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THE TALE OF THE TAPES
Saturday July 13, 2013
The Silver Ski Rockets fought out a 45-45 draw against high-flying Edinburgh in a see-saw match filled with drama and tension, twists and turns and a final tale of the totally unexpected.
Visiting No.1 Craig Cook was very the centre of attention. The League No.1 and forthcoming World Cup star was initially delayed en route and only arrived at the stadium fifteen minutes ahead of start time. He then suffered no less than three tapes exclusions in the match itself – when did you last see that occurrence? – only to make light of a fifteen metre handicap with some breath-taking efforts in two of those races. The three heats where he did start of scratch all produced stunning personal victories – including a Heat 5 where a lightning start helped set up a time of 55.5 seconds that was just 0.4 of a second outside of Chris Neath’s track record, which has stood since 2010.
Throw in a paid 14 haul from wonderkid Max Fricke and two wins from the equally exciting Joszef Tabaka prior to a heavy fall in his third outing, and the Monarchs were well worth their side of the draw, which leaves them unbeaten in their last five competitive away fixtures.
But so too were the Rockets, who contributed at all levels. No.1 guest Josh Grajczonek was their biggest star at the top end, with a personal highlight of Heat 10 when he simply refused to take no for an answer in an epic duel with Claus Vissing and Tabaka. At the bottom end, reserve Ben Morley took victory in Heat 2 and his 4 points overall proved vital.
There were solid hauls in-between, with the Rockets also unlucky to drop points when Jason Bunyan fell (when second in Heat 8), Anders Mellgren’s throttle broke (leading Heat 9) and Tyson Nelson suffered a puncture (leading Heat 14).
That last incident set up a Heat 15 decider, with the score at 42-42, but with a final surprise turn of events looming. The first twist came as both Mellgren and Vissing were penalised fifteen metres in parallel for starting infringements: Mellgren for movement after an earlier public warning and Vissing for actually touching the tapes. Vissing then rolled at the start of the re-run and was disqualified from the race altogether, leaving Edinburgh with a single rider for the third attempt. Fortunately for the Monarchs, that rider was Craig Cook, who held off early pressure from Grajczonek to take the chequered flag that ensured a share of the spoils for both teams.
Rye House promoter Len Silver had no arguments with the final outcome. “It was a fabulous night of racing and drama, with so many “what ifsâ€. What if Craig Cook hadn’t had three tapes exclusions? What if Jason (Bunyan) hadn’t fallen, Anders (Mellgren) stopped when he was set for a 5-1 with Tyson (Nelson) or Tyson suffered a puncture coming on the final bend?
“All those “ifs and buts†evened themselves out. A draw was the only fair result.â€
Rye House scorers:
Josh Grajczonek (guest) 9+2 (5 rides)
Jason Bunyan 6 (4)
Anders Mellgren 7+2 (5)
Tyson Nelson 6+1 (4)
Pontus Aspgren 6 (4)
Kasper Lykke 7 (5)
Ben Morley (guest) 4 (3)
Edinburgh scorers:
Craig Cook 12 (6 rides)
Derek Sneddon 4 (5)
Theo Pijper R/R
Joszef Tabaka 7+1 (5)
Claus Vissing 9 (6)
Mitchell Davey 1+1 (3)
Max Fricke 12+2 (6)
Match Points: Rye House 1 Edinburgh 2
Footnote: Luke Bowen took his first rides since breaking this thigh over a year ago in several practice skids after Saturday’s match. Despite that extended absence, he looked very much at ease back on a bike and clocked a time of 60.0 seconds in one of those spins.
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