Post by Lawt on Jun 8, 2006 21:41:54 GMT
ARENA-ESSEX 44 WOLVES 46, ELITE LEAGUE B,
WEDNESDAY 7TH JUNE
ARENA-ESSEX Hammers:
Mikael Max 3 1' 3 2 2 11+1
R/R 1 2 2 2' 7+1
Steve Johnston 0 2 2 0 4
Leigh Lanham 2 X 2 3 1' 8+1
Joonas Kylmakorpi ef 3 3 1' 7+1
Mariusz Puszakowski 1' 0 0 0 1+1
Paul Hurry 1 2 1 2 1' 2 1 10+1
WOLVES:
Chris Louis (G) 2 3 2 3 3 13
Magnus Karlsson 0 1 0 1
Ronnie Correy 1 1' 0 3 5+1
Fredrik Lindgren 3 2 1 2 0 8
Billy Hamill 2' 3 1 0 6+1
Daniel Giffard (G) 0 M 0 0
Christian Hefenbrock 3 3 3 1' 2' 1' 13+3
During the day and on the drive down to Arena I was concerned about the absence of PK and Ben Wilson and even more concerned about the named replacements – Chris Louis and Daniel Giffard respectively. We were desperate for our away luck to change after three consecutive away meeting last heat deciders had been lost and these changes seemed to erode our chances. But as things turned out it was PK’s guest replacement, Chris Louis, who sealed the first away win for Wolves at the end of an excellent five rides. Thanks Chris!
The track was prepared about as slick as it could be and the contest would therefore hinge on the relative gating abilities of the two teams. With this realisation we began to think that perhaps Chris Louis was not such a bad choice!
Wolves lost the toss and therefore didn’t choose gates 2 and 4.
Heat 1: Max, Louis, Hurry (R/R), M Karlsson - 4-2
Mikael gated and was chased hard by Louis on the tight line. Magnus missed the start and did not challenge Hurry.
Heat 2: Hefenbrock, Hurry, Puszakowski, Giffard - 3-3 7-5
Lightning start from Christian who then cleared off and won easily. Daniel pushed Puszakowski quite hard but was not able to find the grip for a passing move.
Heat 3: Lindgren, Lanham, Correy, Johnston - 2-4 9-9
Freddie rode a fast, wide first two turns to pass the faster gating Lanham and gained a clear lead. Ronnie battled for a lap or so with Johnston before passing him and then set off after Lanham.
Heat 4: Hefenbrock, Hamill, Hurry, Kylmakorpi - 1-5 10-14
Another electric start from Christian who was then ‘protected’ by Billy Hamill as he effectively blocked all of Hurry’s moves. Hurry failed to pass but he had a good crack at it, and the 1-5 was ours. Kylmakorpi got fed up at the back and pulled up (allegedly). I imagine he was wondering why his boss had scraped all the shale that he enjoys so much off the track.
Heat 5: Louis, Johnston, Karlsson, Lanham (fell ex) - 2-4 12-18
A clear win for Chris Louis who trapped and then held the inside line all the way. At the back Magnus struggled to hold off Lanham who tried to dive under him on the last bend and they both slid off. Magnus may have gone down fractionally before Lanham but my feeling was that he fell without there being any contact. Both riders remounted and Lanham rode across the finishing line but was then excluded by the referee despite the race not being officially stopped. Nice piece of luck – could come in handy later!!
Heat 6: Hamill, Hurry (res), Max, Giffard (exc 2 mins) - 3-3 15-21
Daniel’s bike failed and he was excluded under the 2 minute rule. He did not make it in time for the restart so we left his berth empty and used just one Wolves rider. I think this is a risky tactic because if one of the opposition has an engine problem or falls we have thrown away points. Second attempt - From the tapes. Billy took the lead and blocked Mikael Max’s move which slowed him and allowed Hurry to take up the challenge – unsuccessfully!
Heat 7: Kylmakorpi, Lindgren, Correy, Puszakowski - 3-3 18-24
Kylmo gated and led for half a lap until Freddie made a superb pass round the outside of the last bend of lap 1. Unfortunately Kylmo thought it was so good he repeated it on Freddie next time round and held on to win.
Heat 8: Hefenbrock, Lanham, Hurry, Karlsson - 3-3 21-27
Yet another good start for Christian who then rode every line to thwart Lanham’s chances. Magnus was pushing for second place but was squeezed into the home straight fence by Hurry which forced him to the back. How good is Christian on only his second visit to the track?
