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Motocrosser Blake Gillard left New Zealand on the 25th of February. He was heading for Germany where friends live in Schwerin in the north - east of Hamburg.
The intent was to spend the next six months competing in the German Masters, ADAC Cup (for under 21s), the German 125 Champs and hopefully some rounds of the European 125 Champs.
Whilst putting the trip together Blake is on record as having said: "MX1 and MX2 is my ultimate goal but it's no good waiting for a phone call, for the offer of a ride, 'cause that ain't going to happen. Mum and Dad can't afford to buy a ride. So I'm going to do it the hard way. I have a part time job to pay my way over there and I will see if I can't get some good results - this is my dream. I have just turned nineteen so I have to do it now even if it is as a privateer. I have been to Germany three times before and have good support from the Kohl family in Schwerin plus I have the Kosak family down in Aalen - I will be okay".
Enter Paul Ottaway from KTM New Zealand and Jeff Leisk from KTM Australia. Leisk has a huge motocross pedigree - 5 times Australian Motocross Champion between 1979 and 1984. In 1979 he had two GP wins (Finland and San Marino) and became the first Australian to win a World MX GP. On debut in 1989 he was runner up in the World 500cc Motocross Championship. In 1990 he won the World 500cc Motocross Championship. Messrs Ottaway and Leisk organised Blake two new bikes - a KTM250 SXS-F race bike and a KTM250 SX-F practice bike.
By now KTM Germany 'grasp' onto the efforts being made from the opposite side of the world and move to action. Leisk makes a visit to Austria and Germany. The offer is made to Blake for a 'supported ride' with their number one team - KTM Sarholz. They run the Germans Maxi Nagl (who beat Josh Coppins at Mantova a few weeks ago), Marcus Schiffer and Andy Boller as well as South African Wyatt Avis.
Blake left for Germany immediately, two weeks before his intended date with his airfares paid for by one of his sponsors, Mainstream Freight Group. His first race would be 10-11 March. His race and practice bikes were to be collected from team headquarters on Friday the 9th. However on arrival the team transporter had departed with Blake's and the rest of the teams bikes. A four hundred and fifty klm drive in the wrong direction wasn't for nothing because he uplifted all his new Fox motocross gear, organised by Ian Standring from Sportspro, on the way to Frankenbach which is just north of Stuttgart.
After walking the track Blake was keen to go set up his bikes. Unfortunately all that arrived was his SXF250 practise bike and it still had to be run in. Two 30 minute practises had been cut back to one and then qualifying in the afternoon.
The track is very rocky with lots of shingle and difficult trying to run the bike in. Setting the jetting and get the suspension dialled was never going to happen. The MX2 class had 79 riders so qualifying was two heats. Blake qualified 4th in his heat giving him 8th overall.
Race day on the Sunday and Blake finished 6th in R1 and 5th in R2 resulting in a 5th overall. Blake was well pleased with his debut and knows he now has to get his bikes 'tuned in'. Surprisingly not one of KTM Sarholz's five MX2 riders were in the top 10.
This event, whilst not a championship round, was a pre season opener and attracted the cream of Germany's talent. Blake also reports tha, KTM Sarholz's Maxi Nagle was 1st and Marcus Schiffer 4th - the KTM Sarholz site actually shows him as 3rd.
Kiwi Scott Columb was also at Frankenbach. According to Blake he was on a Suzuki in the Open Class. He qualified 8th in R1 and after crashing in R2 finished 12th. He finished 8th overall.
