BSSO 2011 Championship - Rounds 5 & 6: Cadwell Park

With just one week in between rounds this gave our race team precious little time to get the bikes ready in time for Cadwell last weekend. After a disastrous round at Donington, Joe Raves' departure from the team left Josh and Sam to come up with the goods. Frustratingly the weekend was a non-event for Josh due to technical problems which meant losing valuable championship points. In day two the heat was on in more ways than one, thankfully Sam seemed to keep his cool. Get the full low down on BSSO Rounds 5 & 6 in our article at petrolmag.net. And for your entertainment here's the video:

Pedstop Race Team action at Donington Park

We're back and recovering from a long and eventful day of racing at Donington Park yesterday. Round 4 of the 2011 BSSO championship coincided with the Superstars International Race Series which meant there was more to see in between races including the likes of some impressive touring cars and pickup trucks. Donington's 1.95 mile circuit may have been great for the cars but put a strain on the scooters, some more than others. Despite this Pedstop's Sam Schofield appeared to go from strength to strength and put in an admirable performance in all three races.

At Donington, Sam appeared to be getting into a more natural flow on the circuit gaining in confidence with every lap, he even managed to go home with a trophy after coming second in the Auto Class in race one. Everything was going smoothly until the last lap of the last race when the Zip tumbled and hit the gravel. Sam was okay but the resulting damage means there's a load of work to be done to repair and prepare the scoot for next weekend's racing at Cadwell. Scooter racing can be a costly business and at times frustrating, something which the Ravenscrofts can also vouch for...

Young gun Joe Ravenscroft had a tough time at Donington. His Zip had just undergone a full rebuild and was producing good power on the dyno, but technical problems occurred during practice, something went drastically wrong and despite Joe being the third fastest rider he returned to the paddock with a seized engine. A spare engine came into play but this didn't hold out during the first race either, this put an abrupt end to the the day's racing for Joe. When things are going well Joe is among the most skilled up-and-coming riders out there, we hope he'll be able to make a comeback than see racing talent go to waste.

Meanwhile it was pretty much business as usual for BSSO champ Josh Brown. But like Joe, Josh also got a DNF in the first race after the engine exploded towards the end of the race. The second race of the day had to be stopped due to one of the other riders Alex van Dyke taking a fall. And in most races this season (and indeed last season) it seems to be a close battle between Josh and Craig Bewey. But victory came in the final race when Josh just managed to win by a 1000th of a second putting Craig in second.

As well as being easier to spot on the track, our eye-catching new race colours - "teal coloured" as described by one of the commentators, also got a lot of attention from onlookers at Donington, why not come and take a closer look at our scoots in the paddock and in action at Cadwell Park this weekend (25/26 June)? It's a two-day event in conjunction with the VMCC (Vintage Motorcycle Club), so expect to see a few old skool Bantams mixing it once again with the autos.

Video and full report on BSSO Round 4 to follow...

BSSO 2011 Championship - Round 3: Pembrey

Here's a couple of racing vids from day two at Pembrey which was Round 3 of the 2011 BSSO scooter racing championship.

Race 1: A change in weather conditions meant going back to dry tyres for the team. Josh put in a belting performance leading the whole ten lap race to finish first. Damon Tunnicliffe came second, seven seconds behind. Sam did well finishing fifth but things didn't go too well for young gun Joe. On the last race of day one Joe's engine case split clean in half so this meant an engine swap before day two. Joe got a taste of the action but his Zip was down on power after fitting the spare engine. Coupled with battling against strong headwinds he finished seventh, things can only get better!

Race 2: All the scooters lined up on the grid for one last time and away they went tearing into the first corner. Josh Brown went on to take yet another win with Joe in fourth and Sam in sixth. We didn't stick around long after our final race and was soon packed up ready for the long four hour journey back to Yorkshire. All in all it was a great weekend at Pembrey. Josh got quite a few wins and set another lap record, Sam managed to get a proper feel for his Zip after using different front tyres and Joe, despite having a few technical difficulties, picked up some all important championship points.



Next stop: Donington Park on June 19.

