corlett’s Senior Solo Founders race; a two class event for 1000cc and 600cc machines. The practice times suggested that last year’s winner Guy Martin would be the man to beat. Guy was living out of the back of his van; was very relaxed going about the paddock and happy not to be involved any corporate hostility bull**it. Ian Lougher was second fastest in Monday’s practice on the Blackhorse Yamaha; Ian was in good spirits when I spoke to him in the paddock. Another man who is without the trappings of a large motor home and awnings etc and is similarly relaxed is Ryan Farquhar; who had a tremendous TT, where he became the first man to record six top six finishes at one meeting. Others with fast practice laps were John Burrows on the H M Honda and Ramsey’s Conor Cummins, who was having his first ride on Winston McAdoo’s Kawasakis. Fastest of those opting to ride a 600cc; or in this case 675cc 3 cylinder machine, was Tim Poole; with Roy Richardson next best. From the lights a tremendous scrap began at the head of events with a group of four swapping positions and possibly some paint in the early stages. Expecting that it could come down to a last lap charge into the final bend; Castletown Corner was our vantage point. On the first lap a blanket would have covered the first three; Ian Lougher just ahead of Ryan Farquhar and Guy Martin. A second behind them came Conor Cummins and John Burrows. Also the fore in a still very tight race were Gary Carswell, Michael Dunlop, Mark Parrett and Paul Cranston. The leading 600cc machine was that of Adrian McFarland; a talented rider who has never had the support that his talent deserves. Second placeman was Tim Poole; who had Roy Richardson and Chris Palmer 0.5s behind, they were just a couple of metres apart on the track. On lap 2 Guy Martin had the lead by just 0.5s from Farquhar and Lougher, with Cummins a further 0.5s astern of them. Michael Dunlop passed Gary Carswell on the brakes to take 5th; John Burrows having been an early retirement from the race. In the 600cc class McFarland continued to lead from the three way battle for second between Poole, Richardson and Palmer. It was not to be Poole’s night; he retired on lap 4 leaving Richardson and Palmer to fight over second place. Lap 3 saw the leading quartet in line astern as they accelerated along the bypass to start lap 4, the race was certainly keeping the large crowd entertained. Behind them Carswell was losing ground as his standard production machine was outgunned by more highly tuned machinery; Gary is another who deserves to have some properly funded machinery. In the 600cc class McFarland had increased his lead; but it was from Richardson, who had managed to break free from Palmer; Poole was 4th, slowed by the machine problem that eventually forced him out. On lap 4 Martin had opened a gap over the chasing trio, who were probably slowing themselves as they fought for positions. They were just a machine’s length apart as they crossed the bridge and rounded the tight right hand bend. In the 600cc class McFarland continued to build his lead on the Hardship Yamaha. Lap 5 saw Martin leading by 1.1s from Farquhar on our watch. Farquhar had managed to open a similar gap over Lougher and Cummins who locked in battle for 3rd. With a clear track Martin raised the lap record to 111.15mph and Farquhar lapped at over 110mph as they pulled away from Lougher and Cummins. Lap 6 saw Cummins ahead of Lougher; but on lap 7 Lougher managed to retake 3rd. In the 600cc class McFarland was maintaining a lead of about 3 seconds from Richardson who was unable to close the gap significantly despite putting up the fastest lap of the race on lap 8. The final positions were now decided and despite having his fuel light come on for the last two laps McFarland was able to keep Richardson at bay despite having to short shift to conserve fuel. The winners were delighted with the result, as were the podium finishers. Ian Lougher has some handling adjustments to make, the bike getting out of shape a couple of times on the tricky section from Ballawhetstone to the Billown Dip. 1000cc class 1. Guy Martin 108.700 2. Ryan Farquhar 108.264 3. Ian Lougher 107.948 4. Conor Cummins 107.772 5. Michael Dunlop 106.069 6. Mark Parrett 105.899 600cc Class 1. Adrian McFarland 103.300 2. Roy Richardson 103.130 3. Chris Palmer 101.814 The Mann Auto Car Sales 250cc Race had a large number of non-starters; but still provided good entertainment for the spectators. There was no struggle for the top step of the podium in this race; William Dunlop got the hole-shot and simply pulled away from his pursuers; stamping his authority on the race with a new lap record on his second lap and ending it with a new race record. Behind him Ian Lougher was able to pull clear of Michael Dunlop and Chris Palmer as he too lapped at over 102mph on his second circuit. The battle between Palmer and Michael Dunlop was decided in Michael’s favour when he edged ahead on lap 6 and was then able to open a gap. Behind them came Davy Morgan; John Burrows and Nigel Moore; all secure in their respective placings. William Dunlop