IN
THE
WIND
P32
JARVIS KING OF HELL'S GATE
G
reat Britain's Graham Jar-
vis became the most suc-
cessful racer ever at the Hell's
Gate Hard Enduro/extreme
off-road race in Italy. The
Husqvarna factory team rider
won the event for a record
fourth time on February 16,
but it was a first for the Husky
brand.
Jarvis first had to find a way
around early leader Jonny
Walker, on the factory backed
KTM, before stretching out his
lead to an uncatchable mar-
gin. Jarvis held a large advan-
tage when he approached the
race's namesake – Hell's Gate,
a difficult hillclimb marking the
end of the race – but he needed
only a little of it, as he scaled up
the hill like a mountain goat.
"It's great to get a fourth win
here at Hell's Gate," Jarvis said.
"I've raced here so many times
over the years that I know what to
expect, but this year's race was
definitely one of the toughest. All
I wanted to do was get around
the first few corners without any
mistakes. We went off the start
almost directly into a massive
water hole. I took it easy there,
but it didn't take too long before
I was back into the top three.
Andreas Lettenbichler and Cody
Webb both made mistakes and
then I got around Jonny Walker,
and then just put my head down.
It's great to win by a good mar-
gin and give Husqvarna their first
Hell's Gate win."
Walker was definitely a
factor in this one. He won
his qualifier and was lead-
ing the final when a series
of small mistakes allowed
Jarvis to get close and
eventually pass him.
"Despite leading the
main race from the start, I
just couldn't settle into it,"
Walker said. "On the first
lap I felt like I was making
mistake after mistake and
wasn't able to ride like I
know I can. Graham got
ahead of me about halfway
around the lap. I stuck with
him for a bit but his pace
was too strong and he
pulled away.
Jarvis and Walker were the
only two complete finishers.
Graham
Jarvis gave
Husqvarna its
first victory
at the Hell's
Gate Hard
Enduro in
Italy.
PHOTOGRAPHY
BY
RED
BULL
IMAGES
Jonny Walker finished second to
Jarvis in the Italian extreme enduro.
