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Tristan was best Solo while Chris passengered Richard Maddern to a Sidecar Win. In the Cars Matt Facey came home in front of Duncan Stephens and Tom Jones
Torbay organisers Dave Haizelden and Keith Sanders like a tough trial and everyone knows this is what the event is all about. This year more than lived up to expectations with the wet conditions ensuring that grip and ground clearance were at a premium.
Continue reading “Barnicoats Triumph on Tough Torbay”There were ten clean sheets spread across four classes. Duncan was fastest in his Fugitive from Joe Browning in his Baja.
Stroud attracted their usual full entry for this years Cotswold Clouds which was held in unseasonable dry conditions, resulting in a number of clean sheets.
Continue reading “Duncan Stephens wins Dry Cotswold Clouds”Ben Tonkin wins a well supported Tamar Trial
Ben Tonkin won Launceston’s Tamar Classic Trial on Sunday, returning in his 1600 VW Beetle with 2 year old son George passengering for the first time. It was a very close scoring day that saw the lead change multiple times on the last hill.
Continue reading “Tonkin Ends Run”Hat Trick of ACTC wins for Duncan Stephens who pipped Philip Thomas on Test Times
Duncan Stephens followed up his win on the Exmoor Clouds with a dominating drive on the Taw and Torridge
With Stuart Bartlett in the passengers seat of his UVA Fugitive Duncan had a day long battle Keith Sanders in his Reliant Scimitar SS. At the end of the day these were the only cars with single digit scores, the win going to Duncan on six with Keith on nine.
Apart from Duncan and Keith the remainder of the entry attracted some high scores on what was reckoned to be a tough event with some very steep sections.
The motorcycles had a strong class X entry. Ian Thompson was the best Solo amongst the regular classes
Continue reading “Duncan Doubles Up on T and T”Wins for Tristan Barnicoat and Duncan Stephens
Run last year as a Single Venue Event Minehead Motor Club had planned to run a road trial this year. Unfortunately there were problems a few weeks before the event and the route had to be confined to the extensive Headon Woods. Tristan Barnicoat dominated the Motorcycles while Duncan Stephens had a hard fight with Charlie Merson and Stewart Green to win the cars.
Continue reading “Exmoor Clouds Restarts Season”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.
New Start Venue
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 |
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
Dean Partington and Duncan Stephens drop 12 marks, but Best Overall awarded to a competitor in Class 0
The Ilkley continues to be an enjoyable and developing event, despite things being done very differently to the other championship rounds. A couple of the regular sections had to be cancelled because of the wet weather but this was more than compensated for by Stan Peels new find, a section called Coppy alongside Gouthwaite Reservoir although this proved damaging for some in Class 0.
Clerk of the Course Stan Peel had been very worried about the weather building up to the weekend as some of the roads on the route were flooded. Come the day the water had receded but it was still necessary to cancel a couple of sections, including the popular Incline on the outskirts of Pateley Bridge. To compensate a couple of familiar sections at Sword Point were drafted back into use.
The event attracted quite a good entry of 38 bikes, 14 cars in Class 0 and 33 in the main classes. Most of the events regulars were present, but noticeably only a handle of championship contenders. The main car classes had quite high pressure restrictions of 15psi for Seven and Eight and 12 psi for the others. Class 0 had neither pressure restrictions or restarts
Big Hole at Strid Wood
With the first Hawpike section being cancelled the picturesque Hawpike 2 was first on the agenda. Quite a few drivers were caught out by the steep bank at the start, including Paul Clay and Nigel Hilling with their 1172 sidevalves and Graham Redmayne in his Liege in Class 0. Graham didn’t make many more errors and went on to an excellent second in Class 0.
The familiar sections at Strid Wood came next. The first wasn’t too bad for the early cars in class 0, but soon developed a huge hole in the soft surface which only Dean Partington and Stuart Lambert of the later numbers could surmount. The second hill here had a very difficult 90 right onto a track which proved too much for most cars. The few that did get round were trapped by the tight PCT markers higher up and two was the best anyone could do. David Golightly had a good try in his wonderful Model A but got rather crossed up in the process and had a rather alarming unplanned descent through the undergrowth.
Suburb Green Laning across Pock Stones Moor
There was a new section called Ellers Edge on Pock Stones Moor. The section was fine but even better was mile after mile of green laning to get to the section and more afterwards, finally emerging at the Hey Slack Section. Ellers Edge was a slippery bank which stopped a surprising number of the entry including all the Lieges apart from Graham Redmayne in Class 0.
There were the usual two sections at a cold and windy Hey Slack, attempted according to Class. They were very wet at the bottom which prevented competitors attacking the short sharp banks. Nobody climbed the easier one and in 7 and 8 only Duncan Stephens in Class 7 and Dean Partington and Charlie Knifton in Class 8 came out the top.
The weather was better at the sheltered Peels Wood 1 where the routes were split, class 8 having to descend to the bottom before attacking a steep grassy bank. Only one competitor surmounted this bank and nobody will be surprised that was Dean Partington. The other classes had a much easier route and there were few marks lost.
