On The Pegs June 2020 - Volume 5 - Issue 6 | Page 94

On The Pegs 94
21994: First TrialGP Win
My first TrialGP win stands out in my mind. Just thinking
about it makes the hairs on the back of my neck stand up. I
rode in a few world rounds in ’93 and I eventually finished
ninth. In ’94, obviously, I’m a factory Beta rider as well so I’ve
got more support, but got also a little bit of extra pressure
as well. The season was going fairly well. The British world
round was in the north of England, a very muddy place that
didn’t really suit all the foreigners as much as perhaps the
Scandinavian riders and the northern Europe riders and English
riders. I always remember it was sponsored by Dunlop and I had done quite a
bit of promo stuff before the event. It was always going to be a really tough day.
I think my father’s words was it was one of those days where I could have probably
walked on water, when everything just goes right and everything happens
right. Pretty fair you weren’t expecting to win it, and you weren’t expected to win
it. That was for sure. Things were going really well. Obviously no one was telling
me. There was a massive crowd following me. I did feel under pressure. The last
section was near the paddock and there was so many people around. When I look
back at the photo, it was incredible. I remember I fived the last section, and you
could just hear the crowd sign on the video on YouTube. We thought we’d blown
it. Then to my surprise, I won the trial and I was mesmerized that they kept it away
from me knowing. It’s something I’ll remember forever. Wonderful memories of
that day.
I think Diego Bosis was second, and Jordi Tarres third. So two of my favorite riders.
In ’93 when I was watching Jordi Tarres pass his bike to his mechanic and his
mechanic was washing his bike. I just wanted a bit of that. I couldn’t believe that
somebody else washed your bike for you. It’s the little things that you remember
like that. I can picture myself now staring at the back of Jordi Tarres as somebody
else washes his bike. I wanted a bit of that.