- Xross Team®
Now traditionally, the rain welcomed riders to the fifth edition of the Xross Challenge race that began on Friday, June 15th, and will last until Sunday, June 17th. The first day of the race was marked by the persistence of the riders who, despite the rain, mud slippery ground, gave their maximum in order to overcome the obstacles in Prologue in Bajina Basta and at Tara mountain. The fastest rider on the first day of the race was Wade Yang from South Africa, who is one of the best Hard Enduro drivers in the world.
Although nearly 200 riders signed up for the race, the participation in the race took more than 120 who came from more than 10 countries. The race started with Prologue, which for the first time was held in Bajina Basta, where riders had to deal with so far the most challenging polygon with obstacles like logs, big stones, and jumps.
Prologue Xross Challenge 2018 / Photo by Attila Szabo
As if this was not hard enough, the rain made the challenge even bigger, which for some riders meant only additional motivation, but for others it meant problems. The most experienced riders were literally flying over the hard obstacle, while those with less experience got stuck between logs and stones, and fell from their bikes while the mud flew on every side.
Riders at Xross Challenge 2018 / Photo by Alex Dmitrović
The rain didn’t bother the viewers who enjoyed every moment of action that they don’t have the opportunity to often see live. Wade Young from South Africa was the fastest rider at Prologue, behind him were Teodor Kabakchiev from Bulgaria and Miha Spindler from Slovenia.
Uphill for PRO and EXPERT Class / Predrag Vučkovic
After the Prologue riders went on their first riding day. It was supposed to be 60km of light Enduro riding, but because of the rain the track was shortened on 45km for PRO and EXPERT Class and 40km for HOBBY Class with several easier up-hills, but the mud made it all more difficult. Wade Young was once again the fastest guy on the track. He was followed by Maciej Loboz from Poland and Alek Dumitrescu from Romania.
No doubt that the rest of the Xross Challenge race will be interesting and we are waiting to see who will be the next Xross Challenge champion.
