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Mafikent Senior National Offroad |
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by Russel Zeeman
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Tuesday, 21 July 2009
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Mafikeng Mini Desert will test off-road bikers
Tuesday, July 21, 2009 - E-T.Kom |
| The Mafikeng Mini Desert, the fourth round of the SA National Off-road championships for motorcycle and quad competitors that will take place in the North-West Province on 7 and 8 August, will again be testing the skills and fitness of the riders as well as the durability and reliability of their race equipment.After a break of more than three months in the 2009 national off-road calendar, this event will open the second half of the 2009 national season with only three events remaining for the season. And the Mafikeng race has traditionally been a race that provides a tough test in river beds & sandy surroundings of the Disaneng Dam 40km outside Mafikeng in the North-West Province.
The race will consist of two loops – the traditional tight and twisty Digtebos Loop 1 and the Rivers Loop. The Digtebos loop will as usual give the riders the woopy sandy sections while the Rivers Loop will be a challenge with 32km of river beds per loop which should show who has been training during the long break and who has been living the life...Recent off-road events for senior as well as junior national bike and quad racers, took place at the Disaneng Dam area and this year will be no different. The Mafikeng Yacht Club is the ideal venue for this event where more than 400 competitors are expected to enter for the national event a well as for the Northern Regions regional championship and the North-West Off-road Club Challenge. National motorcycle and quad competitors will have to complete a time trail on Friday (7 August) of about 50km in the Disaneng Dam area that will determine the starting order for national competitors Saturday. National bike and quad competitors will compete on different routes for the time-trail.On Saturday (8 August), national quad competitors will tackle the Digtebos Loop of about 120 kilometres at 08h00 from Disaneng Dam that will also serve as the central service point (DSP) and the finish. After they have completed this loop twice, they will have a 10 minute de-control at the DSP before taking on the 100km Rivers Loop which they will then also complete twice before they are declared finishers.At 09h00, the fastest national motorcycle competitor will tackle the Rivers Loop and will take a break at the de-control after completing it twice. They will then change over to the notorious Digtebos Loop which they will also complete twice and after about 440km, the survivors will be able to claim a deserving finish at Disaneng Dam.Regional competitors will start after the national challengers and together with the national Silver, they will have to complete shorter sections of the full race distance.
Previous results of the Mafikeng events as well as results so far this season, show that the overall victory can go to anyone of a handful of racers. Gray Dick, this year on the Regent Racing BMW, as well as Louwrens Mahoney (DCM Chrome Red Bull KTM) and Daryl Curtis, who competes this year with the DCM Chrome AGA LG Red Bull Husaberg and Clayton Enslin – this year in the colours of The Roost KTM – have all been recent winners of the motorcycle category with Dick winning this event in 2003 and 2006. But it has been Dick’s team-mate, Jade Gutzeit, as well as Mahoney and his team-mate, the reigning champion, Riaan van Niekerk, who have a victory each so far this season behind their names – and a few other riders have been knocking on the door of victory…In the quad category, former champions Brendan Badenhort (DCM Chrome Red Bull KTM) and Hendrik Potgieter (Team Can-Am), who are still competing, as well as Shaun Gunther and Cornel de Villiers, who are not competing actively anymore, count between previous winners here. And with a victory behind his name this season, Badenhorst, as well as the current overall leader, Dirkie Baard (Race Nation Honda Windhoek) can expect a serious challenge from a gaggle of youngsters who have proven themselves this season including the defending champion, Brian Baragwanath (Competitive Edge HST Yamaha) who would like to get his championship onslaught going again after a disappointing season so far. |
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