Thorpe's got Jack in the box
By TMX Archives on 2nd Apr 08
DAN Thorpe cakewalked the Jack Wood National Trial on Sunday leaving Ian Austermuhle and a very switched-on Craig Robinson to head home Chris Pearson, Liam Walker and Sam Ludgate in the most controversial Jack Wood trial on record. Strange statistics from the old established Hillsborough club event show that with no obvious problems, why did no fewer than 64 riders drop out of a traditional national trial on a bright, sunny and dry, road-based trial? Out of a total of 150 entries that is some retirement percentage.
In the Clubman class Mick Boam did a Bemrose and defeated Darren Wasley and Anthony Cooper. This despite the fact that Daz had the entire might of Team Wasley stationed at the top of Rocher End to give him support for the final battle, the River Kwai, and Daz was on a brand new Gas Gas as well!
It was a day of casual marks for the front-runners, as Ian Austermuhle found when the Beta slid into the holly bush that guarded the exit line from the opener in Fletchers. Aran Drachenberg, John Sunter, Tim Pearson and Grant Morris also got well into the greenery. Aussie Morris was all for riding the Clubman route until some friendly Poms redirected him up the hard bit.
Report and Pictures: BARRY ROBINSON
The first six sections were mild but Dan Thorpe copped a failure on the sixth where seven riders out of 30 cleaned. Austermuhle and Sam Ludgate led the field when they arrived at an abbreviated two-section TCC group. Chris Pearson, runner-up last year to Lee Sampson, had a bad day in Fletchers with a dozen down while Liam Walker was another, with a five in the last sub in the group. Thorpe thought he was clean when he hit TCC but he was wrong, so Austy and Robinson were the lads chiming. Walker had a scrappy TCC with three marks on the two subs.
Ughill was strange, down the deep valley instead of up it. It was hard. Dan T pulled a mark back on Ian A while Robinson matched them on 10. Chris Pearson came out of hibernation after his dodgy start to ride the six subs for just seven marks so by the time they hit Hall Broom the scoreline put Ian in front on a dozen then Thorpe and Robinson locked on 14. Walker and Ludgate were standing firm on 17.
Austy, Ludgate and Adam Norris dropped a mark or two on the flat-in-second flight up 30 yards of wet rockery at Hall Broom. Only Thorpe and Norris cleaned the twisting beck banks at Spoon Lane then Bents got Dan for six so Ian had his nose in front again as the field checked out for the Hoyles group.
The final hurdles were the towering Rocher End with its six beck-bottom adventures and the infamous River Kwai, waiting for its victims.
Thorpe arrived at Rocher on 24, just a dab in front of Austermuhle with the ever-present Robinson hanging in there. Ian failed three times in Rocher, the bike-width stream with its savage slippery steps. Thorpe was brilliant but the second sub got him, and all the rest, apart from - right first time Craig Robinson who, with Jonathan Frost, got up for a dab.
Ian Austie did the Kwai for two dabs, but the bird had flown. Thorpe with a two and one had the Jack Wood Trophy in his hand.
As for the Clubmen, just read Mick Boam. The recent Bemrose winner delivered a no-stop ride through 49 sections for just 29 marks, more or less a carbon copy of his last result. A stop in Hollow Meadows, same as Wasley who footed in Ughill, Bents and Rocher End, more or less settled the winner though Anthony Cooper and Chris Koch were always close on hand to pick up the pieces. And how about Maria Conway, ninth home after an overnight dash from the Ladies World Champs in Luxembourg!
National Jack Wood Trial
Lumbush, nr High Bradfield (Hillsborough MCC)
National: Dan Thorpe (JST Gas Gas) 34 marks lost, Ian Austermuhle (Beta-UK) 47, Craig Robinson (JST Gas Gas) 48, Chris Pearson (MRS Sherco) 57, Liam Walker (JST Gas Gas) 75, Sam Ludgate (Beta-UK) 78, Thomas Hick (Beta) 86, Aran Drachenberg (Beta-UK) 101, John Sunter (Sandiford Montesa) 111, Adam Norris (Beta) 112.
Clubman: Mick Boam (Scorpa) 29, Darren Wasley (JST Gas Gas) 32, Anthony Cooper (Gas Gas) 52, Chris Koch (Beta) 57, Kevin HIpwell (JST Gas Gas) 63, Paul Sager (Scorpa) 72, Paul Bennett (Sherco) 73, Robert Bunting (Montesa) 80, Dave Knaggs (Gas Gas) 84, Maria Conway (Beta-UK) 86, Joe Harris (Gas Gas) 86.
For full pictures see T+MX NEWS, Friday, April 4, 2008