Reigning Australian Four Day Enduro Champion Toby Price is certain that he’ll contend for a second successive victory when the event kicks off today in Mackay, Queensland.
Last year saw the team’s reigning Australian Off Road Champion, Price, take out his maiden A4DE title, dominating proceedings in New South Wales on his way to the Outright and E2 class victories.
For 2011, Price will contest the event on KTM’s brand new 350 EXC-F, which is set to be released as a 2012 model in the coming weeks, and he’s excited for the challenge that lays ahead just days following his Hattah Desert Race win last Sunday.
“Everything is feeling good ahead of the A4DE and I’m looking forward to a big week,” Singleton resident Price commented. “The four-day is a big event for us and definitely one that I’d like to win again.
“I was able to win last year, so it would be awesome to hang onto that number one plate again for the team.
“I’ll definitely be giving it my best shot, trying my hardest to keep the KTM on top of the podium.”
Teammate Jarrod Bewley, who won the E1 class last year and finished an incredible third Outright, will enter this year’s event as favourite for the E3 class honours aboard KTM’s 300 EXC two-stroke. Bewley also won the event Outright in 2009.
After finishing third at Hattah last weekend and finishing second in last month’s Finke Desert Race aboard a 450 SX-F, Bewley will have to readjust to his powerful 300 EXC this week.
“I’ll be humping back on the two-stroke for the A4DE and that should be a lot of fun,” Bewley explained.
“We’ve done some good training for the event at Finke and Hattah, so I’ll be planning on riding a consistent four days and we’ll see where we turn up at the end of it. I’m certain it will be all good.”
Completing the Motorex KTM Off Road Racing team’s line-up for the A4DE this season will be usual team manager Brad Williscroft, who himself has enjoyed a competitive year in 2011 to date. Williscroft will defend his Veterans title aboard the brand new 2012 model 500 EXC.
Ben Grabham, who won the E3 category in 2010, has been ruled out of this year’s A4DE, suffering a complicated wrist injury including a broken scaphoid on day one at Finke. Despite his injuries, Grabham raced on to an unbelievable Outright win in that event before undergoing surgery.