Author: #608

We left home at 5am in the rain so I could compete in the Waikato Champs held at North King Country MX Clubs track near Te Kuiti today and it was worth the early alarm. We came down a couple of weeks ago for a practice day and I was glad we did. It’s a clay track and has a gnarly zig zag hair pin corner downhill section straight after a step up which took me a few laps to figure out, I wouldn’t have liked attacking it for the first time in the wet. It wasn’t too soggy at the track and with the fog it felt like we were racing in the clouds. Practice went really well and I got the 2nd fastest qualifying time so 2nd gate pick for the rest of the day. Race 1 I took off out the gates and half way down the start straight 12 o’clocked my bike and ended up in the dirt. I don’t know what happened so I started the race dead last and rode my hardest and fought back up to 5th with my goggles flapping on my arm because I broke my roll offs and the film was tangled around my rear brake. In race 2 I had a much better start and spent the first couple of laps overtaking riders up the step up, through the zig zag and in the air to get myself out in front and put some space between me and second. I was so stoked with my win. Mum said it was hard to watch because I was going so fast, I felt good on my bike and really comfortable with the lines I was taking. Race 3 was the best start, I got the holeshot and for the whole race until the white flag had a half lap on the person behind me. On the last lap I took a corner wide to go around a lapper and came up on the rhythm section crooked and over jumped it landing on my front wheel and did a moto cartwheel. I had lost a few spots and was annoyed at myself so I worked really hard to get something back and finished 2nd. I was pretty gutted with my silly crash but I still finished 2nd overall for the day and for my first time racing here and in the conditions I am proud of my result.

Today was the last round of Cambridge’s 2018 series, they usually run into November but with SX Open coming to Auckland on their next race meet weekend and everyone who is into moto heading to that they thought they’d cancel their last round so they can go enjoy it too. The Pro65s rode in with the 85s again today and before our first race I watched the bigger bikes go through their practices and watched the lines they were taking to get through the couple of boggy areas. When race 1 started I knew what lines I was going to try but I kicked my bike into fourth gear instead of third and had a really slow start. I wasn’t going to let this set the pace for my day and I chased down most of the field, overtaking on corners, through the mud and in the air. I had the fastest 65 lap time and was only 3 seconds off the 85s best time. Races 2 and 3 were just as good but with better starts. The mud here used to bother me but now I have figured it out I was getting better with each lap. I went 1-1-1 for Pro65 today and was making the faster 85 rider ride hard so they weren’t overtaken by a little bike. Even though I only did 3 of 5 rounds (because some race days clash with Taupo) I finished 2nd overall for the winter season. South Waikato club also had their prize giving this afternoon after a fun ride day and I finished 1st overall for their Pro65 season, one of my moto mates collected it for me so I will get it next weekend. Pretty happy to get two trophies in one day and I’m already looking forward to the next Cambridge and Tokoroa seasons.

 

We didn’t come down to MX Fest last year because we didn’t know what a massive event it was and I was getting ready to ride Demo 65 at Supercross at Tokoroa. I am so glad we came this year.  Because Taupo ran a Pro65 class at their club days this year they added a Pro65 class to MX Fest for the first time. There were 30 entries and some people I haven’t ridden against before but I had heard they were fast. I got the second fastest time in qualifying and finished 7th in Race 1 after stalling on the step up under a yellow flag. The flag marshal stepped on to the track in front of me due to an accident on the top of the step up and I stomped the brakes so I didn’t run him over. It was kind of lucky that it happened where it did as the rider behind me was in the air and if I had been moving forward he would have landed on me. In Race 2 I was hungry to get a better result so I could be on the podium at the end of the day, I pushed myself and started clearing jumps and the step up every lap and finished third. Race 3 I won which was an awesome end to a great day. I rode hard all day, going higher and further on the step up and DAM jump than I have before. I was scared of going this big during the winter series but today I tried it in practice  and realised it was possible. I was so happy with my third place for today, being on the podium and smashing another goal.

I love racing at our local track because it’s 5 minutes down the road so I get a sleep in. It’s also hard pack clay and reminds me a lot of Fairbairn MX track in Canberra. Hard pack tracks are really fast but can hurt if you crash and get super slick when it rains. Pro65 rode in with the under 12 85s and after an interesting Race 1 I found my form and went for it. In Race 1 I stomped down too many gears and ended up in neutral in a corner and then I slid around up the top of the hill and ended up under my bike. Races 2 and 3 I stayed up with the top 8-10 85 cc riders, I chose good lines and committed to the jumps which made up heaps of time. I rode big track with the 85s at Round 5 last season and today my lap times had improved on average by 10 seconds. 2-1-1 today so now my goal of Top 5 at Valley Champs next month is going to change… I’m going to try win it now, or settle for Top 3.

This weekend nearly everyone we know was down at Kapi Mana for the Mini Nationals so it was a quiet race day at Tokoroa. I rode in with the 85s and I always ride better against the bigger bikes. I jumped higher and further than I have before here and it felt really good to be competing with one of NZs fastest 85cc riders. My lap times are coming down and all the training I have been doing towards my goal of going to the Junior Nationals at MOMCC feels like it’s making a difference. I was going to go to the Mini Nats until Battle of the Clubs at Taupo when I dropped back to mini track and didn’t enjoy it as much as I thought I would. I really like big track racing, it’s faster, more technical and there’s more room to move. 1-1-1 for Pro65 today and 5-6-5 out of the whole Pro65/all in 85 group.

