The Bank Windhoek National Enduro Series awards

The Bank Windhoek Namibian National Enduro Series 2015 concluded recently after eight events, packed with spectacular racing and excitement.

The Namibian National Enduro Series accommodated both male and female riders in 11 different classes, from the National Classes for professionals, up to the Development Class for young beginners, thus enabling all enduro enthusiasts to join the action.

The series events took place at Omakwara, Lichtenstein, Aranos, Tony Rust, Abbabis, Otjihase, Neu-Heusis and Otjihokero and a total of 116 motorbike and quad riders took part in the events with ages ranging from 9 to 52 years of age. On average, 58 riders entered per event.

On 14 November, The Bank Windhoek Namibian National Enduro Series winners were officially announced by the Namibian Enduro Club at a function on Farm Elisenheim. Bank Windhoek donated N$20 000 prize money for the winners of the numerous awards.

The National Motorbike Championship 2015 had 24 competitors on average in three classes (bikes up to 200cc; bikes over 250 cc and senior riders). In the category for motorbikes up to 200 cc, it was routineer Ingo Waldschmidt (KTM, Team Neo) – winner of four events – who secured the National Championship and trophy sponsored by Hemco Paints, ahead of the young and talented Henle brothers. Pascal Henle (KTM) finished second while Marcel Henle (KTM) finished third.

The Open Class, for motorbikes over 250 cc, was dominated by Henner Rusch (KTM, Team Adcon). His unbeaten winning streak this year deservedly earned him the championship trophy sponsored by Steelforce. Kai Hennes (KTM, Team Neo) came second in all races except one, to finish second overall, while Günter Gladis (KTM) made it to third with a spirited performance throughout the year.

The senior national motorbike championship trophy sponsored by CRP went to Sven Schneidenberger (KTM Team Neo), followed by Frank Ahlreip (KTM, Team SatCom) and Martin Diekmann (KTM, Team SatCom).

The Best Motorbike Rider title and Fastest Lap award went to Henner Rusch, who scored 137 points. Ingo Waldschmidt secured second place in this category (105 points), followed by Kai Hennes (92 points).

The National Quad Championship consists of three classes, i.e. the Open Quads, the Women’s Quads and the Senior Quads. The Women’s Class championship title and trophy, sponsored by Pupkewitz Honda, went to the phenomenal Maike Bochert (Honda) who scoried a total of 140 points by winning seven out of eight events.

Shannon Rowland (Honda) and Claire Brendel (Honda, Team Neo) provided the followers of the Enduro championship an exciting time, as they raced to a close finish until the last race of the year. Rowland secured the second spot with 118 points while Brendel came third with 109 points.

The Quads Open Class Championship trophy sponsored by Prothatch, and Fastest Lap winner, is Dimo Eloff (Honda), who dominated this category with five victories this season and two second places. His closest contender, Uwe Brockmann (Honda) scored a total of 77 points while Lotario van Wyk (Yamaha) finished third with 60 points.

The Best Quad Rider of the Year title went to Maike Bochert (140 points), ahead of Dimo Eloff (126 points) and Shannon Rowland (118 points).

The Non-national Motorbike Class winners were awarded trophies sponsored by Olympia Pharmacy for their performances and contribution to the sport too. In particular the Clubman’s Motorbike Class provided fascinating entertainment, with 14 riders on average entering per event.

The clubman’s class identifies future national class riders, and the riders to watch next year are winners Gernot Bahr (Husaberg), second-placed Gunnar Grasreiner (KTM) and third-placed Nickel Visser (Husaberg, CN Racing). The three riders were only separated by 14 points in the final scoring, illustrating the close finish between them. Gernot Bahr received the Motorbike Rookie of the Year award for his performance this season.

Fifteen riders joined the Offroad Bikes Class in 2015 and on average five competed per event. Peter Weber (KTM) won five of eight events and deservedly took first place with a total of 104 points, winning the trophy sponsored by EMTSS. Kurt Hartung (KTM), who joined mid-season, impressed with good results and finished second overall. Heiko Brettschneider (KTM) secured third place overall with his podium finish at Otjihokero.

The newly established Development Class saw seven juniors competing throughout the year, and were awarded trophies sponsored by Solsquare. All riders finished their races at all events and gathered valuable experience. Lenny Bagwitz (Yamaha) emerged as the champion of the Development Class, winning six of seven events and accumulating a total of 99 points. This performance also earned him the Most Improved Rider of the Year award, which is dedicated to the rider achieving the most wins and points, considering the number of years participating in the Enduro series. Second place went to Keanu Weber-Trianus (KTM,) while Adam Johnston (Yamaha) finished third overall.

In the Non-national Quad bike Class, Klossie Fourie (Suzuki) won four events and scored a total of 72 points to win the overall championship and trophy sponsored by Propshaft Engineering. Juan Tyren van As (Honda) followed him closely to finish second, by winning two events and scoring 63 points. Tyren van As received the Most Improved Quad Rider of the Year award, dedicated to the quad rider achieving the most wins and points in relation to the number of years in the Enduro series. Johan Steyn (Honda), winner at Lichtenstein and Neu-Heusis finished third with 56 points in total.

The Namibian Enduro Club extended best wishes to Henner Rusch, Pascal Henle, Jörn Greiter and Martin Diekmann who will participate and represent the club and Namibia at the Roof of Africa event in Lesotho during December 2015.

The Namibian Enduro Club offers quad and off road motorbike enthusiasts the possibility to enjoy Enduro sport and encourages newcomers to join. For more information please consult the Namibian Enduro Club website www.namibianenduro.com where registration forms are available.

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