Wednesday 28 April 2004

Section Begins website

My 'Sections Begins' website has now been moved to a new server. The web address is unchanged and the Home Page is still accessible at http://www.wheelspin.org.uk
 
Any links starting http://www.knightlybrown.net/sectionbegins/ which you may have bookmarked in the past will now generate an error message as the files have been removed. Please enter the new site through the Home Page and update your links.
 
I have changed the Home Page, updated some of the styles, and taken the opportunity to improve the performance of some of the hidden 'techie' bits. I might even get around to updating some of the content when I have received corrections to the Lands End Provisional Results (I believe there are a number of errors affecting the placings in the Marlin MCC League). I also have some updated information on the exact whereabouts of 'Juniper' - the infamous PreWar Cotswolds trials hill, and the latest on the DEFRA Consultation exercise.
 
Andrew

Monday 26 April 2004

Kyrle 2004

Pictures from the Kyrle added to album
 
Pete & Carlie

Friday 23 April 2004

Lands End 2004




Marsh/Bowring Insurance

I originally took out insurance with Marsh for the Edinburgh last year and my Letter of Acceptance expires on the 16th Sept 2006. Well it did until I heard quite by chance and then read on the MCC web site that Marsh are not accepting any further business. I have, to date, heard nothing from Marsh. 
Do I accept defeat and write off a few quid or are Marsh liable in any way, as they accepted my  proposal in the first place,  until the end of the three years?
Anyone got any further info or comments?
Myke Pocock.      
 
 

Bead Breakers

Anyone looking for a bead breaker may like to look at the one on ebay, for sale at present, for cars, motorcylces and scooters. At a Buy It Now price of 짙45 including carriage it looks OK to me but anyone able to wield the indispensible trialling tool designed by Mr MIG would be able to knock one up, to suite themselves, with little effort. Guess what my next project is?
Myke Pocock   

Tuesday 20 April 2004

Dellow Leeson Trials Car for sale on eBay

 
Michael

Marlin rear brakes

To any Marlin owner . I am trying to obtain new rear brake slave clyinders .I Quote A Marina 10cwt van axle to my lacal motoquip shop & so far I have had 3differant ones none of which were right. Has anyone got a part Number in there records that may help me . would there have been a fashionable mod done not using Marina Van clyinders if so what ,I have obtained  linings and these are OK. The car was previously owned by George Francis in Stanstedt does any one know the car & mod made to it.

Monday 19 April 2004

Marlin Roadster

Marlin Roadster SWB. Based on Triumph Vitesse so sadly not ideal for Classic trials but has been used for PCT's and auto tests. Air shocks, hydraulic hand brake and second roll bar fitted. Six 14" tyres (mainly kingpins), ballast/tool box and full undertrays available separately
 
MOt DEC 04.
 
Used Daily and very reliable but could do with a little TLC.
 
looking for offers around 1050 pounds.
 
Located in Frome, Somerset
 
tel 01373 453976 - or email to jmhaines@tiscali.co.uk

Sunday 18 April 2004

MCC Class Awards

Published on behalf of Graham Brasier. This is a copy of the letter Graham has sent to the MCC in response to Alan Fosters letter in the last Triple. Graham would like it published here but as he isn't one of us computer nerds he has asked me to do it for him - Michael
 
Class Awards:- who needs them? We need them for the same reason we need all our awards, as an incentive to do well against the club or against each other and for no other reason.
 
Without class awards the incentive to win would be significantly reduced and was the reasoning for them being introduced in 1958. It is not a compromise to take away half the awards we have, only a step backwards to losing our way completely or the lowering of standards for which the club is becoming renowned by many.
 
Alans complelling argument for the removal of class awards seems to revolve around Andrew Brwon's website article, a limited debate that has appeared on Michael Leete's Classical Gas Website and letters he has received. Could it not have been something to do with the debacle at Torquay after The Exeter Trial when the MCC Committee failed to produce the awards everyone was expecting? Having no future class awards seems to be an easy way out of organising their presentation.
 
As April 1st has been and gone please tell me this is all a scam!
 
Graham Brasier

MCC Class Awrad

This message has been deleted by the manager or assistant manager.

