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Adrian Marfell was best car overall but all eyes were on the championship showdown after a season long battle between David Haizelden and Paul Merson
Amongst the cars it was a closely fought battle with five Class Eights, two Class Fours and and two Class Fives covered by a mere four marks. In the end the win went to Adrian Marfell in his rail on 25 points with Paul Merson, Dan Keat and Aaron Haizelden on 26. David Haizelden and Emma Groves finished with 27, Emma impressing everyone with her performance in the unfamiliar Troll. Continue reading “David Haizelden Clinches Wheelspin on Camel”
Adrian Marfell wins in a Class 6 Beetle. The provisional results had Sam Holmes as the winner but these were revised when Adrians penalty on Gattens Gamble was scrubbed.
Continue reading “Clee Hills Trial”
Adrian Marfell takes a Narrow Win in the Mud
It was a very close fight for overall honours, the top six all finishing a few points from one another. Pete Hart joined the top Class 8 contenders for overall honours, finishing fifth overall as well as winning Class 7, gaining the Boyne Trophy for doing so three years in secession. Pete wasn’t the only Boyne winner, Keith Sanders joining him for his performance in Class 5.
The Clee used its familiar split route, albeit with some different sections. Clerk of the Course Adrian Tucker-Peake had hoped to reintroduce Hungerford but the exit track became impassable a few days before the event after an errant piece of farm machinery clipped a bank, bringing down more material than could be cleared in time.
The Long Mynd Loop wasn’t a problem for the Higher Classes
Seven and Eight started with the “Long Mynd” loop which didn’t present any problems to the main contenders until Priors Holt 1 where Dudley Sterry was defeated by the loose stones. Venturing out on the “Muddy Loop” the sump on Strefford Wood 1 didn’t claim as many victims as usual and around half the 7’s and 8’s got to enjoy the long blast.
The traditional Meadowley section was next on the agenda. The ruts and tree roots only defeated three cars but one of them was Simon Woodall who dropped four. If Simon had gone clean like his rivals he would have won overall, such is trialling!
Seven and Eight Start to Loose Marks
As the muddy loop continued the 7’s and 8’s started to loose marks. Pete Hart (Marlin), Adrian Marfel (Lancia Special) and Mike Chatwin (DP Wasp) were all clean when they arrived at The Jenny Wind. All three lost a single mark here to remain in a three way tie for the lead. This was was followed by the new, and unpopular Jenny Windout where Adrian lost 8, Pete and Mike only 7.
Mike Chatwin and Pete Hart drop marks to Adrian Marfell on the muddy Easthope 1
The results of the trial were finally decided on the very, very muddy Easthope 1 which Adrian cleaned, Mike dropped 2 and Pete 4. All the leading contenders cleaned the remaining sections so it was Adrian Marfell in his Lancia powered rail that won the Fray trophy, dropping nine marks, no doubt helped by having the experienced Giles Greenslade in the passenger seat. Mike Chatwin was second overall, dropping 10, Simon Woodall third on 11 and Pete Hart, Dudley Sterry and Dean Partington on 12.
A Muddy Start for the Lower Classes
The lower classes embarked on the muddy loop first and didn’t fare very well in the clag. In particular Hilltop was a problem and nobody got more than a few yards, wallowing in the mud for an 11 or 12.
James Shallcross was in a class of his own amongst the saloons and older cars, winning Class 1 by a big margin, in particular showing everyone the way on Strefford Wood 3 and Easthope 1.
Terry Ball Looses his Boyne on the new Pinstones Section
Keith Sanders won Class 5 and a Boyne Trophy but Terry Ball lost his opportunity to do like wise when he failed Pinstones. This new section featured two hairpins on grass. The second one was very tight and competitors were allowed one reverse to get round. It was still pretty difficult, especially for cars that are a bit light on the front end. Sam and Mick Holmes won and all Beetle Class 4 and Vic lockley Class 6
Back at the Finish for an Early Bath
The efficient route and no lunch break meant an early finish and cars were back at The Craven Arms around 3 in the afternoon. So concluded another successful Clee Hills Trial. Some great new sections and some not so good. However, based on their past performance we can depend on the organisers learning from competitors comments and continuing to improve their trial year by year.
| Overall | Adrian Marfell (Lancia Special) | 9 |
| 0A | Ed Wells (Dutton Melos) | 28 |
| 0B | Chris Maries (Suzuki X90( | 30 |
| 1 | James Shallcross (Peugeot 205) | 27 |
| 2 | David Golightly (Ford Model A) | 47 |
| 3 | James Smith (BMW 318i) | 56 |
| 4 | Sam Holmes (VW Beetle) | 36 |
| 5 | Keith Sanders (Reliant Scimitar SS1) | 36 |
| 6 | Vic Lockley (VW beetle) | 46 |
| 7 | Pete Hart (Marlin) | 12 |
| 8 | Mike Chatwin (DP Wasp) | 10 |
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Adrian Marfell wins a tough, High Scoring, Kyrle Trial
Adrian took an early lead, clearing both of the unbelievably steep hills near Monmouth and going on to drop only one mark in the mud bath at Ropers. The trial was won on these first three sections, as second place man Dean Partington dropped thirteen in this group, compared to Adrian’s one. There had been a fair bit of rain during the preceding week, adding slurry to the Kyrle’s near vertical sections.
