Cock O´ the North

Cock O’the North Road Races – Saturday

Overcast conditions were the order of the day for practice and qualifying at Oliver’s Mount for the first day’s action of the 2011 Cock O’the North Road Races.

The opening race of the two day programme was the first leg of the 600cc Supersport class.
Ryan Farquhar got the hole-shot and led into and out of Mere Corner on the first of the eight laps, holding the lead at the end of lap one from Ian Lougher and Michael Pearson, but the red flag was shown putting an end to the action, due to oil on the course on the approach to Farm Bends.

After the delay, it was decided to run race two, the first of five races for the sidecars at the meeting.
At the end of the opening lap of six it was Conrad Harrison and Lee Patterson 3.7 seconds ahead of Tony Thirkell and Nigel Barlow with DAVE Wallis and Steve Wareham third.
A lap later the leaders remained in the same positions, while Greg Lambert and Aaron Galligan moved into fourth.
At half distance Harrison’s advantage was up to 8 seconds with Wallis still third, chasing Thirkell.
The winning margin was some 10.4 seconds for Harrison and Patterson.

The next race was first leg of the Open class for machines 175cc to 1300cc.
Once again it was Farquhar who got the hole-shot into and out of Mere Hairpin.
The end of the first lap it was Farquhar from Pearson and Adrian Archibald, the gap being 3/10ths of a second and 1.4 seconds.
Next time round Pearson had closed the distance to 0.08 of a second, with Archibald now 3 seconds down in third.
A lap later the gap had widened to 0.244 of a second with the first three in situ. Ian Lougher moved into fourth ahead of Steve Mercer.
The half distance lap saw a change in the lead with Pearson in front of Farquhar by 0.313 of a second.
Lap five and six saw positions remain the same. Lap seven and the gap had increased to 1.433 seconds between Pearson and Farquhar and at the flag it was Michael Pearson from Ryan Farquhar and Adrian Archibald, the winners lead was a massive 8.536 seconds.
Next up was the combined 400c and 125cc machines for their first race of the meeting. Dan Frear opened a 4 second gap on the opening lap from James Cowton in the 400cc class, with Chris Palmer ahead of Paul Owen enjoying a six second lead as Ian Lougher pulled in at the end of the first lap with machine problems.
By half distance the leaders, Frear and Palmer were heading their races by 23 seconds and 20 seconds, with Palmer now third on the road.
At the chequered flag Daniel Frear took the 400cc win from James Cowton and Chris Palmer collected the 125cc victory from Paul Owen.
Race five saw the sidecars back in action with Harrison having a start to finish winning ride. Second and third throughout were Dave Wallis and Greg Lambert.

The combined 250’s and 650 SuperTwins were next. Chris Palmer took the hole-shot and continued to lead at the end of the opening lap of eight. Dan Frear took the lead from the off, but retired at the end of the lap with machine problems, handing the lead to Ryan Farquhar.
Palmer’s lead had increased to nearly six seconds on lap two, as Farquhar had nearly three seconds over Ivan Lintin.
At half distance the quarter-litre class saw Palmer still leading with a 10.4 second advantage from Derek Clark with Jamie Coward in third. Ryan Farquhar headed the 650’s from Ivan Lintin and Adrian Archibald.
Ryan Farquhar was second on the road by the end of the fifth lap.
Chris Palmer retired at Farms Bends towards the end of lap six, with a machine problem, as Farquhar now led on the roads. Derek Clark now led the 250’s.
At the chequered flag it was Farquhar who took the 650 victory and Derek Clark taking the 250 honours.

Next Up was race one, the 600cc and it was Ryan Farquhar who got the hole-shot from Michael Pearson and Ian Lougher.
However it was Lougher leading at the end of the first lap of eight from Archibald and Pearson. Farquhar reported as ‘cruising’ and retired back to the paddock with machine problems.
Lap two and the gap was now 5.5 seconds Lougher from Pearson with Archie now third.
Lap three it was Lougher, Pearson and Dean Harrison now third as Archibald retired with machine trouble.
Half distance and Lougher’s advantage was up to 8.5 seconds, with places remaining static.
Ian Lougher retired on the sixth lap handing the lead to Michael Pearson with Dean Harrison now second and Robert Wilson third.
No change to the leader board on lap seven, with Pearson 3.9 seconds in front. A lead he took to the chequered flag ahead of Harrison and Wilson.

The third leg of the Sidecars was the penultimate race of the day, which brought Harrison and Patterson their third win of the day.

The final race of the day was the Open Race Non Qualifiers event over eight laps won by Lee Vernon from Paul Gartland and Adam Child.

Cock O’the North Road Races – Sunday

Once again it was overcast skies as competitors commenced their second day of practice for the 2011 Cock O’the North Road Races at Oliver’s Mount, Scarborough.
Racing got underway promptly on time at 1.00pm with the second leg of the Open class over eight laps. Michael Pearson won the first leg but it was Ryan Farquhar who got the hole-shot ahead of Pearson.

