Kawasaki Motorcycles Central Coast

Image Motorcycles has announced the formation of its '09 Race Team. Image Race Team manager, William Russell, said...

The team will compete in various off-road disciplines including MX, Flat Track & Minikhana."

Image Motorcycles would like to welcome all new members to the 2010 Race Team & wish them every success!

I was 3rd into first corner in the first moto, got past by a couple of riders but I rode hard to fight my way back to finishing 3rd. 2nd moto - bad start. Finished 6th. 3rd moto - finished 4th.

Track was single line racing, & hard to overtake from 2nd moto. Marzocchi forks and Fox shock really good but still working on the setup. The KX65 is running really well which is helping me with my riding and I am very happywith my set up. My training with Craig Anderson has improved my cornering speed and braking, which is helping me.

On 28^th March we competed in the first of the Minikhana Interclub Series held at Junior Trials track. We had a huge turn out of competitors with 128 riders competing. It was a very hot day, and the dust made the event areas dry and slippery. In Ring Bending I came 1^st, in Orange 2^nd, Accelerate and Brake 3^rd, and in Non-Footing Clover I missed placing. In the final event of the day, Motocross, which was Junior Combined A-Grade, the premier class, I finished 2^nd. The racing was incredibly tight with everyone giving it their all and all the spectators enjoyed the race a lot. I finished the day in 1^st position with 50 points, Tom second with 47 points, and Shaun in 3^rd place.

On the 20^th March we competed in Round 1 of the Sprint Series at Inverell, NSW. The weather was very hot and dry, and the track was incredibly dusty. The very fine dust hid deep ruts which made the conditions tricky but fun for some keen competition between the 81 attending riders. The first part of the track was very tight and twisty, opening out into long fast straights. We rode seven timed heats throughout the day. In the Girls Division I placed 3^rd for the day.

On Sunday, we had Round 2 in a Cross Country format, meaning that we rode a one hour race with 1 compulsory fuel pit stop. Again the conditions were very hot and dusty, but this time all 23 riders went out together on the track, making visibility virtually nil at times, but as the track was very open and long it made for some very exciting racing! We all finished the day very dirty and dusty but I finished in 3^rd place again for Round 2, and 7^th outright. So I am currently holding down 3^rd place in the Series.

JT Round 2 Point Score Minikhana / Minicross - 14th March (Britt & Courtney)

On the 14^th March we had our second club round of Minikhana and Motocross. In the morning we competed in Ring Bending (placed 1^st), Slow (placed 1^st), Accelerate and Brake (placed 1^st) and Ring Return (placed 2^nd). I finished first overall for the day on 63 points, so at this moment I am in outright first place at the club for this series. In the afternoon’s Motocross series, of the 4 races completed I placed 1^st in one and 2^nd in the other 3, puting me into 2^nd position at the end of the day (and 3^rd outright for the club series on 40 points, behind Zac on 47 points and Dale on 41 points.)

I again competed in Miniwheel Division 1 in Ring Bending (placed 1^st), Slow (placed 1^st), Accelerate and Brake (placed 2^nd) and Ring Return (did not place.) This put me into 2^nd position for the day, on 44 points , behind Sky on 63 points, so I am sitting in 2^nd place for the series on 119 points, after Sky on 125 points.

In the afternoon Motocross Series I came second in all 4 races, finishing the day with 22 points and holding down 2^nd place overall. This puts me into second place for the series, on 44 points, behind Sky on 50 points.

On 7^th February we had JT Combined Senior and Junior Club Enduro Round 1. Following a week of rainy weather, the track was very wet and muddy, with some really deep ruts and mud puddles which were very tricky for all riders. There was great competition between all riders with everyone putting in a great effort and getting incredibly dirty. In the Girls division I placed 1^st, and overall I finished 9^th out of 45 riders.

Hi – its Courtney 162. My Enduro track was covered in huge puddles which got us all pretty wet! I had a great ride with no stacks and everyone had a fun day with lots of good competition. I finished 1^st in my division, Miniwheels Div 1.

Dirt Bike Promotion - Final Round of the Stadium Motocross Series Date: 13/3/2010 Rider: Caprice Russell

Lying in bed hearing the rain flog down all night gave me and idea of how the track was going to play this morning. Driving into the drive way of Maitland showground and sliding in the mud trying to find a car park painted a perfect picture for me of what the track would look like. After setting the tent up just before the rain hit again, I could sit down and watch a couple of divisions do their practice prior to when I was due for mine.

PRACTICE: Five laps of practice gave me a fair understanding of the track and how it was going to flow for the day, sliding every where and not being able to get much air anywhere, but I did manage to stay up right on the bike. I felt awesome and confident that today was going to be a hell of a fun day.

