MALTON'S Ian Austermuhle was in tremendous form as he won Guisborough DMC's trial at Aislaby, near Whitby.

The Beta uk rider needed to be at his best as James Carr, the talented youngster from Scarborough, pressured him all the way before falling six marks short at the finish.

Port Mulgrave's Jack Howell, returning after a shoulder injury, finished third.

An excellent four-lap, ten-section course, plotted expertly by Skelton's Andy Metcalfe, had riders twisting and diving through the densely wooded disused quarry workings above the village.

It brought the best out of the two British Championship runners. The hill climb on section three had both riders on double-figure scores.

However, it was the wickedly angled rocks and launch downhill off a pinnacle of rock where Austermuhle produced that little bit of magic to earn him the win, with three clean rides and one mark lost, as Carr lost seven.

Middlesbrough's Jak Holtby clinched the Intermediate class from the experienced Mark Harrison, of Kirkbymoorside, while Whitby rider Mike Noble's unpenalised ride on the dreaded hill saw him finish five points clear of a cluster of riders including Jonathon Sykes, Andy Beane and Fryup's Tom Smith.

Andrew Dale, Steve Temple and Richard Harrison all finished a relatively easy Clubman 'B' class on clean rides.

In the crowd was British ladies number three Nikita Smith, who is now making fantastic progress after a serious road accident.

She said: "I can't wait to be back. It's not the same watching."