Thanks to those of you who provided comments following our experimental sending of the July Newsletter via e-mail. The response from the majority was that it is a good idea to issue the Newsletter on an electronic basis, and to post it onto the Club’s website. We will be continuing to issue the Newsletter on this basis for the time being therefore. However, I must make an apology for this months edition - my pdf converter is not working for some reason, and I am about to go on holiday, so have been unable to send you all the full version this month. Hopefully, the full version, including photos etc, will be posted onto the Club's website upon my return from holiday. The Committee have concerns that the electronic version of the Newsletter may not be reaching everyone, so if you are aware of any Club members who did not receive the last version, whether because of having no access to e- mail, or because we may not hold an up to date e-mail address, please ask them to contact me, or any of the Committee, and we will arrange for them to receive a copy. Thanks to my stars this month – Pete Jenkins, Brian Edwards and Eric Coles, who kindly contributed articles. If you would like to be one of my stars next month – please let me have items for inclusion as soon as possible. Debbie Don
CHAIRMAN’S CHATTER
It's a funny old world! One moment everything is going along swimmingly, the next you're swimming for dear life! So it seems this month with some major changes and some hard decisions to be made.
First of all I have to announce that Jan, our Secretary has chosen to stand down. Unless you have been involved in the administration of the Club, many of you may not have spoken to Jan, although she has often helped with the evening BBQs and was Secretary for the ACU Star Group Trial. Jan got on with everything with quiet efficiency, (not so quiet after a glass of wine), and we will miss her and thank her for her tremendous efforts in the past. Thank you Jan! Although husband John has not ridden in Club trials very much recently, both John and Jan enjoy the road runs and went to Italy this year with other members so we hope that we will continue to see plenty of them in the future. Nominations are sought for a replacement in the Secretary’s post.
Secondly, the decision has been taken to cancel the Old Codger this year. At the moment we have had a very poor response to a request for help with observers for the South Coast Group Trial, which is a local event, and this did not bode well for the Codger situated as it is on the west side of the County. In addition a number of key players were not available to help this year and a change of venue to ensure a suitable date seemed to be affecting entries with only six received to date. We risk a poor quality trial and possibly financial loss if we continue and we will have to decide if we wish to hold the event in 2010 and ensure that everything is in hand to make the event successful.
Thirdly, we apologise that some results have been delayed over the last two months. Unfortunately this is due to pressure on the same few individuals who are organising trials, setting up, sometimes clearing away, and then having to deal with the results at the end! It is very gratifying to have had a number of new helpers setting out, but already there is a danger that there is an assumption that these new helpers will fill the gaps. Please consider if you can help in some way. We are seeking volunteers to lay out or to do results (an easy job for anyone slightly computer literate as we have a prepared spread sheet) and trials will not start until we have allocated individuals to clear up. We hope to get the results up to date as soon as possible.
Lastly, we have had a good response to circulation of the magazine by e-mail. This will help keep costs down. You will remember that we were concerned about costs at the start of the year. On average we are making £30 per trial but making a loss each month after magazine costs. A circulation will shortly be undertaken to identify all current e mail addresses and to ensure that we continue to send a printed copy to those of you who can't receive or prefer not to have an e-mailed copy. Richard Coles
CLUB INFO RRND Club Nights
These are held on the first Wednesday of each month at the Home Cottage PH, Redstone Hill, Redhill, Surrey (off A25) from 8.30pm onwards. All Club members are welcome to come along, socialise and chat with other members, and make their views known to the Club’s Committee (who hold their monthly meeting earlier on the same night).
Check the Club’s website for dates at www.rrnd.co.uk.
Social events
Ideas and suggestions are always welcome for social events, so please pass your suggestion to any of the Committee and we will see what can be arranged.
Photos on Club’s website & in the Newsletter
A reminder that photos may be taken at trials and other events which are used in this Newsletter and on the Club’s website. Parents or guardians who do not wish their child’s photo to appear should make this clear to the photographer, and to the trial or event organisers.
