The dice fell in the Bank Windhoek Namibian Enduro Championship on Farm Döbra.

Marcel Henle (KTM) repeated his first class performance in the final of the Enduro two weekends ago, winning the motorbikes up to 200 cc class and clocking the fastest lap as well as fastest overall race time of all riders. This secured him the Championship title in this Class, ahead of Ingo Waldschmidt (KTM). Henner Rusch (KTM) won the more than 250 cc motorbike class race, and secured his fourth Namibian Enduro Championship title in a row. J L Oppermann (Honda) won the Open Quads Championship, Shannon Rowland (Honda) is the Ladies Quad Champion, while the Senior Motorbike Riders'' title went to Sven Schneidenberger (Husaberg).

The track on Farm Döbra (Otjihase) once again provided ideal conditions for the Namibian Enduro Championship. Spectators enjoyed watching the riders completing a loop close to the pit area, while the riders from all over the country, including Swakopmund and Otjiwarongo, were challenged with riverbed sections, a canyon, mountains and rocky passages.

Henner Rusch (KTM) once again illustrated his dominance in the motorbikes with more than 250 cc, by clinching first place more than 20 minutes ahead of second placed Pascal Henle (KTM). Corne Visser (Sherco) finished third. Visser showed true sportsmanship by handing his trophy to Gernot Bahr (Husaberg), who would have finished third if not awarded a 20-minute time penalty as one transponder did not record his signal on the track. Rusch again secured the overall Namibian Enduro Champion­ship title, ahead of Henle and Kai Hennes (KTM).

Marcel Henle (KTM) literally flew around the track in the motor­bikes up to 200 cc''s, clocking the fastest lap time (00:49:33) and the fastest overall race time of all riders (03:34:24). Ingo Waldschmidt (KTM) – who had led the championship until the last event - finished 16 minutes behind Henle, while Joern Greiter (KTM) finished third.

Henle and Waldschmidt ended the season tied on 128 championship points however, Henle won five events while Waldschmidt won three. The Namibian Championship title therefore goes to Henle, after years of dominance by Waldschmidt in this class. Greiter finishes the season third overall.

In the Senior Motorbikes class, David Brown (KTM) enjoyed his second victory of the season. Sven Schneidenberger (Husaberg) finished­ second to claim the championship title while Martin Quinger (KTM) celebrated his first podium finish in third. Frank Ahlreip (KTM) – who could not join this event – remained­ second in the championship overall, while Kai Hohmeier (KTM) secured the third place in the Championship by finishing fifth.



Clubman''s class

The Clubman''s class saw Ronnie Adams (KTM) repeating his Otjihase victory of three weeks ago, ahead of Jürgen Gladis (KTM) and Heinz Erni (KTM). Gerald Heiser (KTM), who had led the overall Championship by one point ahead of the race, had an unfortunate day and could not finish the race after having completed three of the four laps. The 2016 Clubman''s Championship thus went to Gladis, with Heiser in second and Adams third.

In the Off-road Bikes class, 2016 Champion Kurt Hartung (KTM) secured his sixth victory of the season. Andre van Zyl (Yamaha) finished second while Juan van As (KTM) finished third. Lenny Bagwitz (KTM) managed to secure the second spot in the overall Championship by finishing fourth. Juan van As ends the season third overall. Noam Babluki (KTM) took victory ahead of Adam Johnston (Yamaha) in the Development Class, and thus secured his Championship crown ahead of Johnston and Liam Gilchrist (Husqvarna).



Open Quad class

In the Open Quad class a dramatic final race of the season evolved. Jens Rubow (Yamaha) got off to a brilliant start, clocking the fastest lap time recorded on the day (00:31:53). Claire Brendel (Honda) moved into second place after the first lap with the second fastest lap (00:34:47) of the day.

In lap three however, Rubow had to park his quad, while J L Opperman (Honda) moved into first place by clocking consistently fast laps. During the race, Opperman had to recover from leaving the track, and eventually, with a highly spirited performance, secured victory and thus the Namibian Championship ahead of Rubow and Brendel.

In the Ladies Quad Class, Shannon Rowland (Honda) secured an undisputed victory and Namibian Ladies Quad Champion title, ahead of Maike Bochert (Honda), Julia Moths and Jolly Fourie (both tied in third).

The end of year event and crown­ing of Namibian Champions will take place on 5 November at Elisenheim Guest Farm. The public and Enduro enthusiasts are invited to join the evening and inform themselves about the Namibian Enduro Club, and the possibility to enjoy the Enduro sport. Visit the Namib­ian Enduro Club website at www.namibianenduro.com for more information.