26/06/2018 - Malverns Classic 2018

Baybutt gives us the roundup of the Malverns Classic 2018: Malverns! Who remembers it from the first time round? The glossy pages of MBUK filled with fishing hats and sunshine are my only references, but when we heard that dual was back on the menu for 2018, we couldn’t not go.

Arriving on the Thursday with Camus & Sam, we got the stand set up, pitched my tent under dog-crap tree and went to see who else was here.

Friday brought the start of the show officially. We spent the day setting up people on demo bikes and sending them off round the racetracks. As there were no big features on the courses, when the tracks weren’t being used for racing, they were all open to the public. 99% was dry grass but it turned out there was a mega-bog at the bottom of stage 1 - which confused us when bikes were brought back loppy! Dual practice & quali opened but I only managed 3 practice laps before qualis. An afternoon session would have been nice (or some extra skills) and I might not have thrown away my run on a flat corner. Racing isn’t for me. Luckily Sam knew how to help and put a beer in my hand before even asking me how it went. Top lad. Luckily Camus & Easey made it into the proper race and did us proud. Easey also fell in his run against the Malverns Legend that is Dave Hemming but smoked him in the second race. Not by enough to go through but he’d have deffo made it a few rounds further if he’d stayed upright.

Saturday morning we fitted a mud spike (WTB Warden) to Camus’ BFe and he sent it to 2nd in the Enduro. Big stoke. The day consisted of more demos, more wheelies, more beers. Me, Sam & Mel even managed to get off the stand for a spin up the hill which was lovely till Mel fell in the aforementioned bog.

After the 4x (WILD btw) we grabbed the Development squad and headed back up to the jump for an impromptu photo session. The sight of those two bossing the gap inspired a raft of other kids who wanted a go and very soon the hill was alive again with whoops & cheers as everyone got into the swing of things. I love working with these two - people like this bring the stoke and the rest is easy.

Sunday saw a hungover Camus wrestle with finding 5 seconds in the downhill after his first run. Luckily Jordan of BikeTrack fame was on hand for some last minute coaching and pep talks. Somehow the fog lifted and Dave brought it home to 2nd in hardtail class. Wes got a 3rd in his class and Will stood on the top step in his. Unreal results.

If you were one of the many many people who stopped by the stand for a chat, sticker or a demo then I hope you had as good a time as we did. It’s nice to see the old spirit is still there after 20 years.