Enduro

After a highly successful opening day at the third round of the World Enduro Championship -the GP of Euskadi staged in Gernika Spain, KTM Enduro Factory Team Farioli riders Ivan Cervantes and David Knight repeated their respective Enduro 1 and Enduro 3 class wins and were backed up by yet more strong results from their KTM team mates. Finishing as runner-up in the E1 class to Cervantes was KTM’s Alessandro Belometti while Marko Tarkkala finished second to Knight in the E3 class. As on day one Samuli Aro finished in third in the fiercely competitive Enduro 2 class.

With the dull weather of day one replaced by clear skies and warm temperatures day two of the GP of Euskadi proved to be extremely tiring for all riders, including the world’s best. With nine timed special tests and three laps of the cut-up, rough and rutted course to complete at the end of the event all KTM factory team riders were not only pleased to have finished but of the same opinion that the race was possibly a little too hard — especially for the lesser experienced and Enduro Junior class riders.

The KTM Enduro Factory Team Farioli squad had a highly successful opening day at the third round of the ’06 World Enduro Championship, the GP of Euskadi (Spain), where team riders Ivan Cervantes and Alessandro Belometti placed first and second in the Enduro 1 class while David Knight and Marko Tarkkala also placed on the top two steps of the podium in the Enduro 3 category. In the Enduro 2 class Samuli Aro claimed third

After rocky and dusty conditions at the GP of Portugal made things difficult at round two of the WEC series, heavy rain before the GP of Euskadi ensured that conditions were also extremely challenging in Gernika. But instead of fine dust and lose rocks making things difficult it was mud that challenged the world’s best enduro riders. Added to a demanding course were three tough special tests. With the enduro test the longest seen in a WEC event for many years, it was the extreme test that caught many riders out and played a large roll in deciding the end of day results.

The KTM Enduro Factory Team started the eight-round 2006 World Enduro Championship in fine style with team riders David Knight and Samuli Aro claiming top honours in the Enduro 3 and Enduro 2 classes respectively on day one of the season opener. In the Enduro 1 class reigning world champion Ivan Cervantes ended day one in the runner-up spot after two falls on the enduro test dropped him behind Finn Petri Pohjamo.

With conditions in Ostersund, Sweden much warmer than expected the WEC’s first ever winter enduro turned out to be a lot less difficult than the majority of the teams and riders were expecting. With rain falling as the first riders left the start, clear skies and plus five degree temperatures during the day resulted in much of the snow on the enduro and motocross tests melting, leaving unseasonally wet conditions in many places.

Christensens Motorcycles Yamaha rider Blake Hore has opened his 2006 Yamaha
Victorian Off Road Championship campaign on a solid footing with a third
overall at the opening round in Ballarat last weekend.

With the Ballarat Rovers Motorcycle Club setting out a tough first class
course for the Sprint event Blake was full of optimism as the day got
underway. With the lack rain in the area riders where placed a minute apart
which only allowed for 3 runs for the day, ensuing the competition would be
close.

"My first run went really well and I surprised myself by finishing first 1.6
seconds in front of Jehi Willis," Blake said.

The opening round of Italian Enduro Champs was held in linguaglossa, Sicily at the base of Europe’s largest active volcano, Mt Etna. Heavy rain leading up to the race left most of the track very wet and muddy, however the riders were fortunate that sun prevailed on the day of the race. For this race there was two enduro tests, one cross test and one extreme test. The cross test was mostly on a flat paddock that was very wet as all the springs from the mountain drained out onto it. On the first days there were some big mudholes in the cross test, and almost every rider got stuck at one point or another. On the first day the riders completed four laps of the 45 km course, the enduro and extreme tests are not timed on the first lap. The enduro tests were had a base of hard volcanic rock but were very muddy due to the rain.