Cycle News is a weekly magazine that covers all aspects of motorcycling including Supercross, Motocross and MotoGP as well as new motorcycles
Issue link: https://magazine.cyclenews.com/i/128214
--aB 34" Annus' "' Tria' de Eepana • (Above) Travis Fox got off to a bad start in the EI Trial de Espana but came back to finish second. (Left) Chris Florin is one of America's top up-and-coming riders in trials. By SHAN MOORE/ TRIALS COMPETITION NEWSPAPER TEMECULA,CA,APR.27 Geoff Aaron capped off the weekend with a win at the EI Trial de Espana, an exhibition competition that raises money for the Trials des Nations. eoff Aaron continued his domination of observed trials in Southern California by winning the 34th running of EI Trial de Espana near Temecula. On the previous two days Aaron had won rounds one and two of the AMA/NATC Ryan Young Products National Championship Series in spectacular fashion and then carried this momentum into the prestigious ETdE event on Sunday. En route to the win, Aaron proved he had the confidence needed to handle the really big "exhibition" stuff that the host club, the A TA, sets at a world-class level, using the enormous sandstone boulders found in the area. "There's so much grip on these rocks, and some of that stuff looks impossible," Aaron said. "But it rides pretty easy. "These rocks are like sandpaper, so if you have the confidence then it's really not that bad," Aaron added, referring, in particular, to the final section which required the riders to ride a razor-sharp line across the top of a boulder some 10 feet up in the air - a mistake here would have been disastrous. Aaron was the only rider to clean the section, punctuating his win with a large exclamation point. With the win, his fourth ETdE title since '91, Aaron moved into a sec- 40 n MAY 14, 2003' eye I e e _ os BRIEFLY••• Former National competitor David Pyle returned to trials action in Temecula. winning the Senior 40 division. Pyle retired from championship-level competition nearly 15 years ago and is currently working with Toyota Racing Development's build shop, which last year helped Cristiano da Malta win the CART Indy Car Championship. After two years of riding under the so-called "no-stop" rules. which penalized a rider for stopping his forward momentum. the NATC modified its rules for 2003. allOWing the riders to stop and hop without penalty. The rider is still not allowed to back up under the new rules. but several of the riders. Aaron included. felt the modified rules allowed them to ride with a more aggressive style. Geoff Aaron currently shares the record of most National titles at six with Ryan Young, who retired from National competition several years ago. Interestingly enough. Young manages the Sherco USA Trials Team. whose top rider, David Chaves. is in contention for this year's title and could act as a spoiler for Young. keeping Aaron from breaking the record. Team Sherco's Bill Ibsen got to know some of the local nurses on a first-name basis after making two trips to the hospital over the three-day event. On Friday, while competing in the Expert-Sportsman division. Ibsen broke his left foot in a first-lap fall. He went on to finish fourth in class before going to the hospital for a cast. On Saturday morning, while unloading Sherco team equipment. lbsen's hand was accidentally crushed in the trunk of the car when a teammate shut the trunk. Ibsen returned from his second trip from the hospital. this time with a splint on a broken finger.