Evans lifts Euro title
By TMX Archives on 1st Oct 10
The 2010 European Enduro Championship concluded with the finals which were held at Oliveira do Hospital, Portugal, over three-days.
The event was also the Enduro Trophy of Nations and British Teams had been entered in the competition in National, National Junior and Veteran categories.
In the individual Championship, Greg Evans (KORR KTM) arrived holding the lead in the Senior E2 Class after faultless performances in the previous rounds in France, Poland and Italy. Greg was also holding second in the overall European Championship so it was all to play for.
However, a crash and injury at the British Championship round in Wales a few weeks beforehand meant a struggle to start the Final and a lot less time spent on the machine than was desirable.
Ollie Moyce (Midwest Husaberg) was defending fifth spot in the Junior E2/3 series and looking to improve on this position, while team-mate Tyson Maytom-Jones was lying in tenth place in the series and Phil Smithson (KTM) was holding a very respectable seventh spot in the Veteran class.
The course was three-laps of 59km for the each of first two-days and then culminated in a shorter lap and MX races on the third day.
There was an MX Special Test as well as an Enduro Test and a very difficult but spectacular Extreme test on each lap.
To say that conditions were hot and dusty was an understatement and the temperature was not far short of 40 degrees at times, with several riders suffering severe de- hydration, resulting in hospitalisation for some.
Jamie Paget, a member of the GB National Junior team was hit hard by the heat and breathing difficulties forced his early retirement. Ollie Moyce and Ashley Wood continued in the fray.
In the GB Senior National team, Greg Evans, Arran Poolman, James Jackman and Tyson Maytom-Jones having mixed fortunes, but at the end of Day Two were lying in fifth position.
The Veteran team of Phil Smithson, David Coles and Julian Crimp had been holding fourth spot but a torrid second day dropped them off the leader-board.
In the individual classes Evans took a fourth spot in Senior E2 on Day One, and followed that up with third on Day Two. Moyce had a superb ride on the opening day to claim third spot in Junior E2/3, followed by a steady fourth on Day Two.
Maytom-Jones was consistent with eighth and ninth in Senior E3, and James Jackman and Arran Poolman both recorded top ten placing's on one of the days.
Sunday morning started even hotter and after a short run of 20km the riders returned to a new motocross track close to the paddock, where the final race for each class was to be held.
Unfortunately it was not to be, and after the Women and Veteran races the dust was considered to be making conditions too dangerous and the remaining races were cancelled.
A one-lap special test was quickly instigated for the remaining riders, and this turned very much into a sudden death, one-chance only affair.
The Portuguese riders on home soil were very fast all weekend, and unfortunately for Greg, in the Overall Championship this tended to distort the points and did little to help his cause.
At the end of the weekend however Greg Evans took his rightful place on the podium and became the 2010 European Senior E2 Champion as well as the Overall runner-up in the entire Championship, losing out to a Portuguese rider by just two-points.
Congratulations to Greg and all the British ACU riders who travelled the length and breadth of Europe to contest the series and do the UK proud.