    |
 |
|
|
|
Stefan Meriman at Linguaglossa - By Paolo Carruba:
Check out the WEBSITE: of Stefan Merriman, the Kiwi born Enduro ace for photos (including this event) his profile, events calendar, etc.
By Lexy Thorogood
Whilst the rest of Italy was covered in snow, the Enduro fraternity headed to Sicily for the first round of the Italian Enduro Championships. The race was held in a small village called Linguaglossa, halfway up Mt Etna. Mt Etna is the largest active volcano in Europe and the last eruption took place in October 2002. Consequently the ground was a mixture of soft alluvial dirt and polystyrene-like soft volcanic rock. The race was set to be at a level more difficult than the series last year. There were four special tests to be completed 4 times each - two cross tests, one enduro test and one extreme. When walking the tests, we could see that the tapes were set very close meaning that the width of the test was quite narrow, not allowing much choice of different lines. This was exacerbated by rain on race day, which ensured one long mono-rut occured around the whole test. This rut became so deep because of the soft dirt, riders were left with no other option but to follow the rut from the start to finish of the test.
Cold weather and rain on the first day made for a miserable race. The fastest times on the tests were set by the riders on 125's who started first. As the day progressed the special tests got more and more destroyed, making it harder for the late starters such as the 450's and 500cc bikes. Despite the horrible conditions, Merriman did well to finish second overall for the day behind, 125 Italian rider, Alessandro Belometti.
About the first day, Merriman said, " Today was an extremely difficult day, the test were very hard - narrow and tight and due to the soft ground, one big rut formed the whole way around. This made it hard for me to choose my own lines. The rain and cold weather made everything so much harder as I struggled to stay warm and keep my goggles clear from fogging up. I am very disappointed that the new timing system didn't work (transponders). It is hard to ride in these horrible conditions all day without any feedback of test results. I didn't know my special test times until an hour after the race.
Despite the fact the extreme and enduro tests were completely destroyed after the first day, the organizers did little to modify them for Sunday. The weather on the second day appeared to be a little better as it was sunny in the morning. However clouds swept over as the day progressed and light rain continued in the afternoon. On the first loop of the enduro test, Stefan was left waiting behind some riders caught in the single rut and as a result got a very poor result. Due to the fact that it was unfair and riders were getting stuck and others couldn’t pass the enduro test was cancelled on the second and third loops.
Stefan finished the day thinking he had won overall, after being told that the enduro test was cancelled. However Stefan’s results for the day were penalized as the FMI decided to include the first loop of the enduro test in the results, adding an extra 10 seconds to his total time. This inclusion meant that Stefan would be second to Italian rider, Simone Albergoni by 1 second. A very disappointing outcome and a decision that appeared a little biased in favour of the Italians and unfair.
About the race on Sunday, Merriman said, "I can't understand why they cancelled only the second and third loops of the enduro test today and not the first as well. It appears a little inconsistent. I got stuck behind another rider in the enduro test and this cost me 10 seconds. It is only the first round, and not a bad result when you consider how big the ruts were."
Italian Enduro Championships - Linguaglossa, Sicily ITALY
