Report: Nostalgia Trial - Cumbria Classic Nostalgia Weekend
By John Dickinson on 24th Aug 16
THE Cumbria Classic club got their always excellent Nostalgia weekend under way last Saturday with the Nostalgia Trial.
Staged at Holme Farm, Middleton, near Sedbergh the entry list was an entry well into three figures divided over Pre-65 and Twin-shock classes.
Following a week of really good weather, incessant rain tried but failed to put a damper on proceedings on Saturday.
And while there was some heavy scoring, as sections deteriorated due to the rain, the top riders still delivered some amazingly low marks.
With two laps of 20 sections, spread equally over two groups – the hillside sections proving much less affected by the weather than the group in the woods – three riders somehow contrived to drop just four marks.
Ben Butterworth, Robert Taylor and Yrjo Vesterinen were the standout performers.
Three-times Trial World Champion Vesty, riding his extremely well-sorted Bantam, ran away with the Pre-65 Two-stroke class, being particularly impressive on the graded hillclimb, the little BSA making a nonsense of a really difficult hazard.
The hill cut up badly, simply due to the rain and fives were the order of the day.
There were some awesome storming rides on the hill including last year's winner Colin Bailey with a cracking feet-up ascent on his big Ariel.
Colin finished third this year after a bad first lap which cost him twelve marks and saw him giving best to James Noble and local lad Michael Irving in an Ariel 1-2-3 finish.
Bobble Noble was riding with cracked ribs and feeling sore, the result of a mountain-bike crash, but managed to hold off a hard-charging Irv for Pre-unit Sprimger honours.
In the Two-strokes Vesty reigned supreme with laps of three and one to finish well clear of runner-up Richard Allen on a very tidy Francis Barnett.
Allen held off Mick Grant who sped off immediately after the trial to the Isle of Man, where he is involved in the Classic Manx Grand Prix.
And of course he will be riding the Manx Classic Two Day Trial.
Nigel Greenwood bagged fourth on his Bantam saying that he had had a great time and that the rain just made trials riding even better.
The Unit class proved to be a battle of the Triumph Cubs with Tony Calvert putting together a class last second lap in which he dropped just a single mark.
That eased him ahead of first-lap leader Paul Dennis in a Yorkshire 1-2, with Lancashire's Paul Heys right behind.
With Andrew Scott making it four Cubs in a row Mike Watson finally broke the stranglehold on his C15 BSA.
The most heavily populated class by a distance was the Twin-shock, which also boasted a refreshing variety of machinery as well as being spiced-up by younger riders on Pre-65 tackle.
Ben Butterworth on the immaculate Ariel actually completed his first lap without dropping a single mark, the only clean lap of the day.
Right behind was Robert Taylor who can really ride his 349 Montesa and he was only on a single mark after the opening 20 sections.
Ben then parted with four on his second lap while Robert kept his losses down to three for four apiece but the tie-break just came down in Ben's favour.
Chris Chell took a well-earned third on a 250 BSA following up an opening gambit of just five marks with a second lap of eight, a total of 13 keeping him ahead of Simon Hiscock's 200 Honda and the Fantic of Richard Jackson.
Nick Shield, who rode a Bultaco the previous weekend at the Newcastleton KIA Championship round, turned out on his 500 Triumph for the Nostalgia and rasped round to top the twins class on a cool eight marks, after completing his first lap for just a dab.
He was followed by north Yorkshire duo Kevin Chapman and Nev Pybus.
Variety was provided by Harry Stanistreet's unique Ariel Arrow engine Zundapp.
Craig Hunter was the sole finisher in the Rigid class on his little Bantam, while Mike Dorricott led Mick Whitlow home on their Cubs in the British Specials.
You can't fight the elements and the course plotters did their work in superb dry conditions on the run-up.
They did carry out planned alterations but you can only do so much and big thanks to them, to the observers and everyone who did a brilliant job.
With results available almost instantly the presentation took place just five minutes after the last rider finished – and all riders and officials received a bottle of Bluebird Bitter thanks to the generosity of Ian Bradley and his Coniston Brewing Company.