Only the higher Classes tackle Wilson Wood
Wilsons Wood was only attempted by Classes 7 & 8 and didn’t take too many scalps this year. The only two retirements occurred here. Steve Lister had problems with his blown Dellow and there was no Charlie Knifton as his Subaru powered Scorpion had stuck in gear leaving Peels Wood.
There was a lunch break in the farmyard before Brimham Lodge, with a much appreciated refreshment wagon and toilets. The Brimham Lodge section was in fine form. Cleanable, but it wasn’t easy and about half the cars didn’t succeed in getting up without a tow. David Golightly in the Model A was penalised 50 marks here, presumably for tyre pressures and this cost him a class win. Incidentally the tyre pressure check was at the top of the section, so no chance to adjust them if they didn’t satisfy the marshals gauge. (1)
New Section at Coppy was Rough
With the Incline Sections cancelled due to the wet ground the route went through Pateley Bridge and alongside Gouthwaite Reservoir to a new section called Coppy. This had a relatively gentle gradient, the challenge was the ruts, rocks and mud. The majority of the Class 0’s running at the front of the field had problems and had to back out. Before long pretty much the entire field were queued on the main road. Fortunately some of the senior competitors stepped in and marshalled the cars onto the adjoining grassy field otherwise there could have been a nasty accident.
The main classes were not without their problems, but even those that cleared the section had a struggle with the hairy drop into the stream on the exit track.
After Coppy the route continued to follow the reservoir road to Longside Wood, introduced for last years event. Stan Peel had taken pity on the lower classes and allowed them to start after the tight hairpin at the bottom. The section is a magnificent long blast up a track through a Bluebell Wood, finishing with some tight corners. These were the downfall of the few competitors who got that far, all except Mike Chatwin who was the only clear in his DP Wasp.
On the Moors above Pateley Bridge
Watergate lay back down the reservoir road, through Pateley Bridge and up onto the moors. Watergate 1 is one of the jewels of the Ilkley Trial, a real classic section in a picturesque setting, such a shame about the car damaging unnecessary artificial bit at the top. There were no restarts for the lower classes but even so it the section claimed scalps on the lower reaches.
Watergate 2 was a dive into and out of a quarry, cleaned by all but one competitor.
The Cock Hill Mine section was higher on the moor. Bleak and exposed it was a new variation for most classes, marked PCT style and routed over some big rocks before a tight 90 left onto the exit track. This was quite tricky but competitors in most of the classes managed a clean, including three in Class 2, John Bell (MG TB) and Richard Parker and Sebastian Welch in their Austin Seven’s. David Child did some damage to his Pop here and he missed the remaining sections.
Back to Peels Wood
There was a second run at Peels Wood on the way back to Otley, with a relatively straightforward restart for those who didn’t have to deviate. The Class 8’s had their deviation again and once again it was only cleaned by a DP Wasp, but it was Mike Chatwin this time. Dean dropped seven, loosing the overall win in the process.
Two familiar sections at Sword Point weren’t included originally but were drafted in a few days before to replace those lost to the wet ground. The first one had a more attainable route through the trees before the step up to the track. Very few in the lower classes could surmount that so well done to Sam Holmes (beetle), David Golighltly (Ford Model A) and Paul Clay (Ford 10 powered A7) who crested the summit.
Sword Point 2 was another weave though the trees with a tricky restart on some soft peat thrown in for good measure. This proved a real challenge and only John Bell and Sam Holmes got away. The higher classes didn’t fare much better, most of them failing to get away.
Finish and Reflections
With so many sections and some substantial delays, later numbers were still trickling into the finish for their supper past 6pm, which was shame for those who had a long journey home followed by work on Monday morning. For those that had the time to enjoy it there was a nice supper, included in the entry fee.
On reflection the trial was much rougher than usual in places and Class 0 had no respite from these sections on this event. The overall winner came from this class but considering they had no restarts, free tyre pressures and were in a road going Sporting Trials car this attracted quite a bit of comment.
Having made these comments The Ilkley has never fitted into the mould of the other championship events. Those who come back each year know what to expect and enjoy the event for what it offers. Just a shame it was rough for those who choose Class 0 to avoid damage to their cars.
| Class | Driver/Car | Marks |
| Overall | Mark Busfield (CWB Trident Ford Special) | 11 |
| 0 | Graham Redmayne (Liege) | 35 |
| 1 | James Shallcross (Peugeot 205) | 32 |
| 2 | John Bell (MG TB) | 34 |
| 3 | Nigel Hilling (Ford Anglia) | 71 |
| 4 | Sam Holmes (VW Beetle) | 23 |
| 5 | Kraig Mycock (Riley Nine) | 62 |
| 6 | No Starters | |
| 7 | Duncan Stephens (Dutton Melos) | 12 |
| 8 | Dean Partington (DP Wasp) | 12 |
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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