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Submitted by Alan Henderson
Tuesday, 15th June 2010
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VOL.196 - MONDAY 12 JUNE 2010
NEW ZEALAND NEWS
R.I.P. PAUL DOBBS
The following statement is courtesy of Paul Dobb's wife Bridget.
Paul Dobbs died while racing at the Isle of Man TT on Thursday 10 June 2010. He had been enjoying a superbly successful TT. The weather had mostly been kind and Dobsy had achieved his target for this year (123mph on the Superstock) during the second practice session and again in several other practices and races.
He had completed three races: Superbike, Supersport 1 and Superstock and finished in replica time in all three. He was lying 4th in the Privateers' Cup. He died doing what he did best and what he enjoyed the most. Fifty weeks of our year was spent planning and preparing for the next TT.
I know I speak for our team when I thank the Race Office for their full and continued support at this time. I also thank everyone who has been in touch with their kind words.
Dobsy will stay on the Isle of Man which was what he always wanted. We cannot yet make detailed arrangements but we expect the funeral will be early in the week starting 21 June and we very much look forward to seeing everyone who is able to attend. Anyone who would like to provide a motorcycle escort will be greatly appreciated. We intend to celebrate his life not to mourn his parting.
There will also be a memorial service in NZ at a later date.
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The following statement and the photos are courtesy of Andrew Johnson (AJ) from Full Throttle Motorcycles, Pukekohe.
We were in a state of disbelief on Friday morning when we got the sad news of Paul's accident. Paul was a much loved and valued friend and staff member(Workshop Tech/Manager). He was a dedicated and committed man with an unbelievable love of motorcycles. Dobsy was a do anything for anybody sort of guy and nothing was ever too much trouble. He always greeted everyone with a smile and always had a joke or two to tell in the staff room. We were looking forward to his return. He will be dearly missed. Our thoughts are with his wife and two daughters. Dobsy will ride forever in our hearts.
AJ, Michelle Johnson and James Bennell.
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THE PAUL DOBBS FUND
Paul Dobbs (39) was a great friend, father, husband, and motorcyclist. His tragic accident on the Isle of Man has seen the motorcycling industry loose one of the greats. He leaves behind a wife (Bridget) and two daughters, Eadlin (8) and Hillberry (5).
The Paul Dobbs Fund has been set up to help this wonderful family through what will be a tough few months ahead. All donations go directly to the family.
Online donations can be made into: Paul Dobbs Fund, National Bank Pukekohe Account # 06-0405-0201898-00
Or donations can be made at: Full Throttle Motorcycles, 212 Manukau Road, Pukekohe
Or Cheques can be sent to: Paul Dobbs Fund, C/- Full Throttle Motorcycles, 212 Manukau Road, Pukekohe 2120 (Please make cheques out to Paul Dobbs Fund)
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TOKOROA'S QUEEN'S BIRTHDAY ANNUAL
Whilst the numbers were down the quality of rider was still very good. Only 10 in MX1, 15 in MX2, 13 National 125, 11 Women, 5 Vets and 16 in the Expert Open gave a total of 70. 21 was the total of the two Junior 125 classes and there was 16 in the Junior 250 and a total of 57 for the three Junior 85cc classes.
For results in all classes: http://www.mylaps.com/results/showevent.jsp?id=546346
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RACE BRIEF ... FROM JOHN PHILLIPS AT TOKOROA
"It was tipping down Saturday night, we live about 25 minutes from the track and I knew it would be a mud bath. The format for the day was a little different as we had two short back to back motos and then a 20min plus a lap.
The track wasn't too bad for practice and qualifying considering the amount of rain it had on it, but with only 5 laps all up I was pretty happy to be 2nd qualifier in MX2 (CRF250R).
Race 1: I got away to a top 5 start, I kept pushing hard and was in 4th and chasing when I came in too hot to a berm and got stuck on the top of it. It took a bit to get off and back on the track, from there I just held it wide and managed to get back to 4th when Ethan Martins bike died and I picked up 3rd past the flag.
Race 2: We had 5 minutes from the first place past the flag to the drop of the gates for race 2. My mechanic Tom McNaught had fresh goggles and gloves waiting for me. My Pirelli mud tyre hooked up well off the line and I was 2nd round the holeshot corner. Jessie Wiki was ahead of me and I was all over his back wheel looking for lines to make the pass. I made time through a boggy section just after the finish line and made the pass soon after. I put the hammer down and pulled a bit of a gap but a couple of laps later I got caught in a boggy rut and Jessie came back at me, making his pass soon after. He pulled a bit of a gap and Michael (big brother Mikey P.) started to make his move forward, we battled for a bit 'till he made an aggressive pass, I wasn't happy so I tried to pass him back by blocking him on a berm but I fell off. We were so far ahead of the rest of the field I had time to pick up my bike and still come in comfortably 3rd past the flag.
The day was called off after two rounds. It was a pretty ordinary day because of the rain but it was fun racing Jessie and Michael. A big thanks to Tom and Big D for helping out.
I head back to Australia on 25 June for Round 6 of the Rockstar MX Champs at Wodonga NSW. I am looking forward to training with Michael over the next few weeks. Thanks for your support it is much appreciated. John Phillips."
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MERCER SANDS
The Pukekeohe MCC's Winter Season opening practice was also on Queen's Birthday weekend but on the Monday from 12 to 4pm so as not to interfere with Tokoroa's annual event. As I said last week a staggering 191 riders signed on.
Scott Henderson (MX2) was running the newly released Pirelli MS32 Mud which is basically a standard MS32 with a paddle replacing ever second knobbly. Scott said; "It worked awesome as not only was the track extremely soft in places but it also has its hard sections so seemed to be a great combination."
Blake Gillard was not at Mercer but tried one of the Pirellis out at the Mr Motocycles Te Kohanga Maize Paddock two week previous; "Awesome in the loamy stuff, lots of grip," he said "Was also hard wearing, still got the little rubber titties on it."
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2010 Michael Godfrey Memorial Motocross
Raced on the Saturday and Sunday of Queen's Birthday weekend at the Stackhouse property Omihi in North Canterbury. On Sunday they were greeted with terrible conditions from the heavy rain overnight and they only ran one race so stopped at 4.
Darryll King had made the journey from his excellent 2nd at the Glen Helen round of the FIM World MX Champs. He won the Vets and was 2nd to Justin McDonald in MX1.
MX2 had a full field and ran 3 races on the Saturday and were only able to run one round on the Sunday with only half the field scoring points. Impressive top 5: 1st Craig Smith; 2nd Jayden Jessup; 3rd Isaiah McGoldrick; 4th Jared Guthrie; 5th Nathan Clare.
The 10 in the Ladies Class were run with the 21 in the Enduro Class and Kimberley Murphy took out the Ladies with a perfect score of 100 points for her four races.
Juniors and Seniors results: http://www.mylaps.com/results/showevent.jsp?id=544525
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RACE BRIEF ... FROM JUSTIN McDONALD
How's it going all, I thought it was about time I let you all know what I have been up to with my racing over the last month. I haven't been able to get out on the bike as much as I would have liked, due to the constant rain hitting Canterbury. However a few weeks ago there was a club day at the Stackhouse property in Waipara- home of the Michael Godfrey track. I took this opportunity to get out on the bike and check out the conditions on the paddock. It had been raining off and on all week and the ground was typically tacky for that track.
