in the yellow Grade and 14th overall . The return of Jason Baker ( no longer a young whippersnapper ) showed how class is perpetual as he demolished the opposition halving the score of the next two riders , Paul Mountstevens and David Trewin . The slippery and sometimes boggy sections were challenging to most , with only the most resourceful managing regular cleans in the majority of sections . Whilst stopping was allowed , stopping doomed your chance of reaching the end pegs as most were uphill or in boggy and slippery terrain . Thus ‘ Non Stop ’ was the order of the day . A big thanks to Alistair Trewin for the use of his awesome property on SH1 ( Alistair owns the Kaikoura Quad Tours on the hill south of Kaikoura ).
DAY TWO Day Two dawned yet again sunny and warm on the property of Andrew Coughlans at Dairy Farm Road behind Kaikoura itself . We accessed through a forestry operation , a suspicious bridge and , lastly , a ford to reach the parking paddock . It felt like we had already completed a Trial just getting there . A fairly lengthy loop had 10 sections marked
out , mainly on the hillsides amongst rocks from rugby ball size to those the size of a truck . Something for everyone . Whilst they looked a little intimidating , the sections turned out to be quite easy . Low scoring meant concentration was imperative and those of us who lacked this particular skill paid the price with silly dabs and the occasional , stupid ‘ 5 ’. Even though I managed to clean every section at least once , I was well off the pace and finished up slipping back quite a few places . Some of the quarry climbs for the Experts were impressive , although Jules scoffed when I suggested they were tasty climbs ; such has the skill level and bike capability moved on . Still , it was a heap of fun with riders enjoying the sunny skies and the banter between each other when failures and successes were recorded . And it was fantastic that the one and only Bob Cooke turned up to watch the proceedings . Bob has been instrumental in fostering Moto Trials for over six decades , possibly more . Low scoring brought the top riders within a point or two with Jason Baker , David Trewin ( yes , son of the first venue ’ s owner ), Paul Mountstevens and Kevin Pinfold all within three points in the single
Jules Huguenin and Guillaume Dauber de Peyrelongue
44 KIWI RIDER