Results

Report by Viki Taylor:

The inaugural Roy Groves No Nonsense Memorial Trial took place at Bembridge Down, with many thanks to the Taylor family for the use of this popular and challenging venue. Congratulations must go to Derek Farndell and his team of course setters, advisers, and landscapers – Rob Baker, Harrison Crickmore and John Coombes for 8 excellent sections that tried and tested the 38 entrants and also drew many compliments from the riders and spectators.

Thanks, must also go to our observers – Derek Farndell, Debs Payne, Steve Kent, Richard Crickmore, Nick Symes and Adrian Daish.

The trial was the last round of the Winter Series before the summer break and has been named in tribute to Roy Groves, Life President of the IOWMCC and a very active member/stalwart of the club for over 65 years who passed away in April 2023. Roy held almost every possible office from cup steward to Chairman and latterly of course, President. He also spent many years helping with the IOWMCC Junior Display team whose members included his sons Steve and Ian as well as a few of our current ‘veteran’ riders. Roy’s no-nonsense attitude endeared him to many and he was a huge part of the club and is sorely missed.

Three Experts battled it out for top honours with Tom Richards losing 5 compared to Adam Morgan’s 17. Will West had to settle for third, 7 marks behind Adam on 24. The quality of the sections was apparent in the overall scoring, with 10 of the 33 finishers dropping less than ten marks. Shaun Harris had an excellent ride, coming in first in the Intermediates on 2, whilst Ajay Shaw was thoroughly deserving of his 2nd place losing just 4. Freddie Death also rode well to take third with 9, leaving Harrison Crickmore 3 marks behind in 4th place. Harrison possibly rueing his unfortunate ‘collision’ with a dead tree on section 1, lap 1. Ouch!

In the Open C class, Simon Strickland had a blistering ride not dropping a single mark throughout the four laps. Geoff Taylor was runner up on 6, with Mike True in 3rd, just three marks behind on 9. Rory Stephens on his first outing with the Repsol Montesa took the top spot in the Over 50’s with the second lowest score of the day, losing just a single mark. Jon Death wasn’t far behind on 7 with John Coombes breathing down his neck just a point behind on 8.

Just two riders competed in the Novice’s with Paul Kent victorious on 18 and Connor Shaw trailing slightly behind on 29. Despite struggling somewhat on section 2, Damian Rajasingam took the victory in the Adult Easy class with 34 with Steve Jacobs taking a valiant second place on 56. Only two riders completed the trial in the Clubman class, with Tris Osborne having to bail out after suffering a puncture. Ben Ashcroft went on to take first place on a credible 17 with Alan Gosden lagging behind in second after dropping 30. In tribute to Roy, father and son Rob and George Richards (dad and brother to our current Expert champion Rob) dusted off their trials gear taking first and second in the Sportsman class with scores of 12 and 73 respectively.

The three Youth entrants took the often-tricky Bembridge terrain in their stride and battled through the sections with comparative ease. Riley Baker was the sole Youth Novice competitor, dropping 79, whilst Leo Death (voted most improved youth rider in 2023) showed his confidence taking first place in the Youth Easy class on 28, with Blake Buggy coming in second on 45.

I think I can safely say that the first' No Nonsense Memorial trial' was a resounding success which the club can be proud of, and we look forward to more of the same next year.

The next club event is of course the Awards on 27th April and the Summer Series then kicks off on May 12th. The venue is to be confirmed.

Results of todays trial, full report to follow. Many thanks to Charles Ball for the use of the venue today. Also thanks to those that observed today's trial - Leighanne Baker, Wayne Brodie, Adrian Daish, Derek Farndell, Kev Smith, Nick Symes and Steve Kent.

Report by Viki Taylor.

Round 5 of the Winter Championship took place in balmy, springlike conditions at Newbarn Farm, Calbourne on Sunday March 10 th . Many thanks to Chris Spence for the use of the venue and to the team of course setters - Andy Ryall, Rob Payne and Dave Elford.

Much appreciation also goes to the day’s Observers - Richard Crickmore, Nick Symes, Kev Smith, Geoff Taylor, Andy Ryall and Wayne Brodie.