The first two hills were just up the road from the start, competitors briefly entering Wales as they headed west on the A40. Both Pillbox and Goldsmiths 2 were un-believably steep, muddy and rutted with a re-start on Goldsmiths 2 for seven and eight. Adrian was one of ten class eights to clean both of these two horrors. The other classes didn’t fare very well, especially on Goldsmiths 2, where it was very hard to get around the 90 left just up from the start. A special shout-out to Derek Tyler (VW Baja), Sticker Martin (Ford Escort) and Tony Young (VW beetle) who not only got around the corner but went on to clear the section.
Ropers was one of the few non-forestry sections on the event. Approached by a steep descent down to the River Wye, the section is a PCT style muddy bank, with penalties for hitting the markers. Apart from supermen Adrian Marfell and Simon Woodall, who both got as far as the one marker, nobody else got more than half way. Then came the next challenge, getting up the exit road, fearsome enough to be a section itself. Not so bad for the sevens and eights, but a problem for some of the lower classes, causing an appreciable delay.
It was back to forestry for the next group of sections, comprising Jack, Jill the first special test, and Pludds. All familiar Kyrle favourites. Dean Partington threw down a challenge here, cleaning all three to close the gap on Adrian Marfell. Elsewhere most others floundered on some, or all, of the sections, apart from Adrian Dommett whose supercharged Wolseley Hornet stormed up all three, not bad for class two! In class four Emma Robilliard had already had three punctures and Tony Young was struggling with a dead starter motor and wasn’t enjoying the delays.
Next came a whole string of muddy forestry sections, many of which had no exit at the top, necessitating a perilous descent with the handbrake as they were all pretty steep. Snompers was the only one to see many cleans.
The last two sections offered some respite from the gradient, but not the mud! They were both new to the event and Paul Bartleman and Simon Groves are to be congratulated for finding them as they were different to all the forestry and consequently added character to the day.
Shapridge was in forestry but no tree weaving here. After a short time it turned into a real Crackington, only much more so, the mud and ruts extending as far as the eye could see! No problem for most of the class eights but event leader Adrian Marfell dropped six, dropping him within seven marks of Dean Partington. In class three Richard Hayward cleaned both this one and the last section to pip Sticker Martin for the class win. Tony Young was still going, despite his starter problems, powering his raucous Beetle through the mud for a resounding class win as he was so far in front he could have dropped twelve on the last one! Keith Sanders was another to do well here, his clean giving him a class win in a class five rather decimated by retirements.
The final section, called High Hope, was another new one, approached by a long, very muddy track, which was nothing compared to the section to come. It was a great section though, skirting a farmyard before an assault up a semi-surfaced track before a “chicane” and more mud. No problem to class eight but tough for the rest. Class seven was decided here, Ray Goodright (Arkley) just holding onto his lead despite dropping four. Derek Tyler (VW Baja Beetle), Murray Montgomery-Smith (Marlin) and Brian Colman (Dutton Phaeton), all cleaned it but Ray held onto his class win by two marks.
| Best Overall | Adrian Marfell (VW Special) | 16 |
| Class Winners | ||
| 1 | David Haizelden (VW Golf GTi) | 99 |
| 2 | Adrian Dommett (Wolesley Hornet) | 54 |
| 3 | Richard Hayward (Ford Escort) | 64 |
| 4 | Tony Young (VW Beetle) | 62 |
| 5 | Keith Sanders (Reliant Scimitar SS1) | 76 |
| 6 | Gary Browning (VW Beetle) | 57 |
| 7 | Ray Goodright (Arkley) | 68 |
| 8 | Dean Partington (DP Wasp) | 23 |
| 0 | Rodney Green (Ford Escort) | 51 |
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Adrian Marfell Wins Allen Trial
Adrian was one of six drivers with a clean sheet, pipping Andrew Martin by a second on the special tests to take overall victory. Andrew looks pretty unassailable in the Wheelspin. In the Crackington Dave Haizelden’s win puts him in front of Simon Groves who could only mange fourth in class after dropping eight on Big Uplands.
| Best Overall | Adrian Marfell (VW Special) | 0 |
| Class Winners | ||
| 1 | David Haizelden (VW Golf GTi) | 0 |
| 2 | Bill Bennett (MG J2) | 0 |
| 3 | Sticker Martin (Ford Escort) | 0 |
| 4 | Emma Robilliard (VW Beetle) | 1 |
| 5 | Keith Sanders (Reliant Scimitar SS1) | 1 |
| 6 | Mike Hobbs (VW Beetle) | 17 |
| 7 | Andrew Martin (Dutton Melos) | 0 |
| 8 | Adrian Marfell (VW Special) | 0 |
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Adrian Marfell won the Clee Hills in his familiar VW Rail, dropping seven marks, all lost on Harley Bank Two. Adrian won on special test times from Carl Talbot who also dropped seven, two on Harley Bank 2 and five on Easthope 2.
