by: Chelsea Taylor
Tuesday, October 18, 2016 | 12:55 PM
FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE
Chelsea Taylor
(304) 284-0084
[email protected]
U.S. World Trophy Team Makes History by Winning the
International Six Days Enduro for the First Time
Taylor Robert Takes Top Honors as Individual Overall Winner
MORGANTOWN, W.Va. (October 18, 2016) – The 91st running of the International Six Days Enduro (ISDE), the longest-running team world championship in off-road motorcycling, took place October 11-16 in Navarra, Spain. After an intense battle against all possible conditions, the U.S. World Trophy Team rose to the occasion, winning the ISDE World Trophy for the first time in our nation’s history.
The 4-man U.S. World Trophy Team took the early lead on the first day of competition and continued their dominance throughout the six-day long trial, finishing three minutes and thirty-eight seconds ahead of Great Britain and the Czech Republic. Team members included three West Virginia natives - Kailub Russell, Thad Duvall and Layne Michael - all top competitors in the U.S.-based AMSOIL Grand National Cross Country (GNCC) Series, an AMA National Championship, and Arizona’s Taylor Robert, a top contender on the World Enduro scene.
Not only did the U.S. World Trophy Team capture the overall win, but team member FMF/KTM Factory Racing’s Taylor Robert earned the 2016 Individual ISDE Overall, only the second American rider to ever to claim this prestigious honor.
For 91 years the ISDE has been hosted in a different country annually. This unique event spans six days of grueling off-road racing consisting of a series of special tests. Countries are represented by teams of riders, making this event the most prestigious off-road team event in the world – it is the Olympics of off-road racing. This year 22 different countries sent their best riders to compete for the World Trophy Title.
“Having competed in the ISDE six times myself, I know how tough on both man and machine the event can be,” said GNCC Trail Boss Jeff Russell, who made the trip to Spain to support the U.S. team from his home in Morgantown, West Virginia. “It takes a lot of hard work from each rider, and I couldn’t be more proud of what this team was able to accomplish. This race will go down in history as the most dominant performance by the United States. We can finally claim title to home of the world’s best off-road racers, and we here at Racer Productions and the entire GNCC Racing community couldn’t be more proud of how our riders came together as a team and performed on the world stage.”
Just one day before leaving for Spain, FMF/KTM Factory Racing’s Kailub Russell captured his fourth consecutive GNCC Overall National title at the Powerline Park GNCC in St. Clairsville, Ohio. Teammate Rocky Mountain ATV/MC KR4 Husqvarna’s Duvall is currently ranked fifth in the GNCC Series, while the youngster on the team, 22-year-old Layne Michael, rounds out the top 10, with one more race to go later this month.
Michael’s accomplishment is particularly remarkable, given the fact that he was not originally slated to be on the team. Last year Ryan Sipes became the first American to become the Individual ISDE Overall Winner in Slovakia. This year, the same day Russell was crowned the 2016 National Champion, Sipes was injured in a pre-race accident, ending his quest to defend his 2015 overall win. His replacement was Coastal Racing/Rockstar/Husqvarna teammate Layne Michael. With less than 24-hour’s notice, Michael was on a plane to Spain, where he had big boots to fill. As the week progressed, so did Michael’s results, leaving no doubt that he was a fitting replacement for Sipes.
The victory celebration continued with the 3-man U.S. Junior Trophy Team who also finished on the podium. The Junior Trophy Team is limited to riders 23-years of age and younger, and featured three top 10 ranked GNCC racers. JCR Honda’s Trevor Bollinger, who hails from North Carolina, joined forces with brothers Grant and Steward Baylor from South Carolina, to finish second overall, just 45 seconds behind the winning team of Sweden. Bollinger is currently ranked third overall in the GNCC Series, while the older Baylor, Steward, sits in sixth place and Grant in ninth.
The final round of the 2016 GNCC Series takes place next weekend, October 29-30, at the AMSOIL Ironman in Crawfordsville, Indiana.
For more information on the GNCC series, visit the official website at www.gnccracing.com or call (304) 284-0084. Also follow the official GNCC social media accounts on Facebook, Twitter and Instagram for exclusive content and to catch the latest news.
About GNCC Racing
The AMSOIL Grand National Cross Country Series presented by Maxxis is America's premier off-road racing series. Founded in 1975, the 13-round championship is produced exclusively by Racer Productions. Cross-country racing is one of the most physically demanding sports in the world. The grueling three-hour GNCC races lead as many as 2,000 riders through tracks ranging in length from eight to 12 miles. With varied terrain, including hills, woods, mud, dirt, rocks and motocross sections, GNCC events are tests of both survival and speed. The series draws talent from all over the U.S., Europe, Japan, Australia and New Zealand. GNCC Racing is televised weekly on NBC Sports and RacerTV.com. For more information, please visit www.gnccracing.com.