BACK FOR ANOTHER TASTE

New Zealand continues to grow as a destination for international motorcycle racers.

German rider Thomas Kreutz visited New Zealand for the first time last season and instantly made friends with the welcoming Kiwi bike community, the Yamaha ace also impressing with his ability on a motorcycle along the way.

Kreutz returns this season for another crack at the annual Suzuki Series and this time the man from Frankfurt has brought a friend with him, a fellow German racer from nearby Dresden, 38-year-old Steve Mizera.

Both men were in the thick of the action at the opening round of the Suzuki Series at Hampton Downs on Saturday.

“We are good friends and faced each other in competition in the Yamaha Cup in Germany,” said the 35-year-old Kreutz.

“After returning home from my New Zealand trip last year I put a Facebook call-out to anyone in Germany who wanted to join me in coming back this year. Steve jumped at the chance.

“My races at the weekend weren’t so great,” Kreutz explained, although he still managed to take his Yamaha R6 to sixth and fifth in his two outings.

“I have not had much time on the bike yet and the last time I raced in the wet was in New Zealand this time last year,” he laughed.

“I received a 20-second penalty in the first race too, for jumping the start. I guess I’m still feeling my way into it.”

Fellow Yamaha rider Toby Summers, from Manukau in Auckland, won the class on Saturday.

Mizera (BMW) also experienced a tough indoctrination into the Kiwi race scene, finishing ninth and tenth in his two Formula One (superbike) class races on Saturday.

Regardless of how their Kiwi campaign pans out, the two likeable Germans will be making the most of their time in New Zealand, both men intending to stay for the summer and race the New Zealand Superbike Championships series as well, which kicks off in the South Island in January.