JUST ANOTHER TRAINING RIDE

South Island cross-country hero Jackson Walker was determined to settle some unfinished business when he arrived from the South Island to tackle the annual Motomuck 90 dirt bike race near Taupo on Saturday.

He travelled north with fellow Nelson rider Keegan Anglesey and it must have felt very much like a typical afternoon’s riding for the two Yamaha riders – the pair not just rivals on race days but also frequent training partners – because they didn’t see much of the other mostly-North Islander competitors as they romped to a 1-2 finish, Walker eventually crossing the finish line more than two minutes ahead of Anglesey.

Third overall was Te Awamutu’s Daniel White (Kawasaki KX250F), more than three minutes further adrift.

It was a start-to-finish win for Walker (Yamaha YZ125), who grabbed the holeshot and simply disappeared into the forest, leaving 60 other competitors choking in his dust.

“For the first three laps I was pushing quite hard because I thought there was another rider catching me, but I think it was just the noise of my own bike echoing off the trees,” said the 15-year-old Walker, a year 11 pupil at Nelson Boys’ College.

“I was quite surprised at how far ahead I was at the end.

“I actually got the holeshot at the start of this race last year too, but then I crashed straight away … going from hero to zero. I managed to fight back to finish third and I was determined to make up for that result this time around.”

He certainly did that.

Anglesey (Yamaha YZ125) was philosophical about his result.

“Jackson and I are pretty even when we train together and, although he beats me more than I beat him, it just depends on the day really and I guess today it was Jackson’s day.

“I was about third at the start but, about 10 minutes into the race, I was up to second. I couldn’t see Jackson in front of me through the trees, so I just rode my own race.”

White’s performance was remarkable too.

He crashed at the start of the race and was the last rider away. But he passed almost the entire 60-rider field as he hunted down the leaders, before being forced to settle for third overall.

Meanwhile, Reporoa’s Hadleigh Knight and Howick’s Liam Draper teamed up to win the four-hour senior race that immediately following the junior clash.

Walker is supported by Filco Farm and Sports, The Front Store, Talley’s Fisheries, Abel Tasman Sea Shuttle, Mactech Services, Russet Engineering, BikesportNZ.com and Pure Sports Nutrition.

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