Award for.......

[PippaB]

Oh my god I wasnt expecting that and thankyou very much guys for 'the most inspiring commitment to improving one's trail riding skills', and it certainly had its spills and thrills along the way...the shortened version of ones training thus far...…

1 x Freeride 250 - new year day 2017...exciting 1st bike!. Lots of falls, 1/2 a bike drowning later and one particular 'wake me up fall' - made me rethink about this new hobby and how I can improve it and the only way was go back to basics...…
Soo off to Desert Rose Riding Academy for stage one in July with some girlfriends and 3 months later back with Andy to do stage two... commiting myself to up to twice a month for a ride out with beginners and towards end of year inbetweener runs.

Bike no 2...got a complete drowing on its 2nd ride out and was soon replaced with bike no.3

Spring 2018, still with bike no.3 but losing confidence in it as being an enduro bike, there was not much torque for going downhills, i was very nearly thinking of giving it up....unitl 'lots of fluttering of the eyelids later'.....and Wessex wanderer was on it ways.....bike no 4 came into my life,,,,oh and bike no.3 did get a complete soaking on last year christmas ride too - though all sorted before it was part exchanged.
In between the weekend outings, had 5 lessons with Katie Nash once a month with another weekend taken up with alittle bit of low key competition with another club and or playing at Hookwoods Trials centre on their fun days.

End of summer, 2nd outing to do the hereford Hospice at Baskerville hall, camping and riding , wet, soggy grass mountains or rather large hills laden with gorse and sheep poo offering a rather skiddy and slidey downhill descents as well as very deep rutted ways with legs over handlebars and a grumpy landowner with collie dogs second best hobbys were to chase certain trf members down the lanes in hot pursuit...

At the very end of the summer, off we went to most challenging of all terrain, Devon...clambering up and down coastal rockeries and really commiting to steep lumpy rock tracks as well as grooved out lanes and a certain water crossing...that I actually tippy toed my way over, stone by stone as determined not to make bike no.4 another victim of a watery ending! By the time I got to other side, think the others had fallen into a deep slumber!

After that had to slow down somewhat as developed bursitus of the hip joints, its been very painful but now on the mend again and with great enthusiasm have 2019 lined up with some Enduro training, more challenging weekend ride outs, later on in year get back to trials again as building up my core muscles with pilates and losing weight, that has seemed to crept on whilst not doing alot in the last 4 months apart from my gardening work on my hands and knees, that was challenging on its own....oh and ive lost 5lbs already yeh......

You guys are awesome, thankyou for being a brilliant club and the support in one way or another you have given me in the last couple of years and you are truly great people.

[Dangerous Dave]

nice one pippa, that was a good read, well done and keep it up.
Dave