The following weekend I headed down to Cromwell for the third round of the sandpit series. I had not contested the first two rounds, but just wanted to ride again and get some bike time before the Godfrey the following weekend. It had been snowing and raining all week in the area, and parts of the road were under two feet of water. I managed to hydroplane my HiAce van on the way there. I had a good days racing and won three from three. Timaru Hondas' Craig Smith rode well taking out second in the Senior Pro Class.
The bad weather carried on through out the week leading up to the 2010 Michael Godfrey Memorial Motocross which was sponsored by Bairds Collision Centre. I was looking forward to this event as I had missed it in '09 while I was racing in the United States. The track was wickedly tacky all over and there had been some changes to the track layout since the Club Day.
On the Saturday we had three motos through out the day. Moto 1 I got a holeshot and settled in out front. It took me a couple of laps to get a feel for the tacky track surface, as it was hard to tell how grippy it was. In Moto 2 I didn't get such a great start, and had to pass one or two to get out the front. Once I got out front I felt good for the rest of the race.
During the lunch break I was asked by Karl from Traction, to wear a helmet cam for a couple of quick laps for a video that he was producing. I only got two laps in before my bike did a bottom end. Luckily I was able to borrow a bike and do a quick, handlebar set up before the start of the final race for the day. It took a few laps for me to get the hang of the new bike, but after a while I passed Blanchard for the lead. Andy Blanchard rode really hard before hurting his ankle in a rut. Darryl King made his way into second and settled in behind me for his best finish of the weekend in MX1.
Overnight, the rain poured down on the Godfrey track, causing a few to choose a sleep-in over racing. Rooter from Timaru Honda took my bike back to the Timaru workshop and rebuilt it overnight, before running it in and returning to Christchurch on Sunday morning. I was looking forward to getting out in the mud, even in the light drizzle and occasional rain.
Moto 4 on Sunday had to be restarted a couple of times because of people jumping the gates. I used a tear-off or two each time and had to do a quick trip back to the pits to set up some more goggles. Some parts of the track were submerged and a few of the boys were not making it around. I won the race and the overall as the final moto of the weekend was cancelled due to the conditions.
The feature race was the last Moto for the day. A thirty minute plus one lap race for the top riders in each of the big classes. I got a brand new Pirelli mud tyre on the back for the feature race. This gave me the ultimate holeshot and by the first turn I was a couple of bike lengths ahead of the field. By this stage in the weekend the ruts were extremely deep. Many of the hillsides were littered with riders stuck in the mud. I was feeling confident with my newly rebuilt bike and new tyre and got into a good rhythm for the remainder of the moto. It means a lot to me to win the Michael Godfrey trophy and bring it back home. I wish to thank Graeme Allan for organising the event. I know it means a lot to him to be involved.
My next event is likely to be the TT-X series in Canterbury early next month. Until next time I hope that everyone stays on two wheels and has a good winter. Thanks to my sponsors for their continued support in motocross; Honda Racing, Castrol, Etnies, TAG, Pro Circuit, Pirelli Tyres, One Industries, Alpinestars, Dragon and Endura.
Justin McDonald
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Josiah Natzke qualifies for the Loretta Lynn's.
Edited copy and photos courtesy of Josiah and Janine (Mum) Natzke
11 years old Yamaha motocross rider Josiah Natzke from Hamilton, who won the 11-12 years' 85cc title at the New Zealand Junior Motocross Championships in April (his second Junior National title) is back in the United States.
The family were there in 2008 when Josiah qualified to race at Hurricane Mills, Tennessee, in the 27th annual Loretta Lynn's Motocross, the US amateur national motocross championships. It's an achievement just to qualify and at that event he was an impressive 11th overall in the 7-9 years' 65cc class. This year is the 29th annual event and he will step up to compete in both the 85cc stock and modified classes in August.
Janine takes up the story; "In the preliminary Memorial Weekend at Millville MN Josiah raced in the 9-11yr 85cc. He finished 4th. On the Monday he raced two classes, 9-11yrs 85cc and 9-12yrs 85cc. He finished 2nd and 7th respectively. It was a good chance to get practice in for the regional the following weekend.
For the next three days before the regional, it rained a lot so we did school and went to town to shop and do laundry. Not much really happening. Practice for the regional was on Friday. It was wet so practice was delayed but once it got going the track dried out. On the last stock bike practice Josiah got taken out by a boy who took him on the inside. The kid smashed into the side of him. I saw it happen and was mad because there was no need to do that. You can't win practice. Josiah had a skinned elbow with bruising and a sore hip. The radiator shroud was munted and the radiator damaged. Plus another broken peak. So that was an expensive practice.
Onward and upward. For the stock class there were two divisions which meant the top 16 from each division go straight through to the following 2 motos and the rest go into a LCQ (last chance qualifier). Josiah finished 2nd in his division.
Then there was the first race for the modified class. Josiah got a bad start but the race was red flagged as a rider went down and broke his hip on the second corner which had a blind jump before it. Then he got a bad start in the 2nd start. He went from 16th to 7th in the first lap but didn't come round again. I had to run over to the back of the track as I thought he must have gone down. Thankfully he hadn't gone down but sadly the spokes on the back wheel had shattered. Josiah was very disappointed, as you just can't come back from a DNF. I said don't worry, it's just one of those things so lets concentrate on the stock class.
We lined up for race two of the stock class by which time it had been raining for sometime and the track was very slippery. Also the track officials were worried about injury as they had had some bad ones. Next thing they are calling a riders briefing and they cancelled racing for the day. We went back to our pits and went out for pizza. It helped with the day we had had.
First moto on day two went well. Josiah didn't get a good start but he finished 3rd. Josiah was sitting in a good position with one moto to go. Another bad start, he was running about 13th or 14th. Some trouble in the first lap through the whoops and behind someone stuck in a rut didn't help him gain any spots. In the next lap he started to pull a spot here and there. Josiah finished 7th which gave him an overall of 3rd place qualifier.
We are both thrilled as there is tough competition at the Regionals and they all want to make one of the 6 top spots to go to Loretta Lynn's. We are also very excited for our friends the Hempens. Luke qualified 5th in the 65cc 9-11yrs, so we can go to Loretta's together.
Josiah wheelies out in the lead. Photo courtesy of Janine Natzke.
Josiah's all smiles for good reason. Photo courtesy of Janine Natzke.
Moving on Josiah has two more chances to qualify for the modified class so we will plan the next trip which is to leave in 2 days for Georgia. (That was Wednesday NZ time)
We are counting the days until Chris, Sarah and Joel arrive. It is very hard without them. Much harder than any of us thought it would be. Thanks for your support. Janine and Josiah"
Note: That racing was today our time, results later this week. In the south east region the top seven go through.
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FUNDRAISING FOR Micah McGoldrick to the World Juniors in France.
2010 Canterbury Secondary Schools Motocross Championships on 25 July at Homebush, Darfield, there is a fundraiser to help get Micah McGoldrick to the World Juniors in France.
It is organised by Performance MX Coaching Ltd which is owned and operated by Antony Sproull, based in Christchurch NZ. The only MotoX coaching business in the South Island and 80% of business is coaching through various schools in Canterbury, the other 20% is private tuition.
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MARTINBOROUGH CLUB MX MEETING 11TH JULY
At the Hairy Hills Raceway (South Wairarapa) more info will follow on http://www.mmcc.zoomshare.com/0.html and on www.hairyhills.com Just $20 each rider and NO racing licence required. Sign in at 8:00 am practice at 9:00 am, Racing starts 10 am. For questions email to: craigmccreary34@hotmail.com
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ENDURO / CROSS COUNTRY
2010 4 HR Cross Country Fundraiser
Raising funds for the Bay Trust Rescue Helicopter, the event went really well with 78 riders entering. The results are on www.mylaps.com now with the other laptime results, Class & Overall PDF's due to go online by this evening on www.bopmcc.co.nz and www.ttbrc.co.nz
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Greg Pratt is IN the Finke desert race.
