The Art of Rallying: A Journey Through West Yorkshire's Dirt Sheets

As we embarked on our journey to conquer the infamous Ilkley Trial, I couldn't help but feel a mix of excitement and trepidation. This brilliant form of dirt sheet motorsport has been a staple of British rallying for decades, and I was eager to put my skills to the test in a car that's a bit more... shall we say, tame than some of my previous choices. With 300 quids worth of trialing modifications under the bonnet, our trusty 1983 Volkswagen Golf GTI was more than equipped to handle the challenges that lay ahead.

The idea behind the Ilkley Trial is simple: get as far up each stage as possible, and you'll earn fewer penalty points. Sounds easy enough, but I quickly learned that it's not quite so straightforward. The course winds its way through the beautiful West Yorkshire countryside, featuring 22 tricky sections of hill climbs, rock scrambles, and time trials that will put even the most seasoned rally driver to the test. And let me tell you, this course has got it all – from tight hairpins to massive jumps, there's no shortage of excitement on offer.

As we set off at a flying start, I could feel my heart pounding in my chest. We were clean after the first three stages, and joint leaders at that – it was shaping up to be a great day out. But as we hit the fourth stage, disaster struck. A massive trench on the right-hand side of the road caught me off guard, and before I knew it, I'd veered sharply to the left, earning us a pesky 20 points for leaving the course. It was a rookie mistake, but one that taught me a valuable lesson about the importance of precise throttle control.

The next few stages flew by in a blur of speed and adrenaline. We were adjusting our tire pressures on the fly, using 25 PSI for the firmer sections and as low as 12 PSI for the softer ground. And let me tell you, it made all the difference – we were carving through the course with ease, leaving the competition in our dust. But just as things were going smoothly, our built-in air compressor decided to fail us mid-stage. I was left flailing like an Olympic cyclist, desperately trying to hold on for dear life as we careened towards the finish line.

Miraculously, we managed to complete the stage without any major mishaps – a testament to the trusty old Golf GTI's ability to keep up with my questionable driving skills. And as we crossed the finish line, I couldn't help but feel a sense of pride and accomplishment. We may not have won the stage outright, but we'd earned our place on the podium, and that was all that mattered.

Of course, no rally would be complete without a healthy dose of camaraderie and banter. Our navigator, Tiff, was in top form, expertly guiding me through the twists and turns of the course with his trademark wit and humor. And as we sat around the campfire at night, swapping stories and sharing laughs, I couldn't help but feel grateful for this wonderful community of rally enthusiasts.

As the sun began to set on our final stage, I knew that it was time to put the pedal down and give it everything we had left. We attacked the steepest obstacles with gusto, sending dust flying in all directions as we hurtled towards the finish line. And when we finally crossed over, exhausted but exhilarated, I couldn't help but feel a sense of satisfaction. We may not have won the whole shebang, but we'd given it our all, and that's all anyone can ask for.

As we made our way back to base, reflecting on the day's events, I knew that this was just the beginning. The Ilkley Trial has got me hooked – and I'll be back next year, ready to take on the challenges of this incredible course once again.

