Vertigo Celebrate Second SSDT Victory

The amazing story continues as Dougie Lampkin rode his Combat to victory at the Scottish Six Days Trial (SSDT) for the second straight year, two in a row for Vertigo and a total of ten SSDT titles for Dougie. There was even more great news for the team, which only made its debut at the Scottish twelve short months ago, as Vertigo factory rider James Dabill made it two Combats in the top three as he rode his way back on to the podium after a slow start to the week. 

One mark off the lead at the halfway point Lampkin re-took control of the top spot come the end of the longest day on Thursday having been bitterly disappointed to have surrendered the yellow leader plate for the first time ever to Michael Brown having initially led the trial on Tuesday night. 

As was written previously, the long history of the SSDT shows that Thursday can often prove decisive in the ultimate battle to win the main trophy. Fully aware of this, Dougie used the opportunity of the one hundred and twenty-one-mile route to reconfirm his superiority on the event as he completed the day for just a single dab to create a four-mark advantage at the top of the overall results come the close of day four. 

With the all-important yellow leader board firmly fixed to the front of his Combat, Dougie went into Friday intent on increasing his lead over his main rival Brown. Typically, Lampkin was at his best just when it mattered and made light work of the almost hundred mile trip around the peninsula based route by completing day five for the loss of no marks. With Brown having dropped two marks over the same course, Dougie took a six-mark gap into Saturday's showdown. Dabill matched Lampkin's Friday performance as he also went clean and moved into third place overall.  

Saturday dawned with increased significance for Dougie, with the memory of the sad and recent passing of his father Martin resting heavy on his strong shoulders, adding to this already tense occasion. Riding at the front of the field Lampkin found the hazards on day six at their worst with no clear lines and still incredibly slippery. The combination of Dougie's skill and experience plus the incredible reliability and performance of the fuel injected Combat came together at the important moment to see Lampkin further extend his gap over Brown come the finish, as his main rival failed to capitalise on his late starting position on the final day. 

With a winning margin of nine marks to collect his tenth and the second SSDT title for Vertigo Lampkin said. "As you can imagine this is a very special moment for me, my family and the Vertigo team. To win here last year on the Combat on its debut was amazing, but this feels even better to have been able to come back in not the best of circumstances and to be able to win again. Last year the prototype proved itself and today the production version of the Combat has shown just how good it is during what has been a tough week for all bikes and riders. I can't thank everyone at Vertigo and inside my own team for their incredible support and helping me achieve my tenth SSDT win after such a difficult few weeks. Roll on 2017, perhaps we can make it three in a row for Vertigo?" 

Third placed Dabill stated. "The week didn't start too well for me, but gradually I found my rhythm in these type of sections from Thursday onwards really. In the end I was able to finish quite strongly and to grab the final podium place feels like some reward for what has been a long and hard week. I am really pleased to see my friend and team mate Dougie lift the title again, as no man deserves it more than him. We have a great team spirit inside the Vertigo family and to have two Combats in the top three at the SSDT shows just how much everyone has been working once again. Well done Dougie and well done to everyone in the Vertigo team."