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Rounds
17 & 18: Brands Hatch Indy 3rd/4th September
2005
Updated results here.
A sizzling Brands Hatch saw
some star performances from the Feisty girls this
weekend in the final round of the Bemsee Championships.
All were on top form and some notable results
were achieved.
Once again the weekend showed the talents of
Deb Cartwright who finally got onto the podium
with a second place in the Clubman 400-650 shootout.
Despite actually finishing a close third on the
road, Deb was promoted following a penalty to
the second place finisher for a jump start. Whilst
the result alone was fantastic, the race itself
was also quite an epic, with Deb fighting her
way through from fifth to be denied the win outright
by just under 300ths of a second. Her first non-rookie
trophy came with the additional bonus of the fastest
lap of the race - a fantastic 52.692 – and
to round the day off completely she was awarded
Rider of the Day for her stunning performance.
Sunday started well for Deb with a fifth place
just under 6 seconds behind the race winner but
in her last race of the day her chain parted company
with the bike forcing a rare retirement. Deb was
upbeat however, as this was a small disappointment
in an otherwise outstanding weekend. Deb wishes
to put on record her thanks to Tim Jones, the
ex 250 GP racer who has helped her with her race
craft through the season and we all wish her well
over the winter months whilst working in Israel.
Susie Grayson, despite forgoing her trademark
pink hairstyle to join the “blue rinse brigade”,
was equally impressive in a busy weekend, consistently
running in the low 54’s, and ultimately
securing third overall in the Minitwin Rookie
Championship. Susie’s last race of the weekend
on Sunday, the Minitwin Final, saw her best time,
a 54.056 on lap 4 when she was battling with a
small group of riders, eventually finishing 14th
ahead of many non-rookie competitors in this mixed
experience class. Susie’s season was nicely
rounded off by earning Rookie of the Day on Sunday;
the second time she has won a cup.
Helen “Tazzie” Rushton set herself
goals for the weekend - the main one being to
get down to a 57 sec lap. This she achieved in
her final race of the day when she clocked 57.814
with a brilliant ride following an earlier race
long battle with Paulo White. Tazzie could so
easily have come to grief whilst taking her normal
late apex line into Clearways only to find Paulo
attempting to go under her. Paint was duly swapped,
another first for Tazzie, but both carried on
with the Feisty rookie pulling away and eventually
getting the better of Paulo by 4.5 seconds at
the chequered flag.
It was good to see Leila Williams on form and
enjoying her racing. Her lap times gradually came
down throughout the weekend from a best 55.41
on Saturday to a best ever around Brands of 54.239
on Sunday morning. Indeed in her fastest lap race
Leila finished 14th only 5 secs behind one-time
runaway Championship leader Tom Gazzard who had
crashed badly on Saturday morning.
Zoe Docherty is still finding it difficult to
come to terms with an early season crash on this
circuit and in addition was forced to spend all
of Friday night putting the engine and gearbox
from her road bike into her race bike. Needless
to say, tiredness took its toll and Zoe completed
8 laps before the chequered flag in her first
race and retired from her second race very unhappy
with the bike. In her third race of the day, a
postponed round from Lydden, she was more on the
pace finishing 18th. On Sunday Zoe tried an RVF
400 belonging to Loz Smith, but could not get
on with the considerable differences in the machinery.
Sarah Quinn’s weekend got off to a faltering
start when she failed to make the grid for her
first race after feeling ill and going back to
bed. Determined to get some racing in at the final
round, she made the later starts but unfortunately
had three DNF’s completing only one race,
the postponed Lydden round. However, her spirit
never weakens and she is looking forward to next
year, which may see her on a very different machine
if winter testing goes to plan.
Honorary “Feisty” Owen Coomber posted
regular 57 second laps riding Zoe’s original
bike on loan in the Supersport 400’s. Does
this indicate a new (male) division of the Team
for next season?
With the season now over, talk is already turning
to next year. Some will be using the winter break
to re-assess what they want from their racing
and some will be deciding on changes of class
and promotion from rookie status. Whatever the
new season brings, all can feel proud of their
progress this year from those first wobbly rounds
at Snetterton in the snow, when all we wanted
was to keep warm and dry.
