SUMTER , SC ( FEBRUARY 7 , 2021 )
With 2020 behind us , hope springs eternal for better days in 2021 . However , when it comes to the Kenda AMA National Enduro Series not much has changed for 2021 if the opening round in Sumter , South Carolina is any indication .
Once again , the Baylor brothers were up front . After a full day of racing , Am Pro Yamaha ’ s Steward Baylor topped KLM Motorsports / Milwaukee / GasGas ’ Grant Baylor by 32 seconds to claim the first victory of the season .
Heavy rains on Saturday night left the sandy Sumter soil saturated , which made for perfect conditions for the record 949 riders who took to the course at 9 am .
Steward struck early , winning the opening test by 11 seconds over defending NE Pro 2 champ Craig DeLong on his Rockstar Energy Husqvarna .
Grant got off to a slow start , finishing fifth-fastest in test one . Meanwhile , XC Gear / Enduro Engineering / Husqvarna ’ s Ryder Lafferty was third in the test , ahead of FMF / KTM ’ s Ben Kelley .
DeLong turned in his best test of the day in test two by turning the fastest time , three seconds ahead of Kelley .
Meanwhile , the Baylors dropped off the pace in test two , with Steward finishing sixth and Grant finishing fourth , however , the dynamic duo would dominate the remainder of the race , as the two riders accounted for all four of the remaining test wins – each taking two wins .
On a side note , Steward won test four , despite crashing and taking a handlebar to his back , which required stitches afterwards . He left for the hospital immediately after the podium ceremony .
“ I ’ ve always ridden really well here in the past ,” said Steward . “ It was a little rough there at the end . I rode really strong all day so it was a solid Sumter , a solid way to start the season . I came in with Epstein- Barr this year , so a little weak , a little tired , but we did everything we could and did exactly what we needed to do to start this year off .”
Heading into the final test , DeLong was just six seconds behind Grant and looking strong . At the finish , however , Grant managed to pull away from the Husqvarna rider , taking the runner-up slot by 34 seconds .
“ In the first test I just struggled to find my flow and just got arm pump really bad and struggled to hold on ,” said Grant . “ By the third test I seemed to start finding my flow a bit . I think I was back in about fifth
VOL . 6 ISSUE 3 - MARCH 2021 // PAGE 79