Now we know, many years after information was hidden away, the first lady competitor of the Scottish Six Days Trial was in 1912, 114 years ago, Miss MURIEL HIND, riding a works prepared REX motorcycle!

Information has just come to light with the transferring of Tommy Sandham’s archive of scrap-books, paper reports and photographs of the SSDT and trials in general to Trials Guru.

It had been reported in Motor Cycle News with a suitable photograph, penned by the late Ralph Venables, the doyen of off-road motorcycling journalism, that Muriel Hind had been overlooked in the history books and indeed she had taken part in the 1912 SSDT.

On checking the results from 1912, it transpired that Muriel achieved a silver medal in the event on her 6hp REX machine.

Muriel was born on 27th May 1882 in Dorest and died on 3rd May 1956 at Whitley Hospital in Corley. In 1950 she was given a life membership of the Motor Cycle Club.

More nuggets of information will be forthcoming once Tommy’s archive has been fully assessed.

Tommy Sandham wrote a series of books featuring the SSDT and the Pre65 Scottish Trials and was Production Editor of Trials and Motocross News in the late 1970s and early 1980s, when it was produced at Morecombe.

Credit: Motor Cycle News.

NEVIS RADIO – ENJOYED BY 578,404 LISTENERS

Yes, that was the case once again from the official SSDT Radio Station Nevis Radio, the station local to Fort William and Lochaber, which broadcast live from the Scottish Six Days Trial event’s Parc Ferme located at the West End Car Park from Monday 2^nd May until Saturday 7^th May 2022. The voices of the superb outside broadcast team this year consisted of John ‘Big John’ Weller, Simon Abberley and the guest presenter, Trials Guru’s very own John Moffat supported by Pam Weller, Dan MacLeod, Sean McCartney, Deborah Weller and David Sedgewick. As well as radio broadcasting the station was on air with live video streaming, with daily broadcasts from 07:00–11:00am. The sponsors of the station were once again Michelin Tyres, a relationship that goes back to 2009.

Simon Abberley: “Nevis Radio would like to thank Michelin for their continued support over the many years of sponsorship. As a registered charity, every penny we get counts towards our continued service and helps us broadcast across Lochaber. In recent years we have expanded into the world of live video streaming on the internet. Without the support from Michelin, we wouldn’t have had the funds available to offer this service. Being mostly volunteer based with one staff member involved it takes a great deal of resources to achieve our Scottish Six Days Trial coverage, and this year we went past the half-million listeners as we hit a weekly total of user base/ listener/viewer statistics of 578,404 – and this does not include our listen-again options either or social media interaction.

In my time at Nevis we have introduced live video, starting with a simple web cam to what we had planned for this year, which included a multi-camera setup and a remote camera in HD alongside our FM feed. The audio and video are available on our Nevis radio app for iOS and android or our website http://www.nevisradio.co.uk. Video will be available on youtube.com/nevisradioofficial or audio on third party radio apps such as Tune In as well as our own portal and smart speakers. The support from Trials Guru’s John Moffat brings that extra edge with the knowledge he has on the sport of motorcycle trials.”

Radio Station Statistics:

446,404: Website player clicks for the week; 9000: YouTube views on our website player; 6000: Weekly total on YouTube direct.

A weekly total of user base/ listener/viewer statistics of 578,404 which also includes:

We were listened to in 128 countries over the week. Rajar: UK radio stats body suggest 51% of people use smart speakers for listening these days so this could also be quite substantial.

This total does not include our listen again options either or social media interaction.

Fort William’s Nevis Radio is the sole media company covering this year’s Scottish Six Days Trial which kicks starts on Monday 2nd May from the town’s West End Car Park where all 288 machines are stored during the week long event.

Trials Guru will be involved as our own John Moffat will be on hand as the SSDT Expert to cover the start to the finish of the event with daily coverage Monday through to Saturday from 07:00 until 11:00 (GMT).

You can listen locally to the radio broadcasts which are live on the station’s Listen Live facility or, if you are in the town during SSDT week, then the frequencies you need are: 96.6; 97.0; 102.3; or 102.4.

LISTEN LIVE

With daily updates of the top ten scores, local riders and newcomers, the daily broadcasts ensure that short interviews with riders are undertaken to bring you closer to the ‘Parc Ferme’ action.

The broadcasts are also filmed as they happen and you can watch them on your device.

The week long programmes are all sponsored by Michelin and Trial Magazine.

The Scottish Six Days Trial used to start and finish in Scotland’s capital city, Edinburgh.

The start, up until 1976, was organised at Edinburgh’s Gorgie Market in the Slateford area of the city and finish at Blackford Hill, near to the Royal Observatory.

It has recently been announced in the Scottish press that the iconic landmark of the old Gorgie Market would be demolished to make way for student accommodation to cater to satisfy the demands of housing for a vibrant university city.

Currently occupied by ‘World of Football’ and ‘World of Bowling’, the bulding dates back to when it was used as a Corn Exchange and livestock market when animals and grain was transported into the area for the various markets up until the mid 1970s. Currently it provides indoor soccer pitches on a Astroturf surface.

Latterly part of the original Corn Exchange, the buildings were converted to a night club and entertainments centre, suitably called ‘Edinburgh Corn Exchange’ at 11 New Market Road.

The London based property developers, Watkin Jones, have applied to Edinburgh City Council for permission to demolish the site directly behind the Corn Exchange to make way for student accommodation. The site housed the large covered sheds which held the animals for market and also the ‘Weigh-In’ for the annual Scottish Six Days Trial from around 1955 to 1976.

Scottish Six Days Trial 2022 Dates Announced:

The following press release was received from the SSDT Committee this morning. Regardless of the ongoing Covid pandemic, the club and committee have forced on with their plans to restart the annual Highland sporting holiday.

Riders and enthusiasts alike will rejoyce in the news.

A lot has changed over the two years that missed out on an SSDT, which includes the Covid outbreak and ‘Brexit’ which has caused its own issues, such as increased travel costs and also accommodation prices. The SSDT Committee statement reads:

“Following the cancellation of the 2020 and 2021 Scottish Six Days Trials, the Edinburgh & District Motor Club have confirmed that the 2022 event will be held from 2nd to 7th May 2022 centred around Fort William.
The organising team have already started preparations and, although some work was completed for the 2020 event, there will be a lot of work required to make sure that the six daily routes over hundreds of miles are in a fit state to run the event.  
The Edinburgh club look forward to getting this historic event back on the calendar and cannot wait to meet all of the competitors and fans in May 2022.“

Don’t worry, you can listen to all the interviews and chat that went on Nevis Radio during the week that the 2021 SSDT should have taken place in Fort William and beyond.

Every day is listed below, click on the links:

Monday:

Tuesday:

Wednesday:

Thursday:

Friday: