Nine down and two to go in the British Sidecar Trials Championship series after Sunday’s day in the Derbyshire Dales where Terry Crabtree and the Mansfield Maun team laid on a cracking course for the Doncaster Cup Trial, and brilliant weather to boot.
The only change was a move from the Miners Standard at Winster to Grange Mill where the last three sections in the plantation were tricky. At the sharp end Rupert and Chris Kimber in determined form and increased the pressure on Robin and Sam Luscombe.
In the inter class, just three contenders, and Guildford’s Daryl Dale and Hannah Etherington delivered a good result while Bristol crew David Tuck and Andy Scrivens squabbled over the single point championship advantage that Tuck held over his rival. That has now grown to three.
Bradford clubman class leader Nigel Scott and Jay Ashley-Hall started twenty five points ahead of Braintree’s Mark Kemp and Ian Allaway. But Strood contender Robbie Head and Andy Jacobs threw in a spanner in the works and Scotty now has a thirteen point advantage over Head and Jacobs.
The punch change indicated that the Kimbers were on a roll and Portsmouth crew Mick Treagus and Steve Gould were heading the clubmen with Simon Evans and Nick Harding ahead of Robbie Head and Aron Jacobs.
Cullompton crew Paul Churchill and Kevin Parnell closed up fifth place in the closing stages. The sun was up on Burycliff Quarry where only Peter Dale and Harriett Shore cleaned the first section which stopped the Kimber but they emerged on thirteen. Four stops knocked any chance of the Luscombes taking the twenty points.
Barry Burton’s Dudwood group of six rocky subs in the dense woods extracted dabs from the top guys while the final turn at the top of the last section was tight and some outfits wedged against the rocks.
The final three sections in Grange Mill Wood took marks from the top two classes and the Luscombes pulled back after cleaning Dudwood and Grange Mill but the Kimber ride was just a bridge too far on the day. The scores of 26, 21 and 30 highlighted the day