Since it was established in 1950, the ACU British Trials Championship has crowned some of the most accomplished riders in the history of off-road motorcycle sport.
Belfast-born Sammy Miller remains the most successful of all, claiming 11 consecutive titles between 1959 and 1969 – a stunning record that still stands. Steve Saunders came closest to re-writing the history books, winning ten back-to-back titles between 1983 and 1992, while more recently, James Dabill and Dougie Lampkin have added eight and seven titles respectively.
Illustrating their versatility, Miller and Saunders each mastered both two- and four-stroke machines during their careers, and while it’s hard to precisely verify individual round wins during the 1960s, Miller’s dominance suggests he secured around 100 victories, while Saunders notched 60.
Riders like Graham Jarvis (34 wins), Martin Lampkin (25 wins) and Malcolm Rathmell (23 wins) have also left an indelible mark on the sport.
1950: Jim Alves (Triumph)
1951: Bill Nicholson (BSA)
1952: Bill Nicholson (BSA)
1953: Jeff Smith (BSA)
1954: Jeff Smith (BSA)
1955: Gordon Jackson (AJS)
1956: Johnny Brittain (Royal Enfield)
1957: Johnny Brittain (Royal Enfield)
1958: Gordon Jackson (AJS)
1959: Sammy Miller (Ariel)
1960: Sammy Miller (Ariel)
1961: Sammy Miller (Ariel)
1962: Sammy Miller (Ariel)
1963: Sammy Miller (Ariel)
1964: Sammy Miller (Ariel)
1965: Sammy Miller (Bultaco)
1966: Sammy Miller (Bultaco)
1967: Sammy Miller (Bultaco)
1968: Sammy Miller (Bultaco)
1969: Sammy Miller (Bultaco)
1964 Sammy Miller (Ariel)
With a will to win never seen before in motorcycle trials, Sammy Miller took the world famous Ariel GOV 132 to its first ACU British Trials Championship in 1959.
The sport was in a golden era and Miller took on the might of some formidable opposition on the four-stroke machine to emerge as a winner. An accomplished FIM World Championship road racer, Miller switched his focus to off-road riding and trials in particular in the late 1950s.
In a move that shocked the sport, he moved away from the might of the once powerful British motorcycle industry in 1964 to the Spanish motorcycle manufacturer Bultaco in 1965. On the two-stroke machine which he took 12 days to develop, he continued to dominate the sport up until his last ACU British Championship win in 1969 – his 11th consecutive title success.
He would semi-retire from the sport before helping Honda to develop a four-stroke trials machine. As the rider, Rob Shepherd won the 1977 ACU British Trials Championship on the Miller-developed Honda, the first title for a Japanese motorcycle manufacturer.
Picture credits: Brian Holder, Rickman Brothers, Alan Vines
1959: Sammy Miller (Ariel)
1960: Sammy Miller (Ariel)
1961: Sammy Miller (Ariel)
1962: Sammy Miller (Ariel)
1963: Sammy Miller (Ariel)
1964: Sammy Miller (Ariel)
1965: Sammy Miller (Bultaco)
1966: Sammy Miller (Bultaco)
1967: Sammy Miller (Bultaco)
1968: Sammy Miller (Bultaco)
1969: Sammy Miller (Bultaco)
1970: Gordon Farley (Montesa)
1971: Gordon Farley (Montesa)
1972: Malcolm Rathmell (Bultaco)
1973: Martin Lampkin (Bultaco)
1974: Malcolm Rathmell (Bultaco)
1975: Malcolm Rathmell (Montesa)
1976: Malcolm Rathmell (Montesa)
1977: Rob Shepherd (Honda)
1978: Martin Lampkin (Bultaco)
1979: Malcolm Rathmell (Montesa)
1980: Martin Lampkin (Bultaco/SWM)
1981: Malcolm Rathmell (Montesa)
1982: Yrjo Vesterinen (Bultaco-FIN)
1983: Steve Saunders (Armstrong)
1984: Steve Saunders (Armstrong)
1985: Steve Saunders (Honda)
1986: Steve Saunders (Honda)
1987: Steve Saunders (Fantic)
1988: Steve Saunders (Fantic)
1989: Steve Saunders (Fantic)
1973 Martin Lampkin (Bultaco)
1983 Steve Saunders (Armstrong)
After the win by Finland’s Yrjö Vesterinen in 1982, Steve Saunders continued to put a halt to the domination of Yorkshire riders in the ACU British Trials Championship that we had witnessed since 1972.
After a successful ACU Youth career which yielded many championship wins, Steve arrived at the opening round in 1983 on the two-stroke Hiro engine Armstrong/CCM to take the win on his way to his first adult title.
Proving it was no fluke, he won the championship again in 1984. A move to Japanese power with the four-stroke Honda followed in 1985, and the winning continued on his way to the runner up position in the FIM World Trials Championship.
