Hurran Trial 2022
Brain storms in to championship lead
Report: Ben Falconer
The ACU Western Trials Championship bounced back from the Coronavirus pandemic after a two year break with a classic event in the heart of the Cotswolds.
The Hurran Trial was back at Ebworth, Glos, after a break of just over three years too, and the last winner of the event, in 2018, Kurt Brain picked up where he left off.
The Dursley rider was a convincing winner with two laps of eight marks apiece over 20 sections, with reigning ACU Western Trials champion Tom Culliford's charge ending early due to a mechanical problem. The top end of the score sheet was also missing Rob Warner, who retired late on with a reported tyre problem.
That left Simon Welch and Lee Hassall to compete for the podium places on a long lap course marked out by the Gloucester & Cotswold MC team which puts in weeks of preparation and work with the landowner. As usual, big muddy climbs were a recurring feature of the day and scores reflected the better-than-usual weather for the time of year.
Reigning Clubman/Expert champion Dan Sanders was pipped by a mark to the win in that class by Ian Fortune.
The event, which dates back to 1946 and owes its name to sponsor, Gloucester florist Alfred Hurran, attracts riders from across the south, west, Wales and Midlands. Bognor rider Philip Martin won the Clubman class by a mark from Oxford's Rob Faulkner, who won the tie break for second over Roger Johns (Bridport) and Tim Wheeler (Kingswood) after all three finished on four marks lost.
Due to the nature of the venue, Sportsman Plus, Sportsman, and Youth classes were not included, however, many members of the ACU Western Youth Development Squad acquitted themselves well around a challenging course.
Thanks are due to all the observers for their help, and the landowner National Trust who with Natural England worked to make the event possible.
Next championship round: Stroud Valley MC Bill Peters Trial, February 13.
Special thanks are due to Clerk of Course Tom Welch, who put in an enormous amount of work to ensure the event went ahead by pre-walking the route several times, co-ordinating section marking, working with the National Trust and Natural England, getting the results sheet done and many other jobs besides.