Everts beat Loeb!

[wwbroe]

Yesterday there was a clash organised by Red Bull in Belgium. They organised a small hillclimb on a small hill called "Muur van Geraardsbergen" wich is well know for being used in cycling race "Ronde van Vlaanderen". Ten times motorcross worldchampion Stefan Everts on his KTM motorbike, was challenging five times rally worldchampion Seb Loeb on this short climb.
They both had the opportunity to do two testruns and then they had the real race around noon. Allready in both testruns Stefan was the fastest by 0.7" and by 0.4". In the real race he won by very small margin of 0.1", so only difference of one tenth of a second. The track was only 1.2 kms long, but all on the small cobblestones, known from the cycle races like Paris-Roubaix.
Loeb was however on gravel configuration with graveltires on his C4WRC, while Stefan had roadtires on his bike. Loeb was codriven by cyclecommentator Michel Wuyts, and maybe this additional weight made the difference. The weathercondiitions were like rainfall and slippery surface.
They all received a big cobblestone as reward, and Loeb & Wuyts had to wash Stefan's bike as they lossed. :)

You can find some photo's of the event here: http://www.pbase.com/kyandio/everts_vs_loeb

[Nenukknak]

Just saw some pieces of it on youtube, but only little bit. Looked tight for a car. Any idea if and when it will air on VRT/Sporza?

[wwbroe]

Just saw some pieces of it on youtube, but only little bit. Looked tight for a car. Any idea if and when it will air on VRT/Sporza?

I am not sure if it will be on Sporza, but it will be on RTBF tonight and also on weeken sportif on Sunday (RTBF). Also RTL was filming for moteurs, i think they will show it next week. ;)

[WRCfan]

Interesting event! Watched Everts live and he is one hell of a rider. Wet means Everts had to worry about massive lacks of grip which I think made it a lot closer than had the weather been dry.

He was in a class of his own in the MX1 class, outpaced EVERYONE!

[René]

Short video :)

http://videos.dhnet.be/video/iLyROoafJPcp.html

[urabus-denoS2000]

If it was so close then Loeb could have easily won with tarmac tyres :(

[wwbroe]

If it was so close then Loeb could have easily won with tarmac tyres :(

That would be normal, because he has four wheels with traction on it, compared to the one of Everts. Especialy because it was wet and slippery, i think it was great performance by Stefan. ;)

[urabus-denoS2000]

Sure a great performance for Everts but just look at the vid,Loeb is clearly slow (he lost 0,5 sec just for the poor start on gravel set-up)

[wwbroe]

Sure a great performance for Everts but just look at the vid,Loeb is clearly slow (he lost 0,5 sec just for the poor start on gravel set-up)

Yes, but Everts told me that he was having very much difficulties in start also, no traction at all. It must be said that the start was on newly paved stones, with no grip at all. ;)

[Nenukknak]

RTBF? got a time when it's on?

[wwbroe]

RTBF? got a time when it's on?

Not realy, seems it was on yesterday late evening news on VRT also. :(

[N.O.T]

stupid comparison....different kind of motorsport different machinery different skills required

nice promotion for the sponsors and thats it....

[Mihai]

Everts might be the only one to beat Loeb this year. http://i57.photobucket.com/albums/g202/gr8link/orn/00.gif

What an impressive performance for a bike rider to beat a 4x4 rally car with diffs on slippery cubic stone.

[wwbroe]

Small video of the event: http://www.mbrallyfoto.tk/

[bluuford]

Everts might be the only one to beat Loeb this year. http://i57.photobucket.com/albums/g202/gr8link/orn/00.gif

What an impressive performance for a bike rider to beat a 4x4 rally car with diffs on slippery cubic stone.

I think it was already second time. There was some kind of event organized by Daniel Elena where Loeb became second and Elena told that Loeb doesn't win if he is not beside him. He was right for a second time!

[janvanvurpa]

stupid comparison....different kind of motorsport different machinery different skills required

nice promotion for the sponsors and thats it....

No, you are wrong, as usual.
And your harsh judgment forces me to ask just what level of motorcycle and rally competition you have reached?

The biggest factor for both is not the hardware, bike or car, but the road surface.
Both must find grip for acceleration; both must shift weight forwards by using the brakes to weight the front tires for turning.

Are you personally such a clumsy incompetent that you can't ride a bike AND a drive a car?
Do you think that it's significantly advantageous that one uses the foot for gas and the other a twist grip? Or a hand for the clutch is some disadvantage?

You are aware of the the fun fact of how many WRC drivers have had pretty good experience in moto-cross prior to shifting to the much easier job of sitting in a car, aren't you?
Miki Biasion, Grönholm, Mäkinen

Oh look maybe the hardest damn off road race in Europe just had in interesting entrant:
Tommi Mäkinen tried his skills on two wheels on this weekend's classic Enduro competition 74. Päijänteen Ympäriajo ("Tour de Lake Päijänne", you could say)(Päijänne Runt på svenska, Finlands andra språk) He however was already out of the race on Friday after fifth stage, said because his BMW bike stopped to work proper. This is Tommi in action, I believe, on the first spectators stage. Tommi have parted in Päijänteen Ympäriajo ("Päitsy") twice earlier.