BSSO 2011 Championship - Round 2: Pembrey

Round 2 of this year's BSSO Championship took place at Pembrey in South Wales last weekend. The Pedstop Race Team were there of course competing in some less than favourable conditions on the track. Despite this the rain didn't stop Josh Brown from winning four races during the weekend as well as setting another new lap record. Young gun Joe Ravenscroft's Zip succumb to engine problems but despite this he put in another fine performance too. At just 14 years of age we feel the best is yet to come from Joe, watch this space. Meanwhile, Pedstop Sam put in a strong performance coming in mid-pack giving some of the more experienced riders a run for their money. Sit back and watch the 10 lap ordeal in our video from race three.

A full race report can be found on the PETROL Scooter Magazine website.

Pedstop Race Team Test Day at Mallory Park

With only a matter of days to go before the first round of the 2011 BSSO series, the Pedstop Race Team headed out to Mallory Park yesterday for some last minute testing. Everything went smoothly for Josh but Sam had an off, the scoot suffered some cosmetic damage and Sam got a few cuts and bruises, luckily nothing serious.

Join us at Round 1 on Easter Monday 25 April at Mallory Park for the first round of the season. For more info visit the official Mallory Park website: www.mallorypark.co.uk

Polini Big Evolution scooter performance parts

We're keen advocates of Polini performance parts here at Adrenalin and for good reasons. If you've been considering purchasing any of their latest Big Evolution products then the following should be of interest.

Adrenalin Pedstop's 27.7hp Polini 94cc Piaggio Zip SP

Polini's Big Evolution - A New Chapter in Scooter Tuning

2010 saw the release of Polini’s range of Big Evo kits for 50cc Piaggio and Minarelli engines intended solely for competition use. The product range consists of 70cc, 84cc and 94cc configurations created from a selection of cylinder and crank combinations. With a brand new cylinder design and a full range of components to complement the kit, Polini weren’t hanging around and were going all out to match the constantly evolving range of products that surface on an annual basis for these popular engines.

2010 brought home great results for us using the Big Evo 70cc engine in the UK BSSO series with our rider Josh Brown who won races and set new lap records including a new lap time at the Three Sisters racetrack in Wigan. And for the second year running Josh was able to take the BSSO championship and be crowned champion once again. The engine in Josh’s Zip was originally supplied by Polini as a fully built race engine. Further enhancements were made by us in conjunction with Darrell Taylor at 50ccTuning through ongoing development and adjustments to the performance of the engine to suit UK racetracks – bear in mind that the engine was originally set up by Polini technicians for use on the shorter Italian circuits.

Adrenalin's Polini Big Evolution 94cc Piaggio Zip SP Race Bike

2011 comes as a new year and with it the feeling of trying something new, so out came the Big Evo 94cc engine with a view to running it at a race meeting or two. Currently the 94cc engine can be seen fitted to our shop demonstrator for all to drool over.


The Big Evo 94cc Piaggio configuration comprises of a 52mm cylinder kit and a 44mm long stroke crankshaft giving an actual capacity of 93.39cc using the ACU formula (bore x bore x stroke x 0.785). The build started out with a major shopping list of components and includes a brand new set of crankcases. After seeing the odd case fail in the past, the decision to use new casings was a no brainer coupled with the fact that the engine has to be machined out to accept both the crank and cylinder – the most powerful and highest torque producing kit around. The crankcases also benefit from additional strengthening thanks to the new bolt-on Polini Torsen WD which reduces engine flex by making the casing dual sided.



Keep an eye on our blog... In future blog posts we'll take you through some of the engine work including crankcase preparation, additional porting work and water pump assembly.

Pedstop Track Day at Teeside Autodrome

Last week Chris, Sam and Josh managed to get some track time in at Teeside Autodrome in Middlesbrough. Testing went well despite rain and gale force winds to contend with. Chris took our Polini 94cc Zip (as featured in our video last month) out on the track. Sam got some practice on his Malossi 77c kitted Zip and whizz kid Josh made it all look easy on our Polini 70cc Big Evolution Zip, he didn't do too badly on a Kawasaki ZX6R either.



Sam wrote some words about the day's proceedings which can be found here on the PETROL Scooter Magazine website.

