Round five of the AMA National Hard Enduro Championship, presented by IRC Tire, returned to Taylorsville, North Carolina, for the infamous Battle of the Goats. The 2026 edition arrived at Brushy Mountain Motorsports Park, May 2-3, carrying all the weight of its reputation, and then flipped the script.
Story & Photos by Steph Vetterly
For years, this stretch of North Carolina clay has been synonymous with rain, ruts and chaos. When the skies open, Brushy transforms into one of the most unforgiving venues on the National Hard Enduro calendar, where traction disappears, and even the simplest climbs become hour-long ordeals. But in 2026, riders were greeted with something almost unfamiliar: dry ground, hero dirt on the hillsides, and a race that traded survival for outright speed, at least on the surface.
Scratch that surface, though, and Battle of the Goats remained exactly what it has always been: a relentless, technical grinder that rewards precision just as much as aggression.
The absence of rain didn’t make the race easier; it simply shifted where the punishment came from. Instead of wheel-spinning climbs and axle-deep mud, riders were forced to navigate slick rock waterfalls, dusty creek beds, and high-speed transfers that punished even the smallest lapse in focus. The hills were fast, the dirt was tacky, but the creeks told a different story. Without the usual flow to wash them clean, the rocks stayed greasy and unpredictable, catching riders off guard and making forward progress everything.
Course staples like Wentzel’s Waterslide, Chicken Fight, and the notoriously decisive Lost My Balls Creek returned to shape the race once again, sections that have defined Battle of the Goats. In a race where conditions often dictate the outcome, 2026 proved that even a “dry” Battle of the Goats can bite just as hard.
The B/C class main on Saturday set a brisk pace while still demanding respect, with dry terrain placing a greater emphasis on execution over endurance. Riders faced a 6.5-mile loop over three laps, where momentum was key, but mistakes in the wrong places still came with a heavy cost.
At the front, it was Bentlee Bredekamp who set the standard, taking the overall win with a composed and efficient ride. The course, while flowy in sections, demanded constant focus, particularly in the creeks that remained slick despite the dry weather.
“I feel good. It was great to win again,” Bredekamp said.
Behind him, Ethan Harwell impressed with a strong second-place finish in his first-ever hard enduro, leaning on his hare scrambles background to carry speed on the hills, while Brock Harris rounded out the podium by capitalizing on consistency and smart line choices.
Further down the order, tight battles unfolded, including a back-and-forth between Chase DeLong and Graham Kobak that highlighted the class’s growing competitiveness.
As in previous years, Saturday afternoon’s Pro/A Prologue played a critical role in shaping Sunday’s race. More than just a qualifying run, it’s a strategic battle for clean air and control, especially on a course where passing can be as difficult as the obstacles themselves.
It was Red Bull FMF KTM’s Trystan Hart who once again asserted his authority early, securing the Prologue win and the all-important first gate pick.
The Pro/A Class main was built around a five-hour, three-lap format over a roughly 7.5-mile course that blended classic Brushy brutality with a higher overall pace, with Pro riders facing additional split lines that introduced even more technical, high-consequence challenges beyond the A-class route.
From the drop of the flag, Hart wasted no time asserting control, grabbing the holeshot and leading the field into the opening sections. But as has become tradition at this event, the race was anything but straightforward.
Behind him, Rockstar Energy Husqvarna Factory’s Ryder LeBlond applied relentless pressure. Neither rider was flawless. Both traded mistakes, particularly in the creeks, where the lack of flowing water left the rocks coated and unpredictable. The result was a race that ebbed and flowed, with time gaps expanding and contracting as quickly as a single clean or failed attempt at a key obstacle.
“Ryder was really keeping me honest,” Hart said. “There was a big gap, and then all of a sudden, he was right behind me. Took me completely by surprise.”
The defining moment came, as it so often does at Brushy, in the creeks.
Lost My Balls Creek featured a waterfall that became the race’s ultimate separator. Riders who cleaned it gained minutes; those who didn’t paid dearly.
“I knew in the last lap, it was going to come down to this waterfall,” Hart said. “I actually threw my bike down it pretty good on my first try. I was stressing. The second try, I absolutely just gave it everything I had and cleaned it.”
That moment broke the race open.
LeBlond’s speed on the hills kept him firmly in contention. Time and again, he clawed back seconds on the climbs, where traction was consistent and commitment paid off.
Behind them, Rocky Mountain Yamaha’s Cody Webb mounted a charge of his own, overcoming a mistake-filled opening lap to claw his way back into contention.
“I was literally cussing at myself,” Webb said. “It wasn’t even the track; it was fully on me for making really bad mistakes. Then I just pushed hard the rest of the race.”
By the final lap, the order was set, but not without drama. Hart continued to refine his lines, improving his lap times as the race wore on, while LeBlond fought to minimize losses and Webb closed the gap from behind.
When the dust settled, it was Hart standing atop the podium once again, his sixth consecutive victory at the Battle of the Goats.
The AMA National Hard Enduro Championship, presented by IRC Tire, goes north for the Locked N Loaded Hard Scramble on May 23-24 in Sugarloaf, Pennsylvania.CN
2026 AMA National Hard Enduro Round 5 Results
OVERALL (Top 10)
- Trystan Hart (KTM) 2:58:24
- Ryder LeBlond (Hus) 3:19:01
- Cody Webb (Yam) 3:21:05
- Branden Petrie (Bet) 3:44:54
- Ryder Guest (KTM) 3:46:16
- Braxton Hintze (KTM) 3:50:35
- Kawelo Huddy (KTM) 3:52:38
- Kamakana Waitwaiole-Kahalepuna (KTM) 4:24:49
- James Flynn (Bet) 4:27:25
- Quinn Wentzel (Rie) 4:35:19