What they didn't tell him was he'd be racing off-road against 491 other motocross riders, reaching speeds of up to 160kmh in 30-degree heat. Or that he'd be the first New Zealander to take part in the annual event.
The two-day event is called Australia's greatest desert race and competitors sprint 225km non-stop from Alice Springs to Finke. The next morning they get up and do it all again - racing from Finke back to Alice Springs. A total of 450 klms.
The red dirt and sand course is set along sections of an old railway track and started in 1976 as a "there and back" race among local motocross riders.
From what I could see in the results for Day 1 Greg was 33 out over 109 in the 251-450cc Class plus 15 dnf's. More later this week.
Greg Pratt generated good coverage for himself and even scored a full front page on the Courier which covers Manuaka/Takanini/Papakura.
Greg Pratt. Photo courtesy of the Papakura Courier.
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Epic Events Suzuki Trail Blazer
Also on the weekend was Epic Events 2nd Suzuki Trail Blazer of 2010 run in the Tahorakuri forest near Taupo. This event takes place on the North side of SH5 (turn left if travelling from Taupo or right if traveling from Rotorua). The track set up includes Long 40km, Middle 12km, Short 8km, Novice 3km, Kids forest 500m, Kids grass and Novice kids grass.
17-18 July is the Suzuki Trail Blazer 2 day South then North.
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RACE BRIEF ... FROM PAUL WHIBLEY FROM GNCC Round 8, John Penton, Ohio
Edited copy courtesy of Paul Whibley
The Penton GNCC has a reputation of being a dust bowl or mud fest. This year was no different. A massive downpour on Saturday as the Quad pro race was in staging delayed their start an hour. On Sunday another huge downpour just before 10 am completely soaked the place. There was a lot of talk about combining the morning and afternoon race and run a shortened race. In the end the morning race guys got their start delayed until 11:30 and ran for an hour and the afternoon race was to run 2 hours.
I got a good start and rounded turn one in the lead although Cory Buttrick just pipped me to the hole shot line entering turn two. The first few turns were on a mx track then we hit the woods where conditions were pretty wet and the mud was heavy. The trail technique was mostly get into the rut and stay there. I learned the hard way that the main slot was the fastest as I tried to make a pass on different lines and each time lost a position. I ended up behind Jimmy Jarrett and racing with him for the first lap until we got close to scoring. Early in the second lap I got wedged in a rut. It took me a long time to get the WR out. A lot of lifting and heaving to pry out my bike that now felt like it weighed a tonne. I thought my race was done again since I was so far back but I kept going hoping to salvage some points.
As the race progressed I picked up positions as the conditions began to take there toll. At the fuel stop Katherine told me I was up to 5th and that that fourth place was not to far in front. Over the last two laps some sections of the track were removed as they were getting blocked by bottlenecks and some deep ruts. On the last lap I came to a blockage with some deep ruts. I could see what looked like Josh Strang, stuck in the rut. I decided to try go around as many others had tried too but unsure if it was possible. I pinned it up a little bank through the bushes, over a couple of logs and pushed through some vines and I dropped back down to the track, just behind Josh Strang as he emerged from the mud hole. The track was single track and passing was near impossible so I had to just follow. We came to another rider stuck in the main line, Josh went high I went low, but I stalled my bike and lost some time restarting. I closed the gap back up by the finish but had to settle for the position I was in. Crossing the line I was surprised to see I was up to third (Josh was running 2nd).
Pretty happy with the result considering I was so far back early in the race. A little disappointed the race was only two hours but I guess the call had to be made with the conditions being what they were. A big congrats to Cory Buttrick for taking his first overall win. I'm sure the first of many.
1st: Cory Buttrick; 2nd: Josh Strang; 3rd: Paul Whibley
Paul Whibley is supported by: AmPro Yamaha, Monster Energy, Shoei, Sidi, Smith, Ohlins, G2, CTi, Moto SR, Vortex Ignitions.
The AmPro Yamaha Team is supported by: FMF Kenda Yamalube Asterisk Cannondale CV4 Cycle Gear E-Batt EBC Brakes Factory Connection Fastway Gaerne Boots GYTR IMS Jonny Signs Leatt Brace Matrix Racing Products Motion Pro MSR Pro-Clean Rekluse Scott Shoei Slavens TM Designworks Twin Air Wiseco ZipTy Racing
Paul Whibley. Photo courtesy of Katherine Whibley
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ADRIAN Smith's Giant-Killing Season
Edited copy courtesy of Yamaha Motor NZ. Writtem by Andy McGechan.
It has been an astounding year for Taranaki motorcycle racer Adrian Smith. In addition to finishing a remarkable 3rd overall in the four-round New Zealand Cross-country Championships, which wrapped up near Christchurch last month, the 24-year-old man from Mokau also finished 3rd overall in the New Zealand Enduro Championships, which wound up with the fifth and final round near Taupo last Saturday week.
You might be forgiven for thinking there's nothing too remarkable in achieving two 3rd placings, but, when you realise Smith was riding a 125cc bike against the 250cc, 300cc and 450cc bikes of most of his rivals and also consider that Smith did not race at every round in either series, it shines a very bright spotlight on his accomplishments.
An injured right wrist forced him to skip one round of the enduro series but he battled his way to seventh, fifth, second and third overall at the four rounds that he did show up for. Despite his abbreviated campaign, Smith also finished first in the race-within-a-race for bike category honours, winning the under-200cc two-stroke class title.
"I wasn't leading my class at the start of today," said Smith. "But I pinched it away from Napier's Lance O'Dea when I came home ahead of him as first under-200cc rider at Taupo. It's capped off a good year for me. This bike is just so light and nimble... it's easy to throw around in among the trees and there's still plenty of power to get the job done."
Smith hopes he can stage another giant-killing act when he takes his Yamaha YZ125 to tackle the popular Tarawera 100 cross-country endurance event, a 160-kilometre race through farmland and forestry near Kawerau next month.
"Then I will be heading off to the International Six Days Enduro in Mexico at the end of the year."
Meanwhile, nobody had an answer for Whitby's Rory Mead on Saturday as he romped to victory on the forest course just north of Wairakei Village. Mead (Yamaha YZ250F) was in scintillating form on the sandy Tahorakuri Forest course, edging out eventual title winner Jason Davis, of Whangamata, and Taranaki's Smith at the end of a very solid day of high-speed racing through the trees.
Adrian Smith. Photo courtesy of Yamaha Motor NZ. Photographer - Andy McGechan.
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Yamaha 1-3 at Enduro Nationals
Edited copy courtesy of Yamaha Motor NZ. Written by Andy McGechan.
Nobody had an answer for Whitby's Rory Mead at the fifth and final round of the Yamaha New Zealand Enduro Championships near Taupo last Saturday week.
Mead (Yamaha YZ250F) was in scintillating form on the sandy Tahorakuri Forest course, just north of Wairakei Village, edging out eventual title winner Jason Davis, of Whangamata, and Mokau's Adrian Smith after a solid day of high-speed racing through the trees.
Although both Mead and Smith are obviously among the country's elite dirt bike racers, neither was in a position to challenge Davis for the title this season - both Yamaha men were unable to mount a complete campaign this season because of overseas racing commitments and injury.
