Championship podium for Greaves at season finale

Rat Racing gravity bike rider Justin Greaves completed his debut British Gravity Bike Championship season last weekend with a fourth place finish at the Worlaby Downhill Challenge. The result was enough to secure him third place overall in the championship.

After an initial practice run a torrential downpour made the course treacherous in places. Greaves was the first of the leading gravity bike crews to tackle the hill competitively and he had built up good speed ahead of the first tricky corner on the course. Entering the corner the bike went over an area that hadn't dried up and immediately skidded to the outside of the bend. Greaves just about regained control but he then hit a muddy section on the verge and was thrown from his bike, resulting in a severe bang to his head.

Undeterred, Greaves continued in the event and managed to set some quick times as the course dried out in the afternoon. His best run of the day resulted in him being classified fourth. As ever, the competition was very close, with the top four crews separated by just over two seconds.

"I'm pretty pleased to finish third in my first full season," said Greaves. "I've had three podium positions, including second at the previous event, so it's been a good year. It's a very competitive championship, on some events the top places were decided by hundredths of seconds. Hopefully I'll be able to compete again next season."

Pics from the Worlaby Downhill Challenge

Another gravity bike podium for Greaves

Worlaby-based British Gravity Bike championship racer Justin Greaves continued his good start to his debut season with third overall at the recent Coleby Downhill Challenge in Lincolnshire.

A newly resurfaced road made conditions very testing for the riders with loose gravel increasing the risk of sliding off the course. Greaves had a good Saturday practice session and was setting some very quick times to set him up for the actual race on Sunday.

Torrential rain on Saturday evening meant that the course was very damp for the opening runs on Sunday but, as several other riders crashed, Greaves had a successful start to the day, setting second fastest time on one run and lying in third overall. 

Sadly the rain starting falling heavily again and, although he was able to complete his runs, Greaves was unable to improve his times as the course became progressively more slippery.

"I'm pretty pleased with another third place," said Greaves. "It's a bit disappointing that the rain meant that I was unable to improve my time, especially as I finished just 0.16 seconds off second place." 

"It was a good course, the bikes were touching 50mph going over the finish where the road was bumpy, it made for an exciting ride."

Round 3 of the championship takes place next weekend at Penn House in Buckingham before the Greaves' home event in Worlaby on 10th July.

Video from Coleby Downhill Challenge

Pics from the Coleby Downhill Challenge

All image courtesy Songasport

Pics from Gurston Down

Greaves overcomes injury to take podium finish

Gravity bike rider Justin Greaves, from Worlaby, overcame a serious leg injury to finish in third place at the opening round of the British Gravity Bike championship last weekend.

The event was held at Gurston Down near Salisbury, a venue usually used for motorsport. Greaves had a difficult lead up to the race when he heavily crashed his bike while testing some upgrades. The crash caused major damage to Greaves' leg and it was doubtful he'd be able to compete at Gurston. However, both bike and rider were sufficiently repaired to make the journey down south.

Perfect weather conditions greeted the championship crews and that meant the times down the hill were very quick. Greaves and fellow rider Les Lownes battled all day over third place and the position was only decided on the very last run of the event with Greaves taking the podium place by just over a second.

"It was a great race," said Greaves. "The bike was extremely fast and I'm very happy with third place, it's got the championship off to a fine start."

"I didn't push too hard as I was still feeling the effects of the testing crash and the bike needs some upgrades on the brakes. I think there is more pace to come and hopefully I can build on the Gurston podium through the season."

The next race takes place in Coleby near Lincoln on 11/12 June.

Worlaby rider planning gravity bike championship challenge

 

Worlaby gravity bike racer Justin Greaves is planning to contest the full British Gravity Bike championship this year after finishing fourth in last year's Worlaby downhill challenge race.

 

The fast and exciting world of the British Gravity Bike championship will see competitors from all over the UK take part in four very popular events spread between Lincolnshire, Wiltshire and Buckinghamshire. The riders start at the top of a steep hill and, other than an initial push off, they rely on gravity to build up speed. The top riders will be doing speeds in excess of 40mph as they cross the finishing line, comparable to riders on the Tour de France!

 

"I've always been interested in bike competition and I raced BMX when I was younger", said Greaves. "I'd marshalled on the Worlaby event before and decided I'd compete last year so I sourced a bike frame and built it up into a race machine."

 

"I didn't really know what to expect with most of the other riders being a lot younger than me but the event went really well and I was hundredths of a second off getting a podium position. For my first ever gravity bike race I was pretty pleased with that although a podium place would've been even better."

 

"I'm presently working on the bike ready for the championship. There's a test day in late March and then the events run from April to July. I know from the Worlaby event that they're very popular with the locals so, with two rounds in Lincolnshire, hopefully I'll get plenty of support."

 

The Lincolnshire rounds are on 11/12 June at Coleby and 10 July at Worlaby. Any businesses interested in backing Greaves' championship challenge can contact him via email at ratracing444@gmail.com.

Worlaby Downhill Challenge 2015 - Pics!