E
very sport has its stars, the individuals that
the media will focus their attention on and
feature on posters, on web sites or on the
glossy pages of magazines, athletes that the fans
will adore and easily recognise in the streets.
But, for each one of these talented people
there are perhaps one or two people, and usually
many more than that, who beaver away behind
the scenes to present this motorsport magic show.
Of course, there are the event organisers, the
sponsors, the programme producers, the lap
scorers and points accumulators, the officials, the
track builders and maintenance crew (the people
on the end of the shovels and driving tractors
or waving the watering hoses), the race starters,
the flag marshals, the medics, the caterers, the
announcers, the media (like Kiwi Rider or
BikesportNZ.com, the New Zealand Herald or
TV and radio stations, for example), the race
team managers and truck drivers and all the
spectators, who play their part by paying dollars
at the entrance then adding noise and colour to
the day... but haven’t we forgotten someone?
The sport’s true unsung heroes are typically
seen but not heard, maybe acknowledged only
with a nod – they are the mighty mechanics.
Sometimes it’s a specialist factory man brought
in from overseas; an experienced and longserving
bike shop mechanic who is attached to a
team; maybe it’s mum and dad, brother or sister,
or perhaps it’s just an old school friend with a
handful of basic tools.
No matter what their skill level, where they
have come from or what their motivation is,
KIWI RIDER 97