Great time for team games time...

Motocross des Nations, Trial des Nations, International Six Days Enduro and, whether you are interested or not, Ryder Cup golf. All team sports and all creating their own special atmosphere.

 

Like many of you I watched the MXdN (sorry, it will never be the Motocross of Nations to me) it has always been the des Nations – even I'm capable of understanding that little piece of French. It is a tradition and I'm a traditionalist. End of!

 

The bottom line though is that the MXdN was an amazing event. Everything that you want from a motocross. Brilliant track, almost as good as Hawkstone, a stunningly large crowd and the Americans getting beaten.

 

Come on, what more do you want? Okay, it would obviously have been better if the Brits had been on the podium but you can't have everything.

 

Even when viewed from the isolation of my lounge the atmosphere was tangible. 

 

And you don't need me to tell you how impossibly fast Herlings was. He was so fast he was levelling out the bumps, they just didn't exist. Absolutely awesome and if I could have teleported myself to Lommel for that race I'd have been there.

 

For those who made it, you have a memory for life.   

 

Moving on to the Trial des Nations the question remains, who is ever going to stop Spain? The answer in the Ladies is that Great Britain will. Our girls have the skill and determination to come out on top and I have every faith that they'll deliver.

 

As for the Spanish men, I'm afraid that there's still a good few years yet in the current squad – after that, well who knows?

 

Meanwhile, over at the ISDE the British teams were busy racking up individual Gold medals. And all hail to Paul Edmondson who bagged an incredible 18th Gold. Turning back the clock to his World Championship glory days, Fast Eddy rode a 125 two-stroke just like he'd never been away. 

 

What a competitor and any youngsters looking for a role model don't have far to look.

 

The future of British Enduro looks bright indeed thanks to that second place by the Junior Trophy squad. 

 

And given that talents like Jamie McCanney (stirring things up in the Trophy team after that late call-up when Knighter was forced to pull out) and the absent (through injury) Jonny Walker, there is much more strength in depth that should see Britain pushing for even more glory in the next few years.

 

As for that golf, well if anyone out there was looking for a lesson in perseverance and self belief then there was your pefect example. 

 

As someone once memorably said: "It ain't over till it's over!”