Frank Melling is an

English English usually refers to: * English language * English people English may also refer to: Peoples, culture, and language * ''English'', an adjective for something of, from, or related to England ** English national ide ...

motoring journalist and author, based in northwest England. He is an accomplished motorcyclist and motorcycle racer who has competed in

motocross Motocross is a form of off-road motorcycle racing held on enclosed off-road circuits. The sport evolved from motorcycle trials competitions held in the United Kingdom. History Motocross first evolved in Britain from motorcycle trials competi ...

enduro Enduro is a form of motorcycle sport run on extended cross-country, off-road courses. Enduro consists of many different obstacles and challenges. The main type of enduro event, and the format to which the World Enduro Championship is run, is a ...

and road racing events. He rode an exhibition lap at the

Isle of Man TT The Isle of Man TT or Tourist Trophy races are an annual motorcycle racing event run on the Isle of Man in May/June of most years since its inaugural race in 1907. The event is often called one of the most dangerous racing events in the world ...

in 2008 aboard a modern Ducati Classic. Melling was the motorcycling contributor to the

Daily Telegraph Daily or The Daily may refer to: Journalism * Daily newspaper, newspaper issued on five to seven day of most weeks * ''The Daily'' (podcast), a podcast by ''The New York Times'' * ''The Daily'' (News Corporation), a defunct US-based iPad new ...

's Saturday ''Motoring'' section for a number of years, but was succeeded by

Kevin Ash Kevin Ash (10 December 1959 – 22 January 2013) was a British motorcycle journalist and author, who contributed to ''The Daily Telegraph'' and to ''Motor Cycle News''. Covering technical as well as topical issues, Ash was described as "one of ...

, who later died in a motorcycling accident. Melling is also the author of some 17 books on, among other things,

and

. His recent book, ''“A Penguin in a Sparrow’s Nest”'', is a collection of motorbike-related autobiographical stories.

The Thundersprint

Melling has organised a number of racing events and he is currently noted as the man behind the

Thundersprint Organised by Carol and Frank Melling, the Thunderfest is a companion event to the now-defunct Thundersprint. A halfway house between full-on racing and parading, the Thunderfest is a time trial aimed primarily at riders. The Thundersprint The Th ...

, an annual two-day event to celebrate motorcycling. The Thundersprint started in Lancashire but moved to

Northwich {{Infobox UK place , static_image_name = Northwich - Town Bridge.jpg , static_image_caption = Town Bridge, the River Weaver and the spire of Holy Trinity Church , official_name = Northwich , country ...

Cheshire Cheshire ( ) is a ceremonial and historic county in North West England, bordered by Wales to the west, Merseyside and Greater Manchester to the north, Derbyshire to the east, and Staffordshire and Shropshire to the south. Cheshire's county t ...

, where it stayed for ten years. There was some time-trial racing which took place in a car park, and a Cavalcade through the town in which over 150 race and road bikes paraded on closed roads. It attracted big names such as

Giacomo Agostini Giacomo Agostini (; born 16 June 1942) is an Italian multi-time world champion Grand Prix motorcycle road racer. Nicknamed Ago, he amassed 122 Grand Prix wins and 15 World Championship titles. Of these, 68 wins and 8 titles came in the 500 ...

Sammy Miller Samuel Hamilton Miller, MBE (born 11 November 1933) is a Northern Irish championship winning motorcycle racer, in both road racing and trials. He was appointed an MBE in the 2009 New Year Honours. In 2013, Miller was named an FIM Legend for hi ...

and

Jim Redman James Albert Redman, (born 8 November 1931) is a British-born Zimbabwean former professional motorcycle racer. He competed in Grand Prix motorcycle racing from 1959 to 1966. Redman is notable for being a six-time Grand Prix road racing world c ...

. Spectator attendance was huge as there was no admission charge. By 2013, the organiser found it too difficult to continue hosting a town-centre event and the Thundersprint moved to

Anglesey Anglesey (; cy, (Ynys) Môn ) is an island off the north-west coast of Wales. It forms a principal area known as the Isle of Anglesey, that includes Holy Island across the narrow Cymyran Strait and some islets and skerries. Anglesey island ...

's "Mona" circuit but it was not a great success there because of adverse weather and the distance from the Midlands. The 2014 Thundersprint was held at

Derbyshire Derbyshire ( ) is a ceremonial county in the East Midlands, England. It includes much of the Peak District National Park, the southern end of the Pennine range of hills and part of the National Forest. It borders Greater Manchester to the nor ...

's Darley Moor circuit where, despite exceptionally heavy rain, the weekend event was a success. In 2016 Melling confirmed that he would not be running any more Thundersprints.

The Thunderfest

A companion event is the Thunderfest, first held in 2010. The events generally took place at Darley Moor but in 2015 it took place at the Mona Circuit. The event is a regularity trial where riders declare a target speed and then ride for 20 minutes plus two laps in an attempt to achieve it. Thunderfest 2015
Real Classic, 12 June 2015, Retrieved 4 October 2015

References

British motoring journalists Motorcycling writers Living people Year of birth missing (living people) {{UK-journalist-stub