As the 2023 season begins to run to its conclusion this was the last double header, only a single day event and the grand final in the national calendar and it is pretty much all over for another season. The events are generally run though the summer months between ,April and early October, probably in the hope of some better weather, but 2023 was proving to be a wet one, the double header Yorkshire weekend was only 2 weekends before these events and was run with an awful weather forecast , and even though wet on the day I think both days dodged the very worst of the weather. I’m not sure in Yorkshire if it actually stopped raining daily during these “summer” weeks with a local evening trial getting cancelled because of water logged field.
Evening loading up the van and trailer. Friday was a case of dodging the showers, and Saturday’s North Wales MC event had a grim forecast with a bit of hope for a drier event Sunday. Setting off in the dry at just after 6 am I was soon met with the rain by Manchester and it stopped with us most of the way. Managed to get unloaded without getting soaked and up to the top of the hill and though the normal pre-event things more or less dry…which was a bonus. Once those things are taken care of you can at least hide in your car as it rains. The drivers briefing was wet, sideways rain, but that’s how it goes I guess.
Out to the sections ,8 hills tackled 4 times, It’s hard to set events out in the wet and when it’s soaking wet like it was it’s even harder, they seem to either end up too easy or way too hard, easy cleans or everyone’s stuck at a 10. Scores after the first round between all the cars ranged from 0 to 67!! A tricky job for the clerk of the course.My round one was somewhat disappointing, I normally go well on this event and had the potential to be the first person ever to win 3 in a row, but there was no chance of that happening now.
Round 2 went a bit better but still losing ground to the front of the class, the sections were altered to add either new challenges or make the section easier if it was proving to be too hard. The field was now starting to churn up a bit in the wet conditions. The hills were altered over lunch to find some fresh grass.
Round 3 was a tough one, losing many many marks to the people at the front of the class, a small consolation was a blinding climb which only myself and 2 others were able to get up. Little lifts like that keep you going to be honest. To say round 4 was muddy would be an understatement, there’s only so far you can move the sections and the poor old field was battered.
I think it would be fair to say most of the time the event would have been cancelled, North Wales MC team did a great job in spite of the bad conditions and people did seem to be enjoying themselves despite the rain. And a big thanks to the marshals who braved the pretty much 100% chance of rain to stand on an exposed hillside marking us. Cheers
Nothing to report in the results, I was the best standard car finishing in the middle of the class, a fair way back from the more modified cars but well ahead of the other standard cars. Overall honours went to Barrie Parker in the lightweight Liege which tiptoed its way through the muck and mud win from a class of 4 , which takes some doing.
Loading the car back on the trailer was painful. The rain was in full force with no sign of letting up, so I had to suck it up and get it done….soaked to the skin!! I opened and shut the van door twice…quickly and once I jumped back in the door trim wasn’t wet it was soaked, so much so I was patting the electric window switches dry.
Heading over to my friend’s house where I was staying for the night, rain finally stopped and things started to brighten up. Dry clothes and a decent meal in a pub set us up for Sunday’s event.
2023-cymru-regs (3 MB)