Welgelegen
Almost everyone agreed that the venue was absolutely beautiful and the weather was stunning too. We really are privileged to use this venue and it’s well worth the drive out there. It’s also the only venue we have where we have to have the event on a Saturday in order to ensure the old folks living there have quiet Sunday, not that we make much noise.
The eight sections were all within the confines of a small forested koppie , except for the first section, which was in the drainage ditch bordering a nearby field. The entry into this section for both classes was via a very steep and slippery embankment. The experts one being steeper and including the additional hazard of a pile of logs near the top of it. Several riders had a few hairy moment, myself included, but otherwise the scores were pretty low here. Section two was probably the easiest and shortest with lots of cleans. Section three, by contrast, was probably the longest, with a steep slippery climb followed by a very fine line across a rocky outcrop for the experts. Three and four were consecutive consisting of climbs up rocky slopes. Section six was a twisty course through pine trees and exiting over a number of large logs. The expert line had Tim and I considering all sorts of options with the inevitable “we’ll see what happens when we get here” being a possibility too. After an unfortunate five on the first lap, Tim decided that if he could float the front round and end up with his bash plate on the first log, he could then line up for the next (bigger) log, just a bike length away, and then just cruise over it. He then executed this perfectly to record the only clean of the trial there, which really made his day After the trial, as often happens, we went back there and both cleaned it using different approaches. Sections seven and eight were, as expected amongst more rocks and trees again, but this is very much the character of the venue.
In the clubmans class there was the usual rivalry between Nic and Morgan, resulting in a one mark difference in the end. Jorge was having a very good day, running out a clear winner in this class. Robert Sandell on his Beta acquitted himself very well again despite being the youngest and smallest competitor. He unfortunately got a full house (four five’s) on section four, a steep climb with a step in it, but still managed to keep control of his bike. Although this added to his score considerably, the experience will definitely benefit him in the long run.
The very short lap and fairly challenging course resulted in a few weary riders afterwards but everyone seemed to enjoy it.
Thanks to Hans and Ryan for helping set the sections the week before. Hans was unfortunately not well on the day and did not ride.
Results:
|
1
|
2
|
3
|
4
|
5
|
6
|
7
|
8
|
Total
|
Position
|
|
|
EXPERTS
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
Brian Barson
|
6
|
0
|
2
|
1
|
1
|
5
|
3
|
4
|
22
|
1
|
|
Tim Jordan
|
5
|
2
|
13
|
1
|
0
|
8
|
7
|
4
|
40
|
2
|
|
Total marks on section
|
11
|
2
|
15
|
2
|
1
|
13
|
10
|
8
|
|
|
|
CLUBMEN
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
Jorge Cardosa
|
0
|
1
|
9
|
0
|
1
|
1
|
1
|
4
|
17
|
1
|
|
Nicholas Lucas
|
0
|
2
|
16
|
2
|
2
|
4
|
0
|
4
|
30
|
2
|
|
Morgan Riley
|
0
|
0
|
17
|
0
|
0
|
5
|
1
|
8
|
31
|
3
|
|
Roddy Mills
|
3
|
11
|
9
|
0
|
5
|
0
|
2
|
11
|
41
|
4
|
|
Mark Shearer
|
16
|
10
|
8
|
1
|
9
|
8
|
0
|
10
|
62
|
5
|
|
Robert Sandell
|
15
|
5
|
14
|
15
|
16
|
15
|
5
|
10
|
95
|
6
|
|
Ryan Altern
|
20
|
16
|
14
|
3
|
16
|
18
|
8
|
14
|
109
|
7
|
|
Total marks on section
|
54
|
45
|
87
|
21
|
49
|
51
|
17
|
61
|
|
|
Next trial hopefully at Constantia.
Brian
