WORDS & PHOTOS:
Andy McGechan/bikesportnz.com
DIRT GUIDE XC
MAY BOUNCES BACK
FROM INJURY WITH A WIN
uckland’s Callan May has
been sidelined with injury
for the past few months, but
you would not have guessed
that to watch him roar to victory at
round two of the Dirt Guide Cross-
country Series near Tokoroa on
June 24.
And if the 26-year-old’s
convincing victory wasn’t enough
to have his rivals worried, things
are only going to get worse for
them because the Kiwi Rider
and BikesportNZ.com-supported
Yamaha star from Titirangi was
“just warming up”.
More than 150 riders showed up
to compete in the two races – a
90-minute junior race, followed
by a two-hour race for the seniors
– the course set out at the same
venue used for round one the
previous mon th, in forestry at
Ohakuri, about halfway between
Taupo and Tokoroa.
May (Yamaha YZ250FX) was quick
off the mark when the shotgun
blast signalled the start to the
senior race soon after midday, but
he was in heavy traffic through the
first corner. He was up to second
position 300 metres later, as the
bikes shot off the firebreak road
and into the forest for the first
time.
May passed the race leader,
Wainuiomata’s Jake Whitaker (KTM
300EXC), about halfway through
the first of what would eventually
be five laps, each taking about 25
minutes to complete, and he was
never headed. “It was pretty slick
in the forest, but I pushed as much
as I could to try to open up a gap,”
said May.
He soon had fellow Yamaha rider
Richard Sutton for company, the
rider from Drury right on May’s
rear wheel. “At first I couldn’t
shake him, although, after the
first pit stop I was warmed up and
managed to pull away from him,”
May explained.
May eventually won the race by
45 seconds, with Sutton (Yamaha
YZ125) settling for runner-up,
while Cambridge’s Beau Taylor
(KTM 250XC) finished three
minutes further back to claim the
third podium spot.
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KIWI RIDER 69