RACE 1: Dad and I were lined up on the gate hiding under the umbrella from the rain, the gates dropped and I didn’t get a perfect start but I managed to stay on the bike and make 8 laps in a comfortable 3rd slowly gaining on a second. The KX250F felt good and did not feel “boggy” anywhere considering how muddy it was. The chequered flag came out and I got third place and dropped the bike on the finishing jump, I got back up and looked around to find the other riders had made the same mistake in the corner that I did. So the embarrassment wasn’t that bad.

RACE 2: The rain was still set in and was not going anywhere but I was extremely happy to line up because I had plenty of confidence in myself for another podium finish. I was running in at fourth place trying to stay up right on the bike, I was having a hell load of fun dueling with the other rider in third place. I realised I had a certain corner down pat and could get her on it. Coming into the corner I could see that there were three main lines - she took the 2^nd line so I ducked down into the first rut and twisted the throttle. The bike got me out of the corner with no problems, the rider and I came together for a little bit in the short space of the corner to the finish line but my adrenalin was running high and I held the throttle on hard and took 3^rd place from the other contender. On the side of the track I pulled over to shake the other riders hand and say how she rode and awesome race. In return I got a SH*T load of roost to the face! But it did not bother me because I knew I had a great race and a podium finish.

RACE 3: It had stopped raining and the track was in perfect form, I lined up at the start gates hoping to take an outside run around the whole corner. I got pushed out more than what I thought, and had to roll off the throttle and then I quickly ducked up the middle, the line was really good and gave me an awesome run up to do the massive row of whoops. I sat in a comfortable third and was able to start doubling a few jumps. The race went really well and I was extremely happy with how the KX250F was 1000% in the mud. It felt great to get up on the podium and thank Image; Motul; Pirelli etc for their help and support for the series. Finally, I am happy to inform everyone that I finished the series in 5^th place overall. I am so proud of my achievement, as this is my first NSW open championship. Catch ya next week.. LOVE CAPRICE RUSSELL #893

Heddon Greta’s Caprice Russell admits she could have played netball like a “normal girl”.

But Russell said the adrenalin rush of racing a motorbike through a dirt track, over jumps and through loops was too much to pass up.

That’s why the 16-year-old Kurri Kurri High School student will hop on her bike and engage in her passion this Saturday night in the final round of the 2010 Stadium MX Series at Maitland Showground.

Russell, who leads the women’s division at the Maitland District Motorcycle Club after two rounds, is placed in the top five after rounds of the MX Series at Bathurst and Orange.

“I’m going really well in the club events and have finished on the podium in both, but the MX Series is a whole different level,” she said.

“I’m racing against the best in NSW and I’ll be happy if I finish in fifth spot overall.

“It’ll be good to race at Maitland because it’s my local track and I’m hoping a lot of my friends and family will come out to cheer me on.”

Maitland District Motorcycle Club’s new track was torn up by more than 240 riders in the first round of the point score series on Sunday.

The riders were made up of 130 juniors and 118 seniors, with full bike grids and 14 race classes run.

Riders had previously been offered a practice run on the Rutherford track in early February, but because of poor weather it was washed.

As a result, for many of the competitors it was their first time around the new layout and subsequently several riders had heavy falls. Those who didn’t come unstuck and finished with a clean sweep of their respective classes included Cody Hayter from the 50cc division and Jarrod Ramsay from the nine to 13-years 65cc class.

Blake Parker claimed the nine to 12-years 85cc, Troy Main swept the 12-years 85cc and Billy Wilson won the 13 to 16-years 85cc.

The Junior Lites 15-years was won by Jacob Harding, Brian Steel won the over 35-years and Michael West won the over 45-years.

The premier racing class, the senior Lites A-grade, was won by Michael Parker and Heddon Greta rider Caprice Russell took out the women’s class after racing in the Stadium Motocross Series at Orange the day before.

Motorcycle club media

liaison officer Peta Ramsay said the number of riders who

registered on Sunday morning came as a shock.

“There were more riders there than we expected,” she said.

“There were a lot of new members and while the juniors still had more than the seniors, we have seen a spike in senior riders since last year.”

Ramsay said the changes to the track included table tops and jumps.

“We altered the track around Christmas,” she said.

“We changed the start straight and added some more jumps and table tops to make the track more interesting.”

Round two of the series will be held on March 7 at the track with riders expected to be able to traverse the trails better the second time around.

“Unfortunately, practice for the new track was washed out, but by the time the second round rolls around, competitors will be more familiar with the track and they will know what to expect,” Ramsay said.

The seven-round series is due to conclude on September 12, with a presentation day scheduled for December 5.

From 6:00 am Sunday morning I was all hyped up ready for not only the first race meet of the year but the first open race meet.

