Snodgrass, Milner, Sanders and Bacon Deliver A Perfect Show In Toowoomba
Upon the close of Round 2 of the 2019 Yamaha Australian Off-Road Championship (AORC), Toowoomba’s temperatures and dry conditions put the world class line-up to a final test. With the sun beating down and humidity to boot, competitors tackled a new Off-Road Advantage Track that demanded strong technical skill.
Coming out on top after the three tests was Lyndon Snodgrass (KTM Enduro Racing Team) for E1, Daniel Milner (KTM Enduro Racing Team) for E2, Daniel Sanders (Husqvarna Enduro Racing Team) for E3 and Kyron Bacon (MX Store, KTM) for EJ.
E1
Arriving at the new Off-Road Advantage Track, Snodgrass came in with a point to prove. Managing the new track’s conditions alongside stifling heats, Snodgrass grappled with his bike to clinch a first place victory ahead of Round 1 Champion, Luke Styke (Active8 Yamaha Yamalube) by just over four seconds!
Closing out the podium in third place today was Michael Driscoll (Active8 Yamaha Yamalube), who flew ahead of his trailing competitors to clinch the final podium spot for two days running!
Reflecting on today’s success, Snodgrass explained that “Round 2 featured a different track that was more technical than yesterday.
“Coming into today I made some small changes, studied the new track extensively during yesterday’s walk, and today ended up being a lot better!”
MX Store’s Matthew Phillips retired earlier today due to an injury.
AORC E1 Round 2 Provisional Results
- Lyndon Snodgrass (KTM Enduro Racing Team) 38:03.337
- Luke Styke (Active8 Yamaha Yamalube) 38:07.726
- Michael Driscoll (Active8 Yamaha Yamalube) 38:48.957
- Fraser Higlett (Husqvarna Enduro Racing Team) 39:09.410
- Jonte Reynders 40:35.042
- Seton Broomhall 43:43.988
- Lachlan Allan 44:30.347
- Joseph Cole 46:05.772
- Mackenzie Bowser 46:07.220
- Jarrad Vanderhor 46:15.756
E2
Taking out a consecutive round title this weekend was KTM’s Milner, who remained well ahead of the pack throughout the day. Regardless of tough conditions and yesterday’s crash in the final laps, Milner remained steadfast to clinch both the Round 2 E2 title as well as the fastest time for the day!
Landing in second place, just over three minutes behind Milner was Active8 Yamaha Yamalube star, Josh Green. Green finished off today’s three tests with a time of 38:33.191 ahead of Jeremy Carpentier (Yamaha MX Store Ballards Off-Road Team). Carpentier closed off the podium ahead of Broc Grabham, with a time of 39:03.107.
With an undeniably successful weekend in the books, Milner highlighted that the opening rounds of the AORC season “the biggest thing I took out from this weekend was the right technical skills are required to ride my new 350.
“Yesterday I found myself struggling in navigating the track, keeping the ball rolling and knowing what gear to ride. It doesn’t matter how hard we test in the off season, conditions seen today really put you to the test!
“All in all it was an awesome weekend for me, and I’ve picked up where I left off from last year. Everyone on the field seems to be getting faster, and it really goes to show that us Aussie riders are putting it to the world,” explained Milner.
AORC E2 Round 2 Provisional Results
- Daniel Milner (KTM Enduro Racing Team) 37:04.789
- Joshua Green (Active8 Yamaha Yamalube) 38:33.191
- Jeremy Carpentier (Yamaha MX Store Ballards Off-Road Team) 39:03.107
- Broc Grabham 41:17.709
- Brad Hardaker 41:57.983
- Kristian Sprenger 42:34.533
- Kaleb Treasure 42:56.997
- Wesley Keeley 43:17.885
- Brent Dean 43:30.524
- Jack Judge 43:31.188
E3
Closing off the weekend with two consecutive E3 title wins was Sanders, leading the charge ahead of the competition by just shy of three minutes! Sanders finished the day with a time of 37:27.786. Trailing behind in second place was Motul Pirelli Sherco Racing Team’s Andrew Wilksch, who maintained a strong presence across the weekend to hold onto his place in the top three for the E3 class!
Covered in celebratory Champaign, Sanders stated “it was a pretty successful weekend finished off with some Champaign to boot.
“I experienced some crashes this weekend but kept my body healthy to recover as quickly as I could. Coming out of this weekend I know how much harder I need to work on my fitness to close those gaps ahead of Dungog next month,” explained Sanders.
Rounding out the podium in third place for Round 2 was Beau Ralston, finishing behind Wilksch by just over 20 seconds, with a time of 40:31.481.
AORC E3 Round 2 Provisional Results
- Daniel Sanders (Husqvarna Enduro Racing Team) 37:27.786
- Andrew Wilksch (Motul Pirelli Sherco Racing Team) 40:10.830
- Beau Ralston 40:31.481
- Jesse Lawton 41:47.381
- Matt Murry 43:37.824
- Daniel Welsh 45:26.922
- Daniel Middleton 45:49.855
- Timothy Lonsdale 46:42.994
- Jackson Caldwell 46:48.398
- Luke Morrison 48:28.428
EJ
Newcomer to the EJ class and training alongside teammate Matthew Phillips, Bacon has left Toowoomba today with two deserving titles under his belt! Bacon lead the charge today to finish just shy of 50 seconds ahead of second place holder, Joshua Brierley.
“I had an awesome day today ending up in the top ten fastest times for one of the tests. Hopefully we can continue to back up the success this weekend in Dungog next month,” Kyron stated.
Brierley finished today with a time of 41:09.418, with Harrison Teed taking out the final podium position with a time today of 41:53.032. With such a small length of time separating the top three in EJ this weekend, great racing is expected as we head into Rounds 3 & 4 in Dungog, New South Wales (NSW) next month!
AORC EJ Round 2 Provisional Results
- Kyron Bacon (MX Store, KTM) 40:21.778
- Joshua Brierley 41:09.418
- Harrison Teed 41:53.032
- Korey McMahon 42:38.214
- William Price 43:05.254
- Cooper Sheidow 43:38.153
- Riley Nancarrow 44:00.211
- Nathan Howe 44:08.461
- Matthew Pye 44:31.791
- Matt Waters 44:32.447
After a successful weekend hosted by the Toowoomba Motorcycle Club, AORC returns on April 6-7 in Dungog, New South Wales for Rounds 3 & 4 with two days of Enduro formats.
Stay up to date with all the happenings of the 2019 Yamaha Australian Off-Road Championship by visiting the AORC Website at aorc.org.au, or by following the Yamaha AORC on Twitter and Facebook as well as @aorc on Instagram.
Images courtesy of John Pearson Media
