A real Christmas Cracker
By TMX Archives on 19th Dec 07
CHRIS Pearson won the final round of the Yorkshire Centre trials championship at Ughill on Sunday with a classy three-mark ride on a course devised superbly by Dave Aspinall aided by Dave Knaggs and Mick Glaves. Pearson's ride was quality at lofty and remote Ughill where two laps and 20 sections attracted 100 starters for Hillsborough's annual Christmas Trial.
CHRIS Pearson won the final round of the Yorkshire Centre trials championship at Ughill on Sunday with a classy three-mark ride on a course devised superbly by Dave Aspinall aided by Dave Knaggs and Mick Glaves. Pearson's ride was quality at lofty and remote Ughill where two laps and 20 sections attracted 100 starters for Hillsborough's annual Christmas Trial.
The big guns were out in force, Dan Thorpe, Dan Farrer, a brace of Pearsons, Richard Timperley and Adam Jones, all intent of preventing Repsol Beta runners Ben Hemingway and Jack Challoner making any progress in the Centre championship standings. For a start, Little Hemmo was a walking pharmacy with a serious breathing problem and a load of antibiotics stuffed down him. Challoner had been sunning himself in Italy (sorry, practising with Michael Brown) so he was pleading jet lag and seeking dry, dusty rock sections.
Chris Clarke stuck with the Clubman plot to beat, just, Katy Sunter, while the king of the downhill cycle pedallers Steve Peat slotted into third place a dab behind Miss Sunter. Steve's full-song attack on the big climb in Milky Bar Wood was classic.
The trial was the final scoring event for the Centre championship but the sections were befitting of a national trial and second group Buckleys is pure Jack Wood country. The opener looped across the beck onto a frozen grassy bank then across the rocks and the beck followed by a left switch and out over a fallen tree onto angled rocks. Thirteen riders either failed the climb or stopped to re-align – and that copped a five. This was a no-stop event! Only Pearson cleaned on lap one and he had a wild moment on the frozen grass. Farrer and Hemmo had a dab on the exit while Thorpe toppled off the rocks at the end and ended up paddling to get out. The best get-off was when Jason Turner lost the left bar and at the same time wound-up the go-grip on the 4RT. Jason went down hard.
Clarke dabbed the Clubman route twice while Katy Sunter used her softly softly approach to run clean. Steve Peat, Mark Timperley, Youth Ben Powell and Will Longden all had it sorted. Hilda and Rupert Ellison had a quiet day at the switchback second where two big ups, and four very steep downs tested all. Hemmo, Challoner and Timperley all slacked marks on this. The third pottered about in the narrow beck where Pearson took a single on the exit roots. Phil Granby was at the fourth where the kink at the end caught Challoner for a dab when the front wheel slid away. Farrer and Adam Jones also took a single on the turn while Peat and Mark Timperley went the same way and Katy lost the plot on lap two.
The coursed tracked to the top of Ughill ravine where the fifth got Pearson for his second dab. Hemmo and Jones slacked a dab on this but Peat fived it and that sunk his Clubman hopes.
Pearson cleaned all Buckleys and all Milky Bar Wood until Judy Farrer had a dab from him on the rocks on 19 where the steep mud climb demanded some fire power. Farrer closed the gap on Thorpe who fived the big hill at 14 where David Pearson clocked Hemingway, Wasley and Gavin Black in the maxumum column. Katy took a single on the loose stuff at 15 where Andy Longden observed a few flailing llegs on the glassy final yards in the wood.
The light was going as Hillsborough hit its target time of 3.30pm, in the pub, wrapped-up and cleared-up. It was an event that could have been rubbish in December – but excellent section-marking turned the Christmas Trial into a Christmas Cracker.
YORKSHIRE CENTRE CHAMPS TRIAL
Ughill (Hillsborough MCC)
Expert: Chris Pearson (MRS Sherco) 3 marks lost, Dan Thorpe (JST Gas Gas) 10, Dan Farrer (JST Gas Gas) 10, Jack Challoner (Repsol Beta) 14, Ben Hemingway (Repsol Beta) 22.
Inter: Darrren Wasley (Gas Gas) 56, Tim Pearson (Sherco) 65, Ross Crosby (Montesa) 68.
Novice: Antony Cooper (Gas Gas) 61, Ben Robinson (Beta) 90, Gavin Lowther (Gas Gas) 107.
Youth A: Jack Challoner 14.
Youth B: Tyler Stephenson (Gas Gas) 82.
Clubman: Chris Clarke (Beta) 17, Katy Sunter (JST Gas Gas) 19, Steve Peat (Beta) 20, Mark Timperley (Scorpa) 27, Ben Powell (Beta) 33, Tom Dexter (Sherco) 34.
Youth: Tom Dexter (Sherco) 34, Ben Burgin (Gas Gas) 67, 3 Sam Yeadon (Beta) 79.
for full pictures see T+MX News, Friday, December 21, 2007
PICTURE: tmx_041_003_21-12-07