MOMC Club Championship 2021: City Honda Round 1 Highlights

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Groomed tracks, packed pit tents, anxious parents, nerves and excitement - there's nothing quite like race day.

Last Sunday the 2021 Manawatu Orion MC Club Champs kicked off, with riders from around the region taking to the starting gates for an epic days racing out at Flipp MX Park. This first round saw a strong field of riders across the Senior, Junior and Mini's classes, with the tracks looking good after plenty of hard work in behind the scenes.

Above: Tim Coleman returns in fine form (Photo: SL Photography)

Notable highlight's saw City Honda riders Hannah Powell winning the Women's class with 1st place overall finish with Ella Shannon on the podium in 3rd place. In MX1, James Robinson snatched 2nd place, with recently returned rider Tim Coleman taking 3rd.

In MX2, Toby Winiata rode strong to finish in 2nd place, with twins Locky and Zac McKean taking 1st and 2nd respectively in MX3. Starting the champs in fine form in the 65cc (7-8yrs) we also had Jaxx Hunter take 1st place after securing the top spot in all three races.

Above: Hannah Powell finishes strong in 1st Place (Photo: SL Photography)

In the ol' boy classes, we saw James Robinson take 2nd place in the Vets U45, closely followed by Mark Pimm in 3rd. In the Over 45+ Hayden Rankin rounded out the day with a 2nd place podium.

Above: Hayden Rankin on his Honda CRF450R (Photo: SL Photography)

A special mention must also go out to Bisset Honda/City Honda customer Ella Shannon, who recently returning from injury to ride get back on the bike and ride well over the weekend. It's daunting to get back on the bike, so well done!

Above: Ella Shannon returns strong from injury (Photo: SL Photography)

Alongside these achievements, it was great to see riders, customers and staff members across the Vets, Junior, 65cc, 85cc and minis classes all riding well. Our head of Off-Road Parts & Accessories Blair Meyer had a point to say about our riders and the local MX scene in general:

"Getting out to round one [of the club champs] was awesome for us, and everyone involved. To be in behind so many new riders on different bikes and classes is pretty cool. We're just stoked to see everyone having a good time, learning and improving regardless of where they're at with their riding. Having great clubs, shops and people working together continues to make these events better and elevates the level of riding here in the Manawatu."

Above: James Robinson with upcoming talent (Photo: SL Photography)

Above: Cooper Rackham (Photo: SL Photography)

Above: Rhys Rankin finished 7th in Junior 250 (Photo: SL Photography)

Blair noted that while the Honda's are our bike of choice, we're also in behind more riders across different brands than ever before.

"We've got a tonne of customers that don't ride Honda's. We've been working hard to help riders regardless of their bike, and fine tune other aspects where we can. There's so much we've been helping with from set-up and adjustments to assisting with the right parts, gear and knowledge when it comes time to race."

Above: Craig Purves fuels up (Photo: SL Photography)

We must also make a mention to our team members for getting out and helping on the tools under the tent. Blair Meyer (@nzblimmers) and James Tuckey assisted our customers and riders on the day to ensure their bikes were running well and things stayed smooth across the days racing.

Tuckey, a Senior Technician at City Honda brings over 10+ years experience, while Meyer has worked at the pinnacle of racing as the team mechanic for big names including Ben Townley, Cody Cooper, the Suzuki MX Race Team and the Penrite Honda Race Team in Australia.

Above: James Tuckey and Blair Meyer (Photo: SL Photography)

Congrats to everyone who attended and gave it 100 out there in the weekend and to all our loyal customers, we can't thank you enough for standing behind us.

Special mention must go out to the MOMC and their committee for putting on the day, the team at Flipp MX Park for the track and venue, Stevie Lamb from SL Photography for her stunning captures of the event and to all the parents who got their kids out of bed to the day on time!

We look forward to seeing you out at the next round.

City Honda Round 1 Highlights

Sorry in advance to those we missed, including the mini's (which weren't available at the time of this post). For official results, visit MOMC SpeedHive here.

MX1