BSSO AGM / Awards Ceremony + 2010 Racing Season Summary

BSSO AGM / 2010 AWARDS CEREMONY

For all you guys who don’t know what an AGM (annual general meeting) is then this might help: Think back to when you were at school, fill the classroom with lots of people that pretend to like each other and then add (bare with me while I work out some average ages of the guys and gals… about 15 to 40) years of watching Neighbours, Corrie, EastEnders and a bit of Big Brother, mix it all up with “I’m going to win” and what a concoction.

It doesn’t take too long to see some awkward relationships which are normally hidden starting to pop up between riders especially when the voting starts. And then the penny drops - that’s why all those peculiar rule changes take place. Anyway, getting back to what I should have been talking about, the AGM allows all members to take a vote on matters that should benefit the BSSO and all the people that are currently participating or may participate in the future. Thankfully this year it seems that the committee has seen the light and some sense and made changes that will benefit all riders, both classic and autos which is great news for everyone. New riders coming in (both young and old) will help keep the sport alive. At last we can drop the additional weight and get fully up to speed.

All the changes for the 2011 BSSO Series that have taken place or taking place can be found on the BSSO forum.

Here's Pedstop racer Josh Brown receiving his trophies at the 2010 BSSO awards ceremony:

BSSO SCOOTER ROAD RACE CHAMPIONSHIP 2010 AWARDS:

* AUTO 80 - FIRST: JOSH BROWN *

* OVERALL SOLO - SECOND: JOSH BROWN *

* BEST PLACED PIAGGIO RIDER: JOSH BROWN *

* TERRY FRANKLAND MEMORIAL AWARD *

PROJECT ZIP: 2010 RACING SEASON SUMMARY

What started out as a shop project with no real intentions of entering the BSSO series it seems crazy that in 2010 we were able to take the championship or should I say Josh Brown did on the Pedstop Polini-engined Zip that has seen more evolution than Darwin himself.

The wheels were set in motion after a chance enquiry by Ian Brown, Josh’s dad and the obvious talent that was on show from Josh himself. Not forgetting the technical and race experience that Darryl Taylor from 50cc Tuning was going bring to the team. Could it work? After some cups of tea and the odd digestive biscuit and with lots of things in common it made perfect sense for all involved to get stuck in. And there you have it, the Pedstop council house crew was born. With a difficult season ahead running a Polini Big Evo 70 engined Zip against the too talked about Malossi 77MHR Team engined scooters in an 80cc class, it was going to be close from the beginning and it was, right up to the final meeting at Three Sisters.

It seems natural now to be talking and thinking about racing or race parts in some way and this is definitely due to watching and participating at the trackside in the BSSO 2010 series. Although it was our first year in racing we were obviously blessed with the knowledge gained from our team’s 2009 season which saw Josh take the championship under the watchful eye of his dad Ian Brown and of course the legend himself Darryl Taylor who took care of the engines and technical work.

It’s not easy getting everything to work well when it should and it took a lot of time and effort to keep the momentum going, not only from Josh and Pedstop riders Zack Tingle and Sam Edwards but from everyone else including the wives and girlfriends. So to keep us guys in check and make sure everyone feels fluffy and appreciated for all those cold days and early mornings away, we would like to say a genuinely big thank you to all involved - my wife and kids, Ian and Claire Brown (for making Josh), Darryl Taylor (for technical assistance, engine building and dyno work) and Paul Robinson (for photography and video work).

2011 is set be a good year for the Pedstop Race Team with three riders of varying skill levels. This year you’ll have the opportunity to follow a 100% novice rider with no previous experience and two riders with good race pace which will be epic in itself.

Adrenalin Pedstop

Coming soon... News and pictures of our 94cc Polini Big Evolution Zip project along with a step-by-step guide that will cover setting squish, timing and crankcase work needed.

Video - Project Zip: BSSO Round 7 - Three Sisters

Our Project Zip saga came to a close in the final showdown in this year's BSSO series which took place at Three Sisters earlier this month. Josh's crash in the previous round at Cadwell Park meant that he had to start at the back of the grid. Despite this he managed to work his way through the field overtaking the opposition including the likes of the big cc classic scooter riders in true David and Goliath style. Josh finished first in his class but judging by the way he raced finishing first overall was the only thing on his mind. Zack Tingle also put in a good performance but he's had some bad luck this year, a crash in lap four took away his chance of finishing the race.

