This coming Sunday will see the opening round of the 2010 SPEA FIM Trial World Championship take place in the small town of Baiona, on the West coast of Spain. Sitting close to the border with Portugal the Spanish fishing port has the honour of marking the start of the thirty fifth edition of a series that was first contested back in 1975.
Much has changed in the wider World since the mid nineteen-seventies, and under the management of the FIM this unique championship continues to react and develop in a way that best reflects the modern advances within this specialist discipline. 2010 marks the beginning of yet another new era for this slow speed sport with several rule changes having been introduced to create an even more 'balanced' championship race that now incorporates three separate classes.
As well as facing the normal challenges that are provided by a variety of natural terrains that are present in each different country, the riders will also have to adjust to a reduced time limit of just one minute per section. With no time to waste, competitors will be encouraged to adopt a more dynamic approach to their riding, which will promote forward motion and deliver even more of a spectacle to the thousands of loyal fans who continue to support the series.
Newly introduced rules will also prevent the riders from actually walking within the sections on the day of the competition, so as to create fairer riding conditions for all competitors irrespective of their status. Finally no longer will the leading riders be afforded the luxury of riding at the back of the field, but instead those that perform best will now start first with their nearest challengers following in their pioneering tyre marks.
Whilst the Indoor series is only for an elite few riders, the 2010 SPEA FIM Trial World Championship is set to welcome around sixty riders per event, with the entry split quite evenly between the Youth, Junior and World Pro categories that each holds its own FIM World title for the eventual victor in these three classes. Although there may be obvious pre season favourites in each division, history shows that these predictions do not always become true.
After the initial stop in Spain the championship will move swiftly on and make the short journey South into Portugal for the second round just seven days later. A brief break in proceedings will allow the teams to prepare for the long trip to Japan in early June before the action shifts back to Europe later the same month as Scotland returns to the tour for the first time since 1992.
July will prove to be decisive in the three individual title races, with three rounds over three successive weekends, as the campaign moves from South East France into the small principality of San Marino before ending up in the Italian mountains. The eighth and final Grand Prix in the Czech Republic will bring the 2010 series to a close one week ahead of the FIM Trial des Nations, which will be hosted in Poland.
The 2010 SPEA FIM Women's Trial World Championship will be contested over three rounds, as the ladies join the men in France, the Czech Republic and Poland to decide their crown. The thirty fifth anniversary of the main championship looks set to create a chapter to remember, as the history of Trial continues to move slowly forward in its own special way.
