Two rounds only a fortnight apart , one in Tasmania a 12 hour boat ride south, the next in Queensland 19 hours straight drive north saw a big effort to get to the meetings let alone compete. Joe's couple of years away from the National motocross scene are showing in his fitness level but his overall positions of 23rd (Penguin, Tas) and 20th (Conondale, QLD ) saw him 2nd Suzuki privateer in Tassy and 1st again in Queensland.
Thanks to Suzukis contingency program, that nets Joe another $850.
With just over a month till he jets to the UK to compete in the British Supermoto Championship, racing at this level in a 40 strong field of Australia's best young riders should tone him up. He is looking for a top ten finish and has two more National rounds to attain it, 20th May (Newcastle, NSW and 10th June (Murray Bridge, SA)
Race Report: Nokia MX Nationals round 2 Penguin
The second round of the Nokia MX Nationals was held at the Coastal Motocross track in Penguin. The track surface, soft clay held up extremely well all day with hardly any dust and no need for watering. The track is set on a hillside with tighter sections at the base and faster parts as you climb up and down the hill. With assorted tabletops and singles and a set of stutters.
Qualifying
I became used to the track very early on in practice and was doing some good laps and felt comfortable that I could qualify well. But as soon as the green flag came out I started to get held up every time I tried to post a quick time. So I would have done many fast sections of the track but hardly any fast full laps. I qualified a disappointing 25 th .
Moto one started well and went downhill from there. I was once again involved in a first lap incident, while trying to avoid a crashed rider I was collected by another rider, I didn't crash but just became stuck in the pie of machines. I got out eventually and began to catch the pack. Estimating that I was in about 30 th position, I battled fiercely to get through the slower riders and was working my way through until I leant the bike over too much in a rut and lost the front end. When I got up I struggled to start the machine, as my leg was so sore from the first incident. I bump started the bike and went right back to last place. I got going again and began to catch the backmarkers. Working through them I realised that I was about to get lapped and as the leaders came through I tried to stick on them as long as I could, which made it easier to get through the traffic. I got through to 31 st position and hoped that the second race would go better than the first.
Moto two started much better, I was top 20 out of the first turn and had stayed out of any dramas. I was making passes every lap and at the same time having a great battle with another Suzuki rider, we were passing each other constantly and as we moved up the field I thought that we must pretty well positioned, as the race wore on the passes became less frequent because I was riding against people the same speed but I kept pushing until my injuries started hurting and I fatigued badly with 5 laps to go. My body was exhausted and I could not keep the pace I had been riding at, I began to slow and by the end of the race had let by five riders, eventually finishing 19 th . I had got as high as 14 th and I knew that with a better start and a healthier body I can happily run top 15 and hopefully break the top 10.
The third round of the national motocross championships were held at Green Park, Conondale in south-east Queensland. The track consisted of a technical hillside section, fast straights, a few tabletops and various flat corners. The surface was to begin with very soft and muddy but by the end of practice the mud had hardened into nice ruts producing a prime surface which held up extremely well during the day.
I concentrated on getting comfortable with the track during practise and felt confident on the circuit after only a few laps. I thought that I would be able to qualify well and planned to pull off the circuit as soon as qualifying started. I must have not seen the green flag as I did three laps before pulling in. I was becoming frustrated with other riders holding me up when I was trying to post a fast time, so when I pulled in I wanted to get a decent gap between myself and any other riders before I had another go at a quick lap. When I pulled back on to the circuit I knew I didn't have long before the end of the session so I had to go hard straight away, I was having a good lap until I caught up to a slow rider and tried to go round him unsuccessfully and ended up sliding out. My lap ruined I coasted back round the circuit, eager to have another crack but when I came round to the front straight I saw the chequered flag, very frustrated I knew that I had not qualified well. Finding out that I qualified 30 th was no surprise to me.
I started pretty badly and got caught up in a lot of traffic, working my way through the pack proved to be a tiresome process and by the time I got up to where I should have started, I didn't have much left in the tank and knowing that I could easily crash at this point, I slowed down for a lap or so before having a final burst towards the end of the race, I made a pass on the last lap and moved into 16 th place two corners before the chequered flag. Reasonably happy with the result I knew that I could have easily finished 3 or 4 spots further up the field if I had kept my speed that I started with until the end of the race.
I got a better start in the second race running top 20 and wanting to push forward. I passed some riders and was feeling comfortable, I put my head down and tried to pick up my pace but my body was drained and I was unable to go faster, as I began to fade I became very disappointed in myself and when I finished the race in 19 th place I knew that I would have to work on my fitness before the next round.