Fast Eddy’s Extreme Indoor has the WOW factor!
By Team TMX on 4th Nov 15
The predicted three-way battle between KTMs factory duo of Taddy Blazusiak and Jonny Walker and KTM UKs David Knight at the Extreme Enduro Indoor didnt disappoint at Stafford County Showground on Sunday.
Walker took the overall Pro class win but he had to work hard as both Knighter and Taddy pushed him to the limit.
The final race was one of the best ever seen in the UK with Taddy beating Jonny by the a margin of just two seconds.
If this was simply a shakedown for the FIM Super Enduro then the real thing promises to be fantastic.
Maybe nobody had told Blazusiak, Walker and Knight that it was supposed to be a warm-up event because the way they were going at it looked like it was the final round of a world championship.
Add in the intense nature of the rest of the Pro pack – Paul Bolton, Jonno Richardson, Ben Hemmingway, Jack Edmondson and Gethin Humphreys – and it was clear that this was going to be quite a competition.
The indoor ticked all the boxes for organiser Paul Edmondson and every rider at the event.
The course was fast and fantastic, a real racers' course just as Fast Eddy had envisaged with three distinct sections – MX, Supercross and Endurocross.
Track building got under way on Thursday evening then really moved up a gear on Friday as the crew swarmed over the hall like worker ants with something being built across all areas of the floor.
Diggers, dumpers and tracked vehicles all flexed their powerful muscles to create one of the best courses ever seen in the UK.
Paul Edmondson wanted a fast and flowing course that promoted racing at the highest level but would also provide all classes with challenges, not just the Pros.
And he managed this to perfection. There was a bit of MX and plenty of Supercross stuff before riders hit the Endurocross section.
Plenty of questions had been asked about the floor covering prior to the event but the specialist sand and fibre mix, similar to the stuff used in equestrian events, proved to be ideal.
All the Pro riders were really surprised at just how well it performed and the level of grip it provided.
The course was completely finished by lunchtime on Saturday, ready for inspection.
And the riders' comments were priceless – "I'll double that and triple that, bounce the rocks then double and single the big logs!” – and that was just the Youth and Sportsman riders.
Although there was a long section off the start line the course actually turned sharp left after a few yards, straight into a large wave section then a tight right-hander that led onto a series of small logs and a rock-strewn corner.
There was a choice of lines – either up and over a big log, or miss the log and keep to the rocks, or take a slightly longer sandy outside line.
The track was impressive to say the least.
Value for money has always been Fast Eddy's priority and the schedule gave all classes four races – except the Pros who had three races and a hot-lap competition, which Taddy won – plus plenty of time to get out on track for practice.
There were classes for Pro, Clubman, Sportsman/Vets, Youth and two classes for the Experts so everyone was catered for, not just the Pros.
Each class had two races then two finals. The morning session was filled with races but spectators had to wait until 2pm to see the Pros in action – not that the morning session was without its own excitement.
The Youth class riders thought it was heaven on earth as they hit the logs and jumps without showing an ounce of fear.
John Joe Wright had shared the morning honours with Tom Widd but by the afternoon finals Wright was top dog in each race with Henry Yardley close behind him in second.
Harry Edmondson really had to earn his third place overall in class following a series of crashes which upset his concentration but he eventually made the podium.
Kurt Weston had a terrific day winning three out of four Sportsman races to take the title in style.
He was followed onto the podium by Chris Downham and Barney Thurgood and all three had not been out of the top three at any point in the day.
The Vets were as competitive as ever. A youthful Martin Craven showed he had lost none of his pace as the years roll by when he won every race he started, quite an achievement considering the competition.
Chris Salt and Karl Greenwood spent the day swapping places with Salty eventually taking second overall ahead of Karl.
The battle of all battles took place in the Clubman ranks throughout the morning session and continued until the finish flag flew in the afternoon.
William Hoare took a spectacular win as Alex Walton and Elliott Bradshaw clashed time and again throughout the day, Walton having better MX sections while Bradshaw attacked on the Endurocross part of the track.
It was very close but Walton's win in the opening final race saw him take second from Bradshaw.
The Experts made up the largest group and they were divided into two classes, ranked on qualifying times.
Experts A saw one of the closest finishes of the day between Kev Murray and Gary Daniels.
Murray had won the first final race with Daniels second and was in the lead on the final lap when disaster struck.
Daniels approached the rock corner on the penultimate straight to see Murray stuck in the rocks. He hit the big log and lofted his bike onto the final straight as Murray got free. The pair were side by side over the log matrix section but Murray just spun up on the final log as Daniels clung on to his bike to cross the line in first spot.
The pair had tied for first place but the final race result was the tie-breaker and Gary Daniels took the overall Expert A class win with an unlucky Murray second.
Big Joe Chambers needed every ounce of strength to keep hold of third spot – he had ridden brilliantly but a few very small slips cost him dearly.
The Experts B class seemed much more open but by the end of the second race it was a dead-heat.
Ross Hancock nailed the first race ahead of Henry Moorhouse and Brandon Sharples then plummeted to ninth in the second race as Sharples took the win with Moorhouse.
This tied Sharples and Moorhouse on points but once again the
final-race result decided the winner with Sharples stepping on to the top step of the podium, Moorhouse second and Hancock third despite his tough second-race result.
The Pro riders rode into the limelight to be introduced to the crowd and to start proceedings with a hot-lap competition in which Taddy took the £250 first prize.
The first of three Pro races began at 3pm and it was tense as the pack powered off the line and turned sharp left.
Jonny Walker took control and eased to a relatively straightforward victory ahead of Blazusiak and Knight but the best was yet to come.
Race two saw Walker and Blazusiak level going into the second bermed turn, Walker picked his line but Blazusiak clipped Walker's rear wheel and tumbled to the floor.
Knighter nearly rode over him but just missed and charged onwards to grab third spot behind Walker who was chasing Eurotek's Paul Bolton in first place.
Taddy picked himself up and continued onwards but at a much slower pace with twisted bars which made the logs very difficult to negotiate. Walker again took the win with Knight second and Bolts in third, Taddy finishing a lowly seventh.
The final race was all about bragging rights and pride.
With steely determination Knighter got a terrific start and held it around the first two tight turns to pull a gap on the rest of the field. Taddy and Walker were having none of it though and the chase was well and truly on.
With just six laps to the race there wasn't much time to make an impression but the KTM Factory pair showed what they were made of.
Walker took to the front but Blazusiak was determined to have at least one win to his credit and chased him down over the last few logs to take the win by two seconds as Knighter held a solid third.
The noise was unbelievable from the 2,500 spectators as the race tempo increased – a fitting finish to a spectacular event.
The Pro class had a small but strong contingent of riders, all of whom pushed hard in every race.
Paul Bolton had a brief moment of glory leading race two while his Eurotek team-mate Jonno Richardson managed a 5-6-5 finish result in the finals.
Fast Eddy Racing's own Jack Edmondson rode really well and wasn't intimidated in the least by the more experienced Pros, finishing just a single point behind Richardson and one ahead of CF Racing/Husqvarna rider Gethin Humphreys.
Missing from the finals was Ben Hemingway who had taken a tumble during timed qualifying and damaged the ligaments in his thumb, making it impossible to hold on over such an intense course.
This event can stand tall with any of the UK's indoors that have gone before it.
Paul Edmondson fulfilled a long-standing ambition to run a top-notch indoor event and every single detail was covered.
Top riders there and they put on a great show but he also kept it real for the majority of riders who are not Pros and gave them excellent value for money at a terrific venue with a world-class course and competition.
