You have stumbled on a delightful box of tricks, Classic Trials & other perverse stuff from Michael Leete. MCC ACTC and other trials. VW Beetles, Dellows, Marlins, or even Suzuki X90's
Rob Holden was an excellent second in his BMW estate with the only other clean sheet apart from Dave’s. Dean Partington was third, keeping his Wheelspin Trophy hopes alive.
Rob Holden finally found some engine reliability, cleaning all the hills in his BMW but having to give best to Dave Haizelden on special test times
The ever popular Allen Trial took just four days to max out the entry in the main trial. There was also provision for Heritage cars to take part in a parallel event but as this didn’t attract any entries it looks as if Heritage is defunct. It was a damp start to the day which didn’t brighten up and ended with persistent rain.
The start at The Bull at Hinton. Lined up are three of Dean Partingtons DP cars competing on the trial. From left to right. The DP Falcon, trialled by Dean many years ago and recently re-acquired and updated. In the middle is the very familiar rear engined DP Wasp recently purchased and driven on The Allen by Paul Merson. On the right is Jack Selwood’s DP Ford, originally constructed by Reg Taylor. This is the car that took Mike Furse to a triple and Graham Marshall to ACTC championships. It still has the original 1500 pre-crossflow engine (Photo by Kieran Bartlett)
Tog Hill was just up the road from the start and there were some delays after about half the field went through as one of the Austin 7’s experienced problems and blocked the section. It wasn’t a happy start for Class 2 as Michael Wall’s Trojan had to retire on the following road section.
The restart on the polished stones on Bitton Lane challenged some of the Austin 7’s in a bumper Class 2 entry.
Not so Mick Holmes who got away smoothy in what I believe was his cars first trial. Mick’s passenger was son Sam, normally seen driving his very competitive Class 4 Beetle with Mick as his passenger.
After last years dry Allen this was a very muddy trial, especially in the woods.
Philip Thomas storming Travers on his way to winning the first ACTC trial for an Escort for many years. (Photo by Calvin Samuel)
After heavy rain during the night this years Allen Trial was very muddy , perhaps a little too muddy for the woodland sections. However the rain stopped once the event started and competitors embarked on a tough Allen Trial with no clean sheets.
The event was oversubscribed as usual but there were a few non starters and all the reserves got a run. In addition to the regular event there was a Heritage class, who took on a shorter route, but this was not very well supported with only four starters.
With it being so dry there were quite a few clean sheets
Dave Cook captured a returning Dudley Sterry on John Walker
With the Camel being cancelled because of issues obtaining permission to use their forestry sections the Allen was the last Car Classic of the season, held on the same day as the Neil Westcott taking place in the West Country for Motorcycles.
Never the toughest trial on the calendar the Allen is still one, if not the most, popular, the entry reaching its maximum plus reserves within three days.
With it being a dry Allen there were a number of clean sheets. Overall victory going to Josh Moss on test times.
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Matt and Hollie Wood were the fastest of the three clean sheets
Matt Facey eases his BMW away from the Burledge restart on his way winning The Allen Trial and securing the ACTC Wheelspin Trophy with one round to go
Once again Bristol Motor Club were rewarded by a supurb entry for the popular Allen Trial. 74 cars were entered, dropping to just under 70 starters from The Bull at Hinton. It was cloudy but dry day after a lot of rain recently which was to make some of the sections very muddy. Continue reading “Matt Facey wins Allen to clinch Wheelspin”
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Mal Allen and Dean Partington take the Major Awards on well supported event
Calvin Samuel captures Allen Trial winner Mal Allen in his Marlin as he tackles the mud of John Walker as the light starts to fade. More of Calvins work on his Website csphotos.biz where you can purchase hires downloads
Bristol Motor Club and its well established organising team were rewarded by 66 entries for their Allen Trial.
This years event followed the Allens well established format, utilising as many public tracks as possible. It wasn’t that long ago that The Allen was an all public track event. However, the inevitable loss of access has necessitated a couple of excursions onto private land these days.
The Allen has a reputation as neither being particularly rough or tough. This coupled with the dry conditions resulted in 14 clean sheets.
Mal Allen took home The Allen Trophy with his Marlin after putting in the fastest times on the Special Tests. Mal and Dean Partington put in an identical performance on the Ubley Wood test but Mal was nearly a second quicker at Frys Bottom. Dean was awarded the Redcliffe Trophy for best clubman and was best in Class Eight. Continue reading “Allen Trial”
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Nick dropped two marks on the first section at the new Frys Bottom location. It was a close thing though as he was chased home by no less than five competitors on three marks. Aaron Haizelden taking the second overall on test times.