All who have been part of the biggest team in
the Bemsee paddock should rightly congratulate
themselves and each other on their achievements
and the camaraderie enjoyed throughout the season.
Feisty Racing has a veritable army of supporters
and helpers, far too many to list (you know who
you are!), plus the team’s valued sponsors,
without all of whom this first year would not
have been the outstanding success it has proven
to be. And Feisty is sure to go from strength
to strength next year, as a number of potential
recruits came along to Brands to get a flavour
of club racing and see the benefits of being part
of an organisation such as Feisty Racing.
Look out 2006, the Feisty’s will be back
bigger and better!
Deb Cartwright |
Helen “Tazzie”
Rushton |
Report and Pictures by Wildcard Photography.
Please credit any picture use to Wildcard Photography.
We would also be grateful to receive a copy of
any publication relating to this press release.
Rounds
15 & 16: Snetterton 13th/14th August 2005
The weekend was a total mix
of weathers from very warm sun on Saturday morning
to torrential rain in the afternoon followed by
a cool and showery day on Sunday. Tyre choice,
if available, was even worse as at times half
the circuit was wet whilst the other half was
in sunshine.
There were many spills and tumbles, including
some of the Feisty’s, but thankfully no
one was seriously injured. Despite the rain and
the fact that all claimed to be not good in the
wet, most riders improved their lap times as the
weekend went on.
One welcome returnee was Lottie Pleasants, who,
after a break of several rounds, saw her lap times
tumble by 13 seconds over the course of the weekend.
Having not even ridden her road bike for some
time, she was running in the 1.38’s during
Friday’s dry practice sessions, but managed
to get down to a 1.25.2 on Saturday afternoon
on a damp track. Sunday’s first race was
even better with a fastest lap of 1.24.5 which
showed she was beginning to feel at home on the
new bike.
Very much at home on her old bike was Deb Cartwright
who continues to impress with good results in
the Supersport 400 championship and with a highest
ever finish in the Clubman Shootout when she came
4th, equaling her highest result of the year from
Pembrey, and only 11 seconds behind race winner
Danny Couzens on an SV 650. Earlier in the weekend
Deb was disappointed not to have been faster than
the 1.19.5 in her first race but with conditions
deteriorating any hope of record lap times disappeared
along with the sun.
Poor conditions often see the smoother riders
moving up the field despite lower overall lap
times. One such example is Helen “Tazzie”
Rushton, competing in the Rookie 400 series with
a newly rebuilt engine that she only got back
on Friday, thereby missing out on valuable Friday
practice time. Helen once again showed her consistency
which culminated in her best finish so far on
Sunday morning when she came 15th, gaining another
championship point. Helen was over the moon and
claimed that her smooth riding style was to thank
for the result and she could not wait for the
next wet race. That race was her last of the day
in which she finished a fantastic12th scoring
a further 4 points, a brilliant haul for the meeting
and setting her up nicely for an exciting final
weekend at Brands Hatch.
Susie Grayson defied the weather on both days
and went out and rode her own race. Saturday was
not good as she was feeling a little under the
weather but despite that she qualified comfortably
for the Minitwin final and having started 31st
on the grid she finished 14th. But her best was
yet to come as in her last race on Saturday, the
re-run of the cancelled race from Pembrey, she
achieved a fantastic 8th overall and was first
rookie home, earning her a belated Rookie of the
Day award from Pembrey and consolidating her second
place in the Rookie Minitwin Championship. Race
One on Sunday resulted in a 10th place followed
by a superb 8th in the Clubman 400-650 Shootout.
However she was not so lucky in her final race
of the weekend when she was taken out on the first
lap in a crash involving five riders in very wet
conditions.
Leila Williams continues to show all the early
season promise by steadily moving up the grid
and getting her best result the season in the
re-run Lydden Hill round of the Rookie 600 series
when she finished 8th with her fastest lap being
only 5 seconds slower than race winner John Angel
in appalling conditions. Leila was again benefiting
from the smooth style of her riding so much so
that the wet conditions worked to her advantage.
Despite a liking for Snetterton with its long
straights, Sarah Quinn had a weekend of tussles
with fellow Rookie 400 competitor Sean Clarke
but never quite got the better of him and unfortunately
came to grief in the wet in her last race when
her front wheel washed out at Russells on lap
2. Nevertheless she continues to improve and feels
much happier than early season, especially following
good races at Cadwell and in France.