The duel for the Expert crown continues with Tom Richards coming out on top over Adam Morgan, losing only 2 to Adam’s 37. The new GasGas is obviously agreeing with Tom! Jim West took top spot in the Intermediate class on 20 with just a single point separating Harrison Crickmore (29) and Rory Stephens (30) in 2nd and 3rd places. Shaun Harris came in 6 marks behind Rory.

In the Over 50s, Jon Death took the victory over John Coombes with 43 whilst Paul Kent was the sole finisher in the Novice class, taking 10 championship points.

Four riders competed for the win in the Adult Easy, with Damian Rajasingam coming in first on 5, the second lowest score of the day. Dave Elford and John Gustar took 2nd and 3rd spots with respective scores of 14 and 23. Tristan Osborne took the win in the Clubman group with 41, beating Alan Gosden on 56 and Mike True on 66.

Three Youth riders competed today with Riley Baker finding it tough going at times in the Youth Novice to finish on 113, whilst Leo Death was victorious in the Youth Easy class on a very credible 13. Blake Buggy came in runner-up on 20.

The next round of the winter championship is the Downend Cup, which takes place on March 24th.

Results of todays trial. Many thanks to Ralph Cook for the use of the venue today. Also thank you to Nick Symes, Kev Smith, Leighanne Baker, Dave Elford and Steve Kent for observing on a wet and windy day! Full report to follow.

Report by Viki Taylor.

Round 3 of the Winter series saw a return to Knighton sandpit in overcast conditions. The club extends its thanks to landowner Roger Morgan once again for the use of this popular venue. We are also very appreciative of the efforts of our observers – Leighanne Baker, Richard Crickmore, Adrian Daish, Steve Kent and Kev Smith.

Six riders took on the challenge of the Expert route with the welcome return of Jim West rejoining brother Will in the top class. Current champion Tom Richards should be pleased with his score of 34 after tackling the excellent but sometimes tricky sections set by Adam and Ben Morgan and Darryl Biles. Adam just got the better of Darryl coming in second on 60.

Top spot in the Intermediates was a closely fought battle with just one mark separating Freddie Death in first on 68 from runner-up Ajay Shaw. Harrison Crickmore also rode well to take third with 77. Simon Strickland returned from an injury break to take the win in the Open C class with 26, the second lowest score of the day. Last week’s victor, Geoff Taylor had to settle for second place on 64.

Andy Scott-Jackson was the sole finisher in the Over 50s, whilst Connor Shaw took maximum championship points in the Novice class. Over in Adult Easy Guy Beeson had an impressive ride taking the win with 24, the lowest score of the day whilst just ten points separated Dave Elford in second from Damien Rajasingam in third. Alan Gosden was the only Clubman competing today finishing on 105, whilst Tristan Osborne was the lone Sportsman to complete this challenging trial.

In the Youth Novice class, Riley Baker earned himself another ten championship points whilst Leo Death continues to impress with his gaining confidence, dropping only 45 in the Youth Easy.

The next round is the Jeffries Cup which takes place at Shorwell Chalkpit on Sunday 18th February.

Report by Viki Taylor.

The second round of the 2024 Winter series took place at Haslett sandpit on January 21st courtesy of landowner Glenn Draper. Incoming Storm Isha didn’t deter the 31 riders who braved the rather more blustery than usual conditions at this challenging sandy venue. Many thanks to the course setters Rob Baker, Sam Jurich and Mike True and to our observers Kate Baker, Leighanne Baker, Alfie Haydon, Steve Kent and Kev Smith.

The club was delighted to see the return of Will West, a former Expert champion and Two Day winner after a break of almost 5 years. Will rode magnificently to tie for first place with current Expert champion Tom Richards, with neither rider dropping a mark. Adam Morgan came a close second losing only 5. Rory Stephens once again took the top spot in the Intermediates with an impressive score of 4. Only six marks behind was Ajay Shaw on 10, whilst Harrison Crickmore was hot on AJ’s heels losing 12 in third.

In the Open C, after bike issues at Sweetwater, Geoff Taylor also made his return to trials after a prolonged summer break, taking the win from Phil Chase and dropping just 11 marks. Andy Scott-Jackson rode solo in the Over 50 class, taking another 10 championship points with a score of 18, whilst Paul Kent had a very consistent trial to take the Novice win over Luke Jacobs who just pipped Derek Farndell to second place by a single mark.