After the early morning mist disappeared and the racing got underway it was frantic action from the start with riders putting in their best performance in order to claim those championship points and for some, victory in the 2010 series:



The final race of the BSSO 2010 series was the icing on the cake. The Three Sisters circuit had its fair share of racing talent but the power of Polini was on our side and Josh managed to claim victory with a superb first place win. Josh was closely followed by Young Gun Joe Ravenscroft who appeared to pull some serious racing skills out of the bag towards the end of the series. Meanwhile, DNF's seem to have been the theme of the year for Pedstop rider Zack Tingle who, unless we're mistaken, has yet to finish a race! Better luck next time Zack. All in all a successful first year of racing for the Adrenalin Pedstop crew and a memorable one too.

Video - Project Zip: BSSO Round 6 - Cadwell Park

The next installment in our Project Zip video saga is now live on YouTube - BSSO Round 6 at Cadwell Park. After numerous delays on the track, the first race was reduced to just three laps, as usual there seemed to be no stopping Josh Brown who managed to blitz the opposition and secure a first place win with a massive ten second lead. Sit back and watch Josh annihilate the opposition:



The second race on day one at Cadwell involved a close battle between Josh and Keith Terry (number 11) who rides a 172cc Gilera Runner. Despite the power difference Josh maintained enough speed throughout the race but the Zip sounded ill especially towards the end when it became apparent to the spectators that something was wrong. Josh still managed to come first in his class and second overall in the autos. Some spanner work was now needed to rectify the Zip before the start of day two.



On day two torrential rain and a fuel spill made for nightmare racing conditions which led to a number of riders hurtling along the track in the wet including Josh who raced fearlessly despite the lashing rain. Unfortunately the Zip couldn't take it and lost stability in the second lap. Keep your eyes peeled until end of the video where it looks like Josh went down for a spot of breakdancing.

Pedstop BSSO 2010 Championship Winners

We're delighted to announce that the Pedstop Race Team have emerged victorious in this year's BSSO scooter championship. What started out with us playing around with a Piaggio Zip quickly saw us getting into racing and on a tour of circuits throughout the country. By and large it's thanks to Polini that this was made possible when they donated one of their Big Evolution engines for us to test, not forgetting of course 16 year old Josh Brown who went from strength to strength with his formidable riding skills out there on the track despite all the obstacles. It's great to know that with our feedback and testing we've also been able to assist Polini in their developments along the way.

In Round 6 at Cadwell there seemed to be no stopping Josh who managed to blitz the opposition and secure a first place win with a massive ten second lead in the first race, this was followed by another win in race two. And despite starting at the back of the grid in the final round at Three Sisters, Josh managed to work his way through the field and go on to win this year's BSSO Championship. Dominating the track looked easy in the final race despite some close competition all the way to the end. You can read all about the final round here. If you missed out on any of our Project Zip installments, articles and videos covering the season's racing can be found here on the PETROL Scooter Magazine website.

Project Zip: Cadwell Results

It's been a busy week here at Adrenalin HQ with little time to spare to tell you all about how last weekend's racing went at Cadwell Park. So how did it go? Well after fairly lengthy delays on the track in the first race on day one Josh Brown managed to secure a first place win with a massive ten second lead. Due to a number of delays on the track with riders waiting for a prolonged length of time at the start line, the race was reduced to just three laps. At one point in the race Josh was that much in front he looked behind him no doubt wondering if the race had been stopped as there were no other riders to be seen. It was business as usual for Josh in the second race too with another win. Racing on the full circuit (2.173 miles) Josh mustered up some quick lap times, with 2:00.61 being his best lap time at Cadwell on day one.

Even though he won, Josh's Zip glided over the finish line at the end of race two, the Zip blew an O-ring and upon closer inspection the cylinder head was damaged which led to an engine swap to ensure that things went smoothly before racing commenced on day two. In contrast to Saturday's racing which was mostly bright and sunny, the track at Cadwell was very wet and slippery on day two which led to a number of riders coming off including Josh. With riders waiting in their grid positions at the start line, the first race ended up being cancelled after a fuel spill which rendered the track unsafe. This caused lengthy delays. In the second race Josh was really going for it in the wet, Josh came off and this puts him at the back of the grid in the next round.

