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FROM - ANDY McGECHAN:
HIGH FLYING ACTION IN WANGANUI:
WANGANUI\'S Cooks Gardens will host high-flying motorcycle action for the first time this Saturday night (Jan 11) when it hosts round two of the New Zealand Supercross Championships.
Tons of soil are trucked in to create the unique moonscape terrain and, with more than 1000 cubic metres of heavy clay dumped on the WestpacTrust Stadium infield, the grass has been transformed into a suitable battlefield for some of Australasia\'s leading dirt bike exponents.
Top New Zealand riders like Taranaki\'s King brothers -- Darryll, Shayne and Damien King -- have signed up to race the event and it promises to be another night of handlebar-to-handlebar racing.
Darryll (33) and Shayne King (32) went head-to-head at the front of the field at Nelson\'s opening round last weekend.
With the national event so close to New Plymouth, the event represents a rare opportunity for the globe-trotting Kings to perform in front of what they could claim as a home crowd. Darryll King rode a Yamaha YZ450F in Nelson and Shayne King rode a Honda CR250 but, according to Shayne King, anything he gave up in power he made up for with better handling.
“It will be nice to race an event that\'s just down the road,” said Shayne, who became a dad for the first time last month and is still coming to grips with fatherhood. “It\'s close to home, so, over every jump, I\'ll probably still be able to see Mount Egmont.
“I\'ve been training quite a lot lately, preparing for the Australian race season which kicks off in March. My fitness is very good but I need to work on sharpening my skills. Supercross is more about technique and timing. The challenge in the tight confines of a stadium track is to get everything right … one mistake and it hurts.”
Cooks Gardens spokesperson Noel Gudsell said the arena was perfect for this kind of event with spectators offered an uninterrupted view of the entire circuit.
“We have covered seating for 4000 spectators and terraced seating for up to a further 10,000. We are hoping to have these full,” he said.
Round three of the national series is set for Tokoroa the following weekend with the fourth and final round at Taupiri on February 18.
