Bruforce kicks off at full throttle.

With the kick-off of the GP season only two weeks away, the motocross scene in Europe got into full swing this weekend and, Frankenbach aside, Bruforce Racing pennants were also flying in national championships in Spain and Holland.

In Holland, Tyla Rattray and Tanel Leok donned their blue No Fear battledress for the Dutch season opener at the notoriously-difficult Gemert circuit. Gemert is widely recognised as one of the deepest and roughest sand pits in Holland - and, therefore, probably also in the world. The event attracted a large international entry, and it is no exaggeration to state that it closely resembled a GP, with the best sand riders in the world, such as Marc de Reuver, Erik Eggens and Steve Ramon in attendance. The presence of reigning 125cc world champion Michael Maschio added additional colour to the event. Joining Rattray and Leok were the entire Youthforce outfit of Bas Verhoeven, Dennis Verbruggen and Lauri Lokotar.

Rattray gave notice early on that he was serious about defending his #3 plate in this series and perhaps to battle for higher honours, when he set the third fastest qualifying time. Leok stayed in touch with the leaders with a seventh fastest chrono. The youth riders were having a harder time of it, however, with Verhoeven at 23rd fastest performing the best.

With all the confidence in the world, 'Styla' got a decent start in the first heat. The young South African was well placed in fifth position, but soon started probing forward. On the third lap Georges Strik yielded before his relentless assaults, and 'Styla' set off in pursuit of Oscar Vromans, who had made a surprisingly successful return to the 125cc class. After hauling in Vromans and shadowing him for a while, 'Styla' got by the Dutchman to move into third spot. His battle with Vromans had however allowed world number two Ramon to creep closer, and on the very last lap of the race a momentary lapse in concentration by 'Styla' allowed the Belgian to sneak through.

The second heat again saw Rattray in the top five at the start, but this time he turned the tables on Ramon, passing the Belgian to score a second fourth place finish for the day. Two fourths were good enough to allow 'Styla' to go and collect some silverware for his troubles. He now occupies third spot in the Dutch Championship series, and this is his best ever start in the series.

After a successful trial run at two rounds of the Dutch Championships last year, the series will in 2003 feature a Superfinal race at every round, where the top 15 riders of the 125cc - and Open Classes battle for honours in the Dutch Superclass championships.

Rattray produced his third good start of the day, again well within the top ten even amongst the more powerful Open class bikes. He again managed to dispose of Ramon, and also got the better of reigning Dutch Open champion Antti Pyrhonen form Finland. He moved around Belgian Marvin van Daele, and moved closer to another Belgian, Manuel Priem on an open class machine. After setting Priem up, 'Styla' went for the pass, but the two riders collided, and this allowed van Daele to reclaim his spot. The Bruforce KTM nevertheless came home in sixth spot, being the third 125cc home.

Tanel Leok launched into the Dutch series with equal enthusiasm, settling into a comfortable top ten position. In the hustle and bustle of the first lap, he was however unable to avoid Dutch rider Patrick van den Berg, and he went down himself as he hit the stricken rider's bike. Coming back from 25th spot, 'Tann' drew on all his sand riding experience and clawed his way back to the front. He got the better of many expert sand riders in the process, but perhaps his most notable victim included world champion Michael Maschio. Time rand out for the teenager before he could break into the top ten again, and he claimed eleventh spot at the flag, a position he was very disappointed with.

In the second heat, the Estonian again surged to the front, and slotted in behind teammate Rattray in fifth position. Halfway through the race, his signallers missed him in his usual spot, and as he reappeared in 15th position, it was clear that he had taken a tumble in the woods section of the track. He was now thoroughly piqued, and took not prisoners as he reclaimed as many positions as possible. This time he managed to get to tenth spot before the flag fell, and the two fairly disappointing races by his standards netted Leok ninth spot for the day.

In the Superfinal event, the Estonian's start suffered for the capacity deficit that his bike was saddled with. This time round, he was only mid-pack, he had some serious work to do. He gained the ascendancy on a number of the Open class machines, including Dutch number three, Marcel van Drunen. As the race wound down, he blew past the #2 bike in the Open class piloted by Heikki van den Berg. His mind was set on clipping the wings of sandmaster Jan van Hastenberg and world champion Maschio, who both enjoyed a sizeable lead on the teenager's KTM. He relentlessly closed the gap, and bullied his way past van Hastenberg. Maschio offered no resistance, and Leok finished twelfth in the race, the fifth 125cc bike to finish the day's activities.

Bas Verhoeven had a good day in his first outing for his team. Although his qualifying performance was less than remarkable, the young Dutch rider ascribed this to nerves, and vowed to perform better in the race. A good start in the first race left Verhoeven in an excellent position to claim his first top ten result for his team. He fought off a number of challenges, whilst moving forward himself, but he had to deal with a spluttering bike from the middle of the race onwards. He still kept his momentum despite this drawback, and maintained a top ten position. At the end he could just not overhaul Georges Strik, and he had to be content with ninth spot.

Some frantic work in the race paddock ensued in order to get Verhoeven's bike in order for the second heat. The Champ KTM team kindly consented to loan one of its spare motors to Verhoeven, and his bike was ready just in time for the second heat. Verhoeven was unfamiliar with the power characteristics of the new motor, but he did the best he can, and still finished in the points in 19th position.

Having just returned form injury, the team's sole Dutch rider had already expended most of his energies by the time the Superfinal race rolled along. His struggled to find his rhythm, and the black and white flack provided merciful relief for him as he crossed the line in 21st spot.

Dennis Verbruggen and Lauri Lokotar both got their baptism of fire in top class sand racing. Like so many other riders before them, the two Youthforce 'toddlers' came to realise that racing in the sand against the best can be a harrowing experience. Many top GP stars have suffered the indignity of being lapped in the sand in the early stages - and sometimes at the height - of their careers. The team's advice to the two youngsters was to survive the day, and learn as much as they can. Although they found the going tough, the two boys plodded on, and finished their jobs for the day.

In Almonte, Spain, Alvaro Lozano and Jonathan Barragan lined up for the first round of the Spanish championships. Lozano kicked off his season in fine style, with a pair of podium finishes, both times behind Javier Garcia Vico and Mark Eastwood. Barragan also kicked off the defence of his Spanish 125cc title with two podium results, with a second place finish in the first heat, and third spot in the second heat.

All in all, Bruforce racing can probably claim to be the only team in the world that has achieved podium finishes in top-class international races in three different countries this weekend. An interesting note for the statisticians out there is the complete dominance of KTM's in the Dutch Championship series. In the first heat of the 125cc class, 14 of the first 15 machines were KTM's, the sole exception being the Yamaha of Oscar Vromans in fifth spot. Now that, we believe, tells a story.