All content © Bob MuIIins

HIGH VOLTAGE - A DAY IN THE DIRT FOR ELECTRIC BIKES
@ NANTMAWR QUARRY, 
SAT 8th August 2015.
Report by K.Williams
Pictures by CWL Photography.

"WOR Events produced a unique event last Saturday at Nantmawr Quarry by hosting the first ever dedicated day in the dirt for Electric bikes.

The event, titled High Voltage was aimed at kids with their own machines and the general public to come and hire and try an adult KTM Freeride around a purpose made track within the famous quarry.

The event was supported by all the Industry players that are involved with the Electric Off road bike scene, Electric Motion were the events official main partner, KTM, Kuberg, Ripe / BSA , Mecatecno, Oset also supported the event to the full but one of the main supporters was Stuart Rutter from E-scape, the UK's pioneer of all things electric off road and owner of the UK's only dedicated electric trail park. A very impressive display of machines, awnings, flags and colour from all of the displays lit up the quarry along with some stunning weather, blue skies and lovely sunshine.

Kicking the day off at 9am and running through till 1.30pm was an open trail ride around the quarry for all riders and ages, with the guys and girls from E-scape hiring out the brilliant KTM freerides for the public to try. There was also a proper kids "first time try out zone" , There was a nice collection of set out trials sections around the area too and a few of the youth riders took off to famous sections of the Tough One course, like the "Root of all Evil" and "The Boulder Dash" to show how capable these Electric bikes really are. Matthew Alpe from Inch Perfect Trials Display was on hand blasting around and doing very impressive demos on the Electric Motion Trials bike that had a great reception from the watching crowds.

A WORLD FIRST....
The "Competitive" element of the day However was reserved for 2 O'clock pm and the start of what really was a piece of history in the making. The very first Electric Bike Hare Scramble race in the World. The "E-Scape Hare Scrambles" had 21 riders, 3 heats, the top 2 from each heat going through to the Super Final, It went even better than expected and was top quality racing from the outset. The riders really did put on a full display of racing and tackled the challenging Hare Scramble track with speed, enthusiasm and grit, just like they would on normal petrol engine bikes. The crowd whipped up a great atmosphere as they cheered on the riders, especially in the final.

As the 6 top riders of the day lined up for the Super Final it dawned on all present that they were part of something unique, A World first, a real piece of history and a massive taste of the future of off road riding. The press photographers and TV crew filmed the riders on the start line as Steve Ireland asked them to take off their helmets so the press could get a superb shot of the faces of these star riders and capture the moment. The start was eerie, the tension building as the riders waited for the flag drop, Then , whoosh, off they went, same speed, if not faster than normal bikes, but with No noise other than chain rattle and some stones flying, same amount of Dust and Excitement though.

The riders had 4 laps in front of them, Kieron Mcavoy was the first man back to lap scoring and held that lead looking really at home on the KTM freeride and dholding off the hard charging George Price in 2nd place. An off near the race control zone saw Price lose some time on McAvoy but a technical glitch was to hamper Keiron as Price rode through to take the lead and continue the last lap and collect the win, becoming the first ever winner of an official Electric Bike Hare Scrambles race, No one can argue with that.

Runner Up was the very stylish Brad Adams who looked every inch as smooth and quick on the "leccy" machine as he does his petrol bike.
Third spot and rounding out the podium went to Kev Freeman, Kev was taking the event as serious as he does a normal hare scrambles and his dedication and commitment secured him the final podium and trophy position.
The racing really was Electric.

The trophy presentation went down well under the back drop of the E-scape awnings as Stuart Rutter presented the awards and Steve Ireland did all the messages of thanks to the supporters of this inaugural event.

Results

Summing up, the famous Nantmawr venue hosted yet another first, just like it did when WOR pioneered the Extreme Enduro Scene in the UK with the Tough One nearly 12 years ago, One thing for sure is that just like the Tough One, The Electric off road Enduro bike scene is about to grow and prosper and become a massive part of the future of off road biking, in the UK and most certainly the World.

A massive well done to all involved and as always WOR would like to thank the Landowners, Event sponsors, medics, caterers, spectators but most of all the Riders for coming to support this superb event.

WOR Events Steve Ireland said:
"What a day, I'm so pleased with how this has gone, Plenty of support from the public with lots of families attending even if just for a look, Unreal Industry support, Riders putting their all in to it and the weather being just perfect. From my initial idea and plans for this event months ago to seeing it grow and become a real event is as satisfying for me as it has been seeing the Tough One become what it is and indeed the Boom in Hare and Hounds enduro all those years ago that WOR kicked off. I really would put this down as a special event...It was made into a real spectacle with the superb help and support of Stuart Rutter from E-scape because without his input, bikes and enthusiasm, the event would have struggled to entertain in the way it did. Its been a great event...Watch out for High Voltage 2, That all I can say. Well done to all."