v1nn1e Posted November 15, 2019 Report Share Posted November 15, 2019 Why no X-Trial round in the UK...? Is the Sheffield Indoor Trial seen as a proxy event...? Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Intotrials Posted November 16, 2019 Report Share Posted November 16, 2019 Yeah man, just a warm up for the season. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
ChrisCH Posted November 16, 2019 Report Share Posted November 16, 2019 Next weekend in Rennes. I have tickets.... Sheff is OK but a long drive (further than Rennes if you ignore the ferry). Why oh why can we not have a round in the highly populated south? Are there really not enough people to fill an event and not enough revenues to be had? You don't have to like trials to find it entertaining. Guildford would be great (I'm sure Gordon Farley would be pleased) Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
v1nn1e Posted November 18, 2019 Author Report Share Posted November 18, 2019 Ha, ha, yeah! But seriously, maybe somewhere a little further towards the centre - how about the Ricoh Arena in Coventry? Enjoy Rennes! Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
ChrisCH Posted November 18, 2019 Report Share Posted November 18, 2019 If you want to get a return on the money (I assume the promoters do) you have to look at the biggest available population that might want to go. The O2 arena makes the most business sense. The population of London is about 9 million and it has very good transport links to the surrounding areas. All in all a catchment of maybe what, 15 million, 20 even? Next trial after Rennes is Budapest. Total population of Hungary 9.8m (Coventry is very good for me personally BTW - friends there) I really can't believe that it wouldn't get at or near capacity here. Who do we shout at to get one here? Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
v1nn1e Posted November 18, 2019 Author Report Share Posted November 18, 2019 I know what you mean but train/tube is a bit of a pain, I guess greener than car though. I guess 'someone' would have to contact these people... https://www.x-trial.com/en/2play.html Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
ChrisCH Posted November 25, 2019 Report Share Posted November 25, 2019 Was thinking about this on the way home. The Rennes event was organised by the local club who are (like all French clubs) FIM affiliated. I wondered if we suffer as ACU don't push the X-Trial agenda? No idea if this is relevant or not. (The kids from the local club got to have their 15 mins of fame!) The event was good - the Glaz Arena in Rennes is smallish and so you got close enough to really see what was going on. We were a couple of rows back, just right to smell the 2 stroke and see the riders' faces. The crowd were enjoying the event and I guess the arena was at about 80% capacity. There was a bar laid on for the break but you had to buy tokens and I hadn't so missed out on the beer. Not a disaster. It was a good event and loads of kids there. Very family friendly and a good night out. Finished about 12 so lots of tired youngsters. There is a lot of parking there and a big supermarket with a multi storey nearby. We ate in the Buffalo Grill just before the opening, so full of steak and chips and red wine. Nice. Only downside is the long ferry crossing from here (Poole) to Cherbourg. 2 hours drive to Rennes once you get to Cherbourg. Sunday night ferry back was delayed and got home 12.30 this morning. I would do it again but yes please can we have it in the UK please? Ferry was £290 and €90 for the hotel Saturday night. With a free day Sunday we drove back along the coast and had a nice lunch at a local market we found. Very pleasant until it got dark and then a boring wait for the late running ferry. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
v1nn1e Posted November 25, 2019 Author Report Share Posted November 25, 2019 What do you reckon it would be like just getting the Chunnel and driving down from Calais? Did you have a cabin on the ferry? Anyway, sounds like a bit of an adventure and I do love France, the food and the wine! Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
ChrisCH Posted November 25, 2019 Report Share Posted November 25, 2019 1 hour ago, v1nn1e said: What do you reckon it would be like just getting the Chunnel and driving down from Calais? Did you have a cabin on the ferry? Anyway, sounds like a bit of an adventure and I do love France, the food and the wine! We looked at the tunnel (I prefer it at all times). But for us it is 3 hours to Ashford with the dreaded M25 to negotiate. Then 5 hours to Rennes. The ferry to Cherbourg is about 5 hours and leaves Poole (where we live). Then about 2 hours in France. The missus hates the ferry and gets seasick if it is too rough, but the very long drive was too much for a weekend. We were going to Comblain but decided that too was too much driving for a weekend. (Had hoped to take road bike if weather nice). There is often an event on in Bercy in Paris. That is ideal if you take the tunnel and that would be the better route. Guildford is nearer but you still have M25. We slept on the ferry both ways - outbound is too short a night's sleep and gets you in at stupid o'clock, so had a couple of hours in the hotel to top up. Coming back had food (awful) and a kip then drove home (20 minutes) then up for work this morning at 6 as usual. The cabins are pretty decent but can be a bit hard to nod off if it is rough (beer/wine helps) The ferry home was delayed which didn't help plus the hour time difference works against you. We love France too. The hotel food looked fantastic but the restaurant didn't open until 19.30 and the event kicked off at 20.30. Buffalo grill is not too bad and fast service so we got half decent food and a full belly to start the Trial. Gutted about the beer.... Boot full of shopping on Sunday to bring home so a little bonus. Nice red at €3.50 a bottle - same thing here in Sainsburys is £7. [ Costières de Nîmes - Super U ] Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
v1nn1e Posted November 25, 2019 Author Report Share Posted November 25, 2019 OK, totally off topic, but I recently went across with a group of friends to do a beer run to Westvleteren - that may mean absolutely nothing to you unless you are a fan of Belgian Trappist beer! Anyway, we stayed near Dunkirk and went to the most absolutely monstrous Auchan; this thing looked to be nearly a mile long and had an incredible selection of wine, beer, cheese, and then all of the household stuff - honestly, it made the Carrefour at Citi d'Europe look small. We're going over again this Friday to go to the Christmas market at Amiens, and I'm hoping to try and go or come back via that Auchan - if only to take some photos! 1 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
ChrisCH Posted November 25, 2019 Report Share Posted November 25, 2019 1 hour ago, v1nn1e said: ... unless you are a fan of Belgian Trappist beer! I am. Oh yes. We used to live in Luxembourg and the south of Belgium is full of such wonderful delights - it is a requirement of us Brits to drink as many as possible in the interests of good relations with our European friends. I love the xmas markets too. We have a place in Montpellier and go every xmas for a fortnight as we have shut down at work. The xmas market there is not quite as good as some of the more rural ones but there is a good selection of stands and an ice rink that all the kids seem to love. Down the coast a bit there are loads of oyster stalls to cater for the rather odd French tradition of oysters at xmas. The channel hypermarkets are awesome. Not been to Dunkirque for ages but we do shop at Carrefour in Citi. The falling pound and our decision to mess about aren't helping but they are still well worth a visit. The little street markets are fantastic too for fruit and veg and cheese in particular. We used to have some great markets here when I was a kid but they are few and far between these days. Big one at Walthamstow that we used to shop at when we lived in London. Go when the stalls are closing and you can get a week's veg for a fiver. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
baldilocks Posted November 25, 2019 Report Share Posted November 25, 2019 There was an arena trial ran at the NEC a few years ago but not sure why only the once , maybe not enough spectators to make it pay ? Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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