Practice Land at Old Quarry Betchworth
Saturdays and Sundays from 10.00am – 2.00pm unless official event pre-booked. Situated off A25 between Reigate and Dorking. £10.00 per bike (10% discount for Club members on presentation of membership card). Food available along with bike wash facilities at £3.00 per bike (no discount). NO RIDING ALLOWED IN CAR PARK. For details contact Roger Farmer – 01372 374059 or 07721 612037.
Evening Trials
The last of the Club’s series of evening trials will be held on Wednesday 19th August with a start time of 6pm. This trial will be held at the Old Quarry, Betchworth, and the Club will be running its own BBQ, so bring a few extra pounds and save yourself the effort of cooking when you get home! In the event of bad weather, please check the website at www.rrnd.co.uk to ensure the event is still running.
August Camping Weekend Reminder
Don’t forget to get your booking form in to Jo Jenkins as soon as possible.
Streatham & District MCC 100th Birthday Celebrations Reminder A reminder that Streatham & District MCC are planning to have a Dinner Dance to mark the 100th Birthday of the Club and are trying to contact anybody who was a member or associated with the Club to see if they would like to come to the Party. The event takes place on 14th November 2009 at the Reigate Golf Club. Tickets will be £35 per person. If anyone is interested in attending, please contact: Allan Smith 39 Byron Avenue, Coulsdon. Surrey CR5 2JS Telephone: 0208 645 9678.
ROAD TRIP JUNE 2009 When I get the chance, a nice ride out on the road bike is a very pleasant way to spend a few hours.
This year three friends and myself went for a seven day tour in France. Usually we pick nice back roads and take forever to get anywhere. However, on this trip we opted for a hard core mileage ride.
The first day we set off at 5am to catch the Dover- Calais ferry. Full English breakfast on the boat, then all day on the French motorways to get to La Rochelle for the evening and over night stop. Perfect weather conditions that day made it all very easy.
Next day was a Sunday. This is ok in England but in France most petrol stations are closed all day except on the peages. We took a chance and rode the back roads between Niort and Limoges. This would take 2 hours to travel the 120-130 miles without any fuel stops. Two of the sports bikes only have a range of 130 miles! Luckily we found an open petrol station 100 miles into the journey, thus removing any fuel related problems later on.
From Limoges we rode south for 100 miles on the motorway. Then as we were well ahead of schedule, we finished the last 150 miles off the motorway. On the last part of the ride we could see very black clouds in front of us. The rain was some of the heaviest I have ever tried to ride in! We did have to stop a couple of times as the water on the road became too deep to ride at more than 20 mph. Also the helmet visors had water running down the inside! That night we arrived at our main base for the next 4 days. A small medieval town called Saint-Antonin Noble Val.
The next day we investigated the local area because as it was a bank holiday in France, there was no fuel at all to be found.
Tuesday we rode across to the Millau Bridge. The old road out of the town was an excellent zig- zag hill climb for at least 5 miles. We then came back over the bridge which goes down hill as it crosses the gorge below. A very impressive piece of engineering! Again another long day in the saddle especially for the sports bikes which don’t like the bumpy back roads. It was about this time I realized that the roads in this area in my sat nav must all be categorised the same because we kept being directed off the main road onto little side roads all the time. On one occasion we ended up on a mud path in a forest as it was the “quickest route” as far as the sat nav was concerned! After this we used a map and only referred to the sat nav when really stuck. It was, however, very accurate at spotting speed traps, and there were rather a lot on this trip for some reason.
The route home was a simple ride north for as long as we could to get as near to Calais as possible and try not to spend too much time on the motorway. We did quite well and found a Formula 1 type hotel just outside Chartres at about 7 pm.
