Robert Wins AMA Hare and Hound Opener

Taylor Robert claims overall victory at round one of the AMA KENDA SRT Hare and Hound Championship.

The opening round of the 2018 series kicked off in the Spangler Hills, California with a full entry keen to get their season off to a good start.

Nick Burson led for much of the season's opening race in the Pro Class, gaining a strong lead on the opening lap after the rest of the field was stuck at a train crossing.

Burson gave up his lead to Robert through the rocky and technical section in lap two from where Taylor brought the win home.

After difficulties with his radiator at the end of lap one, Jacob Argubright climbed from fourth position to take second by the flag.

Kendall Norman pushed hard after helping another rider during the race to round out the podium in third.

Dean Ferris Racing Mountain Man

Australian champion to race in Toowoomba Mountain Man event

  

 CDR Yamaha's Dean Ferris won his second consecutive Thor MX1 title in Round nine of the MX Nationals at Echo Valley in Toowoomba last year. Nev Madsen

by Madolyn Peters

MOTOCROSS: Current two-time Australian champion Dean Ferris is looking forward to returning to one of his favourite tracks for the Mountain Man event.

"I've raced all around the world and Toowoomba is up there with on the best," he said.

Over the past 15 years Ferris has raced at Echo Valley for nationals and the Sunshine State Series, but this will be his first time lining up in the Mountain Man.

"Mountain Man is actually a really prestigious race that used to run back in the day and has been going for a few years," he said.

Ferris has been wanting to race in the Mountain Man for the past few years but it clashed with his New Zealand tour.

This year he has freed up his schedule and wants to make it mark on the event.

Motocross champion Dean Ferris will visit Toowoomba in March for the Mountain Man event.

"I'm hoping I can win it. That will put my name up there with all the greats," he said.

"It's going to be a good pre-season race for me leading into nationals."

This year Ferris is chasing his third Australia title in a row.

Toowoomba Motocross Club president John Armstrong said it was huge for the region to have someone of Ferris' calibre race in the Mountain Man event.

Ferris has not only raced in Australia he also competed in Europe and America for a number of years and represented Australia at the MX Nationals.

"The MX Nationals is like the Olympics of our sport where you ride for your country," Armstrong said.

"To have him turn up for our little event, it'll make the riders lift their game that's for sure."

Although it's not a little event at all.

It's one of the richest stand alone events in the country and has the biggest prize money up for grabs on the east coast of Australia.

Armstrong and his family first met Ferris when he was an up and coming rider in Europe.

"He was working out the back of his van with his mum as his mechanic," Armstrong said.

"We followed him and kept going from there."

The Mountain Man Motocross is a two-day event held across the weekend of March 10-11.

Ryan Villopoto's Call of the Wild!

By Eric Brown - X Games.com

Trevor Brown, Jr./ESPN

During the summer of 2015, four-time supercross champion Ryan Villopoto called time on the sport which made him a world famous millionaire. Three years later, and some 70-degrees cooler, the snows of Aspen, Colorado started calling his name. And he couldn't resist. Yes, Villopoto who made his name on tracks built by 600 dump trucks bringing in 12,00 tons of dirt and dumping them down on a football field or baseball diamond will to construct a supercross circuit will, instead, race a Frankenstein-sort-of Monster Energy Yamaha YZ450F motocross bike-turned abominable Snow Bike come on the crystals that precipitate from the atmosphere in good old Colorado. Got all that?

XGames.com: Ryan, there is no big NFL or MLB stadium with a big race track inside of it nearby, so just what do you have going on here in Aspen, Colorado?
Villopoto: Just sitting here right now in the lobby of this hotel and just hanging out. We had a couple of hours of practice today and worked on a couple of things and I feel like we're sitting in a pretty good spot right now.

Were you able to get enough time on the bike, I mean the Snow Bike, to get a competitive read on what might play out on race day? I think so. We rode for a total, I think, of almost three hours today. It was broke up into different sessions and things like that, but we ended up getting 30-minute sessions here and there. It was good. I feel good.

I'll get to your new role with Yamaha in just a bit here, but did Yamaha actually want you to come up here to the X Games and race a Snow Bike? Man, that seems like a bit of a stretch.
So, actually, yeah, Yamaha was 100-percent behind it. We ended up using the factory Yamaha team out of Canada for this race because they were already coming here anyway. We just kind of piggybacked off them and the Andre [Laurin], the owner of the team, built a bike and built a team and got it all set up and brought some mechanics down, so he's done a great job so far.

