By Steve Hubrecht
Invermere dirt bike superstar Trystan Hart roared to another major victory recently, winning the American Motorcycle Association (AMA) EnduroCross Championship series once again.
Hart won the series last year, and successfully defended his title this year by winning the sixth and final race of the series on Saturday, Nov. 16 in Everett, Washington.
He had earlier won the fifth and penultimate race of the series, taking such a commanding lead in the overall series standings that he only needed to finish 14th in the sixth and final race to guarantee the championship. But Hart always rides hard, no matter what, and left nothing to chance as he ripped his way to victory.
In total, Hart won four of the six races in the series, earning 170 points. His nearest competitor was Colton Haaker, who won one of the six races in the series and earned 132 points. The only other rider to top 100 points was third-place Cooper Abbott, who secured 111 points.
Pioneer readers with sharp memories will recall Hart’s rapid rise to the top of the dirt biking world; he was featured in the Pioneer this June after racing to silver in the Erzberg Rodeo Hard Enduro in Austria. Unlike the Erzberg Rodeo, which is often labelled the toughest off-road dirt bike event on the planet, the AMA EnduroCross Championship races happen indoors, in stadiums and arenas, on enduro-cross courses featuring obstacles such as large rocks and logs. Essentially it is a mashup of motocross racing and hard enduro.
Hart began dirt biking in the Columbia Valley when he was just three years old. He turned professional when he was 16 years old, more than a decade ago, and then slowly worked his way up to the upper echelons of his sport. He began by getting podiums in Canadian events, then in big races south of the border. From there he got better still, becoming a perennial winner in North America, and a frequent podium finisher in major European races, such as the Erzberg Rodeo.
The Pioneer was unable to reach Hart (or his family members in the valley) for comment after his AMA EnduroCross Championship.
In post race interviews shared on social media, Hart credited Haaker with pushing him hard through the series, calling him “a major pain in my butt this season. He rides a bike so fast, so he made me work for this one and kind of kept me on my toes the whole time.”