Next morning to our surprise it was raining. We again went north heading up to Rouen where I know there are more good biking roads. The rain stopped after an hour so we pushed on all the way up to Le Crotoy for a long lunch overlooking the bay. As lunch over ran a bit, the nice coast road ride became a tear up the motorway to Calais to get the boat in time. Be warned this area was full of speed traps so without a sat nav a fine would be inevitable! By 10pm we pulled off the M25 at Godstone where Keith’s Blackbird broke down with a well and truly cooked battery. We removed the battery and put it on the grass verge to steam away, a safe distance from the other bikes, while Keith phoned for a recovery truck. A very nice trip but possibly a bit hard core on the daily mileages for most normal people. Generally 250 miles per day is enough for most riders but this small group I know is quite happy to push it up as far as 500 to 600 miles per day. Pete Jenkins
REPORT ON THE SUNBEAM CLUB’S DICK LITTLE TRIAL 21 JUNE 09
The Dick Little Trial is an annual event for pre 65’s and twinshocks, and this year was on the MOD land at Bagshot South.
Apparently, some people thought it was too easy last year (the winner, Peter Gaunt, was clean, and on the same route I dropped 60) so with that in mind, and a new Clerk of the Course for this year, I decided that discretion was called for and entered the easy, Gentlemens route. Sure enough, it was a lot harder and the Gentlemens route was not particularly gentlemanly!
A good entry of around 75 solos and sidecars tackled 3 laps of 13 sections on a hot and dry day. No mud in sight, so dust was one of the problems together with the steep rooty banks, gullys and tight turns.
No other riders from RRND were present, but our own Neville Lewis does moonlight with Sunbeam(!), and was doing a sterling job at the signing on desk, and later, observing section 7.
The first lap was a bit of shock, as I had never ridden the Gentlemens route before and was expecting pretty simple ride-throughs with perhaps a cambered turn or loose climb etc to take the odd dab. I found instead some fierce climbs and drops, which would not have been out of place on the previous year’s hard route!
However, with the Cub behaving itself, I managed to get round with the odd 1 or 2 plus a 3 at Section 9, which was an awkward entry to a long, loose, dusty camber before turning up the bank to the rest of the section. With a total of 7 for that lap, and only 1 on the second lap, I was thinking that maybe I had judged the sections too harshly. Two fives on the last lap bought me back to earth, literally!
One was on Nev’s section 7, where I dropped off a steep gully side on slightly the wrong line and went down the vertical bit instead of the almost vertical right line, and ended up on my ear. The other 5 was on the long camber of section 9, where the front end slipped rapidly away and I ended up on the same ear!
So 12 for the lap made a total of 20, which wasn’t good enough. On my route there were blokes on 10, 13 and 15 in front of me.
The hard route was VERY hard, with the winner, Colin Mote, losing 24, and last years winner, Peter Gaunt on 34. Colin is one of the few riders who can keep Len Hutty in sight, so you can see how difficult it was.
I was obviously very pleased to have entered the easy route, and to find it was more than enough of a challenge for me. Bruises have nearly gone now so look forward to next year! Brian Edwards
4 JOURS DE TRIAL DE LA CREUSE 11 au 14 Juillet 2009
There are numerous three and four day trials held in France and Spain every year, and this year I was lucky enough to participate in the above 4 day event organised by the St Christophe club at Sardent in France. Sardent is a small town located some 200 miles south of Paris, in the middle of a region that is famous for pretty much nothing as far as I can tell, apart from having the Tour de France pass though it, and the running of one of the best trials that I have ever participated in!
The trial is held annually and the date is always around the Bastille Day public holiday, normally finishing on that day. The trial takes over the whole town, with the town square being filled with trade stands, food stalls, start/finish/lap recorders tents and a selection of arena trial type sections. The surrounding pubs, restaurants, shops etc are all filled with trials riders and their supporters and at the end of each day the square is a mass of beer drinking riders still in their gear supping a post ride pint (shandy obviously). The atmosphere is memorable, and with the sun shining makes for a fantastic 4 days riding, however, if it rains (as it often does) then things are not quite so much fun!
The event caters for every category of rider with 5 courses being marked. Expert (black route) is for International stars, S1 is British Championship level, S2 Top Centre Expert, S3 Normal Centre Expert/Inter and ‘Randonneurs’ – Novice and Clubman. I have ridden this event twice now (2007 and 2009) and both times have found the S3 class about right. This year I watched some of our top SE experts on the S2 route (Thomas Moss and Rowan Puttock) and they were having a fairly tough time of things!