"Päitsy" is a legendary Finnish enduro race that starts from Helsinki, turns around at Jyväskylä and heads back south. 900 kms altogether with 27 stages in wet yet snowy forests. This year the temperature is close or below zero so it's better for the stages; on years when it's warmer those stages are really, really hard.

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=LserBOiP95k

Got that NOT? 900 kms in freezing conditions and in the night---all by yourself.

That's the thing that's different: average moto-cross and enduro riders are 20 times tougher than the best guys in the WRC, the elite in the moto-cross and enduro worlds are savage animals.

And compared to fans typing at the comfort of home, well ......

So just because motor-cross--and enduro is so much harder to do well than rally, why do you believe there is no comparison?

[A.F.F.]

No, you are wrong, as usual.
And your harsh judgment forces me to ask just what level of motorcycle and rally competition you have reached?

The biggest factor for both is not the hardware, bike or car, but the road surface.
Both must find grip for acceleration; both must shift weight forwards by using the brakes to weight the front tires for turning.

Are you personally such a clumsy incompetent that you can't ride a bike AND a drive a car?
Do you think that it's significantly advantageous that one uses the foot for gas and the other a twist grip? Or a hand for the clutch is some disadvantage?

You are aware of the the fun fact of how many WRC drivers have had pretty good experience in moto-cross prior to shifting to the much easier job of sitting in a car, aren't you?
Miki Biasion, Grönholm, Mäkinen

Oh look maybe the hardest damn off road race in Europe just had in interesting entrant:
Tommi Mäkinen tried his skills on two wheels on this weekend's classic Enduro competition 74. Päijänteen Ympäriajo ("Tour de Lake Päijänne", you could say)(Päijänne Runt på svenska, Finlands andra språk) He however was already out of the race on Friday after fifth stage, said because his BMW bike stopped to work proper. This is Tommi in action, I believe, on the first spectators stage. Tommi have parted in Päijänteen Ympäriajo ("Päitsy") twice earlier.

"Päitsy" is a legendary Finnish enduro race that starts from Helsinki, turns around at Jyväskylä and heads back south. 900 kms altogether with 27 stages in wet yet snowy forests. This year the temperature is close or below zero so it's better for the stages; on years when it's warmer those stages are really, really hard.

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=LserBOiP95k

Got that NOT? 900 kms in freezing conditions and in the night---all by yourself.

That's the thing that's different: average moto-cross and enduro riders are 20 times tougher than the best guys in the WRC, the elite in the moto-cross and enduro worlds are savage animals.

And compared to fans typing at the comfort of home, well ......

So just because motor-cross--and enduro is so much harder to do well than rally, why do you believe there is no comparison?

Just for the record, it is called "Päitsi".

[Hartusvuori]

Just for the record, it is called "Päitsi".

Kind of off topic: And even more just for the record, it was mostly my text on "Päitsi" from News and rumours -topic, but it was not quoted, so that Päitsy < Päitsi was my mistake. This year that competion seemed to be very tough - how was it, after 19 stages first three drivers were within 0,46 seconds! On those conditions, that's amazingly impossible!

[janvanvurpa]

Kind of off topic: And even more just for the record, it was mostly my text on "Päitsi" from News and rumours -topic, but it was not quoted, so that Päitsy < Päitsi was my mistake. This year that competion seemed to be very tough - how was it, after 19 stages first three drivers were within 0,46 seconds! On those conditions, that's amazingly impossible!

Just for fun I should say that even though I've been deep into rally car building and even drove for years till I got married again and had kids my first love was always being in the woods on a good bike for long distance.

I only started doing rally as i got "old" and beaten up after doing moto-cross from 16 to 30, then came back to this beautiful part of USA, the ONLY part I would live in, and was going to University. Then I had time to do long enduro events for fun for a few years.

But when I first moved to Sweden in 1970 one of the guys who really helped me get settled in and find work and who shared his garage with me was a guy named Hans Ericsson or Hasse.

You Finns can go read the arkivs of who did what in "Päijänne Runt'' but look back to '69 and '70 or about then and you'll see my old friend Hasse up there in No1 position.

Let me repeat. A SWEDE beating all the Finns in Finlands hardest event.
Det är sisu, pojkarna! oi oi oi!!!!! 8)

Anybody who enters is mentally unstable! I looked at start list----that much I could read of Finnish---and there are piles of guys above 40 and even heaps of guys in their 50s! Jössus, at least I learned my lessons and stopped in my early 40s!!!


But thanks for posting, Tomi just moved up on my list of guys I respect.

Now if only I could find reports in some language civilised people can read t.ex Finlands andra språk! Va fan???

PS of fun note our season opening rally here in the NW, we just had ''rally moto'' class for the first time here. I was bike Scrutineer and we had just 7 entries. We had snow, then hail, then sun, then snow hard, the rain on both days. Good guys, obviously crazy to be going down normal US stages which are similar speeds to Finnish stages in such weather.
160 km stages and just barely 2 minutes difference for the 6 finishes.
2nd was my good friend Dave who was the car one minute ahead at my first rally in Spring 1984. And I just happened to call him the Tuesday before the event, he had not heard about the new class.

By the way as he was, like me, first and best a off road bike guys before he enter rallys, he too is in 100% agreement that the tools may be different but the task is the same, as well as the technique, between bikes and cars on same surface.