More than just a Sprint!
By TMX Archives on 14th Jan 11
Following on from the inaugural running of Europe's first sprint enduro championship, series promoters GMC Events recently released details of their plans to expand what will officially be known as the Husqvarna ACU British Sprint Enduro Championship series in '11.
As a championship that's injecting new life into the UK enduro scene, T+MX spoke to Jonty Edmunds, the man responsible for bringing the sprint enduro concept to the UK, to find out what can be expected from the 2011
championship...
T+MX: From an organisational point of view how do you view the BSEC's first year?
Jonty: Everyone involved is pleased with what was achieved in 2010. Establishing anything that's new is never without its challenges but we're pleased because establishing the discipline was our primary objective, and we feel we've done that. No one is going to race or come along and watch an event they don't understand so we knew it would take a while for people to understand the style of racing. We're extremely grateful to everyone who supported the championship during its first year – riders, sponsors, spectators, helpers, etc. We always knew that we'd learn a lot during year one, and we did. The core product worked, we simply want to fine-tune and improve it for ‘11. One thing that's really pleasing is that the concept has been embraced by others with the London Fire Brigade MCC, the Dirt 3-2-1 event, and the GB XC series, all running sprint enduro races.
T+MX: Was stepping up and running a British championship a rewarding process?
Jonty: Very much so. Even as a modest six-round series the level of work involved was a surprise, but the many positive comments we received at the final round made all of the work worthwhile. Personally, I enjoyed the process. But we made a conscious decision not too bite off more than we could chew during year one. Also, doing what we said we were going to do was important. We didn't want to under deliver in any way.
T+MX: Why has the name of the championship changed for 2011?
Jonty: It's not so much changed, just been altered slightly. Obviously with Husqvarna coming on board as title sponsor it was going to change slightly, but it's because the championship quickly became known as the ‘sprint enduro' series we realised that naming it enduro sprint was kind of going against the tide. We knew we'd have to alter some things after the first year and the name was one of them. It's officially the Husqvarna ACU British Sprint Enduro Championship.
T+MX: Getting feedback from those competing in the events aswell as from from spectators, is something the championship has actively encouraged. What was the general feedback after the 2010
series?
Jonty: Generally it's all been very positive. Riders of different abilities enjoyed it, the friends and families of those competing enjoyed the events, which was very important for us, and we also received lots of positive comments from those that came along as spectators. Obviously for myself the BSEC series is hugely important, but I'm well aware that to the wider off-road motorcycle world it's just one of many championships. Probably the highlight of the series for me was when Mike Church, owner of the former Molson Kawasaki GP Motocross team and life-long motorcycle fan, came to the opening and final rounds of the series and offered some hugely positive words of encouragement. That meant a lot to me, and made me realise that we had managed to reach out to the wider off-road motorcycle community.
T+MX: David Knight's participation certainly helped shine a light on the series. How important was his participation in establishing the series?
Jonty: Having David compete was fantastic for the series and certainly ensured the wider world took note of the championship. David's the biggest name in enduro sport and to have him get stuck into the championship was great for all. He's a true ambassador of the sport and offered a lot of very positive feedback. He genuinely took a real interest in the series, partly because he too wants enduro sport to thrive in the UK.”
T+MX: How important was it for the series to attract a title sponsor?
Jonty: It was hugely important and right at the top of ‘to do' list for 2011.
Having a prestigious brand such as Husqvarna officially associate itself with, and back, the championship is great.
It allows the series to further establish itself and ensures a raised profile, which is good for all involved. Husqvarna is being re-launched in the UK and Husqvarna UK like the fact that the BSEC series unites racers and spectators. We're thrilled to have Husqvarna's backing for two-years, but equally as pleased to have retained the support of all of the companies that backed the championship in 2010. Michelin, Acerbis, Azego and TBM continue to support the series, and we're hugely grateful for their support.