The course follows a different route each day, and for the first three days comprises a figure of eight, passing back through the start/finish area in the town square as a checkpoint. This enables petrol and refreshments to be taken on board as well as punch-card changes and each rider’s progress to be monitored. The length of each lap is between 25 and 30km of which a large amount is off road, so the petrol and refreshments are certainly needed (especially water!). As there were over 330 riders taking part this year, the organisers have to try and keep tabs on who is still out on the course and thus the passage through the checkpoint is vital.
Riders have the option of completing two laps of 15 sections each day for the full course, or just one lap which is known as the ‘Plaisance’ route. The final section is always one of the arena style ones in the Town Square and normally comprises large rocks, pallets, cable drums and even a low loader truck body!
The ‘Plaisance route means that riders are normally finished by 2-3pm each day giving time for drinks and relaxation in the town square in the afternoon. The full route normally means finishing between 5 and 6pm, unless you hit problems or dawdle, which means a long day, especially as you then need to prepare your bike for the next day! Daily start times depend on your finish time the day before and the length of the course means that you usually spend a good 8 hours plus ‘in the saddle’. The course closes officially at 22:00hrs but the officials will stop riders who attempt to start a lap or half-lap after 19:30hrs. Thomas Moss and Rowan Puttock fell foul of this ruling on one day this year and thus finished down their class as a result.
The fourth day comprises of one long lap of 25 sections over a course of some 80km, with a stop for petrol and refreshments at about 1/3rd distance. The petrol stop is then revisited again after 2/3rd of the trial has been completed and the drinks and baguettes on offer are most welcome! As is to be expected with running such a large event, the paperwork and organisation are quite strict, with each bike having to be road legal and registered and with working lights. However, as is the French way, the paperwork actually submitted normally comprises of photocopied documents and fictitious number plates along with battery powered lights clipped to bikes. The machine examiner laughed at scrutineering this year, when having rejected my friend Steve for not having a correct number plate, the machine was presented again a few minutes later with my number plate duct-taped to the back mudguard. Needless to say that Steve was then waved through! The checking of licences was also a bit vague and as long as you had a licence of some sort then that was fine.
The actual running of the trial is fantastic, with local villagers and townspeople observing, marshalling, manning road crossings etc. I’m not sure if they get paid, but the trial must generate such a vast income for the town and its businesses then maybe they do. Each time the course crosses a major road temporary ‘warning’ traffic lights are setup on the road and the crossing is manned to ensure that riders get across safely. There are ‘checkpoints’ at intervals around the course to ensure that no course cutting takes place and as the trial progresses you start to recognise observers faces from one day to the next. There must be some sort of financial encouragement for the observers, as they have to sit at their post until late into the evening sometimes.
This year I travelled with Steve and Laura Forrest in one van and ‘Team Martin’ from the Bognor Club travelled in a group with us, in their van. Door to door mileage (using the Channel Tunnel) is almost exactly 500 miles – so you can work out how long it takes depending on how heavy your right foot is! Needless to say that we travelled via the motorways which cost about £30 each way in tolls but took only some 8 hours driving time including stops!
We normally stay in a nearby town in a Travel Lodge type place, but this year it was fully booked as the Tour de France was coming though the town whilst we were there. Thus plan B was a local campsite with wooden chalets with two bedrooms and a proper bathroom – luxury! Some guys were camping under canvas, and some in caravans and campers. There is a campsite in the town itself, some 200 yards from the Town Square, but this gets very crowded and is probably alright if you are used to camping at music festivals and the like!
Competing in the trial was a bit like a South Coast Group event on occasion with Mike Husband, Simon Rye, Barry Rhodes, Thomas Moss and numerous Eastbourne members all riding. As I mentioned earlier, the route comprises of a large amount of off-road riding, passing through woodland and forest tracks as well as rocky paths and gullies. The sections are all rocks, rocks and a few more rocks. Not a muddy bank in sight! The severity of the sections for my class (S3) I found about right, with nothing dangerous or too extreme. The first day was a bit on the easy side, which made any silly fives very frustrating but things were tougher on the second and third days.
