Revving through history

Blackmore Vale Motor Cycle Club combines tradition, innovation and community to keep off-road racing thriving after more than a century

Motorcycle sports roared onto the scene in the early 1900s,  born from the time trials hosted by the ‘auto-cycle’ clubs. The off-road motorcycling circuits are grass, gravel and mud, packed with tight turns, water, ramps and punishingly steep slopes. The primary objective is to complete the course in the shortest time, and success hinges on precision, control – and nerve. When an 11-year-old Dean Whitty saw his uncle’s trials bike he was fascinated … and so began a lifelong love of trials riding. Dean is now the club secretary of the Blackmore Vale Motorcycle Club Auto-Cycle Union (MCC ACU).

‘The Original Blackmore Vale MCC is 103 years old, one of the oldest in the country. It started in 1922, with scrambling, trials and road racing. Today the club specialises in off-road trials and not the wider motocross scrambling disciplines.

‘My uncle had a road bike that he rode to work and then converted to off road for trials at the weekends. He said he would take me to a trials meeting and from then I was hooked. Mum and Dad weren’t very keen … but my uncle bought me a bike and taught me!’

Inevitably, trials bikes have evolved significantly over the last century as the sport has become more specialised.

‘People tend to ride to the era of the bike they own. In my uncle’s day, lots of men used to do what he did – ride their road bike to work and convert it at the weekend. People still ride those bikes, and there are pre-1965 classes for them. But today things are very different, with specialised purpose-built bikes.

‘There are the old two-stroke bikes. Then air-cooled bikes developed – that’s where air passes through aluminium fins to cool the engine while the bike is in motion. Now there are modern water-cooled bikes, with much better suspension.’

Although the liquid-cooled bikes are more efficient and comfortable to ride, trials is now starting to see electric bikes.

‘They are the future. We already have world championships designed for electric bikes. And a lot of people with bikes tend to have more than one type – that’s what happens with motor sports!’

A sport for all ages
Trial riding appeals to all ages. The oldest person riding at the original Blackmore Vale club is 93-year-old George Greenland from Salisbury, who regularly turns up at meets. Dean says: ‘He’s still competing – in his younger years he won the British Enduro Sidecar Championships three years running.’

Younger members may start from seven or eight years old, but Dean sees most people taking up the sport in their 30s. He’s also noticed something else about the membership: ‘Some of the kids who start give up when they hit their teens, as they get more of an interest in electronic devices, and disappear. Because of this, the future of the sport is thin on the ground.
‘It’s hard to see how it will look in the next 20 years?’

There are few women in the club at the moment. ‘We have had some in the past,’ says Dean. ‘One lady had to give up after having a family. They are always very welcome. It’s not intended to be a boys club!’

The original Blackmore Vale MCC ADU has seen several national and world champions. ‘We’ve got Ben Lovelace who is a factory rider for Gas Gas. He’s won national events and competes in the British Championships. And we have two-times European Trials Champion Mick Andrews, who was named an FIM Legend for his motorcycling achievements, running training classes for us … he tells us where we’re all going wrong!

‘Over the years I’ve also met a lot of champions, including Guy Martin. Everyone is very friendly. It’s a great community. We go to steam rallies in the summer and have a static display or a demonstration.
‘We also raise money for charities such as the Dorset and Somerset Air Ambulance.’

The Meets

‘Meets depend on what’s happening,’ says Dean. ‘Some of our riders ride with other clubs, so it can be a juggle. We tend to have five meets a year – we get permission from landowners and pay them a fee. Around two weeks beforehand the course setter will go out and mark out the course. Meets usually attract 50 to 60 riders. And we always fix the state of the ground after the meet. That’s something a few walkers have been worried about when they see the ground churned up, but we do repair it.

‘The vast majority of people involved are volunteers. It’s the love of the sport! For anyone wanting to take up trials, contact someone like me. You need to have an ACU licence* and a bike and the kit. If you are a newbie, we can help – we’ll take you aside, find someone who can do the training and get you started.

‘There’s a lot of camaraderie in trials riding and people with a wealth of experience. You might be competing against each other, but if you come off your bike, someone will stop and help. It’s that kind of sport.’

*A day licence in 2024 cost £20, and a Trials One Event registration was £5.
The ACU website has lots of information on getting started in trials –
acu.org.uk
Get in touch with Dean on whittydean@gmail.com