Mitchellin man
By TMX Archives on 26th May 10
May has been a hectic month in the trials calendar with the Scottish Six Days followed closely by the British Championship round in Devon and now it's off to Wales for round four this weekend with the Mitchell Trial in Merthyr Tydfill.
James Dabill has got away to a dream start in the ACU Events sponsored series winning all three rounds to date and he is riding with a champion's confidence. Michael Brown has taken second at Scarborough, Lochaber and the Anthony Rew trial down at Kelly farm two weeks ago and Browny now need to take some first places quickly to ensure James does not get out of reach. The Sherco ace bagged the win at this venue last year after Dibs had suffered a first lap crash that meant a major bike rebuild.
Shaun Morris has been very consistent this season and currently holds third in the Championship. Shaun is capable of grabbing a win, especially if the rocks are big and dry or could Scottish winner Alexz Wigg - or one of the others - upset the apple cart and get on the podium?
Gary Macdonald and Ian Austermuhle have been setting the pace in Experts A. Both were superb in the recent SSDT and with Gary recently getting the Devon win he currently leads the class, but by a single point only. Jack Sheppard came close to a second place in Devon but had to settle for the final place on the podium after a second lap slip put paid to his chances of challenging for the win. But Jack has Youth on his side and he already looks very much at home in this group. After starting the season well Jonny Walker has been off the pace over the past couple of rounds and the PJ1 supported rider will also be looking to get his season back into shape as he currently stands in fifth place behind Jack Spencer.
In the always packed Expert B class, Darren Brice tops the list with three first places to date on the Yam-engined Scorpa. John Crinson and Guy Kendrew are his main challengers at the moment and are both in good form although Brice has already opened up an 18 point lead so the Cumbrian is going to take some catching. The B Group has been the best supported rider group in 2010 and there should be a full entry once again.
The venue for the event is the former World Championship venue at Morlais Quarry which was successfully re-used for the last couple of years and the organisers have been hard at work finding new sections and fine tuning some interesting hazards. Expect some rocks - and then some more with climbs! If those are not to your fancy then there is the wooded section which offers some alternative hazards.
Morlais Quarry will be signed off the A465 Heads of the Valley road. Spectator viewing is good with plenty of subs within easy reach and there will be 12 sections on offer with three laps to be completed in the five hours 30 minutes time limit. Signing-on will be available on Saturday with the practise session taking place between two and four pm. The trial is due to start with the Expert B class at 9.30am on Sunday and there will be a riders meeting 30 minutes before the first rider is away .