Inglewood ’ s Renny Johnston ( Husqvarna FE350 ), on his way to winning the Ironman class
JOHNSTON CONQUERS EIGHT-HOUR MARATHON SOLO
Racing for eight hours with one or two teammates to share the workload is one thing , but riding solo at a gut-buster event like the inaugural Forestland Eight-Hour Cross-country race is quite another . This sort of event is a daunting proposition at the best of times , but Taranaki ’ s Renny Johnston had no qualms in tackling April ’ s marathon race single-handedly . What ’ s more , the Husqvarna rider finished a remarkable 14th overall out of the more than
260 riders entered and easily won the racewithin-a-race for “ ironman ” honours . Next best of the Ironman class contestants was Hamilton ’ s Liam Calley ( Beta RR300 ), who finished the race 38th overall , 24 places and also two laps behind ironman class-winner Johnston . While Calley ’ s result was impressive too , because just finishing a race such as this is an incredible achievement , the fact that he was so far behind Johnston at the chequered flag truly puts Johnston ’ s performance into perspective .
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