Meanwhile, it was trials and tribulations for fellow Pedstop rider Zack Tingle who was unable to actually complete a race over the whole weekend due to technical problems. Hopefully he'll have more luck in the next round.

The 2010 BSSO series comes to a close end this weekend, the final round takes place tomorrow at Three Sisters. Some of you may recall Josh's blistering performance there back in May when he won all four races and set a new track record. We're expecting good things at Three Sisters but as we all know, anything can happen in racing. Who will win the championship?!

Project Zip: BSSO Round 5 - Pembrey

The weather conditions were somewhat mixed on day one at Pembrey in South Wales but our Polini-powered Zip coped well on the 1.45 mile circuit. Josh gave a good performance once again and managed to come second in both races in his class on day one despite starting at the back of the grid due to his fall in the last race at Lydden at the end of July. Our onboard video camera took a bit of a bashing during the crash which could be the reason why it stopped recording during the second lap of the first race at Pembrey. In any case sit back and watch some of the action from day one in BSSO Round 5:



Watch Josh in practice on day two as he cruises round the track effortlessly:

Josh Brown's off at Lydden Hill (crash pics)

Thanks to a trigger happy photographer being there at the crash scene when Josh Brown came off in BSSO Round 4 at Lydden Hill last month we can now show you exactly what happened in this excellent series of shots. Head on over to the PETROL website to take a look at the pics.

Pedstop Track Day at Rowrah

Last weekend the Pedstop crew headed out to Rowrah in Cumbria armed with the Zips where Chris and Josh were able to get some track time in. Whizz kid Josh made it all look effortless, in comparison Chris has had less experience on the track but still had a brilliant day, you can read his account of the weekend's racing exploits at PETROL. And for your entertainment, you can watch the video here:

Project Zip: Lydden Hill

A full report, pics and onboard footage of Josh Brown's performance in all four races of BSSO Round 4 at Lydden Hill can now be found at petrolmag.net, simply follow this link for the lowdown on last weekend's racing in The Garden of England.

More scooter racing action in BSSO Round 4

Our Project Zip saga continues in Round 4 of the BSSO 2010 series which took place last weekend. Josh put in a fine performance on the Zip finishing first in his class in this, the first race from last weekend at a wet and misty Lydden Hill:

Project Zip - BSSO Round 2: Three Sisters

Our Polini project continues, now you can watch the highlights from our recent trip to Wigan in the latest episode of Project Zip:

Head on over to PETROL for a report, results and pics from the weekend's racing.

Four race victory for Josh Brown at Three Sisters

The second round of this year's BSSO Championship took place last weekend on 08/09 May at the Three Sisters race track in Wigan. Both days went really well especially for Josh who won all four races. Not only that he broke the lap record which he held from last year but that was on a 77cc, this time our Polini Evolution 3 70cc engine gave him the muscle he needed on the track. Meanwhile, Sam successfully completed and won the Young Guns class and is getting quicker every race. Apart from injuring his knee after an off on day one, Zack did really well too bearing in mind that this was only his fourth race meeting. He appears to be getting to grips with the set up of the bike and is bringing lap times down every lap and coming in mid-pack. We can see Zack in the top three within the next meeting or two.

Day 1:

Day 2: In race three Josh completed a lap of the circuit in 1:02.05 setting a new track record. Observe how he achieved this in lap four:

Bizarrely Josh's quickest lap was identical (1:02.05) in the last race as was his top speed - 54.08mph which goes to show his consistency out there on the track:

The need for speed: Project Zip at Elvington

We feel the need, the need for speed! On Sunday 18 April we went to Elvington to take the Zips for some quarter mile testing before the next round of the BSSO series. The day went well with Pedstop riders Josh Brown and Sam Edwards getting some fast times up the drag strip. Josh's machine is now equipped with the very latest Polini Evolution 3 engine. As you can imagine we couldn't wait to find out how the new setup would perform. After a 15.34 second quarter mile run terminating at 79mph we feel even more confident now that Josh has the straight line speed he needs when he returns to the circuit next month. The results of young gun Sam's full throttle action yielded times in the 16 second bracket with a 16.04 being his best time of the day - quicker than some of the riders of 172 and 180cc machines! Well done Sam.

Ever wondered what it looks heading down a drag strip at breakneck speed? Sit back and watch our latest video to find out...