After a short lay off performing marshalling
duties Zoe Docherty was keen to get back racing
and her weekend consisted mainly of battles with
her teammates Helen Rushton and Sarah Quinn. Her
dry condition times were similar to Helen’s
but the rain slowed her down as she became more
wary of the slippery track. Even so, Zoe was pleased
to match her lap times from the previous Snetterton
meeting this year and now feels able to build
on that with the benefit of more track time.
Overall, a good weekend for the Feisty Team spoiled
only by a few spills but thankfully only damage
to bikes, helmets and leathers all of which will
mend easily and the whole team is now looking
forward to the final round at Brands Hatch in
September.
Zoe Docherty (#21), Sean Clarke (#35) and Sarah
Quinn (#98)
Leila Williams
Report and pictures by
Wildcard Photography.
Rounds
13 & 14: Brands Hatch GP 16th/17th July 2005
Updated results here.
What an awesome track the Brands
Hatch GP circuit is! The fast, flowing track saw
the Feisty girls having to learn from scratch
all but a couple of corners, having raced at Brands
Indy earlier in the year. The MCN Track Guide
was well thumbed with such a long circuit to get
to grips with. The immense heat of the weekend
was eased with Susie's very popular huge, blow-up
paddling pool (pictured below with Alan Russell).
Susie had a cracking weekend
a races; though struggling a little getting into
the flow in the morning qualifiers, she found
her form for the afternoon races yet again achieving
her best results so far - two 9th places in the
qualifiers and 13th and 15th in the finals, placing
her 2nd overall in the rookie championship. Susie
took a dive in the Clubman Shootout race on day
one with a too-brave overtaking manouevre coming
a cropper on some bumps off-line. David was rebuilding
the bike til the early hours of Sunday; thankfully
a sidecar team had a mig welder to repair the
subframe.
Deb found frustration after
achieving her best time around Brands GP - a fantastic
1min41 on the RC35 400cc machine. Having fought
well on the Saturday, bike problems pulled her
down the results on Sunday morning and gave her
a large field to fight past in the last SS400
race. The Clubman Shootout saw better results
with good fights happening for two 8th places.
Leila is improving her racing
skills immensely and the weekend was full of grins
and shouts of "I got him", combined
with the thoroughly exhausted racer returning
back look, showing how she's turned into a fully
fledged racer and earned the removal of her rookie
bib.
Tazzie stuggled with engine
and bike problems all weekend; she had to go out
the night before practice day to pick up another
bike. Her results reflect her battle, but she
was over the moon to deduct 5 seconds from her
previous best lap time around Brands GP.
Sarah enjoyed the weekend as
always, though trepidation does set in when she
emerges from the tent to race. She again improved
smoothness and lap times.
The girls would like to extend
special thanks to the following helpers:
Trix, as always helping out at all meetings this
year. She's a great bonus to the team and parties
like there's no tomorrow too.
David Pettit, more usually spannering for Sean
Baker who is competing in the British Superstock
championship, joined to help Susie with her bike.
He ended up with a rebuild on his hands after
Susie took a spill at Sheene Curve, and he was
never spotted over the weekend without either
a spanner or a rag in hand. He also sported a
permanent grin; top chap who's be joining us at
the last couple of meetings.
Tammy, gathered into the team from the recent
CMC Ladies Day, showed herself to be a quick learner
with oodles of energy and the patience to do the
washing up and teas too. Combined with a wicked
sense of humour and party attitude, she's joining
the team as another great asset.
The combination of David and Tammy's bossing and
molly coddling skills meant Susie was hardly allowed
in the tent and had her head firmly focussed on
racing rather than bike fettling.
Paul, Leila's boyfriend, was a godsend to her
in a similar manner to David, with Leila free
to relax and prepare for the next race.
Lee Cross and team plus Mike were often popping
in to lend advice and a hand too, as they often
do.
The team has certainly learnt how invaluable good
helpers are; a huge thanks to all of you.
