WELCOME BACK

2022-06-01 - Article: Trial Magazine • Pictures: Trials Media

With Edinburgh & District Motor Club’s Scottish Six Days Trial cancelled in 2020 and 2021, it was a very welcome sight and sound on Sunday 1st May 2022 in Fort William, at the West End car park, in particular, located on the magnificent shores of Loch Linnhe, that welcomed everyone back to Scotland. This oldest of motorcycle trials, dating back to 1909, enjoyed a full house of 288 competitors from around the world back to take on the challenge of the Highlands and the six days of two-wheeled competition. WEIGH-IN DAY

It was a picture of relief on the faces of the Edinburgh & District Motor Club officials as the sun shone on the whole of the start area to welcome the many worldwide visitors to the event. Friends, old and new, had much to catch up on after the trial’s absence since 2019. Again, all the trial manufacturers and importers attended the event, including a first-time visit by Electric Motion and its two electric-powered machines.

Continuing to offer a free service to riders of their particular machine brand, there was a hive of activity in all areas on the Sunday morning.

Two hundred eighty-eight riders and their machines kept the customary weigh-in process very busy. The machines pass through a technical control operated by members of the club who mark with paint a few significant components that cannot be changed on the machine during the six days.

At the town’s street parade, supported by the police, the sounds of a traditional Scottish Pipe Band could be heard, much to the delight of residents and many of the trial’s followers. The machines are then fuelled up for the start on Monday, returning to the secure compound in the car park, which will become the home for the event.

DAY 1: A RETRO START

As is traditional, a Scotsman, Lewis Bell, rolled off the start ramp at 07.30am, followed at oneminute intervals by five more of the Yamaha

TYZ machines that dominated the event in the early ‘90s. It brought the gathered spectators a retro feeling in the cool morning air. Apart from the occasional shower, the weather remained relatively calm and inviting for the rest of the day.

Very much a low-scoring opening day for the top contenders, the only real wobble through the first real test of the day was at Leanachen when the younger of the two Peace brothers, Jack, parted with two marks. Elder brother, Dan, would join the 2019 winner, James Dabill (Beta), as the only two riders who remained feet up all day to head the leaderboard.

Seasoned competitor, Dan Thorpe (GASGAS), was next on a single-mark loss. He was joined by first-time French rider Alexandre Ferrer on the four-stroke Montesa. Twelve-time winner Dougie Lampkin (Vertigo) was next on two marks lost, joined by the many-time runner-up Michael Brown (Sherco) and Ross Danby (TRRS). As the first day’s results were released, a mere eight marks would cover the top 25 positions.

MONDAY

SCORES: 1: James Dabill (Beta) 0; 2: Dan Peace (Sherco) 0; 3: Dan Thorpe (GASGAS) 1; 4: Alexandre Ferrer (Montesa-FRA) 2; 5: Dougie Lampkin (Vertigo) 2; 6: Michael Brown (Sherco) 2; 7: Ross Danby (TRRS) 2; 8: Richard Sadler (Vertigo) 3; 9: Jack Peace (Sherco) 3; 10: Jack Challoner (Montesa) 3; 11: Alexz Wigg (Vertigo) 4; 12: Guy Kendrew (Beta) 4; 13: Duncan MacColl (Beta) 5; 14: Andy Chilton (Scorpa) 6; 15: Billy Green (Scorpa) 6.

DAY 2: NO ONE’S CLEAN

As in 2019, with the rotation of the riding numbers, Tuesday would be Dougie Lampkin’s early-start day on a cold, wet morning. It was a move away from the more traditional Tuesday, which would have taken in Laggan Locks, as the riders headed out the opposite way from Fort William to make the first of the week’s crossings on the Corran Ferry. With only one ferry running, the area before the boarding for the many spectators and trials followers was somewhat chaotic for quite a period.

No one would keep a clean score sheet, with the best efforts all single-mark scores coming from Dougie Lampkin, Jack Peace and Billy Green.

Jack Peace parted with his early on at Carnoch, as did Billy Green, although much later in the day.

Lampkin’s single loss was much later in the day in the second slippery river at Annat, with Fort William a distant figure in the background. Despite adding three marks, made up of a single mark and a two in the same section as Lampkin, James Dabill took the trial lead at the close of the day. Lampkin would join him on the same loss as these two previous winners continued their battle for the win. It was very close behind them, with Jack Peace on four, Michael Brown on five and Dan Peace on six.