Clerk of the Course Jonathan Toulmin retained the twin loop format for the MAC’s Clee Hills Trial. Jonathan and his team have a justified reputation for running an excellent event, in a highly professional way, and were rewarded by an excellent entry including no less than 15 cars in class two. There was no snow this year but the mist didn’t lift in some places throughout the day.
There were quite a few route changes because of bad ruts caused by over enthusiastic 4wd’s and Round Oak had to be cancelled at the last minute because of a sick horse.
Classes six, seven and eight set out from the start at The Craven Arms to embark on the western loop to battle for overall honours. First on the agenda was the Rattlinghope special test. I wonder if Carl Talbot realised that this would cost him overall victory at the end of the day when he was 1.5 seconds slower than Adrian Marfell. The leading runners went round the western loop clean, with only the new Priors Holt 1 section causing any real problems, with fails for both Peter Mountain and Keith Oakes.
The first observed Hills on the Eastern loop were on National Trust land with the two Easthope sections and Majors Leap. Adrian Marfell was the only car to reach the summit of the previously un-cleaned Eeasthope 2 that was first used in 2005. Most of the other Class Eights dropped either 4 or 5. The class 7’s didn’t fare so well and Andrew Brown was best with 5.
Majors Leap was a toughie for the higher classes and a fair few dropped a full 12, including Falcons Keith and Claire Oakes in their Dutton Phaeton, putting them out of contention early in the proceedings.
After these three sections on National Trust Land it was back on the road to the Harley Bank – Jenny Wind complex. The slippery Harley Bank 2 section was one of the new ones used for the first time last year and Simon Woodall piloted the only car to get to the summit. Carl Talbot was best of the rest with a two, five better than Adrian Marfell, putting them equal on seven. This was to remain the score at the end, as both cleaned The Jenny Wind and Meadowley where Simon Woodall came out the top with a rough sounding engine. It promptly seized, and the VW Buggy needed a tow from Ross Norman to get back to the finish.
So overall victory went to Adrian Marfell by virtue of his special test times. Ian Davis came 5th overall, stopping mid way on both the Easthope sections and Harley Bank 2 and also stopping just short of the summit of The Jenny Wind.
The lower classes embarked on the Eastern Loop first. It started with a bang for classes three, four and five as none of them got away from their restart. Ippikins Rock was the decider for the lower classes. The section is all about that very sharp right-handed hairpin. In class three Nick Farmer couldn’t get the big BMW round, dropping 8 which was to give the class to Simon Groves. Class four was decided here as well. Terry Ball had been battling with the ex-Matthew Sharratt March Hare winning Beetle of Nicola Wainwright. Unfortunately, neither got around the famous hairpin but Pete Barr did in 1303 handing him the class.
On the Western Loop the steep new Priors Holt 1 was prove a problem to many cars, including Simon Groves who dropped four but still maintained his class lead. Adrian Dommett won Class 2 in his familiar Wolesley Hornet but all eyes were on James Diffeys magnificent Bresica Bugatti, which he drove into 2nd place in class with great gusto.
An excellent Clee, run under difficult circumstances this year. There is a rumour that this could be Jonathan Toulmins last event in the leading organising role. Lets all hope he changes his mind.
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There was snow on the Shropshire Hills for this years Clee Hills. Fortunately not enough to bring things to a halt, but quite enough to make conditions difficult. Adrian Marfell mastered the difficult conditions in his Beetle to win overall, dropping only four marks. Adrian Dommett was second in his Class 2 Wolsley Hornet.
Like last year the field was split and went on two separate loops. Classes 0 to Five tackled the Western loop first, embarking on a long detour around The Long Mynd because of the treacherous conditions. Ratlinghope came first, a special test, then a section which was cleaned by everyone. A long descent followed, crossing a road to the farm at the foot of Gattens Gamble.
There was a new section this year, the route turning left at the tank to Phils Folly. This was new section on an old coach road that is now privately owned. The section started on a level rutted track, hair-pinning right where the gradient started up a muddy tree lined track. Unfortunately Jeff Buchanan couldn’t get his ex Dennis Greenslade Reliant round the corner, neither could David Bowlas who was following in his Midget. Extracting the cars took so long that the section had to be cancelled.
By the time the higher classes came along in the afternoon the farmer had scrapped the mud off the hairpin and there was plenty of traction. The problem was getting round the hairpin. Regrettably there were problems at the top of the section and the exit road, making it rather to hairy for comfort and it was necessary to cancel it again. Gattens Gamble was cleaned by most of the field but Derek Reynolds found his DAF’s drive belts struggled with the steep gradient at the start. The views at the top were as magnificent as ever.
