Happenings in Motorcycling
New BMW HP2
Win§ Debut
Iron Road Prologue Overall:
I. Simo Kirssi (FIN), BMW HP2
2. Werner Muller (AT), KTM 525 EXC
3. Jimmy Lewis (USA), BMW HP2
4. Kurt Nicoll (GB), KTM 540 EXC
5. Chris Pfeiffer (D), BMW HP2
6. Giovanni Sala (IT), KTM 950
7. Juha Salminen (FIN), KTM 250 EXC
8. Bernha Walzer (AT), KTM 400 EXC
9. David Knight (UK), KTM 300
10. Antti Kallonen (FIN), KTM 525 EXC
Christian Pfeiffer (left) joins Simo Kirssi (center) and Jimmy
Lewis (right) at the awards ceremony.
Boet Van Dulmen (6) leads Kenny Roberts (I),
Johnny Cecotto (4) and Franco Uncini (5) at his
home race, the Dutch TT. in 1980. Van Dulmen
finished the race in fourth, behind Jack Middelburg, Graziano Rossi and Uncini. Cecotto was
sixth, and Roberts DNFed.
84
JUNE 15, 2005 •
CYCLE NEWS
BMW's brand-new HP2 has just proven its outstanding
qualities under the toughest conditions in the Austrian
Enberg Race. BMW Motorrad Enduro Team Feil
entered this grueling off-road event in the Austrian
Steiermark Region with top riders Simo Kirssi, Jimmy
Lewis and the winner of last year's Hare Scrambles,
Christian Pfeiffer, in the saddle. Simo Kirssi, the "Flying
Finn," finished the race a staggering six seconds faster
than his competitors, who were on single-cy1inder
machines, dominating the event and clinching the overall
title in the Iron Road Prologue in the I I th Erzberg
Rodeo - and he did so over a field of more than 1000
entrants. Kirssi completed the 13.3-kilometer (8.26mile) course on rough gravel and loose rocks in a
record-breaking 9;05.65, leaving the competition far
behind.
Third place in the overall Iron Road Prologue rating
also went to a BMW HP2, American rider, Lewis. The
fifth rider overall likewise came from the white-and-blue
works-supported team, as German rider (and stunt rider
extraordinaire) Pfeiffer successfully won the Iron Road
challenge on his BMW HP2 after finishing second Thursday in the top two-cylinder class.
Taking up the old Erzberg tradition of Amateurs and
hobby riders measuring their skills against the best Professionals, BMW Motorrad offered even more activities
at the event. The BMW Motorrad Rider Training Instructors' Team finished up with no less than two riders
among the top lOin the Desert Bomber Category for
two-cylinder machines. Both of these highly successful
instructors completed the event on stock, production R
1200 GS Enduros. The race was started by Berti Hauser,
director of BMW Motorrad Motorsport, with the president of BMW Motorrad, Dr. Herbert Diess, personally
sending out BMW's top riders on the course.
