With all the rain we’ve been having lately there was no way it was going to be a dry race, so with that in mind I placed an order for a new rear trials tyre, a Pirelli MT43. I needed all the help I could get to find more grip! The 450EXC is wonderful in the dry but on wet, greasy, grass covered slopes it’s as effective as a chocolate teapot!
We got to the Lane End venue at about nine and the parking area had been set up around the access road to the farm, as had the start/finish & pit area.
I met a load of TBM & CHEC forum members while getting sorted in the morning and chatted to loads of guys – the predominant theme of the conversation was ‘how muddy was it going to be’! Too late to pull out now so we all squelched about the place sorting ourselves out and got ready.
While waiting for the riders briefing three of us lined up by the hedge for a last minute P. While in ‘mid flow’ we looked over the hedge and walking up the road were two kids and a couple walking a dog. It was fairly obvious what we were doing to the adults but luckily the two youngsters were none the wiser. The father looked over and said ‘must be cold out’!

I had a bit of a surprise during the riders briefing – I received a small trophy for coming third in the Over 40 class at Billington back in July! They didn’t attempt to pronounce my surname though.

and we're off !

Starting in the same group as a few of the ‘wacky racers’ I was keen to get away well. Not lease because there was a quad in our group and I didn’t want to get stuck behind him in the woods. I got away first but it always takes me a while to get used to sliding around so a quick WR and G-dub (wacky racer) came blasting past at the first set of slippery bends. I kept up a good pace but the conditions were so slippery I was riding tensed up and it soon started wearing me out. The front was pushing all over the place and I had to feed in the power so carefully, otherwise the power of the 450 would just light up the rear end. Struggling for grip I none the less caught and passed a fair few guys in the first half of the lap but it all went a bit wrong on a short steep climb in the woods. When I arrived there were a load of guys already stuck so I lost precious momentum and ended up getting stuck as well. Jumping off I pushed and pushed while revving the bike’s nuts off. Slowly, very slowly I inched my way to the top. I did have to stop twice on the way up to catch my breath mind you! Getting to the top I sucked on the camelpack for a bit then set off again once my heart and lungs had climbed back into my chest. As I rounded the next corner I could see the marshals diverting people away from the climb! All the people I’d pushed so hard to overtake were now back in front of me, talk about demoralising!

 
How muddy was it? Check out the mud sticking to the engine! (it dropped off in the next photo in the sequence)

it was slippery out there!

We continued to snake though the woods with alternating ultra slick and strangely grippy surface. Another climb came along but this one had ruts worn down to the flint so this was easy to chug up as long as I fed in the power smoothly. Not so easy was the one section that had been cleared of trees. You started out on a straight and then the course curved up to the right and this was very boggy from the start. I managed to clear it each time but on two occasions I ended up zooming off at 90 deg to the direction of intended travel!
Another steep grassy climb came along and I eased the bike up being very very careful not to rev it too much. This was cut out on the second lap as well so I suppose guys had been having some problems on it. What they didn’t cut out was the next climb a few hundred yards further along the ridge. A few times I was pretty close to falling on this one during the day, but I managed to make it to the top on each occasion, abet with some very strange lines!
Once again we turned into the woods and it was all tight stuff until we cleared the woods and made it into the open once again. This open going consisted of cut stubble fields (boggy) and grassy meadows (slippery). It took me most of the day to build up enough guts to pin it across these bits but that definitely is the way to do it.

 
G-Dub from the TBM forum (wacky racer)

yep he saved it!

Robp71 also from the TBM forum (wacky racer)

Luck runs out for someone!

Northy - a self confessed "Trekie"

On my second lap I was blasting up the first major climb when the bike started to pop and bang. I turned the corner and it tried to stall so I kept it revving hoping that it would clear. A marshal pulled up and offered to hold the bike while I had a quick poke about. The only thing it could be was dirt in the main jet or a dodgy plug cap so I checked the cap first and it was off!!? Trying to push it back on it sort of went on but I could flick it off too easily but I just couldn’t see what was wrong at the time. Anyway the bike was running again but I’d lost loads of time. The marshal kindly offered to ride along behind me just in case the bike packed up so I set off trying to make up some of the time I’d lost.
I came across a slower rider and made the stupid mistake of following him and not looking at the course markers. All of a sudden I could see we had gone wrong so I did a quick 180deg turn and retraced my steps back to the track proper. I could have jumped straight back into the track I suppose but I really hate course cutting so didn’t want to be guilty of it myself!

This one was saved

But judging by his expression i don't think this one was saved!

