Senior team member Shane Metcalfe was especially looking forward to the weekend after some brake fade problems prevented him from reaching the top ten in the first round.

The likeable South Australian said, "Just as I started to feel comfortable on the track I started to go a little quicker in the hope of securing a top three qualifying time. Unfortunately the back brake started fading again and so had to slow a little and only qualified 10th.

"Moto 1 I got off to a bad start, I then got into rhythm and was moving up through the field. At the half way mark my brakes then failed which caused me to ride a little cautiously but I stuck with it to finish in 14th position.

“Moto 2 saw me get off to a better start, and I rode as smoothly and consistently as I could. I was hunting down the guys in front before the race was red flagged due to a race accident. On the re-start I was set back off the start leaving me to dig deep and work my way back through the pack. I pushed to the end and finished in a strong 10th place. Overall I am very pleased with my results today and look forward to Toowoomba in a few weeks time.”

Teenager Toby Price wasn’t as happy as Shane, having suffered a blow to his weekend after a reasonable practice and qualifying session. "Practice went pretty well, the bike’s really good and I enjoyed the track layout, once I got used to how slippery it was out there. I managed 20th pick of the gate, which doesn’t sound that good, but the times are really close in this class this year.

"I got a really good start in Moto 1 and was circulating for the first few laps in 7th. Then on the fourth lap I got T-boned by another rider in a corner. He pushed me off the track and I lost the front wheel into a big berm and went over the bars. Another bike, trying to avoid the carnage came up over the berm and ran me over square across my arm, back and head.

“I picked up my bike and got it going, but as I tried to re-enter the race I realised I couldn’t grip the left handlebar properly so I had to pull in. I’ve got a severely bruised left forearm and a bit of bark missing where the other bike hit me, but I’ll be back on my practice bike in a couple of days so nothing’s going to stop me getting to Toowoomba!"

Team Green Co-ordinator Ross McWatters obviously felt disappointed that Shane’s brake problems have not yet been resolved but believes they cured it for the second race. "We fitted the rear calliper off Toby’s KX250-F to Shane’s bike and he didn’t suffer from brake fade in the second moto. However the temperature had dropped so we’ll do more testing and will have a cure by the next round. Once we gave Shane a bike he could ride fast for the whole moto he went reasonably well… it was a pity it was red-flagged and he didn’t get a good restart.

“Toby on the other hand was going really well on the KX250-F, when his run of bad luck hit him again. To be T-boned and run over is just plain bad luck. However, he bounces pretty well, so we’re sure he’ll be back to full fitness by Toowoomba.”

The Kawasaki Racing Team will next be in action at Round Three of the Australian Motocross Championship at Toowoomba, Qld on May 1st. See you there.