Taupo will again draw the cream of the country's motocross riders this Labour Weekend.
The big annual MX Fest at Taupo traditionally marks the start to the summer season and the event has again attracted all the nation's major racers and teams to the steaming pumice and sand circuit.
The popularity of the two-day spectacular at the Digger McEwen Motorcycle Park on the outskirts of town ensured there won't be a motel bed to spare in the region over the coming days.
With new 2017 model bikes to be tuned and set-up for the upcoming nationals, muscles to be flexed, fresh team line-ups and allegiances to be shaped and tested, and a long weekend in which to do it, the MX Fest heralds the start of what could be another cracking motocross season.
The Huka Honda-sponsored event on Saturday and Sunday brings fresh match-ups, with riders such as Ngatea's Ben Broad, Te Puke's Logan Blackburn, Mangakino's Maximus Purvis, Te Puke's Tyler Steiner, and Tauranga's Rhys Carter, for example, all now flying different colours to last season.