At the end of the opening lap of eight it was Pearson from Farquhar by 0.366 of a second, the Steve Mercer, Keith Pringle, Adrian Archibald and Dean Harrison. Lap two and the gap had closed by 3/100ths of a second with the top six remaining in position.
The leading gap had closed even further on lap three down to 0.273 of a second with no changes. At half distance the distance had increased to 0.337, similar to lap two.
Ryan was back in front at the end of lap five by 0.420 of a second from Michael, as Dean Harrison also got past Adrian Archibald into fifth place. Pearson was back in front at Drury’s lap six and retained the lead as he and Farquhar started their seventh lap – difference 0.339 of a second. Dean Harrison was up to fourth. Lap seven and Pearson held on to the lead by 0.382 of a second from Farquhar and they started their final lap, the end of which saw the BMW of Michael Pearson take the victory by 0.215 of a second from Ryan Farquhar with Steve Mercer finishing third.

Next up was the fourth leg of the F2 Sidecars, and Conrad Harrison with Lee Patterson in the chair took their fourth victory of the meeting with Dave Wallis/Steve Wareham second and Tony Thirkell/Nigel Barlow third at the end of six laps. Then followed the combined second leg of the 400cc and 125cc races, again over eight laps, with Daniel Frear taking a start to finish victory in the 400cc class, as Chris Palmer did so in the popular single cylinder two-stroke race.

Next up was the second leg of the 600cc race, with Ryan Farquhar a non-starter for the eight lap race. Michael Pearson got the hole-shot ahead of Ian Lougher, as the sun came out at last. Pearson completed the first lap 0.777 of a second in front of Lougher, with Rob Wilson, Dean Harrison and Mark Lister all in front of Adrian Archibald in sixth place.Lap two and the gap was 0.472 of a second to Pearson advantage, but Lougher was chasing hard. Lap three and the gap was down to 0.170 of a second, with positions remaining the same. Lougher was in front at Drury’s on the half distance lap and had a lead of 1.766 seconds and the end of the fourth lap into the fifth circuit. Lougher’s lead was up to 5.78 seconds at the end of the fifth lap, with Pearson a similar distance ahead of third place man Robert Wilson. Three-quarters distance and the leaders advantage was nearly eight seconds. At the flag it was Ian Lougher some 8.8 seconds ahead of Michael Pearson with Robert Wilson third.

Race 14 was the final race for the ‘chairs’, the fifth of the meeting, which for the fifth time was a start to finish victory for Conrad Harrison and Lee Patterson.

Then came the feature race of the meeting, the ten lap Cock O’the North Race. So close were the pack into the Mere Hairpin it was impossible to tell who had the hole-shot, however at the end of the opening lap it was Ryan Farquhar by a third of a second from Michael Pearson with Steve Mercer in third place. Lap two and Ryan was still ahead by the same distance, but the red flags were out, stopping the race.

Keith Pringle the rider involved up on his feet OK, but machine blocking circuit – hence the red flag. Keith walked back to the paddock.

Michael Pearson was once again in pole position as the pack set off for an eight lap race.
Ryan took the hole-shot this time with Michael very close behind, but it Pearson at Drury’s lap one ahead who still held the advantage at the end of the lap, by 0.184 of a second from Farquhar and Steve Mercer. Lap two and the lead has increased to 0.252 of a second with Pearson still in charge and Mercer third half a second adrift of Farquhar.
Mercer dropped further back on the third lap 1.5 seconds down on leader Pearson, with the gap closing slightly at 0.225 of a second. Half distance and it was down to 0.200 of a second. Lap five and the lead had increased to 0.323 of a second As Pearson put up the fastest lap to date. Mercer was still third 5 seconds down. Lap six and the gap had again opened at 0.408 of a second with positions still the same as Lougher, Harrison and Archibald completed the top six. Lap seven, and the pace quickened and closed the difference to 0.321 of a second. At the chequered flag it was Ryan Farquhar having taken the lead on the approach to Jefferies Jumps by 0.902 of a second from Michael Pearson and Steve Mercer, then Dean Harrison Ian Lougher and Adrian Archibald.

The penultimate race of the meeting was the combined 250cc and 650cc SuperTwins with victory in the quarter-litre class going to Lee Vernon from Chris Palmer and Jamie Coward, whilst Ryan Farquhar took his 81st race win at Oliver’s Mount on his KMR Kawasaki SuperTwin with Ivan Lintin second and Adrian Archibald third.

The final race of the Cock O’the Meeting 2011 was the Non Qualifiers race for the Open class, won by Paul Owen, followed by Paul Gartland and Kevin Strowger.

So ended an exciting Cock O’the North Road Race for 2011. All eyes now turn to the Steve Henshaw International Gold Cup Races on 17th & 18th September at Oliver’s Mount.