accepted the acclaim of the crowd as he accelerated away from Castletown Corner towards the finishing line on the final lap. Next it was his brother Michael and then Chris Palmer who passed us; Ian Lougher was missing. Ian’s Honda had thrown in the towel at Great Meadow just 1 mile from the finish; cruel luck. 250cc Race 1. William Dunlop 101.436 2. Michael Dunlop 100.462 3. Chris Palmer 100.173 4. Davy Morgan 97.568 5. John Burrows 96.638 6. Nigel Moore 95.562 Wednesday evening brought us the best of the Manx summer: oily clouds scudding across the sky and depositing heavy rain as they passed. The amount of standing and running water on the track and rapidly failing light left the organisers with no alternative other than to abandon racing for the evening. Thursday morning brought us a cloudy sky; lighter winds but no rain. The track was still damp when the time for the first race arrived, but conditions were good enough to allow racing to begin. First race was the 600cc ‘B’ race, for which newcomer Russ Mountford from Wigan was on pole having lapped at over 102mph in practice. As they reached us at the commentary point at Cross Four Ways it was Ballymena’s Dennis Booth who held a 3 seconds advantage over the chasing trio of Russ Mountford, Carl Roberts and Stu Bainborough. A further 3 seconds adrift was another trio comprising of Bill Callister, Peter Simpson and Adam Jones. On lap 2 Booth held a 4 seconds advantage over Mountford who having had a steady sighting lap was beginning to up his pace. Mountford in turn had a 2 seconds advantage over Roberts and Bainborough. Behind them Jones had edged ahead of Simpson. On lap 3 Mountford had cut the lead in half and it seemed to be just a matter of when he would catch Booth. New 3rd placed man was Bainborough; he was some 7 seconds adrift of Booth. As the pace increased on the drying roads Mountford continued to hunt down Booth, the lead being 0.7s on lap 4 and then it was just a few metres on lap 5; with Bainborough now 12 seconds behind them. Mountford seemed content to hold station behind Booth as the race pace increased on laps 6 and 7. Behind them Jones had moved up to 4th; however a mistake was to cost him that position on the final lap. Booth still led as they passed us on the final lap; but Mountford made the expected move, with the aid of a better run past some backmarkers and a new lap record at 98.844mph he was able to secure the victory by 0.405s. Stu Bainborough finished 21 seconds further behind. This race had provided some good racing through the field and set the tone for the ‘A’ race that was to follow. 600cc B race 1. Russ Mountford 95.713 2. Dennis Booth 95.683 3. Stu Bainborough 94.134 The A race had notable non-starters in Guy Martin (no machine); William Dunlop, Mark Parrett (unwell) and Carl Rennie. Another potential race winner was out after the warm up lap; Roy Richardson being forced to tour back to the paddock. Right from the change of the lights this race was provided a great spectacle for the spectators gathered around the circuit. The cavalry charge into Cross Four Ways was led by Ian Lougher on the Blackhorse Yamaha, right on his rear wheel were Ryan Farquhar on the Harker Kawasaki; Adrian McFarland, Hardship Yamaha; Conor Cummins, McAdoo Kawasaki and Michael Dunlop, Yamaha. Leading the chasing pack in 6th was Chris Palmer. On lap 2 a blanket would have covered the first three; with Farquhar better on the brakes and having the inside line to take a short-lived lead as Lougher was back in front as they crossed the line to begin lap 3. On lap 3 Lougher held the inside line and retained his marginal lead from Farquhar and Cummins as they accelerated away towards Church Bends. Just a few metres behind them came the dice for 4th between McFarland and Michael Dunlop; Chris Palmer was now 2 seconds adrift of them in 6th. Lap 4 again saw Lougher just able to retain the lead from Farquhar and Cummins. They were increasing their pace and beginning to open a gap on the battle for 4th, in which McFarland just edged out Dunlop on the brakes. Behind them John Burrows had moved ahead of Palmer into 6th. Lougher continued to lead on lap 6, with Farquhar glued to his rear wheel; Cummins was now 0.7s behind them in a safe 3rd. Dunlop now held a 1s advantage over McFarland; with Burrows holding 6th from Palmer and the Triumph of Tim Poole. The only change on lap 6 saw Palmer move into 6th. On lap 7 Lougher was just able to block Farquhar’s attempt to pass on the brakes into the tight right hand bend at Cross Four Ways. 6th place changed hand again; this time Poole was best on the brakes; with the battle for this position having been joined by the hard charging Stephen Oates. On the final lap Lougher had opened a gap of about 5 metres as they accelerated away, Cummins held a comfortable 3rd; these three were lapping over 2 mph faster than the rest of the field. Dunlop was 2s ahead of McFarland; with Tim Poole holding 6th. Farquhar was unable to make a pass on Lougher whose bike had the better acceleration and was said by Ian to have worked perfectly. Ian took victory by just 0.268s after a