Riding as a senior for the first time, Inverell motocross rider Harrison Smith held nothing back when he took on the South East Queensland Series this month.
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With an impressive show of speed, Smith won two of the four races in the MX 2 Class, finally taking home the winning trophy after a strong final round at Tivoli MX outside Brisbane on November 5.
“It was really good to win it,” Smith said, admitting that his expectations for his first senior year had been non-existent. He said his wins on the Bundaberg MX track (Central QLD) and Coolum MX (Sunshine Coast) were the biggest highlights.
“He’s 16 and some of the people he’s just raced against and beaten are in their early 20s or even late 20s,” his mother Christina Smith pointed out with pride.
Bundaberg was a competitive track, but Smith started strong, and used that to his advantage to stay in front of the pack.
“Once I got out front, it was a pretty good race,” he said.
Coolum’s sand track was a challenge, and became more difficult as the day went on as the tires of hundreds of riders created an even rougher course. Smith said it was definitely the hardest race of the four.
“Riding on the sand takes a lot out of your body and definitely works you a lot harder,” he said.
Winning Coolum was a surprise for Smith, who hadn’t expected to perform particularly well on the tough track.
Motocross has been a life long love for the Inverell High School year 12 student, who first got on a Peewee 50 at just five-years-old. His favourite aspect of the sport is the travel and the chance to race against other speed-lovers.
His parents are always supportive of his motocross career, “No matter what’s happening, we always get to the races and everyone helps out,” Smith said.
Smith has his eye on the future, and is already planning for some off season training in the hopes of raising the stakes next year, with even bigger events. Keen to take on a few rounds in the Australian Championships, Smith is ready to find out if he can keep the pace with the country’s top riders.
Christina also thanked local mechanic Michael Donnelly for his ongoing support.