Okay, so the big question here that everyone is going to want to hear your answer to: what's it like for one of the greatest supercross racers of all-time to actually ride one of these so-called Snow Bikes in anger - and in snow?!
Yeah, it's way different from a supercross bike, for sure. It's one of the hardest things I've ever rode. In fact, we actually made quite a big change today on the bottom of the skis. We basically call them fins and we ground them down and made some changes with the guys, so it made a bid difference. It's definitely easier to ride and faster. I feel faster on it.

For all intents and purposes, I'd assume the way you turn your YZ450F Snow Bike is with that front ski, huh?
Yeah, exactly. It just depends on how agile the bike is and what it is like to grab certain lines and stuff. Getting that ski right makes it a lot easier to ride.

 

As far as weight goes, and I know this is a bit of an abstract concept, but how different do the YZ450F motocross bike and YZ450F Snow Bike feel?
It's a lot heavier. The first thing that you notice is that on the Snow Bike you obviously have no front wheel, so there is no gyro effect to help you jump and keep things straight in the air. The track that drives the bike is big too and that has also has a lot of the gyro effect to it, so when the bike gets sideways in the air, it doesn't handle too well. Once you kind of figure it out and know what the bike is going to do, you can jump it pretty well.

How does it feel when you're actually riding the bike out there in the snow? I've been watching it all and, to be honest, you guys and the bikes that you are all riding around on look pretty damn graceful! I didn't really expect that...
Yeah, it's much more like riding a sand track in motocross. You rail the berms and keep your momentum. The bikes don't turn very sharp, but still, it's pretty cool.

How about braking and slowing the bike down? How does that work?
There's no front brake, obviously, because there is no front wheel. The rear brake is the rear track, basically. So you pretty much just come into the turn and you don't really need to brake a whole lot because the track has a little bit of drag on it. When you come into a turn, the more committed you are, the better and as soon as you get into the turn and get it leaned over, you want to start getting back on the gas.

And what has the X Games community been like to you since you arrived here? You're preceded by your supercross exploits, thus you being here with snow on the ground and a howling wind is pretty god damn anomalous...
Yeah, for sure. People are pumped that we are here and racing. The vibe here is obviously something way different, and something that I've never been around. It's just really cool to be here. It's nothing like supercross, for sure.

How about the race gear you are wearing? Snowmobiling and motocross don't really match-up when it comes to style and functionality.
I'm wearing full moto gear with some layers underneath. It's not too cold here, so it should be fine for tomorrow; it's supposed to be in the 30s, so we should be okay.

What do you think about the 15 to 18 guys you'll be racing against tomorrow? Can you take these guys?
There are some quick guys out there. I think I should do okay, to be honest. Obviously, a good start will help. Staying out of trouble and not falling is also going to help, but speed-wise, at the end of practice, I think I was pretty good; I was in the top five.

You've won all sorts of world class motocross and supercross races and championships, but that all withstanding, do you go into something like this thinking and saying, "Hey, I still want to win." Or, is it like, "I just want to have fun with this"?
I definitely want to have fun with it, but I mean, I'd love to go home from here with a medal.

Downshifting back to Yamaha, at the season-opening round of the 2018 Monster Energy Supercross series, Yamaha announced that you would be joining the motor company in the role of a marketing representative. Although you made your name as a Team Kawasaki racer, the fact of the matter is that Yamaha played a major role in getting you started on your career trajectory, didn't they?
Yeah, we did the Yamaha deal and announced it the morning of the first Anaheim round. They've been really awesome with me and the goals I want to achieve and the things I want to do. It's cool to be with a brand like Yamaha and with a fresh start. I'm definitely happy with things coming together.

I was at the 2002 AMA Amateur National Motocross Championship in Hurricane Mills, Tennessee when you lined up on the gate for the 85cc Modified (8-13) class championship. I'd never even heard of you before and you went out there and basically smoked most everyone. I remember pointing you out to some of my racing buddies and proclaiming, "Man alive, that kid is a genius. I think he can make it one day."
Yamaha is what I started on and I rode Yamaha YZ85s for three or four years. Fond memories, for sure.

