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Hafren 2005
Report by Bob Mullins

At first sight Llanidloes in Mid Wales would appear to be an unlikely field of dreams to stand alongside the international venues of sporting excellence but Hafren Dirt Bike Club had the vision to host a round of the UEM European Championship & with a lot of commitment & even more hard work they succeeded admirably. The Hafren Enduro ’05 on the 3rd weekend in July was the 3rd & penultimate round of the UEM Championship series. Husqvarna was the major sponsor & the event centred around Llanidloes Rugby Football ground on the outskirts of the historic market town. The first test was within a few hundred yards of the start around fields on the banks of the Severn river close to it's source where the cool clear water looked very inviting in the hot Summer sun. The course then took the riders through the centre of the town, around the medieval market square & out to the second test around Geriant Jones' farm at Glyn Hafren on the edge of the Hafren forest. This was the start & finish of the 75km lap around Hafren & Sweet Lamb which the competitors would have to complete twice before returning to Llanidloes for a 5th test on both day before the finish. The Hafren Club advises riders in advance that the event would be run on Expert schedule which - with the additional licence & medical cost - may have affected the numbers. Topping the bill of the 168 rider entry was the current E3 WEC leader David Knight although he would not be eligible to score EEC points,  Joining Knighter in the D3-Racing team was Californian Kurt Caselli who finished on the podium at the recent WEC event in the Czech Republic. Competing alongside Caselli in the Senior E2 class was Multi World Enduro Champion Paul Edmondson with many other top British riders like Ryan Voase & Euan McConnell as well as Brit based New Zealanders Paul Whibley & Chris Birch. The sunny weather added to the continental feel of the event but with weeks without rain the Hafren had never been drier. Dust would be the riders greatest concern & with clear skies overnight there was also a heavy dew on the tests in the morning to be considered. The course was opened by the Assistant Clerk of the Course Wyn Hughes & the riders set off at 3 a minute from 9am on Saturday morning. French rider Pierre Duzellier failed to start his machine & the day didn't get any better for him when he was excluded for outside assistance in the form of a push start. I was floating around the tight 2nd check as a poacher turned gamekeeper doing a stamp check. By the time David Knight reached me he had lost his back brake but nothing seems to slow the Knighter down so he still set the fastest times of the day. Austrian Lady rider Elizabeth Mucha was very low on clutch fluid but continued to the finish. The course was closed by Phil Wilkinson. There were 12 retirements on Day 1 but thankfully - despite the dust - only 2 were the result of injury. Both Matuesz Bembenk & Jon Hinam suffered broken wrists. Jon hopes his chipped bone will respond to laser treatment & he will be back in action at the Crychan. Henk Knuman was excluded. Day 2 started one hour earlier at 8 am to give the riders more time to get home in the evening. Before the start the rugby field filled with squatting riders. The clubhouse toilets had taken on a continental atmosphere but my personal therapist & soon to be fiancee Gaynor assured me these chaps were doing stretching exercises to avoid cramp. I conferred with fellow Caerphilly club member Paul Morgan who told me he was also a great advocate of circuits & he had gone to every pub in the town the night before. Ricky Mair had a heavy fall during his 3rd test on Day 1 & his problems increased on Day 2 when he found he had lost his clutch fluid overnight. David Knight also had a problem on the first test of the day when he dropped his bike but he still set the fastest time. Screen Actor Charley Boorman - fresh from his recent trip around the world - made good progress on Day 1 & won a championship point but went out at the end of first lap on day. He might consider a remake of On Any Sunday. ISDE manager Gwyn Barraclough was at the event watching out for the future British team and raising money for the current team. Ferruccio Dal Pos stalled his Honda next to me & became very Italian. Get an electric starter Fernuccio. Kurt Casselli took a few moment to showboat for the crowds on the tests but it was David Knight's enthusiasm for the sport he has chosen to make his own that took him to another level when he stood up on the seat of his KTM to blast down the final straight of the last test. It was an unforgettable moment& as the dust settled at the end of the day I fell into conversation with Geriant Jones & Dusty Miller who both agreed that the event had been a great success. They also agreed it had been something more. It had brought the Enduro community together as club members from all over country - like Andy Waters from Diss - had come to Llanidloes to offer their help & the Hafren club had had the self assurance to accept. At a time when the future of the sport seems uncertain the 2005 Hafren was an affirmation of it's strength. The presentation of awards - hosted by Brian Higgins - took place on the rugby field in front of a packed stand at 5pm. The awards were presented by Clerk of the Course Malcom Bates, Sponsor Mike Carter, President of the ACU Ted Bartlett & Kate Rowbottom who as Secretary of the Meeting had put into the event. In the International Class it was a win for David Knight (D3 Racing KTM) with Paul Edmondson (Edmondson Honda) in second & Kurt Casselli (KTM) in third. Daryl Bolter (Husqvarna) continued to dominate the Junior 1 class with another win which also help the Husqvarna Mucci team to win the One Make award. Fellow Brit Simon Wakely as runner up. Robert Jones, Greg Evans & Lee Edmondson also finished in the top ten. In the Junior 2/3 class Lukasz Kurowski won ahead of Maurizio Facchin. Jason Darby was the highest placed Brit in 8th place & Oliver Moyce was 9th. Fausto Scovolo (Husqvarna) won the Senior 1 class but 7 out of the top ten were Brits including Edwards Jones (KTM) in 2nd & Tim Lewis (TM) in 3rd & British success continued in the Senior 2 class with Euan McConnell (Honda) taking the win ahead Ryan Voase (Kawsaki). Austrian Werner Muller (KTM) won the Senior 3 class ahead of the German Marcus Kehr (KTM), In the Veteran class Giamarco Rossi (Honda) was the winner with Neil Williams (Gas Gas) in 4th & Graeme Naismith (Honda) in 5th. There were three ladies entered who had complete one lap a day. Katie Wakely (Honda) was the winner. The National winner was Great Britian with Italy second & Germany third.

