Day two of the FIM International Six Days Enduro once again was a tricky battle for the Australian teams competing as the terrain in Navarra became rough and the competition even more fierce.
Over 500 competitors battled it out on the same trials and tests from day one, meaning they had good knowledge of the tests, however the deteriorating track conditions added another element to the already tough Enduro meeting.
Yamaha Blu Cru Women’s member Tayla Jones once again had a successful day abroad her Yamaha machine finishing the day in 3rd overall, and remains 2nd in the outright standings.
Jessica Gardiner significantly improved on day two achieving some impressive personal results compared to yesterday, which increased her standing’s to 4th for the day. Gardiner now sits 19th in the outright standings behind team mate Jemma Wilson in 5th.
The Yamaha Blu Cru Women’s Trophy Team still currently lead ahead of second placed Spain and third placed Germany, and although Australia increased their lead today they are still under fire from second placed Spain, so will need to continue their consistency.
Jones shared her experience on day two after having a slow start to the day but, confirms her goal is to bring it home for Australia.
“The first two days of the ISDE have been good. Yesterday I ended up getting the day win with some good tests, and winning some outright tests,” Jones shared.
“Today I struggled a bit, I found I couldn’t really get in a groove. I continued to improve through the day though and came home with a second.
“Tomorrow is a new day and we will be competing on new tracks and tests, hopefully I can take the lead and bring it home for Australia,” she concluded.
This year’s event hasn’t gone to plan for the Australian Senior Trophy Team who headed over to defend their title. Unfortunately, yesterday saw Josh Strang forced to resign from the remainder of the competition with an ankle injury. This means that Australia can no longer qualify for the Team Trophy World title, instead now competing for individual results.
Their rocky streak hasn’t stopped as day two saw Daniel Milner forced to resign from the day with mechanical issues early on, unable to get the bike going again. However, with Daniel Sanders and Lachlan Stanford still vying for individual class placing an improved day two sees their standings progress.
Sanders who had a promising day one has once again showed why he is 2016 Australian Off-Road Champion on day two currently sitting 3rd in the outright standings, and regaining his lead to sit first in his E3 class 19 seconds ahead of his Italian rival.
Improving by one position to now sitting 7th in his class, Lachlan Stanford shared that he is happy with his performance from day one, however, day two proved more difficult seeing him remain in 23rd position outright.
“Day one went well, we started off pretty well getting a lot of top 15 outright placings in the tests, and then had an off in test four which set me back a fair bit putting me in twenty third outright,” he shared.
“Day two we rode the same trail and tests so they were a lot rougher. I struggled a lot today to go fast, so it wasn’t the best day for me.
“The team side of things isn’t going too well with Josh breaking his leg yesterday and Milner out today so a team placing is virtually impossible now. We are now out here competing for individual placings,” Stanford concluded.
It is onwards and upwards for the Australian Junior Trophy Team with continuous improvements in their performance strengthening their standings. Currently the Junior Trophy Team sit 10th in the overall standings after Jack Simpson’s 50th outright placing, Tom McCormack’s 54th placing, and despite a difficult start to the event Nic Tomlinson’s 94th placing.
Competing in his first ever ISDE Jack Simpson shared that nerves had a lot to do with his performance on day one not knowing what to expect, but after gaining confidence on the bike day two was more promising.
“Coming in to the six day I was a bit nervous because I had never, ever done an Enduro before and I didn’t know how it all worked,” Simpson started.
“After a couple of controlled tests and some time on the bike I felt much more comfortable. Day one I was riding a little but tight and nervous, not really myself. However, on day two I found a bit more of a groove.
“I finally started to find my flow, and something that clicked with me. I am really looking forward to a little bit more time on the bike and racing the Enduro style of racing, and it will only be upwards from now on,” he concluded.
Day three will mark the halfway point in the competition as the three Australian teams prepare for another full on day of learning tracks and battling against the best Enduro riders from each country in Navarra, Spain.