It's Friday night and we are not over at shiny Phoenix Stadium in arid Glendale, Arizona for round four of the Monster Energy Supercross Series that will run tomorrow. Still, here in lovely and tony Aspen, do you still feel that buzz of, "Hey, I'm going racing tomorrow"?
Yeah, it's going to be good. I'm going to pick my cousin up at the airport and have a couple beers tonight and hang out and go race tomorrow.

Ha! But you would never have a few beers the night before a major supercross event, would you?
Nah, I never did. No. This is a little bit different atmosphere over here. It's been a lot of fun so far. I can't wait for tomorrow.

KTM Tough Times Yeild Good Times

KTM - When Times Were Tough

Posted on January 30, 2018

There is no doubt, KTM pretty much own the FIM Motocross World Championship, well at least the trophies and titles. Since KTM got serious about being involved in the GP scene, after being out for some time, they quickly started dominating.

While KTM had won world 250 titles with the legendary Russian Guennady Moisseev in 1977 and 1978, Heinz Kinigadner in 1984 and 1985, plus a 125 title with Trampas Parker in 1989, and finally a world title in the 500 class with Shayne King in 1996.

It wasn’t until 2000 that they really got serious and they won a 500 title with legendary Belgian Joel Smets and a 125 title with just as legendary South African, Grant Langston. The year 2000 marked the start of something that has just been amazing.

With the CHAMP KTM team, run by multiple GP winner Kees Van Der Ven, they dominated the 125/MX2 class, with world titles going to guys like Grant Langston, James Dobb (was full factory) and Steve Ramon.

Had it not been for two guys names Stefan Everts and Antonio Cairoli, they would have won more, but Yamaha held the upper hand with these two greats, winning a majority of the titles between 2001 and 2006, but with Everts retired, and Cairoli switching to the orange army, KTM wrapped up titles like fish drinking water.

Cairoli scored seven MX1/MXGP championship for them, and names like Tyla Rattray, Marvin Musquin, Ken Roczen, Jeffrey Herlings, Jordi Tixier and Pauls Jonass have helped KTM own the MX2 class. In fact, from 2008 until 2014 they won all the titles, the second longest run for a brand (Suzuki won 10 in a row in the 1970s).

Of course, it wasn’t always roses for KTM. I still remember the first season they really got serious. It was 2006, and they had signed the brilliant Frenchmen, Sebastien Tortelli and Mickael Pichon. Both with two world titles each, and maybe a little on the older side, but still both amazing riders.

Their MX2 effort was also impressive, with Marc De Reuver, Tyla Rattray, Carl Nunn and David Philippaerts. Like the MX1 boys, who had to deal with Everts, these 250 riders needed to deal with not only Antonio Cairoli, but also Christophe Pourcel.

With Kurt Nicoll, Georges Jobe and Jacky Martens as managers, they have a lot of experiences, but even in that area there were problems, and atmosphere in the team wasn’t great. I remember being banned from the KTM tent because I had said something not really positive about Pichon and Tortelli.

Pichon rode the first round in Zolder, Belgium and was done. No points and his season over. He complained about sickness, but talk was the bikes were not good, although he did come back in September for France and rode well, but in the MX1 championship he finished last, down in around 55^th place with zero points.

Tortelli started well, finishing second to Everts in Zolder, with 1-2 results, but it was clear he was pushing too hard on occasions and after finishing second in the opening moto in Portugal, he crashed and was out for the season.  His final place in the championship was 21^st.

As for the MX2 boys it was a lot better, with Philippaerts third in the championship behind Pourcel and Cairoli. Rattray was fourth, De Reuver fifth and Nunn sixth. Strong, but never really in the hunt against the top two guys.

De Reuver won a GP in Bulgaria, Rattray in Zolder, Portugal, and Ireland, and Philippaerts won in Sweden.

Of course, since that 2006 season, things changed quickly for KTM. They continued to invest, have since signed Cairoli, who as mentioned added MX1/MXGP titles in 2009, 2010, 2011, 2012, 2013, 2014, and 2017, and in MX2, they only lost one, when Tim Gajser won on a Honda in 2015. From 2008 until 2017, they have won nine from 10 titles.

It's little surprise that KTM have worked with the best of the best, in Stefan and Harry Everts, Antonio Cairoli, Jeffrey Herlings, Joel Smets, Roger De Coster, Heinz Kinigadner, Pit Beirer, Ken Roczen, Kurt Nicoll, Marvin Musquin, Jacky Martens and many more. Experience seems to rub off on the riders and titles come because of that.

