BELGIUM: Mons , 19-20/5/2001

We've been insisting this season that the defending World Trials champ is more human, and in Belgium that assertion was supported when Dougie Lampkin finished the first day in sixth place - a position far below the Brit's normal level. True, he rebounded to win the following day, and true, he had won every day up until the slip, but his HRC Montesa teammate Takahisa Fujinami narrowed the points lead in Belgium via a day-one victory and a day-two podium finish.
Perhaps more newsworthy than Lampkin's apparent newfound mortality is his competition's ascension toward his erstwhile god-like state. Fujinami flew from stone to stone at the challenging trial, showing a confidence never displayed by the Japanese rider. After winning Saturday, he led more than half of Sunday's competition, his mind finally completely devoted to the competition: no distraction , no loss of concentration. In other words, he performed like his longtime rival and teammate - Lampkin the monster.
Said monster was all-but absent in the first day, and he waited until midway through day two to show that he is still the best, cleaning an entire loop! It was too late to earn him an overall win at the two-day Grand Prix, but still important for his morale. The weekend was a great one also for Marc Freixa, winner of last year's edition, who ended in third place on Saturday and as the runner-up on Sunday.

Day 1
Lampkin did not start Saturday with the right concentration, even in the easy woods sections where he took some silly dabs. But the real problem was section nine, where he slipped on a rock placed before a larger boulder, collecting a full five points in the section. At the end of the first loop, Jarvis led with 14 marks, chased by Fujinami with a point more. Next were the tied-up Freixa and Raga. Lampkin was in fifth with 19 marks. The second loop was run very quickly, as usual, because of the time wasted in the first circuit. The best score was for Colomer: he collected 13 points and climbed into fourth place. It was a very bad loop, on the other hand, for the former leader Jarvis, who dropped all the way down to fifth. Though everyone had expected the usual revenge of Lampkin, the HRC Montesa rider was not his normal self, even in the second loop, Fujinami capitalized on the opportunity, repeating his loop-one score and winning the competition. There was a good enough performance by Raga that he was able to capture the runner-up position, while Freixa could be found in third place. Lampkin was a lowly sixth!
In the Junior class, which is scored with only 10 sections and reserved for riders aged 16 to 20, Spaniard Josep Manzano won over Japanese Taichi Tanaka. In third place was Spaniard Xavier Leon.

Day 2
On Sunday, Lampkin started with evident anger over his poor performance of the day before, but his challengers were not willing to fold. Fujinami was hot for the victory, and Freixa and Raga continued their strong performances. Only Jarvis appeared somewhat absent-minded,making some silly mistakes. The other top riders proceeded with none of them establishing a clear advantage. Suddenly, at section 12, Lampkin (leading at the time) got a five when he crashed on dusty rock - again! All his rivals took comfort of this. At the end of first loop, Fujinami and Freixa led with 5 marks, ahead of Lampkin's eight. In fourth place was Colomer with 10 points. Raga was fifth, scoring 13. In the second loop, run not as quickly as the day before, Lampkin was superlative, cleaning the entire loop!

That left no chance for anybody else, especially since Fujinami was a bit nervous, probably feeling the strain that comes with the top position. As a result, he was overtaken by Freixa for second by just one point. Colomer secured fourth place, ahead of his teammate Raga. Fujinami nonetheless grasped the overall, two-day victory, having collected a first and a third. It was the second of his career, the other having come in Germany back in 1997. Runner-up in the overall placings was Freixa, with Lampkin down in third.
Among the young riders, Manzano had an easy time of it, never seriously challenged by runner-up Tanaka. Josè-Maria Saez was third.


Briefly…
· Mons is an ancient town south of Brussels, and this is the third year that the World round has been held there, as opposed to its traditional location of Bilstain. The event was held for many years on the private terrain of that venue, which is owned by the father of Belgian National champ Fred Crosset, but friction between him and the federation nixed that. There is hope among many trials enthusiasts these days for a reconciliation.
· The in-town start makes sense only if the event is supported by significant promotion, without which the added work is not worth the trouble. Indeed, few people attended either day, with an estimated 2,000 on hand Sunday (all of whom paid a ticket of around $ 7). Many buses were available to carry spectators to the sections.
· The hazards were split into three groups. One, two and three were in the woods on a little hill, while four through 13 were in an abandoned old coal mine. The last two were in the town square near the start. Since Belgium is short on mountains, the organizers worked hard to put stones inside the sections, making the competition like an "open-sky indoor".
· The weather was good on both days - sun with few clouds - but the rain that visited the last two editions was never seen. On the contrary, the sections were made dangerous by dust - not in the air, but on the rocks. Many minders were seen attempting to blow the dust away, a site that struck the spectators as quite ridiculous.
· There was satisfaction among the Gasgas personnel, thanks to the second-place Saturday finish by Adam Raga, the only rider sticking with the company's new prototype (said by Gasgas to be the lightest trials bike in the world). This follows the decision by teammate Marc Colomer to switch back to the old model, which he rode all winter during the indoor competitions. Colomer got a couple of fourth-place results, definitely below his potential, but not bad considering his season's dismal start.