After a straightforward Walkmill came Adstone for the lower classes, who descended what was to be Medicot for six, seven and eight in the afternoon. Adstone was not a problem but the descent of Medicot certainly was. The track has really suffered at the hands of 4×4 traffic and the right hand rut was very, very deep. This caused major problems as cars were leaning so far they were practically on their side. Some suffered damage, including Colin Perryman whose BMW ended up with damaged doors and rear quarter panel.
Ian Davis was the first class eight in the afternoon and described the ascent of Medicot as a nightmare. After a delay waiting for some trail bikes Ian hit a root, throwing the front of his buggy so high in the air it came out of the ruts and beached on the left hand bank. Ian managed to reverse a few yards and get going as there was plenty of traction. Delays built up, causing the section to be cancelled for classes six and seven but not before Stuart Harrold deranged his steering on the same root that caused a problem for Ian Davis.
The route round its way up the hills to the historic Allez ‘Oop, first used in 1939 and featured in C.A.N. Mays book Wheelspin. It was grass in those days but has a hard surface now. It was covered in snow and a delightful climb to the summit with its magnificent views where the class three and four competitors waited for each other and a had a snowball fight! Most of the entry got to the summit, but it wasn’t a class one friendly hill and three of them got a six.
The Harton Wood special test was all about time but the challenge at the Longville test was actually re-starting after the reverse. After last year most of the experienced competitors were ready for Longville and backed right down to make sure they cleaned the section, rather than worry about the time. Not Tristan White. He and Emma Flay risked a modest reverse and gave the Escort a blast. They made it in a huge cloud of rubber smoke but the time it took was probably as much as backing right down!
Ippikins Rock couldn’t be used this year because of logging, so the lower classes tackled Easthope 1 and 2. One was the section new for last year, two was new for this. It wasn’t very long, just a short blast up a gully and a sharp right turn up the bank. This was the events stopper and nobody was successful. Simon Woodall and Mick Workman were the most successful, both reaching the two. Overall winner Adrian Marfell scored four, the only marks he was to drop all day.
After Much Wenlock came The Jenny Wind, an old cable railway incline. This was slippery in the morning for the higher classes and only Andrew Martin in his Dutton Melos reached the summit. Fellow class seven driver Tony Branson didn’t get that far in Jonathan Toulmins Marlin which suffered a persistent misfire all day. Conditions had improved in the afternoon and there were some cleans. Adrian Marfell and Adrian Dommett reached the summit, So did Harvey Waters and the amazing Dave Haizelden in his Golf. The first time a Front Wheel Drive has achieved that distinction.
Harley Bank saw problems for Dick Bolt when the UJ on the end of his prop-shaft broke, possibly weakened when he broke his CWP on Simms. Fortunately Dick has a two piece shaft on his Escort and carries a spare, so he was able to change it and drive back to the finish although he had to retire. The higher classes had a different section too last year and Ian Davis couldn’t get across the frosty grass on the lower reaches, dropping six. Fellow Buggy driver Simon Woodall did well here, only losing two marks which gave him the class win.
Hungerford was the last section on the Eastern loop for the lower classes and is another to have suffered badly from 4×4 traffic. There were ground clearance problems, both on the section and the exit road, where even some of the class eights had to be towed out. Simon Groves was a little late in arriving at Hungerford, having had no less than four punctures. Because of the penalties on the Clee, for slipping back down the field, his fellow competitors let him back to his place at the head of the class. Simon duly let his tyres down, only to ground out his diff at the six, and had to reverse back down. Seeing this his classmates duly pumped their tyres up to give more ground clearance and cleaned the hill!
The higher classes had to tackle Meadowley, another historic Clee section, but again one that has suffered severe erosion. There was a tree root across the track, followed by a huge hole and that was as far as most competitors got. There were exceptions of course. Two of the flyweights came out the top and March Hare winner Andy Curtis did exceptionally well to get to the two, benefiting from the increased ground clearance he has generated by fitting dropped spindles to the front, even though it gives the buggy a pronounced nose up stance.
Despite the problems caused by the conditions, all the competitors signed off in daylight, and first man home Ian Davis was back at The Craven Arms by 2.30. This years Clee was more difficult than usual, both the snow and 4×4 damage taking their toll. It was still a success though. Beautiful views, historic sections and six different classes in the top ten, all a tribute to Jonathan Toulmin and his team.
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Adrian Marfell won this years Mechanics Trial, but in a Beetle this time rather than his usual special. There were quite a few clean sheets so Adrian’s win was decided on special test times and he was fastest by a long way
Unusually for my reports this one will be written in the first person as running at the front of the field I didn’t see much of what went on and didn’t stand waiting in many queues to chat to competitors and marshals!
