Birch completes African hat trick

From the Baboons Lesotho Sun Roof of Africa

New Zealand rider Chris Birch scored a hat trick when he won the 2010 Baboons Lesotho Sun Roof of Africa after a tight battle with South African Jade Gutzeit.

The tough event, which concluded last Saturday, not only tested the endurance of competitors, but their mental fitness too and only 22 riders managed to score gold when they completed the full race distance within the prescribed time over three days.

Birch (Brother Broadlink KTM) and Gutzeit (Full Throttle Yamaha) were locked in a tight battle with only three seconds separating them at the start of the final day. Just after the start Birch misjudged a river crossing and drowned his bike, losing about eight minutes while he made repairs. He rode like a mad man and caught up with Gutzeit.

On one of the last mountain passes – Please Push Me Pass – Gutzeit ran out of steam and could not maintain the battle with Birch and although Birch admitted afterwards that he was extremely exhausted, he knew that victory was in sight and that kept him going. He finished just over 18 minutes ahead of Gutzeit after almost 18 and a half hours of battling with one of the toughest Roof of Africa routes yet.

Like last year, German Andreas Lettenbichler (Team Husqvarna SA) produced another outstanding performance when he finished third after losing 30 minutes when he got lost on the second day.

UK privateer Paul Bolton (Brother Broadlink KTM) finished fourth after his first attempt at the Lesotho event while the South African and Red Bull Romaniacs course setter, Craig Stone (KTM) finished fifth to claim his best position at this event.

One of the star performances of the event was local businessman Wynand Badenhorst (Leo Internet Yamaha), who competed in his third Baboons Lesotho Sun Roof of Africa event and finished sixth overall after being constantly in the top 10 during the race.

For more information about the 2010 Baboons Lesotho Sun Roof of Africa, visit www.roof-of-africa.com.