cota kid

The observer's fived Raga in section 8 as a result of his minder doing a bit of gardening. Ironically he went on to five the section anyway.

I've gone with Bou, Raga, Lampkin. I was going to go with Bou, Raga, Fuji but Dougie's Mum was in the car when I made my predictions and she'd have skelped me one round the ear if I hadn't mentioned her little boy And so would have I. You Fifth Columnist!!!!

Eddie and Nickday, You've said who it isn't going to be so tell me then whats going to be the top 1-2-3 in WTC?

I have not once ever witnessed Doug not give 100% in WTC trials, that includes riding with injuries. He will achieve his 100th win this year and he will lift his 8th title. Doug's desire to win is what makes him Dougie Lampkin.

As Doug cleaned section 1 on both laps and was the only rider to do so, I'm not complaining.

Perce, when Doug wins I will donate the winnings to the Scott Charities, as I strongly believe that no child in Swaledale should go to work shoeless.

I didn't see section 1, but looking at the footage it looks like the rules have been somewhat bent.

Consistancy is what makes World Champions and that's what Fajardo does not have. Great rider and on his day capable of winning a World Round but you need to be on your day more than the next guy. I've also stated elsewhere that Dougie is not there to make up the numbers he is still one hell of a rider and can still achieve that 8th WTC.

Fajardo has skill and ability, yes. Top 3, no. Doug, Bou, Fujigas and Caby are all better riders and Dibs has proven he can also beat him. I haven't forgotten that he is coming back from injury but this is a problem that he keeps having.

Thought I would add a few other snippets from the paddock that some people may find of interest. The colour blue was abscent from Albert Cabestany's Sherco. Red, black and yellow graphics with red anodised rims, edges polished off. A really nice looking machine, but does this signal a move away from the blue colour normally associated with Sherco? The engines on the 4RT HRC Montesa's look considerably more slimmer and lighter. No doubt we will never find out the capacity of the engine though. Still sporting last years graphics though, but as they still look fantastic who cares. These bikes still attract the biggest interest in the paddock. Toni Bou was wearing a lycra Repsol jacket over his one piece suit. Closer inspection and the name Dougie Lampkin could be seen across the back. I wonder if any one got a photo of that? As I've said before the Future Trial Racing set up was quite something. The 125 4RT seemed to perform very well indeed. Gas Gas. Only had Adam Raga in the factory truck. I was under the impression they were going to let some of the other gas gas riders work out of it. Seemed to be a waste of space.

Dear DeeJayDenzil, to be honest DJ rumour has it your performance has never been any good!! Redecorate your bedsit and try some retail therapy. Buy that 300 Future Trial Racing Montesa. It won't matter that your performance is still rubbish, as you will have the best factory trick bike in the North East and more mates than you've ever wanted.

Having just returned from the Spanish Round of the WTC, feeling very satisfied at the performance of the British riders, I thought I would give some of my thoughts on the event. Both days competitions where to put it mildy, exceptionally tough. The torrential rain on the Saturday evening making the sections look impossible never mind cleanable. When you see the likes of Raga amd Fujigas taking a five rather than attempt a section then you know its difficult. The new one minder rule did not, in this round, lead to a reduction in the severity of the sections. The odd mattress being strategically placed to catch a falling rider, bike, minder or all three. Luckily enough there were no such accidents, although I did see some bad crashes. However their were some real high points from the trial. Dib's ride was not unbelivable, watching him practice you realised that he is making that step up to the next level. His performance on Sunday proved it. The TRW Factory set up is arguably the most impressive in the paddock. Him and Jack work well together. He was also the attention of some autograph seeking female admirers. Browny. Didn't let his head drop after a very poor ride on the Saturday and seemed to take strength from it. Didn't just win on Sunday but won convincingly. Its always something special to hear the national anthem at a World Round. Cheers Michael. Cheers Shaun. Wiggy. Again a disappointing Saturday, but an exceptionally credible ride on Sunday, in some horrendous conditions and on a 125.......On section 2 were all the riders were taking fives, by just riding in and then short cutting the section to the end flags. Wiggy had everyone in stitches by waving as he rode through. Dougie. If anyone thinks he is there to make up the numbers, how wrong you are. Dougie still wants to win and is still more than capable of winning. As you are aware you only get to see a limited number of sections in a trial. The times I did see him ride he was riding very well. I honestly thought he was going to achieve the win, especially with conditions as bad as they were in Mancha Real, which would have suited him more than most. Bou. The sections I saw him in he had fives and I genuinely thought he was having a poor ride. How wrong I was. His result was awesome. Comes across as a real friendly pleasant lad, always smiling, unlike some other more recent Spanish World Indoor Champions. Whilst it was a great weekend for HRC / TRW Montesa's it was good to see Sherco, Beta and Scorpa 4 strokes performing exceptionally well. The 4 stroke revolution is here, but it begs the question what are the Gas Gas factory doing? There seemed to be quite a number of British out in Mancha Real, which was good to see. Well done to all the British riders and a big thanks to me and DJ Denzil's chaffeur for the weekend. Thanks John.

