Last weekend saw the Beta Motorcycles Australia Race Team take to Mount Misery, VIC, for RD 3 & 4 of the Australian Off-Road Championship.
Riders were met with low temperatures, dusty conditions, highly technical tracks, and long days on the bikes.
For RD 3 on Saturday, riders competed across seven tests in sprint formats, with the Beta Motorcycles Australia team delivering excellent results and podium spots on the first day in Mount Misery.
Wilksch aboard his RR 350 Racing had an incredible day, placing 3rd outright against the nation’s best and 2nd in the highly competitive E2 class.
Coming back from his hand injury, Dickson aboard his RR 480 Racing also performed very well, finishing the day in 6th outright and 2nd in
the E3 class. Higlett, on his RR 480 Racing, finished the day 10th outright and 3rd in the E3 class, finishing just behind Dickson for a 2-3 podium finish for Beta in the E3 class. Kearns also performed well in the E2 class, with a 5th-place finish. Following on from a week of sickness for Nielsen, she did well to compete and finish the day 4th in the EW class.
Sunday saw riders race across 5 tests in sprint formats for RD 4, with riders facing more challenging conditions.
Leading the class in E3 after 3 tests, Dickson unfortunately crashed on the 4th test, losing a minute of valuable time and relinquishing the lead. However, Dickson was still able to secure a podium spot, finishing in 3rd place in E3 just 16 seconds off of 2nd place and 9th place outright.
Wilksch continued to push hard on Sunday, finishing in 4th place in the highly competitive E2 class, under just a minute behind 3rd place and 4th outright. Higlett dropped some pace for RD 4, finishing the final day at Mount Misery in 5th place in the E3 class. Kearns also finished the
final day well, placing 6th in the E2 class. Nielsen, still suffering from her illness, rode consistently and finished the day in 4th place in the EW class.
“A home race for me, with very challenging tracks, with similar characteristics to some of the gruelling tracks I’ve raced in Portugal. I started strong on Saturday and am pleased with how both the bike and I are performing in a short space of time. I’m happy to get good
results on the board and looking forward to building on from here.” Andy Wilksch
“Since sustaining the hand injury in training ahead of RD 1 & 2, I’ve only managed to get a few weeks on the bike so I did struggle with my bike fitness throughout the weekend. However, Saturday went well, but I was off the pace from where I’d like to be. Sunday looked to be a better day with me leading the class after 3 tests, but a crash saw me lose the lead and finish the day 3rd in class. I’m happy to get some good points towards the Championship and build on the fitness before the next race.” – Jye Dickson
Following on from RD 3 & 4 of the 2024 AORC, the Beta Motorcycles Australia team riders are currently placed as follows:
Andy Wilksch – 3rd E2
Ben Kearns – 6th E2
Fraser Higlett – 3rd E3 (tied)
Jye Dickson – 4th E3
Ebony Nielsen – 4th EW
The Beta Motorcycles Australia Race Team head back to Victoria on the 18/19 May for RD 5 & 6 of the Australian Off-Road Championship.