BMW MOTORRAD MOTORSPORT - LETTERBICHLER SCALES THE HEIGHTS AT HELL'S GATE
. By Bikeland Staff
BMW Motorrad Motorsport team rider Andreas Lettenbichler has placed among the seven finishers at the '09 running of the Hell's Gate event in Italy. One of the toughest one-day enduro style races in the world, Letti placed an impressive sixth as trials riders and WEC regulars filled the final finishing positions.
Bringing together many of Europe's best extreme enduro riders Lettenbichler and BMW team-mate Gerhard Forster were among 50 riders hopeful of qualifying for the infamously tough main Hell's Gate race. Faced with a four-hour qualifying enduro, which itself was anything but easy, Letti and Gerhard cruised through into the main event after finishing seventh and 11th respectively.
Well aware just how demanding the four-lap Hell's Gate race would be both riders set off from the start hopeful of remaining near the front of the race. With riders removed from the competition by the event organisers when they fall more than 30 minutes behind the leader, both riders pushed hard to ensure they remained in the event.
With defending Hell's Gate winner Taddy Blazusiak setting the pace at the front of the race it wasn't long before the organisers started removing riders from the rear of the field. But having started well, and maintaining a solid pace, Letti spent much of the first half of the race in fifth. Frustratingly for Forster his race was ended having dropped too far behind the leaders. One of the last riders to be withdrawn from the event Gerhard had nevertheless given the event his all and showed just how tough he and his G 450 X were.
With a prized finishing position well within his reach Letti continued to work his way towards the finish, being past by just one rider during the closing stages of the race. Comfortably less than 30 minutes behind eventual winner Blazusiak, Letti found the final hour of the race hard but still found the energy to muscle his way to the top of the event's finish line, named Hell's Peak. In doing so he claimed a well-deserved sixth place finish giving BMW their best ever Hell's Gate result.