Wairarapa ’ s Eva Wintle ( Suzuki GSX150F ), not slowing down for anything on the nation ’ s motorcycle race tracks this summer
segment of the Suzuki International series competition third overall , not bad considering the talent she ’ s up against . “ My first year of racing was in the Suzuki International Series at this time last year ,” she explained . “ I finished second overall in this class last year , first-time out , so I was pretty happy with that . “ The competition is a lot harder this year ... the boys at the front go really fast . My riding has developed and changed drastically , and I ’ ve learnt a lot in a short time . “ I had a bit of an ‘ off ’ at Taupo last weekend , which set me back quite a bit . I hurt my shoulder and my hand , but nothing too serious . But it affected my mind-set and I struggled to regain confidence . “ I seem to enjoy the wet and have achieved my personal best times when it ’ s raining , so that ’ s interesting . “ My dad , Jarrod Wintle , has raced for many years , so I guess it ’ s in the genes . At a very young age he got me my first motorbike and it just carried on from there . My stepdad is Spike Taylor and he ’ s racing his Suzuki GSX-R1000 Formula One Sidecar in this series , and he ’ s been helpful too .” Inaugurated in late 2017 , the GIXXER Cup – with the tagline “ Growing Future Champions ” – encourages riders to hit the racetracks on identical Suzuki GSX150F bikes , an absolutely level playing field for those just starting out or on a limited budget . A class intended primarily for entry-level racing , it has also attracted several extremely experienced racers over the past few years , including former national superbike champions , and this has offered a great learning opportunity for riders who want to educate and immerse themselves in the sport and perhaps to later go on to race bigger and faster machinery too . In fact , the young man who wrapped up the GIXXER Cup title at Manfeild on Sunday Dec 10 , Hamilton ’ s Joseph Stroud , is the son of Suzuki ’ s nine-time former national superbike champion Andrew Stroud , also an internationallyrecognised road-racing star . The Suzuki International Series is again this season being run in conjunction with the New Zealand Superbike Championships ( NZSBK ) series , with the first two rounds recognised
KIWI RIDER 89