Izzie Linforth restarting on the histoic Burledge section. This was Izzies first Classic Road event, driving the car that Mark started out in trialling.
The field lined up outside the Bull at Hindon ready for the start. The drivers are inside sheltering from the wind and rain! (Picture by Scott Boulton)
As competitors gathered at the start it was clear that with all the rain during the previous week this years Allen was going to be a muddy trial.
After leaving The Bull at Hindon the early morning Classic Lanes of Tog Hill, Bitton Lane and Big Uplands saw only a handful of competitors loose marks. A big change from the past when Big Uplands was a real terror, but the resurfacing gas changed all that.
It was Guys Hill that started to see significant marks lost, with a common restart on polished stones for Classes 4, 6, 7 and 8. The hill was as slippery as usual and wasn’t that friendly to around half of the non-restarters. Many of the Class 8’s struggled and it was the tricklers that seemed to do best. In Class Seven Dudley Sterry, Duncan Stephens and Mal Allen were the only clears. The Beetles did well, even the lower powered ones in Class four where Craig Allen and Anthony Young were successful.
Ubley Wood lay just up the track. There weren’t as many sections here this year as Pete Hart and his team had found the Fry’s Bottom Complex to add to the afternoons challenge. With all the wet weather they were very muddy and reduced clean sheets down to a handful, spread across the classes.
Demonstrating understeer Dudley Sterry was still clean at this point but dropped one more mark than Nick in the new Frys Bottom complex (Picture by Steve Kilvington)On their way to an overall win Nick Farmer and Norton Selwood not showing much faith in the opacity of their Fugitives windscreen (Picture by Steve Kilvington)
Ubley Woods 1 was a new one, right by the fence with the lane with a tight 90 turn into it. This was a clean/fail section and proved straightforward for all but a few.
With Tris White failing to get away from the Class Eight only restart on the sub-divided Ubley Wood 2 there was only Nick Farmer left on zero in Class Eight so overall could go to one of the lower classes.
Tony Young wasn’t going to win though, retiring when his Beetle transmission failed. There were a few others who didn’t get to the lunch halt as Daniel Bowden (BMW), Chris Maries (Suzuki GV2000) and Peter Mountain (Dellow Mk1) were all out of the event.
Burledge
Matt Facey won Class Three, dropping only four marks in his BMWTim and Anne Whellock returned to The Allen Trial after many years now they have passed over most of their Exeter Trial responsibilities
After Burledge came the new Frys Bottom complex where the event was decided. All were subdivided with restarts for Yellow and Red on two of the three sections. There was a lot of mud under the trees and the sections either didn’t go out of the top or if they did very few got that far. This caused some delays at the second section which deteriorated during the day.
Nick Farmer dropped his only marks of the event on the first of the three sections, failing at the two as did Dudley Sterry (MG J2) and Aaron Haizelden (Reliant Scimitar). These were now the only three left with clean sheets. This didn’t last as Aaron and Dudley both lost one mark on Frys Bottom 2. Nick went clear here and for the remainder of the event to point another overall win.
Returning through the water at the foot of the section competitors found Little Uplands cancelled for fear of a tree blowing down in the very high winds. That just left the glorious run up John Walker in the dusk. It did’t have any impact on the results but was glorious fun.
So ended another Allen Trial, enjoyed by all.
Class
Driver/Car
Marks
Overall
Nick Farmer (VW Fugitive)
2
1
David Haizelden (VW Golf)
3
2
Bill Bennett (MG J2)
8
3
Matt Facey (BMW 316)
4
4
Craig Allen (VW Beetle)
3
5
Aaron Haizelden (Reliant Scimitar)
3
6
Andrew Rippon (VW Beetle)
8
7
Dudley Sterry (MG J2)
3
8
Tris White (Troll)
9
Simon Woodall Reports on his Allen Trial
We had possibly my worst day for a VERY long time. Guys always defeats us, Dave Haizelden recons its because I don’t carry enough weight. But this year we were struggling before we even reached the line.
Took the wrong line on Travers despite thinking about the right line even as we approached the restart. The first Ubey Wood section was a new one, right by the fence with the lane with a tight 90 turn into it. We understeered into the fence, reversed off and went up. For some reason, Stuart Harrold didn’t notice our reverse and gave us a clear!