Cock O’the North Road Races – Sunday

Once again it was overcast skies as competitors commenced their second day of practice for the 2011 Cock O’the North Road Races at Oliver’s Mount, Scarborough.
Racing got underway promptly on time at 1.00pm with the second leg of the Open class over eight laps. Michael Pearson won the first leg but it was Ryan Farquhar who got the hole-shot ahead of Pearson. At the end of the opening lap of eight it was Pearson from Farquhar by 0.366 of a second, the Steve Mercer, Keith Pringle, Adrian Archibald and Dean Harrison. Lap two and the gap had closed by 3/100ths of a second with the top six remaining in position. The leading gap had closed even further on lap three down to 0.273 of a second with no changes. At half distance the distance had increased to 0.337, similar to lap two. Ryan was back in front at the end of lap five by 0.420 of a second from Michael, as Dean Harrison also got past Adrian Archibald into fifth place. Pearson was back in front at Drury’s lap six and retained the lead as he and Farquhar started their seventh lap – difference 0.339 of a second. Dean Harrison was up to fourth. Lap seven and Pearson held on to the lead by 0.382 of a second from Farquhar and they started their final lap, the end of which saw the BMW of Michael Pearson take the victory by 0.215 of a second from Ryan Farquhar with Steve Mercer finishing third.

Next up was the fourth leg of the F2 Sidecars, and Conrad Harrison with Lee Patterson in the chair took their fourth victory of the meeting with Dave Wallis/Steve Wareham second and Tony Thirkell/Nigel Barlow third at the end of six laps. Then followed the combined second leg of the 400cc and 125cc races, again over eight laps, with Daniel Frear taking a start to finish victory in the 400cc class, as Chris Palmer did so in the popular single cylinder two-stroke race.

Next up was the second leg of the 600cc race, with Ryan Farquhar a non-starter for the eight lap race. Michael Pearson got the hole-shot ahead of Ian Lougher, as the sun came out at last. Pearson completed the first lap 0.777 of a second in front of Lougher, with Rob Wilson, Dean Harrison and Mark Lister all in front of Adrian Archibald in sixth place.
Lap two and the gap was 0.472 of a second to Pearson advantage, but Lougher was chasing hard. Lap three and the gap was down to 0.170 of a second, with positions remaining the same. Lougher was in front at Drury’s on the half distance lap and had a lead of 1.766 seconds and the end of the fourth lap into the fifth circuit. Lougher’s lead was up to 5.78 seconds at the end of the fifth lap, with Pearson a similar distance ahead of third place man Robert Wilson. Three-quarters distance and the leaders advantage was nearly eight seconds. At the flag it was Ian Lougher some 8.8 seconds ahead of Michael Pearson with Robert Wilson third.

Race 14 was the final race for the ‘chairs’, the fifth of the meeting, which for the fifth time was a start to finish victory for Conrad Harrison and Lee Patterson.

Then came the feature race of the meeting, the ten lap Cock O’the North Race. So close were the pack into the Mere Hairpin it was impossible to tell who had the hole-shot, however at the end of the opening lap it was Ryan Farquhar by a third of a second from Michael Pearson with Steve Mercer in third place. Lap two and Ryan was still ahead by the same distance, but the red flags were out, stopping the race. Keith Pringle the rider involved up on his feet OK, but machine blocking circuit – hence the red flag. Keith walked back to the paddock. Michael Pearson was once again in pole position as the pack set off for an eight lap race. Ryan took the hole-shot this time with Michael very close behind, but it Pearson at Drury’s lap one ahead who still held the advantage at the end of the lap, by 0.184 of a second from Farquhar and Steve Mercer. Lap two and the lead has increased to 0.252 of a second with Pearson still in charge and Mercer third half a second adrift of Farquhar. Mercer dropped further back on the third lap 1.5 seconds down on leader Pearson, with the gap closing slightly at 0.225 of a second. Half distance and it was down to 0.200 of a second. Lap five and the lead had increased to 0.323 of a second As Pearson put up the fastest lap to date. Mercer was still third 5 seconds down. Lap six and the gap had again opened at 0.408 of a second with positions still the same as Lougher, Harrison and Archibald completed the top six. Lap seven, and the pace quickened and closed the difference to 0.321 of a second. At the chequered flag it was Ryan Farquhar having taken the lead on the approach to Jefferies Jumps by 0.902 of a second from Michael Pearson and Steve Mercer, then Dean Harrison Ian Lougher and Adrian Archibald.

The penultimate race of the meeting was the combined 250cc and 650cc SuperTwins with victory in the quarter-litre class going to Lee Vernon from Chris Palmer and Jamie Coward, whilst Ryan Farquhar took his 81st race win at Oliver’s Mount on his KMR Kawasaki SuperTwin with Ivan Lintin second and Adrian Archibald third.

The final race of the Cock O’the Meeting 2011 was the Non Qualifiers race for the Open class, won by Paul Owen, followed by Paul Gartland and Kevin Strowger.

So ended an exciting Cock O’the North Road Race for 2011. All eyes now turn to the Steve Henshaw International Gold Cup Races on 17th & 18th September at Oliver’s Mount.