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24th Optic 2000 Le Touquet Beach Race Events By Geoff Meyer LE TOUQUET, FRANCE, FEB. 14 ith the applause of around 300,000 scream,ing French spectators ringing in his ears, Yamaha Motor France-backed rider Jean-Claude Mousse took the win at the 24th annual Optic 2000 Le Touquet Beach race. While Mousse was the race winner, it was the complete Yamaha France team that stood out, as second place went to four-time winne1" Arnaud Demeester and third place went to David Fretigne, making it a podium monopoly for Yamaha. Privateer Charly Tonus, who was also on a Yamaha, took fourth place. Mousse, 27, may have walked away with the top spot, but everyone in a ttendance was looking at Demeester with admiration. The defending champion broke his arm only four weeks prior to the event and rode the final nine laps of the race in severe pain. "1 wanted to race this thing," Demeester said. "1 did not want to be sitting in the crowd and looking at my teammates leading. [ really was hurting, though, after the first four laps." Demeester's problems were not the W (Above) Turn one at the Le Touquet Beach Race is one of motorcycle racing's most famous spectacles. (Left) More than 700 riders participated in the famous race on the beach. (Right) This straightaway was five miles long. The race attracted an estimated 300,000 spectators. only topic of conversation at this year's beach classic. David Hauquier, who won the race in 1997, was prevented from starting the event after being found by the organizers practicing on the beach a week prior to the race. "1 don't understand," Hauquier said. "Every year they find somebody on the beach practicing, bu t they never have excluded them. I'm shattered." With Hauquier out and Demeester injured, many were wondering who could win the 1999 event. Would it be five-time World Motocross Champion Georges' Jobe, who was making his return on a KTM at Le Touquet? Or would it be new KTM MX team rider Frederic Vialle? It would be neither, as it turned out. Jobe did not finish the race, while Vialle took the checkered flag in 27th, which did nothing to impress his team manager, Kees van der Yen, a fivetime Le Touquet winner. The crazy thing about this event is the way it begins. First, the riders ride out of parc ferme, parade through the coastal village of Le Touquet, and then pile out onto the beach. Once on the beach, the 743 competitors struggle for their starting positions before being sent down the 5-mile straight to Le Goulet. This is when the fun begins. At Le Goulet, 700-plus riders lock handlebars in a war of survival as they fight for space through the first turn. Belgian motocrosser Thierry Bethys, riding a Honda, led the way into the first corner, followed by teammate Fanck Duflou, Mousse, Demeester and Fretigne. Once the top 10 or so came through Le Goulet, the first corner quickly turned into a monumental traffic jam. Rider after rider bogged down in the thick, wet sand, and finally most of the field was submerged up to their mudguards. Even when the lead riders arrived for lap two, the mess still had not been cleaned up. As Bethys, Mousse and Demeester came around, they were forced to dodge stranded machines wh.ile traveling at around 70 mph. Bethys was soon feeling th.e heat from the Yamaha-mounted riders, and within three laps it was Mousse, Demeester and Fretigne holding the top three places. Further back, Jobe and Vialle were fighting losing battles. Jobe was out of the top 50, and Vialle was somewhere around 30th. Bethys soon dropped back. "1 did not wan t to race too hard early, and they just came by me:' the early leader admitted. "[ could not keep with them if 1 wanted to." Not a lot happened between laps five and eight, but then problems developed for the leaders. Demeester suddenly found himself on the deck. "1 was really hurting and 1 lost concentration," Demeester said. "The course was really making me work my arms, and my broken arm just could not take it."ยท Fretigne, an end uro specialist, made the most of Demeester's crash by moving into second place, and he soon had Mousse in his sights. Mousse, though, was not playing the waiting game, a.nd in the next three laps he set a blistering pace. Fretigne was unable to maintain the same speed and he slowed, and, despite his now-throbbing arm, Demeester repassed Fretigne for second place. Fretigne then started worrying about Tonus, who was making up serious ground on him. But Tonus was hurting. "I was really suffering:' Tonus said. "My hands were blistered from the quad race, and they started bleeding. I figured if I can get fourth, that would be a good effort. On the last lap, I crashed twice and held on for fourth. Some of my friends told me I was, in fact, gaining on Fretigne, but 1 did not even realize it." Up front, Mousse had the winner's trophy on his mind. "The bike was running very well and my condition was perfect:' Mousse said. Demeester was not too troubled by his loss. After all, he has scored four wins and two seconds in the past six years at this race. It's little wonder the Frenchman was still smiling hours after the event. "In this race, which is my life, you ha ve to take your chances:' he said. "With my arm the way it is, [ have not lost. Next year, I will come back and go for the record fifth win." ell Le Touquet Beach Race Le Touquet, France Results: February 14, 1999 O/A: 1. Jean-Claude Mousse (Yam); 2. Arnaud Demeester (Yam); 3. David Fretigne (Yam); 4. Charly Tonus (Yam); 5. Thierry Bethys (Hon); 6. Vincent Cambier (Kaw); 7. Eric Aubijoux (Yam); 8. Christian Houyaux (Hon); 9. Dany Tetelin (Yam); 10. Vincent Thiollie:r (Yam).