Susie & Leila's bikes |
Susie sets out |
Leila returns very tired! |
Quinny |
Mike (Feisty helper) and Leila |
Quinny learns the track |
Leila & Susie buddy up |
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David - the spannerman from heaven! |
Tammy brightens up the tent... between washing
& tea duties! |
Paul - Leila's spannerman & boyfriend |
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Rounds
11& 12: Pembrey, France 25th/26th June 2005
Once again the Feisty Racing
girls were out in force at the Bemsee meeting
at Pembrey this weekend. Led as usual by Susie
Grayson and Deb Cartwright, the team showed they
can hold their own in all classes and are making
steady progress, especially Deb Cartwright who
will surely soon be back on the podium after her
excellent 2003 season where she finished 3rd overall
in the Rookie 400 championship.
In her first race of the weekend Deb scored a
12th place but the highlight of the day was in
the second of her Supersport 400 races when after
a great start she was knocked back to 17th but
then set about fighting her way back and finished
a creditable 8th recording a superb fastest lap
of 1min 04.697. She also entered the 400-650 Clubman
Shootout in which she finished 7th after a race
long battle with Danny Couzens who she beat by
under four hundredths of a second. Sunday’s
two Supersport 400 races saw Deb finish 10th and
11th following some impressive battles on track,
but it was the final 400-650 Clubman race that
brought her best result of the weekend with a
fantastic 4th place, narrowly missing 3rd by less
than two tenths of a second.
Rookie Minitwin rider, Susie Grayson’s
weekend began with a 10th place in her heat, which
she equalled in the 400-650 Shootout, but with
a greatly improved fastest lap of 1min 05.729,
nearly 3 seconds faster than her first race. Saturday’s
Minitwin final saw Susie finish in a creditable
13th overall, with another 10th in Sunday’s
Minitwin heat. Sunday’s final was not run
due to lack of time. These results are all the
more impressive when we remember that the Minitwins
are one of the few classes where rookies are mixed
in with the more experienced racers. Susie’s
excellent performances at Pembrey have elevated
her into third placed rookie in the Minitwin championship.
Leila Williams continues to improve in the Rookie
600 series recording a 1min 07.907 lap on Sunday
and felt that this weekend was her best to date
with her gaining in confidence with every race
and beginning to “mix it” with other
riders.
Helen Rushton had a tough but rewarding weekend
having to compete with her fellow riders for every
inch of track but a 17th and 18th place on Saturday
was well deserved and hard fought for. Sunday
saw a 17th place again but a reduction of 2 seconds
on lap times was very gratifying, as was her 16th
place in her last race of the day. Helen admits
to still “feeling very much like a Rookie”
but is showing the steady and considered improvement
necessary to learn from her first year’s
racing.
Following her first tentative outing at Snetterton,
Sarah Quinn is making faster progress around the
circuits, looking smoother at every meeting and
learning with every race.
After a sound start to the season Zoe Docherty
continues to struggle to come to terms with a
big “off” at Brands. This talented
rider can count on the support of her team to
help her regain her early season form and get
back into the upper half of the Rookie 400 series
where she deserves to be.
Overall a good weekend for the Feisty Team with
all riders showing improvements and with two rounds
at Brands and one at Snetterton to go, the Feisty
trophy cabinet’s first pot of the year is
surely imminent.
Deb Cartwright |
Susie Grayson |
Report by and photos by Wildcard
Photography.
Rounds
9 & 10: Croix en Ternois, France 11th/12th
June 2005
If ever there was a weekend
of mixed emotions then this was it. The delight
of actually arriving at a balmy French circuit
and cracking open a beer after long trips and
nightmare Channel crossings was immense. The circuit
itself is as tight and twisty as you get, with
most of the team taking a whole morning to get
to grips with it; some of those corners I'm sure
are faster if you get off and push the thing round!
Ideally suited to the smaller bikes though so
all but Leila and Lottie (on R6s) got to grips
with it and loved it.
The event was marred by the
tragic loss of Nigel Purdon, a much liked Minitwin
racer.
3 team bikes |
Lottie ponders |
Susie crashes... again |
Sunday night meal |
Moosey shows us the braking
points of Croix circuit
or... Feisty create a boy/girl band
The next round is Pembrey in
2 weeks time, which all of the girls are looking
forward to.
