Dirt and Trail September 21

Having pulled out of the first round due to an illness, Swanepoel has been
relentless in his comeback this season. The rider lined up in the second row
on Saturday and set off on a war path as he fought his way up front with
rival Luke Walker and Bradley Cox. When the opportunity to make his break
presented itself, Swanepoel didn’t look back and opened over a minute gap
on his competitors.
Making the performance particularly impressive is the fact that this was his
first Enduro race in the Bathurst terrain. Swanepoel describes his experience
of racing through what was mostly virgin trails: “I absolutely loved this
route. Having never raced here before, we were all very excited to see what
was in store. The guys really put in a lot of work – I could see how much
virgin terrain had been cut open. I really just found a groove and my bike felt
amazing,” said an elated Swanepoel
It’s no secret that teammate Aust prefers more of a technical route, but the
rider has exceeded expectations in the new Enduro format he’s faced this
season. He explained: “The new format is less technical, but by no means
less challenging. These new national routes flow more and have been a lot
tighter, which leaves little room for error. I was lucky enough to get the 2022
model of my Husqvarna TE 150i recently, so I really enjoyed putting it to the
test.”
On a route that required high levels of concentration and consistency, Aust
held onto his class lead for the first three laps before being overtaken by
championship rival Bradly Cox. The fight for the E1 Championship is far from
over, however, and the rider will leave no stone unturned as he prepares for
the season finale.
KTM news
Brother Leader Tread KTM bounced back into action in Bathurstas the National
Enduro Championship resumed. Expectations for the event were high
as the series presented an all-new race venue in the Winterberg terrain.
Taking centre stage was multi-disciplined star Bradley Cox, who returned
to racing with a victory in the E1 Class. Cox patiently paced himself behind
championship rival Heinrich Aust as he waited for the right moment to make
his move.
When the opportunity presented itself after a few laps in, the rider slipped
into the lead and didn’t look back. As he sets his sights on taking the E1
Championship, Cox is relieved to have extended his points lead before the
season finale: “I’m so happy to extend my points lead. I had some bad luck
in the first two laps, but I managed to get back out there and make up for
the lost time,” said Cox.
With a goal to narrow the gap that the leaders had on her, Brother Leader
Tread KTM teammate Kirsten Landman achieved exactly what she’d set out
to do. The enduro queen has spent the past year reconditioning her body after
an injury. She explained, “My coach often says that if I train hard then I’ll
race easy – that’s exactly how I felt this weekend. My goal as a female in this
sport is to narrow the gap. Since 2011, this was the first time that the overall
leaders didn’t lap me. I’m so proud of the time I made up in comparison to
previous races.”
Highly impressed by the Bathurst route, she added, “Honestly, this was the
best enduro track I’ve ridden in a long time! It was well-marked, tight, and
twisty – it even had some epic technical river sections.”
Rounding out the orange squad was Charan Moore, who like Landman
enjoyed every moment he got to race on the Bathurst route. The rider went
into the event with the aim to increase his intensity. Pleased with his performance,
he commented: “The track couldn’t have gotten any better. The
rain beforehand made the conditions perfect! I struggled to find my rhythm
initially, but I picked up the pace with every passing lap. I’m happy with the
performance and ready to keep building on that intensity for the next one.”
More news and updates on the national
Enduro Series
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