I don’t think I let the tyres down enough on Burledge, familiarity breeding contempt here.
The new sections at Frys Bottom were a great addition to the event, I don’t know if the first one went out, but I don’t think so. A short sharp blast, starting with a 90 left off the track with a bumpy lip to stop you from getting the power on too early.
FB2 caused some delays as climbers had to return down the bottom part of the section. Much mud amongst tree roots caused some problems and a nasty camber at the top had many sliding off into a tree – hence the plethora of ones. FB3 was faily simple, wih Josh Moss in charge. If it hadn’t been so wet, I don’t thonk it would have troubled anyone. It too didn’t go out so we had to queue at the top to go back down in groups – most un Allen like.
We were finally given the boot, when the car stopped just above the landing on John-Walker with total electrical failure. Couldn’t work out what it was in the wet and dark so scrounged a lift back to the start to get the Pick-Up and went home in disgrace.
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Duncan Stephens was one of nine clean sheets across five classes.
With dry conditions it was predictable that the Allen was going to see clean sheets, but the way they were spread across the classes showed Pete Hart and his team had got the event right. Josh Moss was second overall in his Gregory Special.
Duncan Stephens not only won the trial in his Dutton Melos but was kind enough to come back down Burledge and tow a stricken vehicle to keep the trial on the move (Picture by Calvin Talbot from Cstartworks)
With the Cross House closed it meant the Allen Team had to find a new start venue, coming up with The Bull Inn at Hinton which proved a popular choice. It did confuse one or two though, who had problems finding the route to Tog Hill, but all was well and everyone cleared this nice starter hill.
Traditional Hills
Bitton Lane didn’t have tyre pressure limits for its restart on polished stones. It didn’t cause many problems apart from Class Five, where four of the seven didn’t get away. Everyone had to restart on Little Uplands which proved tough on Class One, where only Dave Haizelden (Golf) and Nick Cleal (Peugeot 205) got off the line.
As ever Guys Hill was a tough challenge for Classes Seven and Eight where they had their usual restart on a mixture of polished stones and tree roots. This left only Duncan Stephens, Andrew Rippon, Mal Allen and Murray Montgomery-Smith clean in Class Seven and Josh Moss, Dudley Sterry, Mike Chatwin, Charlie Knifton, Carl Talbot and Russell Clarke in Class Eight.
Ubley Woods Sections
After a tree rooty Travers competitors tackled four sections and a special test at Bristols Ubley Woods venue. Although muddy there was nowhere near the usual amount of clag and things flowed smoothly. The Class Eight restart on Ubley Woods Four sorted the red category out and only Josh Moss (Gregory Special) and Carl Talbot (Morris Trialsmaster) were clean going to lunch. They were joined by another eight clean sheets, including the Model T based Board Racer of David Golightly.
Burledge
There were four traditional hills after lunch, starting with Burledge. This had been closed to motorised traffic following last years event. However, Pete Hart and his team had worked a miracle and got permission for the hill to be open for the event.
The second special Test took place on the way to the section. With so many clean sheets this was going to be decisive in determining the results. Carl Talbot was fastest here and coupled with his time on the Ubley Woods test was in overall lead of the trial.
Burledge started just up the track, beginning where the old section finished before the ruts were filled in! It was all about stopping in the right place at the restart. About 25% of the entry didn’t, although it didn’t trouble the leading contenders.
Mill Lane was enjoyable but not too problematical, although David Golightly retired his wonderful car here. This was a shame as David had his clutch fail on the VSCC’s Cotswold Trial on Saturday. Undeterred he returned home to Grimsby to make a repair. An exercise that involved removing both the gearbox and back axle, returning to Bristol on Sunday morning.
Big Uplands
Only class eight had the pleasure of tackling Big Uplands as water erosion had created some deep gulleys. It was a tough one, even for the specials, and decided the result of the trial when Carl Talbot failed at the seven, putting Duncan Stephens in the lead of the trial.
John Walker
The Allen’s finale was the wonderful John Walker, tackled in the dusk for later numbers as there were a few delays extracting those unfortunate to puncture.
With all the clean sheets there were a lot of hopefuls at the finish. After the ST times were taken into account it was Duncan Stephens (Dutton Melos) who emerged the winner, followed by Josh Moss (Gregory Special) and John White (1300 Beetle). Everyone enjoyed the trial which was a credit to the effort and experience of Pete Hart and his team from the Bristol Club.
