Rieju USA’s Quinn Wentzel entered the 2026 River Monster Hard Enduro having won two of the event’s three previous editions. Adding another victory to that record would require far more than outright speed.
Round three of the AMA East Hard Enduro Series returned to Kairos Wilderness Resort in Glen Lyn, Virginia, where promoter Jared Spencer introduced a substantially revised course for 2026. Building on feedback from previous editions, Spencer added more technical terrain, challenging splits for the Pro and A divisions, and a new loose-rock climb through Virgin Valley.
Words & Photography By Steph Vetterly
Then the weather finished the job.
The result was the toughest River Monster yet—a soaked, wheel-spinning survival test that stopped most of the field before it had traveled a quarter mile. Wentzel secured his third River Monster victory as the top Pro, with Maverik Thaxton and Creed Kisling rounding out the podium.
The contrast with 2025 could hardly have been sharper. A year earlier, pre-race rain drained away, leaving nearly ideal conditions for a fast event won by Rockstar Energy Husqvarna’s Ryder LeBlond. The leaders completed two laps and spent much of the afternoon racing one another rather than fighting bottlenecks. Several riders admitted afterward that rain would multiply the difficulty.
In 2026, that warning became reality.
Saturday’s Amateur race offered the weekend’s only dry window. Riders faced an approximately eight-mile course mixing rocky creeks, slick stone, single-track and long hillclimbs. Conditions rewarded riders who could carry speed through the transfers without losing patience in the technical sections.
Karsen Fulton made the most of that balance. He grabbed the holeshot and used his hare-scramble background to create separation through the faster trail. A mistake in a hole during the opening lap briefly allowed second place to close, but Fulton recovered quickly and rebuilt the gap.
“It was super fun. I had a great time,” Fulton said. “My background in hare scrambles really helped in a lot of the transfer trails and single-track. I just pulled away from everybody.”
Cory King finished second despite racing with a fatigued groin muscle and beginning several rows behind the leaders. King focused on choosing a line, completing the hard features correctly on the first attempt and avoiding the energy drain that comes from repeated mistakes.
The opening lap was difficult to read, with overgrowth and moss hiding portions of the preferred line. As traffic cleared vegetation and scrubbed the rock, the course gained traction through the second and third laps. King had installed a gummy front tire in anticipation of rain. It delivered grip in the technical terrain, though its softer construction limited him in faster sections.
Graham Kobak completed the Amateur podium after one of his cleanest races of the season. Kobak had prepared by running in near-100-degree temperatures to condition himself for the summer heat. He described the layout as an even split between rocks and creeks and high-speed hillclimbing. A fresh rear tire and controlled pacing helped him finish with energy in reserve.
The dry race also revealed what might happen if the weather changed. King predicted that rain would strand riders on the first two climbs. By Sunday morning, that prediction was no longer hypothetical.
An hour-long downpour hit Kairos before the Pro/A start. Another hard burst arrived shortly after the race began, soaking a roughly 10-mile course already designed to be substantially more challenging than previous years. River Monster staples such as Chocolate Goddess, Powerline Hill and Send It remained, but the route around them was almost entirely new. Virgin Valley added a long uphill littered with loose rock, while sidehill logs, steep descents and polished creek beds left little room for error.
The race was scheduled for three laps within a five-hour limit. Nobody completed more than one.
Most riders reached their first crisis less than a quarter mile from the start. Powerline Hill became an immediate blockade as wet soil, leaves, roots and exposed rock refused to provide a consistent line. Riders searched beyond the established rut for untouched dirt and pushed motorcycles when momentum disappeared.
Champion Brick’s Makana Barger escaped the early chaos better than anyone. After taking the holeshot, the Hawaiian rider reached the first rock section before the next rainstorm intensified. His familiarity with wet valleys, slick stone and sustained climbs gave him an advantage as the Virginia course began to resemble the terrain he rides at home.
“I’m right back at home in the rain and mud,” Barger said. “Every day we ride, even if it’s not raining, the valleys always have water in them.”
Barger rode alone for most of the event, picking his way through a climb he initially doubted he could complete. He kept moving, cleared the decisive sections and reached the finish in 2:54:47 to win the A division. Ayden Marinchek finished second in A, with Leiber Ponce completing the class podium.
Wentzel’s path to a third River Monster win became a mechanical rescue mission.
After spending roughly 30 minutes fighting his way up Powerline Hill, Wentzel discovered that his rear brake had disappeared. With steep descents waiting ahead, continuing was not an option. He returned to the pits, attempted to bleed the system and eventually found a complete pre-bled brake assembly in his parts tote.
The replacement pin did not fit, forcing Wentzel to drill the mounting hole and improvise a cotter-pin solution before returning to the course.
The delay should have ended his bid for the Pro win. Instead, the bottlenecks kept the leaders within reach. Wentzel refueled, topped off his coolant, returned to the route and found several rivals still fighting the same hills. He worked back through the order and completed the lap in 3:27:25, winning the Pro division.
“This was definitely the toughest River Monster I’ve ever done,” Wentzel said. “Today wasn’t about going fast at all. It was about your technical ability and who had the best technical skills.”
Wentzel credited his trials background for the balance, clutch control, throttle precision and body positioning required to survive. With traction almost nonexistent, every movement mattered. His motorcycle repeatedly overheated and expelled coolant, but it held together long enough to reach the finish.
Thaxton placed second in Pro after completing the lap in 4:02:44. He briefly held the lead before Wentzel moved past, then watched Bonnell’s Max Beaupre charge through while the front group studied Powerline Hill.
Thaxton’s strongest weapon was his hillclimbing ability. He searched for fresh dirt outside the main lines, shifted into taller gears to maintain wheel speed and attacked climbs such as Chocolate Goddess only after pausing to study them and recover.
“I sat at the bottom for a while, just thinking and studying and trying to catch my breath,” Thaxton said. “Then I came up out of the creek and just really tried to pump with my legs.”
Creed Kisling finished third in Pro at 4:28:53. Beaupre reached the third checkpoint fastest but did not complete the course due to a mechanical issue, while Jarrett Mohn also stopped after checkpoint three. Across the Pro and A results, only nine of the listed starters reached the final checkpoint.
That attrition rate told the story better than the lap totals.
River Monster had been rebuilt to enhance its reputation as a true hard enduro, and the weather pushed the new design beyond anything the event had produced before. The 2025 edition rewarded sprint speed, clean lines and close racing. The 2026 race demanded technical precision, mechanical resilience and the willingness to keep fighting when the course appeared impassable.
Wentzel added to his successes at River Monster in the Pro class, surviving a race that refused to let nearly anyone through.CN
2026 AMA East Hard Enduro Results
OVERALL (Top 5)
- Quinn Wentzel (Rie)
- Maverik Thaxton (KTM)
- Creed Kisling (Hus)
- Maxwell Beaupre (Sur)
- Jarrett Mohn (KTM)
