2019 Harold Avery Trial

Report Ken O'Brien

Pictures by Gary Dowzall, others can be found at sliders.photography

A clear sunny morning greeted a classy entry of 50 plus riders for the 72th running of this prestigious Open to Centre event the ' Harold Avery Cup ' where in the past such great riders as John Avery Sammy Miller Don Smith Brian Devereux Bill Faulkner Pat Lamper and John Reynolds have all been triumphant.

The event staged at Howe Wood Oxon was also a round of the SMC Intermediate and Novice champs where four laps of eleven sections were to be ridden.

First up at section one was eventual premiere winner Vinny Branch 300 Gasser a nice easy starter although some overnight drizzle had made the first rooty climb somewhat slick on the ensuing laps.

Kevin Nolan's long drive from the depths of the Southern Centre nearly paid off and was only four adrift in the Expert class with a loss of 38.

Kevin aced ' Axford's Hill ' first attempt but this was to be the only clean of the day a section starting low in the wood before snaking through a gully then a large fallen tree to jump next a slippy camber ducking under a medieval Yew before a very tough triple branch crossing.

Joe Snelling put an excellent performance in on the little Beta 125 and took best Youth B for his efforts riding the Expert route.

Ryan Tomkins was best on the 50/50 route with a loss of twenty nine, section 8 was no problem four clean sheets this hazard was a series of short sharp climbs with cambered flint out-crops.

Dean Devereux was out on his trusty 350 Bultaco this machine had what it took to conquer the steep flint banks and could be heard echoing through Pine Forest from afar.

Unfortunately the Bultaco had Sat-Nav failure on several occasions but I guess a forty year old plus original machine will be starting to loose it's memory as do we all.

Dev still managed a third spot in his class.

The Yellow standard Clubmen route was as always competitive and this time it was Phil Ducker's turn to lift the Philip Howkins Cup for best adult performance with a loss of fifty two.

Section 6 was the toughest of the day and would bring all class winners to the fore with Phil no exception it started with a simple looking drop then a rooted climb around a big tree before lining up a four foot recently cut oak stump a two here was good by any standards.

Close on the heels of Ducker was local 'Watlington Wobbler' Rowan Hill finding Montesa 260 power more than adequate on all sections unfortunately Rowan missed out by a single mark for best performance.

Milton Buzzard raider Mark Toms TRS 280 showed respect for the challenging sections and persistence paid off with a win in the Novice class on 62 marks lost.

Mark going particularly well at section 10 Chris ' Firestarter ' Hurworth was on the pencil a very slick bank up over a rotting log to start then a bottom gear drop over clay with a choice of lines up a lattice of steep roots then a third gear blast and turn to the welcome end cards.

The white sportsman route had varying marques of machine and various skill levels on parade today and those who chose to stick it out once the heavens opened were rewarded with an excellent day of challenging sections which can only mean one thing practice makes perfect.

Ian Homer Beta 250 is going through a bit of a purple patch at the moment with another overall win Adam Hughes Montesa 260 came home in second and also worthy of a mention is young Freddie Davidson Youth B whose little 125 Gas Gas was pulling high gears all day and a third spot was secured.

Many thanks to all the observers who braved the rain and bitter cold wind.

Class	Rider	Bike	Points
Red Route
Harold Avery Cup	Vinny Branch	300 Gasser	34
Expert	Kevin Nolan	300 Scorpa	38
	Stephen Douglas	300 Gasser	47
Youth B	Joe Snelling	125 Beta	98
50/50	Ryan Tomkins	Beta 300	29
	Steve Clements	Beta 300	77
	Dean Devereux	350 Bultaco	101

Yellow Route
Phillip Howkins Cup	Phil Ducker	250 Beta	52
Clubman	Graham Groves	250 Beta	86


Intermediate	Rowan Hill	250 Mont	53
Novice	Mark Toms	TRS 280	62
White Route
SportsMan	Ian Homer	Beta 250	54
	Adam Hughes	Mont 260	63
	Fred Davidson	Gassa 125	93

Full results can be found here .