Story and photos by Steve Beckner
AMA Team USA’s World Trophy Team moved up one position in the ISDE being held in Figueira da Foz, Portugal, today, when Finland dropped three positions to sixth place after one of their riders, Simo Kissi, had to finish Day 4 with a severely broken finger. The U.S. Trophy Team is now in fifth place behind France, Italy, Australia and Sweden.
The Finnish team, like the American team, has been riding one rider short of its original six-rider allotment when one of their riders, Juha Salminen, retired on Day 3 with mechanical problems. The U.S. Trophy Team lost Ricky Dietrich on Day 1 due to mechanical issues.
“Our team has pretty much been locked in place for a couple of days now,” said U.S. Trophy Team rider Kurt Caselli. “Even though we’re getting faster, so is everybody else. Sometimes it takes something like somebody else having problems to make things happen. Like I said earlier this week with Ricky (Dietrich) going out on Day 1, that’s part of racing and when it happens, it is what it is.
“We’ve been fighting along everyday and we’re doing everything we can to finish with the five guys we have (each teams top five rider’s scores are counted each day). If it takes another team having problems for us to move up then so be it. That’s part of Six Days.”
Caselli’s efforts once again led the way for AMA Team USA as he finished the day again in seventh place overall and fourth place in the E3 class. Fellow U.S. Trophy Team riders Destry Abbott, Nathan Kanney, Timmy Weigand and Damon Huffman helped the U.S. Trophy Team improve their scores as well, as all of them moved up in class or tied their overall and class finishes from the day before.
Kanney said: “It’s been a struggle all week. I’m pushing myself, yet I haven’t crashed (in a test) yet. That’s either good or bad depending on how you look at it. Maybe I should push a little harder? Maybe I’m as fast as I’m going to be with crashing all of the time. Either way, I feel my scores aren’t where they should be.
“The hardest part so far has been the killer sand whoops. I mean they go on forever. Something like an hour of non-stop whoops. And these things are huge and if you don’t attack them you’re in trouble. Then in the afternoon, you do them again.”
In the Junior Trophy Team division, the American team finished the day again in third pace between second-place France and fourth-place Italy. Spain leads the 23-and-under Junior division.
U.S. Junior Team rider Jamie Lanza said of his teams Day 4 finish and his first ISDE: “My tests time are getting better as the week goes by, but I’m not really gaining any ground. It’s been a lot of work this week, and it’s crazy how fast the time has gone by. I guess I’m doing alright, my bike is holding together and I’m not real sore anymore, even though the last two days’ sand whoops have been gnarly.”
The U.S. Women’s World Cup Team finished again in fourth place behind France, Sweden and Australia.
U.S. Women’s Cup rider Lacy Jones said: “I hit a cement post in one of the trail sections with my front wheel and lost my front brake. That made the day long. I got it fixed at the end of the day, but I just didn’t want to take any chances.
“This is my third Six Days, and to be honest it hasn’t been my toughest other than the dust and the sand. It makes it hard to stay on time. Sometimes you have to take chances and other times it’s just not worth it just to stay on time.”
Rory Sullivan maintained his top U.S. club rider status, finishing in third place, and on a Gold medal pace, in the C3 class again after Day 4. U.S. club riders Fred Hoess, Jordan Brandt, Brian Sperle and Nick Fahringer maintained their Gold medal status as well.
Team Carter Engineering is still the top finishing U.S. club. They are in 13th place in the Club division.