It was even tighter to stay in the top ten as Billy Green (Scorpa), Dan Thorpe, Richard Sadler (Vertigo) and comeback rider Guy Kendrew (Beta) all tied on seven marks lost, with Green heading the way.

Rounding off the top ten was Ross Danby (TRRS), with the biggest loser of the day Alexandre Ferrer. The French rider parted with a whopping 35 marks lost to drop down to 39th overall.

TUESDAY

SCORES: 1: James Dabill (Beta) 0 + 3 = 3; 2: Dougie Lampkin (Vertigo) 2 + 1 = 3; 3: Jack Peace (Sherco) 3 + 1 = 4; 4: Michael Brown (Sherco) 2 + 3 = 5; 5: Dan Peace (Sherco) 0 + 6 = 6; 6: Billy Green (Scorpa) 6 + 1 = 7; 7: Dan Thorpe (GASGAS) 1 + 6 = 7; 8: Richard Sadler (Vertigo) 3 + 4 = 7; 9: Guy Kendrew (Beta) 4 + 3 = 7; 10: 7: Ross Danby (TRRS) 2 + 7 = 9.

BEST PERFORMANCE: Billy Green (Scorpa), Dougie Lampkin (Vertigo) and Jack Peace (Sherco) — one mark lost.

DAY 3: LAMPKIN ON TOP

Although interrupted by some quite heavy showers, the weather continued to be kind. As it was generally still quite warm, everyone was happy. From the full-house of starters, only 15 riders retired due to a mixture of mechanical problems, body fatigue, and some injuries.

At the close of the halfway point, Dougie Lampkin was at the head of the score sheets, on four marks lost. With the marks very close for the top five, the two Peace brothers were on the 12-times winner’s case. Jack and his elder brother, Dan, matched Lampkin’s single-mark loss, though they all lost their mark at different periods during the day.

James Dabill lost a heavy six marks, which dropped him down to fifth position overall; it was a clean, no-mark loss from an on-form Richard Sadler (Vertigo), who moved into fourth.

Now riding at the latter end of the entry, Alexandre Ferrer stole his moment of glory on the four-stroke Montesa to go clean, parting with no marks. However, this did not impact the top positions, as the French rider was down in 26th position.

The fight for the top ten continued to be a very close, tense affair, as six marks covered the following five positions. Guy Kendrew headed the way in sixth on ten marks lost, with Billy Green on 11 with Dan Thorpe and Michael Brown on 12. Ross Danby was still close by on 16 marks lost.

The top-15 was rounded off with Scotland’s new young talent Duncan MacColl (Beta), just a mark behind Andy Chilton (Scorpa) in 12th as Jack

Challoner (Montesa) kept the four-stroke flag flying in a strong 13th position, followed by the two Sams, Haslam and Connor.

WEDNESDAY

SCORES: 1: Dougie Lampkin (Vertigo) 3 + 1 = 4; 2: Jack Peace (Sherco) 4 + 1 = 5; 3: Dan Peace (Sherco) 6 + 1 = 7; 4: Richard Sadler (Vertigo) 7 + 0 = 7; 5: James Dabill (Beta) 3 + 6 = 9; 6: Guy Kendrew

(Beta) 7 + 3 = 10; 7: Billy Green (Scorpa) 7 + 4 = 11; 8: Dan Thorpe (GASGAS) 7 + 5 = 12; 9: Michael Brown (Sherco) 5 + 7 = 12; 10: 7: Ross Danby (TRRS) 9 + 7 = 16.

BEST PERFORMANCE: Alexandre Ferrer (Montesa-FRA) and Richard Sadler (Vertigo) — no marks lost..

DAY 4: JUMPING JACK

A cold, wet day greeted the riders as they rode out of Fort William and onto the Mamore Road to the first group of the day at Slubaich. Four challenging sections were marked out in the fast-flowing, rock-filled river. These were typical ‘Scottish’ sections and did not look too difficult but still took marks from a variety of abilities, including a single mark from the trial’s leader after three days, Dougie Lampkin, who lost his mark on the opening section.

Clean score sheets were the order of the day as five riders all kept their feet up through the 30 sections. As Lampkin parted with a further mark at Gorton on the second section, Jack Peace moved into the overall lead of the trial. As five riders all went clean, the marks at the top of the leaderboard became very tight. Jack Peace led on five, followed by Lampkin on six, Richard Sadler on seven and Dan Peace on nine after losing two for the day, along with SSDT virgin Billy Green, also on nine.