They always say what doesn't kill you makes you stronger, and we can't agree more than KTM took that 2006 season, and made sure they didn't keep making the same mistakes. The rest is history.

Le Touquet Beach Race

Nathan Watson grabs second in debut Le Touquet ride

World Enduro regular Nathan Watson (KTM) bagged the runner-up in Sunday’s Enduropale Le Touquet in France.

As the world’s most famous beach race, Le Touquet is about as tough as they come in sand racing and one of the most prestigious races in France to win.

Stacking up strong in his debut Le Touquet, Watson gave the French beach racing specialists a run for their money ending second to winner Milko Postisek.

“I’m really happy with second place, to get on the podium at my first real shot at Le Touquet is something special,” told Watson. 

“I am a little disappointed not to have taken the win, but it’ll give me something to aim for next year.”

Watson competed in the French beach race series this winter to prepare for Le Touquet. Winning three out of six races put him in with a shout of top honours at Le Touquet. 

After a good start he rode sensibly for the first couple of laps, though the sheer number of competitors proved one of the biggest challenges throughout the race.

“There are so many riders out there, you have to weave left and right to get past them and sometimes you get a little held up,” continued Watson. 

“One of the biggest factors in the race is the physical hardship, other than the start straight there is nowhere to get a rest – you are stood up and riding hard the entire three hours. 

After finally sampling Le Touquet firsthand, he’s got his sights on returning in 2019 and going one place better.

“The event is amazing, with all the build-up before the race, I’ve never been so nervous. The fans are incredible too, there are so many here cheering us on. 

“My team have been great all winter so it’s nice to reward them with this result. I definitely want to be back here next year and hopefully to take the win.”

Results – 2018 Enduropale du Touquet 

1. Milko Potisek (FRA), Yamaha, 3:00:34.840  2. Nathan Watson (GBR), KTM, 3:02:45.302  3. Camille Chapeliere (FRA), KTM, 3:09:11.571  4. Daymond Martens (BEL), Yamaha, 3:14:42.211  5. Ken Dy Dycker (BEL), KTM, 3:15:10.280

The Tough One 2018 Extreme Enduro Main Race

Graham Jarvis once again dominated The Tough One Extreme Enduro is the UK, winning by over 8 minutes from Travis Teasdale and David Knight.

Woodvile GP

First for Lamont but three in a row for Yamaha at Woodvile GP

By: Andy McGechan

Kayne Lamont is the new champion of New Zealand's most prestigious dirt bike event, the 24-year-old building apprentice simply stunning onlookers when he won the 57th annual New Zealand Motocross Grand Prix at Woodville on Sunday.

Lamont took his Altherm JCR Yamaha Racing Team YZ450F to the front soon after the start of the event's signature race, the invitation feature, and he quickly opened up a solid advantage.

Behind him a battle raged between Australian former Woodville champion Kirk Gibbs and Rhys Carter, but Lamont kept his cool and eventually crossed the finish line a safe 4.4 seconds ahead of Gibbs, with Carter taking the third step on the podium.

“I wasn’t even thinking about the significance of winning this race … I was simply concentrating on not making mistakes,” said Lamont afterwards. It could have been an even more glorious weekend for Lamont, had he not suffered disaster in Sunday's first MX1 class race.

Lamont had qualified fastest – indicating he’d be a serious title contender at the nationals this year – and he was leading the first of Sunday’s three MX1 class races when he crashed and handed the win instead to national MX1 champion Cody Cooper.

“I had a small mishap in a muddy rut. I actually crashed three times in that race,” Lamont explained.

“The bike took ages to get going after I crashed and then I crashed twice more trying to catch up. I simply salvaged what I could from that,” Lamont said, eventually settling for 15th place at the chequered flag.

Following massage treatment in the pits, the battered Lamont managed fourth and fifth in the next two MX1 races, good enough only for seventh overall in the class, but his performance in the feature race would be the key one for the record books.

Lamont was thrilled to join a long and illustrious list of winners of New Zealand's most famous motocross, a list that also includes his team boss, Josh Coppins. Coppins was a rare five-time winner at Woodville – champion there in 1996, 1999, 2000, 2008 and 2011 – before he retired from fulltime racing in 2012, although he has since gone on to taste success several times there in his role as team manager.

