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Contributor: Lexy Thorogood
Bergamo ITALY: The small town of Clusone, hosted the 38th race of Valli Bergamasche, which was the 5th round of the Individual World Championship. The organizers promised the most difficult race of the year, with 5 specials per lap and one trials section to entertain the hoards of spectators that would show for this famous race. The cross tests were tight and technical, set on grassy paddocks. The first three tests were immediately after the start less than 5 minutes apart, which tested the endurance of the best of riders. As there had been heavy raining and floods in northern Italy weeks before the event the usually hard ground had soften considerably after the first lap and big ruts developed around each corner peg. The weather was sunny over the weekend, providing perfect conditions for riders and spectators alike, until last three specials of the day were interrupted by a thunderstorm. A jury meeting after the race, ruled that cross test one on the last lap would be cancelled as the rain made it impossible for some riders to make it up the hill and the test was cut for some riders, making the results uneven.
Eriksson extended his lead over the weekend in the 500cc class. Eriksson rode strong over both days, despite fending off a heavy cold. The strong Swede showed his dominance in the technical special tests, and said he enjoyed racing in the specials this weekend.
The closest race of the weekend was fought in the 125cc class. Husqvarna\'s Petteri Silvan battled it out in the grassy special tests with Germain and Larsson all finishing within one second of one another. Silvan rode hard all weekend to finish third on the first day and first on the second day. On the second day, he said \" I rode the same speed all day today, as the tests deteriorated so did the the times of my rivals and I was able to win\".
In the 250 class there was no competition for Husqvarna\'s Samuli Aro, he was unrivalled all weekend and achieved a good victory on both days. About the specials he said, \" I liked the cross tests very much, although the enduro test was not so nice too many rocks\".
In the 250 4 stroke class, Husqvarna finished second on both days. Paul Edmondson rode his TE250 fast on Saturday, winning a few tests over rival Bergvall but finished second at the end of the day. Husqvarna\'s Bartoz Oblucki ran into difficulties on Day 1 when he crashed and injured his wrist. Despite the pain, he was able to race on Sunday and picked up second position in his class.
Husqvarna\'s Stefan Merriman remains the leader of the 400cc 4 stroke class once again. Merriman had a couple of crashes over the weekend in the enduro test, which hampered his efforts to win. He did manage to finish second on both days both in the 400 class and gain valuable points in the overall classification.
The final points standings are.
Overall classification.
1.Salminen 209
2.Merriman 175 (Husqvarna)
3.Aro 152 (Husqvarna)
4.Eriksson 112 (Husqvarna)
125cc 2T - Silvan 206 (Husqvarna), Larsson 182, Germain 145, Pohjamo 119
250cc 2T - Aro 235 (Husqvarna), Knight 152, Laaksonen 147, Wiik 124,
250cc 4T - Bergvall 241, Edmondson 185 (Husqvarna), Oblucki 160 (Husqvarna)
400cc - Merriman 225 (Husqvarna), Salminen 221, Tarkala 123, Arpa 118
500cc - Eriksson 225 (Husqvarna), Ahola 192, Carlsson 157, Sala 127
World Enduro Championships- Bergamo, ITALY
Results Day 1
Overall
1. Juha Salminen 1.02.47:89
2. Stefan Merriman (HUS) 1.03.24:00
3. Samuli Aro (HUS) 1.03.32:51
4. Anders Eriksson (HUS) 1.04.12:38
500cc 1. Anders Eriksson (HUS) 1.04.12:38 2. Giovanni Sala (KTM) 1.04.26:80 3. Bjorne Carlsson (HBG) 1.04.25:85
125cc 2T 1. Rickard Larsson (TM) 1.04.44:00 2. Marc Germain (YAM) 1.04.44:01 3. Petteri Silvan (HUS) 1.04.45:94
250cc 2T 1. Samuli Aro (HUS) 1.03.32:51 2. Jarno Boarno (HON) 1.04.21:16 3. David Knight (YAM) 1.04.31:17
250cc 1. Peter Bergvall (YAM) 1.04.55:34 2. Paul Edmondson (HUS) 1.05.15:23 3. Bartoz Oblucki (HUS) 1.06.18:48
400cc 1. Juha Salminen (KTM) 1.02.47:89 2. Stefan Merriman (HUS) 1.03.24:00 3. Roman Michalik (VOR) 1.04.16:00
Day 2 - Bergamo, ITALY
Overall
1. Juha Salminen (KTM) 56.00:15
2. Anders Eriksson (HUS) 56.17:79
3. Mika Ahola (VOR) 56.20:43
500cc 1. Anders Eriksson (HUS) 56.17:79 2. Mika Ahola (VOR) 56.20:43 3. Bjorne Carlsson (HBG) 56.24:39
250cc 4T 1. Peter Bergvall (YAM) 58.19:78 2. Bartoz Oblucki (HUS) 58.53:17 3. Niklas Gustavsson (KTM) 58.58:63
400cc 1. Juha Salminen (KTM) 56.00:15 2. Stefan Merriman (HUS) 56.57:93 3. Roman Michalik (VOR) 57.35:26
250cc 2T 1. Samuli Aro (HUS) 56.27:96 2. Jani Laaksonen (GAS) 57.18.96 3. Jarno Boarno (HON) 57.24:13
125cc 2T 1. Petteri Silvan (HUS) 56.55:30 2. Marc Germain (YAM) 57.07:80 3. Petri Pohjamo (GAS) 57.12:89