2010 British Sprint Enduro Championship
Final Series Standings
Elite class: 1 David Knight (KTM) 120 points, 2 Greg Evans (KTM) 94, 3 Daryl Bolter (KTM) 81, 4 Si Wakely (Husqvarna) 69, 5 Ed Jones (KTM) 59, 6 Phillip McLaughlin (TM) 47, 7 Jon Hinam (KTM) 41, 8 Gordon Clarke (TM) 40, 9 Gethin Price (KTM) 38, 10 Kev Murray (Yamaha) 36, 11 Taddy Blazusiak (KTM) 34, 12 Paul Bolton (KTM) 32, 13 James Jackman (Yamaha) 24, 14 Rob Jones (Yamaha) 16, 15 Dylan Jones (Yamaha) 10, 16 Luke Hill (Honda) 7, 17 Andrew Reeves (KTM) 5, 18 Adam Quincey (Gas Gas) 2.
Expert ES1: 1 Robert Lynn (TM) 112, 2 Jez Dance (KTM) 75, 3 Tony Cotty (Yamaha) 50, 4 Phillip Cooper (Yamaha) 49, 5 Alex Taylor (TM) 42, 6 Steve Hunt (Yamaha) 40, 7 Neil Hawker (Yamaha) 32, 8 Ian Barnett (KTM) 30, 9 Peter Bellinger (KTM) 28, 10 Karl Greenall (KTM) 17, 11 Tara Geiger (Honda) 17, 12 Jeff Perrett (KTM) 15, 13 Wayne Mundell (KTM) 13.
Expert ES2: 1 Aaron Poolman (Husaberg) 112, 2 Tyson Maythom-Jones (Husaberg) 108, 3 Oliver Hart (KTM) 90, 4 Stuart James (KTM) 63, 5 Craig Williamson (Kawasaki) 45, 6 Freddie Broadway (KTM) 28, 7 Karl Greenall (KTM) 24, 8 Stephen Grimshaw (Gas Gas) 22, 9 Mark Perrott (KTM) 22, 10 Jesse Say (KTM) 16, 11 David Lote (Honda) 16, 12 Mike Bailey (Yamaha) 13, 13 James Goulestone (Kawasaki) 11, 14 Ian Smart (KTM) 11, 15 Simon Ellway (KTM) 7.
Expert ES3: 1 David Grimshaw (Honda) 40, 2 David Jones (KTM) 20.
Under 23 ES1: 1 Joe Deakin (Husqvarna) 104, 2 Lewis Belfield (KTM) 94, 3 Alex Rockwell (Hisqvarna) 80, 4 James Giddings (KTM) 77, 5 Craig Reynolds (Yamaha) 66, 6 Stuart Owen (Yamaha) 44, 7 Freddie Davies (KTM) 37, 8 James Burroughs (Husqvarna) 34, 9 Tom Howe (KTM) 33, 10 Robert Johnson (Husqvarna) 31, 11 Tom Braddock (Husqvarna) 24, 12 David Lloyd Jones (KTM) 21, 13 Alun Jones (KTM) 18, 14 Neil Chatham (Husqvarna) 14, 15 George Baylis (Yamaha) 15, 16 Seb Dexter (Suzuki) 11, 17 Max Verney (Yamaha) 7, 18 Daniel Price (Yamaha) 7.
Under 23 ES2: 1 Ollie Moyce (Husaberg) 117. 2 Ashley Wood (Gas Gas) 94, 3 Mark Roberts (KTM) 86 4 Joe Jones (KTM) 76, 5 Frazer Norrie (KTM) 66, 6 Daniel Beaven (TM) 42, 7 Aaron Smith (Yamaha) 41, 8 Richard Tucker (KTM) 40, 9 Gavin Houson (KTM) 22, 10 Johnny Walker (KTM) 22, 11 Andrew Gorse (KTM) 20, 12 Ashley Fox (KTM) 18, 13 Rhys Davies (KTM) 17, 14 Ben Scott (KTM) 15, 15 Joe Mitchinson (KTM) 14, 16 Mike Evans (KTM) 11.
Under 23 ES3: 1 Daniel McCanney (Gas Gas) 120, 2 Jamie Paget (Husaberg) 68, 3 Kieran Jones (Gas Gas) 43, 4 Josh Corlett (Gas Gas) 35, 5 Bradley King (Gas Gas) 30, 6 Jack Faragher (Gas Gas) 13, 7 Josh Corlett (Gas Gas) 13, 8 Nick Ward (Gas Gas) 10.
FOR FULL REPORT AND PICTURES SEE T+MX JANUARY 14