Bromsgrove duo Hawksbee and Jennings take home 24 Hour lawnmower racing title in France - The Bromsgrove Standard

Bromsgrove duo Hawksbee and Jennings take home 24 Hour lawnmower racing title in France

Bromsgrove Editorial 28th Apr, 2019   0

BROMSGROVE racers Richard Hawksbee and Phil Jennings took the 24 Hour Lawnmower Race title for the second year running over in Ardennes in France last Friday.

Competing alongside their fellow West Midlands team members for Team Best Western, the pair took on an event which is considered to be one of the world’s toughest in lawn mower racing.

Team Best Western took the event in 2018, and were looking for the double, but faced tough competition in a pool of 34 racing teams from England, Guernsey, France, Germany, Luxembourg, Switzerland and Finland.

Last year’s winners qualified in second and started strongly with Carl Dimmock out in front, pulling away from the chasing pack.




The pair alternated between themselves and fellow team-mates Matt Cable, Wayne Stephens and Jeff Bishop every hour of the race, and took a ten-lap lead heading into midnight.

However, a setback during the morning’s session came when the mower broke with the sun rising.


A quick repair in the pits was required, but had their lead cut to just three laps.

Nearing the finish, the team could sense victory, and despite the best efforts of the challenging team Going Commando, they were unable to catch Best Western, who used their experience to ensure their mower crossed the finish line first.

After 875 laps, the team won by just 19 seconds and claim a second title in a row – a first for the event.

The team from the West Midlands Lawn Mower Racing Association will return to defend their title in 2020, and next look forward to an event at the Dog Inn in Dunley, Stourport-on-Severn.

Spectators who wish to attend the event are free to watch on, where Hawksbee will be defending his 2018 title.

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