The weather was fine for the first three days, with sunshine and some cloud cover so that it didn’t get too hot. The weather changed on the Monday night with a torrential thunderstorm and heavy rain all night, with the rain continuing well into the final morning. I was not looking forward to a long day in the pouring rain, and despite wet weather gear we were all pretty soaked by the time we reached the first section. The rain and cloud cover meant that it was most gloomy under the trees and the dust from the previous few days had now turned to mud. To make matters worse I had been struggling with a sore eye on the Monday and had changed my contact lenses for a new pair. All seemed great until I rubbed my eye on arriving at the first section and dislodged the lens. Now I was stuck, I didn’t have my lens container with me and was faced with either throwing away the other lens (also new) or riding for the day with one lens in and one lens out. I chose the latter and rode ‘cross-eyed’ all day. Needless to say that I had my best day of the four without a five on my card and in the muddy conditions as well!
All too soon the trial was over for another year. Four long days with some great scenery and sections and plenty of laughs along the way. I was extremely lucky to have been loaned the Montesa 4RT by Steve Forrest and the bike ran like a sewing machine throughout. It started first kick every day and didn’t miss a beat for the whole four days. Aside from changing the air filter and lubing the chain I had no other machine problems whatsoever. The four stroke was lovely on the trails, pulling high gears easily which meant that I wasn’t dancing on the gear lever the whole time. It makes a big difference having a bike which does not give you problems as there is enough to contend with doing the trial and sections, without having any additional machine hassles.
Hopefully I will be going again next year, if I can get a pass! It is a great event, tiring, but very satisfying and enjoyable to compete in, with the additional spice of riding in a foreign country and being surrounded by French, Spanish and even riders from as far afield as Yorkshire. Thanks to Steve, Laura, Phil, Scott and Martin for a great week, and especially to Steve for the loan of the Montesa.
More details can be found on the club website at http://pagesperso-orange.fr/enduro/trial/
Eric Clarke
BEGINNER BASICS
Part Four: Advanced Riding Techniques 1
Hopping
Being able to hop will enable you to turn your bike in tight spaces and negotiate turns that are not possible using normal methods.
Before trying to hop, you must be able to use the brakes, clutch and throttle of your bike with precision. If you are not coordinated, the manoeuvre will be extremely hard to perform with any degree of success. You should also ensure that your bike’s suspension is correctly set up, or else hops will be very difficult to achieve.
To hop you need to:
· Be in a balanced stationary position with the engine running, engaged in gear and clutch in, and both front and rear brakes applied. · Apply the rear brake very firmly to stop the bike jerking forwards or backwards. · Relax!
Lifting the front wheel
With the bike in the vertical position, handlebars straight and both brakes applied firmly:
1. Push down on the handlebars to compress the front suspension. 2. Once the suspension has compressed and is starting to extend, pull back on the handlebars to lift the front wheel – NOTE: keep the rear brake firmly applied. 3. At the same time as the suspension is starting to extend, you can blip the throttle and clutch to help you lift the front wheel off the ground.
Moving the front wheel
The principle is that you must move your body first, then bring the bike back underneath you:
1. As you lift the front wheel (as described above), position your body either left or right, (depending on which direction you wish to hop), then bring the bike back underneath you by applying upwards pressure in the handlebars on the side to which you want to turn. 2. The further you wish to hop the bike, the more input will be required from you.
When practising, you can try and perform a series of hop and establish a rhythm. Remember always start and finish in a balanced position.
Hopping the rear wheel
Ensure you have the front brake applied firmly, but no rear brake at all until you land, so that if you are off balance when you land you are ready to do a few small front wheel hops to get back your balance.
1. Flex your knees, compress the rear suspension and vigorously jump upwards to unweight the rear of the bike. 2. As the rear suspension rebounds, the rear wheel should lift off the ground, and you should position your body to the left or right and bring the bike back underneath you using your legs. 3. To help with extra lift you can tuck your toe under the rear brake pedal.
Summary:
· Keep your brakes applied when hopping: - front wheel hops – both brakes at all times - rear wheel hops – front brakes only until you land then rear brakes.