"This was probably the best enduro I've raced in," said Mead afterwards. "I really liked the track today. It was only my third outing on the YZ250F and I loved it... I think I'm getting faster and faster each time I ride it.
"I knew I had no hope of retaining my enduro title. Overseas racing is playing a bigger part in my life now, which meant I had to skip round one of the nationals, and then when I hit a tree stump and crashed out of round four (near Dannevirke) in March, I knew I couldn't defend the title. I'm looking ahead now to racing the Tarawera 100 endurance race (on July 10) and, hopefully, winning that. I'm feeling really confident about winning the (160-kilometre) Tarawera race (near Kawerau)."
Rory Mead. Photo courtesy of Yamaha Motor NZ. Photographer - Andy McGechan.
Even with just three of the five rounds to his credit, Mead still managed to finish ninth overall in the expert grade.
He raced three different Yamaha models during the season - a YZ450F four-stroke at Riverhead, a YZ250 two-stroke at Akitio and a YZ250F four-stroke at Taupo - and that fragmented approach meant any bid for class honours was impossible.
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RACE BRIEF ... FROM POWER RACING'S KARL Power Racing at the TAUPO National Enduro.
Edited copy from Karl Power
Taupo was a big welcome to winter. It was cold and frosty. The morning started with a special test about 30 seconds into the start of the day. It was hard to pull off when you can't feel you toes and fingers. Straight away my forearms pumped up like Popeye. I felt pretty comfortable though with all the training I had been doing. It was a tight special test (in time) so it was all very close. I was second outright.
The trails in between the special test where pretty flowing and fast ‐ it was just like an easy trail ride. We had a big day set out for us doing around 170km over the whole course. My day went a little pear shaped from here. In the second special test I caught up to Chris and we were putting some pace down! Until about three corners from the finish of the test I hit a log on an angle and didn't have enough energy to lift the front wheel high enough and went down hard and it cost me around 10 seconds.
The third test was again quite tight in time and I didn't make any mistakes here. The top five guys where around 5 seconds off each other. I knew I was off the pace a little with my crash and I knew I had to make up time somewhere.
The fourth special test was a very long one and I knew I could go the distance. I put all my effort into it and was feeling good. The test went into a section of pine trees, which were covered in a foot deep of pine needles. I was trying to take some smooth lines through the trees and hit some tree roots which washed my front out from under me. Another 10 ‐ 15 seconds lost!
So on the last special test I just took it easy and made sure I was not going to make any mistakes. Again I started behind team mate Chris and about half was through I saw him on the side of the track trying to get going again. He pulled in behind me and we set a fast pace to the finish of the test. It's always good riding with your team mate, it makes it more exciting ! Funny enough that special test which I had the most fun in was my fastest. Which I won over all by seven seconds and won by ten second to Rory who was in my class! I was lucky enough to get back to the pits also as I caught a rock in my front sprocket and it stretch my chain and snapped a tooth off! So I just nursed the bike home.
Taupo Enduro was one of the most enjoyable races of the year and can't wait to go riding down there again! It was good to top off the last enduro with the last special test win and on a high note by winning my class and coming 2nd outright for the series. Thanks to everyone who has helped us with the 2010 NZ Enduro Champs and we are looking forward to the next series to start up!
Karl Power. Photo courtesy of Power Racing
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RACE BRIEF ... FROM POWER RACING'S CHRIS Power Racing at the TAUPO National Enduro.
Edited copy from Chris Karl Power
It was a do or die affair for this year's championship for me. I had had an up and down season so far and never actually won a round to date. I had to win my class on the day to take the championship and it wasn't going to be easy, especially with my track record. I knew I was more than fast enough in the tests, I just had to say on the bike, not stall it as much and get to the end without any troubles. Easier said than done for me this season.
I had just upgraded to the 2010 CRF450R from my 2009 model and I was really excited to see how it went in the trees. The first special test of the day was about 30 seconds into the first section, which is a bad idea for two reasons. Firstly, riders are not yet warmed up or have their eye in yet. Going as fast as you can with about 30 seconds on the bike is a little dangerous in my opinion and unnecessary. Secondly, the machinery is not yet warmed up enough to be going full throttle and that's when damage to the bikes can occur. But hey that's just my opinion.
The first test saw me stall it off the line and drop about 10 seconds before I even started - Good one Chris! I was instantly on the back foot. Thankfully I hadn't lost that much time to the guys in my class and I was only down about 3 seconds. The second test went better until I over-cooked it into a corner in the shadows and had an off track excursion - I still managed to post a good time so it wasn't too bad. The next test was a good one for me with no mistakes. I know I have the speed and when it all come together is can be as fast as anyone. This test I was one second off the fastest time.
I had a few more 'excursions' in another test but nothing detrimental to me overall times. When the flag came out for the days end, I had wrapped up my class for the day, and managed to secure the 301cc‐Open Four‐stroke Class for 2010 - my second National Enduro Title.
The CRF450R was a weapon in the bush - when I wasn't searching for 'not so hot lines' off track. I'm looking forward to seeing what the 2010 can really do in the coming months.
Thanks to everyone who has helped out this year - another championship under the belt for Power Racing - how many more can we grab! Check out our new bike graphics from Workshop Graphics - they look fricken sharp! www.workshopgraphics.co.nz
Chris Power. Photo courtesy of Power Racing.
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British Cross Country Championship
Edited copy courtesy of the ACU
Plans for Round Two of the British Cross Country Championship next weekend of 20 June near Scarborough are nearing the final stages as the rideoffroaduk team prepare for their biggest event to date.
The track winds through five woodland areas utilising a full size MX track, Stream crossings and many woodland tracks and trails. To quote Ady Smith who travelled to compete in a club championship event back in March: "That is one of the best Hare & Hounds events I have ever ridden in."
This one off weekend has two events running, allowing the organisers to cater for Clubman/Sportsman and Vets in the 2 hour morning event; this will be followed by the UK's top Championship/Clubman Elite and Expert Over40 riders going toe to toe for 2.5 hours in the afternoon. Camping is available from Saturday, gates open 9am June 19th.
View: www.rideoffroaduk.co.uk
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AUSTRALIA NEWS
Race BRIEF ... FROM KIERAN LEIGH - Round 5 MX Nationals
Raymond Terrace in Newcastle was looking like it was going to be a real mud race Saturday sign-on and looking at the track wasn't really good. There was a heap of mud and track working guys were trying to scrape off the mud and get the track ready.
Sunday morning and no rain over night and the track was looking heaps better but still muddy.We were first out for Practice and for the first few laps the track sucked but a few lines started to form and I liked it a lot ! Green flag came out for timed Qualifying and I managed to put down a few laps that felt good with and I qualified 6th.
Deanzie and Kieran. Photo courtesy of Shayne Rice, Rice Photography.
Moto 1: I got a great start, my bike ripped out of the gates and I came around the turn in 3rd. I was feeling good running up the front and about the 3rd lap my arms started to pump up and a few guys got by me and then with two laps to go I pushed the front a bit high in a soft muddy berm and fell down so I finished 14th.
Moto 2: My start wasn't as good the first moto. I got a bit squirley down the straight and came round in tenth or eleventh and the track was getting heaps better, getting more dry lines but it was also getting real rough! I managed to pass a few guys and found some pretty good lines and got up to 7th my arms felt a lot better that moto.
Moto 3: I got a really good start and came around the turn in about fifth, the track was real rough by this time and I was around 5th for about five or six laps and got really bad arm pump again and couple guys went by me and finished up in 8th.
