BATTLE ON TOTPAK NATIONAL OFF-ROAD CHAMPIONSHIPS

Stefan Swanepoel goes through the river with his quadbike.

MBABANE – The fights for the national championship titles of the 2015 Totpak National Off-road Motorcycle and Quad Championships are on.

This, after new winners emerged at the Swazi Cowboyz 400, the second round of the national series that took place in Mhlambanyatsi on Saturday. It was a tough race for competitors who had to work hard on the scenic, but challenging route that took them from the Usutu Forest Country Club through the forests and mountains in the area.

Two of the biggest and most competitive classes in this year’s national championship series, OR3 in the motorcycle category and Q1 in the quad category, were won by a Swanepoel – no relation at all – with Brett Swanepoel (Proudly Bidvest Yamaha) clinching his second OR3 victory of the season while Stefan ‘Swanie’ Swanepoel stormed to victory in Q1 to claim his first national win since his return to the series after a break of a few years.

The starting positions were determined by the time-trial where Brett started taking control by posting the fastest time. He then steamed on to claim the OR3 victory ahead of Jarryd Coetzee (Brother Leader Tread KTM) with local Swaziland rider, Jonathan van Wyk (Coetzee’s teammate) finishing on the podium to the delight of his home crowd. Darren MacLeod (D&H Engineering Works Yamaha) finished fourth with Botswana rider, Dartagnan Lobjoit (Yamaha) fifth.

Battle

In Q1, Stefan and the defending champion, Brian Baragwanath (Proudly Bidvest Yamaha) were in a race-long battle, but Baragwanath, who also had a few flat tyres, then experienced mechanical problems on the last of the six loops and had to settle for third place with André Park, who also posted the fastest time-trial result on his  Yamaha, claiming the second place.

The race took its toll on the quad competitors and only one more rider – Jaco Moller (Extreme ATV Tzaneen Yamaha) – eventually made it to the finish in this class albeit being towed in by his younger sister, Wilmari who was competing in the Ladies Class. Their dad feared that he might have forgotten to fill sholar Wilmari’s Honda and gave Big Brother Jaco a tow-rope just in case he had to tow Wilmari. In the end it was Wilmari who towed her brother to the finish while she went on to win the Ladies Quad Class ahead of Karen Geldenhuys (Abacus DIVISIONS Racing Can-Am) with another scholar, Jade Schutte (Yamaha) completing 300 kilometres to round off the podium. The Can-Am of class leader, Liezel Barnard (Barnard Vervoer) broke down just after the halfway mark.

Only one Senior Class rider, Stuart Freeman (Yamaha) managed to finish the race despite a huge scare when he crashed down a steep hill. More riders finished the race in the Master Class (they had to complete 240 kilometres) where Tony dos Santos (Factory Racing Suzuki) took his first victory of the season.

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