TMX SAYS: It’s a good month to get all nostalgic

A good few years back I spoke to a sports psychologist in relation to a feature we were running in Dirt Bike Rider magazine at the time. He was adamant that certain things like smells or colours could help put athletes in their happy place which would in turn trigger behaviours that would increase their performance as a result.

As a racer I always hated the heat of summer and would perform much better in autumnal conditions. In fact, the majority of my race wins came in September when the weather was a wee bit cooler and the tracks held a little bit more moisture. 

From a psychological viewpoint, winning obviously made me happy and since the majority of my strong performances came around this time of year, it's easy to figure out why the cool, crisp mornings improve my mood – even now.

It's subtle triggers like those that help make nostalgia such big business. Around 500 riders will converge on Farleigh Castle this weekend for the VMXdN and I can guarantee you that the smells, sights and sounds will evoke a stack of positive emotion in almost everyone present.

It's not just reminders of faded memories that make this event a must-see for off-road enthusiasts. Yes, the collection of old bikes, old kit and old riders is totally awesome but what makes this event even better is the massive line-ups and amazing racing. 

Every position from first to 60th (yeah the line-ups here are old-school GP, plus 50 per cent extra free) is hard fought over but the camaraderie between class-mates ensures that no matter how brutal the on-track scraps, nothing spills over into the pits. That's exactly how it should be and the VMXdN serves as a much needed reminder that off-road motorcycle racing is meant to be fun – I think that fact gets forgotten far too frequently.

Feet-up fans can get an old-school fix this weekend n'all as the Manchester 17 club run the Hipwell Trial in the Peak District National Park. The Hipwell brothers – that's Kev and Andy – have really gone all out to create a classic event with a bunch of stunning sections that will be covered twice. There's a little road work involved so it's perhaps not for everyone but if any of you trials riders do fancy a challenge this weekend then it's well worth travelling over to Derbyshire for.

I've seen pictures of some of the sections and they really remind me of the kind of thing I witnessed as a kid when my old man drove us the short distance to Pott Shrigley so we could watch the Northern Experts trial every year. Thinking about it now they were great times so maybe I'll have a drive down and check out that action myself – I hope there's plenty of Ellgren kit about... 

Whatever it is that you do this weekend I hope you have a good time because like I said before off-road motorcycling is meant to be fun. Enjoy it!