The International Six Days Enduro is seen by many as the Olympics of the enduro world, and is also classed as the toughest event of it’s kind on the annual off-road calendar.
This year close to 700 riders made the start line in Brive, Southern France for a series of grueling 8 hour days in the saddle. Among the international pack were three hardened riders from Mid Wales, supported by our good friends at ET James of Rhayader.
The trio included current Welsh Enduro Champion Adam James, former Welsh ISDE team rider Marc Evans & rookie Adam Rees, with Michelin acting as the team’s main sponsor with tyres supplied by Cambrian.
The opening day of racing resulted in mixed fortunes for the team, with rookie rider Adam Rees injuring his foot whilst tackling one of the many steep climbs on route. However Adam battled on bravely through the pain to finish the day. Marc Evans & Adam James fared much better, with both riders going “clean” and posting some very respectable times on all five special tests.
Day two was a re-run of the first, with temperatures still reaching the high thirties to add another challenge to the mix. Adam & Marc continued to post excellent special test times, both within a few seconds of each other, while Adam Rees had a much more enjoyable day improving as the day went on despite the broken bones in his foot.
Days three and four featured a new route and a drop in temperature was welcomed by all. new route was planned for Day 4, again with 5 special tests thrown in for good measure. The cooler weather conditions helped riders to better cope with the arduous days of riding in front of them. Adam James took a couple of heavy tumbles on two of the special tests on day four, hurting both hands in the process. By this point Marc had opened a 25 seconds gap over his teammate, with both riders still looking good for gold medals.
Day five was the last of the long rides, using the previous day’s route whilst check times were a little more relaxed. Yet again both Marc Evans & Adam James showed great pace on the special tests whilst Adam Rees battled on, determined to complete the full event despite his injuries.
Day 6 left the team with just the motocross event to compete and it went remarkably quick, with the atmosphere at the final motocross being pure electric.
Another strong showing saw both Marc Evans & Adam James taking home gold medals in their respective C2 classes, whilst Adam received much praise for finishing despite the three broken bones.
Many thanks to Michelin for getting behind the team once again this year.
You can check out their current enduro range here.
