Champs chase!
By John Dickinson on 20th Dec 13
MICHAEL Brown heads into the 2014 British Trials Championship as the reigning champ - and the good news is that after just four scoring rounds in 2013 next years series has been boosted to seven.
You can check-out the British Championship dates - plus every other National series - in our monster off-road calendar on the centre pages.
Although the series kicks-off at Bootle (Cumbria) on Sunday, April 6, the Champs is basically summer-based with no fewer than four rounds in August before ending with a double-header in the West Country on the weekend September 20/21.
The Bootle round was the decider this year as reigning champ James Dabill and Browny went head to head. It was the first British Championship round that the Lakes Motorcycle Trial Association (LMTA) had staged so the pressure was well and truly on.
With the benefit of that inaugural round under their belts Nigel Birkett, Gary Gowan and co will be in a much stronger position to stage a cracking opening round on Fell Green.
It is a very fine line between marking out a section which is neither too easy or impossible especially when you are trying to produce sections to suit World Championship contenders like Dibs and Browny as well as up and coming lads trying to make their mark in the British Championships while making them none stop friendly.
The extra rounds are to be applauded and include a brand new round in Scotland which is excellent news.
The Edinburgh club (which stages the Scottish Six Days) has its trial planned to take place on August 17 at Hume Quarry, Kelso, in the Borders - so there's no mega trek north to Kinlochleven or Fort William and any new round is to be applauded.
With the double-header in the south west to finish the series 2014 British Champs should be a cracker.
