Sandy Mack - SSDT
Imagine the infrastructure of possibly the world largest trials motorcycle event: the Scottish Six Days Trial. You are catering for a mass influx of competitors, officials, observers and spectators all condensed into one area for six days in May. Fort William, in the Scottish Highlands, becomes the main focus of the Trials world for the week. The planning, for one guy in particular Sandy Mack, starts many months before a trials wheel is even turned. Planning permission, meetings with landowners, the list is endless as he is the guy responsible for keeping the riders’ machines fuelled and helping the club deal with any emergencies that may occur.
Sandy, how did you become involved with the Scottish Six Days Trial?
My first SSDT was in 1993. I tried for many years to gain a place on the Army Trials Team with no success. This was due to it being a bit of a ‘closed shop’; however eventually, after many calls around the bazaars, I was given Lt Col Ted Bartlett’s telephone number. I explained what I had been and was doing in the trials world and he informed me that I would be riding the 1993 SSDT. Even though I am a Scot I had never seen or attended the event in real life and had only seen the videos! These had given me a false impression of the event as they did not show the terrain to be covered in between the sections.
That first year was a steep learning curve for me! I rode a 311 Montesa which for most of the week had no rear brake and it just seemed to disintegrate as the week went on. I rode the event from then until 2008 and worked my way up the pecking order to Captain the Army Team. On my retirement from riding I became the Team Manager and Secretary of Army Trials, and continue to do so to this day.
I became involved with the fuelling in 2003 when the Scottish Transport Regiment was no longer able to continue with the task. I approached my boss of the time and asked if I could use my own regiment to carry the task out – to which he said a very positive “Yes”! I spoke with members of the committee and put my plan forward to continue the Army’s support to the greatest trial in the world. This was agreed by the committee and has seen us continue the army’s involvement to this day.
The 2014 event appeared to go to plan, were there any problems we did not see?
The fuelling for this great event is one of the biggest and logistically difficult fuel events in the calendar and is not something that is picked up the week before. As soon as the event is finished we start the planning process for following year.
We work closely with the Clerk of the Course to ensure we deliver the fuel to the right place at the right time. Over the years we have had our problems, for example recovering injured riders or their machines from some remote part of the Scottish Highlands. This year was no exception as one of the back-markers injured himself. Alan (Chips) Craig had to be air lifted to hospital in Fort William. The Army was able to initiate this call-out procedure by making the call to the SSDT office to mobilise the air rescue.
I also remember one year the fuel being late to a check point. This was due to a Land Rover breaking down, and left nearly 200 riders sitting waiting for fuel. Thank God the sun was out!
This year’s event went well and we had a lot of compliments from the riders about the soldiers manning the fuel checkpoints and how they were always smiling and great for the moral of the riders.
When does the planning for the 2015 event start?
The planning starts as soon as the event finishes, with the Clerk of the Course ensuring the permissions are gained for the trial, etc. Once he has set the routes for each of the days we then set the fuel checks to suit the route. The maximum distance between check is no more than 12–14 miles. This can be reduced if it is a wet year as the machines tend to use more fuel if the moors are wet.
I have to ensure that the Fuel Commanders are qualified as well and some have to attend HAZMAT (Hazardous Materials) courses to ensure they can carry the fuel in the vehicles safely.
Once we are in Fort William the commander then spends the first weekend confirming the locations of the fuel checks prior to the start of the event. This ensures that the fuel is delivered to the correct location at the correct time. The Health and Safety aspect is a huge part of this event for me and I have to produce somewhere in the region of 120 risk assessment to cover the movement of the 26,000 litres of fuel around the different locations.
How involved is the Army refuelling team?
The Army is critical to the supply of the fuel. We have the qualifications to move the fuel because of our HAZMAT training and certification. This type of exercise supplies a great deal of real-time training to our soldiers, from command and control to the map reading skills required of every soldier. We have trimmed the numbers required for this tasking and now complete the task with only 30 soldiers compared to the 100-plus required when the Army first took the task on.
What’s your full time employment?
I am the Regimental Second in Command of a Regiment, responsible for 600 men and women who are spread from Edinburgh to the south coast of England with the Regimental HQ in Aldershot. This is a job that sees me involved in everything from Budgets, Career Management to Operational deployments. This is one of the most rewarding jobs I have had in my 29 years’ service but sadly I will move to pastures new in August this year. This will see me move to PRU in Edinburgh where I will look after our wounded, injured and sick soldiers.
I have also been a member of the Edinburgh and District Committee since 2008 when the then Clerk of the Course, Mark Witham, asked me to join the committee as the fuel manager. I have also taken on the responsibility of sponsor manager, which I have been working on for the last three years with the help of many of the loyal sponsors we have gained.
Do you have an interest away from motorcycle trials and the SSDT?
In my spare time (not a lot!) I like to breed and train my own Gundogs. I find the training very rewarding and it’s a good way for me relax. It’s also good to spend time with my wife Margaret and my son Stuart, who are fortunately also both keen trials fans.