The recent news that next year’s British round of the World Trials Championship will be contested over two days, is great for the UK as it is now some time since Britain was honoured with a two day event.
In recent years two day rounds have normally been allocated to the far flung trials in the USA and Japan, so to get one here, in the UK and at a brand new venue is great. And if you’ve been on Mars recently and missed the announcement, the trial will be at Nord Vue which is between Penrith and Carlisle, only a few miles off the M6 between junction 41 and 42.
Graham Jarvis and enduro rider and promoter John Kerwin are the names behind the trial and they have recently appointed top Northern Centre trials rider Gary Bingley to act as the event co-ordinator. Gary is a regular rider and local businessman and he hopes to secure loads of help from enthusiasts in the north of England and already much of the machinery being used to move rocks to manufacture the sections is in use from local plant owner and trials rider Neil Wilson. So all is shaping up well.
Of course the success of the last three British world rounds at Hawkstone means that for the newcomers to organising a major event like this (Dirt Bike Trax), they have a hard act to follow, but they’ll be doing their best, but with a lot of hard work, they will surely succeed.
Tickets at a reduced rate are already on sale at just £12.50 a day, a figure that remains in force until February 1, 2009 when the price has to increase. So, for less than the cost of a trial entry, you can get to see the world’s best trials rider in action, with bookings taken via www.worldtrialuk.com.
There will of course be the usual trade stands and the organisers are hoping to attract sponsorship of the sections, both of which can be booked by contacting John Kerwin on 07914 777534.
And in case you have missed the date, it’s on the weekend of May 16/17, just a week following the Scottish Six Days Trial, which should indirectly benefit the Scottish with factory vans and riders – or am I being fanciful!
I may have got the year wrong, but in 1994 or thereabouts David Knight was the British Expert Trials Champion and he followed up that inaugural success by moving over to the enduro field to become what is undoubtedly the world’s best enduro rider, both in conventional events, extreme events, American Grand National Cross Country Championship races and the ISDE.
Tom Sagar was another who moved very successfully from the trials scene over to the enduro scene and he’s the current British Enduro Champion, so it will be interesting to see how the current British Expert Champion, Joe Baker, fares now that he has decided to tackle enduros aboard a 250 KTM from northern KTM distributor D3 racing, of which the bossman Neil Crayston is also a decent trialler.
Of course that’s immediately putting undue pressure on Joe and that’s not my intention, but statistically, good trials riders tend to make very good enduro riders, for as well as David Knight and Tom Sagar, Rob Sartin made the move very successfully, as did Juan Knight, David’s older brother, as well as Graham Jarvis into the extreme scene and even yours truly sneaked three clubman British enduro championships during a fourteen year foray into the speed scene. So, as I say, there’s no intention of putting pressure on Joe, but there’s every chance he will make a decent job of the move.
He told me that he was thinking about enduros at the final British Championship round some weeks back, and I gave him enthusiastic encouragement to have a go. I’m sure some will be a bit surprised he has decided to make the move, but it’s understandable. He’s twice been the Expert champ, but a move up to the Championship class holds little interest for him, so a sideways move to the enduro scene provides another challenge, so we wish him well.