Honda XRV Forum banner
10K views 29 replies 16 participants last post by  zedtours 
#1 · (Edited)
Well, with all the big things going on this weekend, I'll add my own little bit of muddy mayhem to the mix :D .

The rally is held in the forests of the North Yorkshire Moors, up above Pickering. Apparently Pickering flooded quite badly last week, causing some shops etc to remain closed. It had been wet then:) .
Campsite:

It was really good to see some other big bikes there, 1 "bashed" AT, owner Roger is a confirmed enduro rider, fast too, and the near perfect big bikes of Ralph, Jonsey and Dick. They really were clean, looked wonderful on Friday night! (Mine was still muddy from being out with Alpslapper!)





I met up and camped with some mates, again on big bikes, Rik 950 KTM Adv, and Ian 1150 (I think) GS, Clare and Tim. Ian rides up from Somerset to race, fast on fire roads and never looks flustered, no matter what. Rik is just fast, the KTM is just fast, put them together and they are gone! Good beers Friday night, just what you need after 5 hrs on motorways, wearing out your knobblie tyres. I now had about 3mm of tread on the T63, so I knew it was going to be an interesting time. Good sleep, far too early alarm, but that always happens on rallies.




Got straight through scrutinerring, beer can carried to keep bike upright in Parc Ferme, check times sorted, and recorded onto bike, not that I really manage to stick with them, just push to be not 60 mins late, and excluded. Some of the big guns left the start at a rate of knots, roost everywhere! I sort of trickled away, but thats what I do!

Day 1 was fab, lovely road section with some good water in the fords, and the tracks wet enough to keep the dust down. Some really snotty sections, big ruts to start with, and some of the bigger bikes stuck straight away. Nicely the marshals cut the worst bits out, this was going to feature repeatedly over the weekend. I think the enduro bikes, or even the little trailies could get through those bits OK, but its a bit of an ordeal with 200kg + to pull through. Some interesting bits stayed in though, by the 4th lap the ruts there were causing problems for me, ground clearance and width being what it is! Fire roads were good though, I'm slowly building confidence on the corners, letting the back wheel go out a little.
Special test was hard for me, bit fire road, then fast muddy ruts and deep water splashed, some jumps, so a little air was gained, where are the photographers when you need them! Hard work though, never got a rythm in there so the times will be slow.
Half way round lap 4 you go of to another forest, wonderful, fast trail riding, with some excellent veiws too. This pulls you back for the final time check, then liasion section, and a preveiw half lap of the Sunday course. One snotty single track lane to finish, as ever a little sting in the tail! Finished day 1 though, not out of time, don't actually remember how late in I was though :confused: . 129 miles, lots of that off-road.

Check over bikes time, ok that no rear pad then! Lucky - spares are carried, fitted, sorted. Not just me either, Ian and Rik needed to do the same!


Zoom down to Pickering to fill up for Sunday, but more beers, and milk for after race tomorrow. Its a long ride home!

A wonderful pre race day 2 evening then followed, of Beer, chat and more Beer. This event is wonderfully hospitable, super fast pros, organisers and the likes of me all sharing beer and chat :D .

Day 2 dawns early. Try and sort my life out, and sort of fall onto the start line ready at the right time. Even got day 2's checks recorded.




These laps are long today, with a time check about half way round. The first half ot the lap is generally easy, great fun, and I was able to keep to time around that section. Fire roads, some ruts on hard base, which is good, some bumpy lanes and a wonderful section of single track through the edge of some woods which ends in a pretty grim slick mud descent, but at least the run out is good. Time check, so far so good! The second half was a different kettle of fish entirely. OK so there were some long fast staights, hit 80+, but lots of really muddy, slippy, sloppy going. Really slow stuff, some of it possible for me in 1st standing, much of it paddling, bike at little over tickover my legs doing far too much work.

Then came the special test. It had the worst of steep slippy hills, sort of possible once, would have got worse, with deep long rut along the top of it. Went off line on the flat bit, and had issues getting back out of the trees. Then some more possible climbs, and a twisty section through the trees. Then a muddy track to a narrow wooden bridge, only about 1m long, but needed thinking about!

Actually, all the muddy, snotty sections are jumbled up in my head, such was the difficulty by the end of the day! Happily though, they cut the climb from the 2nd lap, and the twisty section from the 3rd. Still awesome hard going though, Rik and I rode together through the 3rd lap special, neither of us having enough left to pick up our own bike if it was to be dropped!

Couple of interesting incidents - bartering the use of the tow rope to lift a well drowned KTM from the biggest puddle for a 7 person push through a far too big rut, the KTM was just showing handlebars above the water! At some stage on Lap 2 I was lapped by an HP2 with one of the stars on it, must have seen him for all of 8 seconds! Saw a deer, in the clasic sideways, looking at you pose, before it darted off into the trees.

Eventually, and I really mean that, we finished Lap 3, just 6 mins under the possible 60 mins late :) .

Wow, some day out!


Remained to wander aimlessly round my stuff whilst eating and drinking milk, pack it all up and head off homewards. Seems to take hours to pack when you can't bend your legs or your back! Home was cool, little mind numbing on the motorway, bed was more than welcome!

Will stick some pictures on here as soon as I can, very few action shots though, I was chasing my tail all day!
Photos now done, as you can see!!
 
See less See more
15
#3 · (Edited)
Hi Mudwiz,

A great weekend was had by all.

You have some stamina riding for 4 hrs Friday night after work up to North Yorkshire, completing the whole course then riding home to Bedfordshire on Sunday night only to go to work on your Transalp today!!!!!

Looking forward to seeing jonseys footage when he's done the editing but here are a couple of photos taken by the official photographer.