Coppins' achievement record at Woodville now extends well beyond his five personal wins, with Lamont's win on Sunday now making it three times in a row that his team's MX1 class rider has secured the Woodville trophy. Australian Dean Ferris won the title for the Altherm JCR Yamaha Team in 2016 and again last year.

Lamont’s victory this year was significant also because he broke the drought ... it had been three years since a Kiwi had last won there.

Cooper won the crown in 2014, but it was Gibbs who took it in 2015 and then fellow Australian Dean Ferris won it the following two years.

Meanwhile, the successes kept piling up for Yamaha at the weekend, with Lamont's Mangakino-based team-mate Maximus Purvis (Yamaha YZ125) winning the 125cc class.

Altherm JCR Yamaha rider Jay Wilson was third overall for the weekend in the MX2 class. Credit Phil Smith - Clmintepix

Australian Jay Wilson from Yamalube Yamaha Racing in Australia, also raced the MX2 class this weekend.

Making his 2018 racing debut in New Zealand, Wilson finished a credible third overall on his Yamaha YZ250F. The first two races he found his racing form again, finishing in third place with Wyatt Chase claiming victory and Hamish Harwood in the runner-up spot, both times.

In the third race, Wilson moved up to second, which pleased team boss Josh Coppins, who says “he got better and better,” as he had more track time.

“This was Jay’s first motocross race since August and we are building back up with him. He was only 4 seconds off the lead in the third race.”

Wilson says that although it would have been nice to take a win this weekend, his focus is battling for the MX2 championship title “and we are well and truly in that fight,” he says

Wilson (23) will compete at all four rounds of the New Zealand Motocross Championships in preparation for his Australian season. He has worked with Altherm JCR Yamaha team manager Josh Coppins for several years previously and in 2015 claimed the MX2 title in both New Zealand and Australia with Coppins’ team.

Whakatane’s Darren Capill (Yamaha YZ450F) won the veterans’ class and Melbourne visitor Maddy Brown (Yamaha YZ250F) winning the women’s class.

Meanwhile, another visiting Australian, Melbourne’s Bailey Malkiewicz, who was sharing the Altherm JCR Yamaha facilities, won the 14-16 years’ 250cc class during junior racing on Saturday.

 

Chatter Box: Kevin Strijbos

A chat with Kevin Strijbos

Momentum is not something that Kevin Strijbos possesses currently, following a handful of injury-riddled seasons. A broken collarbone has even interrupted the testing that he was doing with Standing Construct KTM now too. Strijbos is upbeat entering what may be his final season in the FIM Motocross World Championship, however, and has his sights set firmly on the MXGP of Patagonia-Argentina.

MX Vice: The deal with Standing Construct KTM was announced quite late, because of everything that happened with Suzuki, but are you happy with how things worked out?

Kevin Strijbos: Yeah, for sure, I was in contact with them quite early in the year and then we made it happen. It was a bit difficult in the beginning, but then we made it happen quite quick. I think it was done in two weeks or something. We spoke, sat down, got the terms and everything went well. We signed just before America. It is close to my home, just ten or fifteen minutes away, which is also good. It is a small team, nothing big, but there is no stress from anyone. Tim [Mathys] just does it because he loves it. I know the people there from when I was younger, so things are going well at the moment.

Kevin Strijbos faces a race against time after breaking his collarbone (Suzuki Racing)

Was there a particular reason why it was difficult to get the deal done to begin with? Whatever the problem was, was it sorted out in the end? 

Yeah, it was sorted out. It had nothing to do with me or Tim, it was just to do with the brand and manufacturer. It did not go to plan in the beginning, but we phoned again as soon as he got confirmation from the manufacturer and then sat down. Everything ended up happening quite quick.

You must be happy with how everything worked out. Had you been able to stay at Suzuki, you would have been left without a ride at the last minute and scrambling around.

I had to get off the team anyway and I knew that quite early, which is why I was searching. The results did not come good, because of the injury that I had with my elbow, and then I did not know what to do. I began to think that it was going to be last year, even though I did not want it to be. Tim came along though and I think everyone saw that the stress fell off from America on. Things started to go well again, with the riding and everything. There were still a few teams who I was talking to, so I could go to some other ones also, but I think that this was the best and had the best equipment. They had a team in the past and everything was fine then.

A fifth in moto one in Assen last year was Strijbos' best finish (Suzuki Racing)

I am guessing that the factory support was a big part of why you signed. Did any of the other teams that you were talking to have support from the manufacturer or anything like that?

