ROCKSTAR ENERGY HUSQVARNA FACTORY RACING PRIMED FOR 2021 ROMANIACS HARD ENDURO RALLYE.
BOLT, GOMEZ, AND JARVIS ARRIVE IN ROMANIA TO CONTEST ROUND FOUR OF THE FIM HARD ENDURO WORLD CHAMPIONSHIP.
Rockstar Energy Husqvarna Factory Racing’s three-man team of Billy Bolt, Alfredo Gomez, and Graham Jarvis have travelled to Sibiu in Romania to race the Romaniacs Hard Enduro Rallye. Marking round four of the inaugural FIM Hard Enduro World Championship, the five-day event will run from July 27-31.
Looking to maintain the consistent run of form that has taken him to the win at Extreme XL Lagares and Abestone Hard Enduro, Billy Bolt comes into Romaniacs in search of the podium result that has eluded him so far in his career. Aiming to learn from the experience of his teammates and having put in a lot of Romaniacs-focused training over recent weeks, the British star hopes to take a more measured approach to the massively gruelling event and post strong, consistent results on each of the four full days of offroad racing. With the race requiring mental strength as well as physical endurance, and speed, Bolt feels he is more prepared than ever to challenge for a top result.
Runner-up in 2019 and third in 2020, Alfredo Gomez excels in the long days and tough conditions of Romaniacs. Riding his favoured TE 300i 2-stroke, Gomez is feeling well and fully prepared to take on the world’s toughest hard enduro rallye. Having come frustratingly close to claiming the win over the past two editions, Alfredo has one goal for this year’s event – to become the 2021 Romaniacs Champion.
Coming into the race as the rider with the most Romaniacs victories in the history of the event, six-time winner Graham Jarvis will be looking to make it seven. After 20 hours of racing, through some of the toughest conditions seen at Romaniacs, Jarvis lost out on the 2020 win by just over two minutes – an incredible achievement for the now 46-year-old. Riding to third place at both Extreme XL Lagares and Abestone Hard Enduro, Graham is on top form and more than capable of mixing it with the young guns when the race starts on Tuesday, July 27.
Held over five days, opening with time trial qualifications followed by four full days offroad, the 18th edition of the Romaniacs Hard Enduro Rallye looks set to be one of the toughest ever. Dubbed ‘Vertical Madness Reloaded’ for 2021 due to the huge amount of climbing faced over the course of the race, the event will also challenge competitors with a marathon stage for the first time in its history. Riders will camp out overnight following offroad day two, before carrying on through day three. No outside assistance will be permitted during the marathon, so caring for your machine may prove as important as out-and-out speed over the two demanding days.
Round four of the FIM Hard Enduro World Championship takes place in Sibiu, Romania from July 27-31.
Billy Bolt:“I’m ready to go, feeling good, and happy to be here in Romania. It’s great to come into Romaniacs leading the championship, but with a five-day race ahead of us, it doesn’t mean too much as we’ve got a lot of racing ahead of us and some tough events, starting with this one. I’d say I’m coming into this race the best prepared I’ve ever been, both mentally and physically. With a few years under my belt I have a better idea of how to get ready for this event, on and off the bike, and in terms of fitness. Last year’s race was a big step forward for me and going fastest on the final day showed I have the pace and stamina to succeed, I had just made a couple of small mistakes that cost me early on. I’m confident to carry what I’ve learned into this year and hopefully that can mean a place on the podium.”
Alfredo Gomez:“After Abestone I went to Italy and did a lot of training for Romaniacs, that included a round of the Italian Extreme Championship, which I won. I then came to Romania, and with Billy we did a lot more riding in the mountains here, dialling in the bike, and ourselves to the terrain. The goal as always is to win, I have come so close in the past but never quite finished on top, so I will try my best and we’ll see what happens at the end on Saturday.”
Graham Jarvis:“I’m ready for the race and looking forward to getting started. It looks like it’s going to be similar to last year with the addition of the camping – that adds a new element and I’m pleased they have added something different to keep us on our toes. I’m feeling good after Abestone, but the first challenge at Romaniacs is to just get through the race. Assuming I can get through to the final day without too many problems, I should be in with a shout of the podium.”
Text/Bild: Husqvarna