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Dirt motorbike star Paul Whibley didn\'t even need to enter the third round of the Suzuki national cross-country championship in Hawke\'s Bay today, but he did and secured his third straight victory.
The Pahiatua rider, who is having an extremely successful season in different forms of off-road racing, took a clear win even though he crashed his Honda CR250 on the second-last lap of the three-hour race.
\"I was coming downhill, hit a rock in the grass and went end over end,\" he said. \"I just got a few bumps and bruises, but the handlebars on the bike got bent.\"
He said there were a lot of rocks in long grass, which made them very difficult to spot in time.
Whibley did not need to ride at all because he had already won the first two North Island rounds and riders count only their best two performances in the preliminary series. \"I thought I might as well make a habit of it, and it\'s good practice,\" he said.
He was challenged by local rider Ben Harding, who took the lead a couple of times on his KTM200 but crashed twice and had to withdraw.
Young Tauranga rider Peter Broxholme scored a fine second outright, riding a Honda CR125 against many bikes with bigger engines and more power.
He finished narrowly ahead of reigning champion Adam Youren, who rode a Suzuki RM250.
Youren hit a rock on the opening lap and bent part of his chain guide, so the chain kept coming off. \"I had to stop and hunt for a log to bend it back into place,\" the Napier rider said.
\"I lost five or six minutes and I thought it was all over, but then I thought I\'ll just do the best I can and I was rapt to get through to third, and second in class. I\'m only six points behind Paul going into the semi-finals,\" Youren said.
Brothers Steven and Ross Bird finished first and second in the open four-stroke class, riding for Yamaha and Suzuki respectively.
The third round of the South Island series at Christchurch was postponed for two weeks because of fire risk in the forest.
Suzuki national cross-country championships, North Island third round, Hawke\'s Bay
Open two-strokes: Paul Whibley (Pahiatua) Honda CR250, 1; Adam Youren (Napier) Suzuki RM250, 2; Mark Penny (Te Awamutu) Suzuki RM250, 3.
Open four-strokes: Steven Bird (Palmerston North) Yamaha WR400, 1; Ross Bird (Pahiatua) Suzuki DRZ400, 2; Darryl Trumper (Rotorua) Yamaha YZ426F, 3.
Two-strokes up to 200cc: Peter Broxholme (Tauranga) Honda CR125, 1; Philip Goodwright (Hamilton) Suzuki RM125, 2; Brett Gunson (Hastings) KTM 200, 3.
Four-strokes up to 300cc: Wayne Jennings (Whakatane) Yamaha YZ250F, 1; Will Smith (Te Awamutu) Yamaha YZ250F, 2; Lance Sutton (Auckland) Kawasaki KLX300, 3.