This was the second year Stroud had run The Mechanics as a road trial. It was born out of the clubs one off Anniversary Trial, organised by Andrew Brown and Rich Welch, but never ran because of Foot and Mouth. The event was taken over by the Hayward clan and run by taking The Mechanics Trial out on the road. With the Cotswold Clouds running in the area there must have been a great temptation to use some of the well-known hills. However, this was resisted and there was no duplication with “The Clouds” apart from the start and finish venues.
Mike Hayward, (who is not related to the organising family) and I had entered “The Mechanics” last year but never even got to the start as my Beetles Brakes seized only a few miles from home. We managed a bit better this year, which was really good as we were especially looking forward to The Mechanics, which promised us new hills and a route in the area of Falcon’s old Guy Fawkes Trial.
We were running only a few cars from the front so it was an early start, leaving Bedfordshire at 4.30am and arriving at The Little Chef just off the M5 at Stonehouse dead on 7 for our slap up breakfast. This was not to be, as along with Clive Booth and John Allsop we waited in vain for some sign of life, giving up at 7.30 in favour of a bacon bap at The Ryford! We were first in line at scruitineering and started to worry as there were was no scruitineer, no organisers and no other competitors. There were signs of life just before 8 and the formalities were soon completed and we were on our way with a few nice words from Ken Hobbs, thanking us for journeying out to the Cotswolds for the event.
It was right out of Gordon’s garage, as would be usual for the Clouds, but instead of turning left we went straight on, past the Little Chef that was now open, and crossing and re-crossing the M5 to the first hill. This first section was not the problem hill of last year where so many people got stuck, but Tin Pan Alley which May’s Wheelspin tells me was first used before the war on the Bristol’s Clubs Fedden Trial when it was called Tramps Paradise.
A very un-tramp like John and June Blakeley greeted competitors on this gentle warm-up hill. Like most of the hills it was a long and leafy lane and as an early number there were so many fallen leaves it was difficult to see the surface underneath.
Eric Wall greeted us a few miles up the road at “Alfs Delight” another long leafy section which finished by going over a carpet to get the mud off the wheels before emerging onto a very clean and tidy estate road that led us to the new Age Traveller encampment at the Crooked Mustard/Axe cross roads so familiar on The Cotswold Clouds.
Things got a bit tougher at Boxwell where we approached through Scrubbets Farm. Looking at an old Guy Fawkes program from 1960 I see that the last two hills were “Axe” and “Scrubbets” and Mike and I reckoned that this was the same hill. It was approached with quite a steep downhill so the Guy Fawkes section could have been the Mechanics approach road. Anyway today’s section was easy enough, apart from the restart at the end which was on a big bump leading to a very sharp left at tee.
Waiting at the start we heard Mike Hobbs fail the restart in his Beetle and then David Bowlas do the same in his Midget and when we arrived we made it three in a row! Looking through the results afterwards we saw that around one third failed and two thirds got away clean, including both Dave and John Sargeant in their Beetles who were running just behind us.
The route then led into the centre of Nailsworth and Wood Lane, a tree lined track with a grassy surface, that would have been tricky had it been wet, but didn’t trouble the scorer in the dry. The route then wound its way round the houses and cottages up and down some very, very steep single-track tarmac roads to Ferris Court where Simon Harris was in charge at the start of another hill used on the 1960 Guy Fawkes. Simon warned us that the exit track was extremely over-grown. The section was nice and long with two quite sharp hairpins, the first left, the second right and what I thought at the time was an easy re-start but from the results I see it stopped a few competitors, notably one Andrew Brown!
We were soon back in Cotswold Clouds territory, passing Merves Swerve and down Catswood (used on the 1960 Guy Fawkes) where we stopped to observe the two minutes remembrance silence. At the bottom we went straight across to King Charles Lane, which again was very, very long with the track developing a deep vee gully towards the summit so it was important to keep up the momentum if you wanted to avoid toppling over!
The route now headed north towards Cheltenham up the A46 to Greenway Lane where Jim Scott was on the start line and Stuart Cairney on the restart. The surface was smooth at the start but it became rougher and rockier then deviated off to the right around a fallen tree where there were two different restarts for the higher classes. It looked pretty fearsome as there was a steep step on the inside but by keeping right it was possible to avoid it and most of the experienced drivers went clean.
The distance between the sections started to markedly increase now and we went into the suburbs of Cheltenham coming out again on heading South east on the A40 towards Oxford turning off on the B4632 through Winchcombe to Laverton, a hill I’m sure I remember reading about but can’t find any reference to! It looked innocuous enough at the bottom but the ruts soon got deeper just before we reached a huge rocky step, which had experienced an extremely local downpour. The yellows and reds had a restart but we were able to go straight through so we just eased the Beetle over the bump for a clean. There was a very long exit track and as we were getting hungry and it was one o’clock we stopped for the best part of twenty minutes to eat our sandwiches. We didn’t see any competitors while we waited so there must have been some delays somewhere.
