British 4X National Championships 2013

Sunday 14th July was the date. The Edge Activity Centre near Bridgnorth was the venue. The 4X National Championships 2013 was the event. The sun was shining all weekend, the crowds were huge and the racing - as it has been throughout 2013 - was absolutely fantastic.

The 4X National track has always been a fast flowing affair, with huge berms built into the hillside, but recent renovations have seen the addition of two new straights to make the track longer and more technical. This track has always been a favourite with riders, but with the new jumps, huge first berm and revised lower section, it really was going to sort out the National Champions from the rest!

The day started with qualification runs for the senior women and men. The riders are seeded from National rankings and then set off in reverse order. First up were the women. Elizabeth Fowler, Renee Diwell, Jess Greaves, Heather Kay and Cara Murray were all within 1 second of each other with just one rider left to go, could Katy Curd set the fastest time...

She didn’t just set the fastest time in the women's, she set a time that would have qualified her in the top 25 men!

Next up it was the men. Will Evans set the fastest time early, then Isaac Mundy was into the hot seat. Nathan Parsons was the first rider to go sub 40 seconds with a 39.76. Next up was Tom Dowie. He was the first rider to jump the first double jump on the first straight. He had a great run and just got ahead of Natedogg with a 39.71. The final rider was Scott ‘Boom Boom’ Beaumont. He jumped the first double, looked fast and absolutely nailed it. Across the finish stripe and everyone wanted to hear the time...38.03! Clearly Katy Curd and Scott Beaumont were in the mood for retaining their National Champion titles!

After senior qualifying, all other categories qualified through to the quarter finals using motos – 3 races for all riders and the points you accumulate determines if you move onto the quarter finals. The racing was superb to watch. Loads of passes, a great atmosphere in the crowd and anticipation for the knockout stages to begin.

In the senior men’s there were some upsets early. Isaac Mundy, tipped by some as a contender for the win, went out in the quarter finals. 2011 National Champion Luke Limbrick also went out in the quarter finals along with Duncan Ferris and Jordan Lunn.

Semi-finals time and the pressure was on. In the women's semis, Katy got the snap and won semi round 1 from Jess Greaves. In the second semi, the racing was really close, but at the finish line, it was Cara Murray and Heather Kay who moved onto the ‘A’ final.

In the men’s semis, Scott Beaumont made a perfect gate and took the win in semi round 1, ahead of his team mate Dave Richardson, who had a bit more of an eventful round, initially in 4th before moving up to 3rd and then avoiding Alex Metcalfe who crashed right in front of him in the fourth turn. In the second semi-final, Tom Dowie got the gate and led from start to finish. The battle was on for 2nd between Nathan Parsons, Will Evans and Rich Lane, with Nate holding his nerve for 2nd place.

So on to the finals. In the fun class, Harry Fernihough continued his amazing year by taking the win in front of Travis Diwell Wilson and Alex Bosley. In a pretty stacked Big Fun class, Adam Thomas took the win ahead of Kriss Brown and Rob Escott.

Juveniles were up next, with Brandon Fermor monstering the course from start to finish, to claim his first National Champion jersey. Without a doubt, Brandon will be a rider to watch in the future! Charles Currie finished 2nd and Finlay Keogh in 3rd.

The Youth category probably provided the biggest shock of the day. In 2013 Ryan Hutchinson has gone unbeaten in the British 4X Series. Over the course of the weekend he was unbeaten again, but 4X can be a cruel beast! In the final, defending champion Dylan Grell Delsol made the best gate of his 2013 season and led the race from start to finish. Hutchinson battled hard but couldn't find a way past, having to settle for 2nd, with Scott Dominguez rounding out the podium in 3rd.

Female Youth was won by Megan Wherry ahead of Joanna Kistle and Mabel Mundy. It was great to see the Female Youth class getting the future Katy Curd’s ready for the world stage!

As the Junior Men final gate dropped, it was tight into turn 1. Josh Brembridge was leading ahead of Luke Cryer. Luke then dived inside on turn 2 to take the lead. It was a brilliant pass that was enough to take the win. Josh finished 2nd and Arthur Cotterell finished 3rd.

Master Men were next up. These guys are racing so fast now it is impressive to watch! Neil Harbour had looked good all day and come the finals, he made a brilliant gate and led the race into turn 1, with Chris Smith in 2nd, pushing hard. Chris has been a revelation in 2013, after putting to one side his dirtjump/freeride speciality and giving 4X a go at round 1 of the series in Afan in April. Now on SPD pedals, he was chasing Neil and it all came down to the last turn! Despite a tough tussle, Neil held on and took the win to make him one of the few riders that has won National Championships in 4X and BMX. Chris Smith took 2nd and Chris Cumming took 3rd.

In the Vets final, it was going to be really hard to pick a winner. Si Paton, the British Downhill Series organiser had his own plan though! The gate dropped and he got the holeshot. Cheered on by his personal fan club, ‘Buzz’ and ‘Hensley’, he held his nerve and took the win ahead of Billie Stupple and Phil Gray.

Now it was down to the main events. First up, Senior Women. In the small final, Renee Diwell took the win to claim 5th overall for the day.

In the main Senior Women final, Katy Curd took gate 1, Heather Kay gate 2, Cara Murray in 3 and Jess Greaves in 4. The gate dropped and predictably Katy led down the first straight and into turn 1. Cara managed to get across on Heather and moved into 2nd to try and chase Curd. It wasn’t to be though. Katy, like she has been all year, was on fire as she pulled a good lead to claim the Senior Women's National Championship. She rode a flawless lap and thoroughly deserved the win. Cara finished 2nd with Heather in 3rd.

On to the Men’s small final, and it was Dan Bateson who took the win to place him in 5th overall for the day.

So this was it, the Senior Men’s final. Beaumont took gate 1, Dowie on 2, Parsons on 3 and without a doubt, the crowds favourite, Dave Richardson was in 4. The gate dropped and Beaumont rocketed out of the gate. At the first jump he had already pulled out a lead. After jumping the double and step up on the first straight he was on a mission, with Dowie in to turn 1 in second place, ahead of Nate and Richardson. Down the second straight, Richardson lined up a pass on Nate coming in to turn 3 but lost traction and slid out. The crowd were all cheering and a bow from Richardson was well appreciated by the crowd!

Across the finish line, Beaumont had ridden a perfect lap that in his own words ‘was better than my qualifying lap’. Dowie finished 2nd and Parsons in 3rd.

The racing all weekend was fantastic and it was a pleasure to be sat on the hillside with all the spectators cheering on friends who were racing and having fun on their bikes. Thanks to everyone involved with making this event the tremendous success that it was!



Full results can be found here: www.british4x.com/news/national-championships-results-2013/

The next round of the Schwalbe British 4X Series is in Leamington, Warwickshire on Sunday 1st September. These races certainly put the fun back into racing, so why not have a go?

For full details check the website british4x.com
For daily updates follow twitter.com/british4x
To discuss the series, like facebook.com/british4x
Photo Credits: Charles Robertson.