David Knight dominates EEC third round - KTM Press Release

D3-Racing/KTM Enduro Factory Team Farioli rider David Knight claimed two comfortable day wins at the Husqvarna Hafren Forest Enduro, round three of the European Enduro Championship, held in Mid Wales this past weekend. Despite competing as a ‘no points scorer’ due to past world championship placings, Knighter decided to compete in the event in preparation for the upcoming sixth round of the WEC series, which takes place in the south of France on July 23-14.

Winning every test outright on day one not even a fall on the first corner of the first test of day two could stop Knighter from winning as he remounted to post the test’s fastest time and go on to finish the day unbeaten. Topping day one by 35 seconds, David then upped his pace around the rougher special tests on day two and extended his winning margin to 42 seconds, even finding time for a few motorcycle acrobatics en route to his day two win.

Competing alongside David in the D3-Racing KTM team and taking part in his first EEC event was US rider Kurt Caselli. Finishing a distant third in the International class on day one as well as in fourth in the Absolute results, Caselli then performed better in the dry and dusty conditions of day two and placed as runner-up in both the International class and the Absolute results.

David Knight: “It’s been a great couple of days, I’m pleased that I decided to enter the event because the dry conditions were excellent practice for the sixth round of the World Enduro Championship in France this coming weekend. It was nice to compete in an international event without too much pressure.

“Everything went pretty much as I hoped it would and on day one and winning by 35 seconds from Edmondson and then 42 seconds from Caselli was great. I only made one mistake during the event and that was on the first test on the second day. I clipped a post on the inside of the turn and it jammed by front brake on. Apart from that I didn’t make any mistakes, rode pretty well and had some fun towards the end of the second day. It was really enjoyable event.”

Bolter wins EEC Junior E1 class in Wales - Huskysport Press Release

Husky Sport Husqvarna rider Daryl Bolter, racing for the Italian Mucci Racing Husqvarna team, claimed two more wins in the Junior E1 class of the European Enduro Championship recently, this time at his home round of the EEC series. Topping day one by seven seconds and day two by just under two seconds, Bolter claimed a comfortable 43 seconds overall winning margin at the end of the two-day Husqvarna Hafren Forest Enduro.