The route wound through Winchcombe again and back north towards Cheltenham, interrupted only by a special test at Postlip managed by Bill Foreshew and his wife. This was another familiar name from the Guy Fawkes, featuring in the 1970 event, my first Classic trial as a competitor, bouncing for Pete Smith in his Anglia.
The trial was coming to an end now but there was a sting in the tail at Noverton Lane with Tim Lakin at the start. It started easy enough with a gentle track through a wood but soon the gradient and the rocks started. There were separate restarts for whites to yellows/reds. Just as I slowed for our restart I heard a loud hissing and on the restart stuck my head out of the window to see a rear tyre going down. We tried to pull away but not to hard as we could see a horrendous rock step ahead and we didn’t fancy our chances getting over with a wheel down to the rim. Mark Linforth had a rescue crew here with a tractor and a Landrover and they dragged us up to a lay-by where we changed the wheel and took a few pictures. We saw that competitor’s troubles didn’t end at the step as there was a very sharp hairpin left just before the finish and this caught out a lot of drivers who under-steered into the trees.
We weren’t the only Beetle to get a puncture here as both John and Dave Sargeant were changing wheels at the summit. All that remained was a special test at Burcombe Lane and an observed section called Viaduct before the finish on Minchinghampton Common. It wasn’t that easy though as we got well and truly lost, as did a few other competitors, and we were pretty certain that all was not well with the road book here.
Mike and I signed off just before 4pm and headed straight for home, as I had to get up at 4 the next morning. We arrived back in Bedfordshire at 7pm having driven though a bit of rain!
We enjoyed our Mechanics Trial. Lots of nice long sections, all on real tracks. OK Noverton Lane was a bit rough but as Andrew Brown says there was plenty of grip so you could pick your speed and line. Like a lot of the hills it could have been a very different storey in the mud! All round we really enjoyed our Mechanics Trial and we will be back next year.
| Adrian Marfel (VW Beetle) | 0 | Overall Winner |
| Michael Collins (VW Golf) | 0 | Class 1 |
| Nigel Green (Ford Escort) | 0 | Class 3 |
| David Shaylor (Beetle) | 0 | Class 4 |
| Peter Davis (Panther Lima) | 0 | Class 5 |
| Gary Browning (Beetle) | 0 | Class 6 |
| Steve Tucker (Imp) | 0 | Class 7 |
| Carl Talbot (Morris Trialsmaster) | 0 | Class 8 |
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There was one clean sheet on the Cotswold Clouds and it was achieved by Kyrle organiser, and Man of the Moment, Adrian Marfell, in his Fiat Twin cam engined rail. The Moss Bros were only just behind, both only dropping one mark with Nigel beating Ian on special test times.
The Stroud club had excellent conditions for The Cotswold Clouds. It was dry on the day, but bad weather during the previous week made the sections nice and muddy, without turning into a quagmire. Needless to say there was a full entry for this historic and very special event which stands on it’s own, not wanting or needing the “status” of any championship.
Roger Fox led the field away from the Gordons Garage for the short run to Crawley Hill. His Citroen AX wasn’t running very well and he soon had to stop and dive under the bonnet. This left Simon and Matt Robson to run first car on the road for much of the event. The little yellow Liege must have been rather over-awed by the experience because it promptly failed Crawley, one of the very few to stop on this gentle opener.
Team Robson soon made up for this by being one of only two class seven’s to clean Crooked Mustard, something they never achieved in their Skoda days. The majority of the class eight’s cleaned this demanding hill but only Ian Moss in his smart new yellow Imp got up from the lower classes. John Bell deserves an honourable mention for getting to the four marker. However, the red Escort was soon to blot it’s copybook by failing Axe with no less than three punctures! The problem was after the step, where there must have been some nasty sharp rocks buried in the mud as there were numerous punctures, including Ian Davis, whose VW Buggy picked up two, a front and a rear.
There was plenty of grip on Nailsworth Ladder, but it still caused problems for the majority of the class ones and only the “super-quartet” of Dave Haizelden, Paul Allaway, Michael Collins and Adrian Tucker-Peake cleaned the section. These four certainly set a high standard and not only have fantastic scraps between them but are challenging for overall wins on many trials. The sevens and eight’s had to restart of course and neither Clive Booth nor Owen Briggs got away, although fellow Falcon Simon Robson was clean. This was a particular shame for Owen as he had coaxed his self built special “Winney One” up Mustard.
Clerk of the Course Tim Lakin had devised a handicap system for Ham Mill. The Blues had a clear run, the whites a restart on the exit from the right hander and the yellows and reds before the corner with a step to contend with. Most competitors cleaned the section but the restarts caught out a few including Falcon’s Clive Booth and Michael Leete.
There was a new variation for Mackhouse, which gave a downhill approach before the muddy blast up through the trees. Classes seven and eight had a re-start on the slope so the downhill approach didn’t help very much. Even so a fair few of the class eight’s cleaned the section, but not Nigel Moss who like most of the entry stopped short of the final muddy rise for a one. This cost Nigel overall victory as Adrian Marfell cleaned the hill. Has Nigel done the same he would have won as he was faster on the special tests.