Rounds
7 & 8: Cadwell Park 29th/30th May 2005
This was another hectic weekend
on the Feisty calendar with the full team excluding
Cath (who races in MRO) and Kath (who will now
be racing next year due to injury) giving sterling
performances. Cadwell Park is a favourite for
all of the girls, with over 2 miles of picturesque
windy, hilly track including the (in)famous Mountain,
a favourite photographer's haunt for the awesome
airbourne pictures.
Tazzie starred at Cadwell, gaining
her first championship points in the Rookie 400
class, making us all proud. Another proud moment
was when Quinny overtook her first rival in wet
conditions; the excitement made her fall off,
though the raining/hailing conditions may possibly
have had something to do with it...
Cadwell was the first wet race
the majority of the Feisty girls had been in;
although it snowed at the Bemsee
race school back in March. It was in fact
warm and sunny for the majority of the meeting;
with the rain starting on Monday (the 2nd race
day) during the Rookie 400 race one, where Tazzie,
Zoe, Quinny and Susie were competing. Results
of that race were 8th (Susie), 14th (Tazzie) and
17th (Zoe), with Quinny unfortunately meeting
the gravel trap on lap 4 just after her first
ever overtake in a race! Susie was on borrowed
400s on the Sunday - special thanks to Boffin
and Aaron for lending out their bikes.
Leila
Photo by Jon from AttunedBody.co.uk |
Tazzie proud of her points |
Moosey (Debs)
Photo by Jon from AttunedBody.co.uk |
Susie (No 52)
Photo by Jon from AttunedBody.co.uk |
Rounds
5 & 6: Brands Hatch 30 Apr/1st May 2005 -
Feisty Open Days
Four road racing girls in one
shot...how often does that happen? There may be
an all-girl championship in Europe this year but
this particular photo was taken at Brands Hatch
at the weekend in BMCRC’s Nationwide Clubman
Shootout, where well-matched 400 fours spar with
650 twins.
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The ladies are:
No 33 = Deb Cartwright (Feisty Racing) on
a 400
No 55 = Loz Smith (Red Pill Racing) on a 400
No 52 = Susie Grayson (Feisty Racing) on an
SV650
No 73 = Sarah Jordan (Steve Jordan Motorcycles)
on an SV650
Photo by Pete Wilding. |
Feisty Racing were down to a
relatively small 6-strong team of female racers
for their open weekend comprising Deb, Susie,
Tazzie, Leila, Zoe and Lottie; still the largest
team in the paddock. The team marquee was often
filled with visitors as the girls showed friends,
family and fans around.
Zoe and Lottie both had high speed spills during
practise which involved major repairs to Zoe’s
bike and no small amount of sore bits! Zoe did
very well to get on her bike to race Saturday
but was in too much pain to battle and resigned
herself to sitting on the sidelines on Sunday.
Deb and Susie had tussles in the clubman races,
finding themselves well matched and enjoying the
in-team competition immensely. Susie is now 3rd
rookie in the minitwins with 9 championship points.
Thanks to AdrenalinX for hosting the team photos,
the TV interview and supplying great coffee and
hospitality as always. As usual a huge thank you
to all the Feisty team helpers – we couldn’t
do it without you.
The team should be back to full strength at Cadwell
Park at the end of May; please come along and
lend your support.
Feisty Racing will be on Sky
Sports very soon, details to be announced, courtesy
of Kenny Kay Productions.
The girls have been battling with high morals
to bring you paddock hunks shots... It was such
hard work.
Rounds
3 & 4: Lydden Hill 2nd & 3rd April 2005
Congratulations to Kath for
pulling herself from running in the plus 20 positions
in the Rookie 400 for her first 3 or 4 races to
be in 12th in her last race when a tragic incident
(reported elsewhere) happened. She's got such
a lot of potential and I feel really proud of
her. She deserves a huge pat on the back.
Leila also performed marvellously, holding off
3 other Rookie 600 competitors in her last race
and looking very smooth all weekend.
Deb had a well earned 10th place in the Supersport
400, and 9th in the Clubmans, though as ever was
demanding more of herself and looking ahead. It's
well worth noting how much the team appreciate
Deb's team spirit and tutoring abilities. She
never fails to offer advice and encouragement
giving lots of her time to do so. All the girls
appreciate her a great deal. Cath MacDonald was
also helpful in the mentoring department.
