ROVING REPORT: The Novice Trial
By Natasha Lomas, aged 13
The Novice trial is an introduction to historic rallying run by Hero and it spans 3 days and covers all the basics of how to compete in Historic Road Rallying with a mixture of classroom and competitive road events.
The Novice Trial started from and was based around Bicester Heritage, the 136 miles of the event were through Oxfordshire covering the villages and lanes around Bicester and Banbury. In all, 41 competitors were entered and we covered 61 miles on the Saturday practice and 75 miles on the Sunday - finishing 30th overall.
The Novice Trial was truly quite an experience for me, being the youngest navigator on the event made it a bit more challenging, but it turned out to be a lot more fun than I had expected.
I was very nervous at the start, but at this point I think everyone else was nervous too. Everyone was so nice and that made the experience a lot more enjoyable.
It was great fun doing this event with my Dad, being able to share an interest together and it was a great bonding experience, even though he didn't listen to me a few times! However, it was only our first event so no need to be upset about that.
If anyone was thinking of becoming a young Navigator, I would 100% recommend it. It is open to anyone who is brave enough and I truly believe it would be enjoyable at any age. I hope this encourages more young people to get involved in the future.
A note from Natasha’s father, John Lomas, https://blue-diamond-services.co.uk/
"I couldn’t be prouder of Natasha’s performance, she was the youngest ever navigator on the Hero event in the oldest car. The latter meant we were car number 1, so were first out for all the tests and regularities. Unfortunately, I had a bad day at the office and didn’t listen to Natasha and therefore missed two controls and a junction – she might be looking for a new driver now!
"I’d thoroughly recommend it to anyone with either a vintage or classic car. The organisation team help guide you through the whole event and you will meet lots of like-minded drivers and navigators."
