David Knight’s Big Adventure
| June 11, 2007
Reigning Enduro 3 World Champion David Knight took part in two different events in two different continents over the June 9-10 weekend when he traveled from his home in the Isle of Man to Austria, where he placed a close second in the Twin-cylinder class at the Erzberg Rodeo before jumping on a plane back to the UK and then on to the U.S. where he won round seven of the GNCC series in Kentucky to move back to the top of the series’ standings.
Starting the Twin-cylinder race at Erzberg as defending class champion, having won first time out last year, “Knighter” came painstakingly close to making it two wins from two starts, as he recorded the fastest time on the first of two runs up the “Iron Mountain.” Having finished eight seconds ahead of his nearest competitor on his first run, things started well for Knighter on his second assault of the 100-percent uphill course, but a mistake as he neared the end of the 8.4-mile track saw him drift wide while exiting a corner and coming off the track and into a rocky rain gully. Losing valuable seconds getting back on to the track, Knight recorded a time of nine minutes and six seconds – two seconds faster than his first run but four seconds slower than that of Finland’s Simo Kirssi. In doing so Knight finished as runner-up before heading directly for the airport.
“I wasn’t sure how I’d feel after flying from Austria to the UK and then on to the States and racing twice all in three days but things worked out perfectly,” Knight said of the GNCC race.
As for Erzberg, Knight said, “It’s disappointing not to have won, but it was close. It was good fun though.”