After a long road ride up to Chairlift and Ba House, the day then looped over the moors to Dunan and Corour before finishing at the exposed moorland sections at Fersit. A refuelling problem just before the remaining group at Fersit forced the organising Edinburgh & District Motor Club to make the difficult decision to abort the six sections. Some early riders were given the wrong fuel by mistake, which affected their machines’ performance. As we all know, the Army carries out a fantastic job with both logistics and support to the riders; however, some contaminated fuel found its way into the machines. Those affected would be given an extra 15 minutes on Friday morning to ensure their machines were okay.

THURSDAY

SCORES: 1: Jack Peace (Sherco) 5 + 0 = 5; 2: Dougie Lampkin (Vertigo) 4 + 2 = 6; 3: Richard Sadler (Vertigo) 7 + 0 = 7; 4: Dan Peace (Sherco) 7 + 2 = 9; 5: James Dabill (Beta) 9 + 0 = 9; 6: Billy Green (Scorpa) 11 + 0 = 11; 7: Michael Brown (Sherco) 12 + 0 = 12; 8: Guy Kendrew (Beta) 10 + 4 = 14; 9: Ross Danby (TRRS) 16 + 3 = 19; 10: Dan Thorpe (GASGAS) 12 + 10 = 22.

BEST PERFORMANCE: Billy Green (Scorpa), Michael Brown (Sherco),

James Dabill (Beta), Richard Sadler (Vertigo) and Jack Peace (Sherco) — no marks lost.

DAY 5: LAMPKIN LEADS

Taking in the stunning area around the Moidart Peninsula embraces this beautiful part of the world and is what makes the experience of competing at the SSDT so popular. The day concludes with the trip over on the Corran ferry and the ride back into Fort William.

Overnight rain had forced the first group of the day to be abandoned and moved to a more suitable location. The second group was a raging torrent at Piper’s Burn, and, unfortunately, it was the turn of the Peace brothers to be at the head of the entry. Jack rode his heart out, including a stunning clean in the water at WD’s, to part with six marks as elder brother Dan blew his chances of winning with a total of 19 for the day. As past winners of the event, both Dougie Lampkin and James Dabill used all their experience to stay in control of the trial.

Observing more than 200 riders brings its problems, but the hearty band who keep the trial moving do their best to maintain a good level of consistency with the marking.

On the second section at Meall nam Each, Lampkin had to use all his experience to record just a two-mark loss after he got into difficulty as Dabill parted with his single mark for the day on the top section of the loose climb that is Camasnacroise. As a result, he and Sam Haslam (GASGAS) both lost just single marks for the day to record the best daily scores.

As the penultimate day closed, four riders remained in contention for the win. For Jack Peace, Friday had been a damage limitation day but could the young heartbeat the heavy hand of experience on the final day? Once again, it looked to be a fight for the win between Lampkin and Dabill.

FRIDAY

SCORES: 1: Dougie Lampkin (Vertigo) 6 + 2 = 8; 2: James Dabill (Beta) 9 + 1 = 10; 3: Jack Peace (Sherco) 5 + 6 = 11; 4: Michael Brown (Sherco) 12 + 2 = 14; 5: Richard Sadler (Vertigo) 7 + 14 = 21; 6: Billy Green (Scorpa) 11 + 12 = 23; 7: Sam Haslam (GASGAS) 25 + 1 = 26; 8: Ross Danby (TRRS) 19 + 7 = 26; 9: Dan Peace (Sherco) 9 + 19 = 28; 10: Guy Kendrew (Beta) 14 + 16 = 30.

BEST PERFORMANCE: James Dabill (Beta), Sam Haslam (GASGAS) — one mark lost.

DAY 6: DOUGIE’S DELIGHT

Much to his delight, Dougie Lampkin became the most successful rider in the history of this iconic Edinburgh & District Motor Club’s event when he recorded his 13th victory.

Never to be underestimated, the final day is always a tough one, opening up on the Mamore Road before dropping into Kinlochleven and riding the well-known Pipeline. It’s then back onto the moors past the Blackwater Dam, taking in two more groups before arriving at Bradilieg on the open moors. Achintee is next, with its waterfall, before the big rocks found at Ben Nevis in its many rivers. This is a group of sections which has, in more recent times, witnessed so much drama with the battles between Dougie Lampkin and James Dabill. It took a five-mark penalty in the last four sections from the 2019 winner Dabill, as Lampkin had a fault-free day joined by Michael Brown. As a result, Dabill was demoted to a third-place finish as Brown finished runner-up for the sixth time.