Overall for the day I finished 8th. It was an up and down day for me. I felt real good in practice and in the second moto I got no arm pump. My starts were awesome in the first and third moto. Arm pump got me and I feel I let myself down I was there in the top 5 in both motos and let my arms get the better of me and got passed in the late stages. A four week break now and I have a lot to work on and really can't wait to get back and redeem myself with three rounds to go.
Thanks again must go to my parents, Renny Johnston who came over with me and rebuilt my bike and was my mechanic for the weekend and TKMX without them and my sponsors it wouldn't be possible: Yamaha NZ, FOX, FMF, Sportspro, Pirelli, Reikon, Loose Kid Industries, CHB, ilabb, Leatt Brace, Performance Factory.
Kieran Leigh #901
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Pastrana throws down FMX double back flip
The world's greatest action sports star, Travis Pastrana, performed the second FMX double back flip of his life last week at the Melbourne Nitro Circus Live show in front of a sold out crowd of almost 14,000 at the Rod Laver Arena. Pastrana performed the trick after Melbourne's Cam Sinclair challenged him to once successfully completing it himself.
Pastrana had not attempted the most dangerous trick in action sports since it won him a X Games gold medal in the Biggest Trick competition in 2006. The crowd was upstanding and erupted once he rode out of the two perfect rotations and Pastrana ran to the top of the lander to stand next to Sinclair where they embraced to show their respect for one another.
"Seeing as though you are the one who called me out you have to call my mum and tell her because I promised her I would never do this trick again," said Pastrana at the end of the show.
Nitro Circus' Travis Pastrana in action in Melbourne. Photo courtesy of Nitro Circus Live.
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JAY FOREMAN BLOG
Edited copy courtesy of the Team Suzuki Press Office.
Jay Foreman is Team Manager for the Australian Team Rockstar Motul Suzuki Motocross and Supercross Teams with new riders and a new challenge on his hands in 2010.
In 2010, Team Rockstar Motul Suzuki is running new riders in both the Pro Open and Pro Lites classes: In Pro Lites we are defending a Championship in both Motocross and Supercross. With Matt Moss heading stateside, Lawson Bopping has stepped up to ride the fuel-injected RM-Z250. Lawson previously rode for the Raceline Pirelli Suzuki Development Team but his results have seen him move to the factory outfit.
Our 2010 results in Pro Lites so far have been mixed: Setting the bike up for a new rider takes some time. We had three years working with Matt where we knew exactly how he wanted the bike set up. We've had experience racing, and winning, with the injected 250, but we are working through getting the suspension set-up right for Lawson. These things will take some time to develop, but his speed is there which can be seen in his qualifying results. It also takes some time for a new rider to adapt to a new team.
In the Pro Open class, Cody Cooper has returned from New Zealand to pilot the RM-Z450. Cody has plenty of international experience having competed in the AMA outdoors and achieving good results. As with Lawson, the exact same things apply to Cody: Cody tried to set the bike up "US style", but because the tracks in Australia are so different, we had to revise our set up. Now we are back on track and seeing really good improvement in results. Cody has shown great speed, but we need to work on him getting out in the first three off the start. The shorter race-format here is not helping our cause, but Cody has the speed to run up front.
I am sure both riders will be winning races by the end of the season and hopefully carrying momentum through to Supercross."
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EURO NEWS
DAVID Philippaerts back to victory in GP OF France.
Edited copy courtesy of Youthstream
MX1: St. Jean D'Angely (France - 6 June) - Coming back to victory in the venue where he took his maiden Grand Prix win, David Philippaerts experienced a good weekend in France where he topped the MX1 podium from Tony Cairoli and a hard charging Clement Desalle. Steve Ramon and Frenchman Anthony Boissiere completed the top five in the MX1 class.
A hard fought French Grand Prix marked Philippaerts' comeback to the top of the podium where the Italian was missing since Mallory's British GP in 2009. Yamaha Monster Energy Motocross' Philippaerts battled it out with Desalle for an eventual third in moto one but stormed to the lead of heat two at mid race distance -again passing Desalle- and went on to take victory.
Red Bull KTM Factory Racing MX1's Cairoli made it to a close second overall as he ended with as many points as Philippaerts. The MX1 series leader won the opening moto after a battle with Ramon but struggled in heat two, where he lost time in a battle for third with home rider Boissiere. Once Cairoli settled in third place Desalle was too far to be caught.
Rockstar Teka Suzuki World MX1's Desalle rounded off the podium to take also second in the Championship, in between Cairoli and Philippaerts-former runner up Nagl is out with a broken left collarbone since yesterday. The Belgian was fourth in the opening heat after Philippaerts passed him but took a solid second in the final moto, where he also led for the first half.
Team mate Ramon took fourth overall ahead of TM Racing Factory's Boissiere, being the best home rider at this French GP. Boissiere was seventh in moto one but challenged Cairoli for third in the final moto, setting the crowd on fire when he moved past the Italian but eventually settling for fourth.
Guarneri took the holeshot in moto two and was sixth overall while Pourcel was 11th. Team mate Boog instead was stopped by technical issues in moto one and ended a bitter 15th.
Philippaerts is #19, three bikes in. Photo courtesy of Youthstream.
David Philippaerts. Photo courtesy of Youthstream.
MX1 podium. L to R: Cairoli, Philippaerts, Desalle. Photo courtesy of Youthstream.
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MX2'S MARVIN Musquin wins home GP
Edited copy courtesy of Youthstream
Red Bull KTM Factory Racing's Marvin Musquin took a home victory in the MX2 class. Joel Roelants and Zach Osborne completed the MX2 podium as both soldiered on along the rough course, where rain had fallen overnight. Poleman Gautier Paulin ended eighth.
Musquin took his fourth consecutive Grand Prix win and sixth in seven Grand Prix events as he went on to dominate his home round in St. Jean. The MX2 Championship leader rode a perfect first moto, leading from lap one to the flag, then got rid of Simpson in the final moto to take another win. This is the second consecutive year that Musquin wins a home GP.
Nestaan JM Racing KTM's Roelants took his second podium of the season courtesy of second overall. The hard charging Belgian recovered to fifth in the first moto but rode a strong second moto -despite a late crash- to take back third when Roczen crashed in front of him. The German, who had a difficult first heat, was making up for it in moto two as he recovered until third place but crashed again to drop down the field.
Bike It Cosworth Yamaha UK's Osborne took his second consecutive podium after his first one from last weekend in America. The USA racer was an eventual third in moto one after Herlings exploited his mistake at the last corner before the chequered flag and moved past. Moto two was all about recovering after an early crash, with Osborne ending ninth for third overall.
Red Bull KTM Factory Racing MX2 team mates Simpson and Herlings rounded off the top five ahead of Tonus and Verbruggen. Home riders Paulin, Charlier and Frossard rounded off the top ten at the end of a difficult home Grand Prix.
MX2 start. Photo courtesy of Youthstream.
Marvin Musquin. Photo courtesy of Youthstream.
MX2 podium. L to R: Roelants, Musquin, Osborne. Photo courtesy of Youthstream.
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EMX125: Jordi Tixier took victory in both motos as he topped his home podium in the EMX 125 class ahead of countryman Sulivan Jaulin and Pascal Rauchenecker.
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Coppins fights for every position in French GP
Edited copy from Glen Dempsey for Josh Coppins.
Josh Coppins and the Factory Aprilia motocross team headed to St Jean D'Angely in France looking for a good result in Round 7 of the MX1 World Championship. Coppins has always enjoyed the challenging hill-side circuit and was looking forward to the race.
