It's all about to happen...
By TMX Archives on 17th Feb 12
Winter was once a quiet time in the world of off-road - but not any more with the good news being theres LOADS going on.
Winter was once a quiet time in the world of off-road - but not any more with the good news being there's LOADS going on.
Don't know about anyone else but I always find this time of year really exciting. It's the start of a brand new season and almost every week there's a ‘first' event in a new discipline or a new series. Time was when all that happened in winter was a full trials programme (which of course there still is) with the odd club risking a snowy motocross or enduro which was 50/50 whether it would go ahead. Now, particularly as off-road sport has grown on the International front, there's all kinds of events and series to keep an eye on.
Such as? Well, such as the Sheffield Indoor Trial which, the first weekend in January, always heralds the start of a new year's sport and is followed by a full programme of Indoor trials which keeps the top riders fit and on form while giving the rest of us something to search for on the more obscure TV sports channels.
Then of course there's the truly awesome AMA motocross series, which the FIM also claim - rather cheekily I always thought - as a World Championship. I've been a great fan of the AMA SX ever since I discovered it in the 1980s when the series was rapidly growing, mainly through the epic battles between Ricky Johnson and David Bailey, two giants of the sport. That interest has been maintained through each new generation typified by the likes of Jeff Ward, Jeremy McGrath, Ricky Carmichael and now of course the likes of Ryan Villopoto, Chad Reed, James Stewart, Ryan Dungey et al.
We are of course always pleased to have some European interest, preferably British and over the past couple of seasons this has been supplied by the totally unexpected rise of Scot Dean Wilson. A rider, by his own admission, of no great shakes as a youth in his native Scotland but who blossomed into a superstar since moving with his family to Canada and from there California. It is worth watching the SX LItes just to hear Dean's unique Scottish, Canadian West Coast American accent on the interviews. It is truly unique!
Then there's the continued rise of the Extreme Enduro phenomenon. Just this week top Brit Graham Jarvis beat the Yanks in their own backyard to win a desert based Extreme in California. Good to see Graham, a quiet unassuming rider, who has always somehow seemed to be in the shadow of other riders his entire career, showing what a World Class talent he is. Which leads us into the Hell's Gate Extreme Enduro. Hell's Gate has taken over from the no longer run and much lamented Gilles Lalay event which used to take place around Limoges in France, the event that paved the way for all others that have followed - such as the WOR Events Tough One in Britain - which has already been staged this year. All this action already...and it's only February...
Which leads us into motocross and the Hawkstone International is right on us now. This event has morphed from the ashes of the old New Year's Day scramble which eventually proved to be just too much of a risk with an iced-up Hawkstone not a favourite place for riders. The International has proved to be a superb season opener giving the British hopefuls a chance to see how they stand against some International stars. If you haven't tried it you really should. It's a fantastic course and a good hard MX blasts out any winter lethargy you may be suffering from.
Hot on the heels of the International comes the ACU Maxixis British Championship. The FatCat venue in Doncaster is a brand new venue for the series and the deep sand venue should prove an exciting and fail-safe (hopefully) all weather facility should the freezing weather return.
And the National trials season is all set to explode into action this weekend with the excellent Wallace Cup, courtesy of the North Berks stalwarts followed rapidly by the historic, long-running Stratford club's Colmore Cup, an event which has been forced to evolve and move with the times due to continuing loss of venue. All credit to the Colmore organisers for sticking with it, finding new groups of sections and returning to some disused ones.
And then in April it will be time for the all-new No-Stop Doodson British Trials Champs when the Lochaber club get the chance to pioneer what is hopefully the start of a new era of British Championship action at their Kinlochleven venue deep in the Scottish Highlands.
And in amongst all this will be a myriad of one-off events and series opening rounds from humble club offerings up to World Championship in all disciplines, trials, motocross and enduro as the season builds inexorably to its full force. Bring it on.
FINALLY, just a personal note of sadness on learning of the vastly premature death of former World Trials Championship runner-up Diego Bosis. The Italian was not only a dynamic and stylish rider he was always a true gent and one whose skilful riding and quiet personality I always admired.
