Report: Manx Two Day Trial
By TMX Archives on 31st Aug 16
After two second places and countless thirds, Barry Kinley finally won the National Manx Two-Day Trial at the weekend 19 years after his first attempt.
It was a win that he feared had passed him by, but the 35-year-old did it in style with a clear 20-mark victory margin over fellow local, Tom Maddrell.
A failed attempt at the third section of the trial at Knock Froy very nearly saw Kinley an early retirement when a hefty collision with a rock punched a hole in the bottom of his Beta's clutch cover, allowing oil to rapidly escape. Help was at hand from Mick Thurman with some chemical metal that sealed the hole and held for the rest of the weekend.
His only other mechanical was a couple of broken rear spokes on a big step at Poyll Vaaish, which led to a broken chain tensioner.
Maddrell had problems of a different kind when he mistakenly rode the Clubman route on the opening sub, meaning he was playing catch-up from the start.
Kinley got round the opening 42 sections for an estimated score of nine, only to learn he had been docked a five and a three on sections close together at Scarlett Farm. This put him on 17 for the day – four less than Maddrell.
Ben Sprigg, who was out of action with a hand injury for part of the year, was on 34, one ahead of Nigel Sharp.
Guildford's Guy Chandler led the Clubman class on a Honda 4RT, a late change from a 250 Beta.
He got round for a couple of dabs and a single three to lead local rider Wayne Wardell by three, with Stephen Murphy a single mark down on him with ten.
Murphy was closely followed by Vertigo-mounted Nigel Crowther, who was made to rue a five and a snapped chain on the rocky middle sub at Old Stoney.
Day two was concentrated in the north of the island, initially in the Laxey area then a couple of novel sections in the boat park at Ramsey.
Snubby's glen proved difficult, while Laxey beach also took a lot of marks.
The trial finished with two regular hazards at White City on the Onchan headland and a man-made hazard at Knock Froy.
Kinley ended on 27, made up of seven ones, a single two and a three, plus three fives.
MRS Sherco-mounted Sprigg finished five down on the Knight Gas Gas of Maddrell, with Sharp edging out Llanfyllin's Andy Lee for fourth spot.
Chandler extended his lead in the Clubman class to finish six clear of Northern Ireland's Stephen Murphy, who ousted local Wayne Wardell with a day-two score of seven for a total of 16.
Olly Megson had the joint-best Sunday score of five with the winner to leap-frog from fifth to third on 17.
The weekend event, the last to be held over the August Bank Holiday weekend – next year's will be in mid-July – involved a total mileage of 80, with 78 observed sections.
British champions, Nigel Crellin and Chris Molyneux, won the Sidecar class for the second year in succession.
Trailing overnight leaders Daryl Dale and Hannah Etherington by two marks at the end of day one, the Nigel Birkett and Juan Knight-supported Scorpa pairing turned it around on Sunday in the south of the island.
The revelations of the weekend were Crellin's cousin William Caine and passenger Beth Thomas.
The runaway Sportsman class leaders in the ACU British Sidecar Trials Championship were third at the midway point, one behind Crellin/ Molyneux and three ahead of multiple Manx Two-Day winner Robin Luscombe and son Sam in their first event for two years.
The young Manx crew had another excellent ride on Sunday on a route that started in the Baldwin and Central Valleys, and ended with old favourites like South Barrule Quarry and Billown Glen.
Crellin and Molyneux completed the final 43 hazards for a loss of nine to finish on 20, while Caine and Thomas added ten to their opening gambit of 12 to tally 22 – five fewer than Dale and Etherington, who slithered from first to third on 27.
The Luscombes were forced to settle for fourth on what they regarded as a ‘social weekend', with another father and son pairing, Adrian and Aaron Smith, fifth.
The final two First-class awards went to surprise crew Damian Owen and Gareth Temple, and last-minute pairing Peter Dale and Chris Kimber.
