The CDR Yamaha off-road team capped off a sensational 2014 Australian Four Day Enduro (A4DE) with two riders on the podium in the gruelling off road event.

It was Yamaha’s Daniel Milner, followed by Toby Price (Motorex KTM Off-Road) and Yamaha’s Chris Hollis, after the final test was wrapped up on Saturday.

With Milner the outright winner, he became the third CDR Yamaha rider in a row to win the Australian Four Day Enduro Championship.

And the best-performed of the Kiwi contingent that crossed the Tasman was also a Yamaha star, New Zealand cross-country champion Adrian Smith, the man from Mokau finishing 20th overall and sixth in class.

Second best Kiwi was New Zealand enduro champion Chris Birch (KTM), who finished 22nd overall and was placed ninth in class.

Auckland’s Chris Power (Yamaha) was 24th overall and 7th in class, while Morrinsville’s Simon Lansdaal (Husqvarna) had a DNF recorded beside his name, although he had been inside the top 30 before he had mousse tyre issues.

After a solid three days riding, Milner just needed to stay on his bike and finish strong to clinch a hat-trick of championships at one of the most prestigious enduro events Australia has to offer.

The fourth and final day saw riders set out for a quick 30km trail ride before being split in to heats for the spectator-friendly final motos.

“Apart from a bit of dust, which couldn’t be helped, it was a really enjoyable four day. Riding with Toby and Chris was awesome and we talked and joked at a lot of the check points over the four days so it was a lot of fun.

“Winning this one meant a lot, not only because it was three in a row for me, but because the level of competition that was here and for my CDR Yamaha team that do so much for me. Beating riders like Toby, Chris and Josh Strang is amazing and having them here adds to the prestige of the event.

“A big thank you to the organisers and sponsors of the event and all the volunteers that go into making a race like this happen. It’s a huge job and all the riders appreciate the effort they put in,” Milner said.

Eight years ago, Chris Hollis won the A4DE. Since then his journey has taken him many places but he turned back the clock at Dungog and gave the 2014 a real shake. Hollis led the event early and then when the pressure came from Milner and Price, Hollis went toe to toe with them and in the end, less than a minute separate the top three in an enthralling battle that lasted the entire week.

In the end, Hollis finished third outright on his WR450F and his return to top form impressed everyone.

“What an awesome Four day!” Hollis said. “There is no disgrace finishing between Dan and Toby and I can leave here knowing that I gave it everything I had. The difference between winning and coming third was a couple of tests of day two where I made a couple of mistakes, but I have no regrets and I’m really happy with how the week turned out.

“Congratulations to Dan on a great ride. He really deserved to win and had to handle the pressure the whole time. Thank you to the CDR Yamaha team and our sponsors for their continued support and everyone involved in running such a successful event.”

This 2014 event marks the second year since CDR Yamaha become involved with off road racing and it is also the second time that the CDR Yamaha team have won the event with Daniel Milner at the controls. For team owner, Craig Dack, the move across to off-road has been a challenging one, but the rewards have been great.

“This is our second year in off road and we still have a lot to learn about this style of racing. Thankfully with riders like Daniel and Chris, as well as Stefan Merriman before that, we have been able to work with determined and talented riders who pass on as much knowledge to us as we pass onto them.

“Both Dan and Chris did an amazing job this week. On two totally different bikes, both riders proved just how good they are and what they can achieve. I couldn’t be prouder of the way they conducted themselves during the week and the results they got as well as the hard work and commitment everyone on the CDR Yamaha team puts in.

“This is what all that work adds up to and it makes the long hours testing and in the workshop worthwhile.

“I’m genuinely hooked on the four day experience and as a company, Yamaha are the driving force behind off road in Australia with people like Steven Cotterell, Ray Howard and Peter Payne passionate about racing and the 4ADE.

 

 

OUTRIGHT Results

1st Daniel Milner – 2.27.59.511

2nd Toby Price – 2.28.24.085

3rd Chris Hollis – 2.29.46.023

4th Josh Strang – 2.30.03.089

5th Beau Ralston – 2.31.52.301

6th Lachlan Stanford -2.31.58.057

7th Tom McCormack – 2.32.10.469

8th Glenn Kearney – 2.32.53.687

9th Josh Green – 2.33.17.284

10th Daniel Saunders – 2.33.46.246

 

E1 Top 5

1. Tom McCormack

2. Peter Boyle

3. Mike Brown

4. Scott Keegan

5. Kane Hall

 

E2 Top 5

1. Daniel Milner

2. Toby Price

3. Chris Hollis

4. Josh Strang

5. Beau Ralston

 

E3 Top 5

1. Glenn Kearney

2. Daniel Sanders

3. Stefan Granquist

4. Jarrod Bewley

5. Mitchell Bowen

 

Women’s Top 5

1. Jess Gardiner

2. Tayla Jones

3. Emelie Karlsson

4. Jemma Wilson

5. Sophie Coldicutt

 

Veterans’ Top 5

1. Damian Smith

2. Kirk Hutton

3. Anthony Smidt

4. Con Privitera

5. Mark Blake

 

Masters Top 5

1. David Fleming

2. Trent Lean

3. Geoff Ballard

4. Mark Cockerill

5. Mark Peacock

 

Photos courtesy Four Oh Four