Practice: All ready for practice - dad and I walked my bike up to the line giving me a prep talk top the whole way. I was pretty nervous, knowing I was going to be racing some of the best riders in NSW. It went really well. I felt quick & dad also said I looked quick. I had a few goals that I was determined to succeed at before I started race 1... that was to clear the centre and do the triples. Lets just say my mum and dad were not disappointed one bit. I was so pumped for race 1, now knowing that I could hit the centre and make it over with ease. With no suspension work done yet, the KX250F still felt awesome!

Heat 1: It was so hot that it was uncomfortable to sit on the line and wait for the gates to drop, but in no time I was out of the gates and heading up the hill in a good position clearing all the jumps and making good passes. Over all I was happy with the way I rode. I knew I was safe with the power of the green machine under me. There were only 6 girls in a full class of Snr Lites. All these boys knew they needed their points to move to A/B grade and there was nothing stopping them. I just focused on doing well against the other girls, 2 of which were probably 2 of the quickest girls in Australia, that being Tori Dare and Amy Boyd. The other thing my mind was focused on was getting through the heats and making the final which was going to be difficult with 2 massive grids of Snr lites heats.

Heat 2: I was going really well, I was keeping good pace and gaining on riders. Third lap I came around to go past the start line and lost control in the slippery corner. I tried to ride it out but ended up going head first into the ground, giving myself not only a half a lap I had to catch up but also another couple of bruises to the body. Trust me to go down in front of the whole crowd and give my parents a heart attack. Still I jumped up and finished the race. I was over the moon when I found out I still qualified for the finals even with the stack.

Final: Yep with all my luck going the right way something had to go wrong just for the day to go right. It went from 43 degrees to storming weather with the track filling up with water fast. It was a mud bath out there and bikes were pulling off because they couldn’t see. I went threw heaps of tear offs and ended pulling my goggles off. I was happy to finish the race with out falling off. Just finishing was a massive achievement especially when a lot of the riders no matter how good they are, were giving up. Some riders didn’t even start because they didn’t want to ride in the mud... To me, it was all experience and training.

First race day of the year and the bike was fantastic. I could not fault the bike at all, even though it was still standard. Everyone was asking how the new bike went and I rated in 15/10.

COFFS HARBOUR STADIUM MOTOCROSS 23RD JANUARY 2010

*2009 Minikhana State Championship 85cc A-Grade 3rd place Wyong *N.S.W championship minikhana 85cc 2st & 150cc 4st 3rd place *N.S.W championship junior girls open 2nd place

Well it is a great result on my Kawasaki 85cc. I would like to thank Image Motorcycles for their support throughout the season of 2009, and hopefully I can give great results for 2010.

On the 24th of October, 2009 at the Minikhana State Championships, the winners for overall 2009 Minikhana Interclub Series were announced. Seven competitive & hard fought rounds of the Interclub Series were raced over the season. Seven clubs competed in the series.

Image Race Team member, Britt Rubie riding a Kawasaki KX85 was announced Winner in the 85cc class for the whole series. Britt competes for the Junior Trials Minicycle Club, Gwandalan.

On the 2nd of August we had the Hornsby Minikhana Interclub enduro. Similar to my great results the week before,this week I placed 3rd on the poduim, in my division. Overall I came 21st out of 87th starters. Fantastic results.

ROUND 1
At the Tri series it was a big challenge for everybody, including me.
At the first round it was very muddy all day long. With the rain's falling after practice, there were only 2 rounds held on the day due to the weather.
I got 1st in both races with no challenge at all by the other competitors riding.
My Kawa 85 and the Yamaha 85 little wheel rider, with the number 201, were tied with equal points after the officials call the day off, due to closing weather, that had put a lot of strain on the competitors and machine's.

ROUND 2
The practice round was good, but then once again the heavy rain came back to the track.
It was wet and i steeped off my bike in the first race, i came fourth.
In the second race, i came first.
In the thrid race, i came third with the bike having a hard time gettting off the start.
In the fourth race i came second, how i do not know, as the bike was lacking a bit of power.
Well i was still happy with my result for the day.

ROUND 3
What a day, protested in the first race by a rider. The officials re-ran the race as the kid that protested believed i used my Hole shot button, (my dad did put the button in but i released the button by using my front brake and pussing down on the front end of the bike).
The race was re-run and i beat the kid again.
The remainder of the day i got 2nd in the last 3 races, which gave me the second place trophy.

