Sports

FunEnduro 2005 -- Nov 11- 13 2005

By Stephen Nowakowski

Valle de Bravo, Mexico, located two hours west of Mexico City at an altitude of around 6,000 feet, is known as a favorite weekend spot for Mexico City, Cuernavaca and Toluca residents. It is a bustling colonial town of around 50,000 people located on the banks of a man-made lake and surrounded by pine-tree-covered mountains. It sits amid some spectacular scenery and is in an area known for its nature and adventure sports. Valle was host this past November 11-13, 2005 to the 4th annual FunEnduro, an Enduro motorcycle event put on by DiazBrothers Motorsports that brought out 340 riders from all across Mexico, including professional riders from the US, Europe and Latin America.

What is Enduro ?
Enduro is an off road motorcycle event in which each rider races against the clock, not the other riders, and are known for having challenging natural obstacles: rivers, mountains, rocks, etc... There is a set time for each rider to get from point A to point B, and in between are special test sections where the riders’ speed in that section is timed. The FunEnduro is a two day event similar to the World Enduro Championship rounds held in Europe. (The World Enduro Championship will be held for the first time ever in the USA in 2006.) Each day of the event is scored and at the end of Day 2 an Overall Champion is crowned.

Enduro Tourist

My wife and I are avid off road motorcyclists in Houston, Texas, and have attended Enduro events across the globe. Last year we attended the FunEnduro as spectators but this year I decided to participate. We drove from Texas to join a large group of friends, over 30 riders from Monterrey, who had come to compete. The two-day drive from Houston, Texas, was worth every penny and every hour on the road. Sure there are easier ways of getting to ride the event, but just getting there was half the adventure. As for the race itself, the course was high in the mountains and spectacular does not even begin to describe the beauty. Each day of this year’s FunEnduro spanned over 100 kms of slick clay mountain roads, high wet rocky climbs, and beautiful fields of wild flowers. The Special Test sections were both open cross type sections as well as Enduro sections in the woods with hills and rocks forcing each and every competitor to show their skill at each specialty. At every turn there was someone to help translate or just help. On one very slick rocky climb a local man and his sons hacked their way through the brush so that they could help riders stuck in the rocks. Any experienced rider who is looking for adventure should think about the FunEnduro in Valle de Bravo, the Diaz brothers know how to put on a first class event. My wife and I are already looking forward to next year’s event.

FunEnduro 2005 Results
First Place: HOMERO DIAZ (#87), Mexico, (who came in 2nd place in 2002 but has won every year since); Second Place: SIMONE ALBERGONI (#80), Italy; Third Place: XEVI PUIGDEMONT (#93), Spain; Fourth Place: BRIAN GARRAHAN (#75), USA; Fifth Place BARTOSZ OBLUCKI (#89), Poland.

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