RED BULL ROMANIACS IS BACK ON TRACK
Prologue - 5th Red Bull Romaniacs hard enduro rally
With a spectacular in city course the fifth edition of the Red Bull Romaniacs kicked off on the main boulevard of Sibiu. On Saturday afternoon the crowd braved the rain and welcomed 208 riders from 29 different nations to the world’s toughest hard enduro rally.
Again, Sibiu set the standard for the world and was one step ahead of everyone as far as action, entertainment and challenging obstacles are concerned: tree trunks, wall rides, wooden ramps and stairs, bridges and ladders, all wet and almost unridable - the hard facts of the prologue and the slippery playground for the daring riders.
The smell of adrenaline is back in town – a prove for pilots and fans that it’s time again for hard enduro: Due to the rainy conditions the action on the course – peppered with 15 different obstacles – was more spectacular than ever before and harder than expected by riders as well as organizers.
The opening group of hobby riders faced slippery tree trunks, wet stairs and rocks; they were the first to present themselves to the spectators. However, the demanding preconditions let some of them struggle through the prepared course. After the experts’ turns the whole obstacle park was sleek as oil and challenging enough for the pro class riders.
It was the trail riders’ day today – Britain’s Paul Bolton (Husquarna) took the lead right after the start proving his dominance by riding over the “oily” wall rides and damp tree trunks as smoothly as if he was in the open field.
In the course of the 20 minute race he maintained and even increased his leading position, only to be followed by BMW factory rider Gerhard Forster. The German is an experienced Red Bull Romaniacs rider and safely “conquered” one obstacle after the other to complete six laps and finish second.
Who originally inscribed as Tom Sagar’s substitute – young British rider Greg Evans (23, KTM) – took advantage of his homemade trial experience and rode his bike through the course in an impressive manner just to cross the finish line in third position.
Spectacular stunts, smoking bikes and swearing riders were pushed by the roaring crowd, which defied the weather and came as numerous as they did last year. The show they got to see was worth accepting muddy and wet shoes.
More riders than ever before – 34 pro riders, 53 expert single and 46 expert team riders, 71 hobby and four tourist riders – will go about four tough, challenging off road days: Numerous steep and narrow single trails, technical tracks and shaky whips, daily stages between 100 and 200 km, river crossings and hill climbs bypassing several spectator points, villages and barbeque places. The cultural capital of Europe 2007, Sibiu, will serve as the starting point as well as the daily stage finishing point.
Results Prologue Pro Class
1. Paul Bolton UK Husquarna 8 Laps
2. Gerhard Forster GER BMW 6
3. Greg Evans UK KTM 6
The results of today’s prologue – at least one lap had to be finished by each rider in order not to get a time penalty – will serve as starting order for the first off road stage on Sunday.
For the complete results and pictures of the day see www.redbullromaniacs.com
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