BP2

D2D 2004

The 3rd annual Dawn To Dusk 12 Hour Enduro took place on Sunday 24th August near Glynneath in South Wales. The weather was poor & squalls of rain overnight ensured that the riders would not be troubled by the dust of previous years. At 6.45am the gloom was brightened by the twinkling lights of the bikes in the Parc Ferme rumbled into life. By 7am the field was lined up at the start in ranks of Pros, Experts, Club & Sportmen. Richard Hay had once again traveled down from Scotland to defend his Ironman title but Lee Walters had set himself a real challenge by entering the Marathon class on a 650 BMW. Patsy Quick was also making a day of it. The start was delayed by 25 minutes while the opening marshals replaced tape that had been blown down in the night. The course uses 18 miles of a network of tracks - on a reclaimed slag heap - that threads it's way between blocks of young conifers. It is more difficult to mark than mature forestry or open going & - with such an intricate course - the marking must be spot on. By 7.25am the starters - Si Pavey & Nick Plumb - had got the all clear & they flagged the field away in Le Mans style. Huskysport rider Daryl Bolter was the first off the line. Daryl is in the ISDE Junior Trophy team. He was teamed with ISDE Team England rider Chris Hockey - who won the 2003 D2D with Wyn Hughes. By the man-made jump - a quarter of mile from the start - the lead had been taken by Cyril Despres - who was competing in a team with fellow Dakar rider Alfie Cox from South Africa - & Despres had extended his lead by the end of the first lap. Chris Hockey was 2nd & Mark Jackson was 3rd for the Dumb & Dumber team with Woody Hole. Sportsman Colin McCaughey had bad luck when he was forced to retire on the first hill when he was struck by another rider & broke his KTM radiator. As the rest of the competitors completed their first lap. the gaps between the riders suggested that Colin had missed out on some demanding going. Following the check, the riders had the option of "pitting". The pits were very professionally laid out with neat rows of gazebos. Team strategies began to emerge. At the end of lap 1, Despres swept passed grabbing a fresh pair of goggles on the fly. Daryl Bolter was second. The Woody Hole/Mark Jackson team were 3rd. Honda Racing's Fast Eddy rider Paul Whibley(NZ) finished the first lap in 4th & then stopped for a long chat with team mate Simon Wakely - another Trophy Team member. The conference was clearly fruitful as the team went on to win the event with 19 laps (4 laps less than last year's winning score). Hockey & Bolter finished second. The international team of Cox & Despres were third. The Jones brothers - Rowan & Dylan - who are also bound for Poland reveled in the difficult conditions to finish 4th. Finishing in 8th place Richard Hay retain his Ironman title with 17 laps. Results Overall Lap Class Photos