Racing

Bad Start For US ISDE Effort At 92nd Edition Of ISDE In France

US World Trophy Team member Thad DuVall Injures Wrist

August 28, 2017

The US ISDE Team’s 2017 campaign didn’t get off as planned with the US World Trophy Team getting knocked out of contention in the very first test of the day when Thad DuVall crashed just four turns from the finish, injuring his wrist. DuVall tried to keep going, and even rode the over 50-plus miles of transfer to the second test, but had to call it a day at that point due to the pain. His plan is to fly home early and get it evaluated.

Four riders make up each FIM World Trophy Team and all four rides count on each day, so if a rider DNF’s a day that in effect disqualifies the entire team. World Trophy Team riders Taylor Robert, Kailub Russell, and Ryan Sipes will still be able to continue to compete for individual honors, and Robert, who won the individual overall last year in Spain, is sitting second overall individually and second in the E2 class, just about seven seconds behind Christophe Nambotin. The Arizona native told us he’s confident he can make up the difference and give Nambotin a run for his money.

The US Junior Trophy Team, made up of Josh Toth, Grant Baylor and Lane Michael, sits fourth after Day One, but are still within striking distance of winning the division. Sweden leads the division with a total time of 57:57.43, while team USA is about a minute and seven seconds back. Don’t count the US Juniors just yet, Grant had a top five overall in one of the tests and seems to be getting faster with each test.

Despite a mechanical problem by Becca Sheets, the US Women’s team, composed of Kacy Martinez, Brandy Richards, and Sheets, sits third overall after one day, and since not every day counts, the Women’s team is still in good shape. Spain leads this division after Day One, which includes Laia Sanz, and Australia, which includes Tayla Roberts, who has been competing in the States this year.

Tomorrow will run the same course as today, and most of the Club riders, who ride the trail last, say it is getting super rough. It will be interesting to see how things change with tougher trail.

Taylor Robert sits second in the E3 class after one day of competition behind French rider Christophe Nambotin. Last year, Thad DuVall rode the E3 class on a 300 two-stroke, but this year Taylor is riding the class on a 500, which he says he enjoys riding.Photo by Shan Moore

Thad DuVall pushes his bike from the staging area to the start. Unfortunately, the Rockstar Energy Husqvarna Factory Rider didn’t get too much further than this, injuring his wrist at the end of Test One when he tucked the front end in a slippery patch of grass.Photo by Shan Moore

Former Supercross racer, Ryan Sipes, is riding the E1 class one a 250. The Kentucky rider is fifth in class but feels he can improve on that as he gets used to the smaller displacement bike, which he hasn’t ridden in a while. Sipes competed regularly on a 250 in Supercross, and says it handles the corners a lot easier than a bigger bike.Photo by Shan Moore

Grant Baylor had a good day and sits 10th overall in the E2 division. The South Carolina rider actually finished fifth overall in one of the tests. Grant helps anchor the US Junior Trophy Team, which sits fourth after one day.Photo by Shan Moore

KTM’s Kacy Martinez kicks up a roost in the Enduro test. The US Women’s team sits third behind Spain and Australia.Photo by Shan Moore

Taylor Robert finished third in two different tests and sits second overall after the first day of competition. The Arizona rider says he feels he can improve on his performance today and is looking to repeat his individual overall win from a year ago in Spain.Photo by Shan Moore

Layne Michael had a steady day and told us he didn’t lose any time from hitting the ground, meaning the Husqvarna kept it on two wheels all day.Photo by Shan Moore

N-Fab/Am Pro Yamaha rider Josh Toth is 13th in the E1 class after one day. The Connecticut rider won the Club individual award last year in Spain.Photo by Shan Moore

Kailub Russell had a couple of get-offs in the second test and told us it took him a while to get back in the groove of ISDE riding. Kailub said it’s tough to get caught up after a bad first day at ISDE. Here he changes a tire during the work period at the end of the day.Photo by Shan Moore

Thad told us he was more worried about letting down his team than he was about his injury. The West Virginia rider came in on a roll, having just won four-straight national enduros.Photo by Shan Moore

One of the US chase bikes sits idle after a long day of chasing riders around the course.Photo by Shan Moore