Jarvis Conquers At Last
2013 ErzbergRodeo
www.fullnoise.com.au Enduro News
From a second row start the Husaberg Factory Team rider secured a
long overdue Erzberg win where he’s joined on the podium by Andreas
Lettenbichler and team-mate Alfredo Gomez in third
After many years of disappointment and despair Graham Jarvis finally had reason
to celebrate at the end of the 2013
ErzbergRodeo as he delivered one of the best performances of his extreme
enduro career.
Starting on the second row for the start of the Red Bull Hare Scramble, Jarvis
delivered a faultless performance to claim a well-deserved win.
“For once this race has gone perfectly for me,” explained a delighted Jarvis.
“I’m so happy to have finally won the Red Bull Hare Scramble – it’s
amazing.
"Oddly, starting from the second row worked in my favour. I saw the riders
on the front row have problems with the water so I knew I had to be careful. I
stuck to my line and didn’t do anything stupid and cleared the quarry. Only
after that did I think about racing.
“I pushed hard and steadily worked my way past as many riders as I could. I
knew I was going well as I saw less and less wheel tracks ahead of me. Just
before Karl’s Diner I passed Lettenbichler and took over the race lead,"
he continued.
"I was happy to lead into Karl’s Diner because that’s usually my strongest
section. Once out front I was able to ride my own race and opened up a decent
lead. I didn’t run into too much trouble at Dynamite and after that I was able
to cruise into the finish line to win the race.”
Claiming the chequered flag a massive 18 minutes ahead of second placed Lettenbichler, Jarvis finally topped the only extreme enduro race he hadn't previously won.
“It’s a massive relief to have finally won the Red Bull Hare Scramble. It’s the
only Hard Enduro race I’d yet to win. Missing out on the victory for the last
three years makes this win extremely rewarding. I’m a happy man." Jarvis
concluded.
Finishing second after leading the race early was Andreas Lettenbichler. The
German lead through the first 5 checkpoints with KTM's Ivan Cervantes shadowing
his every step with the duo followed by Jarvis.
Then on the way to checkpoint 6 Lettenbichler pulled away from Cervantes and build
up a gap of 2 minutes. The Husqvarna WR-300 mounted rider then held the lead
until Jarvis claimed the lead between checkpoints ten and eleven.
“The weather could be simply described as a disaster." Lettenbichler
stated. "But I managed to stay out of trouble for almost the whole race
and I'm pretty happy with my second place.”
Alfredo Gomez gave Husaberg a double podium with
a fine third place finish Credit: Jonty Edmunds
Husaberg
had a double reason to celebrate at the end of the Hare Scramble as Alfredo Gomez secured a third place result. Following
Jarvis during several of the earlier sections of the course, Gomez endured a
tough time mid way through the race but even with a damaged clutch casing held
on for a fine third place result.
“Thankfully I stayed out of trouble at the start and made it safely out of the quarry,”
commented Gomez. “When Graham passed me I tucked in behind him and followed him
through the forest sections.
"We passed a lot of riders and reached the top five. I got stuck on the
uphill out of Machine and lost touch with Graham. I attempted the hill about
four times but couldn’t get out. Ivan Cervantes was also there so we teamed up
to pull each other out of it.
“After that I kept riding on and managed to get up to third. Unfortunately I
damaged my clutch casing and by the time I got to the hill named Dynamite my
clutch was finished," he continued.
"I struggled so much there and panicked a little because Jonny Walker was
catching me. It was a relief to get to the top of that hill because I knew I
was within reach of the podium. It’s a fantastic feeling arriving at the finish
line.
"I’m so happy to have finished third. It’s been a fantastic result for
me," Gomez concluded.
2012 winner and one of the favourites heading in to the race Jonny Walker finished the race in 4th position as the
leading KTM rider and was followed across the line by Beta mounted Ben Hemingway in 5th. Dougie Lampkin finished in 6th aboard his Gas Gas
machine.
The remainder of the top ten was filled by KTM pilots as European bikes
dominated the event.
2013
Red Bull Erzberg Rodeo Top Ten:
1. Graham Jarvis (Husaberg) 2:01:06
2. Andreas Lettenbichler (Husqvarna) 2:18:46
3. Alfredo Gomez (Husaberg) 2:27:26;
4. Jonny Walker (KTM) 2:28:20;
5. Ben Hemingway (Beta) 2:37:10;
6. Dougie Lampkin (Gas Gas) 2:56:18;
7. Taichi Tanaka (KTM) 3:05:40;
8. Ivan Cervantes (KTM) 3:07:22;
9. Alex van den Broek (KTM) 3:41:59;
10. Pierre Pallut (KTM) 3:43:24;
Top Image: Graham Jarvis on his way to the 2013 Erzberg win
Credit: Jonty Edmunds
