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Pic - MacKay in action at the NZ Motorcycle Distributors' 300km Endurance Race:
Credit - Fast Company/Geoff Osborne
Media man Ross MacKay enjoyed an action-packed introduction to top-level road-racing at the New Zealand Motorcycle Distributors' 300 km Endurance Race at Pukekohe's Pukekohe Park Raceway on Sunday. MacKay and teammate Todd Sutherland rode a Yamaha Motor New Zealand-supplied/ Kiwi Rider magazine-backed Yamaha YZF-R6 to 15th place in the 600cc Sports Production class and 23rd overall, coincidentally finishing on the same lap as fellow media industry entrants Richard Driver and Andrew Shaw.
The race was won by the Suzuki GSX-R1000 pairing of Andrew Stroud and Ray Clee from the first of the ironmen, Yamaha rider Tony Rees, and the Honda CBR1000 Fireblade of Dean Fulton and Jared Love.
First 600cc Sports Production bike home (in fourth overall) was the Suzuki GSX-R600 of Karl Morgan and Craig Shirriffs.
The tricky track conditions - torrential rain fell in the morning and light, misty rain wet some parts of the track and not others in the afternoon - caught a number of riders out, amongst them MacKay who low-sided the Kiwi Rider/Yamaha Motor NZ team's Yamaha YZF-R6 with just three laps to go.
"My fault," he said this morning. "The track was slowly drying out and I was just easing back into dry pace when 'bang' down she went," he said.
Fortunately the bike suffered only superficial damage and after pitting to have it re-scrutineered MacKay returned to the track to finish the race.
A large crowd enjoyed an impressive spectacle at Pukekohe, with eventual winner Stroud and runner-up Rees putting on a show worthy of any New Zealand Production Superbike championship round.
The action was just as intense in the 600cc Sports Production class though Morgan and Shirriffs did end up a lap ahead of second placed Ironman rider Dominic Jones.
Third in the 600cc Sports Production class was the Kawasaki ZX6-RR pair of Derek McAdam and Troy O'Donoghue.
The success of the race has prompted MacKay for one, to call for a bigger, better one next year. "In my eyes it's the best single 'motorcycle' initiative since the 'Ticket To Ride' campaign. If they put on another one Todd and I will be back that's for sure," said MacKay.
MacKay and Sutherland's Kiwi Rider entry had the support of Yamaha Motor New Zealand, Ohlins suspension, Eurobike Wholesale, Forbes & Davies, Dold Industries, Motorsport Electronics, Henderson Motorcycles and RCM Performance.
Full Results
