The biennial King of the Hill motocross was no ride in the park as bumpy, dusty and hot conditions evened the playing field.
Lack of moisture meant the more powerful and modified dirt bikes struggled to gain traction on the steep and slippery Mt Heslington farm property at Brightwater.
“It was brutal out there. The hill was owning it,” Moto Xevents organiser and race caller Dan Shallcrass kept reminding competitors and fans alike.
The senior riders had four chances to power up the hill, jump the track crossing and push on as far as possible to the top.
The lead kept changing with Golden Bay’s Tobie Busbridge holding a narrow advantage at the half-way stage.
Nelson’s Luke Heaphy surged past early in the third round on the 450 KTM that he was sharing with his younger brother Connor, who was competing in the senior ranks for the first time.
“You are going through the long grass and all of a sudden right in front of you, there is a hole as deep as your wheel. The competition seems pretty close this year, super tight and it was nice to be right up there with Luke,” declares Connor.
Their bike belonged to their father Bryan, who won the inaugural King of the Hill in 2018 and was the race starter on Sunday.
“At least Connor didn’t damage the bike,” quips Bryan, who was threatening to get back on it himself during the day.
From brother on brother, to workmate on workmate, when Motueka’s Aidan Limmer briefly made his move to the lead on a borrowed electric bike, looking to upstage his Infield Engineers colleague and defending champion Brad Gale.
“It was pretty windy, so dry and I was really struggling with traction early on. It was suiting the smaller bikes,” says Brad.
So, the engineering apprentice switched from second to third gear and his 180 horsepower modified ‘Beast’ blitzed his rivals to seize the lead for the first time.
But just when Brad looked like getting to the top of the hill, his clutch started slipping in a repeat of 2024.
That opened the door for Tobie to charge back on his modified CR 500.
“I extended the back of the bike because I used to get really bad front wheel lift and too much torque. It was an absolute gamechanger, and I knew I had more in me and that Brad was having mechanical problems,” says the Collingwood builder, who was trying to nail the title at his third attempt.
He surged higher up the hill than the defending champion who then lost his clutch completely barely 100 metres into his fourth and final run and had to settle for second place behind Tobie.
“It was bloody fantastic to knock the hill off as I didn’t do so well in 2024. It was super fun even on a hot and dusty day and it will make those beers afterwards so much sweeter,” declares the 36-year-old victor, who also competes in motocross and vintage motorcycle events.
He took home the $1500 first prize money which third placed Luke had been hoping to land to help fund his trip to Auckland this weekend.
The 21-year-old will switch to a 250cc bike to compete in the second of the Australian AUSX Supercross Championship which will return to New Zealand for the first time in seven years at North Harbour Stadium.
