Chris Birch Repeats at the 2009 Roof of Africa Rally Hot

Dan Evon
Staff Writer

Chris Birch rode a KTM 300 across the finish line on November 28 to win his second straight title at The Roof of Africa Rally.

In second was fellow New Zealander Rory Mead, who finished two hours behind Birch, but only 12 seconds ahead of South Africa’s own Jade Gutzeit.

Birch, who was the first rider on route made a wrong turn at an intersection and had to return to the starting line. His time was corrected, but the grueling three days of racing took its toll. “It was really tough, I worked hard today,” said Birch. “All I could do when I re-started was to focus and ride my absolute best, but I am very happy to take the trophy home this year.”

The Roof of Africa Race is held in Lesotho, in Africa, and is considered to be the mother of hardenduro races. It attracts riders from all over the world. This year their were 102 riders participating in the race from 14 different countries and five different continents. Out of the 102 riders who started the race, only 23 finished.

The riders who did not finish the race enjoyed the hospitality of local villages. “These people are fantastic. They gave us food, place to sleep, and really took care of us, although we really struggled to communicate, but I quite enjoyed it out there,” said a competitor when he returned on Saturday morning.