Enduro
Cyril Despres Wins the First Stage
Five o’ clock in the morning. An ACDC Cover is the wake-up bell for Cyril Despres. The last year winner is approaching his first day of race. His number one reflects the honour and the duty of the champion of the Dakar. All the Team KTM Gauloises is working around the French champion. Former enduro champion Eric Bernard is absolutely concentrated on his new job. He is now the Manager of the “Blue
Las Vegas is set to be invaded by Off-Road riders and enthusiasts November 18-19th. The second annual Endurocross is coming to the Orleans Arena in the Orleans Hotel and Casino and promises to display some of the most exciting racing spectators will see this year.
Last years’ indoor Off-Road event saw the lead exchanged multiple times; there was no guessing who was in contention for the overall win. The treacherous course contained logs, tires, water sections, and a steep rock wall that ultimately decided the riders’ fate.
An exhausting course, complete with the elements listed above will still be included in this years’ course, and will host the same format, utilizing starting gates, qualifying heats and a Last Chance Qualifier to transfer to the main event. According to the Endurocross USA website, “Ten riders total earn a spot on the start line of the Maxxis Endurocross for Saturday nights event and will race against the invited Pro riders for Championship Title and Purse.“ The finest Off-Road riders from American and Europe will be invited.
Husqvarna Racing’s AJ Roberts has wrapped up the inaugural Australian OffRoad Championship after finishing 2nd and 4th outright in rounds 7&8 held at Aratula over the weekend.
With two rounds remaining in the Series, Roberts has accumulated enough championship points to post an unbeatable lead after only eight rounds of the ten round series. The weekend’s results have increased Roberts’ lead to 51 points over nearest rival Jehi Willis, and with only 50 points available in the last two rounds, the Australia OffRoad title has been secured.
“Although it won’t be official until after the last round, the feeling is hard to put into words. The year has been a dream for me, first getting a factory ride with Husqvarna, and now securing the Australian title,
Husqvarna Racing’s AJ Roberts extended his championship lead at rounds 5 & 6 of the Australian Off Road Series at Wodonga over the weekend.
Roberts, fresh from the ISDE team camp at the AIS facility, was confident of a big weekend despite carrying several injuries suffered at the Queensland Enduro the previous week. The absence of nearest rival Brad Williscroft, although unfortunate, offered Roberts the chance to put a sizeable gap between himself and second place; a chance that he grabbed.
With weeks of rain leading up to Round 5, the technical track was extremely water logged making the racing a little trickier, especially through the tight sections. Roberts lapped up the wet conditions with a flawless ride through all sections of the day, taking the outright win by over 25 seconds ahead of second place Jehi Willis, with Ben Grabham filling the podium.