Class
Driver/Car
Marks
Overall
Duncan Stephens (Dutton Melos)
0
1
David Haizelden (Golf GTi)
0
2
Bill Bennett (MG J2)
5
3
Phillip Thomas (Ford Escort)
22
4
John White (VW Beetle)
0
5
Keith Sanders (Reliant Scimitar SS1)
0
6
Gary Browning (VW Beetle)
4
7
Andrew Rippon (VW Baja)
0
8
Josh Moss (Gregory Special)
0
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Dean Partington had the only clean sheet on a very wet Allen Trial, clinching the Wheelspin Championship in the process.
There had been a lot of rain in the preceding week, with extensive flooding in the south west. This made the Ubley Wood sections very muddy and it was here the event was decided. Dean was challenged by Dave Haizelden and Keith Sanders, both losing only two marks on the hills, although Keith also dropped marks when he incurred a fail on the special test.
Mick Workman and Tony Underhill are pictures of concentration as they tackle the mud on John Walker (Picture by Calvin Talbot from Cstartworks)
With all the flooding there was concern that the event was going to take place. However Pete Hart and his team checked things out on the Saturday and reported that, apart from the stream at the bottom of Uplands which was impassable, the route was good to go.
There were a couple of non starters but there were still nearly 60 cars lining up at the start in Doynton near J18 on the M4.
The Travers Restart sorted Class 7
After a gentle run up Tog Hill the restart on Bitton Lane was unfriendly to Class 5 and Nick Deacon was the only one of five Suzuki X90’s to get away. Guys Hill was next, perhaps the rain had washed the mud away because there were fewer failures than usual.
The Yellows and Reds had to restart on Travers. and this certainly sorted out class 7, only the Marlins of John Hammill and eventual Class winner Dave Broom getting away. The restart also accounted for around 50% of class 8.
Ubley Decides the Trial
The four sections at Ubley Wood were just up the track. unlike the other hills, which are all on green lanes, these are artificial sections marked out on the top of a grassy hill. With no stone bottom they were very slippery and a full blooded approach was required. Only Dean Partington cleaned all four. Dave Wall and Charlie Knifton did well but succumbed to the Class 8 restart on the Ubley 1 to loose their only five marks of the day. Without a restart here Sam Holmes in Class Four, Keith Sanders in Class Five, Gary Browning in Class Six and Dave Haizelden in Class One also went clear and went on to win their respective classes.
Ubley Woods 2 and 3 were difficult but cleanable but it was Ubley Woods 4 that decided the trial when Dean was the only clear.
Big Uplands was Cancelled
With Big Uplands cancelled there were only three sections after the lunch break. It should have been plain sailing for the leaders with Dean clear and Dave Haizelden and Keith Sanders on two. That wasn’t how it finished as Keith overshot a line on the Special Test which penalises you six marks on The Allen and it dropped him down the standings promoting Dave Wall to 3rd overall in his tidy K series Dellow.
John Walker was the last section, a glorious blast though the mud and ruts just as the light was failing. It wasn’t a formality for the low slung cars though and Ian Moss dropped six in an unfamiliar and very standard looking Hillman Imp. The ruts were deep and both class winning cars of Aaron Haizelden and Dave Wall ended up with deranged front suspension..
Dean wins The Allen and The Wheelspin
So ended another well run and popular Allen Trial with Dean Partington victorious for the fourth time giving him an unassailable lead in The Wheelspin Trophy.
Class
Driver/Car
Marks
Overall
Dean Partington (DP Wasp)
0
1
David Haizelden (Golf GTi)
2
2
Adrian Dommett (Wolseley Hornet)
9
3
Aaron Haizelden (Ford Escort)
12
4
Sam Holmes (VW Beetle)
5
5
Keith Sanders (Reliant Scimitar SS1)
8
6
Gary Browning (VW Beetle)
6
7
Dave Broom (Marlin)
10
8
Dave Wall (Dellow)
5
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Dean Partington won the Allen Trial with the only Clean Sheet. It was a DP Wasp one-two as Dean’s sister car was 2nd in the hands of Mike Chatwin. Mike only failed the muddy Ubley Woods Three which claimed most of the experienced drivers and potent cars.
As well as the Field Trial sections at Ubley Woods Big Uplands was also on form, ensuring that the all the classes were decided on the hills and not on Special Test Times.
