Red Bull KTM factory rider Alfredo Gomez of Spain wrapped up a tough four-day in overall second, finishing behind the British veteran. Wade Young of South Africa completed the Gold Class podium.
Determined to build on his dominating performance in last month’s Erzberg Hare Scramble, Jarvis began the event with only victory on his mind. Getting off to a great start, the Husqvarna rider ended the Sibiu City Prologue in third position.
However, his third position saw him lead the field of 470 riders at the start of the opening day. Unable to find his rhythm early on, he was uncharacteristically off the pace as his closest rivals hunted him down. Ending the opening day in fourth and 10 minutes behind race leader Alfredo Gomez, Jarvis went on the attack on day two.
Gomez admitted he had made a lot of mistakes and had his share of crashes on the second day of the competition and wrapped up the ride in fourth place, trailing Jarvis by some 24 minutes. Teasdale continued to hold up well at fifth and Bolt made an excellent recovery to be sixth at the end of the day. By now Jarvis had consolidated his lead to 14 minutes over Gomez and had moved into contention for the 2016 win.
Charging his way to the front of the field, Jarvis pulled clear to claim the win. Backing that ride up with another victory on day three, he entered the final day of racing with a 27-minute advantage. With victory within his grasp, he eased his way to the finish line and into the record books as a five-time Romaniacs champion.
Making his debut ride at Romaniacs, Jarvis’s Rockstar Energy Husqvarna teammate Mario Roman impressed all as he proved himself as a very fast learner in the art of GPS navigation.
Placing fifth at the end of the first off-road day, Roman then secured second overall on off-road day two. Another top three result saw him start the final day of racing locked in a battle for the third step on the podium. Frustratingly, a number of small mistakes saw him lose the position, ending the event in a well-deserved fourth overall.
Graham Jarvis: “It’s an awesome feeling to win my fifth Romaniacs title. No one else has ever done that before so this is quite special considering it’s been three years since my last victory here. Like always it’s been a tough week of racing. I didn’t get it together on the first off road day and dropped down the order a bit. I knew I needed to regroup quickly and winning days two and three pretty much helped me secure the win. Finally a big thanks to Husqvarna and Damien my mechanic for their support, it’s been a big team effort to get this winning result.”
Red Bull Romaniacs in 2016 celebrated its 13th edition. It is more than one of the most challenging Hard Enduro on the calendar; it is also a festival for riders all over the world, including 105 from the UK, 38 from Australia and 37 from far off New Zealand. Increasingly, riders of all ages and all degrees of skills want to test themselves at this popular event. John Trevor, 69, of the UK was the oldest competitor in 2016 and 13-year-old Tomer Shemesh of Aruba was the youngest.
Results Gold Class Red Bull Romaniacs 2016
1. Graham Jarvis (GBR), Husqvarna, 27:04:55 h
2. Alfredo Gomez (ESP), KTM, +35.28 min
3. Wade Young (RSA), Sherco, +40.34
4. Mario Roman (ESP), Husqvarna, +1:02:53 h
5. Scott Bouverie (RSA), KTM, +3:37:50
