Macc TC Dead Easy Trial Rough Hayes Quarry 16.3.08
Report & Pictures by B
A cold & windy Rough Hayes Quarry greeted a turnout of 87 riders to Macc TC’s second event of 2008 & eagerly awaited popular Dead Easy Trial. Following their success from last Nov at Thornsett Fields, Mellor with the same Dead Easy format, John & Gail Critchlows organization of Sunday’s event at Rough Hayes Quarry was yet another resounding success with riders traveling from as far as Sheffield, Nottingham & Preston. Riders still signing on as the event began at 11.am!
John’s real passion for the sport is highlighted in how he always manages to find the time & energy to ride!
The wet & muddy conditions foremost in the plans of the section plotters offered just the right cocktail on both routes of whoops & dips, twists & turn’s, a good measure of rocks & roots thrown in with a dash of a splash in the Quarry.
A three way split between O/40 rider Andy Foot, who literally blitzed the hard route along with joint Adult beginners on the easy route, riders Wayne Matthews & Mark Stafford all achieving a foot-less finish to all come out best overall through the usual four rounds of ten sections. Keeping up the pace14 riders managed to stay within single figures.
36 riders ventured the Easy Route with sections 3 & 7 being the more of the challenging, especially for the D class riders all determined in their quest for a good ride & not to be out done by the rumblings from the bigger bikes and the vintage twin shocks, really gave their all with Jake Machin leading the way on 33 most marks lost on sections 3 & 7.
Section 3 a run of inlaid rocks set alongside a grassy & rocky embankment & section 7 becoming more slippy as more riders rode the root lined rollercoaster dips & whoops, both claiming most marks lost.
56 riders on the hard route had to contend with a selection of various tree lined slippy cambers, awkward tree roots, muddy climbs & descents.
Section four on the hard route, one of a few tricky sections, kept riders on their toes negotiating an initial muddy short whoop to reach the rocks at the top to attain a perfect landing to then ease there way down to negotiate a tight right turn through a narrow path between more rocks, descending down into more awaiting rocks & the bough of a tree! This nearly caught many riders out as they had to remember to duck down whilst negotiating the left exit down to the finish marker.
Hard Route Easy Route
Andy Foot 0 Wayne Matthews 0
Karl Green 2 Mark Stafford 0
Stuart Standing 3 James Ford 3
Terry Harvey 4 Chris Ellis 5
John Wilson 7 Rob Goodwin 16
Jack Lycett 14 Adam Naden 10
Jack Beresford 4 Jordan Foot 7
Gareth Salt 4 Alex Jones 3
Jake Machin 33