63. Six Days Enduro 1988 Frankreich Mende

The competition took place in France for the third time, following the 12th (1930) and 55th International Six-Day Tour (1980). Teams from 19 and 15 nations competed for the World and Junior World Trophy, respectively. In addition, 28 factory teams, 73 club teams, and 8 individual riders participated. The GDR, FRG, Austria, and Switzerland each participated in the World and Junior World Trophy. The special stages on the first five days of racing consisted of an acceleration test and two motocross tests each day. Day 1 Of the registered riders, 425 took part in the competition. The first day's stage consisted of two identical laps covering a total of 244 kilometers. The weather was dry. In the World Trophy, the French team led ahead of Italy and the Czechoslovak team. The GDR team was in 4th place, and the FRG team was in 6th place. Austria and Switzerland were in 11th and 13th place, respectively. In the Junior World Trophy, the Italian team led ahead of Finland and France. The East German team followed in 4th place, Switzerland was in 11th place, and West German team was in 13th place. The Austrian team had already experienced a driver dropout and was initially in 15th and last place. Day 2 On the second day of driving, the route from the first day was driven in the opposite direction. The weather was unchanged. In the World Trophy, Italy led ahead of France and Czechoslovakia. The West German team was in 5th place. Thomas Bieberbach, representing the East German team, was eliminated due to a technical defect: just 16 kilometers from the finish, the Simson 80 could no longer be started. For the team, this meant 15,000 points per day and initially 14th place. In the Junior World Trophy, Italy led ahead of France and the Finnish team. The East German team was in 5th place. Day 3 The third day's course again consisted of two laps totaling 274 kilometers. The weather remained dry. In the World Trophy, the French team led ahead of Italy and the Czechoslovak team. The West German team remained in 5th place, and the East German team was in 14th place. Switzerland and Austria were in 9th and 10th place, respectively. In the Junior World Trophy, Italy led ahead of Finland and the USA team. The West German team was in 4th place, followed by the East German team in 5th place. Day 4 On the fourth day, the previous day's course was covered in reverse. The weather remained dry. In the World Trophy, the French team remained in the lead, ahead of Italy and the Czechoslovak team. The FRG team remained in 5th place, while Switzerland finished 9th. Harald Sturm, the second rider from the GDR team, was eliminated from the competition due to a broken clutch shaft on his MZ 250. The team initially finished in 16th place. In the Junior World Trophy, Italy led ahead of Finland and the West German team. The GDR team followed in 4th place. Day 5 The route of the fifth day was 230 kilometers long and included two identical laps. In the World Trophy, the French team continued to lead, ahead of Italy and Czechoslovakia. The FRG team finished 7th, while Switzerland finished 10th. The GDR team remained in 16th place. In the Junior World Trophy, Italy also remained in the lead, ahead of Finland and the West German team. The GDR team followed in 4th place, as on the previous day. Day 6 The final day of racing included 88 kilometers of driving. The final motocross race, the last special stage, took place in Le Choizal. Six laps of 2 kilometers each had to be completed as quickly as possible. Of the 425 riders who started on the first day, 335 reached the finish line.