Four-time World Rally Champion, Tommi Mäkinen will also ride a G 450 X. (Photo: BMW) » More Photos

An entry list of over 500 participants makes the Himos one of the biggest enduro races in the world. It takes place in a skiing area and follows similar stages to the 1000 Lakes Rally, with hill, gravel and forest sections. The action begins with a qualification race that will determine the starting position for all riders. The race itself begins with ‘Le Mans’ start and the winner will be the one who rides the most laps during the two-hour race. According to Kari, it is a great race for spectators to watch.

“There were loads of people who came to see the first race last year,” he said. “This year, sponsorship by a Finnish off-road magazine and organization by a very good local moto club will ensure that there are some great riders coming. I know that Marko Tarkkala and Samuli Aro will be among the big names from the Enduro World Championship, and BMW Motorrad Finland is very pleased that Tommi is also participating on the G 450 X – in Finland, rally drivers are big stars.”

BMW Motorrad Finland’s Juha Torkkola is looking forwards to seeing all the action unfold on August 9th and 10th and believes that this event is the perfect launch pad for the new sport enduro customer machine that will arrive in dealer showrooms on September 20th.

“We are all very excited at BMW Motorrad that Kari and Tommi are participating in this race on the G 450 X against such a huge number of riders. Kari is actively involved with the development of the factory race machine and Tommi has been interested in enduro for years. As well as using bikes for training and for fun, Tommi has also participated in many enduro races in Finland and is very keen on seeing and testing the new BMW sport enduro bike. For this event, Kari Tiainen will be the team manager but he also wants to take part in the race so that he can see how other Finnish enduro riders and their machines compare to the new BMW G 450 X. It has already proven its capability to win and take podium places, and as the series production version will be launched here in September, we’ve got everything to gain by taking part in this race and showing our new product.”