Mark Perfect and Harry Cooper – 2009 Scottish Youth Champions

Posted by Ray | 29 September 2009 | Comment

The 2009 Scottish Youth Motocross Championship drew to a close last week as the sixth and final round of the season took place at the popular Shiplaw circuit just outside of Peebles. With two days of the finest September weather over the weekend and the track in excellent shape as usual, the scene was set for an exciting conclusion to a great year’s competitve racing.

Mark Perfect on the National Steeplejacks KTM held a narrow 8 point advantage ahead of his rivals Steven Craig and Arran McCarroll in the 250 class and was well aware he needed to perform at his very best in order to gain his first Championship Title. Harry Cooper in the buzzing 125 2stroke class had a slightly less stressful task ahead, going into Shiplaw’s 5 motos enjoying a 47 point lead over nearest rival Jamie Blair.

Both Mark and Harry rode smart and strong in the first three motos on Saturday, then each wrapping up their season’s efforts in delight by taking their respective Championship Victories on the Sunday.

Mark Perfect -

“Leading up to Round 6 at Shiplaw for the final round of Scottish Championship I was feeling great. I knew the work had been done on and off the bike which only made me more confident that I could take the win.
I wanted to make an early statement in Qualifying. I put a quick lap in early which was 4 seconds faster than eventual second position, so I was pumped with that and kept my confidence for the races.
Moto1: I got a good start and made an early pass for the lead. I rode my own race, focusing on fast consistant laps and ended up with a 11 second lead. I was well chuffed with the result as it had all went exactly how I wanted.
Moto2: I got a poor start and had some hard work to do. I came from around 8th place and charged through to 2nd. The leader Steven Craig out front had around 7 seconds on me but I managed to reel him in and apply the pressure. We switched positions back and forward and the racing became really intense. I ended up 2nd just by less than a second, but I was still happy as I maintained my lead in the points.
Moto3: A good start saw Steven and I quickly pull a gap over the rest of the field again in the third race. He then tried to stick a block on me which didnt work out for him, as he came off worse and hit the floor. I continued my fast laps mid race then cruised to my second win of the weekend.
Moto4: I knew going into this race a second place would seal the championship as we get to drop our worst score from the 5 races in the weekend. I got a decent start and held third place for 5 laps, then with 3 laps to go I put a charge on and made a pass for second. At that point I knew had done enough for the championship points. I chose my lines carefully to the finish and I was pumped to come away with my first Scottish Championship title when I crossed the line.
There was no need for battlng the last race so I just cruised round and enjoyed the moment. The weekend went awesome and made all my hard work through the year worthwhile.”

Harry Cooper -

“Shiplaw saw the last round of the Scottish Youth Championship 2009. I went into this round with 47 points in hand, a good start, but I still had to finish 4 of the races to be sure of the championship, and with a niggling wrist injury from a recent meeting at Duns nothing was certain.

In the first race I had a good start, then unfortunately I got caught in a pile up early on which left me riding the race with no clutch. I posted some quick lap times at the end of the race and faught back up to fifth place. The second race was a little smooter, coming in first of the 125cc championship contenders, races three and four saw me hanging onto my lead, which was enough to clinch the title.
It didn’t take much persuading for me to go out for the fifth race, when Mark Perfect (250cc championship winner) and I put the number 1 on our bikes and decided to take it easy and enjoy the ride – no pressure! We rode together and came into a reception of champagne and celebrations!
A day to remember, the final haul after a long hard season of 6 championship rounds. Some meetings were more successful than others, but with straight wins in four of the six rounds I’m not complaining !
I have to thank Stuart Flockhart for all his help throughout the season, and commiserate with his injury which took him out of the Scottish MX1 Championship … maybe having two of his proteges winning will soften the blow.”

* images from paspixx.com *

Tags: clutch, cooper, duns, flockhart, injury, ktm, motocross, youth