On the 25th and 26th of July I had the NSW junior enduro. Well on Saturday it was a very exciting day as the rain had been falling three days before so u could imagine what the track was like. There was big ruts with lots of water in them but other then that the track was not too bad to ride on. I had a great day, with it showing as I walked away with a second place in the girls divison. Well on Sunday the conditions were a lot better as they removed a bog hole. As I was a bit sore from Saturday, where we had to do four rounds of about 30 minute runs. But Sunday we only had to do three rounds of 30 minute runs. It was also a great day. I walked away with a third place. So after the two days it was a fantastic weekend. I was very pleased with my results and my riding.

On the 3rd May we had the Blacktown Minikhana Interclub. We had five events. I got a 1st, 2nd & 3rd. I had to work hard for my ribbons. At the end of the day I got 3rd place overall,so I was excited about that.

The Junior Trials Club end up winning with the most points. It was a fantastic day.

On the weekend at Junior Trials we had the Round 2 of the Tri Club MX Series. Well I had a great day. We had 4 rounds of Motocross and I got Two firsts and Two Seconds.The weather was not the best, we had alot of rain but it made the track great to ride on. I had Four great races. It was a very Enjoyable day.

Race 1: Started in grip position 10 & had terrific start. Held position into corner 1 & exited in position 3 which was held to finish. Kept pace with leaders & was pulling away from rest of field.

Race 2: Started in grip position 8. Poor start. Towards rear of pack into 1st corner. Pushed hard & fought back to finish 5th.

Race 3: Grip position 10 again. Awful start! Somehow managed to wheelstand bike, slipping off back in process but managed to hang on, running behind! Gave the field a good 50m start but in 4 laps managed to climb from last to 9th.

Race 4: Grid position 6. Yet another terrible start, having trouble with the drop-down gates. Again fought through field & finished 7th.

Overall bike handled great & my confidence grows each meeting. Happy at the way I was able to work through the heavy traffic. Just have to work on my starts!

"The kid from Lake Munmorah made his return to the mini cross track after a full year away from Junior Trials.

Jesse returned on the 15th of February to compete in the series being hosted by Junior Trials, with the clubs of Hornsby and Karringui also competing to see who could triumph.

As Jesse arrived in the car park with his new Image Race Team Monster Kawasaki, there were mixed emotions from all that looked on, some over the moon to see the return of Jesse Theil while others where horrified to see the awesome machine he was to ride.

All was not well at first, as the grading officers where not sure where to place the Image Race Team member, as they knew full well that Jesse had been racing full Motor cross, with top 10 finishes in all motors over the year in the three clubs and coming home with 2 first place and 1 second place trophy in (b) grade 65cc. They finally decided that Jesse should be placed in the 85cc (B) grade for the series.

All who new Jesse from prior years in the culb, looked on with amazment when they saw the little man step up to the line on an 85cc, knowing Jesse to be only 9 years old! He was going to take on the best in (B) grade, with most of the other riders being 12 years old.

At the start, Jesse waited in silence until his race was called, knowing that all the presure was on him as his team mate Britainy had to retire due to the very wet conditions of the day. Jesse pushed his bike to the line, as others rode their bikes. Comments where called out, but Jesse's spirit could not be broken as he looked at me and stated wonder what are they going to feel and think like when he crossed the line first.

Race 1

The track was a mess and rain proceeded to fall, the elastic gate start was released and Jesse dug deep and released the clutch. Two of the four riders exploded off the line into the muddy unknow, with the older rider on the right side of Jesse full of confidence. He did not know the younger man on his left would stand his ground and hold his Kawasaki at full noise.
It was on with both riders rubbing shoulders to about 10m from the first table top in a complete off camber mud power slide with the older rider backing off the noise. He was to complete the race in the wake of Jesse. The older rider challanged Jesse twice on the first lap but was to stay in second place when Jesse let loose, riding in the standing position over the back wheel and railing berms and jumps like the track was in dry condition. By the end of the race jesse was over a third of a lap in front of the remainig riders.

Race 2

Race two was out of controll with Jesse to prove a point that he is one of the best and will beat all that challange him in Mini cross. Jesse come across the finish line well over half a lap infront of the second place getter. The racing from Jesse was summed up by one of the other fathers from Honsby who stated that his son is 12 years of age and had never been beaten until today in the (b) grade division. Today he was out classed by a younger, more hungery rider. The father approched Jesse and said "thank you young man, it's been a pleasure to watch you ride today and the only thing I have left to say is you are the crazy little white boy we have all missed around the mini cross tracks!"

Russell ready to tear up the track

Track tests riders

From 6:00 am Sunday morning I was all hyped up ready for not only the first race meet of the year but the first open race meet.

First race day of the year and the bike was fantastic. I could not fault the bike at all, even though it was still standard. Everyone was asking how the new bike went and I rated in 15/10.

COFFS HARBOUR STADIUM MOTOCROSS 23RD JANUARY 2010