In the Saturday Qualifying race 'Lizzard' blasted his Aprilia out the gate grabbing an awesome hole-shot in front of the thousands of French fans. As the race progressed Coppins had settled into the top five and was racing comfortably when the bike stalled going into a technical off camber corner. Having to get the bike re-started left the New Zealander ultimately qualifying in 13th.
On a wet and rutted circuit Coppins had a reasonable start for Moto 1 on Sunday, powering around lap 1 in 14th place. Settling in to a solid rhythm 'Lizzard' was circulating well and picked off a few riders to get into 12th by the end of the race.
In the second Moto Coppins was fast out the gate and headed through the first turn inside the top 10. Battling to find a good rhythm on the very rough and slippery circuit left 'Lizzard' fighting to hold onto every position, and ultimately the number 6 Aprilia jumped across the finish line in 14th position.
"It was a tough weekend for me but I have to say that I'm really happy with how the bike performed" explained Coppins. "We got a good holeshot in the qualifying race which shows that we have made good improvements and are now competitive at the start. I feel I rode well in the first moto but could not put it together in the second. I battled to find my speed and kept fighting the track over the moto and could not finish off how I wanted to. I'm happy with the improvements with the bike and the effort that the team is putting in, and hope that we can translate this all into a better result in Teutschenthal in two weeks time"
Josh Coppins holeshot. Photo courtesy of CDS
Josh Coppins. Photo courtesy of CDS
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RACE BRIEF ... FROM NIKKI SCOTT - SAINT JEAN D'ANGELY, FRANCE.
Edited copy courtesy of DIGA Racing's Willy Van Thillo
Extreme hot weather conditions made it hard for the riders on Saturday.
"France was an interesting GP. The Saturday was extremely hot, the temperature gage was reading 41 degrees in the sun. In Qualifying I struggled a lot with fatigue, as I didn't get in enough of the right nutrients to deal with the heat. Race 1: I was about 8th around the first corner, I made a few small errors and ended up 11th at the finish.
On Sunday it was a complete different track, a storm hit the track in the morning and made it very wet. With all the hills at saint Jean D'Angely, this made it so difficult. The race was more of an enduro, I was 2nd around the first corner, half a lap later I was in 3rd/4th before crashing on the up-hill triple, I got going again, was in about 25th, I think, got back to 9th and was chasing down 8th place when I hit a rider who had fallen on the hill. There was about 25 kilo of extra mud on the bike. It was impossible to roll it down the hill and all the controls were hidden. It took over two laps to get going again. I continued to fight and got back to 16th which I thought was not possible after the disaster that had occurred. I am looking forward to Germany and i hope there is no more rain !"
WMX France Overall: 15th. WMX Championship: 14th.
Nikki Scott. Photo courtesy of DIGA Racing's Willy Van Thillo.
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RACE BRIEF ... Kayne Lamont FROM EMX-125 SAINT JEAN D'ANGELY, FRANCE.
The facts: According to info received Kayne Qualified well in 21st but racing was wet, rough, gnarly and rutty.
#49 went out for the Free Practice and Kayne was in Group B and rode to 14th.
In the Pre-Qualifying Group B he went 23rd with a time of 2:10.075 which was 39th overall for A & B.
In the Group B Qualifying race he was 12th with a time of 20:26.534 which would have been 9th in Group A so he Qualified in 21st position.
In the Warmup he was 23rd, 16.6 seconds off the leader.
Moto 1: 40 on the start gate and he only completed 3 laps (13 mins 21 secs) - finishing 34th.
Moto 2: Again only 3 laps and at 7 mins 46 seconds finished last in 39th.
Overall: 40th
... and Dad, Stu Lamont, had this to say: We went to pick up our camper in Wales on Wednesday morning and were due to pick up the trailer and catch the 7pm ferry in Dover but those plans changed as it took all day to organise insurance for the camper, so we missed our 7pm Ferry and managed to get on the midnight one. We arrived in France just after 1am and our Navman was playing up but we managed to find a truck park around 2am and have a sleep. We woke around 8am and headed for St Jean d'Angely approx 7hrs away. Unfortunately our Navman took us on a scenic route towards the coast and arrived at St Jean around 9:30pm, the only food place open was Mackers so unfortunately that was dinner and we ended up staying the night in the car park.
Friday: After stocking up on food etc and washing the Camper we headed for the track, the pits were very full and we were located at the far end of them. Once we had set up we caught up with Josh and checked out the pit trucks and track. The track here is set on the side of a hill with the track going up and down several times and had a rhythm section along the top before dropping back down towards the start.
We also caught up with Mark from FOX Europe who dropped of Kayne's new FOX gear, he had also supplied more gear than we thought we were getting. Kayne's graphics hadn't turned up so we had to make backgrounds and numbers before going through technical control. Went through noise testing okay and then Kayne's helmet had to be checked (which caused some grief, as it didn't have the correct numbers sewn into the straps). It's quite hard to understand them and the only word I could recognise was suspect, which they repeated several times but finally let it through.
Set to go. Photo Courtesy of Kayne Lamont.
Saturday: The track was in good condition but was very rocky and Kayne was due out for practice at 08:30. This got cancelled due to the track not being ready and now his practice would be combined with his Qualifying heat. With Practice being the first 10 mins and Qualifying for the last 15 mins and being at 12:10. The temperature had increased to approx 32 degrees (extremely hot), Practice went reasonably well but Qualifying sessions he was certainly feeling the heat and struggled a bit. The times from this gave you your gate pick for the qualifying race later that day which was due to start around 6pm.
Kayne got a bad start and was second to last around the holeshot corner but made his way through the pack to 12th, which we all were very happy with. He showed good race pace, although being the only one riding a stock standard bike, once the placings were combined Kayne qualified in 24th place. After qualifying I run into Jeremy Long (from the Hawkes Bay) and had a good catch up. He could not believe that Kayne was riding over here on a stock bike and that he qualified, so he organised for me to meet with Patrick who used to work for Suzuki factory team and he would look at modifying Kayne's engine.
Sunday: There were thunderstorms, it rained heavily during the night and the track was extremely boggy and Kayne was first practice and then first race after the practice sessions. By the time it was the first race the track was in a bad state with long deep ruts and still a lot of mud everywhere. Kayne had another bad start and on the hill after the holeshot corner there were bikes down everywhere and if you had to go off the single line you had trouble to get up the hills. Kayne went down after sliding out on a double jump and ended up in the fence, he lost a couple of laps. When he got back to pit row his front wheel was locked solid with mud and could not get enough speed to clear it and he only managed one more lap before his DNF.
Race 2 was at 6pm and the track had dried out substantially, Kayne got a reasonable start, 9th around the holeshot corner, but was passed up the hill. He stayed in a comfortable 10th place for a couple of laps until he got a flat rear tyre when he had to retire. The positives from this weekend were that firstly he qualified 24th with the best in the world and secondly he showed he had the pace to stay in the top 10 and all this on a stock bike. He will have his modified engine for the next round in Germany and we are looking forward to that. We have learnt from the first round and should be better prepared for the next one.
We left the track late Sunday evening and headed for Josh's place in Belgium and around 10pm got pulled over by the French police (that was an interesting conversation as they could not speak English) and they ended up fining us 68 Euro for having no tail lights and we couldn't leave until we had fixed them. So on the side of the road we had pulled all the lighting out and temporarily wired lights to the trailer leaving there around midnight to find a road side truck park. The next morning we left and got to Josh's around 5pm on Monday.
