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BEECHEY AND POLARIS TAKE TOP HONOURS AT TRI-STATE OPENER10/Mar/2008 - By, Trevor HedgeThe opening round of the QRCV organised and Polaris Outlaw backed 2008 Tri-State Series kicked off in Canberra on Sunday, March 9..Polaris has backed the series as naming rights sponsor and the Canberra series opener saw the blooding of a host of new teams that are set to make quite a splash on the ATV scene in 2008.Lots of impressive transporters and trailers emblazoned with sponsor logos gave the paddock a pleasingly professional look. Branded race tents and teardrop banners always add to the spectacle of any event and it was great to see that even at the season opener much effort has been put in to really present a professional image for ATV racing. While all the new teams were very well turned out a special mention must go to the Hardiman Kawasaki squad. Great team shirts and an extremely horn looking KFX450R helped them, in my opinion, to present the most professional look of all. Paddock beauty pageant aside however of course it is the score on the board at the end of the day that really matters. Topping the standings at the end of the day was the new Luke Beechey Motorsports Polaris squad taking overall honours. Don’t for one minute however imagine there was some sort of whitewash. There were no backmarkers in the class. Every rider entered in the Pro Class put in a great effort and thoroughly deserved their position in what was a very impressive field. In fact, I must say that from my viewpoint the grading looked excellent across all classes. Luke Beechey (Polaris) took the most points from the series opener with a 1st-3rd-2nd swag across the three motos. Beechey was plagued by serious arm pump issues throughout the day and at times was clearly struggling to hang on to his 450 MXR. A lack of race fitness was always likely to rear its head at the season opener and the testing Canberra track was the scene of Beechey’s first top level race meet since 2006. Make no mistake, Beechey is no doubt very fit, and looks it, but there is physical fitness and bike fitness, the latter of which only comes with lots of time up on the pegs under race conditions. Nevertheless though I am fairly sure Beechey can claim the first ever Pro level race win for Polaris’ new mount and as the machines are so new, the Polaris boys are only going to get stronger as the season progresses. While Beechey was the victor at the series opener I think it is fair to say that Paul Smith (Suzuki) would have been the overall winner on the day if not for his seat coming adrift in the opening moto. Smith actually led the first moto for a couple of laps before his seat dislodged and the Victorian could only salvage sixth from what otherwise would have been at worst a sure podium finish. Smith bounced back from that disappointment with wins in the remaining two motos to leave Canberra only two points adrift of Beechey. The new kid on the Pro scene is Cameron Wade. The Colac Motorcycles backed youngster looked very impressive and helped make it two Suzukis on the overall podium with a great 2nd-2nd-6th result that certainly suggests that the kid has a very big future indeed. His fellow competitors also gave him praise in their podium speeches and I think it’s fair to say he surprised more than a few with his early season form. Wade took out the Senior Production and Senior Expert classes at the 2007 Nationals so logically the next step was to the premier Pro class and he hit the ground running with great results in Canberra. Aaron Ovens wins the Ironman award. A third place in the first moto after battling through the field from last place, followed by a fourth in the second bout and a massive end over end over end tumble while battling for the lead in the final moto had me thinking he was out for the count. But after witnessing what I thought was a definite ambulance case, 30 seconds later Ovens emerged from underneath his machine, remounted and raced back up fifth place. The Victorian was rewarded with 15 points which pushed his tally to 54. Good enough for fourth overall. Ovens’ performance all the more impressive as his Polaris Outlaw 450 MXR was running completely standard shocks. They were so hot from the punishment of a Pro level moto that after the race you couldn’t even get near the back shock let alone touch it. He may be an Ironman but he also seems to be a damn nice bloke. While I was buying my lunch from Mrs Ovens Senior, Aaron came over to get his feed and the way he spoke to his mum I think could be a lesson for many of us, let alone the endless stream of spoiled brats that I have seen come through the two wheel world. So in my book Aaron gets not only the Ironman award, but also the good guy trophy. Anthony Dellios took fifth outright on his Yamaha after putting in consistent finishes across all three motos despite getting tangled up in some other riders mishaps. Two fifth places and a fourth bagging him 50 points for his efforts. Michael Roycroft upheld Can-Am’s honour with sixth outright but never looked totally comfortable on the new DS450. His machine still in the early stages of development and didn’t seem to have the snap off the turns enjoyed by some of the other machines. Paul Worth on the Kawasaki scored an impressive fourth in the opening moto but an electrical gremlin while battling for a podium finish in the second moto cost him dearly. Despite finishing on a high note with a podium in the final moto, that DNF in the second bout pushed him down to seventh overall for the round. He had completed the final moto on a borrowed machine fitted with his suspension as the electrical fault on his #1 machine proved troublesome to find. Daryl Watson, Scott Haller and Myles Dillon rounded out the top ten but were certainly not shamed by their opposition. Anyone that can run with this crowd without getting left behind definitely deserve praise for their efforts and skill. Outlaw Tri-State Series 2008 Rnd 1 – Canberra (Full Results Here) - (Pro Race Report) Rnd 1 Pictorials - A - B - C - D - E - F - G - H - I - J - K - L - M - N - O - P - Q - R - S - T - U - V - W - X - Y - Z Rnd 2 – Mt Gambier (Full Results Here) - (Pro Race Report) - (Support Class Report) - (Support Results) Rnd 2 - Pictorials - A - B - C - D - E Rnd 3 – August 3 – Tooleen Any ATV enthusiasts that can make themselves available as a volunteer at any of the remaining rounds are invited to make contact with the QRCV. Flag marshals are needed to ensure safe race events for the riders and there is no doubt serving as a flag marshal certainly gives the closest view of the action as it unfolds. If you think you can help at any of the events listed above please give the QRCV a call on 03 9796 8621.  Paul Smith was on fire in Canberra and if not for his seat coming adrift in race one might have bested Beechey for top honours All club representatives across Australia are invited to send their race schedules here for inclusion on a national 2008 calendar that will feature here on ATVPOD.com.au. Of course we also need to know your race schedules if we are to try and fund any coverage of your events. Racing News |
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