The lunchbreak was at Tesco’s as usual, although most competitors didn’t stay long as the delays at Crooked Mustard had put the timing a bit behind. Unlike some of the MCC events there didn’t appear to be a ban on toolkits, so Michael Leete helped Ian Davis change the tube in one of his punctured wheels. The Bulls Cross special test was just up the road with a downhill stop line, which fooled both Jim Scott and John Ludford.
Freds Folly was across the road. Like Axe this is a hill that has become more difficult over the years. It’s a long gentle climb through the trees, then comes a right hander after which the ruts get deeper, the gradient steepens and the mud starts! The difficulty is that with the right hander you can’t take much of a run at the last bit as if you go too fast you jump out of the ruts and under-steer into the trees. With their low diffs the hill wasn’t very friendly to class three and only John Bell and Dave Miller got their Escorts to the summit, in John’s case after a near 360 on the lower reaches! In class seven Simon Robson found an early number a decided disadvantage as he cleared some of the mud away for the later numbers, failing at the four marker.
The crowds had gathered for the entertainment at Merve’s Sweerve, which was under the control of Allen organisers Pete and Carlie Hart. The stars were definitely Paul Allaway and Dave Haizelden who both got their Front Wheel Drive cars over the muddy hump. Ian Davis and Owen Briggs both went clear but otherwise Merve’s wasn’t Falcon friendly and Michael Leete, Simon Robson and Clive Booth all floundered on the big bump for a humiliating reverse in front of their peers!
It was back into the woods for the Highwood Special Test and two observed sections. The challenge on Highwood One is another quagmire at the top of a hill! It wasn’t so muddy this year and it is possible to build some speed on the approach so there were cleans in all classes this year. Highwood Two was just up the track. There were different start lines for the various classes but nobody had a real run at the steep bit this year. The overall lead of the trial changed here. Up until now there were six clean sheets and the leading order was decided by the special test times reading:-
Everything was change here, as apart from Ian Moss only class eight’s Adrian Marfell, Nigel Moss and Carl Talbot got to the summit, most people having to make the terrifying reverse back down the section. As Nigel had failed Mackhouse and Carl the Highwood Special test, this gave Adrian the lead of the trial that kept to the end.
Things were drawing to a close now. Climperwell didn’t present any problems so it was all down to the finale at he two Bulls Bank re-starts, where competitors were greeted by Stuart Harrold and Chris Phillips, with the news that “the restart are evil and competitors in all classes are failing”. Thanks guys! Adrian got away OK but the restarts did affect the results in some classes. Stephen White failed Bulls Bank Two, passing the lead in Class Two to Bill Bennett. John Bell’s successful climb of Freds Folly faded away when he couldn’t get away from “Two” either, leaving class Three to successful restarter Paul Eamer. In Class Six Terry Ball failed Bulls Bank One putting him back to the same hill score as Mike Hobbs but Terry hung onto his lead on special test times.
Most competitors got to the finish at The Old Lodge Inn on Minchinhampton Common at a reasonable time, as there were no real delays after lunch. Well-done Adrian Marfell on another well deserved victory. And well done Tim Lakin and the Stroud team for another successful, enjoyable and well judged Cotsold Clouds.
| 1st Overall | Adrian Marfel (VW Special) | 0 |
| Best Stroud | Nigel Moss (Troll) | 1 |
| Class 1 | Paul Allaway (Astra) | 10 |
| Class 2 | Bill Bennett (MG J2 | 19 |
| Class 3 | Paul Eamer (Escort) | 20 |
| Class 4 | Ian Moss (Imp) | 1 |
| Class 5 | Mike Wordsworth (MG Midget) | 28 |
| Class 6 | Terry Ball(VW Beetle) | 17 |
| Class 7 | Dean Vowden (Marlin) | 5 |
| Class 8 | Dudley Sterry (MG J2) | 2 |
We have been publishing stuff about Classic Trials on the Web since 1995 and always appreciate feedback. Comments, Corrections, Criticism & Concerns are all welcome. You can leave a comment to have your say here on this web site or our Social Media
Adrian Marfell won the first ACTC trial after the enforced break with a clear run on the Exmoor Clouds. He was chased hard all day by Paul Bartleman in his new Troll and Dudley Sterry in his venerable MG.
As in 2000, this year’s Exmoor Clouds started at the Ralegh’s Cross Inn high on the Brendon Hills. Unlike last year though the morning dawned bright and sunny and the 52 motorcycle and 66 car competitors enjoyed beautiful autumn sunshine all day. The hills were in prime condition after a wet week and although one or two of the old favourites were missing, due to foot and mouth precautions, the route was similar to that used in the last couple of years.