From watching Dibs practising on the Saturday it was a clear to see that he looks very comfortable and confident on the TRW 300 bike. It was fantastic to see that he put that to good use in the event itself, to beat both Freixa and Fajardo in their home round is a wonderful achievement. But there is more to come, Dibs still threw away some needless points. This results shows that he is capable of breaking into the top six.

To avoid any future confusion and arguments over my pay out, I can't remember if I bet a

The weather forecast for the nearby Jaen (20 km) is for scattered showers on Sunday, which although not good for spectating will certainly help Doug and the other British riders.

Bit off topic but at last years WTC Spanish Round a British rider's tyre came off the rim. He started to push the bike back to the paddock, which was about 15km away, when a friendly Spanish bloke stopped to give him a lift with the bike hanging out of the boot of a Fiat Panda.

I'm off to see the Doctor this afternoon. Funny thing its its started to be really painful six days after I did it, during the Cleveland. I think all your talk of picking up soap in communal showers is you getting confused with the time you were on remand in Holme House Prison. Have you been over doing the K Cider again?

A great bike in every way, looks, performance and sound. Although it may take some time to get used to it, you'll be grinning from ear to ear all the way. East Yorks Centre, which traditionally wasn't a Montesa hot bed, has scores of them turning up every week at trials. There are a few people I know who have reverted back to 2 strokes but overwhelmingly the riders who have turned to Montesa love it. If you are into pimping your ride there are also plenty of performance and factory parts available so you can make your bike stand out. Viva Montesa!!

Come on Perce the list of runners isn't rocket science. Lampkin Fujigas Bou Raga Cabestany. The winner is not going to be outside of the above riders. What odds for a

A debut win for Jarvis, however great an achievement given the calibre of the opposition is still not a true test of the bike. Wait until Joe Public gets his hands on them, then we will find out. Still it is good to see that Sherco, Scorpa and Beta are serious about 4 strokes.

Manchester Harbour. Its about 40 miles from the sea. lol If you can bet on snow on Christmas day and whether or not some young relative will play in a future football world cup, then I'm sure there must be someone out there willing to take a bet on the trials WTC.

PM me your e-mail address and I will send you the photos what needs to be done to the bracket which carries the fuel pump, which basically needs to have the angle of the bracket altered. I had a local mechanic do the work for me and to him it seemed a fairly straight forward job. Apart from Mitani and TRW who else do you know who manufactures the flat tank?

Reading Jake Miller's article on page 4 of this weeks T&MX got me thinking. Does anyone know of any bookies were you can have a bet on the WTC? I might even have a bet on a Watford v Blackburn FA Cup Final. Oh sorry I forgot its been fixed by the FA for a Chelski v Man Utd final. I'm not bitter, honest.......

Despite the strong winds the event was superb and a credit to the work of the Middlesbrough Club organisers, helpers and observers. However I left before the end results were known, Mothers Day, so I don't know who won. I know the female contingent were giving the clubman class a lesson in riding.

We have to deal with these people, we cannot condemn all ramblers as beardy, chunky sweater types (and the blokes are just as bad) just like they cannot assume we're all bad. There will be people out there who know the countryside is for the benefit of everyone and needs to be managed as such and it is to these people we need to create dialogue. I've spoken to walkers who actually took time out to watch people riding a trial and thought it was great and contributed to their day out.