To compete in two extremely different SA National Motorcycle Championships – THAT is the life of the multiple SA National Off-road and Enduro Motorcycle Champion, Altus de Wet, who has just successfully completed a cold, wet and muddy Winterberg Enduro in Port Elizabeth and is now ready to leave for the Toyota Kalahari Botswana Desert Race 1000 (TDR) off-road race.

Altus even enjoyed the challenge of racing under difficult conditions on a route that was perfect for the more technical style of enduro racing and walked away with a third place in the E2 (Open Class) Championship at Port Elizabeth. He finished fourth overall and was very happy with his competitive times.

This result combined with another podium finish at the opening round (the second event at Heidelberg was scrapped) ensures him the second place in the E2 Championship with four rounds of the series still to go. He is now only 8 points behind the class leader, Travis Teasdale.

From one extreme event to the next and De Wet has completed the final preparations for the upcoming TDR 1000, a three-day marathon event that will test competitors and their machines over almost 1 000 kilometres in the Kalahari desert in Botswana.

He is, however, looking forward to this event as he likes the longer distances in the Cross Country Championship. A 50km time-trial on Friday (24 June) will determine the starting order for Saturday (25 June) when they will have to complete a 196km loop twice. They will tackle Sunday’s race according to Saturday’s results and after racing for two days, they will have to be ready to complete a 236km loop also twice. De Wet can return from Botswana to his beloved Montagu in the Western Cape with a healthy amount of double points and the current 14 points difference between the top four riders in the OR1 (Open) Championship where he is currently fourth, can look totally different...

The TDR starts and finish at Jwaneng in Botswana and forms two rounds of the SA Cross Country Championship for Motorcycles and Quads.

When he returns, Altus will again take bookings for his personal Rider Training Courses. 

The last words from Altus: “It is so important to enjoy your racing. I am looking forward to the Botswana marathon race. This race is a real test for us as riders, but also for the support and technical crews who play a major role in the outcome of the results. I am thankful for my crew and will not be able to race without their support as well as the support from my sponsors.” 

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