By Gordon Ayshford – Team manager for Witley Warriors http://www.witleymcc.org/

BACK in England – here I can now summarise the final results after day 6 as I have previously. I have also now been able to send the last batch of photos from a special test on day 4 and the final motocross – I tried to snap as many of the UK riders as possible but there are some notable omissions – in the only photo I managed to get of Paul Jay I chopped his head and shoulders off – he jumped higher that I had been ready for !

 

Once again Guildford’s off-road team of motorcyclists the “Witley Warriors” have done us proud!! Discharging themselves with honour as part of the Team GB International Six Day Enduro squad the 3 Witley riders and their hard-working support crew completed a gruelling event which suffered freak weather conditions as torrential rain, driven by chilling winds from the Antarctic created chaos amongst the 600 riders battling for survival over the mountainous central forests of New Zealand’s North Island. Daz Wilcock gained a Silver medal, while Paul Jay and Richard Alldred had to be content with bronze. Event Director and Clerk of the Course Sean Clark had personally been responsible for much of the track preparation and a wonderful job he had made of it – what a shame that the conditions deteriorated and made a mockery of some of the more challenging going. The course could not cope with the huge entry (organisers were boasting that it was the biggest to date) and having anticipated a typical NZ spring of dry bright sunshine with the risk of an occasional shower there had been no “plan B”. Many of the routes were cleared to give little room for passing and as the depth of the ruts increased any previous options to a single track were eliminated. The result of this was the further a rider was down the starting order the less chance he was going to have of getting a clear run at the obstacles due to others having failed and become stuck or abandoning their bikes on the only available line. Daz benefited from riding no 313, not far behind the World and Junior Trophy riders that accounted for the first 202 away from the start and he finished in 70^th position within his class – just one place behind ex Witley Warrior, Kiwi Kelly Paterson who this year rode for his local NZ South Island Club Team; Christchurch off-road. Richard and Paul were 545 and 547 respectively. The toll inflicted on the course by the 230 riders that had followed Daz wreaked havoc with the field as the course conditions deteriorated through the week. A number of time checks were discarded from the results of each day which meant that and in a climax of catastrophe on day 5 all checks after the second special test were abandoned – all riders after about number three hundred and fifty being sent on a diversion to avoid an impassable hill, which brought them back to the finish before some of the earlier numbers that had been “lucky” enough to rider the full course. This cause a bit of an upset because all the trophy team riders had competed the full course and the times they recorded would have had a significant effect on the overall results - but due to the deterioration of track conditions after they had passed through and the onset of club-level riders the full-on performances from the top riders was to no avail. Paul and Richard, plus no doubt a large proportion of the field would also have given their all to get round and produce a meaningful result but without a “plan B” and with abandoned bikes making a diversion the only way for the organisers to keep the riders moving (there weren’t many travelling marshals in sight) the more capable club riders were denied their chance to prove they were better than those who could not make it up the hill ! Paul finished in 159^th and Richard 171^st in their E2 class giving Witley Warriors a 34^th place in a field of 135 club teams.

The salvation of the event came on Sunday, day six, the MOTOCROSS. What a FANTASTIC DAY ! - the weather was ideal, sunny but not to hot and the Digger McEwan MX track was graded and in perfect condition - to start with; but lived up to its reputation of digging up into a rough ride. Proven by the fact that the fastest time was put in by a clubman, Haayer Barend of the Netherlands in the first race in the smallest engine class E1 - even faster than 5 times world motocross champion, Belgian hero Joel Smets, winner of the penultimate race, the class E2 final. For full results you will have to look at the results website to which there is a link from the Witley website: http://www.witleymcc.org/ where if you click on the Witley Warriors Icon on the left, you can find a pictures of the event, the locality and the riders mentioned above intertwined with an account of the event as it happened plus details of how to join us in enjoying the wide spectrum of motorcycling as a sporting and social activity. The Club Secretary is Mrs Jo Ayshford who can be reached on 01483 429523. Other contact details available from the website. Where you can experience nearly first-hand how the British crew; riders and support all did themselves proud! And the WITLEY WARRIORS have survived another battle with honour.