It was a tough day at the office for Oparau-based Reece Walker, but the KTM man earned rich reward for his courage and tenacity in the final outing of the day, the all-important feature race.
The 19-year-old, originally from Nelson, was one of the stand-out performers at the annual King of the Mountain Motocross in Taranaki at the weekend, ending Sunday only 10th overall in the MX1 class after a small problem in the first of his three races saw him fail to finish, but he was top of the podium in the stand-alone final feature outing of the day, leading a KTM 1-2 to the chequered flag at the Mach 1 Yamaha-sponsored event.
Runner-up to him in the all-capacities, invitation-only feature race was Tauranga’s Micah McGoldrick, riding his Jeff Scott Electrical KTM 250F, and he finished just over one second adrift of Walker in the gruelling six-lapper, the track by that stage at its most brutal after two days of dirt-churning race action.
The same Barrett Road circuit will be the venue for round one of the 2019 New Zealand Motocross Championships in two weeks’ time, on February 3, and so many of the sport’s stars had shown up for the weekend to get bodies and bikes in tune for that event.
However, the racing, under a blazing sun, did take its toll and not all riders invited to take part in the feature actually lined up to race.
But Walker (New Plymouth Motorcycles Alpinestars KTM 450SX-F) was made of sterner stuff and keen to push his body a little harder.
“I was getting in the rhythm a little bit towards the end of the day and it was all good build-up for the nationals. Not all the top riders lined up for the feature race … I think a few of the guys were pretty worn out, but I felt I needed as much track time as I could and was keen to push on.
Tauranga’s Micah McGoldrick (Jeff Scott Electrical KTM 250F), battling for a podium finish at the King of the Mountain MX on Sunday. Photo by Andy McGechan, BikesportNZ.com
“My fitness is good and I’m really looking forward to the nationals.”
The 23-year-old McGoldrick, also a former South Islander, from Rangiora, was also pleased to complete the weekend without injury and with a few bike settings sorted for the upcoming national series.
“The more track time the better I believe. We had 20-minute motos today and that was a good test. It simulates the nationals, which is what we were all here for. It was good to get the hang of the track again too because I have not raced here in a year (since the nationals round there last year).
“Even the last time I was here I struggled a bit, but we made some good suspension setting gains this weekend. It is a difficult track here and quite technical.
“I felt better as the day went on and my fitness is getting better too.”
McGoldrick had finished third overall in the MX2 class races earlier in the day, behind Mangakino’s Maximus Purvis (Altherm JCR Yamaha YZ250F) and Taupo’s Wyatt Chase (Alpinestars Honda CRF250).
Fifth overall in the MX2 class at the nationals last season, McGoldrick is determined to improve upon that and his performance at the weekend indicates this could be a highly-realistic expectation, although he still has the daunting prospect of trying to match reigning national MX2 champion Hamish Harwood, the fellow KTM star from Auckland unfortunately a no-show in Taranaki at the weekend.
© Words and photos by Andy McGechan, BikesportNZ
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