Heat 9: Lanham, Johnston, Hamill, Giffard - 5-1 26-28
Billy led for half a lap but was nowhere near fast enough and both Arena riders passed him on either side down the back straight with Johnston giving him a clout as he came in from the wide line.
Heat 10: Max, Hurry, Lindgren, Correy - 5-1 31-29
The Arena pair had by now worked out that gating was crucial and made good ones to lead Freddie all the way. He chased hard but could not find the gap or the drive.
Heat 11: Kylmakorpi, Louis, Hefenbrock, Puszakowski - 3-3 34-32
Star ride from Kylmo who shadowed Louis for three and a half laps and then calmly rode round him on the last bend to win.
Heat 12: Correy, Hefenbrock, Hurry, Johnston - 1-5 35-37
Ronnie was jet propelled from the start and led the entire race by about 40 yards. Christian set off after him and was hit by Hurry but bounced off and continued to secure an excellent 1-5 for Wolves to put us back in the lead.
Heat 13: Louis, Max, Kylmakorpi, Hamill - 3-3 38-40
Chris made the start and led to win. Billy Hamill on a very sluggish machine held up Max and Kylmakorpi long enough to let Louis get clear but was then passed by Mikael and then edged out on the line by Kylmakorpi who could not slow down soon enough and clipped Mikael’s rear wheel, looped off his bike and fell. He got straight up and the announcer said all was fine but a few minutes later they revealed he had broken his collar bone.
Heat 14: Lanham, Lindgren, Hefenbrock, Puszakowski - 3-3 41-43
Arena gate for a 5-1 but Freddie passes both of them on the inside line of the second bend. A lap later Lanham repays the compliment in the same fashion and on the same bend but then Christian lines up Puszakowski at the end of lap 3 and goes under him to take a vital third place.
Heat 15: Louis, Max, Lanham, Lindgren - 3-3 44-46
Chris Louis made an excellent start and clung to the white line which was enough for our first away win of 2006. Freddie rode on the previously successful wide line but could not find the grip – but it mattered not!
We have been waiting for this win for some time and have really deserved it on occasions (especially Poole) so it was a sweet victory lap as the riders came round on the truck. Considering we were well under strength without Ben/William and Peter, and that we had two riders who only scored a point between them it was an amazing result. I think we are the only team to win at Arena so far and some teams have been there with full strength squads. Well done Wolves.
Comment/Summary:
Weather: Gloriously warm as the sun slowly sank behind us.
Track: Slick as a …………. (fill in the space yourself) which actually seemed to play into our hands. Arena picked up their game a bit after there was a protracted watering fest.
Attendance: Very sparse crowd. Possibly a vole.
Wolves Performance: I can’t say anything but good, but several of the team still were not 100% in tune. If everyone had been present and on song we would have annihilated them.
Entertainment: Despite the lack of shale there was a fair bit of passing and we found the meeting very entertaining.
Referee: Daniel Holt: Perhaps he could see the Magnus/Lanham incident from a better angle than us but it was a strange decision.
Man of the Match: Christian Hefenbrock was simply sensational. To learn and adapt to a track like this so quickly shows immense skill and intelligence. A superb night’s racing.
Rider Ratings: (now on a scale of ten with 6 being the average expectation)
Chris Louis: 8 Excellent guest. PK would have been hard pushed to improve on his performance.
Ronnie Correy: 6 Pulled his rating up well with his last, very quick and determined ride.
Magnus Karlsson: 4 His one point was insufficient reward for his efforts but still well below expectations.
Fredrik Lindgren: 7 Good performance but never quite got fully dialled in to the track.
Billy Hamill: 7 Great track craft but crap machinery/setup seemed to let him down. Almost everyone had quicker bikes.
Daniel Giffard: 2 Didn’t feature in the meeting.
Christian Hefenbrock: 10 Fantastic night for him and the clear match winner for Wolves. He showed that he can gate and can ride all of the lines and is aware of threats from behind. Brilliant!
Let’s hope that this first away win will break the duck and lead to a few others in the next month or so. We have had a lot of recent meetings where we have not been a full team but we have still battled hard and shown resilience. I am looking forward to contesting some meetings with seven of our own riders. Track size and shape does not seem to hinder us too much as we have proved at Poole, Eastbourne and now Arena so let’s really start to kick ass now.
