This weekend at Manfeild the Victoria Motorcycle Club Kiwibike Insurance Junior Development and Moto Academy NZ coaching programme kicks off for 2012.

This weekend will see Moto Academy NZ welcome the 2012 junior development students for the start of the new winter racing season, coinciding with the two-day opening round of the annual Victoria Motorcycle Club’s Winter Road-race season at Manfeild.

After a very successful 2011 with a mixed group, this year Moto Academy NZ will include only one rider who is not a young rider with two novice and five more experienced riders.

Aaron Hassan (14), from Auckland, will be making the step up from Prolite 250 to 125GP on the Moto Academy NZ Honda RS125. Hassan had a fantastic NZSBK season on the Kawasaki Ninja 250 which he will also be running over the winter.

Havelock North’s Tyler Lincoln (14) will also be stepping up to the 125GP class on his own recently acquired Honda RS125 after a successful campaign in the South Island on the 150 Streetstock bike and in the North Island on the Moto Academy NZ 125GP bike. He will also be running his fast Kawasaki KRR150 in the Streetstock 150 class looking to defend his title from 2011.

The 2011 Mini-lite 250 champion, Otaki’s Sarah Elliot (pictured above), has also decided to join the programme so that she can polish up her growing skill base and transfer them from the 250 Mini-lite onto the 650 Pro-Twin bike.

The Banks girls, Mihi (15) and Turiana (13), from Titahi Bay, will be aiming to show all the boys a clean pair of high heels on their Clive-prepared KRR150s in the Streetstock class.

This will be Mihi’s second season of coaching, while this will be Turiana’s first season on the ‘big’ bikes after a successful summer of bucket racing.

Upper Hutt’s Rogan Chandler (14) and David Neal (18), from Karori, will be among the boys chasing those two and the other Streetstockers.

Chandler has a couple of seasons in bucket and Streetstock racing behind him and is one of the strong improvers from 2011, while Neal is new to racing, but has shown that he has significant ability behind him already.

Steve Bagshaw of Moto Academy NZ is very excited by the new intake and hope that it will be able to impart some knowledge and help the riders develop their skills for a successful 2012 racing season.

VMCC WINTER SERIES CALENDAR:

Round 1 – Manfeild Saturday 5 and Sunday 6 May

Round 2 – Manfeild Saturday 9 June

Round 3 – Manfeild Saturday 21 July

Round 4 – Manfeild Saturday 25 August

Round 5 – Manfeild Saturday 29 and Sunday 30 September

Round 6 – Taupo Saturday 27 October

© Photo by Andy McGechan, www.BikesportNZ.com