Not all of them. I think one did, a little bit. I do not know what we have now. I just know that we have good bikes and do a lot to the engines inside of the workshop. I am not sure how much we get that factory support, but I am quite happy with the bike at the moment. You do not have to get too much factory support, if the base is good, because sometimes you have so much stuff to test that you end up a bit lost and do not know what to choose anymore.

You have noticed that then, there is less testing than there was at Suzuki World MXGP and that makes it easier?

Yeah, for sure. You have good points and bad points about being on a private team. The good point is that sometimes there is not so much that you can try. You have something and even if it is not one hundred percent, you still have to go with it. That can be a good point, because otherwise you keep on searching and takes days or weeks to find something. We just have a good base now and know the bike well. There are still some details that we need to work on, but it takes time. I am happy at the moment. We will see.

How was testing before the collarbone injury? Was there anything that you desperately wanted to fix before the first round of MXGP? 

We actually started quite late. I was in RedSand in Spain in December, but just with a stock bike. We tested the last two weeks that I spent in Spain. There was not too much, but we tested what we had to test. The engine guy knows what he has to do, so he is working now and the plan was to test a bit more. We both got injured though and now it is pretty difficult. I think that we have a good base to go to Argentina, then maybe we can test a little afterwards.

Kevin Strijbos has spent a majority of his career with Suzuki World MXGP (Suzuki Racing)

Do you think it is one hundred percent that you will be in Argentina? Explain a little more about what is going on with the injury.

My bike will be one hundred percent – that is not going to be a problem. We have to see how the injury goes. I had quite a lot of pain after the crash, which was not normal. I broke my collarbone in 2004 and rode one more lap with it. I had so much pain straight after the crash this time though, because it was already plated from before. I have to go back to the hospital in two weeks to see where we are at, so hopefully I can start to ride between Hawkstone Park and LaCapelle Marival.

We will still have some time. Even if I can start after LaCapelle Marival, it will give me a week and a half. I want to ride before Argentina, rather than the doctor telling me that I can ride Wednesday morning and then that I have to fly to the race that afternoon. If riding goes well, then it is fine. I just need to try to make the best of it. I know it is not an ideal start, but it is what it is. It is good that I can ride instead of just staying home.

Did the injury that Valentin [Guillod] sustained put more pressure on you? Do you feel more pressure to get back out there and represent them?

No, not really. The team is easy. They know me and that I always to do a lot to come back quick. I am working on the shoulder a lot now to make it heal quicker and they know that, so they are fine with it. They just say to not worry and start too early. It is best to wait one more week and then see. That is what I am doing and, yeah, they are happy.

It is likely that this will be his final season at the highest level (Suzuki Racing)

When I spoke to you last year, you said that this would definitely be your final season in MXGP. Are you still set on that or is there a chance that you will keep going?

It depends. The biggest percentage is that this will be my last year, but it depends how it goes. Maybe I can do one more year with this team, if it goes really well? I feel good with them and want to stay with them. Even if things do not go well and I want to stop, maybe I can try to get something inside of the team like a trainer? Like I said last year, this will probably be my last year and I’ll try to get everything good for that. I will try to stay healthy and then we will see where I end up.

Finally, what kind of results would you like to get this year? You proved that you can run top five last year and, with some momentum on your side, there is no reason why you cannot do that again.

Everybody wants that, for sure, and it is not easy to finish in the top five at every round. There are so many riders who can do that. Like you said though, I showed that I can do it towards the end of last year and even now I feel good on my bike. We just need to get some good starts. Starts were actually the main problem last year and then when I got a good start, I showed that I can be top five or maybe even on the podium. There is no pressure from the team. I know that this could be my last year, but that can also be positive. I just want to give it everything that I have in every race. If I can run top five or six, then I will be happy.

Words: Lewis Phillips | Lead Image: Suzuki Racing

10 Things about Dakar

10 Things about Dakar Rally 2018

Dakar Rally 2018 is already done and dusted, the bikes are packed on their way, riders are already home and celebrations are in full swing. But what did we learn from the 40th running of this monumental event? 

Crashes, new manufacturers, navigation errors and massive distances... is it still the toughest off road bike race on earth? 

1. The stakes are high

Winning Dakar still means so much that riders are pushing beyond limits to win. Gone are the days when the smart riders knew when to push and when to take it easy. 

If any one of the fifteen (at least) riders want to win, they have to race hard for every minute of every Special Stage. 

