Auckland's Chris Birch has done it again - and this time he had another Kiwi, Wellington's Rory Mead, for company on an international podium.
Birch (KTM) backed up his successful win of the annual Roof of Africa extreme enduro in Lesotho last year by also winning the gruelling race this time around, while Yamaha's Mead joined him on the podium, in the No2 spot, in his first crack at the event.
Creating an historic New Zealand 1-2 finish, they were the top two of only 23 riders to finish the marathon race. There were 102 starters.
"This is by far the toughest race I have ever done," said Mead (Yamaha YZ250).
Former New Zealand enduro champion Birch, riding a 300cc KTM, had drama at the start of the final day. He was the first rider on the track but, at a T-junction, went the wrong way.
Once he realised his mistake, he rode out of the stage and returned to the start at Roma, re-starting the race after discussing the problem with organisers.
He then rode like a man possessed, out-riding the entire field and eventually finishing a massive 2 hours and 14 minutes ahead of first-timer Mead.
While Birch has much experience racing at this level, Mead is a relative newcomer to the international extreme enduro scene and, ironically, it has been his battling with his friend and sometimes rival Birch that kick-started his recent forays overseas.
Mead beat Birch to win the inaugural Red Bull City Scramble endurance event in downtown Auckland in May this year.
That win appeared to be a springboard for the 22-year-old Mead to look for fresher and more difficult challenges, because part of the prize for winning in Auckland was a paid trip and entry into the Erzberg Extreme Enduro, deep in the Eisener Alps of Austria, just a week later.
He and his Yamaha YZ250 not only survived his Erzberg debut, he finished a remarkable sixth overall out of more than 1500 starters. Birch was also one of the few finishers at Erzberg, coming home eighth overall.
Mead and Birch are now set to continue their battling, this time on the domestic enduro scene, with the national championships set to kick off near Kawhia on January 30.
By Andy McGechan
