This Sunday, the 17th October, saw the fifth and final round of the British Trials Cup take place at one of the UK’s best venues, Shipley Glen. Some fifty-five riders made the trip, some of them from as far as Essex, to compete in the national final, with decent entries in all categories. The weather was on side as well and everyone was treated to clear skies and sunshine for the duration of the trial, a good job, as the ground had been wet and frosty early in the morning when the organisers arrived. Despite the high turnout however, several of the top elite riders were conspicuous by their absence and it was a real shame not to see them competing in the national final.Long-standing event sponsors Onza were on hand, supplying the medals for the final and trophies for the Cup and displaying their range of bikes and parts, with the all important spare tubes etc. on sale for those riders unlucky enough to need them! The series’ new sponsor Phat Works were also there and supplied souvenir shirts for the winners of the final and goody bags containing brake pads (including some limited edition gold backed pads, only available to the winners of each class!), shirts and stickers for the overall podium finishers. Also up for grabs was the new British Trials Cup, which was to be awarded to the overall winner of the Elite 24"/26" class. The Cup will be engraved with the name of each year’s winner, providing a reminder of past winners. It also features an engraving on the reverse, "In Memory of Gavin Bedford", to remind us each year of a dedicated and enthusiastic trials rider and competitor who can no longer be with us.

As usual, riders had to complete two laps of eight sections giving a total of 16 sections and a possible 80 points! The sections themselves, which had been set by Fred Savage and Mick Scrivens, were of a very high difficulty level with a good mix of big, scary moves and technical passages, so their was plenty to test everyone to their limits. The scores reflected this, ranging from 3 to 78, and the top riders were all fairly well separated.

Elite

Elite class, as usual, saw some excellent performances, with riders negotiating dizzy heights, chasm-like gaps and tight, technical passages. Many spectators were in awe of the sections, which many of them could not believe were possible to get through, even on foot! Indeed, many of the Elite riders opted to take a five rather than attempt one or two of the harder sections. Onza and Tribal Rider Jack Carthy took the win in the 20” competition, finishing as he did with 38 points on his card. He was followed by Tom Rankin on 46 and Rob Poyser on 65. The sections obviously did their job, with large gaps between the top riders in this class! The Cup podium was an exact mirror of that of the final, with Jack taking the overall win after an excellent season that has seen him on the podium of almost every competition he’s entered. Tom and Rob completed the podium in second and third respectively. 26” saw some exciting action as Cup leaders James Hyland and Dave Kerr battled it out for both the top spot in the final and for the overall victory and the coveted British Trials Cup. With just one point separating them, the winner of the final would take home the cup! Both riders put in excellent performances though, with plenty of cleans and ones on their cards. James finished his first lap on 11 points, with one five in section four. Dave came in just behind with 15 points on his card, but with no fives. Dave put in an excellent ride on his second lap, getting through every section on a clean or a one and finishing the lap on just five points, compared to James’ seven. Unfortunately it just wasn’t enough and James finished on 18 points to take the win and the Cup. Dave took second on 20 and third place went to Michael Singleton on 58. Third place in the Cup went to Andrew Walker after a consistent season with some good results, despite his recently broken collarbone. Tribal Rider Steve Rogers finished in 6th place, a disappointing result for the young Essex rider after a bad fall on his second lap saw him lose a finger nail (and almost a finger!), forcing him to take fives in his remaining sections. Kudos for still finishing though Steve-O – what a trooper!

Elite 20” Podiums

Elite 26” Podiums

Expert

The Expert competition was much more closely fought, in both 20” and 26” categories. Tribal Rider Ryan Crisp had an excellent and consistent ride, working his way through the sections with skill and efficiency to finish on just 21 points. His first lap saw him drop fourteen points, thanks largely to unlucky fives in sections five and eight. He picked himself back up on his second lap however, halving his score to finish on a total of 21 to take the win. Alec Wray and Will Arnold battled it out for second place and what a battle it was! They both finished on 28 and had to be separated on most cleans, with Alec just edging Will out to finish in second. Alec took the overall win having won three of the four rounds he entered and finished second in the fourth. Ryan took second place and Tribal Rider Jamie Bew finished in third place in the Cup after an excellent first season in Expert! Jack Meek finished on 41 in the 26” competition, taking the win over Jamie Pedrosa (45) and Tom Rigg (64). These three riders were also on the Cup podium, but Jaime took the overall win ahead of Tom in second and Jack in third.

Expert 20” Podiums

Expert 26” Podiums

Cadet

Bradley Stead rode very well in Cadet Class, bravely attempting the bigger moves and finishing with a total of 51 to finish on the top of the podium. Andrew McCabe, who struggled on his first lap, picked up on his second and finished in second on 62 ahead of Iwan Osbourne on 69. Andrew took the overall Cup win after a solid season with top three finishes in three of the four rounds he entered. Tribal Rider Ben Swales finished fifth in the final second overall and John Padley finished off the Cup podium.

Cadet Podiums

Intermediate

The blue route saw some of the lowest scores of the day, with winner Owen Gawthorpe finishing with just three points on his card, ahead of Jack Chapman on five and Chris Bland on 20. It was Jack who finished in first place in the Cup with two wins, two seconds and a third under his belt. He was followed by Owen Gawthorpe, who has shown considerable improvement over the season, and Jed Hesling who’s consistent performances meant that he was always near the top of the table.

Intermediate Podiums

Novice

Nine year old Tribal Rider and trials prodigy Charlie Rolls finished first in the Novice competition dropped just five points (all ones) over both laps to finish in first place, ahead of Glenn Hanslip (17) and Adam Morewood (20). Charlie also took the overall win, having won all but two of the rounds this season. He was followed by Adam Morewood who had just lost out to Charlie in most rounds, although he was responsible for Charlie two second place finishes, beating him in Essex and Matlock. Tribal Rider Sam Rolls completed the Cup podium after a consistent season which saw him on the podium in all but the final round. Great work guys!

Novice Podiums

Primary

White route was won by Aden Firth-Corner with 13 dabs, ahead of Ryan Manthorpe (14) and Reece Jones (22). Reece took the overall win, with Aden in second and Ryan in third.

Primary Podiums

Full Results

Final:

British Trials Cup:

Thanks to:

As the season comes to a close, it’s time to thank everyone who has helped to make it such an enjoyable one – the organisers, helpers, riders and spectators; in particular Barbara Wright without who’s tireless efforts none of this would happen, Brian Wright, Fred Savage, Mick Scriven and Mick Carthy for setting the sections for each round and helping with the smooth running of every event, Joe Poyser at Onza for his continued support and presence, Mike Singleton at Phat Works for sponsoring the final and providing the prizes and all of the observers and score counters who are so dedicated and valuable and without whom we wouldn’t be able to run the event at all! Thank you all!

Photos