in the world. After winter, the time of the great trials arrives; spring and autumn are the preferred times for almost all clubs to organize the big events.
This year I’m going to have the privilege of participating in all the biggest classic Trials on the calendar; Aywaille, Scottish Pre65, Robregordo, Highland Classic, Manxx, Santigosa, Costa Brava, Maeztu… I know if I’m missing some, but it’s not possible to be everywhere.
I’m often asked which one is my favorite, but I can never give a single answer. Scotland for its tradition and setting; Manxx because of its toughness and variety; but Robregordo is something very special, it is the trial of the people, the trial par excellence to have fun and where the results matter to very few.
Eleven years ago, in 2004, Darío Mesoneros-Romanos sent me by email the poster of the first Robregordo. On it you could read: ” Come to Robregordo, you will be surprised” and I remember that there was a small photo of Alfonso Sánchez wading through a river.
I hadn’t participated in any trials for several years, although I still had some bikes that I rarely used at that time in the Segovian rivers to kill the bug. Apart from the competition trial, I didn’t know that in Spain and more specifically in Madrid people were starting to dust off their old frames to use them in competition again.
Soon after, I received a call from Dario; “I’ve signed up for Robregordo and you should do the same.” It didn’t take him long to convince me and there I showed up, in Robregordo without any training, with some old and broken boots, a helmet that was sad to see and old jeans, to compete in that first edition of a trial day in Somosierra.
And I was surprised, so much surprised that thanks to the first Robregordo I have now been participating in the best trials for eleven years, but whatever trials I participate in, Robregordo always has a place of honor in my comments.
I tend to pay a lot of attention to people, how they act and the things they do, and in few places do people show such great enthusiasm and such a marked fondness for something. The faces and comments undoubtedly reflect the high level of satisfaction that Robregordo achieves for those who take part in this trial.
There are many factors involved; Guest pilots are one of them. Almost all the world champions of the time and the best-known riders have paraded through Robregordo; Mick Andrews, Ulf Karlsson, Bernie Schreiber, Eddy Lejeune, Martin Lampkin, Yrjö Vesterinen, Sammy Miller, Manuel Soler, Jaume Subirá, Jordi Tarrés, Amós Bilbao… It is certainly quite an event almost forty years later to be able to take part in a small “world championship” and share areas with our youth idols.
The Robregordo route is undoubtedly one of the greatest attractions of this trial; the privilege of once a year to be able to tour Almost forty kilometres through the forests of oaks, ash and beech trees, climbing the mountains of our “sierra” in Madrid in our trial is something that we are all looking forward to repeating every time we finish a new edition of Robregordo.
The areas are always designed to be enjoyed, without excessive difficulty but marking enough of a challenge to extract some penalty from all participants. In Robregordo we have made mythical areas for their beauty; areas of river and water, small waterfalls and muddy areas that have been marked in our memory, it is a pity that some of these special areas cannot continue to be marked, but the organization always surprises us with areas in places of special beauty.
But Robregordo is not only a sporting event, it is also a very important social event; few trials have managed to forge so many friendships and unite old friends who have not seen each other for years like this Madrid trial. Friendships that are now united around trial and around the annual event of Robregordo.
For all these reasons and much more, Robregordo is the trial of people. The best example of what a trial should be like for amateurs. A competitive trial of pure sport and a social event at the same time. We are very grateful for all the work done by so many people that it would be impossible to relate here and the support provided by the small and beloved town of Robregordo.
This year marks the 11th edition of the trial and the 10th edition of the two-day trial; so take note because you still have time: Come to Robregordo; I’m sure you’ll be surprised!
Javier Cruz
PHOTO GALLERY
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