On a day when ‘old-school’ ruled, with the top three finishers all semi-retired from successful trials careers, the younger of the two Hemingway brothers, Ben, joined Dougie Lampkin and Michael Brown on no marks lost.

As the remaining 257 riders from the starting 288 arrived back at the West End Car Park in Fort William to pass the finish ramp and sign off, they all agreed on one thing — the Scottish Six Days is still the greatest trial in the world, long may it continue.

SATURDAY

SCORES: 1: Dougie Lampkin (Vertigo) 8 + 0 = 8; 4: Michael Brown (Sherco) 14 + 0 = 14; 3: James Dabill (Beta) 10 + 5 = 15; 4: Jack Peace (Sherco) 11 + 6 = 17; 5: Richard Sadler (Vertigo) 21 + 2 = 23; 6: Billy Green (Scorpa) 23 + 4 = 27; 7: Dan Peace (Sherco) 28 + 1 = 29; 8: Sam Haslam (GASGAS) 26 + 4 = 30; 8: Ross Danby (TRRS) 26 + 4 = 30; 10: Tom Minta (Scorpa) 30 + 3 = 33.

BEST PERFORMANCE: Dougie Lampkin (Vertigo), Michael Brown (Sherco), and Ben Hemingway (Beta) — no marks lost.

2022 SCOTTISH SIX DAYS TRIAL

SPECIAL FIRST CLASS AWARDS: 1: Dougie Lampkin (Vertigo) 8; 2: Michael Brown (Sherco) 14; 3: James Dabill (Beta) 15; 4: Jack Peace (Sherco) 17; 5: Richard Sadler (Vertigo) 23; 6: Billy Green (Scorpa) 27; 7: Dan Peace (Sherco) 29; 8: Sam Haslam (GASGAS) 30; 9: Ross Danby (TRRS) 30; 10: Tom Minta (Scorpa) 33; 11: Dan Thorpe (GASGAS) 34; 12: Guy Kendrew (Beta) 34; 13:

Andy Chilton (Scorpa) 34; 14: Sam Connor (Beta) 37; 15: Ben Hemingway (Beta) 39; 16: Duncan MacColl (Beta) 40; 17: Alexz Wigg (Vertigo) 41; 18: Jack Challoner (Montesa) 45; 19: Gael Chatagno (Electric Motion-FRA) 51; 20: Benoit Dagnicourt (Vertigo-FRA) 54; 21: James Fry (Sherco) 55; 22: Alexandre Ferrer (Montesa-FRA) 66; 23: Sam Yeomans (Vertigo) 67; 24: James Lampkin (Beta) 72; 25: Dec Bullock (Beta) 74; 26: Josh Hanlon (Beta) 74; 27: John Crinson (Beta) 76; 28: Chris Pearson (Sherco) 85; 29: Thomas Hick (Beta) 85; 30: Jonny Starmer (Beta) 86; 31: Chris Alford (Scorpa) 91; 32: Stuart McClurg (TRRS) 93; 33: Sean Doyle (Scorpa) 94; 34: Sam Yeadon (Beta) 101; 35: Joe Dawson (TRRS) 102; 36: Dan Hemingway (Beta) 105; 37: Andy Perry (TRRS) 106; 38: Stephen Dixon (Scorpa) 106; 39: Emma Bristow (Sherco) 108; 40: Tom Affleck (Sherco) 109; 41: Chris Stay (TRRS) 110; 42; Richard Timperley (Vertigo) 110; 43: Luke Walker (Sherco) 110; 44: Oliver Smith (TRRS) 111; 45: Filippo Locca (Beta-ITA) 111; 46: Andrew Anderson (Scorpa) 118; 47: Brad Bullock (Beta) 119; 48: Aran Drachenberg (Vertigo) 122; 49: Tom Middleton (Vertigo) 123; 50: Tom Rushton (Vertigo) 126.

MACHINES TOP 50: Beta: 15; Vertigo: 9; Sherco: 8; Scorpa: 7; TRRS: 6; GASGAS: 2; Montesa: 2; Electric Motion: 1