Factory KTM rider Jean-Claude Mousse narrowly missed out on victory at the 1st running of the Le Touquet Pas-de-Calais Enduropale staged on the beach at Le Touquet on Sunday February 5th where the former two-time Le Touquet Enduro winner ended the three-hour race just one minute and 15 seconds behind eventual race winner Tomotei Potisek.
Mounted aboard his KTM 525 Mousse was one of 1000 riders that took to the start of the new look event and after three hours of close racing action around the 15.5km long circuit the French rider stood on the second step of the podium. Despite his best efforts to win the event, Mousse proved once again to be one of the world’s very best beach racers aboard his factory KTM.
’05 Dakar Rallye winner Cyril Despres also took to the start of the event aboard KTM’s new 950cc Super Enduro machine. Knowing that the injuries he sustained during this year’s Dakar would make finishing the event extremely difficult, Despres claimed the holeshot having lead the charge down the beach towards the first turn. In reaching the first corner as the lead rider Cyril was awarded a 1500 Euro bonus by the event organisers, which he has donated to SOLIDARIETA’IN BUONE MANI ONLUS, the association founded by the late Fabrizio Meoni that, among other things, looks after a school in Dakar.
Cyril Despres: “To achieve my goal KTM lent me a brand new bike, the 950 Super Enduro, and the power of its twin cylinder engine was certainly a big help. From the start line I didn’t accelerate too hard, but as soon as I could I opened the throttle as wide as it would go. The Result was a top speed of 189kph on the beach. Not surprisingly I won the holeshot by a considerable margin. Unfortunately, as soon as I got to the jumps the injuries I picked up on the Dakar forced me to slow my speed. I am feeling a lot better but I still need to take it easy and it will be a while yet before I am completely recovered. So before the end of the race I decided to pull into the pits, happy to have achieved my goal.