Enduro Chairmans Open Letter
15th November 2022
I'd like to start by welcoming any newcomers to the sport, congratulating our new champions and by thanking all the clubs and volunteers that made our riding possible this year, despite a myriad of challenges.
Special thanks to Stella in the SACU office, working behind the scenes, and to Charles Mackenzie for running www.scottishenduros.co.uk and Phil Hewitt with the Scottish Enduro Riders Facebook page - keeping us all abreast of the latest news and results. We’re hoping things will settle down in 2023, and that we can return to a regular schedule.
We’d like to start by holding an awards ceremony, before Christmas, so: PLEASE RETURN ALL 2021 TROPHIES AND PERPETUAL AWARDS.
We’re looking to promote companies who share our interest in growing the sport in Scotland, with souvenirs, awards, banners and VIP events - potential partners, please contact us at the office to discuss sponsoring an event, a particular class, or the whole series. To get the ball rolling Scottish motorcycle training companies RORS & MotoJoe have teamed up to donate a fund worth £1,200 of training and prizes.
For those that don't know me, I’ve ridden Motocross, Trials and Enduro for almost 40 years, and after riding the French ISDE as the GB team captain in 2017, I collected my 8th ISDE Gold medal and retired from racing to start the off-road experience and training company RORS - Ride Off Road Scotland. As I left Scotland at 16 years old after joining the Army, I did most of my Enduro riding down south or overseas. I'm privileged to have ridden in what I would call the golden era of Scottish and British Enduro through the late 90s and 00s when you could ride to the nearest bing, 2-up, without someone calling the police. There was no such thing as "Hard enduro" - Enduro was, by its very nature, HARD, if you didn't prepare, you didn't finish. Events didn't get cancelled for rain, the goal was to reach the finish at all costs, checks never seemed to end and you were often relieved to see another living soul. Finishing within the additional hour was an added bonus and you could still get a top-ten finish even after losing 20 minutes on the going. I DNF'd my first 2 Enduros and I couldn't wait for the 3rd so I could prove myself on the country's toughest, wettest, steepest terrain...
I'm apparently a dinosaur - among the minority who would bring back the old ways. I would like to see the Scottish Enduro Championship (SEC) timecards mirror the BEC (British) rules and classes (Championship, Expert, Clubman and Sportsman), and to keep the timecard series to 4 x 2-day premium events with longer days, the occasional tight check, and more special test time at each event, but after such a turbulent year, changes to format may have to wait until we’ve steadied the ship… It looks like we may have 3 clubs eager to run 2-day events next year, so that's a good start. We've made great progress with Scottish Land and Forestry, thanks to Sandy Mack and Gillian Sefton, so we have new venue options to explore. We’ll also be allowing 15-year-olds to enter, and in exceptional cases 14-year-olds, if deemed capable by a SACU official.
For Hare and hounds we’ve discussed running a practice day alongside events, where clubs have the scope to do this, to add riding opportunities for non-competitive riders. Allowing 14- year-olds to enter the adult classes and in exceptional cases, 13-year-olds may also apply along with those youths looking to move to bigger capacity machines, and we will also welcome young riders from south of the border. Now with more youngsters getting involved, we really need a parent to represent those riders – volunteers please step forward and join the committee!
We will continue to offer training schools and events for all levels across Scotland - North, Central and South with discipline specific coaches, most of whom will now gain accredited coaching qualifications thanks to Shabaz’s work with Sport Scotland. Anyone interested in gaining a national coaching qualification please register interest by emailing the SACU office.
We're looking to introduce Rally Events to the Scottish Calendar with help from Forestry and Land Scotland and the BIC Rally Club who hope to recce a new venue for Trail and Adventure bikes in December.
The Enduro Committee meetings have been well attended with new members and healthy debate. Focus for 2023 is to facilitate top-quality events with lots of riding options and training opportunities for experienced riders and newcomers. It's a delicate balance, and a lot of work, so if you can help, please let us know. Please remember clubs need volunteers to help set-up, run, and tear down events, but most of all, when they put all this effort in, they need YOU to turn up. If you see an event you like the look of, please get the entry in early! Nothing motivates organisers more than seeing a good number looking to attend, and a full entry means we can go the extra distance when it comes to paying for track markers or diesel for a machine or awards for riders and some extra payment to keep a landowner sweet.
Some will be glad to hear we've updated the tiebreaker rules and scrapped the double points rule as we work to get rules and dates finalised and published for ‘23. We’ve heard people would like to be more involved in the decision-making process, and some would like to be more informed, but there’s too much to discuss here – so before racing gets underway, we would like to hold an open online discussion where we’ll outline our plans and answer any questions you may have.
Remember the key to all of this though, get involved with your local club, get your entries in early, and spread the word, Scottish Enduro Needs You!
Yours in sport,
SACU Enduro Chairman Kevin Murray