WHITAKER NEEDED ALL HIS SKILLS
TO WIN EXTREME DIRT BIKE SERIES
WAINUIOMATA’S JAKE WHITAKER (KTM) WON THE TIGHT FINAL BATTLE FOR GLORY
IN THE NEW ZEALAND EXTREME OFF-ROAD CHAMPIONSHIP SERIES
STORY: ANDY MCGECHAN, BIKESPORTNZ.COM
A
s was predicted, this year’s edition
of the New Zealand Extreme Off-
Road Championship series went
right down to the wire in Canterbury.
The fourth and final round of the Yamaha-
sponsored competition was wrapped up after
two days of brutal riding at two vastly different
venues around Christchurch on Friday and
Saturday, with the series outcome unsure
until the final few moments of race action.
The weekend’s two-dayer began with an enduro-
cross at the Christchurch A&P Showgrounds
on Friday, followed by the Nut Buster hard
enduro at nearby Oxford the following day.
Wainuiomata’s Jake Whitaker eventually claimed
14 KIWI RIDER
the glamour Gold Class trophy on Saturday
afternoon, although even he wasn’t sure he’d
done enough until moments after the final session
and he needed all his magical skills from years
of winning national trial championships to get
him through the demands of the weekend.
He had been locked in a fierce battle throughout
this year’s extreme series with Helensville’s Tom
Buxton and, when they locked horns again on Friday
and Saturday, the battle intensified still further.
Christchurch rider Hamish Macdonald, just
returned from international duties and making
his first appearance in this domestic series,
won the enduro-cross on Friday, but most eyes
were on the see-saw battle for championship
honours between Whitaker and Buxton.