The nephew of a Silsden motorcycling icon is making his name on the national stage, with his famous uncle providing the platform for him to shine on.
Having launched his own indoor trial event for the best international riders around, 12-time FIM Trial world champion Dougie Lampkin was able to recruit the biggest stars for the inaugural event in January, including Toni Bou.
The Spaniard, incredibly a 30-time world champion, was joined by his long-time rival Adam Raga and many others for the trial at Sheffield's Utilita Arena.
But Lampkin, the most famous member of a Silsden biking dynasty, was also keen to encourage some of the brightest young talent to compete, including his 17-year-old nephew Harry Hemingway.
A huge hit with fans when he made his Steel City debut at that the first-ever DL12 Indoor Trial, Hemingway, from East Keswick, will be back in Sheffield on Saturday, January 13, 2024 for his eagerly anticipated return appearance at DL12 Indoor Trial V2.0.
Hemingway is hoping to draw on lessons learned from his debut twelve months earlier to give himself an early birthday present.
“This year was my first elite event and my first indoor trial and to tick off both in Sheffield in the Utilita Arena was pretty special to be fair,” he said.
“It didn’t go as planned, but it probably never was going to with it being my first one in front of 4,000 plus people.
“I definitely learned a lot – and I mean a lot – from both riding the sections and watching the other riders.
“With it being my first indoor trial, I didn’t really have a clue how it all worked, it was a very special event for me, and the support was amazing."
Hemingway endured a baptism of fire against the very best riders in the world last January and although he was tested to the limit throughout the evening, he acquitted himself well and emerged with his young head held high.
At the time of the inaugural DL12 Indoor Trial the older of the two Hemingway brothers was the reigning FIM Trial3 champion and the experience he gained in Sheffield was put to good use in his first year of competition in the Trial2 class of the FIM Trial World Championship.
While his younger brother George was busy replacing him as Trial3 kingpin, he was working his way up the Trial2 rankings with a run of great late-season form, including a pair of podiums at the final round in France lifting him into seventh in the standings.
There is little doubt that his outdoor ascent will continue in 2024, but for now there is more pressing business for Hemingway to attend to as he focusses on the biggest stand-alone event of its type on the planet.
“I’m really keen for the second DL12 Indoor Trial. I’m excited to try and show what I can do and I’ll be getting a lot of training done over the winter. I’m proper looking forward to it, it’s a bit harder preparing when you’re in England with the weather being so bad.
“Last year we had a barn built up over the back of the hill from my house and we put loads of sections in there – big pipes and skips – and this winter I’m going out to Spain so we’ll do a lot of riding there.
“It’s a lot easier in Spain because the weather’s usually mint and there are so many spots to ride.”
With over 50 per cent of tickets already sold for the 2024 DL12 Indoor Trial, book here for your only chance in 2024 to see the world’s top five riders in action in the UK alongside their British challengers.
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