There was some pretty intense competition in Round 2 of the Summer Series with a points race around the Donovan Circuit.
Weather conditions were calm and warm but a brief shower made some of the corners a little treacherous with a couple hitting the deck.
The fields were affected by the upcoming Track Age Group Nationals in Invercargill from Wednesday and the Motatapu. This didn’t detract from the intensity of the competition in all grades though.
In Div 1 Michael White capped off his final prep for the nationals showing a clean pair of heels in 5 of the 6 sprints which were all tightly contested especially with Luke Macpherson. Mike collected 28 points and finished well clear of the rest. Luke was 2nd on 14 points and Josh van den Arend took 3rd on a count back from Sam Miller on 10.
Controversy rained down on the Div 2 field of 17 riders. Crossing of the white line especially in the tight finishing straight saw 5 riders disqualified- 3 of which would have finished in the top 5.
Wayne Miller on 12 points picked up the win with placings in 4 of the 6 sprints - one point clear of series leader Wally Kopae. Wally keeps the jersey and is showing good form leading into the Nats contesting all of the sprints. Third place was Red Burnett by virtue of picking up the last sprint with arms held high as he cleared out from the tiring field!
Div 3 saw a small but quality field contest there 5 lap race. With Erin Criglington sitting out the race she gave up the leaders jersey to Pete Leighton who accumulated 18 points to to beat out Daryl Haggerty on 15 and Jim Phair on 13. Sam Kopae rode well and scored points in every sprint finishing a close 4th.
Apart from the DQ’s there was some excellent racing. It was a hard fought event in all divisions. Rules are rules regarding DQ’s and remember if you get stuck in the wrong position breaking the rules just won’t cut it.
Once again thanks to all the marshalls , Robin (as usual!) and all the helpers at the finish with their slow mo cameras that helped to sort out all the placegetters.
Points after round 2 are: Div 1 Hamish Keast 20 points, Mike White 20, Matt Nunn 16. Div 2 Wally Kopae 35, Wayne Miller 35, Eugene Bonthuys 16. Div 3 Pete Leighton 32, Daryl Haggerty 25, Jim Phair 20.
Report courtesy of race manager Neil Familton