It's taken a couple days here in Belgium to sort out internet connections so I apologise for this getting sent in late.
For the last couple of days we have spent training with Josh at Honda Park in the sand. We struggled with Kayne's bike set up on the first day but Josh's practice bike mechanic help sort it out today and Kayne looked a lot better. We are heading to another track on Saturday for some more training.
Will keep you all updated. Cheers Stu, Kayne and Phid
Check out this video of the start of Moto 2. Kayne is #49 and sixth bike in:
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=bvu_g8tDfOI&feature=related
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A weekend with Jeffrey Herlings
Look behind the scenes of the Red Bull KTM Factory Racing Team and watch how a weekend for the KTM factory riders looks like.
The video of Jeffrey Herlings is now available here: http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=LVSJkNDAWBE
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REMEMBERING JAN DE GROOT
Edited copy courtesy of the Kawasaki Racing Team
The French Grand Prix at St Jean D'Angely this weekend held particularly poignant memories for the Kawasaki Racing Team. It was on the same weekend three years ago at the same track, Saint Jean D'Angely, that the motocross world had paid tribute to long time KRT team manager Jan de Groot with a one minute silence in his honour after the universally respected Dutchman had passed away just a few days earlier.
Team Kawasaki Racing Team collected innumerable trophies and successes under the guidance of Jan, who joined the green family seventeen years ago to build one of the strongest motocross teams in the history of the sport. Under his management KRT notched three world titles with Stefan Everts, Sbastien Tortelli and Mickael Maschio, and lined up a long list of successful GP riders such as Chad Reed, Frdric Bolley, Yves Demaria, Billy MacKenzie and Andrew McFarlane.
Photo courtesy of the Kawasaki Racing Team.
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USA NEWS
Round 3, Rockstar Energy High Point National was on lastSunday morning. Ben Townley went 4th and 6th for 4th overall, missing a podium by 2 points.
450 CLASS:
1st Ryan Dungey
2nd Andrew Short
3rd Brett Metcalfe
4th Ben Townley
5th Mike Alessi
6th Matthew Goerke
7th Thomas Hahn
8th Josh Grant
9th Ryan Sipes
10th Kyle Cunningham
Chad Reedwas 16th after a 13th and a 33rd.
250 CLASS:
1st Tyla Rattray
2nd Christophe Pourcel
3rd Blake Wharton
4th Blake Baggett
5th Dean Wilson
6th Broc Tickle
7th Trey Canard
8th Justin Barcia
9th Martin Davalos
10th Jake Weimer.
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Edited copy courtesy of Brandon Short for Alli Sports
Dungey Captures First Career 450 Class Win at Freestone
WORTHAM, Texas (June 5, 2010) - Round two of the 2010 Lucas Oil AMA Pro Motocross Championship commenced from Freestone Raceway in Wortham, Texas on Saturday with the Flagstar Bank Freestone National. Rockstar/Makita Suzuki's Ryan Dungey, of Belle Plaine, Minn., captured the 450 Class victory to earn his first career win at the top level of the sport.
After a tough opening round, Dungey returned stronger than ever in Texas and proved he is a title contender in the premier class. After grabbing good starts in each moto, he worked his way into the lead in the early stages and never look back, posting perfect 1-1 moto scores en route to the overall.
"It feels good to come back strong and get a win," said Dungey. "We had a tough weekend at the opening round but we went back and worked hard to get better and were able to get a win. I want to be at the front of the pack and challenge for wins and the championship so it feels good to get that first one out of the way."
Defending 450 Class champion and first round winner Chad Reed, of Australia, endured a pair of tough starts aboard his Monster Energy Kawasaki, but showed an impressive resiliency by working his way through the field, finishing second and third to grab the runner-up spot overall. Merge Racing Honda's Kyle Regal, of Kemp, Texas, grabbed a career-best third overall (5-3) in front of his hometown fans.
450 Class (Moto Finish)
Ryan Dungey, Belle Plaine, Minn., Suzuki (1-1)
Chad Reed, Australia, Kawasaki (2-3)
Kyle Regal, Kemp, Texas, Honda (6-2)
Brett Metcalfe, Australia, Honda (7-4)
Josh Grant, Riverside, Calif., Yamaha (5-10)
Tommy Hahn, Decatur, Texas, Suzuki (4-12)
Mike Alessi, Victorville, Calif., KTM (12-5)
Ben Townley, New Zealand, Honda (3-16)
Kyle Chisholm, Valrico, Fla., Yamaha (9-9)
Michael Byrne, Newnan, Ga., Yamaha (8-11)
450 Class Championship Standings
Chad Reed, Australia, Kawasaki, 87
Ryan Dungey, Belle Plaine, Minn., Suzuki, 76
Mike Alessi, Victorville, Calif., KTM, 68
Brett Metcalfe, Australia, Honda, 66
Josh Grant, Riverside, Calif., Yamaha, 60
Davi Millsaps, Murrieta, Calif., Honda, 55
Ben Townley, New Zealand, Honda, 54
Kyle Regal, Kemp, Texas, Honda, 51
Tommy Hahn, Decatur, Texas, Suzuki, 43
Andrew Short, Smithville, Texas, Honda, 37
Chad Reed. Photo courtesy of Kawasaki Racing Team.
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Ben Townley challenged in Texas scorcher
Edited copy courtesy of Glen Dempsey for Synergy - Sports Marketing and Management
Ben Townley, endured a challenging second round of the Lucas Oil Outdoor Motocross series held at Wortham, Texas in scorching weather conditions over the weekend. Entering the race with confidence from his stunning second moto MX GP victory in Glen Helen a week prior, Townley was looking to gain his first podium of the AMA outdoor season.
The Lucas Oil - Troy Lee - Honda racer did not get the start he needed in Moto 1, however Townley showed great speed as he carved his way through the field coming from outside the top ten.
BT 101 pushed his way into a podium position behind race leader, Ryan Dungey, and tried to keep the American honest over the 30 min + 2 lap Moto. Aussie rival, Chad Reed, closed down Townley in the dying stages and managed to pip the Kiwi for 2nd as BT crossed the finish line in 3rd for his first AMA podium finish of the year.
A second moto, pile-up saw BT tangle with another rider. He stood up from the carnage with a torn shirt and grazed back and side but after a quick check by the Asterisks attending medical staff, he opted to remount and give chase to the pack. Running fast lap times he quickly made up lost positions and moved into 14th place with 5 minutes left on the clock. The tremendous effort had left Townley with nothing left in the can and under the sweltering heat he had to relinquish two positions as he came home in 16th spot.
"The organis.ers did an awesome job of the track by bringing in some extra sand which created a lot of ruts and rough sections which I enjoyed. I qualified 5th which I was pretty happy with and it gave me a good pick of the gate for both motos. I made a mistake in the second turn of Moto 1 and almost went down so I had a lot of work to do to come through the pack from outside the top ten. I had to pace myself during the moto and eventually caught Metcalfe to take 2nd but then Reed got by me with two laps to go - he had a good line in the sand whoops and used that to jump by me. The second moto I got tangled with another rider and got burnt either by a tyre or a header pipe so I was hurting quite a lot but managed to get going and pull back a lot of time. The effort I put in took its toll at the end of the moto but I was happy to salvage some points. I'm looking forward to Mt Morris next weekend, it's a track I've always enjoyed with the elevation changes so hoping to put two strong motos together," explained Townley.
Round 3 of the 12 round series heads to High Point Raceway in Mt Morris, Pennsylvania next weekend.
