Si wins Snowrun
First impression by Bob Mulins

Results 

The Welsh Trail Riders Association held their 2007 Snowrun on Sunday 4th February in the Crychan Forest near Llandovery. The Snowrun is a classic forestry time card enduro with over 25 years of history & it has always been immensely popular with Clubman but in recent years it has rarely attracted more than a couple of the top names in the sport but this year 8 of the country's finest competitors took up the challenge. Tom Sagar on a D3-Racing KTM was the form book favourite with a win at Colstey & a 4th in the Tough One but he would face some stiff competition.

As the start time approached the Parc Ferme filled with the usual mix of new bikes & old faces. The riders were flagged away from 10.01am. The weather was perfect although a clear overnight sky had resulted in a cold start & some icy patches. "Stan" Lee Edmondson's Husqvarna didn't like the cold start & developed a Husky cough. He returned to the pits & lost some time but later carried on. The course went along Cefn Ludlow - the sunken road. The first watersplash looked shallow but the deep ruts in the boggy ground on either side suggested some informed scepticism which proved to be correct. The riders crossed the Tirabad road & descended onto the County Road. Eddy's Folly was followed by a breather passed the Seirra, around Cadogan's Loop, up the Rally Climb, sliding over the slab at Cwm Cadoran before climbing to the start of the test near the top of Bonky's.

The very quick test consisted of the Tube, the top half of the Swimbath, up the Beeches & down the Ruts with No Name. After the test the riders weaved through the tree to the Tunnel & climbed the Whoopty Woos to Check 1. The second stage was up the eastern side of the Crychan. The course went over Trout Hill & crossed the stream by Bob's Stick on the wooden bridge. The ruts here had been graded & the flat clay was very shiny. Off the Dead End road the riders turned right into a "sticky" 10th row & then turned right again for a blow through the Timber Yard before climbing Lee Sargent's - a long uphill full of slick stones & sticks. The course then over some rockery, along the middle of the Lasso & up to the Firetower Road. The riders had a moment to appreciate the spectacular view before being flailed by the trees in the descent to Scrach & the mightier descent down Parachute Hill to 5 Roads. The course then climbed Stick Hill with it's rocky corner & through the naggery around the Cortina before crossing the Tirabad Road to Check 2. The 3rd stage to the finish was the tightest going & times. Bob Perring had unearthed some old heartache from the 80s. Even out of the ruts there was little relief as the forestry road ran east to west & the shade kept it slippery. Clerk of the Course Brian Fallows planned that this would be the real test. Ollie Moyce must have found it demanding enough to part company with his headlight. The lap at 24 miles was shorter than in previous years & the tariff was 4 laps for Champ/experts, 3 laps for Clubman/veterans & 2 laps for Sportsman.

The riders were timed on lap 2. Tom Sagar led Simon Wakely by 5 seconds & increased his lead to 7 seconds after their 2nd test but Tom had a disastrous 3rd test & Simon (above) snatched the win. Ollie Moyce had initially incurred a 60pt penalty because his timecard suggested he had enter a check one minute early but after closer examination the error was corrected & he was awarded 3rd. Greg Evans was 4th.  Jon Hinam was the Best Expert ahead of Jamie Paget from Truro. Ben Bishop won the Clubman class & Tony Gosh was the runner up. 

KTM D3-Racing Press Release

The Snow Run organized by the very experienced WTRA club is the first real enduro of each year, based in the Crychan forest in South Wales the terrain itself normally brings enough challenges. But add to that sub zero temperatures and you have a very interesting circuit indeed, unfortunately no snow but plenty of ice. A cold but sunny winter's day greeted the riders and the first lap needed to be treated with extreme caution as the fire roads were all frozen. The 25 mile lap course would be ridden 4 times by the Championship and expert class and on laps 2, 3 and 4 the short but fast cross-country test would be timed.

This event was the first competitive outing for Tom on his new KTM 450EXC practice bike and after two recent successful events on the smaller 250 2 stroke would see him taking a little time to adapt to the extra power and weight. The first two timed tests saw Tom having good times which place him at the head of the entry, winning the first by 5 seconds and the second by a mere 2 seconds from Simon Wakely who was pushing hard after finishing runner up to Tom at this event last season. Tom described the test as very fast and flowing and really not technical enough to be able make good time on fellow competitors. The 3rd and final test should have just been a formality for Tom but a slight lapse of concentration and his 450 caught him by surprise in an icy section and the resulting crash cost him valuable time and young Wakely benefited from Toms error and he took the day win by just 6 seconds and reversed the result from last year.

Tom Sagar "A really great day out and good course although I would have preferred a more demanding and technical test because it was quite fast and easy which meant most riders were on a similar pace and there was no room for error, although that's racing and it's the same for everyone, Simon put the pressure on me today and was there to capitalize on my mistake. I was really surprised and pleased how easy to ride my new 450 is on the checks, although after riding a 2 stroke for the last month I wasn't so familiar on the test with the 4 stroke as I should have been and unfortunately it caught me out on the final test which I feel cost me the win. The bike I rode today is my bog stock practice bike with just D3 prepared suspension and it worked awesome, I can't wait to get on my full race machine which is being prepared now and hopefully I should have my first outing on this at the 1st round of the Fast Eddy championship or the Muntjack Enduro in a few weeks time".

W-Mounter Team

The W-Mounter Motorcycles Enduro team consisting of Jonathan Hinam, Greg Evens & Mickey Rees had a great start to the season with all 3 riders finishing in the top 10 overall. Last season all 3 riders suffered with injuries but time & - in Mickey's case - scaffolding have restored the boys to fitness. 

ALL IN ALL NOT A BAD DAY WITH SI GETTING HIS FIRST AND CERTAINLY NOT HIS LAST WIN!

The sparkling weather gave all the riders a rare taste of Crychan Lite. Next year it will probably be a return to Brains Dark but for now let us savour the flavour. Congratulation to everyone involved.

Photos available from Keith Bowen  
Videos/DVDs available from Frank Morgan, Malvern Lodge, Howey, LLANDRINDOD WELLS, Powys, LD1 5RE. Tel: 01597 822642