2011 SPEA FIM TRIAL WORLD CHAMPIONSHIP
ROUND SIX - FORT WILLIAM, GREAT BRITAIN
SUNDAY 31/07/11

Twelve times FIM Trial World Champion Dougie Lampkin failed to reach his ultimate career goal of one hundred GP wins as he finished in a disappointing eighth place at the sixth round of the 2011 SPEA FIM Trial World Championship in Fort William, Scotland.

Having picked up a serious ankle injury earlier in the year Dougie has been unable to ride as much as he would have liked leading up to the British Grand Prix. As the notorious Scottish weather closed in around the demanding Highland sections it became obvious that the trial would see relatively high scoring throughout the respective classes.

A single dab on the first hazard give an initial glimmer of hope, as the Yorkshire born rider seemed to just glide over the slippery Scottish boulders. Unfortunately this was short lived as he dropped maximum marks at four of the next five sections as well as encountering time consuming mechanical issues. Despite being in serious pain Lampkin was determined to produce a strong performance on home soil and cleaned hazards ten, eleven and twelve at the top of Ben Nevis, that had caught out so many other top riders.

Lampkin’s luck worsened when he developed grueling cramp in his right leg as he tried to compensate for his injured ankle, causing him to drop further valuable marks in the final four hazards of his first lap. Dougie’s second lap was much the same as his first, as he struggled to navigate the technical Highland sections. Losing maximum marks at six hazards during his second tour, he ended the trial on eighty-three marks, only four behind Jeroni Fajardo in seventh.

A disheartened Lampkin said, “Obviously I’m bitterly disappointed with my result today. I came here wanting to secure a good result in front of home support and it just didn’t happen for me. To be honest I’ve felt unfit from the start of the trial and then when I got cramp during the first lap I knew I couldn’t do much.”

“I tried to shift weight from one leg to the other, but they both hurt quite a bit so I just had to grin and bare it. The weather made the sections really slippery, but that is not a surprise on this type of terrain. I have spent so much time off the bike this year with my ankle injury, and today it showed in my performance,” concluded Dougie.