First up, I want to congratulate the Taupo Club and the MNZ staff for putting on a world class MX event at Taupo on August 15th 16th. We also need to salute our New Zealand team, they rode their hearts out and made us proud. Its something they will remember for ever, just seeing the pride on their young faces as they received the New Zealand team jersey was special. We also need to thank our team of trainers and coaches for their total commitment to the event and positive out come.
I believe that the high quality training that was carried out with the squads has filtered down to other riders and raised the bar in New Zealand and its important we keep the momentum rolling.
Two stand-out riders as expected pre event were Hamish Dobbins and Courtney Duncan. Hamish was the wild card rider and on the day stepped up with a podium spot in 3rd place. Hamish rode fast, smart and smooth in tough conditions and I reckon he's a serious dude who will be a superstar in the next 5 years.
Courtney Duncan was simply brilliant coming home in 6th place being the top Kiwi and only a hand full of points separated her from the podium. If Courtney Duncan doesn't follow in Katherine Prumm's foot steps and become a world Champion within the next 3 years I will eat my Shark full face helmet. Courtney was outstanding not only on the track but the way she conducted herself at presentations thanking her sponsors and family, even turning up at the awards ceremony wearing a new MNZ team uniform. This kind of professionalism doesn't go unnoticed by potential sponsors and I'm sure her rewards will flow in the coming years.
On the weekend, I was involved in the AMCC advance rider training day. We had a fantastic turn out with 120 riders filling the 4 grades to capacity. We pretty much leave the A grade riders to themselves, as most of them are club racers looking for a bit of extra track time. Vince Sharpe and I look after the intermediates and the other grades have other top notch trainer there for them.
This time I was lucky enough to ride the all new KTM RC8R. What a fantastic bike with loads of V twin power. It was incredibly tractable and felt like it was on rails, it uses White Power suspension as standard fitment. What I liked most of all about the bike is how comfortable it was for a sports bike. Northern Accessories supplied us with some top of the range Michelin road tyres that amazed me with how well they stuck. Even in damp track conditions the bike never got out of shape once.
I want to encourage you to attend these training days, they are very well run. Crash bags are out and a full ambulance with St Johns are in attendance. There are 4 groups for you to choose from to ensure you’re comfortable with the group you are out with speed wise. Suspension advice is offered along with tyre advice etc.
The MX Champs are only 6 weeks away now and we are delighted to announce that Demon Energy Drinks are once again backing the series. This excellent sponsorship will help us to televise 2 rounds of the series. Mike McLeod is ‘full on’ having track inspections completed and tells me this year is going to be awesome.
Stay safe till next time
Paul Pavletich
CEO
Motorcycling New Zealand
PH 07 8287852
PH 021 556416
www.mnz.co.nz