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enduro
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Beacons 2 Day Rally |
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At times this weekend's Beacons 2 Day Rally resembled one of WTRA's more notorious BEC rounds of yesteryear as a cold front swept in from the Atlantic and drenched the Crychan forest but the similarity was mostly cosmetic as the well laid out course held up and rewarded the majority of the full entry with a great ride. The start was in the Top Quarry. Parking was tight but cosy. The Beacons attracts a wide range of abilities and machinery. Amongst the shiny new KTMs there were some well preserved examples of an earlier era but more about Jim Jones and Bob Perring later. The riders were flagged off from 11.00am. There were 2.5 laps for most of the riders and a shorter 2 lap tariff for beginners. In rallying - unlike an enduro - the schedule is only a guideline. The course followed the forestry roads out of North Crychan across the Tirabad Road. There was a optional Snowrun loop but in the wet conditions it was not a popular option. One rider dropped his bike going through scrutineering so most of the field opted to preserve their energy. At midday the sky was leaden. Descending the rocky slabs of Stick Hill through a tunnel of trees the riders with lights were grateful for them. From 5 Roads they climbed Scrach to the first test at the Firetower. It was very fast and it not timed on the first lap to give everyone a good look. From the gravel start at the highest point of the Crychan it descended through the middle of the Lasso and down Early Bird to the Timber Yard and the Snowrun Quarry then over the bridge at Bob's Stick to the finish. The next liaison stage took the riders up Trout Hill and around the Castle with it's spectacular views of the Eppynt and the Halfway. By 1.00pm the rain had stopped.
The riders emerged from the Crychan at the Picnic Site and again crossed the Tirabad Road into Glyn Saer. This was the location of the second test with it's signature ruts alongside the fence where wise heads followed the line carved by the pots of Mark Molineux's BMW. A hill at the end of the stage would have been an interesting talking point but it was very sensibly cut. With the end of the lap in sight many riders seemed to be missing the rain and drenched themselves by plunging into the deep puddles on Cefn Ludlow like Dreadnoughts. Craig Bounds won the Rally class on his Husky 630. Steve Hague from Glossop was the runner up and the best Over 50. Lyndon Poskitt in 3rd on a KTM S950 won the Multicylinder and Ian Tyler Bond 4th was the Best Over 40. Jonathan Williams had not been on a bike for 3 months after having a pin removed from his leg. The loss of weight must have been beneficial as he won the Sports bike class. David Griffiths was the runner up. Sunday was early start with the first riders away at 9.00am but on the plus side the weather was much improved. Craig Bounds completed the double and won the second day. The drier conditions allowed Lyndon Poskitt to easy his mighty KTM S950 into the runner up slot. Steve Hague was 3rd. More to follow. After the event Mke Corkery said "Despite the weather most of the riders had a lot of fun and entries for the Cambrian already starting to come in, early entry is advisable? I am more than happy to be sited as the source of that comment. Web address http://www.wtra.co.uk/cambrian.htm refers.
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Beacons 2 Day
The northern route up the western
side of the Crychan was a succession of well loved tracks: the Ruts with
No Name, the Whoopty Whoops, the Swimbath Road, the Tube, the Rally Road
and Cadogan's loop. The naming of tracks has grown up over the years to
help the organisers navigate their way around the almost featureless
landscape of the forest. Their origin is often obscure. The Ruts
with No Name got it's name in the lead up to the 1999 World Round when a
new marshal asked what the deeply rutted hill between Trout Hill and
Swimbath was called. It didn't have a name so it became the Ruts with No
Name. Ironically the ruts have filled in over the years so the Ruts with
No Name now has no ruts either.