Beginning with Eastbourne next Monday!! Don’t miss it.
Lawt
Proud to be a Wolf
WEDNESDAY 7TH JUNE
ARENA-ESSEX Hammers:
Mikael Max 3 1' 3 2 2 11+1
R/R 1 2 2 2' 7+1
Steve Johnston 0 2 2 0 4
Leigh Lanham 2 X 2 3 1' 8+1
Joonas Kylmakorpi ef 3 3 1' 7+1
Mariusz Puszakowski 1' 0 0 0 1+1
Paul Hurry 1 2 1 2 1' 2 1 10+1
WOLVES:
Chris Louis (G) 2 3 2 3 3 13
Magnus Karlsson 0 1 0 1
Ronnie Correy 1 1' 0 3 5+1
Fredrik Lindgren 3 2 1 2 0 8
Billy Hamill 2' 3 1 0 6+1
Daniel Giffard (G) 0 M 0 0
Christian Hefenbrock 3 3 3 1' 2' 1' 13+3
During the day and on the drive down to Arena I was concerned about the absence of PK and Ben Wilson and even more concerned about the named replacements – Chris Louis and Daniel Giffard respectively. We were desperate for our away luck to change after three consecutive away meeting last heat deciders had been lost and these changes seemed to erode our chances. But as things turned out it was PK’s guest replacement, Chris Louis, who sealed the first away win for Wolves at the end of an excellent five rides. Thanks Chris!
The track was prepared about as slick as it could be and the contest would therefore hinge on the relative gating abilities of the two teams. With this realisation we began to think that perhaps Chris Louis was not such a bad choice!
Wolves lost the toss and therefore didn’t choose gates 2 and 4.
Heat 1: Max, Louis, Hurry (R/R), M Karlsson - 4-2
Mikael gated and was chased hard by Louis on the tight line. Magnus missed the start and did not challenge Hurry.
Heat 2: Hefenbrock, Hurry, Puszakowski, Giffard - 3-3 7-5
Lightning start from Christian who then cleared off and won easily. Daniel pushed Puszakowski quite hard but was not able to find the grip for a passing move.
Heat 3: Lindgren, Lanham, Correy, Johnston - 2-4 9-9
Freddie rode a fast, wide first two turns to pass the faster gating Lanham and gained a clear lead. Ronnie battled for a lap or so with Johnston before passing him and then set off after Lanham.
Heat 4: Hefenbrock, Hamill, Hurry, Kylmakorpi - 1-5 10-14
Another electric start from Christian who was then ‘protected’ by Billy Hamill as he effectively blocked all of Hurry’s moves. Hurry failed to pass but he had a good crack at it, and the 1-5 was ours. Kylmakorpi got fed up at the back and pulled up (allegedly). I imagine he was wondering why his boss had scraped all the shale that he enjoys so much off the track.
Heat 5: Louis, Johnston, Karlsson, Lanham (fell ex) - 2-4 12-18
A clear win for Chris Louis who trapped and then held the inside line all the way. At the back Magnus struggled to hold off Lanham who tried to dive under him on the last bend and they both slid off. Magnus may have gone down fractionally before Lanham but my feeling was that he fell without there being any contact. Both riders remounted and Lanham rode across the finishing line but was then excluded by the referee despite the race not being officially stopped. Nice piece of luck – could come in handy later!!
Heat 6: Hamill, Hurry (res), Max, Giffard (exc 2 mins) - 3-3 15-21
Daniel’s bike failed and he was excluded under the 2 minute rule. He did not make it in time for the restart so we left his berth empty and used just one Wolves rider. I think this is a risky tactic because if one of the opposition has an engine problem or falls we have thrown away points. Second attempt - From the tapes. Billy took the lead and blocked Mikael Max’s move which slowed him and allowed Hurry to take up the challenge – unsuccessfully!
Heat 7: Kylmakorpi, Lindgren, Correy, Puszakowski - 3-3 18-24
Kylmo gated and led for half a lap until Freddie made a superb pass round the outside of the last bend of lap 1. Unfortunately Kylmo thought it was so good he repeated it on Freddie next time round and held on to win.
Heat 8: Hefenbrock, Lanham, Hurry, Karlsson - 3-3 21-27
Yet another good start for Christian who then rode every line to thwart Lanham’s chances. Magnus was pushing for second place but was squeezed into the home straight fence by Hurry which forced him to the back. How good is Christian on only his second visit to the track?
