A duel of dirt bike disciplines was settled when enduro ace Rory Mead headed off motocross champion Michael Phillips to win the Te Puke Endurocross on Saturday.
The two-wheel extreme event was being staged for the second time as part of the Te Puke A&P Show and saw Taupo-based Mead ride
his 250cc Yamaha through the field to take the lead on the final lap.
The course packed 20 obstacles including rocks, sand, tyres, car bodies and logs into an arena venue. But Mead, 24, said the most difficult part of the track was the start line.
In each of his four races he was last away from the dead-engine start.
"It didn't go like I'd planned. I got another bad start," said Mead after the final. "I didn't think I would get to the front. I had to chase Mikey hard."
Mead usually races enduro events, often riding for three hours and in some cases for multiple days. He said the Endurocross was an intense contest. "It was very hard. Your bike and your body take a hammering," he said. "I think I've felt better after three hour races than after those 10 minutes.
The Coastline Honda Endurocross is a hybrid of enduro racing, which is usually staged in forests and farmland, along with elements of moto trials and supercross. It also attracts riders from across the different two-wheel disciplines.
Phillips, the two-time MX2 national motocross champion became the first top-level motocross racer to compete at the Te Puke endurocross.
Mead took the lead from Phillips as the battling pair began the final lap. More than half a lap back in third place was last year's runner-up Karl Power (Auckland) riding a Honda 250 with Aucklander Mike Skinner on a KTM 300 taking fourth ahead of leading Tauranga enduro rider Reece Burgess on a 450cc Husaberg.
From a field of 30 riders, the others to qualify for the eight-rider final were Te Puke brothers Chris and Phil Singleton and 15-year-old Taupo rider Greg de Latour, who battled on after a heavy mid-race tumble.