A move to Italian manufacturers started with Fantic where Steve won another four championships – despite not scoring points in two rounds during 1989 such was his superior riding. The winning continued with Beta until his final championship win with Aprilia in 1992.
In 1997, on the Spanish GasGas, Steve won the Expert title in the support class to become the first rider to win both ACU British Trials Championship titles.
Picture credits: Erik Kitchen, Barry Robinson
1983: Steve Saunders (Armstrong/CCM)
1984: Steve Saunders (Armstrong)
1985: Steve Saunders (Honda)
1986: Steve Saunders (Honda)
1987: Steve Saunders (Fantic)
1988: Steve Saunders (Fantic)
1989: Steve Saunders (Fantic)
1990: Steve Saunders (Beta)
1991: Steve Saunders (Beta)
1992: Steve Saunders (Aprilia)
1990: Steve Saunders (Beta)
1991: Steve Saunders (Beta)
1992: Steve Saunders (Aprilia)
1993: Steve Colley (Beta)
1994: Dougie Lampkin (Beta)
1995: Steve Colley (Gas Gas)
1996: Dougie Lampkin (Beta)
1997: Dougie Lampkin (Beta)
1998: Dougie Lampkin (Beta)
1999: Dougie Lampkin (Beta)
2000: Dougie Lampkin (Montesa)
2001: No Contest – Swine Fever
2002: Dougie Lampkin (Montesa)
2003: Graham Jarvis (Sherco)
2004: Steve Colley (Gas Gas)
2005: Graham Jarvis (Sherco)
2006: Graham Jarvis (Sherco)
2007: Graham Jarvis (Sherco)
2008: Graham Jarvis (Sherco)
2009: James Dabill (Gas Gas)
1994 Dougie Lampkin (Beta)
2003 Graham Jarvis (Sherco)
Born and bred in Leeds, James Dabill took over from the winning years of Steve Colley, Dougie Lampkin and Graham Jarvis between 1993 and 2008.
Coming though the successful ACU Youth Championships with three titles to his name in the D, C and B class, he soon became a dominant force. Three years of competing in national championships in Italy kept him away from the home shores before a move back to the UK in 2009.
John R Shirt at GasGas UK wanted to drive machine sales and he knew that James Dabill was the rider to do it. James duly delivered with his first adult title in 2009.
In 2010 he set a record for the most wins in a championship year when he won all eight rounds. Previous to this, Dougie Lampkin had held the title winning all seven rounds in 1999 on the Beta.
James moved to Beta in 2011 and the winning continued, only interrupted by Michael Brown (GasGas) in 2013. In 2015 he moved to the new Vertigo project to win two more titles before the final one came in 2018 – back on the Beta.
Picture credits: John Hulme
2009: James Dabill (GasGas)
2010: James Dabill (GasGas)
2011: James Dabill (Beta)
2012: James Dabill (Beta)
2014: James Dabill (Beta)
2015: James Dabill (Vertigo)
2016: James Dabill (Vertigo)
2018: James Dabill (Beta)
2010: James Dabill (Gas Gas)
2011: James Dabill (Beta)
2012: James Dabill (Beta)
2013: Michael Brown (Gas Gas)
2014: James Dabill (Beta)
2015: James Dabill (Vertigo)
2016: James Dabill (Vertigo)
2017: Jack Price (Gas Gas)
2018: James Dabill (Beta)
2019: Jack Price (Gas Gas)
2020: Iwan Roberts (TRRS)
2021: Toby Martyn (TRRS)
2022: Toby Martyn (TRRS)
2023: Jack Peace (Sherco)
2024: Harry Hemingway (Beta)
2013 Michael Brown (Gas Gas)
2020 Iwan Roberts (TRRS)
2024 Harry Hemingway (Beta)
Bringing us right up to the present time is the 2024 ACU TrialGB British Trials Champion Harry Hemingway who hails from Yorkshire.
Yet another rider to emerge from the ACU Youth British Championships, Harry’s success came early as he won the D Class in 2014, and the C Class 2016. The winning continued with the ACU British 125 Championship in 2021 before moving into the adult classes with runner-up position in Trial 2 in 2022.
In 2023 he moved into the ACU TrialGB class, securing runner-up position in his first year behind Jack Peace after taking his first win at the final round. Despite being only 18-years-old, he secured the 2024 title on the Beta after winning three of the five rounds.
The Hemingway family has a long association with motorcycle trials. John Hemingway was a Montesa-supported rider back in the 1970s and had two sons, Dan and Ben, both accomplished riders. Dan is the father of the next generation with sons Harry and George now firmly established as stars of the future.
Picture credits: John Hulme, Andy Withers
2024: Harry Hemingway (Beta)