truly wonderful race. 600cc A Race 1. Ian Lougher 103.468 2. Ryan Farquhar 103.445 3. Conor Cummins 103.128 4. Michael Dunlop 101.975 5. Adrian McFarland 101.768 6. Tim Poole 100.829 Next up was the Sidecar Consolation race; with a place in the Championship race at stake for the first three. The nine starters finished the race; so much for unreliable sidecars. Thee early leaders were Dean Lindley / Mark Sayers from Michael Lines / Mike Aylott; with Ruth Laidlow / Dave Mahon in 3rd. Nick Crowe and John Holden were allowed to have a couple of practice laps at the rear of the field. As the race progressed the slow starting Matt Sayle / Jamie Scarffe and David Lillee / Lee Watson made their way through the field. Sayle took the lead from Lines on the brakes as they approached Cross Four Ways on the last lap. Lines hit machine problems that eventually dropped him to 5th and allowed Lillee to gain second place and Lindley third. Sidecar Consolation Race 1. Matt Sayle / Jamie Scarffe 86.725 2. David Lille / Lee Watson 86.458 3. Dean Lindley / Mark Sayers 86.201 After the lunch break the weather conspired against the organisers again. Just as the 250cc machines were about to leave the paddock the rain began to fall again making the roads wet and conditions miserable for riders, marshals and spectators. The fist race of the afternoon was the Harlequin Oils 250cc Race for which the race distance was reduced to 6 laps in view of the weather. First to pass our vantage point at Church Bends was local man Chris Palmer, on the Mannin Collections Honda of Alan and Mike Kelly. He had an advantage of 50 metres over Ian Lougher on Matt Jackson’s Honda and William Dunlop on the Flynn Honda. The next three to emerge from the gloom were Michael Dunlop, John Burrows and Davy Morgan. On lap 2 it was William Dunlop who held a slender lead from Lougher with Palmer now 50 metres behind him. It was as you were behind the leading trio. On lap 3 William Dunlop and Lougher were still together with Palmer now 5 seconds behind them. On lap 4 Lougher had taken the lead by just a couple of machine’s lengths as they splashed their way through the S bend. Could Lougher use his experience to good effect and secure another win? Lap 5 suggested that he could as he held a 5 seconds advantage as he accelerated away towards Great Meadow. Behind them Palmer was safe in third but William Dunlop was coming under pressure from John Burrows. However it was not to be for Ian, an electrical problem slowed his machine and it was William Dunlop who held a narrow lead as they passed us for the final time. Palmer remained in third and Michael Dunlop had managed to keep Burrows at bay in the treacherous conditions. Harlequin Oil Tanks 250cc Race 1. William Dunlop 90.894 2. Ian Lougher 90.580 3. Chris Palmer 89.047 4. Michael Dunlop 87.921 5. John Burrows 87.750 6. Davy Morgan 87.316 The next race was the Eurocars Classic Race, which was divided into three classes; up to 350cc; 351-500cc and 501-850cc. With only two entries the larger class may have been run for the last time. Despite the three class format it is the overall win that matters most. On lap one it was per-race favourite Alan Oversby (Norton) who had opened a gap of 3 seconds over Alan Brew (Seeley G50) and Dave Madsen-Mygdal (Trident). In7th place and leading Class 1 was Adrian McFarland (Honda). Oversby had stretched his lead to 6 seconds over Madsen-Mygdal on lap 2; with Brew a further 3 seconds behind. Alec Whitwell; Adrian McFarland and John Barton completed the top six. On lap 4 Brew moved ahead of Madsen-Mygdal and they both began to close the gap on Oversby who had eased his pace when his lead reached over 10 seconds. Behind them Barton was up to 4th. On lap 5 Brew was in the lead with Madsen-Mygdal and Oversby right behind. Being overtaken provided a wake up call for Oversby who promptly upped his pace and retook the lead. On the final lap of the race Oversby led by 2 seconds from Brew and Madsen-Mygdal who were delayed by a backmarker as they went through Church Bends. The extra speed of the Trident allowed Madsen-Mygdal to edge past Brew on the fast sweep through Great Meadow. He took the Class 3 honours; with Adrian McFarland taking them in Class 1. Eurocars Classic Race 1. Alan Oversby 78.594 2. Dave Madsen-Mygdal 78.404 3. Alan Brew 78.399 4. John Barton 76.638 5. Adrian McFarland 75.957 6. Alec Whitwell 75.879 Next on the agenda was the Steam Packet Company 125cc / 400cc Race in which the classes started I minute apart. The 125cc race looked set to be straight fight between Ian Lougher and Chris Palmer; whilst the 400cc Class had four previous winners; plus Alan Oversby and Mick Goodings as potential winners. Conditions were as bad as for last year’s race when they set off for the six lap race. The 125cc race followed the script with Palmer and Lougher already 8 seconds ahead of the field when they raced through Church Bends at an amazing rate of knots in the rain and general gloom. Sam Dunlop held third; but 125cc TT runner-up Daniel Sayle, in his first solo race in the wet, made a cautious start to be in 6th. In the 400cc