Riders paid a heavy price for the heavy rain that affected Red Rose Classic MCC’s championship trial at Float Bridge, near Nelson. Several days of showers beforehand had the left the venue, which is dominated by grassy hillocks, very soggy underfoot, and with one eye on next month’s Red Rose Classic – the final round of the Northern British Bike Championship – club officials and course plotters opted to try and preserve the ground by tightening the sections. That led to some high scores when the marks were added up after four laps of ten sections, with just one rider, John Wilson - who was on the Twin-shock clubman route- finishing in single figures. With many club members in action on the Manx International Classic Trial, including former world champion Yrjo Vesterinen, Scottish Pre-65 winner Paul Heys and club secretary Andrew Scott, numbers were restricted to 32 in the Pre-65 and Twin-shock classes.
In Class A, sole entrant John Gornall had a clear run to victory on his immaculate Norton despite clocking up 82 marks, and it was same in class D, where Eric Atkinson and his James dropped 33 marks to take the win.
Class C was a one-horse race too, with Alan Mills’ tally of 106 marks unchallenged.
There were just two contenders for class Ae, Chris Nutter and Mal Cocking, but Cocking’s retirement handed the win to Nutter and his Ariel with the loss of just 19 marks.
Class Ce was a much tighter battle with six marks separating the top three riders. Peter McCawley emerged top on his James, with Clive Tomkinson’s DMW second and the DOT of Maurice Brayford third.
The popular Twin-shock class saw John Hird and his Yamaha fend off class front runner David Wilkinson for victory, with Paul Whittaker (Fantic) third.
John Wilson, riding the Twin-shock clubman route, produced a great performance in very difficult conditions to drop only four marks, and finish well ahead of runner-up Chris Forshaw and third-placed Mel Dibb.
Red Rose Classic MCC would like to thank the landowner, the clerks-of-the-course Trevor Bennett and Mark Wilson, and the observers.
Their next event is the Red Rose Classic Trial on October 9, the final round of the Northern British Bike Pre-65 Road Trails Championship, which starts and finishes at Coldwell Activity Centre, near Nelson.
Class A: John Gornall (Norton) 82.
Class Ae: Chris Nutter (Ariel) 19
Class C: Alan Mills (Bantam) 106.
Class Ce: Peter McCawley (James) 24 Clive Tomkinson (DMW) 27, Maurice Brayford (DOT) 30.
Class D: Eric Atkinson (James) 33.
Class T: John Hird (Yamaha) 46, David Wilkinson (Honda) 68, Paul Whittaker (Fantic) 72.
Class Te: John Wilson (Yamaha) 4, Chris Forshaw (Montesa) 23, Mel Dibb (Bultaco) 24.