I have always been fond of the Torbay Trial as it is local and I have had many enjoyable days photographing the event but always with a feeling that I should be out there with them rather than just recording it. I had a Triumph Metisse that I had used for Pre 65 Scrambling and which I had been slowly preparing for Green Laneing and despite the machine being far from finished I submitted an entry for the 2019 Trial. I finally had to concede that I still had not made the bike reliable so the day before the event changed to my normally utterly reliable 500 Triumph only for that to develop an electrical fault on the third section which forced a retirement so the Torbay Trial was very much unfinished business.
I entered the 2020 event but that fell victim to the list of Covid cancellations, which brings me to the 2021 event which ran with Covid considerations although these affected the Car competitors more than it did the Motorcycles.
My choice of machine might not be regarded as Ideal as it carried more weight than I would have liked but I have always been more interested in machinery than competition and with 2020 being a lost year I was able to iron out a number of faults that were waiting to trip me up. I have a long love-hate relationship with the bike but it was running very nicely by the time of the event so I was hopeful that I would be a greater liability than the machine.
Much of the Trial was run on private land as spectators were not allowed due to the Covid restrictions.
The first five sections were in Ashcombe Woods, which very quickly demonstrated how out of practice I was although I suspect that many would have been similarly affected. I had managed a few cleans by the time I left the woods for a section of road work to two sections at Coombehead Creek, which was where I had previously broken down so when I left there with another two lucky cleans and a bike still running nicely I was feeling quite hopeful.
An unnecessary foot at Workshop Windout was a good wakeup call.
My biggest mistake was at Nicks Nip. This was a steep muddy climb with a turn at the bottom, and I planned to get as much speed as I could from the corner and see how far I could get before I slithered to a stop. What happened was quite different. The bike must have thought I was Scrambling and found so much grip at the bottom that I cleared the bog completely and as I had not planned to reach the top, I passed the section ends board with very little control of the bike and soon ended up on my ear. The speed of the finish Marshal getting out of the way was very impressive.
The next few sections passed without incident and the rock surface at Tipley was so dry that it actually had some grip, which was a disappointment in a way having managed to get in so much trouble there previously.
I had been circulating with Richard Cook.
Running immediately after me Richard and I had a very nice return ride to Ashcombe Woods via a route which included some lanes that I was familiar with from Green Laneing and arrived about an hour before the last three sections and special test were due to open, which was a good excuse for some lunch. Just to remind us that it was the Torbay a brief flurry of snow passed through as a warning that nothing should be taken for granted.
The last three sections were much like the first five.
I was a little less rusty by this time so that was a help and whilst waiting I was given much good advice on tyres and pressures etc which will be very useful.
I have included a picture of Matthew Little and Richard Miller on their Ariel outfit as despite the unsuitability of the machine they were constantly in good spirits and clearly enjoying the day, which is the object of the exercise after all.
The Torbay Trial was an extremely enjoyable event and it was very much to the credit of the Torbay Club that it was so well supported despite the problems associated with the Covid restrictions.
For me it was very pleasing to reach the finish with the bike still running well but this does present a new problem in that as much as I enjoy photographing trials I would like to press my luck and use the Metisse a bit more often. I can see a bit of juggling will be needed.
Click Here to enjoy some of the many Trials Photographs Peter has published
Comments, Corrections, Criticism & Concerns are all welcome. You can leave a comment to have your say or tell us about your trial.
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