| January 23, 2024
Cody Webb ended Trystan Hart’s two-year win streak of USA-based hard enduros January 20-21 at the Liqui Moly King of the Motos in Johnson Valley, California. This was the opening round of the Bullet Proof Designs U.S. Hard Enduro Premier Championship, Presented by IRC Tire.
Cody Webb started his season off with a win at the King of the Motos. Photo by Jenny Keller
Story by Matt Musgrove
King of the Motos, which made its debut in 2012, is one of the longest-running hard enduros in North America. Justin Leineweber is the promoter for this race, which is the first race of the three-week-long King of the Hammers event.
This year’s format consisted of a two-lap qualifier on Saturday and a three-lap final on Sunday. What makes the King of the Motos unique is GPS is required, which adds a new challenge for the racers to stay on course.
In Saturday’s two-lap qualifier, the King of the Motos continued its infamous tradition of starting the racers off on a steep hill covered in boulders, with over a thousand spectators watching the spectacle. The 150 racers left in rows of 30-40 riders according to their classes, and while most of the Pro and A classes made it up and over the hill in a minute or two, it took many of the riders in the amateur classes nearly 20 minutes. The front pack—consisting of Webb, Hart, Ryder LeBlond and Will Riordan—were all within 15 seconds of each other and battling for the lead.
By the second lap, Webb began to pull ahead and crossed the finish line first.
Defending AMA Hard Enduro Champion Trystan Hart took second. Photo by Ryan McCasland
For Sunday’s main race, the racers started on Chocolate Thunder in rows of 20 based on Saturday’s results. This was a three-lap race using GPS and totaling approximately 45 miles, so each lap had different mileage and required the racers to pay close attention to follow the GPS-based tracks. As it was on Sunday, the front pack was racing within seconds of each other and, after the first lap, Hart, Webb, Riordan and LeBlond all were within a minute of each other. All the racers pitted after lap one, where they topped off on fuel and fixed up their bikes to continue. As the race went on, they got into lapped traffic and were challenged with using the GPS and pit strategy.
Coming into the pits after lap two, Webb, Hart and LeBlond were all within 10 seconds of each other. Webb started aiming his FactoryOne Sherco to the pits, but then turned toward the course and kept going, skipping his pit stop, as it was his team’s strategy to gain an advantage over the other two riders. Hart and LeBlond both came into their pits to refuel but lost nearly a minute while Webb continued. Hart tried his best to reel in Webb, but Webb was riding strong and had just enough fuel to come to the finish line first for the win. Hart and LeBlond finished second and third, respectively, within two minutes of Webb. It was the closest top-three U.S. Hard Enduro finish to date. Webb’s teammate, Louise Forsley, won the Pro Women’s class, with a strong return to the USHE circuit.
Webb’s smooth riding and his pit strategy were the contributing factors to his strong performance, which ultimately ended Hart’s incredible winning run in American hard enduros.
The next two USHE events are scheduled next month in Hawaii at the Ultimate Hawaiian Hard Enduro on the island of Kauai and the Koa Mauna Hard Enduro on Oahu, which are part of IRC Endurofest-Hawaii, Presented by Pasha.
Matt Musgrove
OVERALL
- Cody Webb (She)
- Trystan Hart (KTM)
- Ryder LeBlond (Hus)
- Will Riordan (GG)
- Cooper Abbott (She)
