Melsungen: Markus Brandhofer/Bridget Meijerink and Andrew Appleton claimed victory

It was a gruelling afternoon for everyone involved in the 64th MSC Melsungen grass track race. The heat and, at times, the enormous amounts of dust at the St Georgs Bridge posed quite a challenge for both people and equipment. But there were also some incredibly exciting races to watch.

Unfortunately, in the B Solo class, Kelly Velda suffered a serious crash in the very second race. The Dutch rider had to be taken to hospital by helicopter as a result. Rene Hasenfratz was disqualified from that race for causing the crash.

Andrew Appleton was outstanding – Niek Meijerink was the surprise

In the International Solo class, Andrew Appleton was the standout rider. The Briton had won his three heats in superb style and led the field with 15 points. The Dane Jacob Bukhave followed with 13 points, ahead of the Briton James Shanes (12) and William Kruit (11) from the Netherlands. Paul Cooper (GB) and the 18-year-old Dutchman Niek Meijerink both scored eight points.

The final had to be restarted twice. Initially, there was a thrilling three-lap duel between Appleton and Bukhave. The Dane crashed on the back straight and was excluded from the re-run. Here, Niek Meijerink – cousin of world-class rider Dave Meijerink – put in a superb performance. He led the field, remained unfazed by Shanes’ constant attacks, won the final and finished third in the overall standings. Appleton played it safe here. Third place in the final was enough for him to secure overall victory.

The Germans finished at the bottom of the 11-strong field. Daniel Spiller came seventh with seven points, Stephan Katt eighth with four points, followed by Marcel Sebastian (4), Fabian Wachs (3) and Keijo Busch with two points.

Three German sidecars at the front – Manuel Meier/Lena Siebert unlucky

No fewer than 13 A-licence sidecars lined up at the start in Melsungen. After the heats, the local heroes, Manuel Meier and his passenger Lena Siebert from the Melsungen district of Röhrenfurt, were in the lead with three heat wins and 15 points. They were followed by the British pair Mitch Godden/Paul Smith (13) and the DMSB representatives Markus Brandhofer/Bridget Meijerink and Raphael San Millan/Benedikt Zapf, each on 12 points.

The only other pair to have scored in double figures (10) by that stage were the French duo Remi Valladon and Jonathan Bertrand. Ole Möller and Imani Hazekamp made it through to the final with six points from the heats, ahead of Imanuel Schramm and his co-driver Lene Laise, who – thank goodness, ed. – had recovered. Although they were level on points, Möller/Hazekamp had secured second place in their second heat. This better placing proved decisive.

In the final, one team’s misfortune was another’s. We’re talking about Godden/Smith and Meier/Siebert. The British pair got off to a good start, but later suffered a technical problem just before the start/finish line and were forced to retire. To avoid colliding with them, the team from MSC Melsungen had to swerve through the inside at short notice. This caused them to lose momentum, and their rivals – Brandhofer/Meijerink, San Millan/Zapf and also Valldon/Bertrand – overtook the number 90 sidecar.

This meant a tie on points in the end, with first place going to Brandhofer/Meijerink, second place to Meier/Siebert and third place on the podium to San Millan/Zapf.

Results of the 64th Melsungen Grass Track Race I-Solo:

• 1. Andrew Appleton (GB), 18

• 2. James Shanes (GB), 16

• 3. Niek Meijerink (NL), 13

• 4. Jacob Bukhave (DK), 13

• 5. William Kruit (NL), 12

• 6. Paul Cooper (GB), 10

• 7. Daniel Spiller (Germany), 7

• 8. Stephan Katt (Germany), 4

• 9. Marcel Sebastian (Germany), 4

• 10. Fabian Wachs (Germany), 3

• 11. Keijo Busch (Germany), 6

• Final: 1. Meijerink, 2. Shanes, 3. Appleton, 4. Cooper, 5. Kruit, 6. Bukhave.

Results of the 64th Melsungen Grass Track Race, I-teams:

• 1. Markus Brandhofer/Bridget Meijerink (D/NL), 17 points

• 2. Manuel Meier/Lena Siebert (Germany), 17

• 3. Raphael San Millan/Benedikt Zapf (Germany), 16

• 4. Remi Valladon/Jonathan Bertrand (F), 13

• 5. Mitch Godden/Paul Smith (GB), 13

• 6. Ole Möller/Imani Hazekamp (Germany/Netherlands), 7

• 7. Imanuel Schramm/Lene Laise (Germany), 6

• 8. Josh Goodwin/Scott Goodwin (GB), 5

• 9. Clement Furet/Gilles Couprie (F), 4

• 10. Jens Lorei/Jack Düringer (Germany), 3

• 11. Andy Horn/Christian Schädler (Germany), 2

• 12. Nicole Standke/Alex Herrmann (Germany),

• 13. Chris Neame/Zoe Pay (GB), 0

• Final: 1. Brandhofer/Meijerink, 2. San Millan/Zapf, 3. Valladon/Bertrand, 4. Meier/Siebert, 5. Möller/Hazekamp, 6. Godden/Smith (a).