Heat 9: Lanham, Johnston, Hamill, Giffard - 5-1 26-28
Billy led for half a lap but was nowhere near fast enough and both Arena riders passed him on either side down the back straight with Johnston giving him a clout as he came in from the wide line.
Heat 10: Max, Hurry, Lindgren, Correy - 5-1 31-29
The Arena pair had by now worked out that gating was crucial and made good ones to lead Freddie all the way. He chased hard but could not find the gap or the drive.
Heat 11: Kylmakorpi, Louis, Hefenbrock, Puszakowski - 3-3 34-32
Star ride from Kylmo who shadowed Louis for three and a half laps and then calmly rode round him on the last bend to win.
Heat 12: Correy, Hefenbrock, Hurry, Johnston - 1-5 35-37
Ronnie was jet propelled from the start and led the entire race by about 40 yards. Christian set off after him and was hit by Hurry but bounced off and continued to secure an excellent 1-5 for Wolves to put us back in the lead.
Heat 13: Louis, Max, Kylmakorpi, Hamill - 3-3 38-40
Chris made the start and led to win. Billy Hamill on a very sluggish machine held up Max and Kylmakorpi long enough to let Louis get clear but was then passed by Mikael and then edged out on the line by Kylmakorpi who could not slow down soon enough and clipped Mikael’s rear wheel, looped off his bike and fell. He got straight up and the announcer said all was fine but a few minutes later they revealed he had broken his collar bone.
Heat 14: Lanham, Lindgren, Hefenbrock, Puszakowski - 3-3 41-43
Arena gate for a 5-1 but Freddie passes both of them on the inside line of the second bend. A lap later Lanham repays the compliment in the same fashion and on the same bend but then Christian lines up Puszakowski at the end of lap 3 and goes under him to take a vital third place.
Heat 15: Louis, Max, Lanham, Lindgren - 3-3 44-46
Chris Louis made an excellent start and clung to the white line which was enough for our first away win of 2006. Freddie rode on the previously successful wide line but could not find the grip – but it mattered not!
We have been waiting for this win for some time and have really deserved it on occasions (especially Poole) so it was a sweet victory lap as the riders came round on the truck. Considering we were well under strength without Ben/William and Peter, and that we had two riders who only scored a point between them it was an amazing result. I think we are the only team to win at Arena so far and some teams have been there with full strength squads. Well done Wolves.
Comment/Summary:
Weather: Gloriously warm as the sun slowly sank behind us.
Track: Slick as a …………. (fill in the space yourself) which actually seemed to play into our hands. Arena picked up their game a bit after there was a protracted watering fest.
Attendance: Very sparse crowd. Possibly a vole.
Wolves Performance: I can’t say anything but good, but several of the team still were not 100% in tune. If everyone had been present and on song we would have annihilated them.
Entertainment: Despite the lack of shale there was a fair bit of passing and we found the meeting very entertaining.
Referee: Daniel Holt: Perhaps he could see the Magnus/Lanham incident from a better angle than us but it was a strange decision.
Man of the Match: Christian Hefenbrock was simply sensational. To learn and adapt to a track like this so quickly shows immense skill and intelligence. A superb night’s racing.
Rider Ratings: (now on a scale of ten with 6 being the average expectation)
Chris Louis: 8 Excellent guest. PK would have been hard pushed to improve on his performance.
Ronnie Correy: 6 Pulled his rating up well with his last, very quick and determined ride.
Magnus Karlsson: 4 His one point was insufficient reward for his efforts but still well below expectations.
Fredrik Lindgren: 7 Good performance but never quite got fully dialled in to the track.
Billy Hamill: 7 Great track craft but crap machinery/setup seemed to let him down. Almost everyone had quicker bikes.
Daniel Giffard: 2 Didn’t feature in the meeting.
Christian Hefenbrock: 10 Fantastic night for him and the clear match winner for Wolves. He showed that he can gate and can ride all of the lines and is aware of threats from behind. Brilliant!
Let’s hope that this first away win will break the duck and lead to a few others in the next month or so. We have had a lot of recent meetings where we have not been a full team but we have still battled hard and shown resilience. I am looking forward to contesting some meetings with seven of our own riders. Track size and shape does not seem to hinder us too much as we have proved at Poole, Eastbourne and now Arena so let’s really start to kick ass now.
Beginning with Eastbourne next Monday!! Don’t miss it.
Lawt
Proud to be a Wolf
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