A talented lad from Tain left rivals spinning as he surged away to become the ACU British Trials Championship winner.
A previous two-times Scottish champion Oliver Wilson, 10, has just become Inverness and District Motor Cycle Club’s first British Trials champion.
The youngster, who goes to Inver Primary School in Tain, was supported all the way by his family as they attended the British Championship rounds, which have all been in England.
His recent schoolboys’ victory in Surrey, which was the final event of the season, was his fourth first-place result from seven competitions.
Three runners-up places also underlined his class in the Youth C medium wheel category, in the Beta 80cc medium wheel section.
Bigger wheel, and new tests in 2023
Oliver’s title was earned in Hertfordshire, Kent, Derbyshire and Surrey and his mum, Emma, explained what’s next for Oliver.
She said: “Next year, Oliver goes on to a bigger bike, moving from the medium wheel on the same bike but on a big wheel.
“He’ll also go up a class, starting with the Scottish then the British Championships.
“He will continue to be on the bike over the winter, which is actually a good time to practice on wet ground. Next season’s British events run from March through to October.”
First competition at the age of six
Emma praised Oliver, who was third in the Scottish Championship this year, for having such determination to rise to each challenge he is set within the sport.
She added: “We’re really proud of Oliver. He’s done very well, he’s on the bike most days and is really committed.
“He got his first bike when he was about two-years-old and he started competing when he was six. He’s got such a passion for the sport, he really enjoys it, you can tell that when he rides.
“Oliver is focused and he loves a challenge. If someone sets targets for him, he never gives up and keeps trying. His dad (James) loves bikes, but Oliver is the first in the family to go into trials.”
Emma thanks Gary Coward’s Highland Leisure Sport in Invergordon, which Oliver is part of; Colin Mackay at Mackay Plant Services in Tain, who provide support for materials for training; and Jamie Reid, of Knightwash, who supply the products for cleaning his bike.
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