Strong winds pushed on almost 1000 riders in the 38th running of the Le Touquet beach race (now the eighth edition of the Enduropale) but they also ushered in the tide and drew this mammoth event – with an estimated 200,000 crowd watching from the seafront – to a swift halt.
The 17km course was being mastered by three-time winner Jean Claude Mousse with fellow Frenchman Milko Potisek in hot pursuit and Belgian (and Monster Energy athlete) Adrien Van Beveren making up the top three when the red flags were (just about) held out with less than two hours on the stopwatch of the race distance. Looming waves were washing up onto the layout of dunes and corners stuffed with brave and hardy bikers. The weather was the only part of the Le Touquet challenge that could not be defeated on this occasion.
42 year old Mousse was set to celebrate back-to-back victories after leading the crucial lap before proceedings were drawn to a halt. Although the standings took some time to clarify it was a popular victory with the massive collective of fans that defied wintery conditions to see Mousse spooning out the sand-riding lessons to numerous world champions from the spheres of motocross and enduro.
