BSSO AGM November 2016
The AGM of the BSSO was brought forward from its traditional February slot so riders would have the maximum time to accommodate any changes or new rules. This year was no different to many others with a healthy list of motions to discuss...
It came as a surprise to many members that general secretary Jayne Morris stepped down, but there was a nomination for Chris Geyton to return to the role he vacated two years ago and bring the BSSO committee back to full strength. This year has seen many successes not least of all the LCGB Production Class and the Sponsorship of the sport by the Italian Casa Lambretta team. Vittorio Tessera of Casa addressed the members and gave thanks and his thoughts on the year to the very appreciative audience.
With the officers’ reports out of the way and a few rules issues confirmed it was time for the motions from members. There was much discussion as always on grid formation. With the growth of scooter racing in 2016 there has been pressure on grid sizes which could get beyond track limits next year if the riders expected come out to play. A variety of options were spoken about and clarified to give some flexibility to try and ensure that as many riders as possible are able to race.
A new automatic Production Class is to be introduced along the lines of the very successful Lambretta case. The automatic engines will features set specific components that are available off the shelf and tried and tested to give reliability over a race season to keep costs down
After its successful inaugural year the Lambretta Club Production Class will now be part of the Overall Championship for the coveted No. 1 plate.
There was an interesting proposal to drastically change the way that the traditional Group 4 class is structured. The classes do tend to gain and lose popularity over the years but there have been fewer riders in recent years in this class. The proposal was to allow small capacity reed valve barrels into the class with a limited range of tuning parts. This proposal was rejected by the members who voted to keep the traditional piston ported engines. But I feel we may return to this subject !
Vespa riders will be happy that alternative forks will now be allowed to bring the builds into line with European racing. There was a small loophole exploited in 2016 to allow use of a two-stroke engine in the increasingly popular Scomadi scooter for racing use. The loophole was formally opened so expect to see more Scomadi machines on track in the future. There were some minor changes in the Production Class but the main one is the use of a new Mk.2 Franspeed exhaust which gives a slight power increase and improved ground clearance. The benefits of this race development will find their way onto the road too!
A big piece of news was the final motion of the day which saw the creation of a brand new development class to make the most of some of the new tuning developments coming through at the moment based around new style engine cases which allow the use of different stud centres. Further details will come out in due course but essentially it’s virtually open house anything goes, which has the potential to see a step change in performance with talk of 50hp+ being achievable with new components that are already on the way.
There is much to be positive about for the future of scooter racing. It has been a good year and 2017 looks like continuing that trend. The presentation evening saw all the 2016 champions crowned and the coveted trophies presented the year’s top riders. For full final championship positions see www.scooterracing.org.uk