Cycle News is a weekly magazine that covers all aspects of motorcycling including Supercross, Motocross and MotoGP as well as new motorcycles
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(Delep ine)," Hauquier said. "It was very close for a whil e," "Very close" was an und ers tate ment, as only 16 second s sepa rated the leaders as they crossed the line after tw o laps, bu t Hau quier then lost momentum and ha n d ed s econ d ba ck to Delepine. Demeest er also got by Hauquier after a charge through the field . "I felt great," Demeeste r said. "I was thinking about first place ." Then Demeester's luck changed. "I got a little crazy .and fell," he said. "I dropped a long ways back." Demeester went from second on lap fo u r to sixth , mo re than four minutes beh ind . "Four minu tes is enough to get you a little ne rvo us, but 1 thought if I could keep my head , I could get it bac k," Demees ter said. With riders dropping like flies, Dut ch motocross rider Leon Giesbers took over seco n d pl ace a n d, w i t h one minut e be tween him an d Be thys , s ta rte d a charg e of his own. One lap after taking second, Giesbers had moved to w ith in 24 seconds of the leader, and his works KTM was looking more than capable of taking him to a win. His team manager was none other tha n sand specialist and five-time Le Touquet winner Kees van derVen. "Kees has told me a lot, bu t in the end you have to ride your own race." sai d Giesbers, who finis he d last year's event in e ighth place after h is bike expired with one lap remaining. Giesbers was d enied a top finish again when his clutch bu rn ed out, an d the Dutch mot ocrosse r wo uld not get any closer. Wit h six laps completed, Lewis would mo ve in to the top 30 - a good effort for the Le To uquet rookie. Viall e wa s al so ma king u p some ground, an d he moved in to 14th place. Peterha nsel held his pos ition in 11th place . "This is so d ifferent than the Daka r, or the Worl d Enduro Championships," Peterhansel said . "Here, it's very tou gh; yo u just som etimes ha ve to concentra te on finishing and see how you are placed after the 12 laps are over." Up fron t, Beth ys was now hearing the crow d scream ing even harder, and . his pit boards we re telling him news he cou ld have done without. "I knew Demeester was coming, and 1 knew he mu st have been d oing some great lap times," th e leader said. The lead was soon to change hands. With thr ee laps a nd 30 minutes still to go, Demeester, perhaps motivated by his 1997 loss and the cro wd' s encouragement (he lives about 50 kilo mete rs fr o m Le T ou q ue t ), pa ssed the ti ri n g Bethys . "H e (De mees te r) was com ing a nd the re was not hing I cou ld d o," Bethys said. "I train ed for this event, bu t nothing like De meester d id . He rid es the whole year for the Le Touquet, but for a motocrosse r I think I did pret ty good." With two laps remaining, Demeeste r took the lead a nd swept away from Bethys. Ha uqu ier also passed Giesbers for th ird place . Demeester' s winn ing margin was 34 seconds over Bethys, followed by Ha uqu ier, Delep ine and JeanCla ud Mousse. Giesbers wo uld finis h eig h th , Peterhanse l ninth and Lewis 28th. . eN Le Touquet Beach Race Le Touquet, France Results : February 22, 1998 O/A: 1. Arnaud Demees t er (Yam); 2. Thierry Bethys (Hon); 3. David Hauquier (Hon) ; 4. Gerard Delepine (Hon ); 5. jean -Claude Mou sse (ya m); 6. Oany Tetelin (Hon); 7. David Freligne (Hon); 8. Leon Ciesbers (KTM); 9. Stephan< Peterhansel (Yam); 10. [ean-Charl.. Tonus (Yam). W hat's at the leading edge of mo torcycle news? Cy'c1e News Online! Now you can access instont race results and the latest breaking stories in the world of motorcycling, with Cycle News' home pag e o n the World W ide Web. Updated wee kly (and often mid-week, as the latest news is developing), Cycle News O nlme provides; • Complete and current happenings Olin the Wind" • The 1997 Cyc New, Motorcycle Buyer', Guide le • Cu ent International and Notional Championship Calendar Ustings rr • Ins tantly updated race results in "Rocewatc h" • • • • • • Race Cov erage Highlights, Motorcycle Tests, and Interviews The latest offerings from Cycle News Video Theater Online motorcy advertising from the leading compan ies in the industry cle Team Smitty Archives Back Issue Archives of Cycle News Online verage in "'Virtu Grandstandal R eal-Time Event Co Check it out. o nd tell yo ur friends! Motorcycle news will never be the some - you can access Cycle News O nline an ytime, day or night. on the World W ide Web at