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NZ North Island X- C Championships Rd 1, Waipu Caves, Sunday 28th March.
The Metalman KMP Team headed North with high hopes of making an early impact in this years series. Junior support rider Jason Dickey KX125 (Raglan) suffered early bike problems due to a filter blockage but battled on to secure a close 2nd overall behind Woodville’s Ben Extor on a CRF250.
Jason secured 1st place in the 2 stroke over class and showed that he is definitely a contender for the overall this year.
The senior 3 hour race was a real nail biter, with the lead changing lap by lap for the first hour, Michael Vinning of Huntly (RMX450) lead the charge with Adrian Smith (YZ125) hot on his heals and Luke Ramsey (KX250F) close behind. A pit stop by the leaders saw Luke take the advantage and he tried to distance himself from the pack, Adrian took the advantage in the tighter bush sections and by the 2 hour mark he closed the gap and made the pass on Luke coming into the pits only to hit a post and pick up 100 odd meters of wire which wrapted around his rear wheel bringing him to an abrupt stop, Adrian spent 15 minutes unravelling the mess before he could continue leaving Luke to fend off another spirited charge from Michael Vinning and hard charging Moto crosser Shaun Fogerty (KTM450). Shaun had come from a poor start and was putting down some very fast lap times only disadvantaged by having to fuel every second lap.
Luke maintained the lead up till the 2nd to last lap when Fogerty made the pass and with the hot and rough conditions his superior fitness gave him an 8 second buffer over Luke to the finish flag.
A Class win for Luke along with 2nd overall was just rewards for some very good racing.
Jason Moorfield (KLX450) started well and held his own in 4th until some scary moments made him back off and settle for 8th overall and a well earn’t win in the Vet 35 – 45 class.
Cam Downing (KX125) also started well and showed exceptional speed, running top 3 in his class until an untimely crash at the half way point saw him limp to the end of the race to gain valuable points within the class to finish 6th.
Unfortunately the Team was unable to be entered in the Teams section as Kevin Hermason (KX250F) of Norsewood recently suffer an ankle injury, but be assured he will be back for duty at the next Rd at Oparau on the 14th of March and ready for battle.
Individually all Team riders attending Rd 1 are in a strong position, Luke now believes he can not only contend for the 0 – 300cc 4 stroke class but also the overall, Jason Moorfield moves to a new KXF450 for the remainder of the series and with one win already under his belt his sights are set on winning the Vets and securing a top 10 overall position. Cam will put the first Rd behind him and we’re sure he will fight for a podium result this year.
A special thanks goes out to the Neild family who worked tirelessly for a week to produce a very good national track on the Sands property at Waipu Caves.
We also acknowledge Adrian Smiths race craft and look forward to the challenge we know he will produce all season.
Both the Team manager Mike Ramsey and Team Owner Kim Herbert are very excited about how the team has progressed and also look forward to building a good relationship with Moto SR’s Ritchie Ebbett who has recently come on board to assist the team with suspension using RG3 technology.
“In these difficult times it is fantastic to have great support from our sponsors” said Kim Herbert “Working with Ritchie will give the boys that little extra that could make all the difference”
Round 2 of the series is only 2 weeks away and we look forward to seeing everyone at Oparau on the 14th of March.
The Metalman KMP X - C Team would like to acknowledge the support of the following Kimmy’s MX Park, Kawasaki, Mr Motorcycles Ltd, Moorfield Motors Ltd, Bruce Downing Builders, Kiwi Rider Magazine, CJS Concrete Ltd, Fly race wear, Silkolene lubricants, RK chain, Shoei helmets, Afam sprockets, Asterisk knee braces, Polisport plastics, Barkbusters, AXO boots, Renthal bars and grips, Ariete goggles, Michelin tyres and moose tubes and Ilabb graphics