Competition in the Adult Easy was very closely fought with just three marks separating the top three riders. Dave Elford came in first on 20 from Damien Rajasingam in third place on 23. Steve Jacobs will be pleased to have just taken second from Damien losing 22. It was Alan Gosden’s turn to emerge victorious in the Clubman class dropping a measly 3 on his Fantic with Ben Ashcroft not far behind in second with 10. Sam Jurich was tied on 20 with father-in-law Mike True, but Sam took third spot with an extra clean over Mike. The club’s most senior competitor, octogenarian John Townsend was the sole Sportsman class rider on his veteran Triumph.

Four youth members competed , with Riley Baker riding alone in the Youth Novice with a loss of 93, whilst Blake Buggy took the win in the Youth Easy class over the increasingly confident Leo Death but only by 2 marks.

The 3rd round of the Winter Series, the Novice and Expert Cup takes place at Knighton Sandpit on Sunday 4th February.

Report by Viki Taylor.

The first Sunday of the new year saw 26 riders compete on a bright, dry and noticeably chilly day in the opening round of the 2024 Winter Championship at Sweetwater Brook, Calbourne. Many thanks to Trevor Strickland for the use of this popular venue which always gifts a variety of challenging sections in and around its namesake stream. Thankfully, despite the deluges of recent days the water wasn’t deep enough to cause any major issues (unless you fell off into it of course!) Thanks also to the course setters – John Coombes, Tristan Osborne and Ben Ashcroft and to our Observers; Kev Smith, John Coombes, Mike Morris, Richard Crickmore and Nick Symes.

Tom Richards began the defence of his Experts title with a win over Daryl Biles, on his first foray into the A route class. Tom dropped only 10 on the sticky, slippery sections whilst Daryl had a very commendable ride losing 45 with only 4 other riders over all classes scoring lower.

Despite a dunking on Section 6 (no photographic evidence unfortunately), Rory Stephens took top spot in the Intermediates on his Vertigo, his first club ride since the Wight Two Day Trial, back in September. Freddie Death rode well to come in second with 45 whilst Ajay Shaw was only 4 marks behind Freddie in third.

The Open C class saw a very close contest between the 3 entrants with Stuart Gummer just pipping Phil Chase to first by a single mark. Sam Jurich had a consistent ride to come in third 10 marks behind Phil. Andy Scott-Jackson rode to victory in the Over 50’s whilst Riley True was the top Novice today, just 3 marks ahead of Derek Farndell. Both riders finding their weakest spot was section 3 with several fives between them.

Top of the Adult Easy class with the third lowest adult score of the day was Damien Rajasingam on 20 with Steve Jacobs coming in second on 37. The Clubman class saw friendly rivals Ben Ashcroft and Tristan Osborne battling for the win with Ben emerging victorious, dropping 61 to Tris’s 67. Alan Gosden brought up the rear in 3 rd with 78, having swapped his usual Open C route for the Clubman. John Townsend was the lone Sportsman rider. He took an early bath (literally) on section 4 and unsurprisingly retired from the trial.

Three youth riders got their Winter Series off to a pleasing start – Riley Baker rode solo in the Youth Novice picking up 10 championship points whilst Blake Buggy had an excellent trial on his Oset, dropping just 20 with the ever improving Leo Death behind him in second on 49.

The second round of the Winter Series, The Mercury Cup, takes place on January 21 st . The venue is to be confirmed

Report by Viki Taylor.

Thankfully the Christmas Day grey skies and rain cleared away for the annual Boxing Day Father and Son cup trial held at its traditional venue of Shorwell Chalkpit courtesy of landowner Ralph Cook. Many thanks to our observers Kate Baker, Leighanne Baker, John Coombes and Adrian Daish for turning out today and to our last minute course setter Mark Coombes who plotted 8 sections for the 28 entrants that were just the right level of difficulty for those post-Christmas bellies.

