Trystan Hart of the FMF KTM Factory Racing Team clinched victory at the Monster Energy King of the Motos (KOM) held on January 25-26, marking the start of the 2025 U.S. Hard Enduro season and the multi-week King of the Hammers event.
By Matt Musgrove
The KOM took place on the trails of Johnson Valley, California, and is considered one of the longest-standing hard enduro competitions in the USA, attracting a record number of participants this year. This event served as the first round of the Bullet Proof Designs U.S. Hard Enduro Series, presented by IRC Tire, featuring a total of 10 races nationwide. The weekend was filled with excitement, highlighted by Cody Webb’s new collaboration with Yamaha and several other prominent riders joining different teams.
Justin Leineweber, the race director, adjusted the format to a four-lap GPS-based race, totaling approximately 40 miles with a new finish-line hill that was on display for all of the spectators at Chocolate Thunder.
More than 170 racers lined up for the race on Saturday, which was a faster paced two-lap competition, that seeded the racers’ row position for the main race on Sunday. Australia’s Will Riordan, who recently joined Sherco USA, won the first race.
The other big news in the pits was Cody Webb’s Yamaha debut. His new Rocky Mountain Yamaha Team was officially announced on Friday; he’s the first Yamaha-sponsored hard enduro athlete in the USA. He serves as the team owner, manager, and racer and signed with IRC Tire.
Red Bull brought their full activation rig in the pro pits, where everyone at the event was looking at his three custom-built Yamaha YZ250Xs. He’s had less than two months testing and developing hard enduro-specific components on the bike with his mechanic Adam Sams. He also decided to race the kickstart bike at this event, which generated a lot of talk at the event. Another notable team shift was the Team IRC Beta announcing their two-athlete roster consisting of James Flynn and Branden Petrie. On Saturday evening, Jeremy McGrath hosted the Holeshot Kings on the short course, where riders lined up against each other in a drag-race format for the best out of three. Ty Davis ended up with the 450-class win, defeating McGrath in their final duel.
On Sunday, the main race started across the lakebed at Chocolate Thunder, in a bomb start run up into the rocks and onto the Hammer trails. With GPS tracking and live-streaming, no piece of the action was missing as everyone got to see the progress of the racers. After lap one, Riordan came down the sand dune first, but Hart and Rockstar Husqvarna Factory Racing’s Ryder LeBlond were mere seconds behind him, as they were swapping positions. Webb had a crash early on, which set him back, and he was sitting in fourth place battling Flynn. Each lap of this race was different from the other, which prevented bottlenecking and gave the many Amateurs a less-crowded racing experience.
After Riordan and Hart swapped positions a couple of times, Hart ended up out front on the last laps, coming into the final hill several minutes ahead of Riordan and LeBlond. The final hill was straight up the side of Chocolate Mountain, giving the riders an additional challenge at the end of the race. Hart sped up the very technical hill in under four minutes and rode his way to the finish line first.
Riordan was the second rider up that section, with LeBlond only a minute behind, and ended up in second place. LeBlond finished in third for the third year in a row. Webb arrived a few minutes later in fourth place. Flynn rode well for fifth.
In the Pro Women’s class, TM Racing Get Dirty Dirt Bikes’ Katie Hall-Leah won after reaching 12 checkpoints in approximately six hours of racing.
In the Amateur ranks, Brandon Byrd won the A class with an exciting final climb where he passed two riders at the top for the win.
The next USHE Premier Championship is the Ultimate Hawaiian Hard Enduro on February 21-22 in Omao, Kauai.
Race 1 Live Stream
Race 2 Live Stream
2025 AMA U.S. Hard Enduro Round 1 Results
OVERALL (Top 10)
- Trystan Hart (KTM) 3:17:02
- Will Riordan (She) 3:25:00
- Ryder LeBlond (Hus) 3:28:08
- Cody Webb (Yam) 3:33:08
- James Flynn (Bet) 3:43:44
- Branden Petrie (Bet) 4:11:10
- Quinn Wentzel (Rie) 4:12:36
- Riley Bender (She) 4:21:38
- Daniel Lewis (Bet) 4:28:38
- Kawelo Huddy (KTM) 4:28:46
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