I caught and passed several more guys while trying to push to make up lost time but then got caught behind a slower rider. I waited for a good opportunity to pass and hit the gas zooming past on his left – just as he moved over to the left to let me by! I yelled out ‘whaaaoo’ (not sure why as I think ‘look out’ would have been better) and had to turn into the bushes to avoid a collision. This little ‘off piste’ excursion let the guys I’d just overtaken get back past – bollocks!
After two laps my shoulders were really starting to ache. A combination of the conditions and the fact I’d been bunking off doing my gym work for the last three weeks.
As the laps were taking so long to reel off I ended up with 20 minutes spare at the end of the session. Mmm I’d forgotten to check how long it was taking me to do a lap but I was sure it wasn’t 20 minutes so I pulled in. this would give me extra time to sort out the bike problems. It had kept running but did occasionally pop and bang a bit.

Now that CHEC are running penalties for each session I get to enjoy a full hour for lunch which makes a change cos I used to always sneak an extra lap in. Sitting on the trailer I could see quite a few spaces in the car park where people had given up and packed it in for the day. Nicky confirmed that a lot of guys and been exhausted by the conditions and several begged not to be photographed when they’d dropped it or where busy quitting. Now being a bastard I would have taken the shot (and put it on the web) but Nicky took pity on them!

This one never got away! He survived an earlier scare.....

I was busy chatting to some guys that pulled up next to us that I nearly missed the start, I had to run down to the bike as the front rows were heading off. Jumping on the bike I reset the stopwatch and nothing happened! Press (nothing)... press (nothing) ...press 'click' – it jumped to the next function (hours run) and wouldn’t budge off that! No amount of frantic pressing on the buttons would move it so I had to start without it. Understandably this was playing on my mind a bit and slowed down to yell at my girlfriend taking pictures that “f*** stopwatch is not working”. Another quick lap and I yelled again “you’ll have to tell me when to stop”. Understandably this got her worked up a bit having to work out when I should be stopping. I didn’t have a clue – well I suppose I could have worked it out but I was trying not to crash most of the time so I thought I’d leave it up to her.

 
Someone having a good time - according to my girlfriend loads of guys look at the camera and take their eyes of the track, almost causing themselves to crash!

By now the slight drizzle during the lunch brake had made some spots on the course extra slimy but other parts seemed to become a lot more grippy. I was riding fairly steady by this time and as I kept on forgetting to look at the clock by the start finish I didn’t have a clue how long I still had left. But after a while I picked up the pace as I was starting to get into the swing of things by now and I could get the bike opened up across the fields for a change. Catching up to a slower rider he tended to speed up a bit I spent ages behind him until he moved over to the side briefly and I got by. Now I always feel obliged to put on a burst of speed after someone has let me by so I picked up the pace and then got an almighty front end slide. The bars turned to the right on a straight section between the sapling trees and it pushed forward like that for a couple of meters and I was convinced I was going down hard but the next minute it griped and it was fine again, close but I got away with it!
I let a few faster guys through by waving my leg on the side I wanted them to pass then shutting the throttle off slightly and this method seemed to work well.

This one was saved as well

Me in the woods

I blasted across the field and looked over at my girlfriend who was making quitting gestures. This surprised me no end, I thought there was still time for at least two more laps. I called out “are you sure” then nailed it to the clocking in posts. Turning round I looked at the time on the main clock. John from CHEC also looked and said “you’ve only got 12 minutes” so that was that, race over. I found the going a lot easier in the afternoon and didn’t feel as tired so I must have been taking it too easy. Still - better to finish than to crash and burn!
Not really expecting a great result as I couldn’t let lose on the 450 in the mud.

Thanks to CHEC for once again organising a great (but slippery) day out. Special thanks to the marshals for their help and support, especially the one who held my bike up while I tried to diagnose the fault and the other one who helped me pick the bike up when it plopped over as I stopped quickly avoiding someone else. Thanks once again guys! Finally a big hello to all the guys that came over for a chat, not least the ‘wacky racers’, see you all in Sidcup!

Ps. I pulled the clocks apart today and it must have taken a knock a while back as two of the four lugs that the screws bite into have broken off, thus allowing some water to get in. With lots of electrical cleaner and then some wd40 the small micro switches started working again. I also managed to get one of the lugs super glued back on and with the help of some silicon on the joint it should be all ok for this weekend.
I did notice the front sprocket took a hammering on Sunday as well. Not surprising really considering it was running in three inches of mud all day! I might just put a new front sprocket on for this weekend and then fit a new chain set for the Hafren in October.

See all 560 odd pictures of the day in the gallery section - here

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