Trystan Hart Claims AMA U.S. Hard Enduro Series Opener Win at King of the Motos in California

The IRC Tire Beta rider wasn't far off her goal, with only four A-class riders to finish ahead of her. The first to the checkers was A-class rider Makana Barger. After holeshotting the second-row start, he would battle fellow Hawaiian Boogie Rivera, all the way to the finish, edging him out by merely three seconds. Boogie, excited for Sunday stated, “The lap was just straight grind, no rest, just wide open, sketchy, and yeah, just trying to keep it on two wheels.”

The Pros had a different challenge awaiting them. Instead of a loop on the main route, a trial of quick reflexes and stacked obstacles awaited them at “Super Fun Canyon.” PCI Race Radios put $1000 on the line, and a single few-minute run doesn’t forgive mistakes. Cody Webb came short by 8/10ths of a second.

The winner, 2025 Champion Trystan Hart stated, “I think I wanted the $1000 more because I walked the whole track and he walked half of it. He was faster but I had a couple of sneaky lines on the part he didn’t walk and that made the difference.”

By the time the gate dropped Sunday, the sun melted the morning chill. The smaller gates kept “Chocolate Thunder” from bottlenecking. FMF Factory KTM’s Trystan Hart flew through the holeshot to a dominant first lap. “Once the gate dropped, I sprinted as fast as I could. It is hard to get away with the navigation, and they caught me a couple of times, but I kept going.”

Trystan emerged victorious, but the track bit back as his shifter broke mid-course.

Rockstar Energy Husqvarna’s Ryder Leblond second place was more hard fought. Fourth off the gate, Leblond made quick work of third place rider Braxton Hintze on the first hill. Cody Webb (second place) pulled ahead but a broken footpeg gave Leblond the edge to reel him back in. He recalled “I broke into second halfway through the first lap. “I think I gained a little bit on Trystan and maintained that gap for like a lap or two, going into the last three laps. I had a four- or five-minute gap the whole time. If I was there maybe I could have made something happen, but it was too big of a gap, but I kept pushing”. LeBlond was still happy with his performance exclaiming “Race was cool. It was a little easier than normal, but it was fast, dusty, definitely more dry than it has been in the past. No snow. Pretty good”

Makana Barger emerged victorious once again in the A-class, using strategy to get the edge. “I started off pretty good, but I took a wrong turn. I turned my back and saw Boogie just blow right by me. I turned around, caught up to him but we ran into some traffic. I took a straight line and gave him a little block pass and got by him” Makana stated, satisfied with his race.

King of the Motos also debuts two new Pro classes. Racer Aidan Manger broke the champagne as the sole rider in the “E-Moto” class. Also newly minted in the “Pro Four-Stroke” class. Six-time champion Cody Webb led the class with fellow teammate Riley Bender in tow. A primer for the new, and a battleground for the experienced, King of the Motos is the arena of legends. Epic downhills, rocky washes, and monumental climbs set the tone for the AMA US Hard Enduro season and the memories of this weekend will be the fuel to push harder in the next round.

The AMA National Hard Enduro season moves across the Pacific Ocean for the Ultimate Hawaiian Hard Enduro on February 20, 2026. The Garden Island Motorcycle Club on the island of Kauai will host US Hard Enduro for the third consecutive year, bringing a completely opposite change of scenery between Round 1 and 2.