Dirt & Trail SEPTEMBER 2022

Husqvarna Racing Triumphant
at Winterberg National Enduro.
The National Enduro Championship travelled
to the Eastern Cape town of for the second to
last round of the season. Husqvarna Racing
secured a significant feat with their riders
finishing top of the class as well as sliding
into an impressive 1, 2 on the overall results
of the day.
The route is in the picturesque area of
Bathurst and flows through the hills and
valleys. The guys at Rover Motorcycle Club
set a fantastic loop that incorporates all elements
of Enduro riding. The river beds are a
technical challenge to get through quickly but
easy enough for all to navigate through. The
flowing sections through the natural forest
are a lot of fun to race though while trying to
keep your flow and rhythm. There are some
tricky exits out of the rivers and technical
climbs to keep everyone busy. Added to all
the fun in the river beds and forest they had
some fantastic open sections to get your
breath back.
The Bathhurst route is a rider favourite
on the National Championship circuit and
it was clear that Brett Swanepoel felt the
same, wringing his FE350 unchallenged to
Winterberg’s top spot. “I started off first and
managed to stay out in front all day, though
I normally struggle to find speed on the first
lap but I have been trying to get that sorted
and seems to be working,” Swanepoel said
smilingly.
FE 350 rider Swanepoel went on to say: “The
track was awesome and definitely one of the
best Enduros I’ve raced, the guys down here
are really passionate and there is also a lot
of racing heritage at the Winterberg and that
shows.”
The FE 250 mounted Kyle Flanagan was
brought in to fill in for the injured Heinrich
Aust… But nobody told him that. He took the
fight straight to the boys with a seriously
impressive performance.
He was beaming after the event and went as
far as saying he even had some gas left in
the tank. He continued: “The track was really
cool. In CPT we have pretty limited riding
places and the terrain doesn’t change too
much, so to be back in a wet, slippery river
bed made me feel at home!”
“I think that kept me going even when I started
getting a bit tired on the last 2 laps,” he
said. He finished by saying: “Overall, the bike
was a lot of fun to race, I think the organizers
did a good job of putting the event together
and it was great to be back banging bars with
the boys!”
Grant Frerichs, Group Marketing Manager
commented: “Winterton was a perfect day
for Husqvarna racing. Brett cemented his
dominance in the 2022 season by winning
once again and extending his championship
lead and the fill-in ride for Kyle Flanagan
couldn’t have gone any better with a class win