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Schwalbe Euro 4X Series - Round 3 - Leibstadt, Switzerland

Author: Extra UK | Wed, 14 Aug 2013

Topeak sponsored Scott Beaumont has been in touch with the latest race report from Round 3 of the Schwalbe Euro 4X series. Here's what he had to say;

Last weekend it was the Schwalbe Euro 4X Series finals in Leibstadt, Switzerland.

Both Scott and Dave were racing – Scott was looking to go from 2nd place in the overall series to take the championship and Dave was looking to finish with a great top 10 overall result.

The track was fun and both riders were feeling confident. There was a headwind on the proline straight which was making it tricky, but by qualifying they were ready.

Scott was seeded as the number 1 rider and was first on the track. He was on a flyer, then as he came onto the proline doubles the wind increased. He cleared the first double no problem but had to go really high on the second double as the wind had slowed him down a bit. Across the finish line, he set a great time of 36.19. That time held as the fastest right until one of the last riders – Quentin Derbier, who entered the race late. He had a brilliant lap, there was no wind on the proline and took the fastest time by just 0.2 seconds. Dave got in the gate and was ready for the run. You guessed it, just as the gate dropped the wind picked up again. He looked fast and was on a great time until the proline. He jumped the first double ok but heading to the second the wind hit him and he grabbed the brakes. He rolled the second double and lost a lot of time. Across the finish line a time of 39.12 was good enough to qualify 21st.

With barely any rest, it was time for the finals. The points looked like this. Dave would need to finish at least 3rd in the quarter finals to hold onto his top 10 overall placing. Scott would need to finish at least 3rd in the quarter finals to take the overall series win. We will break the racing into Dave’s day and Scott’s day:

In the first round, Dave got bumped around and found himself in 3rd. In the second turn, he dived inside and made a fantastic pass to claim 2nd and move into the quarter finals.

In the quarter finals he had gate 4. The gate dropped and he got pushed wide in turn 1. On the second straight he moved into 3rd and was chasing 2nd. At the finish line he just couldn’t quite get there and went out. The great news is 3rd in that quarter final gave him 12th on the day and this was enough to secure 10th overall in the 2013 Schwalbe Euro 4X Series. As Dave races in the senior category here in the UK, this was a fantastic result as he is racing against Elite riders in this Series.

Scott’s first round went well. A great gate and led the race from start to finish. The next race was the crunch. He just needed 3rd or better. He made a great start, but Michal Mechura made a better gate next to him and moved across into turn 1. Scott was on the ropes as he was trapped tight on the inside. On the exit of turn 1 he was in 4th. On the second straight he powered into 3rd. Then in the move of the day,on the Proline doubles Scott went wide and with hardly any track to work with, threaded the needle over 30 foot double jumps in a head wind with less than 30cm of track to land on. It was inch perfect and Scott moved into 2nd and into the semi finals.

At the finish line Scott was ecstatic. But there was no time for celebrations. The war was won, it was time to win the battle! He went up for the semi final. Again he had gate 1. However again, Mechura just got to turn 1 in 1st! This time though Scott had more space and on the 2nd straight was sat in 2nd. With a cushion on 3rd it was looking good, until disaster struck. A rear puncture took Scott out of the race. He was gutted. Dave was on hand to help with a quick tyre and tube change, then it was back to the gate. The fastest qualifier Quentin Derbier was in gate 1, Scott in 2, Lucas Mechura in 3 and Mirco Weiss in 4. The gate dropped and Scott got the holeshot. From there he did not look back. Extending his lead and taking the win to give him 5th for the day.

However 5th just did not matter. Scott was crowned the 2013 Schwalbe European 4X Series Champion.

We just want to say a huge thank you to all the team sponsors, without whom this simply would not be possible.

So far in 2013 the team have simply been amazing:

Scott Beaumont:

Schwalbe British 4X Series Champion
Schwalbe European 4X Series Champion
4X National Champion
Mountain Bike Hall of Fame Inductee

Dave Richardson:

Schwalbe British 4X Series Champion (Senior category)
10th overall Schwalbe European 4X Series
4th 4X National Championships

Between both Dave and myself we have won 6 National races as well!

It has been a truly awesome year for the team. Thank you to all our sponsors. You make it possible.