Introducing the 2009 Canadian ISDE Team

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The International Six Day Enduro was first held in 1913. Think about that date for a second. 1913! Like before World War One! Back when cars still had wooden spokes in their wheels and airplanes barely flew! That makes the ‘Six Days’ the oldest and most prestigious dirt bike event on the FIM calendar. It is six long days of beating bike and body to a pulp, changing your own tires and doing most of your own maintenance…all for National pride and glory.

Famous ISDE gold medal winners the motoheads worship include well-known motocrossers like Jeff Smith, Roger DeCoster, Stephan Everts and Rodney Smith. There are tons more. What I’m saying is if you race dirt bikes, the ISDE is the ultimate honour. There’s a pile of Canadian ISDE heroes too. I won’t get into the huge list of great Canadian ISDE riders but will instead mention guys we’ve talked about lately on DMX, like Helmut Clasen, Canada’s first ever gold medal winner back in 1971, Blair Sharpless, a 10 time medallist, Guy Giroux’s three ISDE medals and Patrick Beaule’s two medals. Needless to say, Canadian riders have earned a lot of awards overseas, but unfortunately it’s something the motocross-biased media never really talked about.

Anyway, the point I am trying to get to is that Enduro racers, like our riders who race the Motocross Des Nations, have always been crippled by funding issues to an even greater scale than our MXDN team. That makes racing the Six Days as much a labour of love and good relations with your personal loan officer as anything else.

For 2009, the ISDE will be held in Figueira da Foz, Portugal, October 12-17. DMX will be keeping tabs on our team while they are over there, but for now here’s a list of riders that should earn your respect not only for their abilities as riders but for having the audacity to head to Europe to compete against the best in the world.

The majority of this year’s Canadian ISDE team are from Alberta, so we’ll start there.

Rob Reed has ridden the Six Days twice, earning two silver medals in the process. He rides a KTM 450 with support from KTM Canada and A&E Racing.

Clint Riviere holds a 2002 CMRC Pro Hare Scramble title, and has ridden the Six Days twice earning a bronze medal in Slovakia in 2006.

Jack Sawatski, from Cochrane Alberta, was on the podium at all four Western CEC races this year. This is the KTM 250XC-F rider’s first trip to the Six Days, with help from A&E racing and Motovan.

Burt Petersen earned a silver medal at the USA ISDE in Tulsa, Oklahoma way back in 1994. Still on the gas a decade later, he snatched another Silver medal at the New Zealand ISDE in 2006.

Scott Coonfer finishes off the list of Alberta riders on the team, riding a 570 Husaberg in his first ever attempt at the ISDE. A Veteran rider, he’s been working hard to get himself into the best shape of his life to chase his dream in Portugal.

So why do guys from Alberta rip? Find out here. http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=j91n5Rj9WNQ

 

From Ontario, Yamaha’s Brian Wojnarowski is a familiar name to everyone who has been following the Royal Distributing Canadian Enduro Series, where he finished sixth overall. When he wasn’t standing on CEC podiums he was busy winning the 2009 CMA Pro Hare Scramble Series title on his Toyota/Yamaha/Machine Racing YZ250.

Frank Sutton, at 56, is the veteran rider on the team. Sutton, who has long been a fixture on the Canadian Enduro scene, rode his GasGas to an American GNCC Vet title in 2005. He’s made three attempts at the Six Days, saying 2009 is, “…my last hurrah! I definitely want to finish the Six Days to cap off my career.”

We certainly have a great, interesting team of riders representing Canada in Portugal this year. DMX will stay on top of their ISDE experience, so stay tuned!