Husqvarna Motorcycles riders have scored a series of podium finishes in four days of consistent, fast-paced racing at the 2023 Australian Four-Day Enduro (A4DE) in Harvey, WA.
Teammates Stefan Granquist finished the E3 class in third position, as Emelie Karlsson went one position better with a rewarding P2 finish in the EW division.
Confronting a huge variety in special test conditions, Granquist and his 2023 Husqvarna FE 501 stayed strong throughout the event, despite a big crash on the opening day.
Feeling the effects of the fall, Granquist went into survival mode to finish P3 on the first day, then managed to hold that time overall across the week, despite finishing in fourth place on days two and three.
In the final day’s traditional moto, Granquist scored the holeshot and led the opening laps before settling to take a hard-earned third-place result and a podium finish for the event.
Marking a successful A4DE for Husqvarna Motorcycles, Sam Pretscherer finished the E3 class in a convincing runner-up position after enjoying his share of success in Western Australia.
In the EW class, Karlsson on her ever-versatile 2023 Husqvarna FE 350 was one of the clear class front-runners for the entirety of the challenging four-day event.
From the very first special test Karlsson established herself as a contender with a P2 result, and she continued to hold that standing for the following three days, complete with an impressive runner-up result in the final moto.
Elsewhere, in the E2 category, teenager Billy Hargy charged his way to an impressive P6 result in his debut outing in the senior ranks.
Granquist and Karlsson will next be in action at the 2023 Hattah Desert Race on 30 June to 2 July.
Stefan Granquist: “I had a massive crash on the fourth test of day one, and I thought my whole race was over – I hit a rock that I didn’t see and went over the ’bars, then my bike hit me from behind. My goal from that moment was just to finish. Admittedly I got lucky, as another rider ahead of me got wire tangled in his rear wheel on one of the stages, so that cost him a lot of time and meant I finished with a class podium. To score a top three finish after one of the hardest races of my life is as good as a win for me, and I’m happy to just be walking away in one piece. We’re going to take a week off to reset here in WA, then we’ll get ready for Hattah in six weeks time.”
Emelie Karlsson: “I’m fairly satisfied with my result and to be as consistent as I was this week. Consistently finishing second has also given me a lot of motivation to keep getting faster and to work harder before the next race at Hattah, so we are looking forward to what’s next on the calendar.”