Gardiner, Chibnall and Widdison flex their Muscle at Hedley Supersprint

A tough dry and dusty track faced the riders at Round Three of the Yamaha Australian Off-Road Championship (AORC), it was Jessica Gardiner who fought through the conditions to take out the Womens class. Richard Chibnall was a class above in the Veterans whilst Michael Widdison outlasted his competition to take the masters honours.

Womens
Jessica Gardiner has pushed through the tough tricky conditions at Hedley to claim the Womens class, backing up her win at A4DE last month. Gardiner put together three solid Supersprints on her Yamaha to record a time of 1:12:29.316. Jemma Wilson had to settle for second after pushing through the dust aboard her Yamaha to finish the day just over 12 seconds a drift of Gardiner. Rounding out the podium on her new Sherco was Sophie Coldicutt, who continues to impress this season and will be looking to catch Gardiner and Wilson in tomorrow’s sprints.

Gardiner had a few offs, but happy to get the result, “I had a few crashes in the first two Supersprints, but when I got back I spoke with a few others and they crashed too which made me feel better. In the last Supersprint I knew I had to stay upright to make up the time I needed, which I did and that helped me get the job done and we now look forward to tomorrow,” said Gardiner.

Veterans
Chibnall proved to be a class above in the veteran’s division, putting his KTM clear of the pack by just under five minutes. Jade Gartlan on his Gas Gas had the job of trying to reel Chibnall in but he just couldn’t find the same speed as Chibnall and had to settle for second. The last spot on the podium was filled by Peter Rudd, who enjoyed a great tussle with Gartlan but fell just three seconds short of second place.

Masters
In conditions that pushed the pros to the limits, Widdison fought his way through to take out the Masters class on his KTM with a time of 1:15:24.699. Geoffrey Ballard pushed his Husqvarna throughout the three Supersprints and just couldn’t quite match the speed of Widdison, settling for second a further minute and thirty seconds behind. Rounding out the podium was Stephen Boucher, who put in a solid days racing to finish his three Supersprints with a time of 1:17:33.286.

AORC Womens Round 3 Provisional Results
1. Jessica Gardiner (Yamaha MX Store Ballard’s Off-Road Team) 1:12:29.316
2. Jemma Wilson 1:12:41.940
3. Sophie Coldicutt 1:15:59.072
4. Danielle Foot 1:16:18.856
5. Kellie Catanese 1:23:37.876
6. Alisha Major 1:30:40.373
7. Holly Cuneo 1:30:43.098
8. Kasey Major 1:36:31.117
9. Rachelle Dessent 1:38:16.591
10. Emelie Karlsson 1:46:42.351

AORC Veterans Round 3 Provisional Results
1. Richard Chibnall 1:09:35.777
2. Jade Gartlan 1:14:13.301
3. Peter Rudd 1:14:16.866
4. Dean Minichiello 1:14:57.593
5. Marco Kroese 1:15:31.064
6. Darren Lessio 1:16:22.935
7. Paul Chadwick 1:17:01.252
8. Con Privitera 1:18:13.468
9. Iou Stylianou 1:19:02.313
10. Hugh Howarth 1:21:02.378

AORC Masters Round 3 Provisional Results
1. Michael Widdison 1:15:24.699
2. Geoffrey Ballard 1:16:58.711
3. Stephen Boucher 1:17:33.286
4. Peter Schaper 1:17:42.279
5. Andrew Young 1:18:26.085
6. Ray Scott 1:18:58.094
7. Craig Treasure 1:19:30.673
8. Ken Burt 1:19:32.497
9. Hamish Guy 1:19:58.938
10. David Salt 1:20:25.105