The dust has just settled on the 100th Edition of the International 6 Days of Enduro based this year in Grandola, Portugal. Day 1 of racing on Monday 12th October was a very chaotic start to the week for all teams. The planned Test 1 was cancelled due to visibility concerns, and so there were route changes last minute to incorporate a test planned for later in the week. Dust and visibility issues then continued to plague the remainder of the event. To ensure safety within the tests, riders were left waiting in the baking heat, queuing at some tests for up to 45minutes at the start of the week. This set the scene for a challenging week for both riders and machines.
Written by Abbie Feltham – 2026 Rogershill Women’s Club Team Manager. Photos by Alice Barden.
The Rogershill Women’s Club Team comprised first-time ISDE riders, Christine Harcourt from South Wales and Katie McGeachy, a Canadian rider matched with the team by the FIM. Our third rider was the experienced Emily Elliot-Hall, who was attending her fourth 6 Days.
As mentioned above, Day 1 was very chaotic, and unfortunately Katie had some navigational confusion and timed out. Luckily, the club teams are allowed a restart, and so she bounced back with true grit and determination on Day 2. Getting her bad luck out of the way early, Katie finished the remaining days without penalties and gradually got to grips with the deep sand. We are very grateful to Katie for joining the team last minute and are proud of her performance. Not only did she complete her first ISDE, but she also did so following a fantastic ride for the Canadian Trials Des Nations team; what an inspiration!
This was Chrissie’s first ISDE also, and she completed what was an incredibly tough event. The hot days and long waits at the start of the week put her on the back foot when it came to hydration and bike maintenance, but she never gave up. The event was so hard on the machines that near the start area, a grassy hill became known as bump start bank. Luckily, Chrissie’s Triumph hung on in there and kept going to finish despite a lot of bad luck. Well done to Chrissie on making it to the end; the terrain, weather, dust and bike issues made this event one of the toughest of the last few years. She may be small, but she is mighty!
This is the part that is hard to put into words as I write this about my twin Sister, Emily Elliot-Hall (Em). She went out there every day with such calm and composure despite the gruelling dust and hot weather, and worked so hard and expertly; she almost made it look easy. She then decided to give Weston a go to complete 7 days of sand, inspiring or crazy, that depends on who you ask. Unfortunately, because of bike-killing levels of sand and dust, her bike did not make it through to end competitively in the final motocross. After some quick mechanics on the start line, she ensured she could complete her lap to get to the finish, and she still crossed that line with a smile on her face. This is why you always wear your tool bag! She also managed to bag P1 women’s club individual, and her third consecutive ISDE finish. She has made all our family and club proud, even if she downplayed how much work would be required of me!
When Em asked if I would be the ladies club team manager, at the time it was an easy yes. To stand on that podium next to them was a very proud moment. Some may want to diminish their podium as they were the only women’s club team and therefore “just needed to finish”. However, I think the fact that they were the only women’s team, shows just how much they had to achieve to even get to that start line. You then combine that with how many teams had members who did not finish; it is all the more impressive. When I look back at all the challenges, I hope that everyone sees what an achievement this really is. I want to commend Em’s commitment to working to send the second only GB women’s club team in history, and I want to thank all those who have supported us in achieving this goal. Will we send another Ladies club team? Hopefully! Will the next yes, if she asks me to manage, be so easy? Probably not; I write this with about 40 hours of sleep debt! But whatever happens in the future, we as a Rogershill club team will continue to advocate for women in this sport, and hope that this achievement will inspire other clubs and sponsors to do so as well.
Thank you to our Team Sponsors, Monsters of Dirt and Lit Enduro, plus those locally who supported our fundraisers, as well as Alex Jones, who supported all of the British Women. A big thank you also to our amazing crew of club helpers: Holly with Physio, Alice on the camera and top pit team Becks, Hannah and Joe. Well done also to the Rogershill Men’s Team, Andy Frost, Danny Hall and Wayne Player. Andy secured the top Rogershill placing, and Danny managed to improve each day and had an amazing result in his final mx! But unfortunately, Wayne was a victim of the poor visibility which resulted in a very nasty crash and a withdrawal due to injury, he still supported the remaining riders for the following days, what a gem! Also, a massive well done to Alex Lamble, who nursed his bike to a nail-biting finish! Now back to work with Round 2 of the winter series at the end of November!