It is testament to the reputation of The Allen Trial, and its organisers that it attracted 63 entries at a time when entries are significantly lower. Not just in Classic Trialling but in all forms of Motorsport. The Allen was known for being run exclusively on classic lanes. In recent years some of these have been lost and this year five of the twelve sections were at private venues.
Fine Weather
The weather was ideal, wet overnight, with a bright sunny day for the event itself. The opening section at Tog Hill, only a few hundred yards from the start, didn’t cause any problems. Not so at Bitton Lane where the restart claimed the scalps of all four of the Suzuki X90’s in class five. There were only a couple of other failures, but these included the Escort of eventual Class Three winner Dick Bolt, who would need all the horsepower of this mega machine to blast through the mud on the later sections to claw back this loss.
Big Uplands on Form
Classes 1 to 6 had their visit to Big Uplands in the morning, while 7 & 8 went straight to Guys Hill. This arrangement is to save time for the the long reverse after the inevitable long list of failures towards the top. This year didn’t disappoint and big names like David Haizelden and Dick Bolt weren’t in the select half dozen who cleaned Big Uplands. Special mention to Peter Jones who came so near in his Suzuki X90. Also too Steve Potter and John Wilton went clear in their marvellous Trojans. Class six was to be decided here as Dean Vowden got out in his Type 3 Notchback while Claire Rippon stopped at the five.
Incident at Guys
Over at Guys Hill the organisers had to help the police and local farmer to sort out a road traffic accident on the exit road. Fortunately all was well when the cars came along. There were a few who might have preferred the section was cancelled as the tree roots were on form, making life particularly difficult for the re-starters in 6, 7 & 8.
More Roots at Travers
The route headed west of Chew Valley lake for the historic Travers section where 6, 7 and 8 had another battle with a tree rooty restart, which eliminated all but Dean and Claire for Class six honours and failed many in Class Seven.
Muddy Ubley
The Ubley Woods complex lay just up the track, where three sections and a special test were laid out on the top of the hill with magnificent views of the Bristol Channel in the fine weather. The observed sections were very muddy and only Dean Partington retained his clean sheet. Simon Woodall was the only other driver to clean the three Ubley’s but had failed at Guys Hill earlier in the day. Simon was to drop further from contention when he failed the restart at Burledge. He wasn’t the only one and the section is returning to competitiveness after many years following its resurfacing.
Pete Hart and his team had put a lot of work into the Lakeside sections since last year. Unfortunately everything didn’t go too plan, with Mullholland Bank having to be cancelled after PR problems. Then Chimney had to be abandoned for 7 & 8 for safety reasons after a couple of incidents with rear engined cars becoming too light on the front end. Fortunately this didn’t affect the overall result as Dean Partington had gone clean before the closure.
Magnificent John Walker
Seven and Eight had their attempt at Big Uplands on the way to the events finale at John Walker which was as magnificent as ever. Well perhaps not so magnificent for Nick Farmer who dropped six after a puncture resulting in a tyre come off the rim.
Another Classic Allen
So ended another classic Allen Trial. Charlie Kifton was delighted to win Class 1, a rare defeat for Dave Haizelden in this class. Sam Holmes won an event long battle with Hans Viertel and Ryan Tonkin emerging class four winner with his performance on the Ubley sections. In Class 7 Mal Allen won the battle of three Marlins followed by Kevin Barnes in his newly rebuilt supercharged Liege.
Class
1
Charles Knifton (Peugeot 205)
11
2
Adrian Dommett (Wolseley Hornet)
7
3
Dick Bolt (Ford Escort)
15
4
Sam Holmes (VW Beetle)
11
5
Keith Sanders (Reliant Scimitar SS)
17
6
Dean Vowden (VW Type 3 Notchback)
24
7
Mal Allen (Marlin)
10
8
Dean Partington (DP Wasp)
0
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Victory so nearly went to Steve Potter in his Trojan
With insurmountable restarts for Classes Seven and Eight on the Ubley Woods sections it was Classes 1,2 and 3 that battled for the overall win. At one stage it looked like Steve Potter may have taken overall honours in his Trojan but that slipped away just before the lunch halt. In the end it was Nick Cleal who took the win after being faster than Bill Bennett on the Special Tests.
It was very cold, with a touch of snow on the ground, as competitors joined the queue for scruitineering. It stretched a long way down the narrow street. Not sure the locals will have enjoyed all those idling engines outside their windows when they were expecting a Sunday morning lie in! The first few sections still had a bit of ice and the rather gentle Tog Hill stopped a couple of the Front Wheel Drive cars. Alan Holly was one of these in a rather low Ford Ka, prepared for endurance rallying rather than trials. Despite the front of his car scraping the ground everywhere he carried on to finish the event. Lets hope he enjoyed himself enough to stick with the sport.
