After a delayed start to the 2020 season, round one of Manx MTB Enduro series, sponsored by Coin Corner, did not disappoint on Sunday.

Entries were filled to capacity at 75, and a tough 25km loop of four well-known classic stages, plus a totally new special stage, were put in place.

Based around South Barrule, Arassey and Kerrowdhoo plantations, the grim weather on the run up to the event promised some interesting riding conditions.

The words greasy and unpredictable were among the most spoken words in the paddock before the start, but some late-afternoon sun on the practice Saturday, and glorious weather on race day, meant the tracks were in surprisingly good condition, although still slippery.

Early-season lockdown and riding restrictions did nothing to slow down Nigel Beattie who almost made it look easy with five out of five fastest stage times in the main enduro class, finishing the day with a total time of 13min 43sec.

Next up, once again showing the young guns how it’s done, was Steve ’Bear’ Collins. He was almost one minute down on Beattie with a total time of 14m 38s, but this was enough to hold the rest of the field at bay.

James Hinchcliffe rode a solid race, finishing only seven seconds behind Collins, showing the world that ’The Plan’ is coming together perfectly! Hinchcliffe currently has the bragging rights over pre-season rival Mike Chatel (fourth) but it is all to play for going into round two on August 16.

Other notable rides included electric bike-mounted riders Mark Turner and Paul Jennings. Turner set a blistering total time of 13.28, the fastest of the day, with Jennings a little more than one minute behind in 14.39.

While the rest of the UK is still unable to go racing, it is a great privilege for the club to be able to hold these events.

l Thanks go out to all the helpers, medics and marshals who are essential to making these races as successful as they are. Also title sponsor Coin Corner (www.coincorner.com), Ben Collins for the timing system and DEFA for land access and signing on facilities.

Full and class results can be found on www.manxmtbenduro.com where information about round two and the upcoming two-day enduro will be available in due course.

RESULTS

Overall: 1, Mark Turner (e-bike) total time 13min 28.4sec; 2, Nigel Beattie 13.43.8; 3, Stephen Collins 14.38.6; 4, Paul Jennings (e-bike) 14.39.3; 5, James Hinchliffe 14.45.1; 6, Mike Chatel 14.48.8; 7, Ash Collinge 14.49.9; 8, Robin Arnold 14.54.6; 9, Craig Norrey 15.05.2; 10, Lee Batty 15.13.4; 11, Ben Hardy (e-bike) 15.14.0; 12, Gavin Hunt 15.15.7; 13, Conor Gelling 15.20.4; 14, Liam O’Leary 15.21.5; 15, Russ Moore 15.30.0; 16, Harry Corrin 15.30.5; 17, Jacob Meechan 15.33.9; 18, Elliott Teece 15.35.4; 19, Tom Dawson 15.38.8; 20, Shaun Corris 15.44.5; 21, Sam Hardman 15.46.3; 22, Gareth Fargher 15.56.6; 23, Chris Bulley 16.08.5; 24, Richard Gault 16.21.4; 25, Mike Turner 16.30.0; 26, Shaun Fox 16.34.4; 27, Eliot Stutt 16.43.9; 28, Callum Purves 17.03.4; 29, Niall McCanney 17.08.9; 30, Ton Ton Bangero 17.13.9; 31, Tom Babbs 17.16.3; 32, Lucas Hills-Field 17.26.2; 33, Alex Phillips 17.26.8; 34, Andy McKnight 17.28.1; 35, Joshua Kelly 17.35.1; 36, Andrew Faulkner 17.42.9; 37, Reece Crellin (e-bike) 17.50.0; 38, Derek McNutt 17.57.4; 39, Ollie Mitchell 18.03.6; 40, Oscar Lace 18.17.6; 41, Max Turner 18.20.4; 42, Louis Morris 18.21.2; 43, Samuel Hills-Field 18.32.6; 44, Ric Kneen 18.33.9; 45, Richard Collister (e-bike) 18.45.9; 46, Jamie Meggitt 18.51.7; 47, Billy Kennedy 18.55.4; 48, James Collinson 18.56.5; 49, Ethan Jackson 19.16.2; 50, Peter Clague 19.23.2; 51, David Griffin 19.25.5; 52, Jacob McCanney 19.33.3; 53, Arthur Bankes-Jones 19.53.6; 54, Jon-Paul Fisher 19.58.7; 55, Glenn Harrison (e-bike) 20.26.4; 56, Lukas Hickey (e-bike) 20.40.2; 57, Oliver Brown 20.40.7; 58, Giles Morris 20.53.1; 59, Tony Millichap 21.10.6; 60, Graham Burden 21.12.3; 61, Steve Wood 21.25.7; 62, Philip Bridson 22.12.3; 63, Carl Murray 22.21.9; 64, Robin Simpson-Green 22.44.4; 65, Jason Andrews (e-bike) 22.57.0; 66, Michael Shipsides 23.36.2; 67, Chris Dalton 26.33.2; 68, Tomas Jordan (e-bike) 27.18.5.

10-mile time trials

The Canada Life 10-mile time trial league begins next Wednesday, July 29, again centred on Jurby Road between Ramsey and Ballamoar straight.

Further rounds will be on August 5 and 12, followed by a one-month break to Sunday, September 20 for the 10-mile champs, with a final two rounds on Sunday, September 27 and Sunday, October 18.