 
#5 ·
bloody beautiful mate!!! I wish I could get my skills up to that kinda level.
 
#16 ·
Fab pics and report/s - looks brilliant. I can't begin to imagine the hours you have to put in to get good enough to do what you all did.
And the bikes look SO COOL! :cool:
 
#17 · (Edited)
Rally report, copied from the NEEC website, all credits to the club.

NEEC News

Ryedale Rally.

Following MONSOON conditions in the weeks, days and hours before the Ryedale Rally, the Yorkshire Enduro Club organisers were thrilled when their decision to plough ahead with the Rally was vindicated by more than 150 intrepid competitors crossing the start line in a sunny but muddy field in Cropton Forest on the morning of Saturday, July 7th. It wasn’t just the elements against which the club had had to battle to get the course ready: on Friday 6th, a St John crew cancelled, an Army ambulance caught fire, the marquee blew down and a Marshal was taken seriously ill (we wish him a speedy recovery from his major heart op!). Thanks to terrific help and support from members of the local community, the event went ahead.

A gentle drive out of Cropton and across “Heartbeat” moorland roads was made more interesting by fords with significant “splash” factor. Then, a drop down into Langdale Forest through Newgate Foot led (to the amusement of all watching) to the first submersion of the day when journalist Paul Blezard dropped his new HP2 in the first truly slippery patch! This was followed by 3 laps in Langdale including a timed special test – the start of which had to be moved (along with the portaloos!) at the last minute following overnight rain to avoid some excessive mud. The going was heavy and at times soaking with many riders choosing to take a damp option through the standing water, rather than manoeuvering round the edges of the big puddles which they quickly named “the black holes”. The Clerk of the Course reports seeing one rider with a wavy water line half way up his goggles!

There were 2 “early finishes” by 2 Rally stalwarts that surprised no-one. Pat Keenan finished off the home made cakes by buying the whole queue a piece each and unsurprisingly Brian “big boy” Eland finished off the burgers. Notwithstanding their over indulgences both riders pressed on to follow the new route through Wyekham Forest for a varied and scenic 35 mile tour which was made possible thanks to the permission of the Estate Managers. Steve Hague tells us that he had a close encounter with “Bambi” when a deer jumped out at him whilst he was doing 40mph. “Stopping a Dakar bike is like stopping a supertanker” he says, but with catlike reactions he saved Rudolph for the Christmas festivities. Wyekham proved very popular with competitors who then rode up the “Valley Of The Beautiful Cattle” into Dalby Forest and back out to the moorland road for a ride back to Cropton. Just when they thought it was all over, cruel course designer Jeremy Wilson had one more surprise as they returned to Cropton Forest. A final sting in the tail was a loop through the forest finishing with a long straight muddy stretch through Stape to test the tired riders as they finished the day. The sun finally came out and riders enjoyed the banter as they tucked into a buffet worthy of a wedding reception.

After a quiet but convivial night on the camp site for those brave enough to rough it, campers were joined by the more wimpish folk who put their money into the local economy via B&Bs and Guest Houses and 130 made it into the second day start line. Although confined to Cropton for 3 laps (more forest than tarmac) & 2 timed stretches, the course was taxing and in the opinion of regular rider Steve “Speedy” Hague, “even more enjoyable than Saturday”.

Following Lap 1, a greasy hill was cut out of the special test to the relief of riders and Marshals alike, but bogs on what is known as “Readers’ Wives Corner” kept them busy all day. Mr Blezard drew attention to himself once again when having abandoned his own broken bike, he completed the day on a pal’s brand new KTM, but thanks to the best “high sider” of his riding career, he managed to wreck a second bike in a weekend and graze his own arm as well as that of a Marshal! Two cut fingers caused by lifting bikes and a few bumps and bruises were the only other reported injuries so thankfully it was a safe event with mainly soft landings in the boggy peat.

Conditions made it VERY hard for the big bikes though so all credit to finishers such as Phil Gunn (the only HP2 to get to the end) & Seamus Sorohan (KTM Adventure) from across the water in Ireland, Chris Prickett who then rode back to Leighton Buzzard on his Honda XLV TransAlp , Kevin Johnson who rode all day on his Honda XR without its kickstart or electric start (protests have been received from other riders that his bike was therefore under weight!) and especially Ian Barnard on his BMW GS who then had to ride home to Devon – what a Rallyman he is……

All those who retired (unless of course they had broken their bikes) should note that we may have only had a small (and select) Ladies’ class of Debs Bonser, Clare Gwinett and Fiona Moran (a Garda Siochana from Dublin) but ALL THE LADIES STUCK IT OUT TO THE END!!! (N.B. Total mileage of approx 140 on Saturday and 90 on Sunday.)
For Ryedale Gallery 1CLICK TO VIEW
For Ryedale Gallery 2CLICK TO VIEW
For Ryedale Marshals Gallery CLICK TO VIEW




More photos on http://www.endurodigitalimages.com/ryedale07-07-2007.html
 
#22 ·
TOTALLY HARDCORE !!!:headbang: :headbang: :headbang: :headbang: :headbang: :headbang: :headbang: :headbang:i can only dream of growng the cajones to do somthing like that...big respect to ya:cool:
 
#23 ·
Well deserved result Mudwiz!

Now ive had a taste of the rally scene i was really looking forward to having a crack at the Cambrian which i hear is even more suitable to large trailies.

Down loaded all the info only to be reminded by the wife that it's her mum & dads golden wedding anniversary that weekend at a fancy hotel in Cheshire and all the family are booked in.

BUMMER :mad:

I will be back for the Ryedale next year though!
 
This is an older thread, you may not receive a response, and could be reviving an old thread. Please consider creating a new thread.
Top