60 Second Update – Red Bull Romaniacs, Day One

Husaberg’s Graham Jarvis showed everyone a clean set of heels as he took the win on day one at the Red Bull Romaniacs.

With the opening day of competition proving to be a tough one for all, Jarvis charged his way from fourth to first to take a comfortable 30-minute margin of victory. Behind him Husqvarna’s Andreas Lettenbichler worked his way from ninth to second to place as runner-up to Jarvis. Despite only making his debut ride at the Red Bull Romaniacs, Husaberg’s Alfredo Gomez mastered the GPS navigation to place third.

Lettenbichler battled on to finish second… © Lynn / Enduro21.com

As the winner of the Prologue, Paul Bolton (KTM) was the first to start the stage but he was also the first to get lost. It set the tone for the rest of the day as the Brit began to doubt his map reading skills. Tagging on to the wheel tracks of Chris Birch he rode home to seventh.

“It was my own fault,” told Bolton. “I made one mistake and that cost me a lot of time. After that I doubted myself. When I got lost again I managed to rejoin the track and ride with Birch. It was a hard day though. Possibly the toughest ever.”

The heat took it’s toll on many riders. Chris Birch found a novel way to cool down by stopping for a swim in a river.

“It worked a treat,” laughed Birch. “I was boiling up – it was hot with very little wind – so I stopped and went for a quick dip. I felt a million times better after that.”

Chris Birch feels the burn… © Lynn / Enduro21.com

Jonny Walker endured a nightmare of a day. Crashing while leading, losing his GPS and then running out of fuel 5km before the service check he managed to claw his way back to fifth.

“Bolton must have got lost early on because when I got to the first check point they told me I was leading,” explained Walker. “I pushed hard and then crashed off the side of a bank. I got going again with Lettenbichler but ran out of fuel before the service. I must have pushed my bike for about 3km until I begged some fuel from an Expert rider. When I got going again I managed to get back to fifth.”

Although unclassified as finishing, Ivan Cervantes made it back to Sibiu. Cristobal Guerrero wasn’t so lucky, he’s still out there – that’s about 15 hours in the saddle.

Pretty much everyone confirmed that the trails on day one were the hardest seen for a long time. The difficulty level plus the heat made it tough on everyone.

Ben Hemingway fights his way up Bad Shape – everyone’s most hated hill… © Lynn / Enduro21.com

It was an early start this morning. Riders left Parc Ferme at 6am and rode 42km to the start line for day one. Paul Bolton was the first to start at 6.45am. Day one consisted of approximately ten hours of bike time.

For those that made it day two, the race starts in Sibi and heads to an overnight stop in Petrosani.

Provisional Results – Red Bull Romaniacs, Day One

1. Graham Jarvis (Husaberg); 2. Andreas Lettenbichler (Husqvarna); 3. Alfredo Gomez (Husaberg); 4. Ben Hemingway (Beta); 5. Jonny Walker (KTM); 6 Chris Birch (KTM); 7. Paul Bolton (KTM); 8. Erasmo Klering (KTM)