Sunday 11 April 2004

Land's End

422 miles, take away, say 40 back after the finish to PZ via Blue Hills, leaves 380 for the Trial. Should have been 340, it certainly felt like more than 500 what with the fog on Exmoor. 
The start at Plusha was very civilised, a surprise for Tom Beckerleg when his bike would not start at scruteneering, the chain drive to the mag had jumped off. Set mag on points opening and piston on top dead centre, fully retarded, (should not be done like this!) , hook chain on one tooth and turn over engine, chain goes back on without too much strain, tighten mag chain (was a bit slack!) and it worked perfectly from then on. ( it had to be as before or at least 40 degrees out so we reckoned that a rough method would get it back to as before).
Good run up to the start at North Petherton, onto Felons Oak , followed a car and we all got lost! How I still don't know as it is straight forward, Section OK.
Onto Stoney Street which was slippery before the section for a bike but OK for the section itself. Richard Harvey took his machine into the hedge and was overtaken by several cars whilst having a nap.
The bit between Stoney and Culbone was a bit of a blur, sometimes I could see the side of the road in the fog butmost of the time I could not, bit of a relief when the main road and its cats eyes turned up, I could have been heading South to Exford for all I knew.
Early at Culbone,so waited a bit longer to recover from the eye strain. No better to Beggars where us heavy weights had to do the restart, away into the fog and down off the moor, terrible, do not want to this again! So dangerous.
Riverton was kind to me this year, very careful up the left hand side, cut across to the right at the first corner, take a wide sweep and up to the 'Ends' with a slight wobble.
Nearly got overtaken by a car at Torrinton holding control!
Sutcombe was not too much trouble, did not stop at the top as being 'pushed on by the cars who seem to carry their food with them.
Darracott, with its restart, no trouble, nice section, much scrutinised on the restart? I am sure I did not run back.
Leddon Test OK and on to Widemouth, wait for 20 minutes and off- no petrol, hoped I could make it to the next.
Crackington , very tricky at the top for a bike, especially 500lbs of it!
Treworld next, ease through the river, don't slip on the stones, up to the restart, stop half way into the box, pull away OK very closely watched again, should I have entered class D instead?
Breakfast next and put 짙10 worth of fuel in , the most he had put in so far he said! I had done 158 miles sonot too bad as I lot was in low gear in the fog.
Warleggan next and getting rougher at the top each year, clear again .
Hosken had a restart for us old usually heavey bikes!!!! (as well as the tiddlers).Don't mind it here as the centre of the track has good grip, but what about running back a fraction, who knows?
Bishops Path OK but tricky for a heavy bike on the advers cambers.
Bishops Wood good fun with a jump half way.
Run down to Blue Hills past Newquay to Blue Hills 1. Oh dear the whole Trial ruined by a restart in such an unfair place, now I know how Class 8 feel. I did pull away after a moment or two but nothing happened when I first eased the clutch out, the back wheel moved sideways a bit and found grip, feet up before the end of the box, with room to spare, but how was I judged? By someone who has years of experience as a competitor, one would wish, it certainly would appear to be the case from the list of Marshals. I really cannot say wether in the current climate I pulled away as was demanded.
Blue Hills 2 was delightful, the start marshal said it was a bit greasy at the top and they had been forbidden from altering it, to which I replied,' it is usually difficult enough'.
Of to the finish to claim a Gold but what about the restarts?
Back down to Blue Hills ( third time along this road, ugh), to see a few cars and meet friends. Back down to PZ squeeze the bike in past the Morgan, will have to clean it later, no oil streaks at all and ran perfectly, has it got any oil in? Sit down and drift into occasional sleep.

Saturday 3 April 2004

Restarts

I have been concerned for some time about the problem around restarts that has been grumbling along. A conversation with a fellow competitor at the weekend has led me to this suggestion for changing the regulations.

The problem seems to have arisen with a number of marshals interpreting the rules with more rigour than had previously been the case. They can’t be blamed for this, it’s there in black and white. Furthermore the slightly inconsistent reaction of the club to the disquiet about Slippery Sam in 2003 – to disallow the restart but then reiterate the rules - has not made the problem any better.

As I see it if we are to use restarts the competitor should approach them with trepidation and leave them with elation. At present it is becoming the case that the trepidation continues until the results arrive to be replaced by irritation on seeing the dreaded RB against your name. I don’t feel that the sport is enhanced by penalising competitors for a small rearward movement perceptible from outside the vehicle but not from within. I am also concerned by whispers that marshals have been discussing with a certain amount of relish how they have failed people under these circumstances. This is not healthy for our sport.

My suggestion for the change is that after the drop of the flag and the competitor pulls away, rearward movement should not be cause for failure provided the driven wheels are rotating forwards and any wheels in the restart box do not cross the downhill limit of it. This should avoid people backing down the box to get a second bite of the cherry, which I have seen allowed on occasions. It might also be appropriate to have some form of time limit as sometimes seems to be the case now to avoid competitors trying to dig their way to Australia.

I’m not suggesting that restarts should necessarily be easier, merely that competitors would leave the section in little doubt as to whether they had failed or not I wonder what anyone else thinks.

Tony

Friday 2 April 2004

how to get to blue hills & spectate HELP!

Hi..     novice class 1 driver here ,
can someone please give me brief directions to blue hills to watch on saturday i think its somewhere around the blackwater junction off the A30 but from there im lost
promise to cheer loads! &  hope to join you all next year  many thanks
 
Tony chubb

Thursday 1 April 2004

Welcome to Dennis

A big welcome to Dennis Greenslade who has joined our group.
 
Michael