We have officially passed the half way mark of the season and are well into the second half with round 5 taking place at Abestone Hard Enduro in Italy. A race that has been part of the FIM championship on and off for 4 years since 2021. Minestrone is a section of the race that has been well known since the beginning but this year appears to be the defining section and the true test and separator between the top guys.

We chat to Mike to get some on the ground stories and a behind the scenes look at what went down. From prologue with 2 juniors on the box we look a look at some of the stats and it was surprising to see Both Mani and Mitch being so wrong in this format throughout the season so far. The spring race proved to be quite a challenge for the riders, although only 1 hour the heat added an extra layer of intensity to the race. A unique race added to this event was the straight rhythm which set the starting positions for the orders for the main race day. This was an unfortunate setup for a number of riders who did exceptionally well in the print race but got pushed back due to poor results in this spectator focused event.

The main race was a 2 hour run for the riders that resulted in being around 6 laps for the top guys. Some good riders, some not so great results too. There is no doubt that riders who have been traveling between Europe and the US and then back to Europe have been struggling with jet lag and it’s no surprise that we’re seeing some changeup in the results.

We also touch on topics such as managing frustration when on track, where riders are standing in the championship so far as well as what riders can expect heading to The Roof Of Africa for the next round.

We hope you enjoy this episode!

Chapters:

00:00 Intro

13:42 Listener appreciation

14:02 Event format explained

15:06 The straight rhythm

17:44 Prologue

22:05 Sprint race results

25:14 Main race conditions

29:30 Aggression vs efficiency

31:09 Frustration in hard enduro

34:22 Billy's return

35:04 The last lap battle

37:05 Mr 3rd Place

38:00 Mario Roman:

40:24 Lorenzo Gondola

44:15 Main race results

49:24 The brutal reality of a consecutive race schedule

52:48 Championship standings

56:04 Roof of Africa preview

58:42 Junior championship battle

01:02:07 Predictions going into Roof of Africa

Mani falls off, picks the bike up, doesn't say a word and rides away. Meanwhile most of us are screaming at our bikes in a rock garden. How do YOU handle frustration on the trail? Let us know in the comments ↓↓↓

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