I (Susie) had a cracking weekend, being 1st and
2nd rookie home in the morning races and 3rd in
the qualifiers' race. Overall I'm still mid field
to 3rd of the way down so a way to go. The Clubman
race was great - having the opportunity to dice
with Deb shows how important team competition
is. I came in 15th in that race.
Zoe unfortunately struggled with bike problems
and track experience but will fight back at Brands.
Tazzie was struggling bad vibes from a difficult
test day and did well to keep ahead of a good
few. Quinny was out to enjoy herself as ever and
managed to be smooth and pick up speed over the
weekend.
And what would we do without Trix to mother us
all?
Lydden Testing 25th March
2005
My first thought when I emerged
bleary eyed from the caravan and saw the track
was "blimey, it's a go-kart track"!
Into the second session though, I stopped scaring
myself silly at the hairpin and started loving
it. Lydden's a great little circuit which people
either seem to love or hate. Leila, Quinny, Kath,
Tazzie and I all made it to the testing day one
week prior to the race weekend. Quinny unfortunately
took a fall late in the day but emerged grinning
and lighting up a fag as ever! Kath experienced
racing bodywork rubbing - a faster rider stole
her line and pushed her over, then a rider behind
smacked into her. She stayed on but lost a bleed
nipple on her calliper and dented her lovely new
can, so emergency repairs were needed.
Lydden is such a small cosy
circuit that all the racers are in eachothers'
pockets - it makes an already very friendly Bemsee
crowd even closer. We had lots of tool and equipment
sharing along with hints, tips and friendly rivalry
and banter. When it gets a bit warmer the barbeques
will be crowded. Roll on the summer!
Susie
Leila, Tazzie, Kath |
Kath and bike |
Leila and
bike |
Kath on track |
Susie approaches Devil's Elbow |
Susie and bike |
Rounds
1 & 2: Snetterton 12th & 13th March 2005
Was it going to snow, blow a gale, pour with
rain in Snetterton's own micro-climate? In fact
it was positively balmy with the sun staying out
almost all weekend even though the temperature
made tyre warmers virtually unnecessary.
The Feisty Racing team had a great first race
meeting with all but one race completed and the
team feeling upbeat and looking to improve their
results at the next meeting. Deb showed us the
way with excellent results in the Supersport 400
- putting a hard 2004 season behind her and looking
forward to being back where she belongs - fighting
near the front.
Zoe, Tazzie and Kath battled it out in the Rookie
400s with Kath gaining confidence as track her
experience progressed, also making our hearts
flutter with her wheelie starts! Tazzie was determined
to keep ahead of her though, and also had Zoe
well within in her sights on the second day. Zoe
performed very well, being the lead female rookie
in their races but beating herself up about not
being in front - next time eh?! Sarah gained experience
and found out how much difference suspension makes
to lap times.
Leila and Lottie bravely took on the Kamikaze
class that comprises the Rookie 600 races. This
is one of the most competitive classes as many
racers have their sights on the British Supersports.
The team had a few mechanical issues to overcome
- club racing involves a lot of late nights running
up to the races as well as at the meeting itself.
We had only one minor incident: Susie was knocked
off track in the Saturday Minitwins qualifiers'
race, but managed to keep the bike upright losing
one brake lever and gaining some yellow paint.
She qualifed for both day's afternoon races, picking
up a splattering of rookie points along the way.
The full results will be posted soon - as well
as short reports from all of the girls within
their individual pages.
Feisty will be having
a "launch" day at the Brands Hatch meeting
30th April/1st May where all friends, relatives,
sponsors, supporters, fans, site visitors, press,
etc will be welcome to come along and cheer us
on. We'll even provide refreshments and you'll
be able to buy Feisty merchandise to show your
support.
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The
marquees housed us, though no swinging of
cats possible. The Beeston and Travelbag
vans served a second purpose to hold it
all down in the wind. |
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All bikes will be in
black and pink team colours for the racing
at Brands Hatch end of April, thanks to
Tel.
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More pictures on Wildcard
Photography.
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