After a gentle opener in the form of Steep Lane, the trial moved on to Port Lane where considerable delays built up as the motorcyclists tackled (with varying degrees of success) this long classic section. Five saloons saw the section ends board although only four cleaned the hill. The fifth, driven by William Rosen, was judged to have stopped lower down and then got moving again – a pity as it is some achievement to get an Imp over the rock steps at the top on tiny 12″ wheels.
The next three hills were to prove decisive. The first, Northmoor, was very muddy at the bottom with a deviation off the main track to the restart line, which stopped three quarters of Class 8. The usual suspects went clear and were joined by Paul Bartleman in what was listed as a Ford Special but what everyone else seems to call the ‘Cream Cracker’ Troll.
Following on from Northmoor was the first Special test of the day where Bill Foreshew threw the GVS II round in style to set FTD. Ski Slope was next and with the sun warming the grass, we had hopes of getting off the steep and slippery restart. These were soon dashed as the hill proved to be in fine form with a sticky patch lower down which stopped all the saloons bar one – David Turner’s BMW. He was joined at the top by Tommy Kalber in his Dutton and just three Class 8 specials – eventual winner Adrian Marfell, Dudley Sterry (after some determined bouncing) and local man David Dyer in a Canon who made it look easy, despite having shifted his rear axle on Port Lane. Falcon’s Murray and Hazel Mac were marshalling on the hill and Murray described how one special had almost rolled when attempting to climb the bank up to the restart – apparently only the fact that the spare wheel carrier had dug into the ground stopped it from flipping over backwards.
Pin Quarry followed and in contrast to Ski Slope, where the whole hill can be seen from the bottom, the start was out of sight. Not many cars saw the top either, most being stopped by a muddy bank or the hollow that followed immediately after. Following the route thereafter was also something of a challenge as it twisted and turned PCT-style up to the top of the old section. We met a Dellow driver at the top who arrived from a completely different direction but was convinced he’d cleaned the hill!
Allercott also had something of the PCT about it starting downhill and after climbing slightly descending further before the steep rutted grassy slope at the finish. Having made a mess of this last year, I was determined to blast straight up the final slope. All went well until the 5 marker landed on the bonnet, followed shortly by the 4 marker! I suppose the marshal gamely jumping into our path to vainly try and direct us up the left hand side should have given the game away but we weren’t the only ones to be caught out by the subtle route-marking and the penalties incurred for striking marker posts.
On to Middlecombe Woods where the first of two sections featured another downhill start to a wide left hand bend and then a long roller coaster climb with a choice of routes at the six marker – either a tight squeeze between two stout trees or round to the left. Although fairly straightforward for class 8, no car cleared the section from Classes 1-7 and delays again built up. The situation wasn’t helped when the recovery vehicle got into difficulty trying to reach the Hazelden Golf and took a full half-hour to get mobile again.
The second Middlecombe section proved less challenging, much to the relief of most of the field who had cleared only two or three sections by this stage – two thirds of the way through the trial! Land’s End section Hindon also proved easy this year. The good relations Dick Hutchins and the team have with the locals were in evidence here as farmer and family was sat in the sunshine spectating. Apparently, the key to Dick’s success (he has something like 40 hills to chose from) is the invitation to the club’s annual dinner extended to the landowners of the sections used each year
Not far from Minehead, the slippery tree roots at the top of Avill Ball stopped all the saloons and most of the bikes although most in Class 8 managed to avoid the large stump at the top and clean the section.
On to Tarr Cot, which proved a real challenge for the saloons, only Clive Kalber in his Escort and Giles Greenslade going clear to secure their respective class wins. There appeared to be some communication problem here as some cars were sent off while others were coming back down having failed. Clearly not ideal, especially as you need to press on a bit to get across an adverse camber half way up… Those who made the top uninterrupted were treated to a glorious view over the Bristol Channel to South Wales.
Down through Roadwater and along the old mineral line to what looked like abandoned Iron ore workings for the final two stages – one for class 8 and one for everyone else. Getting to the start of these sections required climbing a track, which could serve as a section in itself. Unfortunately it proved too challenging for some of the saloons, especially as most arrived well after nightfall and their section was rightly cancelled – this area definitely not being somewhere to get stuck in the dark. Class 8 arrived earlier, however, and were able to tackle a long steep section with big drops to the right hand side and a slippery grassy finish which stopped most of the class. We gave it death and were pleased to get to the top only to see Adrian Marfell cruise up in second gear to complete the only clear round of the day and a well-deserved victory. Paul Bartleman finished a fine second, having dropped only 3 points, with Dudley Sterry a couple of seconds behind on special test times.
All in all a great day’s sport for us in class 8 – all the more so after an enforced close season of 8 months. For those in some of the other classes though it must have been a very long (and in places rough) day with the last competitor finishing at 8.30pm and then facing the drive home.
We have been publishing stuff about Classic Trials on the Web since 1995 and always appreciate feedback. Comments, Corrections, Criticism & Concerns are all welcome. You can leave a comment to have your say here on this web site or our Social Media
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