 

Photo Credit: Dakar Media Service

2. Crashing is all too easy

When you ride that many kilometres, that fast on 145kg rally bikes, crashes are gonna happen. 

You might get away with it some of the time, maybe most the time, but sooner or later one of them is going to hurt, just ask Sam Sunderland and Adrien Van Beveren.

3. Seven manufacturers racing

KTM won for the 17th consecutive time and yes, that is mighty impressive. But a customer KTM taking stage podiums, smaller manufacturers like Sherco making the top 10, Hero and Gas Gas teams not just in the race but competitive shows it ain’t all about the big bucks. 

 

Photo Credit: Francois Flamand

4. Yamaha is back

Yamaha’s Factory Rally Team are small by comparison to KTM and Honda standards and it is popular to knock the WR450F-derived machines. 

But their bike is every bit the purpose-built tool for the job. Without Adrien Van Beveren’s wicked, high-speed crash while leading, results could have been so different. 

5. Riding gear is tougher

Neck braces, back protectors, body armour – no question the riding kit is awesome. From minus temperatures at the 4am, high altitude starts to 40+ degrees desert heat it’s a lot to cope with. 

How riders used to cope before they had drinks bladders and pouches we have no clue. 

 

Photo Credit: Dakar Media Service

6. Hats off to Malle Moto riders

As if the Dakar isn’t tough enough the Malle Moto riders are doing it basically living out of a box. Race all day, do all your own maintenance and the pitch your own tent each night. Mucho respect. 

7. Media, media, media

Dakar still claims high global media coverage which Dakar organisers claim runs second only to F1 in terms of audience awareness – ahead of WRC, MotoGP, WTCC and certainly Enduro GP. That’s without mentioning the immense volumes of social media coverage. 

8. Gigantic distances

Wherever you’re sat imagine tomorrow you got up and set off riding at 4am for 426km, where does that get your in your country? 

Once there take a five-minute break and then race flat-out for 288km to some place else before doing another 280km liaison back to your base. Madness. 

 

Photo Credit: Gas Gas

9. Brain strain

Ever since five-times winner Marc Coma became Dakar Race Director huge altitude changes (five days at or above 3000m) and huge distances (almost 9000km in total) are the base-setting. 

Navigation is a major sting in the tail during each stage. This is Dakar and some of the reasons why it remains the toughest dirt bike race on earth. 

10. The Bucket List

The tenth thing about Dakar 2018? Well, despite all the trials and tribulations discussed above, for better or worse it’s still the race that tops our Must-Do Bucket List, like pretty much every other off road dirt junkie out there!

Beach Racing...Le Touquet Beach Race

1000’s set for Enduropale Le Touquet Beach Race

 

Enduropale du Touquet, hits the sandy beaches Cote d’Opale at Le Touquet, Northern France this weekend. 

Of enduro interest, EnduroGP number three Nathan Watson starts as one of the favourites, alongside 2017 Enduro 2 runner-up Jamie McCanney. 

Watson, the Red Bull KTM Factory Racing rider, is something of a sand specialist and has been concentrating his racing in Northern European sand since the end of the 2017 EnduroGP season.

Watson won the Berck Beach Cross (a few kilometres south of Le Touquet) in October 2017. 

He beat a healthy field including Axel Van de Sande, Yamaha Rally rider and 2016 Le Touquet winner Adrien Van Beveren and former MXGP front runner Steve Ramon.

McCanney starts for Yamaha

Outsiders Yamaha Enduro team rider Jamie McCanney will also race Le Touquet. 

McCanney will swap his usual WR250F enduro bike for a specially prepared Yamaha YZ450F.

Enduropale typically runs a 13-15 kilometre lap and has been dominated by French riders and Yamaha in its 13 year history. 

Kawasaki France’s 2017 Le Touquet winner and French Sand Champion Axel Van de Sande will have a say in that though. 

The strong list of entries also includes plenty of French beach race specialists plus a host of MXGP current and former racers. 

Camille Chapelière, Milko Potisek, Daymond Martens, Steve Ramon, Jeffrey Dewulf, Nico Aubin, Ken De Dycker, Xavier Boog and Richard Fura, who was third in 2017, all take to the start line.

Le Touquet attracts huge numbers of riders, as many as 2000 across all classes over the weekend. 

With crowds of around 500,000 organisers claim it is one of the world’s biggest motor sport events.