It was down to Southern Ireland for the first time for Davy Morgan Racing at the weekend for the popular Skerries Road Races a race that Davy really enjoys. As the team ventured down the M1 towards Dublin they were hoping for more time on track than at Bush were the rain put paid to any race action.

Conditions were pretty much perfect other than a lot of dust and dirt on the track for practice and Davy got special permission from the organisers to take out the rebuilt Strangford Holiday Park/BLRC 250cc Honda behind the newcomers to make sure everything was okay. His first timed session was in the 250cc Junior and it was all looking good as Davy held provisional pole until the final lap when the bike started to leak water and overheat and Davy had to tour in leaving Michael Dunlop to put in a quicker final lap and bump Davy down to second and the middle of the front row.

Next up was the Open Session and it was the CSC Branson R1 Yamaha that headed off down through Dukes Bend in what turned out to be another short session as handling issues meant it was safer to pull in and the fastest time recorded left Davy disappointingly at the back of the ‘B’ Group. The final session was for the Supersport machines and the R6 with its lack of horsepower at the back wheel and a lot of traffic resulted in Davy’s best time leaving him in 12th place on the grid.

Race Day and the sky looked dodgy to say the least, but it was dry as racing started after a few early showers. It was the Open Championship Race first up and from the back of the second group on the CSC Branson Yamaha Davy made a steady start and had moved up to fourteenth position when the red flags came out and the result was declared after four laps and half championship points awarded.

The 250cc Junior Race was next and as the riders headed out on their sighting lap the skies above were looking more and more threatening. The race was not even a lap old when the rains came on and with a lot of riders on slick tyres when they arrived at the wet roads, there were a lot of feet down and the red flags came out immediately and the race was stopped and moved back in the programme. By the time the Supersport race started the rain was falling heavy and the roads were soaking wet and this mixed with the dirt already on track it made it slippery. Davy went out on the CSC Branson R6, but after two laps decided conditions were not suitable and toured back to the paddock and retirement along with a few other riders.

pic : Joe Connolly

The rain had stopped, but the roads were still wet as Davy headed out for the re-scheduled 250cc Race on the BLRC/Strangford Holiday Park Honda. At the end of the opening lap he was in seventh and as he settled to the changing conditions, he started to work his way through the field. As they headed on to the final lap he was up to fourth and was determined to claim his spot on the podium and in to Finnegans for the final time he was round the outside of the rider in front and almost went down as both wheels started to slide. However he recovered to storm through and take the final step on the podium.

By the time the Grand Final came around the roads were completely dry and a top ten finish was the target as the CSC Branson R1 was wheeled out. It was a solid start and as the laps passed Davy started to pick off the riders in front and by the end of the race he had made it to tenth place and more importantly some very valuable racing miles on the bike. So a satisfying end to a mixed weekend, roll on Walderstown.

A relieved Davy speaking on Saturday evening: “It was great just to get some racing miles, it was a mixed weekend and practice was eventful to say the least, but thankfully we got the problems resolved for race day. The rain again spoiled race day, but at least here I am confident enough to go out in the wet, although during the Supersport race conditions were really bad and I was sliding all over the place so decided to pull in. It was still wet during the 250 race and it took me a couple of laps to get going. I can’t say that I enjoyed it, but I rode hard and worked my way through to another podium which was satisfying”.

“In the first Open Race I was taking it steady for a couple of laps to make sure the suspension adjustments were okay and then the red flags came out on the fourth lap, so I never really got going. It was unbelievable how quickly it dried for the Grand Final, which was pleasing and with my lowly grid position I wanted to get in to the top ten, which I achieved, so some positives this weekend”.

“The 250 after a few wee niggles is going well and is as competitive as it is going be with the money we have available. The R6 is a beautiful bike to ride and handles really well, but we are just down on power at the back wheel and it would take £5-6 grand to get it on a power with the guys in front of us. With the R1 being a brand new bike to road racing as well as ourselves it has taken time to get it sorted, but it is getting closer every time we go out. I want to thank all those who support and sponsor me at all different levels, but they all have an important part to play in keeping me on track in these difficult financial times. I send my best wishes to my right hand man Robert who is in a bit of pain at the moment and I hope he is fit enough to join us at Kells in a couple of weeks”.