· Flex your knees when compressing the suspension and straighten them as the suspension extends. · Move your body first, then the bike. · Use the power of the engine to help you move the front wheel.
Practice exercise
Place some wooden squares on the ground and try hopping your wheels as described above on and off the squares. If you are having trouble, try it on a slight slope, as it is harder to hop on flat ground. Once you have mastered this, try hopping the front wheel onto and off of a raised obstacle.
Next Edition – Part Five: Advanced Riding Techniques 2
Debbie Don
CLUB SECRETARY
Nominations for the vacant position of Club Secretary, should be sent to the Chairman, Richard Coles. Contact details are set out later in this Newsletter.
COFFEE BREAK TIME!
Find all the words listed below in the Wordsearch – all are trials related!
Words to find:
ACU, AMCA, BALANCE, BETA, BLUE, BULTACO, EXPERT, GASGAS, GULLY, HANDICAP, HONDA, INTER, MONOSHOCK, RED, ROCKS, ROOTS, RRND, SCORPA,SECTION, SHERCO, SOLO, STREAM, TRIAL, TURNS, TWINSHOCK, YELLOW.
JOKE!
A policeman waited outside a popular bikers pub,
hoping for a bust. At closing time, everyone came out and he spotted his
potential quarry. The man was so obviously drunk that he could barely walk.
He stumbled around the car park for a few minutes, looking for his motorbike.
After trying his keys on five other bikes, he finally found his own. He sat
on the bike for a good 10 minutes, as the other bikers left. He turned his
lights on and off several times, started his engine and pulled forward, then
stopped. Finally, he pulled out onto the road and started to drive away. The
policeman, waiting for this, turned on his lights and sirens and pulled the
man over. He administered the breathalyser test, but to his surprise, the man
passed easily. The policeman was shocked – “this equipment must be faulty” he
exclaimed. “I doubt that” said the man, “you see, tonight I am the designated
decoy…I haven’t had a drink all day!”
TRIAL REPORTS & RESULTS
Chairman – Richard Coles
01737 822312 richardguy.coles@virgin.net
Club Secretary – Vacant
NOMINATIONS REQUIRED
Membership Secretary – Shelley Wooster
01243 855681 shelbysuit@hotmail.co.uk
Club Treasurer – Jo Jenkins
01883 370045 jo@threearchgarage.co.uk
Club Newsletter - Editor – Debbie Don
01737 243537 debbie.don1@btinternet.com
Club Newsletter - Production – David Wooster
01243 855681 wooster6bn@btinternet.com
Competition Secretary – Pete Jenkins
01883 370045 pete@threearchgarage.co.uk
Assistant Competition Secretaries Pat Lloyd-Jacob – 0208 643 4256 Eric Clarke - 01883 650124
Committee Members David Charman Danny Haste
CLUB DIARY 09
Please note that dates/venues do change due to circumstances. Please always check the website at www.rrnd.co.uk before travelling.
CLUB TRIAL ENTRY DETAILS – HOOKWOODS – 27/09/09
Start: 11am Entry: Members 16 and over £12.00 under 16 £8.00 Guests 16 and over £20.00 under 16 £16.00 NOTE: this includes a supplement of £5 per Guest rider, due to the high cost of hiring this venue.
Clerk: Peter Jenkins
Course: Four laps of ten sections. Break after second lap. It is preferred that riders ride the course as continuous laps starting at whichever section they prefer and not keep riding the same section continuously.
General: Please note that all parents/people with parental responsibility are responsible for under 18 year old riders and it is required that you sign their entry form. Also schoolboy/girl riders DO NOT have personal insurance cover, only third party. For safety reasons, it is preferred that riders do not ride around alone but in small groups observing each other in the sections. Always check that a section is clear before entering, and no practising before or during the trial in the sections. If caught practising, you may be disqualified.
Helmets are optional for adults but you are strongly advised to wear one. All under 18 year old riders MUST wear a helmet.
This is an AMCA event run by Reigate & Redhill North Downs Motorcycle Club.
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