class Mick Goodings was a good 30 metres clear of the cavalry charge behind him as he passed between the white walls of Malew churchyard. Behind him came a gaggle of riders led by New Zealander Paul Dobbs. Lap 2 and the order was the same in the 125cc class but Daniel Sayle was into his rhythm and closing on the riders ahead. In the 400cc race Mick Goodings continued to lead from Dobbs with Alastair Bayley third; Alan Oversby and Tim Poole were 3 seconds further back. Lap 3 saw just one change in the 125cc race; that was Daniel Sayle taking 5th. In the 400cc race the gaps were growing bigger at the front; Goodings led by 3 seconds from Dobbs, with Bayley now over 1 second down in 3rd. Oversby, Poole and Madsen-Mygdal completed the top six. Lap 4 saw just one change amongst the race leaders; Oversby dropped back to 6th in the 400cc race. On lap 5 it was Lougher in front by 50 metres from Palmer and it appeared to be game over. There was no change in the 400cc order but Poole had closed to within 0.25s of Bayley. Lougher was 5 seconds ahead on the final lap with just 1 mile to go, Palmer having settled for a safe second. Sayle was now up to third and 5 seconds clear of Sam Dunlop. Goodings continued to lead the 400cc race; but his advantage was 0.2s as he and Dobbs passed the church for the final time. Goodings had matters under control and duly took a well deserved win by 0.36s. Bayley was a couple of bike’s lengths in front of Poole at Church; but the positions were reversed at the finish. Here again we had two excellent races despite the awful conditions and lack of numbers in the 125cc race. The Solo Championship was the next event on the programme and it promised to be an excellent race. The ‘smart money’ was on a Lougher victory after his commanding performance in similarly awful conditions last year; a victory that would see him achieve his 32nd win at Billown to overtake the late, great Joey Dunlop as the most successful rider ever around the 4.25 mile circuit; this on his 45th birthday. As the rain continued to fall the lights changed and the riders blasted off in a plume of spray. The first machine into our view was that of Ian Lougher who had opened a gap of 1.9 seconds over Guy Martin and Ryan Farquhar who were together as they negotiated the S bend. Conor Cummins, Michael Dunlop and Gary Carswell completed the top six. It was not to be Guy Martin’s day because he was obliged to park the Hydrex Honda at Cross Four Ways on lap 2 due to having a flat front tyre. Martin’s demise promoted Cummins to 3rd; ahead of Michael Dunlop, Mark Buckley and Tim Poole. On lap 3 Lougher led by 6 seconds; Farquhar in turn had 4.9 seconds in hand over Cummins. Dunlop, Buckley and Poole again completed the top six. Lougher’s lead was up to 8.8s on lap 4, with Farquhar keeping his advantage over Cummins steady at around 5 seconds. We had a new 6th place man in the shape of John Burrows. Just as Lougher passed us on lap 5 the red flags came out. It transpired that Victor Gilmore had clipped the rear of Gary Carswell’s machine on the approach to the right hand bend at Ballakeighan. Victor lost control of his machine which cart wheeled into a wall; disintegrating as it did so. Victor was taken to hospital by helicopter with a broken ankle and possible pelvis fracture. We hope that it is not too long before Victor is back in the paddocks. Gary retained control of his machine and was able to bring it to a halt. The clearing of the debris from this crash resulted in a lengthy delay in proceedings and the cancelling of the scheduled Solo Consolation Race for those who did not qualify for the Championship. This meant that the Sidecar Championship would end proceedings. The best field assembled for many years offered the promise of a great race. However it was not to be; for as Nick Crowe / Mark Cox passed us the red flags again appeared. The outfit of Nigel Connole and passenger Dipash Chauhan had flipped over at Maggie’s Cottage on the exit from the so Billown Dip. John Holden / Andy Winkle took avoiding action and in doing so hit the wall; the impact breaking John’s wrist. Greg Lambert / Sally Wilson also crashed due to taking avoiding action; Sally escaped with bruises but Greg was not so fortunate, he received chest injuries, which thankfully are not life threatening. We hope the John and Greg make speedy recoveries from their injuries. The amount of debris and the impending end of the road closure time left no alternative other than to abandon the race. This meeting was beset with the worst weather in living memory; but still produced some memorable racing. Hopefully a road closure provision allowing for Friday racing may be possible in future years in order that both competitors and visiting spectators can have value for their not inconsiderable outlay. The organisers coped admirably in the face of the catalogue of difficulties thrown at them. We owe our thanks to them for their efforts throughout the year in organising three excellent meetings on the circuit. Hopefully the weather will be kinder in 2009.
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