Dabill’s back in the old routine
By John Dickinson on 25th Mar 15
IT was certainly an all-action opening to the 2015 RT Keedwell sponsored British Trials Championship with two surprisingly high-scoring rounds in the south of England last weekend.
But it was the same indisputable winner in each case, whether hopping around in the confines of Hook Woods or blasting up the climbs of Butser Limeworks.
James Dabill had an understandably frustrating X-Trial season when he debuted the all-new Vertigo in the most brutal series, the all-or-nothing world of indoor trials.
That frustration continued right to the final round in Oviedo on Friday night but the second that was over James was off to Madrid airport and a flight back to Britain, ready to give the Vertigo Combat its first ever outdoor competitive outing.
It wasn't by any stretch of imagination the best preparation to begin the defence of his British title but ‘The Dibsta' produced a stunning ride in Hook Woods that put his rivals in the shade.
It was as if all the frustration of the past three months was vented on the BTC sections and his winning margin was beyond what anyone was expecting.
He then followed this up with an almost carbon copy the next day over a very different course in Butser.
The weekend's results must have given Manel Jane, the arch enthusiast behind Vertigo, a huge boost as – while the prestige of Indoor events is all very nice – in the real world it is all about performance and reliability outdoors.
And his new machine just passed its first real world test in the best possible way.
FOR FULL REPRT SEE TMX NEWS MARCH 26 (ISSUE 1964)