Confident of a good result on home soil, Bolter got off to a slightly slower start than he had hoped he would on day one and trailed fellow Brit Si Wakely as the day neared its close. Maintaining his cool, and producing consistent special test times, Bolter made the most of a mistake by Wakely and topped the day. Not wanting to risk not winning on day two, Daryl started as he meant to continue and posted quick special test times during the opening lap and despite failing to win any of the five tests claimed another day win to edge ever closer to securing his first ever European Enduro Championship title.

Backing up Daryl’s good results were strong performances from Senior E1 class rider Chris Hockey aboard his 250cc four-stroke and Senior E2 class Chris Birch aboard his 250cc two-stroke. Finishing in a fine fifth place in the Senior E1 class on day one after battling with Tim Lewis for much of the day, Hockey then placed in seventh on day two just a handful of seconds behind Dylan Jones. In the senior E2 class Chris Birch placed inside the top 10 on both days finishing seventh on day one and ninth on day two.

Disappointingly, Husky Sport supported rider Jon Hinam saw his weekend end with a visit to hospital after a crash on day one resulted in the Welsh youngster breaking a bone in his wrist. Jon is expected to be out of action for four weeks.

Daryl Bolter: “It’s been a great weekend for me and a great event. I’d been looking forward to the event for a long time and I really wanted to win in Wales, so I’m pleased that I was able to. I didn’t have any big problems during the event and with Pierre Duzellier being disqualified it means that I have a bigger lead in the Junior E1 championship now than I thought I would even if things did go well for me.

“Day one went really well although I didn’t ride quite as well as I could early in the day. It looked as if Si Wakely was going to be hard to beat but I got a little bit of luck and won. It was pretty slippery in the morning being one of the first riders onto the special tests but both tests got better when they started to rut up a bit. It was just amazing how dusty they got.

“Day two was really good. Kapajcik kept me on my toes all day but I won, which is what counts. I didn’t win any tests, which is a bit frustrating, but I was consistent and I’m happy with that. I’m really looking forward to the final round of the championship in Germany now.”

Chris Hockey: “I really enjoyed the event - it’s been great even if it was a little bit dusty. I’m pretty happy with my results and the way I rode as I didn’t make any mistakes all weekend. I had a great battle with Dylan Jones on day two but didn’t quite do enough to finish ahead of him.

“Day one was my best day though. I rode well on all the tests and at the end of the day there wasn’t much between myself and Tim Lewis. All in all it’s been really enjoyable, it’s just a shame that we don’t have international events in the UK more often.”

Gas Gas Press Release

Paul Whibley has just finished 4th 'OVERALL' at the weekends superb 'HAFREN' Enduro which was the British Round of the European Enduro Championship. Firstly a huge congratulations to everyone at the Hafren Dirt Bike Club for a superbly organised event.

With Paul scoring World Championship points in 2005 he wasn't eligible for European Championship points so he was riding in the 'INTERNATIONAL' class with David Knight and Paul Edmondson. He finished 4th both days and 4th overall for the weekend.

As expected David (simply awesome) Knight won the event winning all ten special tests beating runner up Paul Edmondson by nearly 1.5 minutes over the ten special tests. Third place went to the very impressive American KTM rider 'KURT CASELLI' who impressed everyone,especially his 'air-time' at the final MX test on Sunday afternoon!

This superb result for Whibz is probably his best 'Time Card' Enduro result of the year, only 48 seconds behind Paul Edmondson after ten tests (4.8 seconds a test slower) which proves he is now gaining confidence with his Gasser after a slow start to the season. Paul rode consistantly all weekend with no crashes and no bike problems. Just a new MICHELIN and a few filter changes was all that was needed on the Kev Hipwell prepared EC250. It's a shame it wasn't a British Championship round because he beat B.E.C. riders, Euan McConnell and Ryan Voase who were 1st and 2nd in the Senior E2 class.

Pauls next event is the French Round of the W.E.C. this coming weekend. Pauls next UK event is the 4th round of the FAST EDDY RACE SERIES @ Culham on Sunday 7th August.

Results  International Thanks to Jeff Edwards (Timekeeper)

Photos: Keith Davies & Chris James. More photos available from Keith Bowen Feedback