Glen Dempsey sent this post race video produced by Shayne Rice: http://vimeo.com/12394169
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Christophe Pourcel Endures to Take 250 Class Victory
Despite a first turn crash in the final 250 Class moto of the day, Pourcel battled his way to the front portion of the field to finish fifth and in the end, salvaged the overall victory by virtue of a first moto win to take the early-season points lead.
"I was surprised to get the overall," said Pourcel. "I fell in the second moto and just rode as good as I could to get a good finish. It's good for the championship and I will go to High Point next weekend and try to win again."
Pourcel led the way to a Monster Energy/Pro Circuit/Kawasaki and international sweep of the podium as Tyla Rattray, of South Africa, tied a career-best second overall and rookie Dean Wilson, of Canada, captured the best career finish of his young career in third.
1st Christophe Pourcel, Monster Energy/Pro Circuit/Kawasaki: "I was surprised I was able to catch the leader so fast after going off the track. The races didn't really go how I wanted them too, but I was able to get the win. There are a lot of fast riders out there so recovering from mistakes and moving up through the pack is hard."
2nd Tyla Rattray, Monster Energy/Pro Circuit/Kawasaki: "My bike is amazing. After Hangtown I knew I had to work on some things, but I knew I had a bike capable of winning. I got a moto win and now it's time to get an overall."
3rd Dean Wilson, Monster Energy/Pro Circuit/Kawasaki: "When I saw Tyla get the checquered flag, my heart shattered. I made a rookie mistake today and I'm crushed right now. We have another race next week though, so I have to put this behind me and move on. My bike was great today and I rode strong, so I'm just going to keep working to get my first win."
Photos courtesy of Monster Energy/Pro Circuit/Kawasaki.
250 Class (Moto Finish)
Christophe Pourcel, France, Kawasaki (1-5)
Tyla Rattray, South Africa, Kawasaki (6-1)
Dean Wilson, Canada, Kawasaki (3-3)
Broc Tickle, Holly, Mich., Yamaha (8-2)
Trey Canard, Shawnee, Okla., Honda (4-7)
Eli Tomac, Cortez, Colo., Honda (2-11)
Wil Hahn, Decatur, Texas, Honda (9-6)
Jake Weimer, Rupert, Idaho, Kawasaki (5-12)
Max Anstie, England, Yamaha (15-4)
Justin Barcia, Ochlocknee, Ga., Honda (10-8)
250 Class Championship Standings
Christophe Pourcel, France, Kawasaki, 86
Eli Tomac, Cortez, Colo., Honda, 77
Dean Wilson, Canada, Kawasaki, 69
Trey Canard, Shawnee, Okla., Honda, 68
Broc Tickle, Holly, Mich., Yamaha, 61
Tyla Rattray, South Africa, Kawasaki, 58
Jake Weimer, Rupert, Idaho, Kawasaki, 56
Justin Barcia, Ochlocknee, Ga., Honda, 54
Wil Hahn, Decatur, Texas, Honda, 50
Max Anstie, England, Yamaha, 40
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2011 SENIOR MOTOCROSS CHAMPIONSHIP DATES CONFIRMED
SENIOR MOTOCROSS CHAMPIONSHIP DATES CONFIRMED
Following their meeting in Wellington on July 17th, Motorcycling New Zealands Motocross Commission has finalised the dates for next seasons Championships.
The season will move to February/March 2011. This change has been driven for the following reasons:
With better and more settled weather, we hope to encourage more public to attend and give the sponsors better value for their money and wider exposure for their brand
With new bikes arriving later and later in the year. By moving to early in the year the Industry will all have their new bikes in the country.
For the Clubs/volunteers who make these events happen, more public through the gate equates to better revenue for all their hard work
For the Riders, they will have the opportunity to train with the benefit of summer and daylight saving, rather than going into the Championships from the depths of winter.
An added advantage with the moving of the MX Championships is it will enable the Supercross season to run prior to the MX season and will also assist in aligning the New Zealand MX/SX seasons with our Australian neighbours.
Senior MX Championships:
Round 1 ~ Sunday February 20th ~ South Canterbury Motorcycle Club
Round 2 ~ Sunday March 6th ~ Patetonga Motorcycle Club
Round 3 ~ Sunday March 20th ~ Rotorua Motorcycle Club
Round 4 ~ Sunday March 27th ~ Taranaki Motorcycle Club
Prepared for Motorcycling New Zealand Inc.
Posted by Ian Standring 23rd Jul 2010 |
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Mr Bayer
Just A quick note to let you all know how Rob Bayer is doing after breaking both his Tib and Fib at the ankle last clubday, he under went surgey a couple of weeks ago and is back at home recoving well, we all wish him a fast and speedy return back to full health again and look forward to not only seeing him back at clubdays but also Meagan and Lucas too.
Posted by Greg Edmonds 11th Jul 2010 |
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Dome Valley Funding Request Support
Hi All,
I am presently applying for funding from the RDC to get start gates and the red & white plastic road barriers for the Dome Valley MX track. It would be great if I could have some emails of support from riders who enjoy the park and how you like to race there with start gates etc, barriers etc..
If you could pen some words and send them to yardarm@xtra.co.nz, I will attch them to the application which I am submiting July 24th. Thanks in advance.
Dave Yardley
Posted by David Yardley 10th Jul 2010 |
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Land wanted!!
The Club is on the look out for a sand track over the winter period, some where if its rains it makes it better, the club pays it land owners and if any body knows where one is just give me a call on 021 0570971 to see if we can make it happen.
Posted by Greg Edmonds 9th Jul 2010 |
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Next Committie meeting
The next RMCC Committie meeting is the secound tuesday of next month,(the 17th of August). all members welcome, starts at 7;30 sharp.
Posted by Greg Edmonds 22nd Jun 2010 |
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NAC Motorcycle Insurance
http://www.nac.co.nz/index.php
NAC Insurance (WEBSITE LINK ABOVE) located in Whangarei have a very competitive insurance rate for your pride and joy, a 6k bike is $147-00 per year, you can pay monthly/annualy, give them a go, you will be kicking your self should your bike be borrowed permanently !
Posted by Ian Standring 1st Jun 2010 |
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Dome Valley Winter
Hi, due to wet riding conditions, we have decided to close Dome Valley for the winter. We may do an event and will advise if an event occurs. We plan to re-open in December depending on weather and track conditions.
Posted by David Yardley 14th May 2010 |
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Dome Valley Text Alert
Hi, go join the Dome Valley Park Text alert, please text "ADD" to 021 869 318. This will give you notifications to the park status. To be removed, text "Delete" to the same number.Thanks, Dave
Posted by David Yardley 15th Mar 2010 |
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Committe Meeting 17TH VENUE CHANGE
The Rodney comittee meetings are every Tuesday following club day, they kick off at 7-30pm sharp all members welcome to have your say, tonights meeting will be at Sportspro Racing, 32e William Pickering Drive, Albany,
Posted by Greg Edmonds 6th Feb 2010 |
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NO DOGS
As a result of the incident at Grant Leighton's property 08/07/07, the NO DOG RULE will be enforced at every RMCC event from now on.
All pets must be left at home, no exceptions.
Please dont be offended when you are asked to take your dog home.
Posted by Jason Willis 27th Apr 2007 |
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If you had a good ride or something of interest happens, pics, articles, comments, letters or gossip -- we'd like to hear about it! C'mon - anyone can scribble a few lines down, help us give you guys some good content and yarns to read.
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