Since it was the last round of the Taupo Winter series we decided to head to Taupo early and hang out with some other moto families at the hot pools and go out for dinner since heaps of us have had September birthdays. It was a fun night and after a good sleep we were at the track ready for another great day of racing.We rode the full track today which is a lot longer than the other layouts we have done here and there was a big Pro65 class since a lot of 9-11 year old 65 mini track riders are getting ready to move up for MX Fest next month. I rode pretty good today. My starts on the metal gates have been very hit and miss this season but doing third gear starts today made a big difference and I didn’t highside once. I didn’t fully back myself on the step up as the top is lumpy and I don’t know if I can land on it without wobbling so I lost some time there each lap so finished fifth overall for the day. Prizegiving followed racing and I came out with third overall for the series. I know I could have done better as I had some awesome days and some terrible days so now I am going to work on my consistency.

We headed to Cambridge for some track time since Patetonga isn’t open yet and it was worth the trip. Even after all the wet over winter the track was dry and looked good. Practice was all in 65/85 and I tried the things I have been working on lately with Triple 8 Training about body position when jumping. It made a huge difference to my stability and I went into the races feeling confident. The races were 8-11 Pro65 and 8-10 85 combines and I kept up in the top 3 for each race. My average lap times dropped 10 seconds since Round 1 and my best time was 13 seconds better.  I finished the day first for the 65s and 3rd for the combines classes. Seeing the impact my jumping and strong braking into corners has on lap times has me feeling I can make some good gains at Taupo next week and for MX Fest.

As always, we arrived in Taupo to find the track looking awesome and with another new layout. There’s now a jump in the saw dust and a couple of double built up in the rhythm section. I really enjoy riding here because you never really know what you are going to get for race day. Practice went well and I got the fastest qualifying time which I am stoked about, not so much for gate pick but because I have a cold and didn’t feel like I was going to do well today. Races 1 and 2 were good, there’s some strong competition and lots of hard riding  happening, my starts weren’t great and I haven’t been on my bike since Sand Prix but it felt good to be out on the track. Race 3 was really hard, my energy levels were low and I had to work so much harder to keep up the front runners but I finished and I didn’t crash and I pushed myself coming away with 4-4-5 for 5th overall today. I think I am currently 3rd in points for the series with one round left so I am going to get fit and healthy again and come back ready.

This is the first weekend I have back to back raced at different events in different regions. I did Saturday and Sunday racing at Battle of the Clubs but we stayed in Taupo the whole time and had 2 or 6 of everything we needed. Yesterday after leaving Awakaponga at 5.30pm we had to drive back home, clean down, service, unpack, repack and get some sleep before getting up again in the dark. It was a nice surprise to get home and find some mates from the Mighty Manawatu staying over to do Sand Prix too. I was really tired when we got to the track this morning and a bit stiff after sleeping crooked in the car on our way home and it showed in practice. I came off at least twice every lap and dad did consider pulling me off the track as he was worried I was going to do some damage to myself as well as others around me. Mum gave me a bit of a pep talk and helped me get my focus back again and I took it one race at a time.  I finished race 1 in 8th with only one small fumble. I learnt a lot about the track conditions and watched the bigger riders choose their lines and how they rode the deep sand track and placed 4th in race 2. I had some really good battles in race 3 and even tough I was tired I rode smart and finished in 3rd. 8-4-3 got me 5th overall for the day and I got my second trophy in 2 days. This event is part of the North Island Champs along with Valley Champs and King of the Mountain so so far I’m 5th for North Island Pro65. Going in to the next two events I will not be as tired and will be ready to ride hard get a podium finish. I’m very proud of myself for not giving up because I was tired and sore, even when it got hard I kept fighting.

Today I took part in another schools moto event, this time in the Bay of Plenty at Awakaponga. I love how NZ schools have these events, it started with one and now there is about ten up and down the country. I wasn’t going to go but after my last ride here in December at Summercross we thought it would be a good idea to get over any bad track juju before taking on Summercross again. We drove down after school on Thursday and stayed at a friends house, which was awesome because we only had a short drive in the morning. I have been working hard on having a positive attitude and not carrying old results into new races so I went into today with goals and a good head space and rode really well. Race 1 and race 2 I stayed upright, worked on my corners and point to point acceleration after practise/qualifying showed a few places to improve on. I held my head high and didn’t think about anything but what was coming up behind my next corner. I came off two times in race 3 but got up and got my bike going again pretty quickly. I had a lot of track to make up and I rode hard but only managed to get back up to 6th. I was stoked to be presented 2nd place for Pro65 with 2-2-6 for the day. It was a really good experience being back here and straight after prize giving we were on the road to get home to unpack, clean down and repack for Sand Prix at Mercer tomorrow. This is my first time doing 2 events in one weekend and after today I think tomorrow will be just as awesome.