All I can say at this moment, as indeed I always did on meeting him is, "Ciao Diego” it was a pleasure knowing you.
Don't know about anyone else but I always find this time of year really exciting. It's the start of a brand new season and almost every week there's a ‘first' event in a new discipline or a new series. Time was when all that happened in winter was a full trials programme (which of course there still is) with the odd club risking a snowy motocross or enduro which was 50/50 whether it would go ahead. Now, particularly as off-road sport has grown on the International front, there's all kinds of events and series to keep an eye on.
Such as? Well, such as the Sheffield Indoor Trial which, the first weekend in January, always heralds the start of a new year's sport and is followed by a full programme of Indoor trials which keeps the top riders fit and on form while giving the rest of us something to search for on the more obscure TV sports channels.
Then of course there's the truly awesome AMA motocross series, which the FIM also claim - rather cheekily I always thought - as a World Championship. I've been a great fan of the AMA SX ever since I discovered it in the 1980s when the series was rapidly growing, mainly through the epic battles between Ricky Johnson and David Bailey, two giants of the sport. That interest has been maintained through each new generation typified by the likes of Jeff Ward, Jeremy McGrath, Ricky Carmichael and now of course the likes of Ryan Villopoto, Chad Reed, James Stewart, Ryan Dungey et al.
We are of course always pleased to have some European interest, preferably British and over the past couple of seasons this has been supplied by the totally unexpected rise of Scot Dean Wilson. A rider, by his own admission, of no great shakes as a youth in his native Scotland but who blossomed into a superstar since moving with his family to Canada and from there California. It is worth watching the SX LItes just to hear Dean's unique Scottish, Canadian West Coast American accent on the interviews. It is truly unique!
Then there's the continued rise of the Extreme Enduro phenomenon. Just this week top Brit Graham Jarvis beat the Yanks in their own backyard to win a desert based Extreme in California. Good to see Graham, a quiet unassuming rider, who has always somehow seemed to be in the shadow of other riders his entire career, showing what a World Class talent he is. Which leads us into the Hell's Gate Extreme Enduro. Hell's Gate has taken over from the no longer run and much lamented Gilles Lalay event which used to take place around Limoges in France, the event that paved the way for all others that have followed - such as the WOR Events Tough One in Britain - which has already been staged this year. All this action already...and it's only February...
Which leads us into motocross and the Hawkstone International is right on us now. This event has morphed from the ashes of the old New Year's Day scramble which eventually proved to be just too much of a risk with an iced-up Hawkstone not a favourite place for riders. The International has proved to be a superb season opener giving the British hopefuls a chance to see how they stand against some International stars. If you haven't tried it you really should. It's a fantastic course and a good hard MX blasts out any winter lethargy you may be suffering from.
Hot on the heels of the International comes the ACU Maxixis British Championship. The FatCat venue in Doncaster is a brand new venue for the series and the deep sand venue should prove an exciting and fail-safe (hopefully) all weather facility should the freezing weather return.
And the National trials season is all set to explode into action this weekend with the excellent Wallace Cup, courtesy of the North Berks stalwarts followed rapidly by the historic, long-running Stratford club's Colmore Cup, an event which has been forced to evolve and move with the times due to continuing loss of venue. All credit to the Colmore organisers for sticking with it, finding new groups of sections and returning to some disused ones.
And then in April it will be time for the all-new No-Stop Doodson British Trials Champs when the Lochaber club get the chance to pioneer what is hopefully the start of a new era of British Championship action at their Kinlochleven venue deep in the Scottish Highlands.
And in amongst all this will be a myriad of one-off events and series opening rounds from humble club offerings up to World Championship in all disciplines, trials, motocross and enduro as the season builds inexorably to its full force. Bring it on.
FINALLY, just a personal note of sadness on learning of the vastly premature death of former World Trials Championship runner-up Diego Bosis. The Italian was not only a dynamic and stylish rider he was always a true gent and one whose skilful riding and quiet personality I always admired.
All I can say at this moment, as indeed I always did on meeting him is, "Ciao Diego” it was a pleasure knowing you.
