Testing weather conditions and proper 50km laps at Australian Off Road Championship round three don’t stop Daniel Milner taking the Dungog win.
 

Conditions went from awesome to punishing in one day at Dungog, New South Wales for round three of the 2020 Yamaha Australian Off-Road Championship (AORC) – round four cancelled due to the wet stuff. 

Facing a proper timecard enduro of eight laps stretching nearly 50km per lap, competitors tackled tacky, grassy conditions before the rain rolled in, throwing a curveball and testing each rider’s physical and mental perseverance.

At the end of a tough and in the end wet and muddy day, Yamaha Active8 Yamalube’s Luke Styke topped E1, KTM Enduro Racing Team’s Daniel Milner in E2 and Husqvarna Enduro Racing Team’s Daniel Sanders headed E1.

E1 battle goes to determined Styke

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Rounds one and two in Toowoomba saw Luke Styke and Mason Semmens trading blows for the E1 class win and the pair again dominated the test times in Dungog with a foot injury seemingly not an issue on the lengthy course. 

Clocking in an accumulated total time of 41:09, Styke took out first place ahead of Semmens, by just over 40 seconds. Rounding out the podium for Round 3 was 2019 EJ Champion, Kyron Bacon who finished with a total time of 43:28.

“Today was tough at round lunchtime when the rain rolled in,” said Styke. “Overall though I’m really happy with how today went. The tracks were tight and technical to begin with and after the sun came out in the morning we got a couple great runs in. But once the rain started, the conditions were super slippery.”

E2 for Milner

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Daniel Milner set the record straight with fitness and form taking a clean sweep in the timing sheets in the tests, class and overall. The 2019 E2 Champion finished round three with a total time of 39:31 to take the overall fastest time of the day.

Michael Driscoll continued his impressive streak from Toowoomba to finish second to Milner. With a total time of 41:20, Driscoll beat coach and fellow Yamaha racer Josh Green by just over nine seconds. Green rode into the third and final podium position for today, with a total time of 41:29.

“I am stoked with how today went,” explained Driscoll. “The conditions were great in the morning and got tough after midday but I was able to push on and stick it to the big boys who train full time. It really drives home to me that I am doing something right.”

Sanders sweet in E3 

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It sounds like Daniel Sanders had a quiet day by his own standards but a total time of 40:45 placed him on top of the E3 class and over 50 seconds ahead of Jonte Reynders taking a solid P2. Rounding out the podium in E3 today was fan favourite Fraser Higlett with a total time of 42:19.

Gardiner works hard for Women’s win

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Reigning Champion, Jessica Gardiner clocked an out of character early test time while Emelie Karlsson and Emi Ruprecht smashed out fast times. But as the day progressed though and the rain rolled in, Gardiner showed her class and pushed through for the win over 40s clear.

Karlsson slid into second place with a total time of 50:24, ahead of Emma Milesevic, who claimed third ahead of Ruprecht with a total time of 52:47. 

“I had a pretty good day,” explains Gardiner. “It was a lot of fun this morning, we were spoilt with no dust and perfect conditions and being a timecard format it was really good out there.

“We had a lot of fun on the trail too but when the rain came though it made things very interesting. It came down to who could stay upright and keep those wheels spinning. Overall it was tough, so I’m really happy to take the win considering the challenging conditions.”

2020 AORC Round 3 E1 results:

  1. Luke Styke (Yamaha Active8 Yamalube) 41:09
  2. Mason Semmens (KTM Enduro Racing Team) 41:52
  3. Kyron Bacon (MXstore, Yamaha Motor Australia) 43:28
  4. Corey Hammond 44:16
  5. Joshua Kilvington 46:07
  6. Lachlan Allan (Kawasaki Motors Australia Valvoline Team) 46:30
  7. Kye Malone 47:25
  8. Jeremy Franklin 52:05

E2 Results:

  1. Daniel Milner (KTM Enduro Racing Team) 39:31
  2. Michael Driscoll (bLU cRU Off-Road Racing Team) 41:20
  3. Josh Green (Yamaha Active8 Yamalube) 41:29
  4. Broc Grabham 42:23
  5. Jeremy Carpentier (Yamaha Ballards MXstore Off-Road Racing Team) 42:41
  6. Todd Waters (Berry Sweet, Husqvarna) 42:46
  7. Andy Wilksch (Husqvarna Enduro Racing Team) 42:49
  8. Beau Ralston (Hunter Valley Motorsport, Kawasaki) 42:51
  9. Stefan Granquist (Yamaha Motor Australia) 42:53
  10. Cooper Sheidow (Kessner Motorcycles, KTM) 43:10

E3 Provisional Results:

  1. Daniel Sanders (Husqvarna Enduro Racing Team) 40:45
  2. Jonte Reynders (Motul Pirelli Sherco Off-Road Racing Team) 41:36
  3. Fraser Higlett (RJR Shopfitting, Husqvarna) 42:19
  4. Hayden Keeley 43:04
  5. Matt Murry 44:38
  6. Simon Cox 47:04
  7. Luke Bunnik (Motul Pirelli Sherco Off-Road Racing Team) 47:37
  8. Ethan Baillie 47:42
  9. Daniel Welsh 48:16
  10. Chris Reading 49:04

Women’s Results:

  1. Jessica Gardiner (Yamaha Ballards MXstore Off-Road Racing Team) 49:41
  2. Emelie Karlsson (Yamaha Motor Australia) 50:24
  3. Emma Mileseivc (Penrite Honda) 52:47
  4. Emi Ruprecht 57:34
  5. Julie Denyer (Dn and Mg Denyer) 1:01:25
  6. Avril Gill 1:08:28
  7. Kaitlyn Hall (Halls Transport Repairs) 1:08:29

 

AORC 2020 is scheduled to continue at Nowra on April 18-19 – subject to obvious changes due the Coronavirus.

More information: AORC.org.au 

 

Photo Credit: AORC/Troy Pears