"WEBVTTKind: captionsLanguage: ena heavy bike the wrong tires and a broken clutch the last time fifth gear attempted the famous ilkley trial we came last but we weren't put off This brilliant form of dirt sheet Motorsport and decided to enter this year's centinary event in something we're a bit more used to a car but look at it look I've got my reputation to the I drive Ferraris and Lamborghinis yeah I know but this car has won its class loads and loads of times it's been a tri car for over 15 years just need a really good driver that's where I'm hoping you'll come in 22 tricky sections of hill climbs Rock scrambles and time trials lay ahead covering 75 Mi of West Yorkshire the idea is to get as far up each stage as possible the further up you go the less penalty points you receive to assist us our 1983 Volkswagen Golf GTI had had 300 quids worth of trialing modifications a 10-in suspension lift so it can clear rough ground and 30 Stone of lead under the Bonnet to help the front wheels dig in and grip the dirt man I'm really feeling the old uh butterflies Etc when you're ready remember don't give it too much gas there's no time limit on the stages instead it's all about not getting stuck that means it's vitally important to precisely put the front wheels on the route with the most grip and hopefully your co-driver can help you find that route between the flags that's it m the den after humiliation last year we were looking for nothing less than a clean sheet that was sweet well done completed and thanks to a flying start our sheet was indeed pristine we were clean after the first three stages we were joint leaders that's good I'm enjoying this Johny are we still winning the good news kept coming next was a time section where speed was everything a nadell speciality oh down the hill no no hand bre didn't work no it's all right it's all right don't tell me just remember that the car's set up to go off road all Jay's the tight one we don't want to blow it now we don't want to blow it now D no that's under steer how was the time 39 seconds that was pretty quick before each section we've been adjusting the car's tire pressures for firmer sections we'd used 25 psi but went as low as 12 PSI to give more grip on soft ground our car had a built-in air compressor to do the job but it had mysteriously broken is it working or not Tiff no which meant I had a thigh like an Olympic cyclist as we reached halfway I was sure we were heading for a clean sweep oh my we got a fail our first fail you should have just kept left oh you should have kept left you see cuz there's a massive trench on the right but not a big one on the left I couldn't stay left I got 20 St of concrete at the front of course it went right my biggest advice to those of you wanting to drive a trial for yourselves is to carefully balance the throttle you need enough momentum to get up an obstacle oh easy peasy peasy easy W but too much power and you'll frustratingly spin the wheels petering out near the top not too many revs come on come on you snow no when you get it right you can make perfect progress that's nice that's oh that was was easy Over The Bu vicious good we're already up to five we still got a lot more to go there's four we got a nasty little sting in the tailet three we haven't got one we got a around hair pin that's it watch The Box usually oh my goody aside from that all you need to make sure of is that your Navigator is highly organized where's my map got I have no idea well no hang on where where is my map did you put that in there get in the with map in hand we completed the last sections in eager fashion attacking the steepest obstacles with gusto yes face full of dirt even if sometimes it sounded like the car was taking a proper beating oh oh that just could have G any slower it's just torure we finished the final stage just before my respiratory system finally gave up the ghost like that so how did we do well quite well James small cross won our class in a Persia with no penalty points and we came forth with 10 penalty points and fifth had 80 penalty points so we were competitive that was all right your teamwork was good I enjoyed it was brilliant I had all kinds of fun really rewarding cheap Motorsport Sunshine exactly good camaraderie great views yeah all of the above we come back next year I'd love to come back again yeah but I'd like to drive no way noa heavy bike the wrong tires and a broken clutch the last time fifth gear attempted the famous ilkley trial we came last but we weren't put off This brilliant form of dirt sheet Motorsport and decided to enter this year's centinary event in something we're a bit more used to a car but look at it look I've got my reputation to the I drive Ferraris and Lamborghinis yeah I know but this car has won its class loads and loads of times it's been a tri car for over 15 years just need a really good driver that's where I'm hoping you'll come in 22 tricky sections of hill climbs Rock scrambles and time trials lay ahead covering 75 Mi of West Yorkshire the idea is to get as far up each stage as possible the further up you go the less penalty points you receive to assist us our 1983 Volkswagen Golf GTI had had 300 quids worth of trialing modifications a 10-in suspension lift so it can clear rough ground and 30 Stone of lead under the Bonnet to help the front wheels dig in and grip the dirt man I'm really feeling the old uh butterflies Etc when you're ready remember don't give it too much gas there's no time limit on the stages instead it's all about not getting stuck that means it's vitally important to precisely put the front wheels on the route with the most grip and hopefully your co-driver can help you find that route between the flags that's it m the den after humiliation last year we were looking for nothing less than a clean sheet that was sweet well done completed and thanks to a flying start our sheet was indeed pristine we were clean after the first three stages we were joint leaders that's good I'm enjoying this Johny are we still winning the good news kept coming next was a time section where speed was everything a nadell speciality oh down the hill no no hand bre didn't work no it's all right it's all right don't tell me just remember that the car's set up to go off road all Jay's the tight one we don't want to blow it now we don't want to blow it now D no that's under steer how was the time 39 seconds that was pretty quick before each section we've been adjusting the car's tire pressures for firmer sections we'd used 25 psi but went as low as 12 PSI to give more grip on soft ground our car had a built-in air compressor to do the job but it had mysteriously broken is it working or not Tiff no which meant I had a thigh like an Olympic cyclist as we reached halfway I was sure we were heading for a clean sweep oh my we got a fail our first fail you should have just kept left oh you should have kept left you see cuz there's a massive trench on the right but not a big one on the left I couldn't stay left I got 20 St of concrete at the front of course it went right my biggest advice to those of you wanting to drive a trial for yourselves is to carefully balance the throttle you need enough momentum to get up an obstacle oh easy peasy peasy easy W but too much power and you'll frustratingly spin the wheels petering out near the top not too many revs come on come on you snow no when you get it right you can make perfect progress that's nice that's oh that was was easy Over The Bu vicious good we're already up to five we still got a lot more to go there's four we got a nasty little sting in the tailet three we haven't got one we got a around hair pin that's it watch The Box usually oh my goody aside from that all you need to make sure of is that your Navigator is highly organized where's my map got I have no idea well no hang on where where is my map did you put that in there get in the with map in hand we completed the last sections in eager fashion attacking the steepest obstacles with gusto yes face full of dirt even if sometimes it sounded like the car was taking a proper beating oh oh that just could have G any slower it's just torure we finished the final stage just before my respiratory system finally gave up the ghost like that so how did we do well quite well James small cross won our class in a Persia with no penalty points and we came forth with 10 penalty points and fifth had 80 penalty points so we were competitive that was all right your teamwork was good I enjoyed it was brilliant I had all kinds of fun really rewarding cheap Motorsport Sunshine exactly good camaraderie great views yeah all of the above we come back next year I'd love to come back again yeah but I'd like to drive no way no\n"