MCMASTER
T
he trophy engravers will be working
overtime after the 2019 edition of the
New Zealand Mini Motocross Nationals
in Hawke’s Bay.
And the jewellers may as well get templates
made for the recipients too, as they’ll no
doubt be etching some of these same names
into silverware again in the near future.
Talent certainly abounded at the Ngaruroro
Raceway, at Mere Road in Fernhill, on the
outskirts of Hastings, for this year’s two-
day Un4Seen Decals-sponsored event – for
riders aged between four and 11 years and
riding bikes with engine capacities anywhere
between 50cc and 112cc.
With an impressively-large entry list and
intense racing at the weekend, it showed the
sport in a positive light and showed it was
extremely healthy at this grassroots level.
Cambridge rider William Pluck raced away
with the premier trophy as he won the 9-11
years’ 65cc class, finishing the weekend 10
points clear of runner-up rider Rafe Paewai,
Pahiatua youngster Paewai actually won
more races than Pluck – clinching three of
five wins in this class – but, unfortunately, he
also failed to finish one race and this cost him
dearly.
Meanwhile, it was a fourth consecutive
national mini motocross title win for Pluck,
SWANSON
who had previously won the 7-11 years’ small
trail bike class in both 2017 and 2018 and he
had also won the 6-8 years’ 50cc intro trail
bike class in 2016.
New Plymouth’s Travis Taylor finished third
outright in 7-8 years’ 65cc class last season,
but he stepped up a grade this year and
ended up on the podium again, once more
finishing third, just 10 points behind Paewai
in the 9-11 years’ 65cc class.
Perhaps the most impressive performance
of the weekend came from Tauranga’s Arama
Te Whetu in the 7-8 years’ 65cc class.
Fourth overall in this same class last year, Te
Whetu simply owned the race track this time
around, finishing the weekend unbeaten in
all five races, the only individual at the event
to record a clean sweep of victories.
Runner-up to Te Whetu was Invercargill’s
Ryan Keen, while Carterton’s Maddox
Swanson, who won the 6-8 years’ 50cc class
in 2018, settled for third overall in this 7-8
years’ 65cc class this year.
There was another rider besides Pluck who
managed to make it consecutive title wins
too – Christchurch’s Levi McMaster won the
4-7 years’ 50cc class last year and this time
around he won four out of five races to end
top of the 6-8 years’ 50cc class, comfortably
edging out Gisborne’s Jaxon Pardoe and
KIWI RIDER 35