Six pairings were in competition for the Father and Son cup with Sam Jurich and Riley True putting on extremely solid performances to take the title with a combined score of just 5, with Steve and Luke Jacobs coming in second on 21 and Dave and Joe Elford taking third place from Dave and his other competing son Jason.

Sam also came away with the Boxing Day Novice cup after losing just a single mark. It was a family clean sweep of the top three in the class as Sam’s father-in-law Mike True and stepson Riley tied on 4 marks each with an identical number of cleans, ones and twos! Mike triumphed in 2nd spot from his grandson as he travelled furthest with least marks lost.

There were no riders in the Expert class today, Tom Richards instead competing in the Open B on his dad’s TLR and losing a very credible 10 marks leaving his sole competitor Joe Elford trailing in second with a loss of 28. Darryl Biles took top spot in the Intermediates dropping just 11 with Sonny Gaskin losing 20 to come in second with Freddie Death putting in a confident performance on his Beta to finish in 3 rd place with 27.

Low scores were the order of the day in the Open C class, with Alan Gosden taking pole position dropping just 4. Stuart Gummer was close behind with 8 and Phil Chase lost 10 to come in third. The final rider of the group, Nick Symes had an unfortunate off on section 5 on his first lap resulting in his retirement from the trial. Keith Thomas was the only entrant in the Twin Shock and had a consistent ride with a score of just 14, whilst the lone Over 50 competitor was Andy Scott-Jackson who rode around for 31.

The Adult Easy class was soundly won by Luke Jacobs with a blistering score of just 4 beating dad Steve who got round for 17. Dave Elford followed just behind Steve with a score of 19. Only two youth riders participated in the trial – Riley Baker was the sole Youth Novice rider, dropping 60 and looking the business in his new personalised trials gear and Leo Death continues to show improvement with an impressive ride to lose just 13 marks in the Youth Easy group.

Sunday 7 th January sees the first round of the 2024 Winter championship – the New Year Shield, at its regular venue of Sweetwater Brook.

Report by Viki Taylor.

The IOWMCC Winter championship came to a very soggy and windswept conclusion at Haslett Sandpit near Shorwell on December 10th. Our thanks as ever go to Glenn Draper for the use of this venue, to Richard Crickmore the sole observer and of course to Kate Baker for keeping us all warm on the inside at least with copious amounts of hot drinks.

26 riders (and a few hardy spectators) braved the rain and blustery conditions to tackle the 8 sections set by Rob Baker, Keith Thomas and co.

Tom Richards sealed the 2023 Expert Championship with a resounding class win over Alfie Haydon who scored a couple of uncharacteristic fives. Once again, Adam Morgan reigned supreme in the Intermediate’s and also took the championship win with a loss of only 28 marks over Harrison Crickmore who rode well in the challenging conditions to take a well deserved 3rd place in the overall championship standings. Jason Elford took third spot at Haslett only 10 marks behind Harrison – the heavy, sandy course took its toll on the rest of the class who all came in with treble figures and a bulk order of replacement brake pads!

In the Open C group, Alan Gosden took top spot in both the trial and the overall championship whilst the sole competitor in the Over 50s, Simon Newnham is also the newly crowned class Champion. Recently returned rider Simon Watmough was forced to retire in the Twin Shock class with bike issues whilst the Novice group had consistent rides with only 11 marks between Mike True in first and Derek Farndell in third place. Congratulations must go to Sam Jurich on the Championship win.

Rob Payne rode confidently to another great result in the Adult Easy class, coming top and taking the title in addition, despite taking a rather unexpected tumble and ending up sitting in the water at one point on section 5! The rest of the group weren’t far behind him with 9 marks separating Steve Jacobs in second spot and Guy Beeson in fourth place. It was great to see our newest rider Kyla Dyer persevering with getting the hang of the bike in very unfriendly conditions to a seasoned competitor let alone a newbie! Ben Ashcroft rode a blistering trial as the lone Clubman to drop only 29, the second lowest score of the day.

The weather coupled with the sandy venue proved too challenging for our youth riders with Riley Baker retiring shortly after the start and cementing Blake Buggy as the 2023 Youth Easy Champion.

Our next event is the Boxing Day Cup incorporating the Father & Son Trial at Shorwell Chalkpit on December 26th.

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