Bitton Lane was not Front Engine Rear Wheel Drive Friendly
For classes three to eight Bitton Lane is all about a restart on polished stones, sited on a left hand bend. This was definitely not class five friendly as none of the four competitors could get their cars away. It was clearly a front engine, rear wheel drive issue as 40% of Class three failed as well, including Aaron Haizelden in his Mexico liveried escort which is surely too nice to trial?
Only Trojans Clean Big Uplands
Big Uplands had an experienced team of marshals from Stroud and DMC. Classes 7 and 8 bypassed the section in the morning and would return for their attempt late in the afternoon. There were some big holes mid way up the section and these were a problem for some of the lower slung cars, including many of the Escorts. The big problem came after the ninety left corner, the momentum lost rounding this was sufficient for most to come to a halt, apart from two cars that is, Steve Potter and John Wilton in their Trojans. The ground clearance certainly helped but hats off to the skill of both drivers to coax their wonderful machines to the summit of this difficult section. A mention to the best of the rest who got to the two. Bill Bennett (MG J2), Dick Bolt (Ford Escort), Reg Salway (BMW), Brian Alexander (Suzuki X90) and Matt Facey (1976 Beetle). Also reaching the two were four competitors in Class One, Nick Cleal, Dave Haizelden, James Shallcross and Charles Knifton.
Retirements at Guys Hill
The historic Guys Hill was next. There are no corners but its polished stones and tree roots are more than enough to trap the unwary, especially with a restart for class six and higher. This was another hill that proved problematic for classes three and five although Keith Sanders (Reliant Scimitar SS1) made amends for an eight on Big Uplands to go clean. In Class 4 Michael Leete left the start with wheels spinning and paid the price, stopping at the five. The other Class 4 competitors all went clear although Colin Perryman was to go no further, retiring with unknown problems, as did Matt Facey in Class 6. The restart for the higher classes saw many of their clean sheets disappear as the old hill did its work.
Past Chew Valley Lake and bypassing Burledge the route went onto the A368 and up Cleeve Hill to Travers. The section wasn’t too much of a problem if you didn’t have to restart, but it was a different matter for those that did. Ian Davis, in his nicely rebuilt VW Buggy, lost his clean sheet here.
Steve Potter leads the Trial in his Trojan before loosing it on Ubley Woods 3
The three Ubley Woods sections were just up the track and these were to determine the result of the trial. The Yellows and Reds had to restart on Ubley Woods 1 and only Tris White (Troll) and Nick Farmer (Cannon Alfa) managed to go clear. Then, like everyone else, Tris failed the Class Eight only restart on Ubley Woods 2. This left Steve Potter in his Trojan the lead of the trial with the only clean sheet. Sadly he was to loose this on Ubley Woods 3 where he dropped three marks. It was possible to get up in a Trojan though, as John Wilton proved when it was his turn.
So, as competitors made their way back to Chew Valley Lake for the rest halt, the leaders were all on two. They were Nick Cleal and James Shallcross in their Peugeot 205’s, the omni-present Dave Haizelden in his familiar Golf, Bill Bennett (MG J2) and Dick Bolt (Escort).
Nick Cleal and Bill Bennett tie for the lead. Nick wins on Special Test Times
These five were reduced to three when neither James nor Dick could get away from the slippery restart on Burledge. Then at the first of the two sections in the Lakeside Complex Dave Haizelden didn’t get all the way out of the bomb hole and lost one mark. That left Nick Cleal and Bill Bennett in the lead on two marks and the situation remained that way till the end, victory going to Nick on Special Test Times.
Whilst this was going on the Yellows and Reds went to Big Uplands for their attempt, with Class Eight having a restart. Most of the leading contenders went clear but after Ubley Woods this didn’t impact on the final results.
Another successful Allen Trial
The trial had its traditional finish at John Walker, a wonderful blast through the mud in the gathering dusk to conclude another excellent Allen Trial. Pete and Carlie Hart, Mark Tooth and the team are to be congratulated on preserving the traditions of the Allen Trial even though they have lost many “real lanes” over the years. In particular moving the Lakeside sections to their present location has been a great improvement and are a welcome addition.
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Classical Gas 